Andreas Rosboch's Blog, page 2

Not Till We Are Lost (Bobiverse V) – Dennis E. Taylor

The fifth instalment picks up all the storylines from the previous books, and adds more. A pair of Bobs discover the abandoned planets and space installations of an ancient and multiracial civilization. Friction continues with various human factions. A new race is found and their civilization explored. The aliens from Heaven’s River deal with digital life after death. And more.

This book is a hot mess. There are far too many storylines, and only two get the attention they need to be interesting. The dragon storyline is neat, but not necessary for the main story. In essence, only the implications of the ancient civilization that decamped is really relevant. There is a lot of time spent in various meetings where various things are discussed, and only the characters’ snarky and snappy dialogue makes it bearable. The whole thing would have been better off as a short story collection, allowing the reader to focus on one thing at the time in depth.

The Final Shore (Siobhan Dunmoore IX) – Eric Thomson

Siobhan Dunmoore is assigned as Chief of Naval Operations at headquarters in Geneva by her old friend Kathryn Kowalski, who is now Grand Admiral. They have set themselves the challenge of setting up the armed forces as a fourth branch of government and moving headquarters to the world of Caledonia. Meanwhile, scheming politician and avowed centralist Sarah Lauzier has become Secretary General. Dunmoore, Kowalski, and their allies feel that continued centralisation of power will lead to unrest among the outer worlds, and eventually plunge humanity into a devastating war.

The concept of separating the armed forces from direct political meddling is interesting, but it also raises many ethical questions, the most important one being the matter of oversight. There is also the fact that the armed forces are taking matters in their own hands, which as stated in the book is unconstitutional. In essence, they are rebelling against the government. The ends seem to justify the means here, as not seeking independence would likely lead to hundreds of millions of deaths and a possible slide into barbarism. The author clearly takes the side of the military but does not really explore the opposing arguments, simply casting the Centralists as meddling and deeply corrupt bureaucrats. A deeper discussion than “our heroes are on the side of good” would have benefited the narrative. That being said, this is a competent political thriller, though the last section felt somewhat unnecessary and only seemed added to bring some extra action to the story. This ninth instalment neatly concludes the Siobhan Dunmoore saga.

On Stormy Seas (Siobhan Dunmoore VIII) – Eric Thomson

Siobhan Dunmoore is assigned to Third Fleet as chief of operations. It soon turns out that she has been posted there to clean up the ineffective and corrupt leadership. Organised crime interests soon try to recruit her into a web of corruption.

An interesting change of pace from the naval action of previous instalments, which was becoming stale, to spy/crime thriller, and well executed. Given the state of the greater political narrative of the series, and Dunmoore’s high rank, having her chase around the Galaxy for more fleet action would have stretched credibility.

Eject! Eject! – John Nichol

An informal history of ejection seats, with several accounts of ejections and their aftermath. From the primitive early trials to modern fully automatic “zero-zero” seats.

Former Tornado fighter jet navigator John Nichol, an ejectee and prisoner of war himself, tells the story from a very personal perspective, drawing on extensive interviews with ejectees and their families. A fascinating read that strives for a less technical perspective, focusing on the effects on the aviator mindset, and the often unexpected outcomes.

Eruption – Michael Crichton & James Patterson

John “Mac” MacGregor is a the leading volcanologist at the Hawaii Volcanic Observatory. As Mauna Loa threatens to erupt in “The Big One” he is appraised of dangerous materials from a decades old military weapons experiment that have been stored in a tunnel in nearby Mauna Kea. If the containment for these materials is damaged, it is game over for humanity.

It is hard to say anything kind about this book, so I won’t even try.

It seems Mr. Crichton left extensive notes about this project behind when he died, and his estate contracted Mr. Patterson to finish it. Mr. Crichton wrote many excellent action-adventure novels, and while he frequently used dramatic license, they always seemed meticulously researched and fact-checked. If there was an inaccuracy, it was intentional. In this novel, that is certainly not the case. There are at least five ludicrous aviation scenes that stretch the reader’s sense of disbelief to the limits.In fact, it would be more accurate to say that any sense of disbelief is shredded and burned, before being thrown way, into a volcano, presumably. For example, not even the stupidest pilot would make the same poor decision to fly in impossible conditions three times in a row, crashing every time, and yet here we are. Volcanic ash is one of the most hazardous things aircraft can fly into, and yet in this book, they keep doing it for no good reason. Just as one small detail, one of the helicopters featured is the Airbus H225, AKA Super Puma. As volcanic ash is ingested into the powerplant, the author writes that “the engine” is about to quit, but even a cursory read of the specifications shows that this helicopter has two engines. The final aviation scene where they try to bomb the lava flow with an F-15 is equally cringeworthy. The aircraft loses both engines yet somehow keeps flying and flying, and they keep going back into the volcanic ash even if this means they can’t see their target. Another detail here is that the author mentions that the pilot flew off an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf, but this is an Air Force pilot flying an Air Force aircraft which is not carrier operations capable. These are not major errors but could have been easily avoided with even rudimentary research and fact-checking.

The plot itself is convoluted and confusing, but it doesn’t matter because after about a third of the book the reader stops caring, It seems mainly to involve the protagonists going back and forth in “jeeps” (what kind of vehicle is this referring to exactly?) to various points of crisis, often involving lava, with the occasional surfing scene in which they reflect on the beauty of Hawaii in particular and the natural world in general. The characters could be called cardboard cutouts, except that would be an insult to the personalities of cardboard cutouts. Mac is separated and devoted to his work, and also brash and very direct, not fearing confrontation. He has some sexual tension with his deputy and also with the stereotypical hot chick who is an explosives expert. The featured general is straight from central casting and the volcano boffins… enough said. Honourable mention to the Elon Musk clone and his two celebrity volcanologist hangers-on. At some point, two Italian volcanologists are mentioned, their parts limited to speaking “in their language” and dying in a helicopter crash. And so it goes. The arbitrary deaths keep rolling on, but that doesn’t matter either because the reader never cared about them anyway.

This story might work as a dumb popcorn flick, but as a novel, it is a disaster about a disaster. The late Mr. Crichton is probably rolling in his grave.

To Turn the Tide – S.M. Stirling

Retired army officer and now ancient history professor Arthur Vandenberg, along with four of his students, is summoned to a lab in Austria in 2032. Around them, the world is descending into imminent nuclear war. The lab has perfected time travel, and the group of five finds itself in the Roman province of Pannonia Superior, in the late second century, during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. As they hurriedly leave 2032, the final war has begun, and they’be been sent back to change history, equipped with supplies and reference materials. From that starting point, Arthur (now Artorius) and his crew introduce numerous improvements to agriculture, medicine, architecture, and crucially the military arts, aiming to strengthen and preserve the Roman empire and prevent the Dark Ages.

Mr. Stirling is back to form in a fast-paced novel filled with fascinating historical detail. The casual cruelty of the social norms of the time is starkly presented, but in contrast with the barbarian tribes, the Romans believe in peace and thus prosperity. Artorius and the other four “moderns” are all interesting and fully-formed characters, as is their new friend Josephus the merchant. This is part historical fiction page-turner, part history lesson, and goes well beyond any superficial “moderns are superheroes” tropes.

Punk’s War (Punk I) – Ward Carroll

Rick Reichert, callsign Punk, is on deployment aboard an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf during the 1990s. While on hot standby for launch in an F-14, he is unexpectedly replaced in the jet by his squadron commander. As it turns out, an Iranian F-4 fighter wants to play games with the Americans, and things do not turn out well.

Mr. Carroll is a former Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) on the F-14, and has a popular YouTube channel. His depiction of life as a junior officer on a carrier is laced with gallows humour and slices of life. While there is a whiff of Top Gun, more often the characters are unwillingly caught in the politics and intrigue of higher-ups and just trying to get by. For these men, the mission is not the defense of freedom. It is simple survival, not only in the literal sense but just keeping it together in the unnatural confines of a warship, for months on end. The characters are alive, authentic, unwashed, and often hilarious. Punk and his comrades are prisoners of their situation quite far from glamorous warriors. A very insightful book on the human condition, as well as fascinating for the military aviation enthusiast.

Descent (Palladium Wars IV) – Marko Kloos

While back in captivity, Aden Jansen is recruited by the Rhodian military to infiltrate dissident elements at home on Gretia. Dunstan Park and his crew find a major pirate base. Meanwhile, things on Gretia go from bad to worse, as Idinia Chaudhary finds herself fighting a losing war.

The story progresses in this instalment, but it seems any actual conclusion is not forthcoming quite yet. Nevertheless a strong book in this enjoyable series.

Deep Black (Arcana Imperii II) – Miles Cameron

Following the battle at Trade Point at the end of Artiface Space, Marca and the crew of the Athens find themselves with two alien prisoners from different races, and no end of mysteries about the newly discovered Hin. There follows a series of running battles as the Athens has to fight its way home while trying to gain the support of certain Hin factions.

While it starts somewhat slowly, the novel picks up pace as it goes. The aircraft carrier inspired operations are well depicted, as well as the lack of sleep and free time during combat. The relationships between the crew are maturing and growing, perhaps somewhat predictably. The aliens are very well conceived, truly alien, whilst being driven by at times understandable and at times completely inscrutable motivations.

The story does come to a satisfying conclusion, but many, many questions are left unanswered.

A Dark and Dirty War (Siobhan Dunmoore VII) – Eric Thomson

A decade has passed since the end of the Shrehari war, and Dunmoore is facing forced retirement. The postwar years have not been kind to her career, and she has a reputation for stirring trouble by publishing bold and controversial papers on tactics from her seat at the War College. She now leads an audit and inspection team which assesses units for combat readiness. Meanwhile, a cruise liner with passengers on a study mission into frontier territory is hijacked, with the perpetrators abducting a number of members of the ruling class. Through the machinations of Dunmoore’s allies at naval headquarters, she is given the task of fixing the problem.

The decision to transform Dunmoore into a washed-up warhorse is an inspired one, and the machinations at the heart of government are interesting. However, as in the previous instalment, Dunmoore’s seemingly magical leadership powers make things perhaps too easy.