Bob Mayer's Blog, page 6

Earth Abides: A Review

I was looking forward to this series based on the classic book. After all, Earth Abides was partly the inspiration for Stephen King’s The Stand. I liked it so much I use the title in my Area 51 series for the most recent book.

The first episode starts slow, very slow. Especially in this day and age of people wanting action right away. Then it does time jumps of years. Overall, I’m not thrilled. Here’s some of my reactions (spoilers):

First, no one is driving around two years or more after the “end”. Gas goes bad. Everything except nature goes bad. It’s a crutch.

Why in survival stories like this, and The Walking Dead, are people arming themselves with the worst choices possible? I remember a scene early in the Walking Dead where they’re excited to find a set of knives in the trunk of a car outside of Atlanta. I’m thinking you could outfit and Infantry Battalion with what would be in a line of cars outside of Atlanta. In Earth Abides, spoiler alert, he gets attacked by a lion. And he’s armed with his famous hammer—the hammer is very important actually in the book. Come on. You know there’s loose wild animals out there. You should be carrying something more than that.

Same with when the two kids take off in a stock Jeep. Like that old camper they kept in WD. You have your choice of everything and that’s why you use? At the very least you want a winch, high clearance, big tires, heavier suspension, yada yada.

The whole drilling for water episode was very weak. A plot justification for interpersonal action. That drill never went deeper than ten feet. And they were driving around doing that for people all over the place? Huh?

He throws up a handful of solar panels early on and apparently that provides power for everything and running water. Really? It’s year 17 and they’re still using those batteries? I like solar and am playing with a larger array now, but I know there is a shelf life to the batteries. Batteries are the choke point for all green power.

The most significant and revealing event is in that drilling episode. Spoiler: when he simply takes out the bad guy with his hammer. He just does it. For me that shows a critical part of survival. Often, it is the worst people who will be the best survivalists, especially in a scavenger society. Kudos on doing that. And then not letting the bad guy’s wing man in the community. Who is, of course, only armed with a knife in a country with 400 million firearms lying around.

I’ll keep watching it, because it shows flashes but overall, I wish they had stayed tighter to the source material. Showing off a solar power hang glider in that last episode does not cause me to be optimistic. As a writer, it just feels like there is no spine to the story. What exactly is it about? The book was about preserving the knowledge of civilization and not descending into savagery. They mention the library a couple of times and even have a few scenes there. But the whole thing feels a bit scattered.

Happy Holidays and a Special Gift, First Time Ever Free

One in Vermillion is free on Kindle Unlimited today 22 Dec and tomorrow 23 December as our holidays gift to you.

There are two other cool books free today: D-Day from my Time Patrol series and The Gate, a standalone thriller that is based in history.

I hope everyone has a joyful week. Nothing but good times ahead!

Bob

Rest In Pink is only .99 today!

Our super-fantastic-wonderful book Rest In Pink is only .99 today. or Kindle Unlimited here.

There are other free books today, too. One could possibly save your life, but at the very least will save you a lot of misery. The Green Beret Preparation and Survival Guide is also free. A stand-alone science fiction title, The Rock, set in Australia, is also free.

And assorted other titles. Nothing but good times ahead!

A Great Stocking Stuffer—Try For Free

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful time here with our son and grandsons. They traded the city life of San Diego for our little homestead for several days and really enjoyed it.

The Green Beret Pocket Sized Survival Guide is free on kindle today through the 4th of December. Download it and take a look and then decide if you want to order print copies as stocking stuffers in plenty of time for Xmas.

As usual, lots of free and discounted books on my Freebies page.

Right now, I’m watching a massive shutdown of an Interstate in New York due to a snowstorm. Please be prepared any time you travel in your vehicle, even if its just a quick run to the store. Here’s more info: https://www.slideshare.net/CoolGus/what-you-need-to-have-in-your-car-or-truck-to-be-prepared

Stay safe!

Bob

The Day After JFK Mistress was killed, Khrushchev resigned

FREE today and through the weekend: The Kennedy Endeavor. A thriller based on facts.

Below is Mary Meyer, whose husband was in the CIA. She was also Kennedy’s lover while he was president.

“Today, every inhabitant of this planet must contemplate the day when this planet may no longer be habitable. Every man, woman and child lives under a nuclear Sword of Damocles, hanging by the slenderest of threads, capable of being cut at any moment by accident or miscalculation or by madness. The weapons of war must be abolished before they abolish us.” John F. Kennedy

For 13 days in October 1962 the world came the closest to nuclear Armageddon. On 22 November 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated. On the 25th of November, as Kennedy’s body lay in state at the Rotunda in Washington, Anastas Mikyoan, Khrushchev’s top adviser, presented the Premier’s condolences to Jacqueline Kennedy. She took Mikoyan’s hand in both hers and told him: “I am sure that Chairman Khrushchev and my husband could have been successful in the search for peace, and they were really striving for that. Now the Chairman must continue the agreed upon endeavor and bring it to completion.”

