Book Review – The Luna Missile Crisis

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Rhett C. Bruno http://rhettbruno.com/ and Jaime Castle http://www.jaimecastle.com have together published more than 50 novels. The Luna Missile Crisis was published in 2020. It is the 13th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R.

The Russians are launching Yuri Gagarin in 1961 when an alien spacecraft suddenly appears in orbit. Unfortunately, a collision between the two craft ensues. The Russians at first see it as an attack. They fire nuclear weapons toward the West. While the missiles are destroyed, a radioactive ‘dead curtain’ in Eastern Europe results.

The aliens, the Vurbathi, need assistance repairing their ship. They offer technology in exchange for Earth’s help.

In the dead curtain, Sergeant Kyle McCoy and his team confront Russian troops. In the midst of the resulting skirmish, a Vurbathi appears. With it, secrets are exposed.

Three years later, Kyle McCoy’s twin brother Connor is trying to sell counterfeit Vurbathi technology. The deal goes sideways, and Connor must go on the run. He takes refuge with his brother, then betrays him by stealing his Department of Alien Relations ID. Using it Connor impersonates his brother and travels to the Moon for a diplomatic conference with the Vurbathi.

As the conference is beginning, an unknown group launches a sneak attack. Connor escapes with a beautiful KBG agent. They find themselves drawn into a conspiracy. It looks like only Connor can save the day.

I enjoyed the 12.5+ hours I spent reading this 488-page science fiction and alternate history novel. The plot is full of twists, and it is full of action. It was a refreshing read. I have read and enjoyed a few of Bruno’s other publications. They are Titanborn, From Ice to Ashes, and The Circuit: Executor Rising. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4.5 (rounded to 5) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Book Review – Back from 44

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – This is the only publication of author Nick Cressy. Back from 44 – the Sacrifice and Courage of a Few: A Story of Heroism in the Skies over Western Europe was published in 2014.The author is the nephew of the airman who wrote the source journal. This is the 12th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! I categorize this book as G.

This is the journal of Nick Bentas, Staff Sergeant US Army Air Force. During WWII, he was part of the 320th Bomb Group based at Dijon- Longvic airfield in France. In the journal, he reminisces about his months in training as a Flight Engineer on a B-26. He talks about deployment to Sardinia, Corsica, and finally, France. He describes some of their missions. He also talks about how the crew became a tight group of friends. All of them were missing family back in the States.

I enjoyed the 7.5 hours I spent reading this 220-page WWII-era history. The book provides a first-hand look at the lives of a B-26 crew. There were moments of joy and sorrow. I like the chosen cover art. I give this book a rating of 4.3 (rounded to 4) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

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If you have an interest in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest.

• The “World War II Resources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 600 links to museums, memorials, websites, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and other sources with information on the World War II era in history.
• The “World War II Timeline” page expands almost daily and shows events leading up to WWII, as well as during the war. Events are broken down into the Pacific and European Theaters by date.
• The About WWII page is a collection of links to posts that I have made over the years that are relevant to WWII. Included are links to many fiction and non-fiction books on WWII that I have read and reviewed. There are also links to WWII oriented podcasts.

Book Review – Little Lost Souls

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Stacy Green https://stacygreenauthor.com/ is the author of more than two dozen novels. Little Lost Souls was published in 2023 and is the second book in her Lucy Kendall Crime Thriller series. This is the 11th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence and mature situations, I categorize this novel as R. The primary character is Private Investigator Lucy Kendall.

Kendall started her career in Child Protective Services. The system made her burn out quickly. That was when she became a Private Investigator. The rules didn’t constrain her as much.

Over the past 18-months, Kendall had found five different pedophiles. They are all dead now. The system would have let them slip through its fingers. Kendall carried out the justice she knew they deserved. Now she is focusing on a child trafficking ring.

Kendall has gone undercover at a salon she believes is connected to the ring. When Sarah, the salon owner, is found murdered, evidence left at the scene implicates Kendall. This forces her into the precarious position of having to avoid the police while pursuing her investigation.

She does have other leads. There is the fifteen-year-old prostitute Riley. Kendall has approached her, but Riley is scared and not telling all she knows. Senator Mark Coleman is running a trafficking task force. But are his motives as humanitarian as they seem on the surface.

The leaders of the trafficking ring know Kendall is pursuing them. Can she save the children before the police catch up to her, or worse, the trafficking ring does.

I enjoyed the 7.5 hours I spent reading this 335-page mystery. I have had the opportunity to read The Girl in the Pink Shoes, the first novel in this series. It is every bit as good as this one. To enjoy this book, you should read it after Pink Shoes. The plot has many twists and turns, leading to an unexpected outcome. I do think that this novel ended abruptly. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4.5 (rounded to 5) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

USA, Texas, Slaton – The Slaton Bakery

(See my other Food related posts) – A few months ago, we were returning home from Lubbock. We noticed a billboard on the highway advertising The Slaton Bakery. We were in no hurry to get home, so we left the highway for a short side trip into Slaton, TX.

The bakery can be found at 109 S 9th St, Slaton, TX. The bakery was easy to find and just minutes east of US 84.

Many items are available, as can be seen in the photo above. We selected a few things, which all turned out to be delicious. The highlight of our purchase was one of their Christmas fruit cakes. It turned out to be one of the best fruit cakes either of us had ever tasted.

Per their webpage: the Slaton Bakery, is a bakery in the small town of Slaton, TX, which is in the southern plains of the Texas panhandle. Our bakery was proudly established in West Texas in 1923 and has been owned and operated by the Wilson’s since 1943. Thanks to our local and visiting customers, we have become a household name throughout the state during that time – especially for our award-winning Homemade Vanilla Wafers.

If you are in the Lubbock, TX area, take a few minutes for yourself and head 17 miles South East on US 84.

Over the years we have visited many enjoyable restaurants, bakeries, and points of interest around the world. Visit my Food/Locations page to see a full list.

Book Review – The Journey of Atlantis

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Jeff Knoblauch https://www.jeffknoblauch.com has published two novels. The Journey of Atlantis was published in 2017 and is the first book in his Atlantis series. This is the 10th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! I categorize this book/novel as G.

Astronomers at the Keck Observatory discover a new neutron star. After some calculations, they determine that the star is on a trajectory that will take it through the Solar System. In just 84 years, life will be extinguished.

If humanity is to survive, the people of Earth must put aside their differences and cooperate. A ship must be built and launched that will carry the seeds of humanity to a new home. Most get behind the effort, but some dissenters protest and take action against the project. Compared to Earth’s population, only a hand full will be saved on the starship Atlantis.

The novel gives a series of snapshots of progress and problems as the project progresses. These are spaced about ten years apart. As the years pass, old characters die, and new ones are introduced. They struggle with science and engineering problems. The looming deadline of the neutron star’s catastrophic arrival drives them to complete the project.

I enjoyed the 8 hours I spent reading this 301-page science fiction novel. This novel is different. It deals with many different people over almost 100 years. The story is more of a high-level summary of the project than a detailed plot. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Book Review – The Ultra Betrayal

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Glenn Dyer https://www.glenndyer.net is the author of three novels. The Ultra Betrayal was published in 2020 and is the second book in his Conor Thorn series. This is the 9th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as ROSS agent Connor Thorn and MI6 Agent Emily Bright Are on a mission.

It is the fall of 1942. Swedish cryptographer Gunnar Lind has disappeared from Bletchley Park. What Lind knows about British code-breaking would harm the Allied war efforts if the Germans discovered what he knew. Thorn and Bright have been assigned the task of finding Lind. Double agent Kim Philly hears about the disappearance and secretly initiates a search for Lind by Russian agents.

Lind has managed to flee to Sweden. He works through his father-in-law to contact German intelligence. He wants to sell them what he knows. Bright has pursued Lind in Sweden, but is taken by the Germans. By this time, Thorn has also arrived in Sweden. He is trying to find both Lind and partner Bright. It becomes a three-way race between Thorn, the Russians, and the Germans as to who will get to Lind.

I enjoyed the 9 hours I spent reading this 380-page WWII-era thriller. The author includes several famous people of the time as minor characters. The novel has a good plot that is full of action. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4.5 (rounded to 5) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

If you have an interest in the WWII era of history, you may find these three pages of interest.

• The “World War II Resources” page is a constantly growing collection of more than 600 links to museums, memorials, websites, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and other sources with information on the World War II era in history.
• The “World War II Timeline” page expands almost daily and shows events leading up to WWII, as well as during the war. Events are broken down into the Pacific and European Theaters by date.
• The “About WWII” page is a collection of links to posts that I have made over the years that are relevant to WWII. Included are links to many fiction and non-fiction books on WWII that I have read and reviewed. There are also links to WWII oriented podcasts.

Book Review – Battle for Earth: Journal One

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Hammer Trollkin https://hammertrollkin.com/ is the author of five novels. Battle for Earth: Journal One was published in 2020 and is the first in his Shockwave series. This is the 8th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R.

A group of teens is visiting a secret DARPA laboratory when explosions cover them in unique nanites. The explosions are caused by an alien attack. The bug-like invaders have technological superiority, but the teens become a force to be reckoned with as each develops unique powers.

The team, which comes to be known as Shockwave, is made up of an odd collection of characters. The leader, referred to as Mr. T, is a DARPA scientist. 17-year-old Elizabeth ‘Viz’ is Mr. T’s granddaughter. Her special skill is invisibility. Also part of the team is 16-year-old Mia, Viz’s younger sister. Known to the team as ‘Para’, her special skill is becoming super dense.

The 16-year-old identical twin boys Tom and Bill are known as ‘Rock’ and ‘Roll’. Their ability is nonlocality – they can transport. There is also Muncle. He is a spider monkey. But he is an exceptionally smart monkey with enhanced eyesight. Lastly is Mr. T, who can read a person’s mind if he can touch them. Lastly is Communal, a sentient artificial intelligence.

The Shockwave team strikes out against the invaders at every opportunity.

I thought that the 10.5 hours I spent reading this 265-page young adult science fiction novel were interesting. The plot and writing are tailored to young adult readers. The book is full of action. I do like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 3 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Book Review – The Girl in the Pink Shoes

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – Stacy Green https://stacygreenauthor.com/ is the author of more than two dozen novels. The Girl in the Pink Shoes was published in 2023 and is the first of her Lucy Kendall Crime Thriller series. This is the 7th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, mature situations, and mature language, I categorize this novel as R. The primary character is Private Investigator Lucy Kendall.

Kendall started her career in Child Protective Services. The system made her burn out quickly. That was when she became a Private Investigator. The rules didn’t constrain her as much.

Eight-year-old Kailey Richardson has gone missing. Kendall feels strongly that she has become the latest victim of a child molester. Kendall promises Kailey’s mother that she will find the girl. Over an 18-month period, Kendall had found five different pedophiles. They are all dead now. The system would have let them slip through its fingers. Kendall carried out the justice she knew they deserved.

Her life became more complicated when Chris Hale entered it. He had figured out her mission. Until then, the only other person that knew was her friend and hacker, Kelly. Now she has to worry about Chris. But his willingness to help can’t be ignored.

Kendall focuses on Justin Beckett. He had been one of her CPS clients. He had spent years in prison for killing a young girl, but now he was out. He also lived across the street from the Richardson home. She feels certain he is responsible.

Then she meets Detective Beckett. He is Justin’s older brother and investigating the disappearance. At first, she fears a coverup, but as she learns more, the long-hidden truth comes out.

I enjoyed the 7+ hours I spent reading this 306-page mystery. The plot is dark but very good. Suspects are in abundance, with many twists in the plot. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

Your Next Read May Be Written by AI

As far as I know I have not ready anything yet that was written by AI. I’m not sure how long I will be able to continue saying that.

I came across the article AI Is Writing Books Faster Than Humans—Here’s Why That’s a Problem yesterday. It made me wonder.

As a reader, having good content is important. Will AI writers be able to generate good content? It doesn’t sound like they are ready yet to take over from humans. Tools are making it easier for authors. I see that with Grammarly in posts that I write. Applying ChatGPT or similar tools could certainly make writing easier and faster.

For the aspiring author, having to compete with AI will be a challenge. This could certainly lead to fewer authors being able to make a living from their works.

How will this play out? What do you think?

Book Review – The Cendovian

(See all my Book Reviews and Author Interviews) – This is the first publication by Mark Hennessy. The Cendovian was published in 2020 and is the first book in his Cendovian Chronicles series. This is the 6th book I completed reading in 2023.

I received an ARC of this book through https://www.netgalley.com with the expectation of delivering a fair and honest review. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of minor violence, I categorize this novel as PG.

Victor, Marisa, and Connor are attending their first day of classes at Stanford. Unknown to them, their professor, Richard Nelson, is plotting to draw them into his plans to save humanity. Nelson, with neuroscientist colleague Pari, is secretly working to build a digital copy of a human brain and personality. A project that will enable humans to virtually live forever.

I enjoyed the 11 hours I spent reading this 383-page science fiction novel. The AI aspects of the story and the moral questions were interesting. A plot didn’t emerge until well past halfway through the novel, and then it was weak. The chosen cover art is eye catching. I give this novel a rating of 3.8 (rounded to 4) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).