"If I Were You" by L. Ron Hubbard

"If I Were You"
by L. Ron Hubbard
Multicast Performance
produced by Galaxy Audio
approx 2 hours.

It's time once again to jump back in time when authors were paid around three cents a word and pulp magazines in every genre carried thrilling and fun stories. This time we are going to go to the fantasy genre with a couple of stories from the golden age, by L. Ron Hubbard.

Galaxy Audio and Galaxy Press have been re-issuing the short stories from L. Ron Hubbard's writing career of the mid 20th century. Hubbard wrote many stories spanning genres such as Science-Fiction, Fantasy, Sea and Air Adventures, Tales from the Orient, Westerns and more. In this audio book Galaxy Audio has put together 2 stories from the Fantasy genre to create an audio pulp magazine to rival all other pulps.

One of the key features of the Galaxy Audio releases is their super production quality. With original music, and subtle yet effective sound effects these audio books are like a great trip back to the days of radio dramas. The biggest factor in these productions is the superb vocal talents. All the books have a general cast of very talented voice actors that capture the larger than life characters that Hubbard created. In some of the audio books they feature some actors that offer a little more. In this audio book the lead character, circus midget, Little Tom Little, is portrayed by Nancy Cartwright, yes the same one that voices Bart Simpson. It's pretty cool to hear her voice, you recognize her, but as can be expected she can change it up enough to where she can still portray a circus midget without you having to say, "Hey, that's Bart Simpson." At first it does grab your attention but just like all the other voice talent in these audio books by Galaxy Audio it blends in and fits perfectly with the character in the story.

This audio book contains the following two stories.

"If I Were You" originally published in the February 1940 issue Five-Novels Monthly, turns out to be a morality tale of what truly makes a person, soul or stature. Circus attraction and King of the midgets, Little Tom Little is not happy with being a sideshow attraction. Tom wants to be the Ringleader. When the mysterious Professor calls Tom to his deathbed, Tom is amazed, the Professor never really liked him. But the Professor leaves Tom his entire collection of magical books. He tells Tom it's because he had the courage to make fun of the Professor with no fear of retaliation. Tom then goes back to his wife Maisy and tells here it is all about to change. Within the magical tomes is a spell marked specifically for Tom that allows him to jump from body to body.

Tom immediately wants to take advantage of this newfound power and become the circus' ringleader. The problem is that the ringleader Hermann Schmidt is a corrupt person and has been skimming off the top of the profits. This leads to Tom jumping from body to body and eventually landing in the body of the big cat tamer, Tom has a fear of the big cats, and Tom finds himself in giant-sized danger. The fun with this story is the unexpected twists Hubbard is able to throw in that keeps you guessing as to what will happen next.


"The Last Drop" was originally published in Astonishing Stories, November 1941 and is another story of big becoming little or big becoming small, therefore making a great story to accompany the main story. Euclid O'Brien and Harry McCloud are partners in bar ownership in New York. Euclid's Brother Aristotle has sent a bottle of some strange liquid which the natives call "swello." Mac (McCloud) takes the bottle as a dare and mixes an interesting concoction and gulps it down. Euclid warns him that it could mean trouble. Mac says nonsense and walks out the bar with no ill-effects, at least not yet. Soon a fly lands on the concoction and after feasting on the mixture begins to grow. The fly grows to the size of a dog and the patrons, along with Euclid immediately think of Mac. They put together the idea behind the mixture and realize they must mix up something to counter act the growing. After a while they mix up the swello with some other drink items and after testing on a fly have created a drink to reverse the process.

Before they can go after Mac, the local mob boss stops in for his monthly "protection" fee. Euclid is more worried about Mac and tries to get rid of the boss. Well the Boss drinks down the reverse formula and says that Euclid will be sorry, as he leaves. But before he leaves they notice the Boss Shrinking down.

The fun begins as the boss's henchmen demand a fight between Euclid (after being shrunk down) to settle the score. All this while Mac grows to super-size and becomes a threat to New York City.

With some humorous scenes and antics by all the characters this story is a fun one from the Golden Age of Stories.

"Crisis on Infinite Earths" by Marv Wolfman

"Crisis on Infinite Earths"
by Marv Wolfman
Multicast performance
Produced By GraphicAudio 2009
approx 7 hours


Before we dive into this awesome collection of every superhero created by DC comics, let me first say that before I started listening to GraphicAudio productions of DC comic novels I was a Marvel only fan. Sorry Stan, but while I still say "Make mine Marvel," I now append that with, unless it's an audiobook from GraphicAudio.

GraphicAudio does a superb job of creating audiobooks with the best in voice-acting, great music and excellent sound effects. They promise "A Movie in your Mind," and they deliver with a punch.

Now let's talk about this comic series turned novel turned audiobook. Back in the mid-80s DC comics realized they had continuity issues with all their runs of comics. There were different versions of The Flash, Superman never aged, superheroes that had appeared in the early years of comics but never again and many other problems. So to solve this DC and Marv Wolfman came up with the 12 issue series "Crisis on Infinite Earths," which created the "Multi-verse" in which there were different versions of Earth.

Marv Wolfman wrote the comic series and later turned the series into a novel, this novel is what this audio book is based on. In the novel most of the story is told from the Barry Allen version of "The Flash." Barry's nephew, Wally West, became kid flash and after Barry's death became the flash. This story also tells of Barry Allen's death. No, that is not a spoiler because the opening of the book is The Flash witnessing his own death as he is plunged through time via the speed force. The Barry Allen Flash, is the catalyst for this story in that he witnesses the events ahead of time and then is plunged back in time to interact the correct way. One of the things I should mention is that there is lots and lots of time traveling going on in this book. The paradoxes of time are explored and they seem to get by some of the potential problems by the fact that Barry is somewhat of a ghost that is going back and forth through time, sometimes a ghost and sometimes his physical self.

The main idea of the story is that the creation of the multi-verse was an accident by one of the Oans (the creators of the Green Lantern Corps) and in creating the multi-verse universe of anti-matter was created. The anti-matter universe and it's creator have been trapped in time until now. Now the anti-matter universe is destroying the universes of the multi-verse making it stronger and its creator. All the superheroes (and villains) of all the remaining multi-verses must gather together to prevent the destruction of untold millions of worlds and lives.

With The Flash narrating and telling the story of the gathering of the heroes and the heroes all teaming up against a common foe there is lots of action in this book and leave it to GraphicAudio to keep your heart pumping as friends and foe alike battle in true superhero form.

You will say good bye to some heroes but your favorites will make their appearance.

"Batman: Dead White" by John Shirley

"Batman: Dead White"
by John Shirley
Multicast performance
Produced by GraphicAudio
Approx 6 hours.


Once again I have to dive into a great comic book turned novel turned audio book. Actually this one was just a novel turned audio book. This book was written to tie in to the reimagining of "Batman" movies, that began with the movie "Batman Begins" released in 2005. Maybe someday they'll turn it into a comic book, but it won't be your regular comic. This one is dark and deals with some very dark subject matter, even at the beginning of the audio book they warn of adult language and racial epithets.

So in the continuity of the Batman world this audio book takes place 18 months after the events in "Batman Begins" and before the sequel "The Dark Knight." The story involves a white supremacist leader of Gotham City's racist group the Bavarian Brotherhood. As is well known from the the Dark Knight run of Batman comics, Gotham City is full of corrupt cops, in this story some of them are even members of the Bavarian Brotherhood. The caped crusader and (now) Captain Gordon are the city's, and what turns out to be the nation's last best hope.

Before we get into the meat of the story here, I have to let you know about the audio production in this book. If you've ever heard a GraphicAudio audio book production you would be full aware of their superb mix of sound effects and music to move the story along. That and the great voice acting involved, creates the "Movie in your Mind" that GraphicAudio promises. In many scenes in this book there are gunfights, but these gunfights involve newly created weapons and artillery that work like no other weapons, GraphicAudio has created the sound effects that bring these things to life. Looks like Bruce Wayne isn't the only one with a super R&D department. GraphicAudio really knows how to make a book come to life.

Now this story takes place in the development of Bruce Wayne becoming Batman and protecting Gotham City. While the city is full of crooked cops Bruce Wayne is out to protect the common citizens. One night while patrolling the city, Batman thwarts a shipment of guns coming in to a racist leader, White Eyes. White Eyes men are moving a special automatic weapon called "The Dread" that the most advanced weapon creators have only heard of plans for, never a working model, this gun fires shotgun sized slugs at the rate of an Uzi. Dangerous for anyone let alone a racist group bent on world domination.

During the raid one of the few not crooked cops, Cormac Sullivan, sees Batman protect an innocent security guard by shielding him and taking the bullets. When the crooked cops then try to unmask "the bat" Cormac stands guard until Captain Gordon shows up. Batman then tells Cormac that he owes him one and gives Cormac a codeword to say to Gordon and Batman will help. Cormac decides he cannot put up with the crooked police department and returns to California to find and help his Meth addicted son.

In the meantime Batman is struggling with inner demons and seems to be slipping. He loses a suspect, his aim is off and lots more, can he still go on being the hero Gotham needs?

Cormac brings his son back east to detox on a camping trip but on the trip to the mountains they run into the training camp for the Bavarian Brotherhood. The horrors uncovered and the plans of horrors to come lead to Cormac seeking Batman's help and soon the battle between White Eyes and Batman takes place. With Batman's struggles and White Eyes super strength the future is bleak.

In a dark Dark Knight story, Batman is still a hero and the action is not to be missed from this story.

"Changes" Book 12 of "The Dresden Files" by Jim Butcher

"Changes"
Book 12 of "The Dresden Files"
by Jim Butcher
Read by James Marsters
Produced by Penguin Audio, 2010


As I eagerly began this book, yeah, I was pretty much salivating at the promise of a new Harry Dresden, wizard for hire, novel, I was not aware that the title would speak volumes as to what is in this book. I have to warn you, while I'm not one for spoilers, ther may be one or two that slips in this review, it's hard keeping it to myself. Harry Dresden's life and the lives of those around him are going to go through major changes in this book.

First let's sum up what's up with these books. Harry Dresden is a wizard of the White Council. The White Council is the world's wizards that police the world's population's use of magic. They do all they can to prevent black magic from occurring. The White Council is at war against the Red Court of Vampires. Vampires are represented by 3 courts, Black, the ones closest to the Nosferatu image of vampires, White, the ones that don't drink blood but live off the energy of a human, and the Red, these are the ones that look bat-like but can create a flesh mask to hide their true selves. The Red Court want to rule the world. Harry's ex-girlfriend Susan was halfway converted to a Red Court vampire, all she needs is to take human blood to become a full-fledged vampire. To avoid this she ran off to South America to find a group that is fighting off the urge to become full fledged vampires and to battle from within the Red Court.

Harry Dresden is a black sheep when it comes to the family of wizards, when his mother died he was raised by his uncle who turned Harry to the "Dark Side," but Harry was too young to realize there was another choice. Harry managed to be turned over and trained by Ebenezer a White Council member and the only wizard capable of bearing the Black Staff. The Black Staff gives the wizard the ability to break any laws of magic to protect the laws of magic. Harry also has a Fairy Godmother, a real godmother who is a powerful Fairy. Serious Magic there with the Faery and Fae. The Queen of Winter of the Faery court has been trying to recruit Harry to become her Knight, basically the Queen's body guard and errand boy, but with killer intentions.

Wizard Dresden also has help from an odd collection of assistants, Harry's half-brother is a Vampire of the White Court, Harry's Apprentice Molly is being taught how to become a wizard after nearly slipping to the "Dark Side." She is also the daughter of Michael Carpenter a Knight of the Cross (yes THE CROSS). Harry's best friend is a Chicago cop working in the strange crimes division, Karrin Murphy, Harry's computer of sorts, Bob, a wizard spirit kept in a human skull that knows pretty much everything in the history of magic, and finally Harry's 2 pets Mister, a huge fat cat, and Mouse a huge Chinese Temple Dog.

So that's where we stand with some great magical fights and some great team work through all the Dresden files books, until we get to this one. Here's where it all "Changes."

At the beginning of the book Harry gets a call from his former girlfriend, Susan, saying that the Red Court has kidnapped their daughter. Harry has a daughter? Yep, that's news to him also. Now it's personal, with some emotional moments Harry decides he's going to do everything he can to get back his daughter. But first Him and Susan and Martin, here protoge in the Red Court underground go to the building where Harry has his private investigator/wizard for hire office. Red Court attacks Harry's office building is blown up...no more office and that is only change #2 in a long series of changes.

His first choice is to see if he can get help from the White Council of Wizards, after all they are at war against the Red Court. Talk about bad timing the Duchess of the Red Court is making an appearance before the White Council at the same time Harry arrives. What a chance Harry has now to demand his daughter back, except in order to protect his daughter he does not reveal to anyone that she is his daughter only a little girl kidnapped by the Red Court. It seems the Duchess is there to promote peace and a cease fire in the war. There goes the White Council's help.

Harry then turns to "Gentleman" Johnny Marcone, Chicago mob boss. Marcone cannot help but steers him to a security firm that can help. After a trip to Europe, Harry is presented to an extremely powerful being, could it be?....Thor's father, Odin? He cannot help but does provide some tools.

Harry eventually gather's what forces he can and heads to the Mayan temples in Mexico. It seems the Red Court is using Harry's daughter to perform a blood curse ritual. Using the girl as a sacrifice, this will kill all in her bloodline. Harry is the target. So with the final Knight of the Cross, a cop, a white court vampire, an apprentice, a temple dog, and his fairy godmother Harry is off to Mexico.

At the end is a huge battle that features some serious magicks, and gunplay that would make John Woo proud. The big event is what Harry has to sacrifice in order to go to Mexico.

Okay...I'm not sure how to say this but the end of the book left me flabbergasted. After the huge battle the world of Harry Dresden changes. I'm doing everything I can to keep from telling you the end so I think I will stop here.

Great book...get it.

"Greed" by L. Ron Hubbard

"Greed"
by L. Ron Hubbard
Multicast Performance
Produced by Galaxy Audio
Approx. 2 hours

Once again I dive into the enjoyment of an audio collection of some pulp sci-fi from "The Stories from the Golden Age." Galaxy Audio & Galaxy Press have taken 150 short stories written by L. Ron Hubbard during the mid-twentieth century, more specifically during the 1930s through the 1950s. Many of these stories appeared in various pulp fiction magazines during that period and cover the genres of "Far Flung Adventure," "Sea Adventure," "Air Adventure," "Tales from the Orient," "Mystery," "Western," "Fantasy," and of course "Science-Fiction." Each of these stories have been reproduced into two hour Audio books and the physical books for the pulp fiction feel.

The production values for every book has been set pretty high. Original music has produced for the stories. Sound effects added where needed, and placed in a near subtle level where the effect helps to tell the story but does not overcome the dialogue, and speaking of dialogue the characters are all voiced by actors that portray perfect over-the-top characters.

This installment in the collection contains three stories that each have a unique approach to sci-fi story telling.


"Greed"
Originally published in "Astounding Science Fiction," April 1950, is a story that mixes a little bit of philosophy from Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" with the typical L. Ron Hubbard sci-fi little twist in the end. The main premise is that space cannot be explored or conquered with out greed. It is greed that guides the conquest of space in that something has to be procured to make planetary travel worth while. This story is about George Marquis Lorrilard, a sometime lieutenant in the United contenents Space Navy and space exploiter, as he conquers an Asian run planet.

"Final Enemy"
Originally published in "Super Science Stories," September 1950, this story tells of how travellers of space from the two separate powers on Earth, the Asians and Us, seek to explore the outer reaches of space. Each find stories of how a powerful entity has landed before and terrorized and nearly wiped out each new planet's population. Upon hearing there is a stronger enemy out there the two powers team up to find this other race. The twist in this story is one easily equivalent to that of a Twilight Zone episode.

"The Automagic Horse"
Originally published in "Astounding Science Fiction," October 1949, this story is a humorous story in which an engineer for a Hollywood movie production company is seeking to build a ship to explore space while creating special effects for the movies. This time he needs to build a realistic looking horse that will bust out of a barn and survive having the same barn while burning fall on the horse. The ASPCA will not allow a real horse so the engineer makes one. His secret is to rais money for his side project by getting the movie company to pay more than he needs on the horse. Upon completion of the horse the engineer finds some alternate ways to raise money.

For two hours of great audio book entertainment you cannot go wrong with this or any other Audio Pulp from Galaxy Audio.

Brisingr (Inheritance, Book 3) by Christopher Paolini

Brisingr (Inheritance, Book 3)
by Christopher Paolini
read by Gerard Doyle
Produced by Listening Library, 2008


Well I thought I was finishing the last of the Christopher Paolini "Inheritance" series featuring, Eragon Shadeslayer and Saphira Bjartskular (Brightscales), but no, there seems to be another in the works. This is completely fine by me, because reading or listening to this series has been a lot of fun. I still find it amazing that Paolini started writing this series while in his teens. The language used in these books is every bit as much an equivalent to any of Tolkien's works, or any other fantasy novel. In fact just like many fantasy writers Paolini, took the time to create a couple of languages to make the Dwarves and Elves speak in an more realistic manner.

The "Inheritance" series follows the life of Eragon, a dragon rider, and Saphira, his dragon, as they grow together learning what it means to be a dragon rider, while at the same time fighting the evil King Galbatorix, who wants to be the only rider and ruler of the world. In this book especially Eragon and Saphira learn what it means to be loyal, and to keep your promises. In fact, the subtitle of this book was going to be, "The Seven Promises of Eragon Shadeslayer and Saphira Bjartskular."

The reader, Gerard Doyle, does a superb job reading this book and letting the listener know the difference between different characters talking or thinking as well as voicing the dragons. I have to admit that I felt sorry for the abuse to Doyle's throat when he voiced the dragons but I sure he can recover in time for the next book. Doyle also provides the interesting pronunciation for the Elvish and Dwarvish language. So if you read the book and wondered just how you could pronounce some of those words, get the audio book.

Brisingr focuses on the story of Eragon and his dragon Saphira as they continue their quest to overthrow the corrupt ruler of the Empire, Galbatorix. Eragon is one of the last remaining Dragon Riders, a group that governed and protected the land of Alagaësia. Brisingr begins just 4 days after the preceding novel "Eldest" concludes, finding Eragon, newly reunited with his cousin, Roran, just outside of Helgrind, the sanctuary of the Ra'zac. There they rescue Roran's fiance, Katrina, who was being held prisoner, and kill one of the Ra'zac. Saphira, Roran, and Katrina return to the Varden, while Eragon stays behind to kill the remaining Ra'zac and to deal with Katrina's traitorous father. Once he returns to the Varden, Eragon discovers that Katrina is pregnant with Roran's child and a wedding is arranged, which Eragon is to conduct. Just before it begins, a small force of enchanted troops, that feel no pain, attack alongside Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. Elven spell-casters aid Eragon and Saphira and cause Murtagh and Thorn to flee, winning the battle. After the fight, Roran marries Katrina. The leader of the Varden, Nasuada, then orders Eragon to attend the election of the new dwarf king in the Beor Mountains. Once among the dwarves, Eragon is the target of a failed assassination, found to be the work of the dwarf clan Az Sweldn rak Anhûin, whom the dwarf Orik then forces into exile. Having earned the sympathies of the dwarves, Orik is elected the new king.

After Orik's coronation, Eragon and Saphira return to the elven capital Ellesméra to train. There, the elf Oromis and his dragon Glaedr reveal that Eragon's deceased mentor, Brom, is Eragon's father. Glaedr also reveals the source of Galbatorix's power: Eldunarí, or heart of hearts. While not a dragon's actual heart, an Eldunarí allows the holder to communicate with or draw energy from the dragon it belongs to, even if the dragon is deceased. Galbatorix spent years collecting Eldunarya, and forcing the deceased dragons to channel their energy to him through their Eldunarí thus the reason Galbatorix is so powerful. After training, Eragon visits an Elven blacksmith, Rhunön, who helps Eragon forge a Rider sword. Before Eragon and Saphira depart to the Varden, Oromis says that the time has come for him and Glaedr to openly oppose the Empire in combat alongside the queen of the elves, Islanzadí. Thus, Glaedr gives his Eldunarí to Eragon and Saphira before they part.

Meanwhile, Roran is sent on various missions as part of the military force of the Varden. One of the targets is a convoy of supply wagons guarded by enchanted soldiers. The unit suffers extreme casualties, and the commander is replaced after losing his hand. During a mission to take back a Surdan city, plans made by the new commander almost cause the operation to fail, but Roran gives new orders. Despite saving the mission, Roran is charged with insubordination and is flogged as a punishment. After the public whipping, Nasuada promotes Roran to commander and sends his unit on a mission. He leaves in command of a group of both men and Urgals to enforce the idea of men and Urgals working together. When his squad returns to the Varden, they join the siege of Feinster, a city in the Empire.

The battle ensues and as I said in the beginning what I thought was the final book is not, and Paolini leaves the final battle between the Varden and the Empire, and, of course, between Galbatorix and Eragon for the next book.

In this audio book is a bonus interview between Paolini and his editor, in which he reveals that this book was originally planned as the final but that the adventures just could not all be told in one volume. Hopefully we'll have the next book soon.

"Dune: House Corrino" Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

"Dune: House Corrino"
Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson
Narrated by Scott Brick, unabridged
Tantor Media
Approx 24 hours

After the death of Frank Herbert, son Brian Herbert discovered some manuscripts left behind with more information on the universe of Dune. Teaming up with Kevin J. Anderson, the two authors began a quest to add more stories to the "Duneverse" based on these manuscripts and their own talents in writing science fiction. Their first effort was the Prelude to Dune series. "House Corrino" is the third title in this series and as such, gives even more information on the buildup of events which created the situations leading to the epic novel Dune. Many hardcore "Dune" fans will complain about some of the continuity errors, but all in all the books written by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are some great additional stories that fans can use to revisit the worlds created by Frank Herbert.

The book is read by Scott Brick, a narrator who is no stranger to the Dune series. He has voiced many of the audiobooks and is thoroughly familiar with the material. I'd have to say he is the perfect choice as narrator for these books, because of his ability to read as different characters and even make a difference between when the character is thinking or talking aloud. All his voices as characters are distinct yet subtle enough to make for a smooth hearing experience.

Book three of the prelude to the original Dune series answers many questions, but also leaves some unanswered, which is good. Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson, to be honest to the Duneverse could not try to explain it all away, that is one of the many features of the Original Dune novels by Frank Herbert that keeps the reader intrigued, and makes the the books more adventuresome, the philosophy is within the reader.

In this book the Emperor of the known Universe, Shaddam IV has devised a plan with his right hand man Hasimir Fenrig, to create a synthetic form of the Spice Melange. In doing so he will hold even more power over the universe. As you may know, the Spice extends life, and makes space travel possible and is only found on one planet, Dune (Arrakis).

On the machine planet, Ix,Tleilaxu "scientists" use slaves and prisoners as part of a horrific plan to manufacture a synthetic form of melange known as amal. If amal can replace the spice from Dune, it will give Shaddam what he seeks: absolute power. However the amal is not quite right. Adjudica the Tleilaxu that has created the amal, has not run adequate testing but has been taking the amal and has been dosing the Sardukar guards with the amal and gains some control over the Emperor's terror guards. Also we learn how the Tleilaxu use women to become living tanks to produce the amal, thus explaining why there are no Tleilaxu women.

Duke Leto Atriedes, grief-stricken yet unbowed by the tragic death of his son Victor, in an assassination attempt is determined to restore the honor and prestige of his House, has his own plans for Ix. He will free the Ixians from their oppressive conquerors and restore his friend Prince Rhombur, injured scion of the disgraced House Vernius, to his rightful place as Ixian ruler. In doing so Leto leaves his home planet of Caladan unguarded. Hearing of this and in order to save face The Beast Rabban (Harkkonen), attempts to conquer Caladan, but the master of assassins and Mentat to House Atriedes, Thufir Howat devises a plan to keep any attackers at bay.

Meanwhile, Duke Leto's concubine, the Lady Jessica, obeying the orders of her superiors in the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, has conceived a child that the Sisterhood intends to be the penultimate step in the creation of an all-powerful being. Yet what the Sisterhood doesn't know is that the child Jessica is carrying is not the girl they are expecting, but a boy. Jessica's act of disobedience is an act of love -- her attempt to provide her Duke with a male heir to House Atreides -- but an act that, when discovered, could kill both mother and baby. Learning of the heir to house Atreides, House Harkkonen's mentat, Pitor Dufries attempts to kidnap the baby.

Like the Bene Gesserit, Shaddam Corrino is also concerned with making a plan for the future -- securing his legacy. Blinded by his need for power, the Emperor will launch a plot against Dune, the only natural source of true spice. If he succeeds, his madness will result in a cataclysmic tragedy not even he foresees: the end of space travel, the Imperium, and civilization itself. With Duke Leto and other renegades and revolutionaries fighting to stem the tide of darkness that threatens to engulf their universe, the stage is set for a showdown unlike any seen before.

This book has a great storytelling and a great culmination of many battles that as you come to the end you will want more.

"Dog Blood" A Novel by David Moody Published 2010 by Thomas Dunne Books

"Dog Blood" A Novel
by David Moody
Published 2010 by Thomas Dunne Books

In this book David Moody has created a thrilling joyride through an apocalyptic world of zombies, but without an apocalypse or zombies. This may need some further explanation, so bear with me. First of all this novel, "Dog Blood" is the sequel to Moody's previous novel, "Hater." In "Hater" the world changed. Many people suddenly began killing other people, it was soon discovered that a percentage of the population was changing int what was being labeled as Haters.

The Haters would kill for no reason using only their bare hands in most cases. The book "Hater" followed Danny McCoyne as he tried everything he could to protect his family, but near the end of the book Danny, became a Hater. The change in him was sudden as if a switch was thrown. Once he had changed he immediately felt the urge to destroy the Unchanged. One of the Unchanged was his father-in-law. When his wife witnessed this she knew he had become a Hater. As she gathered the children to make their escape Danny looked into the eyes of his 5 year old daughter and knew she was like him, but by then he was incapacitated and could do nothing. This left the novel "Hater" with either the most thrilling ending ever or a serious hint at a sequel.

As it turns out David Moody has written this novel, "Dog Blood" and continues the story with such a a delivery that you get tired as if YOU are running around and trying to survive. The story creates such a unique insight into the world of Haters and Unchanged, that not only do you read about the battles, the survival, the lack of governmental control but Mood writes in such a fashion you feel as if you are part of the story.

In "Dog Blood," Danny McCoyne continues the bloody kills to destroy the Unchanged but this time he is also looking for his five year-old daughter, Ellis. Danny makes his way back to the city from which we was taken to where his wife and daughter could be hiding/surviving. Danny was taken to a camp where the Haters where being mass slaughtered not unlike the German concentration camps of World War II. After escaping Danny learns of the Haters, led by a former politician, grouping to form an army to destroy the Unchanged. The biggest obstacle in this is that as a Hater organization is hard to come by because all killing is done by instinct, not unlike a zombie horde. This is where the zombie aspect comes in, the Haters act as vicious as any zombie from any zombie movie or story, but they can think and they don't eat their victims, well, not always.

Moody also takes us through the lives of the Unchanged by jumping into the story of Mark Tillotsen as he helps the military to scout for food and survivors in the area. Mark gets extra rations for this volunteer work, which he needs because he has recently taken in a family member and his wife is pregnant.

Survival, hordes of violent attackers, and the possible end of the world, "Dog Blood" takes up where "Hater" left off and I will warn you the ending keeps you questioning. I will warn you make sure you allow extra reading time when you approach the end of the book, the last few chapters are so exciting you CANNOT put the book down. You won't want to put the book down at all once you start.

"Sea Fangs" by L. Ron Hubbard

"Sea Fangs"
by L. Ron Hubbard
Multi-cast performance
Produced by Galaxy Audio
approx 2 hours

In continuing my pulp fiction adventures with "Stories from the Golden Age," I've decided to go on a sea adventure with L. Ron Hubbard. This one is called "Sea Fangs," and let me warn you this one has got so much excitement that you will not want to stop listening.

Once again Galaxy Audio produces another audio book masterpiece. I've listened to enough Galaxy Audio productions of the old pulp fiction stories, that I've come to expect nothing but fun and excitement. The incidental music is perfect between chapters. The acting and narration are perfect for re-enacting this old pulp fiction novella but at the same time, with this one, they bring something extra that could almost place this story in modern times. This also can be attributed to the timeless writing by Hubbard in this novella. The cast consists of; Gino Montesinos, R.F. Daley, Shane Johnson, Jim Meskimen, Kristin Proctor and Phil Proctor. And finally with the added sound effects the whole production rounds out in an exciting, cinematic aural experience.

Bob Sherman, a seasoned sailor suddenly finds himself trying to save the ocean yacht, 'Bonito' from capsizing in hurricane waters off Venezuela's coast, no thanks to the cocky and incompetent ship's captain. Sherman boarded the ship under a false name to seek revenge on the yacht's owner, Mr. Marmion. Marmion, with the support of corrupt officials, had stripped him of a highly profitable oil drilling business and taken his land years before. Sherman soon gets attentions of Phyllis Marmion, a raven-haired beauty and daughter of the yacht's owner. Phyllis recognizes Sherman from a party once thrown by her father before he cheated Sherman of his oil fields.

When the ship is attacked by modern pirates all are taken captive, after a short skirmish, in which Sherman shows to be an efficient marksman. The crew and passengers find themselves in a dungeon jail on an uncharted island known locally as the Island of Death, a place where no one escapes, and Sherman's futile efforts have marked him for an early death. To make matters worse Sherman was once a prisoner on this island and the locals recognize him and have some evil plans so that he cannot escape again. As they are being taken prisoner Sherman, with some quick thinking manages to save Phyllis by telling the leader of the pirates that she is a nun. How long she can carry this ruse is unknown but maybe just long enough to work out an escape plan.

With an exciting story about revenge, storms at sea, pirates and oil field millionaires L. Ron Hubbard's classic pulp story, "Sea Fangs," turned into audio theatre by Galaxy Audio, this is the most exciting 2 hours you can spend with out leaving home, or maybe making your commute a little more fun.

Mean Streets by Jim Butcher, Kat Richardson, Simon R. Green, Thomas E. Sniegoski

Mean Streets
by Jim Butcher, Kat Richardson, Simon R. Green, Thomas E. Sniegoski
Read by Dion Graham, Richard Poe, Mia Baron, T. Ryder Smith
Produced by Recorded Books
Approx 10.5 hours


So do you like Private Investigator stories? You know the one where the gumshoe pounds the pavement to solve the crime using only his amazing powers of observation. "Mean Streets" is a collection of 4 novellas about private investigators that have other powers. Yes these private dicks all have supernatural powers of some sort to back up their crime fighting skills. The neat thing about all these stories is, for the most part, they are told in first person, so the listener really is in the head of the P.I. Each of the readers of the stories does a great job in delivering the story that you feel as though you are listening to the P.I. as he narrates his own noir story.

The first novella is by one of my favorite authors and his awesome character of Harry Dresden, wizard and private investigator. Harry has often teamed up with a Knight of the Cross Michael Carpenter, this novella, "The Warrior," tells the story of what happens after Michael retires from God's Army. For the full review click the link below. This story is read by Dion Graham. While I'm used to the James Marsters voicing Harry Dresden in the regular Dion Graham really makes Harry his own.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2951264/the_warrior_a_short_story_by_jim_butcher.html?cat=38

The second novella is by Simon R. Green, "What a Difference a Day Makes," read by Richard Poe. This story contains Green's character John Taylor, from his Nightside series of books, based in the existing location of the "Nightside", a hidden area within London in which magic and advanced technology exist. The Nightside is a place where the lowlifes end up, especially the dead lowlifes. John Taylor is approached by a beautiful woman named Liza Barclay. It seems Liza has lost 24hours and needs John Taylor to find them. Basically she woke up on the Nightside and 24 hours of her memory is missing. With the help of Dead Boy, a back from the dead adolescent, and his futuristic car, their search carries them to the worst side of the Nightside and looking for Liza's husband. What led her and her husband to the Nightside is disturbing indeed.

The next novella is by Kat Richardson and is titled, "The Third Death of the Little Clay Dog," Mia Baron. This one is fun romp to Mexico during the Days of the Dead celebrations and features Richardson's character Harper Blaine. Harper is a private investigator living in Seattle and was killed while pursuing a case. She was dead for only two minutes and brought back. She is able to recognize witches and vampires, see ghosts and is aware of other elements of the supernatural world . She discovers that her brief death has turned her into a Greywalker, a human able to move back and forth at will through the Grey, the realm that exists between our world and the next. In this story Harper is sent to deliver a clay dog to the grave of a man on November 1st, "Día de los Inocentes" (Day of the Innocents). When she arrives in Mexico, the customs agent drops the clay dog shattering the figure. As the dog shatters the ghost of a dog appears at Harper's feet and she realizes this was the package to be delivered. The mystery of who the man is and who the woman who bequeathed this journey to Harper unfolds to a tale of murder and revenge.

The final novella is one that delves into the world of angels. "Noah's Orphans" by Thomas E. Sniegoski and read by T. Ryder Smith. This features the character of Remy "Remiel" Chandler, an angel that wants to be human. He recently lost his wife and is grieving when Sariel a fallen angel approaches Remy to find out who has murdered Noah. Yes THE Noah, the ark builder. Noah has been touched by God and well when you are touched by God your life seems to be extended. In modern times Noah has been grieving over the ones left behind, the ones he could not save in the flood. The story reveals that God had two patterns for humanity, and that only one he was happy with and the flood was to clean the slate of the ones that didn't make the cut. Noah is murdered as he his trying to find this lost race. The mystery unfolds and the adventures abound in this interesting take on angel life. One of the best, or at least most fun, of this story is Remy's relationship with his dog, a black Labrador named Marlowe. Remy can speak to animals and can understand them the dog's words are fun, simple and yet the most informative. T. Ryder Smith does such a great job when voicing the dog that you actually think you are hearing a dog talk.

This book is a great collection of supernatural mysteries that only this odd collection of Private Investigators could handle.

Spiderman: The Amazing Spiderman (BBC Radio Collection) Story Adaptation by Dirk Maggs

Spiderman: The Amazing Spiderman (BBC Radio Collection)
Story Adaptation by Dirk Maggs
Multi-cast performance
Produced by BBC Audiobooks Ltd (2002)
Approx 2 hours


I have always been a Spider-Man fan, I'm pretty sure I came out of the womb reading the comics, so when I found this gem I had to give it a listen. In 1995, BBC Radio commissioned a Spider-Man audio book which aired on BBC Radio 1 over 50 episodes on week days between January 15, 1996 and March 24, 1996. The performance was co-produced by Brian May who also contributed to the musical arrangement and wrote and performed the theme tune. Yes, the same Brian May that plays lead guitar for Queen. BBC Audiobooks has taken this production and no made it available as a CD audiobook, I haven't looked yet for any download versions.

The run of the production includes a number of familiar characters from the Spider-Man comic books as well as key figures from the Marvel "Heroes" universe such as Fantastic Four, Namor the Submariner, and Doctor Doom. This is a re-telling of the origin of Spider-Man, not exactly as Stan Lee originally wrote it, but pretty darn close. In this version rather than Peter Parker going to a demonstration of Atomic energy (pretty dated sounding, right), he is conducting an experiment at the high school using low level radiation, but a spider gets in the mix and bites our hero. Very similar to the origin the story continues with Peter Parker calling Reed Richards, Mr. Fantastic, of the Fantastic 4 to ask for help, after all he thinks he's turning into a spider.

After finding out the Fantastic 4 are out of office he decides he needs to make some money and goes on the TV circuit performing feats of spider-like ability. After a criminal kills his Uncle Ben, Peter then takes up the crime-fighting mantle. The play then brings on such villains as; the Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus, the Sandman, Prince Namor (hero/villain) and Dr. Doom.

My only complaint is that not once in the performance does Peter Parker/Spider-Man's line that is his raison d'etre come out. You know the one, "With great power, comes great responsibility." Stan Lee has been known to say that when he first came up with the phrase for Spidey, it sounded cheesy, but, it is a great life-lesson. But the Brits decided to leave it out of the production. I won't fault them too much because this was fun to hear.

The role of Spider-Man was performed by William Dufries. Also included in the cast list was EastEnders star Anita Dobson. The entire cast and the production meld to make a great comic book to audio book adaptation.

"The Warrior" A short story by Jim Butcher in the collection "Mean Streets"

"The Warrior"
A short story by Jim Butcher
in the collection "Mean Streets"
Multiple Authors
Multiple readers
Produced by Recorded Books
approx 2 hours (for this story)


I am getting ready to listen to the latest novel about Harry Dresden by Jim Butcher, "Changes" but I had downloaded and put on my iPod this story that occurs earlier in the timeline of the Dresden Files. So, I'm listening to this one first. The entire collection runs about 10 hours in audiobook form and I am continuing with the rest of the book, but I had to stop and let you know about this story.

Before we go further let me tell you about the book "Mean Streets." This collection of original novellas tied to popular crime/fantasy series which include; Thomas E. Sniegoski's "Noah's Orphans," angel PI Remy Chandler must solve the murder of the biblical Arks builder, whose battered corpse is found on an abandoned oil rig. Simon R. Green writes with a slight humor that is similar to that by Jim Butcher in "The Difference a Day Makes," in which PI John Taylor assists a woman who wandered into the the "nightside" a world hidden within London, and another noir type story by Kat Richardson' "The Third Death of the Little Clay Dog" neatly merges noir conventions with a fantastical plot. I'll let you know how those go when I finish the entire collection.

"The Warrior" by Jim Butcher Reveals what happens to the Carpenter family after the events of Small Favor, this story takes place between Small Favor and Turn Coat.

Michael Carpenter, a former Knight of the Cross has turned in his sword, Amoracchius. The weird part is that an Archangel has decided that Harry Dresden, wizard and non-religious, hold the sword until it's new rightful bearer can be find. Harry, from a previous battle, after the death of another Knight of the Cross, Shiro Yoshimo, has possession of another sword, Fidelacchius. Many in the church cannot accept the fact that Harry, an non-believer, has possession of 2 of the 3 swords.

In this story someone is sending Harry photos of the now retired and recovering Michael Carpenter. Harry assuming that Michael is in danger, goes to the Carpenter home and tries to warn him. On the way Harry saves a little girl from being run over by a car. At first this may just seem like a simple piece of the story, maybe more of a filler, but at the end that action makes the world a better place. That's the way Harry rolls.

Upon arrival at the Carpenter house, Harry explains the photos and concerned the Carpenters have Harry spend the night for safety's sake. During the night someone tries to steal the swords, luckily Harry expected this and had fakes in plain sight while the real swords were hidden. On chasing down the thief, harry discovers the man is military trained and protected to an extent against magic.

Harry and Michael track down who is trying to steal the swords and along the way Harry learns about faith and goodwill. Great short story here in the world of the better wizard named Harry. Now to finish this book and get on with "Changes."

"Mortalis - Part 3" The Demon Wars Saga Book 4 by R.A. Salvatore

"Mortalis - Part 3"
The Demon Wars Saga Book 4
by R.A. Salvatore
Multicast performance
Produced by GraphicAudio

The Demon Wars Saga consists of two trilogies and this book, Mortalis, which bridges the two trilogies. The first trilogy tells of Elbryan the Ranger, Pony the warrior, Bradwarden the Centaur, Avelyn the monk, and Juraviel the elf as they battle the demon dactyl, Bestesbulzibar and protect the land of Corona from his evils. Mortalis covers mainly the life of Pony after the war, and develops some new characters.

Once again, GraphicAudio continues to produce this saga in audiobook form with their "Movie in your Mind" concept. R.A. Salvatore provided the great story, but GraphicAudio brings it to life with outstanding acting, super sound effects and subtle, yet effective incidental music.

The Rosey Plague is wreaking havoc in the land of Corona, especially in the kingdom of Honce-the-Bear. The Abellican Church has ordered all its abbeys to be shut and the monks to stay within the walls, so no monk will catch the plague. This is ordered despite the suffering of the common folk outside the walls of the abbeys. King Ursul has ordered the same for all baroneys. The common folk soon lose faith in the church and in their King.

Brother De'Unnero after being turned down once again to be a father abbot, turns against the church and creates a cult following of Brothers Repentant. This following is going throughout the land preaching that the plague is brought on as the wrath of God because the church has lost it's way and the people are sinful. He begins killing those that do not denounce their faith for his religion.

In the meantime Jilseponie (formerly, Poney) is trying to find a cure for the plague, using all her magicks. During a spirit-walk Lady Dasselrond of the Touel'Alfar gives her an ancient scroll where a relief, not a cure, is written to help ease the suffering. Then a vision from the martyred Brother Avelyn may give her the cure, but is it too late?

This exciting conclusion takes the listener back to Mount Aida, to where the demon dactyl, Bestus Bulzibar was destroyed and throughout all the baroneys of the land. Once again the adventure is only made better by the outstanding production from GraphicAudio.

"One Was Stubborn" by L. Ron Hubbard

"One Was Stubborn"
by L. Ron Hubbard
Multi-cast performance
Produced by Galaxy Audio
Approx 2 hours


Every time I listen to one of these pulp fiction stories I get so lost in the story that I forget where I am. I was driving around while listening to this book that I forgot completely where I was supposed to be going. The audio production in these audio books is superb. Everything from the acting, the incidental music and the sound effects are perfectly produced.

The voice acting in these stories carry the sound of the old fashioned radio shows with larger than life characters. This comes a lot from the style of writing that L. Ron Hubbard used when writing for the pulps. The characters and their dialogue at first may seem cheesy but when taken as a whole some of the stories just wouldn't work without that cheese factor. The cheese factor actually is what makes these stories fun, so don't think of cheesy as a bad thing, quite the opposite.

The incidental music that occurs between chapters or sections in the story was composed specifically for the entire run of "Golden Age Stories" from Galaxy Audio. Galaxy Audio has gathered all the short stories and novellas written by L. Ron Hubbard during the 30s through the 50s and have been releasing them as audio pulps. (The audio books also have a paperback "pulp" version for those that want the books.) The music is over the top and subtle at the same time, just plain perfect for these stories.

The sound effects are placed subtly throughout the stories. They don't overwhelm the listener with sound but they move the story along, at times I would hear the effects and appreciate the subtlety of letting me know when a rocket was blasting off, for example, but not detracting from the dialogue or narration.

This audio pulp consists of three stories from the golden age of pulp fiction.

"One Was Stubborn"
This story was originally published in Unknown Fantasy Fiction, October 1940, under the pseudonym Rene La Fayette, and is a simple tale of a man unwilling to watch the world as he knows it vanish. The main character, Old Shellback is the most stubborn man in the universe, he goes in for an eye exam but the doctor's computer says he's depressed and should see the new messiah that is changing the world. Old Shellback simply wants glasses because he can't believe what he is seeing. The Messiah tells Shellback he needs to conform and believe everything or the entire world will not believe in him. Once the population stops believing in Shellback everything disappears. Shellback discovers that to create his world he needs to simply think it into existence and then believe in it. The Messiah doesn't want Shellback to re-create the world and tries to stop him.

"A Can of Vacuum"
Originally published in Astounding Science Fiction, December 1949, is a fun story about practical jokes. This one brought out some fun memories of my Navy days. When someone was new to a ship the old salts would have fun with the newbie by sending them on errands that were basically practical jokes. Errands like fetching a bucket of relative bearing grease. All bearings need grease, but in the Navy a relative bearing is where an object is in relation to yourself or the ship. Or maybe send the newbie after three feet of water line. The navy term "line" refers to rope or string, but the waterline is the point on the ship that above that line is above the water and below that line on the hull is below water. Well in this story a new ensign assigned to as space station and sent to gather a quart of Rudy Rays. The Chief that sends him on this fools errand is surprised when he finds the ensign blasting off into space. Soon the rocket is lost and the chief is in trouble for sending the young man out alone as a practical joke, but the ensign comes back and the surprise is what happens next.

"240,000 Miles Straight Up"
Originally published in Thrilling Wonder Stories, December 1948, tells the tale of the importance of the USA being the first to land on the moon. After partying on the night before he is to be the first man on the moon, First Lieutenant Cannon "Angel" Gray, wakes up with a killer of a hangover. Just as the rocket is about to launch the ground crew look up at the moon and see the letters "USSR" written on the moon. The USA is not the first on the moon, it's the Russians, this closes down the US space program, and soon the Russkies have nuclear missiles aimed at the earth, on the moon. The USSR is then overthrown by the Commander on the moon and he soon calls himself the ruler of Earth. When some supplies are needed, Angel is called to man a mission to the moon to possibly overthrow the leader. Can the USA regain power, listen to this exciting tale and find out.

L. Ron Hubbard wrote many stories that were published in the old pulp magazines of the mid 20th century and thanks to Galaxy Audio (and Galaxy Press) these Golden Age Stories can be enjoyed today.

Listen to the audio review below:


Click here to get the MP3 podcast file from sfsite.com

Or click on the graphic below for other sci-fi audiobook reviews...some by me..some not.

"Battlestar Galactica" by Jeffrey A. Carver Published 2006 by Tor Books

"Battlestar Galactica"
by Jeffrey A. Carver
Published 2006 by Tor Books



If you're like me you're probably missing the great series on Sci-Fi channel (I'm sorry I cannot stomach SyFy). I loved the series and watched religiously every episode, I couldn't wait for the next episode to see what would happen next. But sadly the series ended. Sure Sci-Fi now has "Caprica" which is a prequel to the series, but it's just not the same. Once again books come to my rescue, in searching for BSG books I found several that I'll be tearing into. There's the original written by Glen Larson from back in the 70s, I've already read that one. Then Richard Hatch made a run at some BSG 70s era books, but to my pleasure, there are a few written in the re-imagining of the latest BSG books. Here is the first, simply titled "Battlestar Galactica." This book covers the events in the mini-series which launched the 5 season series.

For forty years mankind experienced peace, that was about to change. Man created Cylons, mechanoids that did the work of man. But the Cylons rebelled, they developed sentience and after the Cylon war agreed to go to their own part of the universe so the two "races" could exist separately at peace. To ensure the peace an armistice station was set up so the two could meet annually to ensure the peace was kept. After the first year the Cylons did not show up, but to keep up the human side of the bargain, a representative from the 12 colonies would show up and after 3 days leave. This last time the Cylons showed up. This time to destroy mankind.

The Cylons have evolved, they now have 12 models that appear human in every aspect, even bleeding when shot. This book covers the events where the Cylons have destroyed the colonies and the few survivors of the human race, led by President (formerly Education Secretary) Roslyn and Battlestar Galactica commander Adama. The surviving members of the human race attempt to follow the 13th colony which centuries before left to colonize Earth.

Whether you have seen the series or not this is a very interesting book. Being a fan of the series, reading this book was a breath of fresh air, in that I could relive the exciting series. The writing is pretty much a good copy of the screenplay, in that I could easily picture Edward James Olmos giving orders.

Now I'm off to find other books that may tell side stories from the series, it was nice to revisit, but I'm hungry for new material.

"Dimiter" by William Peter Blatty

"Dimiter"
by William Peter Blatty
Read by the author
Produced by Macmillan audio
approx 8 hours



The author of "The Exorcist" has a new book out, but don't let that fool you into thinking it's a horror novel. While this book does dwell into some mysticism, it is pretty much a spy thriller. When I first received the audio book I noticed it was read by the author. In audio books this can be a hit or miss situation. In this case I think the jury is still out. The hit is that the author knows what he wrote and what he intended and can impress upon the listener the ideas that are most important in the story. The miss is that while William Peter Blatty has a very interesting voice, at times it is very monotonous and lulls the listener. Also Blatty is not a voice actor and does not distinguish the separate voices within character dialogue. I became very confused as to who was saying what and many times in this book I was lost.

Some of that being lost may also be attributed to the twists and turns Blatty wrote into this tale. In fact, not until the very end is it all explained, and even then there's a bit of mystery to the ending. The story opens in the 1970s in Albania, when a prisoner suspected of being an enemy agent is capture and subjected to horrendous torture. The prisoner is subjected to severe pain but at no time shows pain in either voice or action, in fact he maintains an eerie silence and at times by a simple glance changes the mood of his torturers. The prisoner escapes and completes the mission.

The prisoner is known as Dimiter the American "agent from Hell." Dimiter is notorious for taking on the harder missions and completing them with no error.

The story then jumps to Jerusalem's Hadassah Hospital and a series of unexplained deaths encapsulate the a strange mix of personnel. They are all intertwined in the story as the deaths are unfolded and Dimiter's final mission is exposed. The confusion in deaths is mainly the identities of who dies, when one person is discovered dead they name on their papers is not the name of the who the person is. Many times it seems as though the body is Dimiter. But not until the final briefing between American CIA and Israeli forces does the body count begin to make sense. But then after it is all figured out, Blatty throws a final curve ball and the story may not be over.

All in all a very interesting book covering the issues of vengeance, soul searching, loss and love.

"Best Bet" - a novel by Laura Pedersen

"Best Bet" - a novel
by Laura Pedersen
Published 2009
by iUniverse Books


I wasn't really sure what I was in for when I received this book. From the looks of the cover, I was thinking it was some sort of chick book leaning heavy on the romance. But we all know that you don't judge a book by the cover. I'm glad I didn't, judge, that is. I read Laura Pedersen's memoir book "Buffalo Gal," so I knew that she was fun to read. Ms. Pederson has a great sense of humor that is carried into this novel perfectly. In fact that's what kept me going throughout the book, every time something heavy would happen one of the Characters (I'll explain the capital "C" in a bit.) would blurt out something and I would be thankful I wasn't drinking milk else it come out my nose. The humor was very funny and at times unexpected.

The reason I capitalized characters is because these characters were Characters. Maybe that still doesn't explain. As I run throught the summary I think you'll get my drift.

The main character is Hallie, she is about to graduate from a midwestern college and move in with her boyfriend Craig. Hallie is getting her degree in graphic design and Craig quit school to start his now successful pond building business. Their plans are foiled when Hallie finds out that the absent-minded advisor advised her wrong and she is 4 credits shy of graduating. The school knows it is there problem and offer she take the 4 credit sociology class no charge. Hallie was planning on moving and another option is that she could take the class at a community college and transfer the credits, but she would have to pay for the course, or she could just not get her degree. As she is leaving her advisor's office she runs into an ex-"boyfriend" and is presented with a 4th option.

This 4th option, to me sounds like a dream opportunity and I would not hesitate, but then I'm not Hallie, she has a job waiting for and a boyfriend that is ready for her to move in with him. The 4th option is an independent study type of sociology class. The professor has created a study in which she will travel around the world dropping wallets with $20 in cash in them and record the rates of return of the wallets and compare to the sociological standings of the various countries. This would require Hallie to answer within a couple of days whether she could drop everything and travel the world.

Here's where the characters come in. Hallie comes from a large family and during her college years has taken up residence with some friends. These friends are of the parental generation for Hallie but not quite. First are 2 gay men, Gil and Bernard (right here I have to say any book with my name in it is worth reading ) Gil runs a local performing arts theater, and Bernard is always cooking some exotic recipe. The two live together and have adopted two Japanese girls. Bernard has taken on the training of the girls' girl scout troop. This troop being the first to know how to mix cocktails and what are the appropriate cocktails and snacks to prepare for any given social occasion. Bernard's mother, Olivia live with them and is constantly protesting or planning a protest for many political agendas.

Bernard overly frets about the safety of Hallie leaving her hometown and only offers up statistics of deaths in other countries. Olivia, says traveling the world is the best way for a young person to know their world and their place in it. Hallie's boyfriend, Craig, does not want her to go and gives her the ultimatum. Marry and stay or go and never see him again. All this time Hallie and her siblings are shocked at finding out that their fairly recently widowed mother is marrying the church pastor.

To keep things short Hallie goes on the trip and throughout the many experiences around the world with the honesty sociology experiment learns to be honest with herself. The return home Hallie is a changed person, yet still the same ole Hallie. In other words there is so much going on in this book that with all the fun you have reading the various events good, bad and downright funny, you learn Hallie was not honest with herself and where she wants to be in the world.

"Dead Men Kill" by L. Ron Hubbard

"Dead Men Kill"
by L. Ron Hubbard
Multicast performance
Produced by Galaxy Audio
approx 2 hours

For some reason horror fans seem to be drawn to zombies, there are podcasts of zombie stories, several books and of course the re-writing of Jane Austen's novel, "Pride and Prejudice" into "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies." Many fans will consider George Romero's "Dawn of the Dead" the beginning of this craze, and the die-hard fans will even think Max Brooks with his "Zombie Survival Guide" as reason for the trend. But back before these guys brought about the flesh eating scourge of zombies, L. Ron Hubbard wrote a mystery that brought the living dead into America.

First published in 1934 in "Thrilling Detective" magazine, "Dead Men Kill" is a great zombie/detective story. Galaxy Audio a branch of Galaxy Press has released this novella as a pulp book and a pulp audio book. The audio book is produced with the same fervor and nostalgia as all the other Hubbard audio books. The narrator keeps you in the story while performing as a narrator from one of the old radio serials. The actors in the performance definitely have that nostalgic feel when having to perform the action in the story that is purely pulp-fiction. The melodramatic delivery of the voice of the zombies on the kill is fun but chilling. Even the incidental music which was composed specifically for the Galaxy Audio Golden Age stories releases will launch you back to the mid-twentieth century when tales were told in magazines for a dime.

The story follows the heroic Detective-Sergeant Terrence "Terry" Lane as he investigates a series of murders among the wealthy in his town and the clues to who did the killing point only to people that have been dead and in the grave for several days. The people of status are all being blackmailed and when they can't pay, someone close to them, that has recently died, comes back to kill them.

Lane's only clue is a receipt from a pharmacy in Haiti, and a note from Loup-Garou, a man who tells Lane to retire from the police force or suffer the same fate. Lane gets some help from a female performer who works at a Haitian night club. The adventures begin and the suspects are plenty as Lane digs up a grave and finds the body missing. The same body is then found to have murdered a banker. Lane is kidnapped, drugged, almost turned into a zombie and escapes from a coffin to find the zombie maker.

With an exciting story and some interesting twists, Hubbard weaves a fun tale from zombie land that will have a chill rolling down your spine.

"Mortalis - Part 2" book 4 of "The Demon Wars Saga" by R. A. Salvatore

"Mortalis - Part 2"
book 4 of "The Demon Wars Saga"
by R. A. Salvatore
Multi-cast performance
Produced by GraphicAudio
Approx 6 hours




The Demon Wars Saga continues with book 4 "Mortalis." Actually, "Mortalis" is the book that bridges the 2 trilogies in the saga. Mortalis sums the happenings of what has happened just after the demon dactyl, Bestis Belzibar has been destroyed, even his spirit which possessed the body of the head of the Abellican Church.

The Demon Wars Saga is a series of books that cover the fantasy realm of the the land of Corona. Where the elves raise rangers to protect the woodlands and humans, Magic is performed by monks through gemstones, and centaurs protect the woodland creatures and play bagpipes. R. A. Salvatore created the series that has taken a life of its own even into a fantasy roleplaying game. GraphicAudio is producing the audio books and releasing them in 6 hour segments thus dividing each book into three parts. This makes the listening easier than having to get lost in the huge series all at once. For the first book and part of the second I was just rolling one right after another, but during the listening of the second book I had to wait for each release and the time in between allowed for me to absorb the story during my downtime.

GraphicAudio does a superb job in producing these audio books. They produce them with their slogan "A Movie in Your Mind" close to heart. These productions are full of great voice actors, sound effects and incidental music that keeps the story rolling and keeps the listener fully submerged in the world created by R.A. Salvatore.

In this edition of the series, Honce-the-bear, a country/state in the land of Corona has just had their Abellican Church fall to the evil of the demon dactyl, and a war with giants, goblins and dwarves. During the reconstruction period the Church, under the orders of the king, is getting their house back in order, but the Rosy Plague has entered the land. This plague is untreatable even by the magic gemstones of the church.

Rogue Abbot/Bishop Marcalo De'Unnaro is sent to St. Gwendoly abbey to find out if the rumors of the plague are true. What he finds is the townsfolk and monks from the abbey mostly dead from the plague. He begins his evil plans to build the church to his own doctrine, but when the new Father Abbot tries to remove him from the Church, he forms a band of Brothers Repentant, seeking to cleanse the land of all its sins. This plan also includes genocide.

Jilseponie, Poney to her friends, has returned to her home to grieve over the grave of Elbryan, the ranger and her husband who was killed in the final battle against the demon spirit. She learns her friend is dying from the plague and brings her to the abbey only to be turned away because all abbeys and the castles have closed their doors to keep out the plague. She is sent out with a handful of the gemstones to see if she can find a cure.

Juravial of the Touel'alfar, the elves, has retrieved a horse for one of the two new rangers that are being trained, one of which the son of Poney and Elbryan. Juravial learns of the plague and returns to the home of the elves where they are also shut off from fear of the plague.

The adventures seem grim but the story is compelling and with the attention to detail production in these audio books you will be wanting for more.

"From Dead to Worse" Book 8 in the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire Mysteries by Charlaine Harris

"From Dead to Worse"
Book 8 in the Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire Mysteries
by Charlaine Harris


I'm not sure if it is whether I'm becoming more of a fan of these books or if they just keep getting better, but what I do know, is that Charlaine Harris has cram-packed more action into this book than any of the other seven in the series. There's a battle for pack leadership among the werewolves, A hostile coup which leads to the King of the Nevada vampires taking over for Louisiana and Arkansas, and Sookie finds out her great-grandfather is a Fairy Prince. Okay maybe this should all be explained further.

Before I explain the actions in this book I want to say that I'm hoping the HBO series "True Blood," which is based on this series by Charlaine Harris, makes it to eight seasons so I can see this book unfold on my tv. The series is what got me curious about the series, and I'm glad it did. Okay actually it was the book "My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding" (a collection of short stories by various supernatural authors) but I've explained that before. It was after I read the story I heard they were making a series, so I watched the series and was hooked and had to read the books, and the books are way better.

Basically Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic barmaid in Bon Temps, Louisiana, has been forced into the supernatural world after all the world's vampires have come "out of the coffin," which is to say they've revealed their existence to the non-supernatural world. Sookie has fallen in love with a vampire, a werewolf and finally a weretiger. She has found out that she has a real fairy godmother, and that the supernatural has many more creatures which were once only thought to be myth.

In this book, just weeks after the events in "Altogether Dead" and about a year after Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana, Sookie's boyfriend the were-tiger, Quinn, is missing. It's as if he's dropped off the face of the Earth. Just as she decides he'll contact her when he wants, she is confronted outside of Merlotte's (the bar where she works, with her boss Sam the shapeshifter) by an Asian vampire. This vampire says he just wants to find out if what they say about her is true. After all Sookie did save the lives of the Queen of Louisiana and her entourage.

After talking with the area vampire sheriff (Eric Northman, a former lover of Sookie's) she finds he knows of no such person in the area and should alert him if she sees him again. Eric then asks Sookie out for dinner. She accepts and on the way to the restaurant Eric says he's bringing her to meet someone. As it turns out that someone is Sookie's great-grandfather, only not the one she thought she had. It turns out that her real great-grandfather is a fairy prince, Niall Brigant, Niall explains the story and Sookie now has to rethink all her family's history. But that does explain why she is irresistable to the vamps and may explain her telepathic powers. He then says to make up for lost time he wants to give her anything she wants. She can't think of anything but takes a rain check.

On the way home Sookie and Eric are attacked by a werewolf, and as it turns out all the femal pack-members are being targeted. The Shreveport werewolf pack has had been divided and in turmoil since the new leader killed to become the leader now so it looks like the wolves are going to have a major battle, and Sookie is right in the middle, after all one of her former boyfriends, Alcide Herveaux, was the son of the pack leader that was killed. But the twist here is that the attacks are not coming from where everyone thinks.

Now that's just the middle of the book. As the rest of the book progresses Sookie's witch room-mate, who is in hiding because she turned her lover into a cat, is found by her coven leader. The Louisiana vampires left weak and low on monetary assets are under attack by the Nevada vampires in hopes that the Nevada King will take over Louisiana and Arkansas.

This book has non-stop action and mysteries in the supernatural as well as the fun humor and wit that is shared through the entire series. I only hope that the next one is just as good.