On 12 October 1964, a Washington socialite named Mary Meyer was shot in the back of the head and through the heart at point-blank range. She had been married to a high-ranking CIA agent. More importantly, she had been carrying on an affair with President John F. Kennedy and was one of his most trusted friends, at his side through the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

On 13 October 1964, the day after Mary Meyer’s murder, the Soviet Politburo forced Nikita Khrushchev to resign from power and put him under house arrest.

Today, Paul Ducharme and Evie Tolliver unveil a Fail Safe type scenario brokered by President Kennedy and Premier Khrushchev and race against time before the archaic Sword of Damocles initiates World War III.

Bad Sisters: A Review. Not Sure What It Is, But It’s Great

The series Bad Sisters is funny at times. But it’s also shocking. And sad.

I really can’t pigeonhole this series, which I really like. I love it when something defies genre. That’s something I’ve done my entire writing career and what we see with my current collaborations with Jennifer Crusie. They tend to get slotted in romance, but they’re also thrillers, but they’re also about community, yada yada.

Back to this series set in Ireland (it’s based on a Belgian series The Clan). Five sisters. One of whom is married to a malignant narcissist. Who essentially is destroying everyone and everything around. Talk about a timely topic. This series doesn’t sugarcoat it either. It’s not a spoiler to say the series is about the other sisters trying to kill him. And failing. Over and over. Often in agonizing and horrendous ways.

The scenes bounce back and forth from after he’s dead to before and back.

It’s obvious, given recent events, that many, many people don’t know how horrible a malignant narcissist is. And how badly they can destroy the people around them. In this case, while the wife bears the brunt of his pathology, every sister carries the scars, some physical, of his sickness. Every time your cringe at something horrible he does—and gets away with—he tops that with something ever worse. Don’t let that put you off. It’s worth watching.

Highly recommended.

Winter Is Coming: Be Ready

I served in the Special Forces Group oriented to mountain and cold weather operations. In my first six months commanding an A-Team I went to International Mountain Climbing School and my team went through Winter Warfare Training in the Rocky Mountains.

I learned a few things.

With winter approaching there are things we should all know. I’ve got two free slideshows. One on cold weather. The other on what you should have in your car.

I base these not just on personal experience but from extensive study of other people’s experiences. For cold weather, staying dry and layering is key.

Here is the rest: https://www.slideshare.net/CoolGus/what-you-need-to-know-for-cold-weather-preparation-and-survival-254276021

One small tidbit—always have boots or shoes you can walk in packed in your car. Because you never know when you might have to hoof it. Always keep a sleeping bag or at least blankets in the car too.

Here is more potentially life-saving information: https://www.slideshare.net/CoolGus/what-you-need-to-have-in-your-car-or-truck-to-be-prepared

On other fronts, the preorder for The Honey Pot Plot is now live here: https://books2read.com/u/b5KBo1

I’ve got a zoom call tomorrow discuss the status of Area 51 for a streaming service. It’s a long slow process, but we’re heading in the right direction for a potential Area 51 series.

Nothing but good times ahead.

Stay safe!

Bob

The PreOrder of The Honey Pot Plot is now live

The Honey Pot Plot

Due to popular demand, we’ve made the pre-order live on all eBook platforms. The date listed is in May, but we plan on having it published much earlier than that, hopefully by the end of January. We just want to cut ourselves some slack because we’re too old and too tired to put ourselves under a tight deadline.

Nothing but good times ahead!

Veterans Day. First Area 51 book on sale all month.

50% off. The screenplay has been written by one of the originators of Alien franchise. AREA 51.

Our history isn’t what we believe. I keep the events of history the same in this series; but the reasons WHY things happened are much different.

I’ve continued this series beyond the original nine books with 4 news one and am currently working on Area 51: Genesis.

I hope everyone takes this holiday to remember those who’ve served.

All the best.

Area 51: Invasion is free

This was a fun book to write. I’ve always believed that if aliens did invade, we’re pretty much screwed since they have the technology get here and we haven’t even been able to get people back to the moon for a very long time.

I also like plumbing our collective subconscious and wondering where these creatures of legends came from: our distant past. Because this is not the first time the Swarm reaped our planet.

Even though it’s part of a series, you can read this one on its own.

Area 51: Invasion

Free today, 11/9 and tomorrow. 11/10.