Another great book from Tom Holt, also a little different to the others of his I have read, which revolved around magic being used commercially. In this book quantum physics, multiple universities, time travel, god-complex, big-bang and siblings - a heady mix.
The main character blows up a particle accelerator (but is it his fault) leading to at the very least Switzerland being considerably flatter, becoming unemployable, and giving a new meaning to 'climbing into the bottle' which in this case leads to alternative realities and meetings with both his not-so dead brother and mentor.
If you looking for a good comic 'fantasy' or sci-fi book this one is worth a look.
I confess to getting sucked in by the free chapter at the end of the book for 'The Accidental Sorcerer' and ended up buying the book.
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Read this book, it is one of the most enjoyable Sci-Fi books I have read for a while. I have been reading the Scalzi's Human Division series books and they are good, but this is better.
The concept of 75 year old's enlisting (after starting the process 10 years before) to become soliders in an off-world force (Colonial Defence Force), giving up all their rights and breaking all contact with anyone left on Earth is not something you read everyday. The book is logical in terms of how a pensioner on Earth can become a superhuman soldier, the method is not really a surprise but that is an advantage.
Action is fast paced, with the effects of being a soldier consider and then moves on. John Perry is the central character, who we see going from enlistment, meeting new friends, physically becoming the superhuman solider, training, fighting a number of aliens and becoming a veteran - all in a very short period of time. Along the way we see him make and lose friends.
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Concerned with the role played by Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study in the 'computing revolution', the players are introduced and their role in the developing computing is pieced together gradually. The main focus is on John Von Neumann and his role in a variety of computational fields, effect on the Institute, his life and the consideration of what coud have been if he hadn't died at a relative young age. If you are looking a lot of background on Alan Turing, this is not the book for you, Turing himself has a chapter. If though you are looking for the importance of Turing's work, then this book is for you, this is one of the major themes running through the book.
For me there was a little too much background and family history of some of the main players, including a chapter on the site of the institute itself.
There are some surprises (for me), the main one being the importance of Klara Von Neumann the second wife of John Von Neumann, as one of the first programmers/pioneers of the early computers.
This is a good book about the history and importance of computing, with some thoughts and even chapters on the concept of the Digital Universe and it's implications. If you are interesting in the history of computation this is book you will want to read.
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The strangely titled book (the reason is quite clear half way through this book/chapter) is the third in the Human Division series. The heroes from the first book B-Team are back and in difficulty. This book, unlike the previous two, leaves you with a cliffhanger, the team split over two related locations.
These books do need to be read in sequence, but I not sure I want to keep reading them installments, would it be worth waiting for the whole collection as one book? I am unsure. What it has done though, is lead me to by other John Scalzi books.
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This is the second in the thirteen part Human Division series on the Kindle.
The book is delivered as a dialogue on a 'Wild-cat' planet and is a very short (but worthwhile) story that is a quick read. It concerns hard decisions that have to be made for the good of the colony.
How it relates to the first book is not clear but I am curious to fine out (see Human Division 3 book below).
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This is an autobiography of a SEAL sniper during the second Iraq War, and like others books written by soldiers it is actually more readable strangely (for example Apache by Ed Macy) than similar biographies written by reporters (even if they were embedded).
One of the really good features in this book is the inserts from his wife giving a really good extra dimension to the book.
This is a fast paced book, that leads the reader through the narrative effectively.
The author you respect. His cowboy nature is raised every so often, and problems with Head Shed (senior officers) is well documented in the book.
It is a fast paced, good read, the level of graphic detail is low (which would be have been a problem), written from a first person perspective and too a certain extent a 'warts and all' account. It appears to have been written with an American audience in mind, though the Polish army comes out in the book in a very positive light. The inserts from his wife are an excellent addition to the book, counterbalancing the action, with the effect the war has one the soldier's family. Reference is made to another book Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell, and this author's charity work after leaving the SEALs is discussed..
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