Review: The Art of War (First Contact)

I’m part of the EPIC Indie team of judges.

I really enjoyed my time with Peter Cawdron's sci-fi novel, The Art of War (First Contact.) This is not a cut, so it's still very much in the SPSFC competition (at the time of writing.)

Title: The Art of War (First Contact)
Author: Peter Cawdron
Genre: Hard Alien Invasion Sci-Fi Adventure
Pages: 429
Independently published: 2023

Buy the book

I chuckled with excitement several times during the read, and that's always a good sign that I'm invested in the plot and the fate of the characters. There were some utterly brilliant scenes here and there, but I'll refrain from going into details and try to keep this review mostly spoiler-free.

The story is solid and visual, and I found myself thinking on several occasions how easy it would be to turn this into a movie or streaming series.

If it helps, you can think of this book as a modern and much more realistic version of the Independence Day movie. Or at least they share the theme and setting (war and first contact) and we encounter military personnel as characters. Less so in the sense that this is an action blockbuster script…or well, give it to Peter Jackson, and just watch! Don’t get me wrong, though, there’s action in this book, too. It’s just that what drives most of the story is the day-to-day lives of the main characters in a time of extraordinary events shaping their lives and the world. It’s a story about people…and about the art of war.

Overall, it’s a well-written story. Enjoyable and engaging. And unless you specifically do not like sci-fi books about people in the military and/or astronauts, I think you’ll enjoy reading it.

If you'd like to know more about the SPSFC competition and my role as a judge watch this video.

A broader perspective
If you love to read books about Americans, then several of the main characters are Americans, and parts take place on US soil. But likely due to the author being an Australian, born in New Zealand, the characters have a broad view of the world. It was refreshing to see important parts of the book take place in Asia and Europe and to get realistic descriptions of life and people in these places, like mentioning the noise level found in the big cities of India. Still, to this day, the sheer power of the street noises combined with especially the multitude of cars constantly honking their horns was a unique experience for me...and sure made it very difficult to sleep at night.

I think the world could use more sci-fi that's not afraid of showing the reader that the world is quite large and that people in other countries have much value, too. Not to mention different perspectives that might one day help us fight a war against a superior enemy...like hostile aliens.

My reasons for choosing this book to judge
I was lucky that I was given a say in which books I got to judge (thanks, Matt!) When I picked this book as one of mine, I did so because I like military sci-fi and aliens (and I was provoked by the title!)

“It better be good!”
I guess some will think it is in poor taste to re-use the title of a famous and ancient book (you’re allowed to do this legally, though.) At least, I remember thinking something like, “This book better be really good, or I'll give the author a hard time!”

I read the ancient work of military philosophy, The Art of War by Sun Tzu long ago (he’s the “statue guy” on the cover of Peter Cawdron’s book.) And to this day, the original still has much to offer I'd recommend reading it (don’t worry, it's quite short and easy to read.)

After reading this version of The Art of War, I don't have an issue with the "title abuse" and if the new version becomes a hit, it could open the eyes of a new generation to the ancient wisdom of Sun Tzu. Perhaps get someone to read both a modern and an ancient text about…The Art of War.

The stuff I’d do differently
Being an author myself, you might wonder if I noticed a lot of mistakes or found the story lacking here and there. Not so much, no.

The only part that bored me was a section at the back (an appendix about scientific stuff and military tech.) Some might think this is the best part. I could have done without. Still, no harm done, and it's nice to know that the author spent time on research and getting this stuff right.

Had I been the editor, I’d have asked Peter Cawdron to leave certain meta-plane references out. Since his story is engaging, why not keep me reading and engaged the whole way?

I would not have given one of the astronauts a last name that is known to everyone who knows anything about astronauts. It drew me out of the story. Nor would I have made references to films like Independence Day. I get the meta-plane sort of joke with the characters feeling like they are in a movie. A feeling I’ve experienced in real life, too. But the difference between real life and fiction is that I’m still in my real life even if I have a meta-plane thought. Whereas in a story, meta-plane references often draw me out of the fun parts. I’ll think, “Is this book inspired by this or that reference? Is that why the author feels a need to mention it? Or, Don’t they take their own story seriously?”

Whatever the case, I’ll stop reading. I’d rather stay immersed.

I’m not in love with the title either. From a marketing perspective, I do see an argument for some of the coolness of the original work rubbing off. It sure makes it really easy to remember the title. But it has downsides. Some will be provoked or get confused. “I’m looking for Sun Tzu’s book. What is this?” And if a reader searches for the new version, it’s difficult to find. A search on Amazon (even including the author’s name) begins with a great many editions of the ancient book. You’ll have to scroll quite a bit to find the new version.

Still, I've made worse mistakes as an author and the important part is that I had a great time in the company of Peter Cawdron's words.

Now, I have two more books to judge! They'll have to be really good to beat this one.

An author’s confession

Readers often ask me, “so what books do you read, Rune?” They assume authors spend a lot of time reading books. Because if not, how could they become better at their craft, and come up with ideas?

Well, getting ideas was never my problem. For every idea I use, I come up with ten I don’t.

“My confession is that I used to read more fantasy for the fun of it …

I suppose some authors do spend a lot of time reading. It’s just that since I began writing novels my reading patterns have changed. My confession is that I used to read more fantasy for fun.

It’s not that I don’t read fantasy. This week I read three short stories, the Tales of Annarheimur by Stephen E Seale (but that was to give him feedback.) The fantasy I read these days is to provide colleagues with feedback. And while I do enjoy it, I seldom pick up a book to read for fun.

What changed?
I write every day and sometimes I can’t sleep because of stories I’m thinking up, or scenes I’m creating. I think, that since I’m living and breathing fantasy all day long, my need to read is not as big.

Here’s a picture from this morning. It was our anniversary, and I made brunch :-) These days, I find that “my life” inspires me more than books do.

If fantasy books don’t inspire you what does?
That’s a gross oversimplification. I still read fantasy, and many series, I read earlier on, inspire me to this day.

I do have this issue that I’ve gotten so used to editing my work, that any text I read I instantly want to change, like removing a sentence, altering a character, or tweaking the worldbuilding.

Although this might be just a phase, it does happen all the time and it ruins the experience (especially if the writing is not my cup of tea.)

“… writing has never been about copying the stuff that’s trending …

Mostly I try to write and live my life 😊

I find myself spending more time on other things, like playing games or watching series (I just watched the first six episodes of the Nevers on HBO. Some good writing there, but too many scenes with nudity that felt forced on the actors because they had little plot relevance.)

My style
When I began writing, I decided two things, I wanted to find my own style (not just steal someone else’s way of doing things,) and I wanted to learn the ropes from authors that knew more than me.

I was afraid that if I read fantasy while writing my own stuff, I might inadvertently copy ideas or styles of writing. I decided not to read any fantasy while I was writing my first book. I didn’t quite live up to it, though (couldn’t quite stay away.) What did I read then? Well, I enjoy science fiction, so a lot of that.

On the subject of style: for me, writing has never been about copying the stuff that’s trending or being into what everyone else is into. I’m also not a fan of authors whose writing is about shoveling their ideological agendas down the reader’s throat, especially where it makes the story uninspired and simple.

How did you know how to write fantasy “the right way”?
Since I was careful not to copy by mistake anyone's writing style, I did at one point try to analyze how to make the best first page and first chapter. I did this by reading and analyzing the beginnings of a few specific fantasy books that I absolutely love.

I wanted to understand how my favorite authors did it. Not to write the same way, but to find the essence of what they mastered (and I didn’t.) From there, I realized how little I knew, and so I began to read books by other authors about writing, and I watched authors talk about their writing (I still do this, every week, all year long.)

“I knew that I wanted to write something that I would love to read.

My reading habits became more of a ‘how do you do it, and do it well.’ Using the examples, tips, tutorials, workshops, masterclasses, and whatever I could scrounge up. I still do this sort of thing WAY more than I read books for pleasure.

What I learned from my favorite books
You might wonder what I got out of analyzing the beginnings of books that I love. Well, some of it was that they all started with scenes that have motion/action in them, and not only that but they have stuff that’s easy to visualize for the reader in a way that really puts the ‘images of the fantastic’ (or the known) right into your mind and catches your interest right away.

I also knew that I want to sell books (who doesn’t?) and so I had to figure out how to write something that people would like or even love.

How do you do that?
I wasn’t sure, but I knew that I wanted to write something that I would love to read. And since I love what for me is the classics (Lord of The Rings and Wheel of Time being my two favorite fantasy series of all time, but there are many other books besides them that I love) I thought about what it was in those stories that enthralled me, and why they work less well today. For instance, the reader’s attention span is next to nothing these days, and to capture someone you must make stuff interesting right away and keep it so.

I tried to find the core of what I wanted to write, and I began my search by trying to capture what I loved most about fantasy. Now, you must understand that this is a difficult task as it’s an extremely wide genre. Fantasy encompasses such different things as stories about heroic knights of the round table, tragic mermaids, cool private investigator wizards in an urban modern world, bastard pirates who might fancy a dally romance, fantastic superheroes who defend their city, Jedis in outer space, dragons or elves that outlive and outthink humans, paranormal investigators, little fat boys or young girls who get lost in books, wardrobes, or holes below trees. And so much more 😊

I narrowed what I like, down to a shortlist of the books that I love the most (in the genre that I write in.) Since I discovered the fantasy genre in the 1980’ties (when my mother introduced me to The Hobbit, Lord of The Rings, The Brothers Lionheart, The NeverEnding Story, The Books of The Earthsea, and many other great works of fantasy,) I found that those books and stuff like the DragonLance Chronicles, The Wheel of Time Series, the books by Raymond E. Feist and others were still what inspired me (even though I had read a lot of contemporary stuff.)

On the other hand computer games like World of Warcraft, roleplaying games like D&D and Warhammer, and the movie version of Lord of The Rings inspire me just as much as any book.

“I plan to buy all the six winners of the SPFBO competitions …

Nostalgia does play a part in my love, and I think that each generation has its own “classics.” The stuff that they first found and loved.

I’m sure for many of you it might be Harry Potter, and that is just as good as the stuff I love. As long as something is a quality book, I personally don’t care if it was written yesterday or a hundred years ago. If it was published by the author him- or her-self or by a company. Quality is quality and it’s my hope that I someday might write a “classic.” By that, I mean something that is read by a lot of people who draw inspiration from it. If you don’t try you will never succeed that’s for sure 😊

What books are on my reading list?
I have a ton of unread books (mostly fantasy and sci-fi.)

And I plan to buy all the six winners of the SPFBO competitions and read those (for inspiration purposes.)

My novel, Doomsayer Prince, is currently a part of SPFBO#7, and once you join, you figure out how excruciatingly tough a competition this is!

300 fantasy books compete throughout a whole year. Being pitted against each other by some serious judges with a lot of knowledge. These people read so much it’s breathtaking. (Note added later: not surprisingly my debut novel was not the one left standing as the winner. The judges write 299 cut-posts during the competition. Only one gets the reward. It was fun while it lasted though, the hope of getting a spot in the top. Also, fun to be a part of the competition and I did get some contacts, sold a bit, and chewed off a lot of nails while waiting for five months for them to give me any kind of verdict. About my debut novel, one of the judges wrote: “It’s a great concept! It was also nice to see the main culture of the world not based in the Dark Ages of Europe.” The judges didn’t like the prose or the pacing, though, and so they let it go. That was a punch to the gut after 2½ years of work, but at least they did not say it was crap, and I have a bunch of reviews giving it a five-star rating, so perhaps if I had gotten some other judges I would have made it further. Who knows. You can’t let these things get you down. You just have to continue writing :-))

Been there, done that 😊
OK, so which fantasy books do I read?
Well, Earlier this year, I finished A Brightness Long Ago by Guy Gavriel Kay. I liked the characters, and the fantasy novel had a “sweet sadness” about it. It was not a page-turner for me, however. Maybe it was just me, but I put it down a few times. Still, I liked the ending, and it was worth the time I put into it.

“So which books couldn't I finish?

I also read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert (the bestselling author of Eat Pray Love) and much enjoyed this self-help book for writers (and anyone desiring to live a life of creativity.) It’s easy to read, the text and the arguments flow through you, and it’s an insightful read. I especially liked the first half of the book. always good fun to read about someone who has the same experiences regarding being creative as oneself (what she writes about the physical bodily sensations and the deep feelings (spiritual if you like) accompanying the idea creation process and the experience of writing, and I can totally understand why she is concluding being inspired by a genius (the Roman version not the renaissance one) or by Uriel, a spirit, muse, angel or whatever we name this inspiration. I do the same thing, in my own way 😊

The books I don’t read
I do have some “bad habits.” I often read parts of a book and then stop. Sorry, if that offends you, but sometimes I do go back and finish these books later, then again not always. If I’m not entertained, then the book has not lived up to the “contract I thought we had” which for me is “you are supposed to entertain me or teach me something valuable.”

I always read a few chapters, as most books are hard to get into before you have done that. You must give yourself time to get into the “mindset” of that particular writer and get used to the way she or he writes before you can hope to enjoy yourself. I guess that is one of the reasons we tend to read stuff by the same authors over and over. We understand how they write/portray the world, and we believe they will entertain or educate us.

So which books couldn't I finish?

I recently began reading The Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks. I loved the beginning of the series but heard the last book, The Burning White, was a disappointment, and as I did not love the beginning of The Blood Mirror, for now, I put it in the drawer.

I also began reading Cibola Burn by James S.A. Corey and put it on hold. I do love the Expanse series. (I previously reviewed Leviathan Burns by James S.A. Corey. It-s one of the prior novels in the series.)

My TBR list
So many books I want to read. On Audible I have begun listening to Red Sister by Mark Lawrence's, Book of the Ancestor trilogy. So far, it’s great. I took Brandon Sanderson’s amazing YouTube writing course. That man is so smart, and I decided to read (on my Kindle) The Final Empire.

I’ll get to those once I get through some of the books on my shelves, like the sci-fi novels I borrowed: Jack Campbell's Genesis Fleet: Triumphant (I’ve read almost all books written by Jack Campbell and I previously reviewed Daughter of Dragons and I reviewed Blood of Dragons and Destiny of Dragons), Craig Alanson's SpecOps, and Columbus Day, and Ian Douglas, Star Corpsman, Bloodstar. Plus, three hardcovers by Anna Smith Spark, The Court of Broken Knives, The Tower of Living and Dying, and The House of Sacrifice, and Nevernight by Jay Kristoff, and Gary The Gecko’s Guide to Getting Your Humans to Get Together by Christina “DZA” Marie. The title alone should make anyone want to read it :-)

Links

• Once in a while, I review books

• Here are Rune S. Nielsen’s list of top 20 fantasy authors (I admit that a lot of them are ones from back when I discovered the genre. It’s pure nostalgia)

Its mental

DOUBLE REVIEW

Blood of Dragons
Book Two, The Legacy of Dragons series, Jack Campbell

Destiny of Dragons
Book Three, The Legacy of Dragons series, Jack Campbell

Based on the titles, you might expect a lot of dragons in these two novels, but if you have been to the world of Dematr before you know that dragons are rare, so no such luck.

What do you get then? Well, you get one die-hard dragon slayer! In the form of Kira, also known as the Daughter of the Daughter, and believe it or not she gets a few more titles in these novels. If you like, Jason from Earth (I do), he is back as well, adding an easy-to-relate-to earthling’s perspective on the world and issues facing our two heroes.

The plot follows many of the same paths that Campbell have taken us down before, but I keep turning those pages, wanting to see what happens next! Please, keep these novels coming.

If you like anmy of the two fantasy “daughter series” you will feel right at home, and I guess that the reason Jack Campbell pulls off, writing rather similar novels, is that over the years has mastered a way of writing that lets his words flow effortlessly into you, giving you the novel-fix you need. Then again, there are a big surprise in these novels.

A joker up his sleeve
The two main characters are the young adults Kira and Jason. We are along on their frantic travels (willing or unwilling) across Dematr, and this takes up almost all the space. Most of the time it’s just the two of them together, so the plot does tend to revolve around their personal issues, looking at the same things from different angles, over and over. Especially the themes of attraction, love and worthiness of each other. Am I good enough for you, our first time, should we get married?
This takes us to the one big surprise (for me at least), that he spends quite some time on Kira's "magical PTSD issues." They become central to the plot and are interesting. Nice going of Campbell to take this up giving Kira is a real hero and giving her mental issues. It makes her more interesting and believable.

The not so great things
Unfortunately, her counterpart Jason is not given any new interesting personality traits. It would have suited the story. The books are in danger of becoming a re-run of the first series set on the world of Dematr but especially Kira’s “Magical PTSD” feels fresh enough that they become at least partly separate. I still think that his Lost Fleet books are better and so were his previous fantasy series about Kira’s mother and father.

Should I buy them?
If you like steam punk and/or swashbuckler fantasy action these are for you. I would also recommend buying them if you like other of Jack Campbell’s novels, and they are very quick reads, you won’t get bored, and they are well written.

You can see him evolving and becoming a master at the fantasy trade.

I previously reviewed Jack Campbell's Daughter of Dragons. The first novel in the series.

/Rune S. Nielsen

TOP 20 Fantasy Authors

Rune S. Nielsens favorite fantasy authors

While you are waiting for me to release my next novel, you might consider buying the works of some of my favorite fantasy authors.

There is little reason to cover those you already know and love, and my guess is that you previously read all of the following, right?

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Lord of the Rings (J.R.R. Tolkien), Narnia (C.S. Lewis), Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling), Game of Thrones (George R.R. Martin), The Dark Tower (Stephen King), The Golden Compass (Philip Pullman), and The Witcher (Andrzej Sapkowski).

If not, I recommend you begin there, but if not, buy a novel written by one of these other great authors (sorry, if you love some other author, I neglected to put on my list, but it is my personal subjective opinion and not the eternal objective truth. No, I don’t read everything, and there are simply so many fantastic authors out there.)

TOP 20 Fantasy Authors

• Robert Jordan - The Wheel of Time series (my favorite fantasy author of all time - also check out Brandon Sanderson who co-wrote the last novels of the series)

• Brent Weeks - The Lightbringer Series & Night Angel Trilogy (my second most favorite)

• Patrick Rothfuss - The Kingkiller Chronicles (a writing style so unbelievably poetic)

• C.S. Friedman - Cold Fire Trilogy (loved the main character. As much villain as a hero)

• Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman - DragonLance Chronicles (brilliant AD&D series)

• Stephen Donaldson - Mordant’s Need series (smooth like a velvet glove)

• Raymond E. Feist - Magician and a ton of other novels (some great worldbuilding)

• Lawrence Watt-Evans - The Misenchanted Sword (a much-underappreciated writer)

• David Eddings - The Elenium series (Church Knight’s rule)

• Robin Hobb - The Farseer Trilogy (the main character, Fitz, is truly well crafted)

• Katharine Kerr - The Deverry Cycle (a blend of “real world & fantasy” via prior incarnations)

• Ursula K. Le Guin - Earthsea Cycle series (read this when I was young. Still sits with me)

  
  Don’t mind science fiction mixed in with your fantasy?

• Jack Campbell - Pillars of Reality series (luckily for us the undisputed Master of Military Science Fiction decided he wanted to be a fantasy author)

• Julian May - The Saga of Pliocene Exile (starts of as science fiction but soon becomes fantasy)

• Frank Herbert - Dune (every ten years or so a movie or show based on Dune sees the light. It’s just that good!)

• Piers Anthony - Incarnations of Immortality series (captured my imagination and then some)

  For young adults

• Astrid Lindgren - The Brothers Lionheart (a great book to read aloud)

• Michael Ende - Never Ending Story and Momo (two great novels)

• Lene Kaaberbøl - The Shamer Chronicles (do you dare to look in her eyes?)

Wait, that was only 19 authors
You promised a TOP 20

Who should I add to complete the list?

Please send me your suggestion for an author. Include either your favorite series or book by her/him.

---

Your great suggestions I include in the list below:

Your Favorite Fantasy Authors

Karen Miller - Kingmaker, Kingbreaker series
Anne McCaffrey - Dragonriders of Pern series
Lois McMaster Bujold - The Mountains of Mourning and many other works
Terry Brooks - The Sword of Shannara Trilogy
Terry Goodkind - The Sword of Truth series
Terry Pratchett - Discworld
Roger Zelazny - The Chronicles of Amber

/Rune S. Nielsen

EXPANSIVE FUN

“One of the best books I read this year is Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey.”

— Dane East, Writer

Leviathan Wakes, James S. A. Corey

Caliban's War, James S. A. Corey

One of the best books I read this year is Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey, or actually by Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck as Corey is a pen name. I love the way the two authors describe their characters. My favorite, detective Miller, is done incredibly well, and the level of psychological layers that they put into his really impressed me.

The Expanse series books are the basis for the Netflix show The Expanse, which you might know. I haven’t seen the show, but if it is anything like the books, it must be really good.

The sequel totally lives up to the first but is quite a different type of story. Where the first is a noire detective story set in space and which makes use of horror and military SciFi elements, the second is a political thriller using some of the same elements as garnish.

The books share enough of the same main characters to make it fell like as series, but unlike a lot of other series the sequel do not feel like a remake of the first but a very solid story in it is own right. 

In Leviathan Wakes the plot was best in the first half of the first book, but I would have liked it even better with more detective investigations, war episodes and realism and less vomit zombies. Zombies are in my opinion one of the most overused and boring "concepts". I admit I liked them a lot when I was a teen, but that was a long time ago.

Ciliban's War has fewer zombies and is more consistently good all the way through.

All in all, if you want to read one of the books I write about here read Leviathan Wakes.

/Rune S. Nielsen

THE OUTSIDE PERSPECTIVE

How to Live in Denmark, Kay Xander Mellish

If you are thinking about settling in Denmark this is a must read, and a quick read.

Based on the long-running How to Live in Denmark podcast by the American author, this inexpensive book makes your life in "the world's happiest country" less confusing for foreigners.

The chapters cover a lot of things such as: How to find a job in Denmark, what the workplace expects of you, how Danes think, why Danes are nice people but hard to get to know, how to live in Denmark, how to date a Dane, raising kids here, history, holidays, traditions, and weather.

The book is a fun and easy read, and is rewarding for Danes to read as well.

I can honestly say that it provided me with several insights and new perspectives on my own culture, as seen through the writer’s keen eyes.

/Rune S. Nielsen

PLAY IT AGAIN ROW’

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, J.K.Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne (version translated into Danish)

I understand if you dislike this one, but I actually liked it. Let me tell you why you might dislike it and why I did not:

I got this super cheap on sale in a nice hardcover first edition and could not resist purchasing it. I guess the reason it was cheap was that it is a lot less popular than the previous novels about Harry Potter though.

Why I liked it
With all the reservations about this not being a novel (see later) and that if you are really into Harry Potter you will likely be disappointed (see later), I actually loved reading it. 

Why?

I guess I just missed Harry and "his universe" more than I thought, so for me the play was both magic and fun.

The second reason: I got it at a bargain. Nothing wrong with that!

Why people disliked it - and why I understand
On SoMe many people dislike this novel, one of the reasons being that it is in fact not a novel at all but a play. The text contains only short intros to each scene and then the actor’s lines. For this reason, reading the first few pages is not enjoyable, but then I got used to it, and it was fine for me.

Some fans of Harry Potter dislikes this play, and I actually agree with lots of the points they raise, there are things in the plot that does not make sense, and Harry Potter only has a few lines in the play, so it’s a stretch to put "Harry Potter" in the title, and I understand why some people would say that this all about "making money," then again I don't really have a problem with making money, as long as I enjoy the outcome, so...

It's just a story folks
An example of one of the things in the play that makes less sense than it should, is how the grownup versions of Ron, Hermione and Harry is acting. Grownup Ron acts more childish than he did as a teenager, Hermione has a fancy position at the ministry but seems to have gotten more stupid over the years too, and I can understand why Harry might not be the best parent after the upbringing he had to endure, but I doubt he would be quite this shitty.

Then again, all three characters are not very important in the play, it’s all about the next generation and time travel.

Then why are you writing this Rune - you only write about stuff you like!
Well, if you look at it from a writers view, I think that some fans can get stuck on "if a character acted one way in the books I love, or the world worked a certain way (in the fan’s subjective optics), then everything damn well stay the same in the next book!!!!”

In reality however, sometimes people do change. They get hurt, or sick, or older, or disillusioned, or simply act strangely once in a while (from an outside perspective). Things and people change, even if that change might be scary.

For all I know Ron is trying to embrace his inner child, so he is acting like one, Hermione might be so stressed at work, that she is missing obvious things and Harry could suffer from PTSD, and that is why he is feeling like crap and end up treating his son badly.

Whether the changes are actually caused by the play being mostly written by John Tiffany and Jack Thorne (and not J.K.Rowling), I have no way of knowing, but it could also be that the grown-up’s lines is not what they actually say, but what the children think they mean?

Then again I'm just trying to make sense of it, and to be honest I don't lose any sleep over it. Don't get me wrong, I like Harry plenty, but as I read hundreds of fantasy books before I ever heard of him, I have never been "fanatic" about the series, and I thought the spin offs with the fantastic creatures were kind of boring, sorry to say. I like this play better.

/Rune S. Nielsen

SEX AND THE LIGHTSHIP

Impulse, Dave Bara.

Starbound, Dave Bara.

I read he first two books in Dave Bara’s "The Lightship Chronicles" and they are quick reads indeed as the plot flows effortlessly from page to page. The genre is Military Science Fiction and worth reading (if you like that kind of thing or Star Trek or Star Wars).

Humanity has spread to the stars, but society had regressed after a great war. The main character, a young Lieutenant in the Quantar "space navy" is part of the generation that gets to go back out into interstellar space and rediscover the lost colonies.

There are (at least to me) clear inspirations from Star Trek in the tone, plot and organization of the space navy. There is also (at least to me) inspiration from Warhammer 40K. Each Lightship carries a priest/historian from distant Earth and this priesthood controls lots of "ancient tech" that only they understand. In some ways religion has taken over responsibility for certain parts of science deemed dangerous, and they are afraid of introducing this tech on one hand, and afraid what happens if they don't as space is full of dangers.

Gradually the main characters are introduced to the technological and historical secrets as the rediscovery of nearby star systems with human colonies become more and more perilous, and they face spaceships installations or AI controlled robots with better weapons, as well as imperial marines (long live Star Wars) and nanotechnology.

For me the series don't rate as high as most of Jack Campbell's series, but Mr. Bera writes well, and you just keep turning those pages to discover a little more of their journey into the unknown. I had a lot of fun reading both books.

One thing that might also make you happy (or not) is that the ladies and men are very virile and sexy (especially in book one). Say welcome to some steaming Space Opera going on below decks! Don’t' misunderstand it’s not "Barberalla, Queen of the Galaxy" but Dave Bara "knows his stuff".

/Rune S. Nielsen

THE DAUGTHER OF THE DAUGHTER

Daughter of Dragons, Jack Campbell

The Genesis Fleet, Vanguard, Jack Campbell

I read two books by Jack Campbell, or John G. Hemry, as that is his real name, though he is more known under the pseudonym Jack Campbell.

Mr. Hemry is mostly known as a Science Fiction writer but also writes Fantasy - or more accurately Science Fantasy.

I first discovered his books some years back when my brother lend me the first in his "The Lost Fleet" series. Like my brother (who is a big fan of Military Science Fiction) I was instantly hooked.

Since then I have read nearly all of his many books as Mr. Hemry writes extremely well. His plots are always fun and full of selfless and heroic characters. To me his books are like candy, you finish them quickly, and then either pick another one up or get annoyed if the next in the series is not yet out!

Though I can’t fault a man that writes so much faster than I do.

I first read the "Daughter of Dragons" and then "The Genesis Fleet, Vanguard". Both are good, and both are the first in two new series from 2017/18.

If you have not read anything by Campbell yet, I instead recommend you start where I did with "The Lost fleet: Dauntless". A great SciFi book that’s definitely worth a read. If you are more into Fantasy, then instead start with "The Dragons of Dorcastle" this first in his Pillars of Reality series. I love his two main characters in those books, and I'm sure you will too.

Which books to read
Though I had decided not to read Fantasy I snug in the "Daughter of Dragons", telling myself that its Science Fantasy and therefore ok for me to read. Truth be told, I discovered that nearly all the plot takes place in a Fantasy setting, so at least for me this is a good book.

If you are 100% strictly into Fantasy then go read something else, there are so many fantastic writers and books out there, stuff that a lot of people have never even heard off (Game of Thrones are not all there is).

Try reading "The Black Prism" by Brent Weeks, "Black Sun Rising" by C.S. Friedman, "The Misenchanted Sword" by Lawrence Watt-Evans or "The Mirror of her dreams" by Stephen Donaldson.

These days fantasy books are often more gritty and hard, than when I grew up. Authors kill some of their main characters, heck the kill all their main characters if they like, and village boys seldom become heroes or kings any more. They get caught up in intrigue, assassinations and abuse of power.

For my own part I like both the "old style" Fantasy with pious heroes and "where good always win", at least eventually, and the more realistic modern styles where the "bad guys" are often the winners and the "god guys" turn out to be just as flawed or "bad" as their adversaries.

I mean, you don't eat the same meal every day either, right? At least I don't. Sometimes I like a good old-fashioned steak or dish I grew up with, other times I need to taste something new, preferably something I have never even heard of. What I mean is, don’t close yourself up to one "right way" a fantasy book must be. If a book is fun to read for you, that should be good enough, whether your friends, your peers or reviewers think differently. You are the reader, and you have the power, by supporting those books and writers you like.

If you want to read something truly beautiful but completely different than most other Fantasy (but still very much Fantasy) I can recommend "The Slow regard of Silent things" by Patrick Rothfuss. To this day one of the most beautiful Fantasy works, I have read.

/Rune S. Nielsen

BIG SCIENCE FICTION - I MEAN BIG!

Ringworld series:

As you can see from the condition of the cover I have read Ringworld quite a number of times, and its not a new book. Its worth a read though, and there are a lot of more recent books in the Ringworld series as well as the interwoven Fleet of Worlds series.

Ringworld, Larry Niven

Ringworld Engineers, Larry Niven

The Ringworld Throne, Larry Niven

Ringworld's Children, Larry Niven

Fleet of World series:

Fleet of Worlds, Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner

Juggler of Worlds, Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner

Destroyer of Worlds, Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner

Betrayer of Worlds, Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner

Join ending to both series:

Fate of Worlds, Larry Niven and Edward M. Lerner
 

I tend to read a lot, mostly on paper and a bit on my Kindle, but if you think I only read Fantasy, you are wrong. Since my teens I have read a lot of Science Fiction as well, and a bit of everything else.

To avoid being directly inspired by other works of Fantasy during the actual writing process, I decided to mostly read Science Fiction while I wrote (but I did sneak in a couple of Fantasy books this year, as you can see some of the other reviews).

Sometimes I like to read books that I have read earlier. Reruns can also be fun. For instance, while I read Ringworld by Larry Niven (I can only recommend this) and its companion books. I had read three of the four earlier (I think it was the third or fourth time I read Ringworld, it’s as old as I am and its paper is quite yellow), but since a kind soul gave me one of the Fleet of Worlds books, and I discovered that the two series were connected and even had a shared ending in "Fate of worlds", I decided to buy and read both series from cover to cover.

As there are two series here, it can be hard to know which to read first, and I certainly did not. I love to be surprised by a story, so I make it a point not to read the back cover or a full review before I starts, I do look at the headlines, and quotes from reviews or ratings to see if it sounds like it might be a book for me though.

I wrongly guessed that the Ringworld books would go first, then the fleet of world books second, as that is the way they have been written chronologically speaking. But I decided to mix it up by reading first Ringworld and then Jumping to Fleet of Worlds. I then learned that the plot spans a very long time, and that the Fleet of Worlds book took place a long time before Ringworld. eventually I decided to jump back and forth between the series. It was ok that way, but It might have been smarter to read them in either the Chronological order or depending on the plots inherent timeline.

If you decide to buy the books then look at the timeline chart, on one of the first pages of the last book "Fate of Worlds", and then maybe you can decide on a better order that I picked.

/Rune S. Nielsen

STEVEN KING, THE BAD AND THE UGLY

The Gunslinger, Stephen King

One of my oldest and still best friends gifted me the revised edition of Stephen King's first book "The Gunslinger" which King wrote when he was 19. It is the first in the epic Dark tower series (there are eight in all).

My friend really loves these books because they are stories of epic proportions (and we are all about epic, let me tell ya', hallelujah!).

I have always had the greatest respect for King's writing skills and his portraits of both characters and society. Like all King's books he excels at peeling off one layer at a time of his main characters. You feel you slowly get inside their head and learn what makes them tick.

I sometimes like the mix of different genres, like pulp or Science Fantasy, so I will likely end up buying the rest of the series, and my friend tells me they are good.

Missing link
I know he became a better writer later in his career, but this early book has a raw charm which must have been groundbreaking when it came out. I have come to think of "The Gunslinger" as "a missing link" of sorts.

What was most fun for me in this first book, was thinking about all the things that unknown to me has been inspired by this series (or at least could have been, what do I know).

What came first to mind was the post-nuclear-war universe of Bethesda Softworks Fallout games, with their irradiated "what-if" or "parallel-world" set in something like the fifties USA but with flying cars and robots. It’s a place filled with mutants, robots, horrific monsters, wonder, tough heroes and heroines, and the games are all about a journey of discovery and survival through the remnants of a broken country seemingly familiar yet alien and scary at the same time.

I can't say for certain off course, that Fallout were inspired by King, and I admit I have not researched this at all, the idea just came to me while reading, but my guess is that the Fallout would have been a lot different, or not at all, without King's The Dark Tower.

I do not mean this as a criticism though! I love Fallout, and I don't mind if people gets inspired by others if they make what they create their own.

Few of us would be writing Fantasy if it was not for Tolkien and the other early Fantasy writes, who again would not be there without King Arthur and ancient mythology, I'm quite sure of that. Harry Potter is quite unique, then again t was inspired by other things. All stories are inspired by something else. The important thing is to find your own style and take on the genre and write some new compelling stories.

My friend who gifted me The Dark Tower is thinking about writing a book of his own - and I hope he does, as he has so many GREAT stories within him. He has co-written a musical once, so why stop there? He and I have always shared a passion for stories especially anything we consider Epic in nature.

Like me, he used to be Dungeon Master, back in the day, and our shared background is coming up with stories for small groups of players to enjoy in a armchair Roleplaying game setting.

I must admit that much of what I know about writing Fantasy is from writing adventures (or scenarios if you like) for armchair Roleplaying Games, not so much the "physical, run around in the forest" type - though I did that also on occasion - but mostly the "sit with some friends in the living room and talk" kind of games. Though I gave this hobby up ears ago, it is still a big influence on my thinking and writing plots.

When I was in high school I wrote games reviews for national magazines, and so I played all sorts of armchair Roleplaying and Computer games for review purposes besides the ones I "only did for fun" (meaning it was also fun doing the reviews). I was a GM and/or player in countless campaigns and played every week for close to 15 years.

With my friends I explored the amazing worlds of Fighting fantasy, Warhammer, D&D, AD&D, Shadowrun, Mega Traveler, Palladium, Cthulhu, