*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of KINDLE Ebook Sungrazer Book 2 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey

I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, Outriders – see my review here – so when I saw this sequel pop up on the Netgalley dashboard, I immediately requested it.

In a new Cold War between Earth and the colonies on Mars, when devastating weapons go missing, there’s only one team you can call – the Outriders. A crack force of highly specialised super-soldiers, their clone bodies are near-immortal. When a fully-autonomous vessel with orbital strike capabilities goes missing, it’s up to the Outriders to track the untrackable. But when the trail leads them to the influential Martian People’s Collective Republic, the operation gets a lot more complicated…

This military science fiction adventure once more hooked me in with yet another enthralling plot in a story where the stakes aren’t just cities or countries sucked into war and devastation, but planets… Things are still very tense between Earth and the Mars’ colonies after the last kerfuffle, where our plucky black-ops team narrowly averted a disaster so when a lethally effective weapon disappears, the Outriders are the obvious choice.

Military science fiction naturally requires a cracking plot – and once more, Posey displays his evident skill in his smooth delivery of a storyline where we have a dual narrative – Lincoln, the captain of the Outriders is one of the protagonists, with the other protagonist being Elliot, who is operating as an undercover agent for United States National Intelligence Directorate. The pacing and ramping up the tension is well handled and I enjoyed the twists and turns, particularly the climactic finale where Elliot encounters the Outriders with mixed results.

The characterisation also needs to be good in this genre as we have to care for those going into battle, because if we don’t, then it robs the story of all its tension. Linc is a likeable chap, with sufficient self-doubt and vulnerability for the reader to connect, but not too much because, after all, he is a super-soldier. We also need to identify with the rest of the squad and as this is the second book, I easily recalled all the characters and their particular quirks and skill sets. While reading this, I couldn’t help thinking that it would make a cracking TV mini-series or film.

But the other major ingredient that military sci fi adventures need is plenty of techie weaponry and nifty battle tactics, which need clear explanation before all the action kicks off or the reader isn’t going to full appreciate what is going on. Posey is accomplished at slipping in the salient facts about the guns and those super-suits this crack black-ops team wear, so that in the heat of battle, we are able to follow all that is happening with no trouble. He manages this without compromising the overall pace or gathering tension of the story. Overall, this is yet again a solidly enjoyable story with some unexpected twists – especially near the end that had me reading far longer than I should have done and this one comes highly recommended.
8/10

Sunday Post – 28th May 2017

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

Last Sunday was a beautiful day – and Himself and I spent the sunny afternoon at my daughter and her partner’s home, which is wonderful Grade II listed building with a fascinating history and an overgrown garden with a wood at the back of the property. So the barbeque we had there was idyllic with the peace only broken by the laughter of Himself having a nerf gun fight with Oscar, while Frances was in charge of cooking the sausages, burgers and halloumi on the barbeque with the music from the record collection my own children grew up with drifting out of the house…

This week has been another mixed bag – I was feeling better until I woke up on Wednesday feeling dreadful again, once more missing my Pilates class and spending the afternoon in bed. So I’m looking forward to half term to get a chance to try and see if I can finally throw off this virus whatsit thingy. We started the holiday with the grandchildren staying over on Friday night – a lovely beginning to the half term break.

This week I have read:
Saven Disclosure – Book 2 of the Saven series by Siobhan Davis
Enemy alien ships crowd the skies over Earth while the world waits with bated breath. The Saven have been exposed, and where once they were abhorred, they are now championed as our greatest ally and our only possible savior. Logan and Sadie have been separated, and the longer he is gone, the more their love is tested by duty, doubts, and deception. Sadie and Jarod have infiltrated the highest levels of government, but they are playing a dangerous game. Surrounded by people with conflicting agendas—hell-bent on using her for their own aim—Sadie is confused when the lines between good and evil are blurred. It’s impossible to tell friend from foe, and no one can be trusted.
I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in this series and after reading my review, Siobhan Davis kindly sent me a review copy of the second book. The politics and tension surrounding the aliens now threatening humanity so the Saven are seen as friends rather than enemies. And then the plot gets delightfully complex, ever upping the stakes – I’m really looking forward to diving back into this world.

The Space Between the Stars by Anne Corlett
All Jamie Allenby ever wanted was space. Even though she wasn’t forced to emigrate from Earth, she willingly left the overpopulated, claustrophobic planet. And when a long relationship devolved into silence and suffocating sadness, she found work on a frontier world on the edges of civilization. Then the virus hit… Now Jamie finds herself dreadfully alone, with all that’s left of the dead. Until a garbled message from Earth gives her hope that someone from her past might still be alive.
Yes… I know – yet another post-apocalyptic disaster novel dealing with the gritted struggle of surviving after the unthinkable happens. Except this one is different, as it is as much an internal journey with Jamie forced to confront her painful past and her personal demons she had run from before the virus struck. Beautifully written and powerful.

Sungrazer – Book 2 of the Outriders trilogy by Jay Posey
In a new Cold War between Earth and the colonies on Mars, when devastating weapons go missing, there’s only one team you can call – the Outriders. A crack force of highly specialised super-soldiers, their clone bodies are near-immortal. When a fully-autonomous vessel with orbital strike capabilities goes missing, it’s up to the Outriders to track the untrackable. But when the trail leads them to the influential Martian People’s Collective Republic, the operation gets a lot more complicated…
This enjoyable military science fiction adventure about a crack black ops outfit that gets to do all the ‘mission impossible’ jobs, assisted by some scarily effective technical toys, is smoothly written with a nicely twisty plot. I’m keeping an eye on this series, as I want to read the next one.

The Broken Ones – prequel to The Malediction Trilogy by Danielle L. Jensen
Below Forsaken Mountain, a plot is being hatched to overthrow the tyrant king of Trollus, and Marc is the right-hand man of its leader. His involvement is information more than one troll would kill to possess, which is why he must keep it a secret from everyone, even the girl he loves. After accidentally ruining her sister’s chance to become queen, Pénélope is given one last opportunity by her father, the Duke d’Angoulême, to make herself useful: she must find proof that the boy she’s in love with is conspiring against the crown. If she fails, her life will be forfeit. Marc and Pénélope must navigate the complex politics of Trollus, where powers on all sides are intent on using them as pawns, forcing them to risk everything for a chance at a life together.
I haven’t read The Malediction Trilogy. Yet. After experiencing this brutal, magic-driven world where ruthless magic-users don’t scruple to use deadly force to safeguard their interest, I now want to know what happens next.

The Scattering – Book 2 of The Outliers Trilogy by Kimberley McCreight
Wylie may have escaped the camp in Maine, but she is far from safe. The best way for her to protect herself is to understand her ability, fast. But after spending a lifetime trying to ignore her own feelings, giving in to her ability to read other peoples’ emotions is as difficult as it is dangerous. And Wylie isn’t the only one at risk. Ever since they returned home, Jasper has been spiraling, wracked with guilt over what happened to Cassie. After all they’ve been through together, Wylie and Jasper would do anything for each other, but she doesn’t know if their bond is strong enough to overcome demons from the past. It is amid this uncertainty and fear that Wylie finds herself confronted with a choice. She was willing to do whatever it took to help Cassie, but is she prepared to go to the same extremes to help complete strangers . . . even if they are just like her?
This YA sci fi thriller was full of twists and turns and this time around, Wylie wasn’t so waywardly set on putting herself in danger and the mystery surrounding the outliers was even more compelling.

My posts last week:
Sunday Post – 21st May 2017

Review of Spellbound – Book 2 of the Spellwright trilogy by Blake Charlton

Teaser Tuesday featuring Sungrazer – Book 2 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey

Review of A Second Chance – Book 3 of The Chronicles of St Mary’s by Jodi Taylor

Discovery Challenge 2017 and Tackling my TBR – April Roundup

Friday Face-off – Of all the words of mice and men, the saddest are ‘it might have been’ featuring Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of The Scattering – Book 2 of the Outliers Trilogy by Kimberley McCreight

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week, in no particular order:
Brilliant Book Titles #115  https://librarystaffpicks.wordpress.com/2017/05/26/brilliant-book-titles-115/ Those lovely folks at the award-winning Ballyroanreads library blog have excelled themselves with an intriguing book this time around…

…the day it rained money… and we couldn’t laugh…  https://seumasgallacher.com/2017/05/27/the-day-it-rained-money-and-we-couldnt-laugh/ That successful indie author Seumas Gallacher is a great storyteller is undeniable if you have the pleasure of reading his blog. I loved this particular anecdote…

10 of the Best Very Short Poems Ever Written  https://interestingliterature.com/2017/05/26/10-of-the-best-very-short-poems-ever-written/ If you love your poetry small and perfectly formed, then this article shouldn’t be missed.

On Visiting With Old Demons  https://zenandtheartoftightropewalking.wordpress.com/2017/05/22/on-visiting-with-old-demons/ Viv’s passionate and scaldingly honest blog posts are always required reading for me – and this one struck a real chord…

Jane Austen at Home by Lucy Worsley  https://onereadersthoughts.com/2017/05/24/jane-austen-at-home-by-lucy-worsley/ I don’t normally feature books reviews in this section – but the book that Emma is discussing is also linked to an excellent TV show which I highly recommend. I am certainly going to be tracking this book down.

Thank you for visiting and taking the time and trouble to comment – and may you have a wonderful reading and blogging week.

Teaser Tuesday – 23rd May, 2017

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by The Purple Booker.
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This is my choice of the day:

Sungrazer – Book 2 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey
71% He was clearly struggling, relieved to be letting it out after who knew how long, uncertain how much was safe to share. “It isn’t like when you forget an appointment, or something that happened a long time ago that a friend reminds you of. It’s a hole. A blank spot. I know something should be there, but I don’t know what it is.”
“You talk to medical?”
“No, sir,” Mike answered. He looked up at Lincoln then, his eyes resolute. “And no sir, I won’t.”

BLURB: In a new Cold War between Earth and the colonies on Mars, when devastating weapons go missing, there’s only one team you can call – the Outriders. A crack force of highly specialised super-soldiers, their clone bodies are near-immortal.
When a fully-autonomous vessel with orbital strike capabilities goes missing, it’s up to the Outriders to track the untrackable. But when the trail leads them to the influential Martian People’s Collective Republic, the operation gets a lot more complicated…

This is well into this second book in the Outriders series – I enjoyed the first book in this military science fiction adventure – see my review here – and this second one is certainly full of tension and incident. Once again, an entertaining, enjoyable read that I will be reviewing in due course.

Weekly Wrap-Up – 8th May

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written. It’s been another madly busy week. My mother and sister came down to visit on Thursday and I was out in the evening with my friend Paula – we’re starting to think about a new course we want to run together at Northbrook next year for anyone wanting to write a novel. Yesterday we were out in Brighton, celebrating my son’s 30th birthday. It was a lovely get-together, rounding off a great week when the sun finally started to shine.

Therefore I’ve only read two books this week:

Central Station by Lavie Tidhar
This hard sci fi book gives us a slice of far future life in Central Station. In multiple pov, Tidhar weaves a beautiful, imaginative tale of the concerns and passions of these posthumans. It is an accomplished, thought provoking read by a very talented writer. It is due to be released this coming week, so I will be reviewing it in due course.

 

The Flood Dragon’s Sacrifice – Book 1 of the Tide Dragons series by Sarah Ash
I was a fan of Ash’s writing back in the 1990’s, so when I saw this offering on Amazon I snapped it up, hoping she was still as talented a storyteller. She is. This is a cracking tale, set in a version of Japan, when the country was at the height of its isolationist policy. I love the fact that the main protagonists are on both sides of the feud, giving us a ringside seat to the clan war that is tearing apart the ruling class. I will be shortly reviewing the book.

I have also started editing Breathing Space, though with it being another busy week, I haven’t got as far as I’d hoped.

My posts last week:
Weekly Wrap-Up – 1st May

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of Outriders – Book 1 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey

Teaser Tuesday – Central Station by Lavie Tidhar

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of The End of the World Running Club by Adrian J. Walker

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of Queen of Hearts – Book 1 of the Queen of Hearts series by Colleen Oakes

Friday Faceoff – You Got the Blues featuring Space Hostages by Sophia McDougall

Shoot for the Moon Challenge – April roundup

I hope everyone has a great reading and blogging week and you, too, are getting/enjoying the sudden burst of warm, sunny weather we are currently experiencing. Hard to believe that this time last week, we were enduring snow showers…

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of KINDLE Ebook Outriders – Book 1 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey

I was drawn to this book by the intriguing premise and cool cover. Would my hunch pay off?

A daring hostage rescue leads to the discovery of an imminent terrorist attack. Thanks to the Outriders, thousands of lives are saved. Until they aren’t. Despite the intelligence and the warnings provided by the unit, the terrorist attack goes off unhindered. A dangerously cunning woman who most assuredly should be dead has seemingly returned. And her plans aren’t just devastating, they might be unstoppable. How do you defeat a hidden enemy when you can’t let them know they’ve been discovered? You send in the Outriders.

This is a future world where Mars has been colonised and Humanity travels among the stars with all sorts of cool gadgets Batman would kill Robin for. Lincoln is headhunted to lead a small elite group called the Outriders, who specialise in black ops, mission-impossible style assignments.

It is always something of a challenge to successfully begin a military science fiction adventure – obviously the scene setting needs to be thoroughly covered before everything kicks off. But wading through several pages of information right at the beginning of a book generally has me tossing it back onto the pile. Life is too short to tolerate a book – I need to at the very least like it, preferably love it… However, Posey surmounts this problem with the kind of ease that tells me he’s no debut author. There is a chilling opening chapter involving Lincoln. And I was hooked.

From then on, the pace doesn’t let up. I quickly bonded with the small group, so that when they set out on their first mission together, I was feeling nervous… That doesn’t happen all that often these days, but I really love it when it does.

You’ll be unsurprised to learn that it doesn’t go according to plan. There are a series of nasty surprises for our intrepid Outriders. In addition we are in the viewpoint of several of the villains and I was delighted to see that we get more than a hint of why The Woman is so implacably opposed to our heroes.
The villains are far more than mere cardboard baddies – they have plans and objectives beyond the mission and hopes for the future. I really enjoyed that. I can imagine at least some of these folk will re-emerge in future books. Meanwhile the current adventure zipped along at a cracking pace with plenty of tension and finished unexpectedly. The ending tied up most of the loose ends, leaving a couple of plotpoints dangling for the next book. Which I will be acquiring one way, or another.

The ebook arc copy of Outrider was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest opinion of the book
9/10

Weekly Wrap-Up – 24th April

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written. It’s been a good week – a VERY good week… First piece of excellent news was that I was graded an Outstanding for my latest lesson observation at Northbrook College. I enjoy teaching and have a lovely group of students, so it’s gratifying to have such positive feedback.

The next slice of excitement came in the form of an email from Darren Pulsford, editor of the upcoming anthology Eve of War due to be published on 19th June by Fox Spirit. ‘Miranda’s Tempest’ by yours truly is the first story in the running order. To be honest, I’d sort of forgotten about it – making it a lovely surprise!

I’ve read four books this week:

Date Night on Union Station – Book 1 of the EarthCent Ambassador by E.M. Foner
I needed something lighter in tone after a fairly hefty apocalyptic sci fi adventure – and this was Himself’s suggestion, which, as ever, was on the button. It is more of a comedy of manners than the gritted battle for survival we are more used to seeing on space stations brimful of alien races and gnarly tech. I shall be reviewing it in due course.

 

Square Peg by Vivienne Tuffnell
I got know Viv’s writing through her accomplished blog Zen and the Art of Tightrope Walking and bought her book Away With the Fairies last year. I wanted to touch base with the contemporary world and Himself was nagging me to read this prequel, so I did. It’s another original, memorable read. No one writes quite like Viv and she deserves to be far more widely read. Another book I’ll be reviewing soon.

 

Outriders – Book 1 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey
This military science fiction adventure starts with a bang and rolls forward as we get to see events spool forward in the viewpoint of Lincoln, the Outrider’s new commander. And the Outriders are an elite black ops team in a world teetering on the edge of war with Mars… This NetGalley arc is due to be published at the beginning of May and I was very pleased to be in at the start of what I think is going to be a very successful series, if the first book is anything to go by.

 

The Executioner’s Heart – Book 4 of the Newbury and Hobbes Investigations series by George Mann
This latest steampunk whodunit has been loitering on by TBR pile for far too long – and as I’m learning to interleave my NetGalley arcs amongst the rest of the books piled up waiting for my attention – it suddenly jumped up and down and demanded to be read. Quite right too. It’s much too good to be ignored – and the ending was a major shock, leaving me agog to know what happens next.

 

 

 

My posts last week:
Weekly Wrap-Up – 17th April
Review of The Rhesus Chart – Book 5 of The Laundry Files by Charles Stross
Teaser Tuesday – Outriders by Jay Posey
Review of Space Hostages – Book 2 of the Mars Evacuees series by Sophia McDougall
Books I Wished I’d Reviewed
Friday Faceoff – Dead Men Tell No Tales featuring Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
The Spring Book Tag

I had planned to spend the week-end out in the garden, tackling all those early weeks and tidying up after the winter, but the grandchildren are staying, so inevitably the weather has turned cold. I only garden when it’s nice, so we’re going to snuggle down in front of the fire, read books together and watch some daft film together. Once more, thank you for taking the time out of your busy life to read my reviews and articles and have a great week.

Teaser Tuesday – 19th April 2016

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books and a Beat.
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This is my choice of the day:
Outriders – Book 1 of the Outriders series by Jay Posey
37%: Lincoln nodded and walked over to the booth, doing his best impression of the weary traveller, which fortunately wasn’t too tough since he’d been awake for at least thirty-two hours straight. He’d been stuck in a middle seat on the trip up between an overweight narcoleptic who snored and a skinny author who wanted to talk about is books the whole time. Lincoln would gladly have traded the author for the snoring man’s twin brother.

BLURB: A daring hostage rescue leads to the discovery of an imminent terrorist attack. Thanks to the Outriders, thousands of lives are saved. Until they aren’t. Despite the intelligence and the warnings provided by the unit, the terrorist attack goes off unhindered. What was supposed to be a triumph becomes a tragedy, and a ‘mission completed’ completely unravels. And when they learn the reasons why, the Outriders find themselves tasked with stopping a war before it can ever start. A dangerously cunning woman who most assuredly should be dead has seemingly returned. And her plans aren’t just devastating, they might be unstoppable. How do you defeat a hidden enemy when you can t let them know they’ve been discovered? You send in the Outriders.

This military science fiction caper starts with a bang and hasn’t let up since. I’m thoroughly engrossed and really enjoying not completely knowing what is going on as the strong characters and dual narrative keep the tension levels high. I just hope it continues as it started out…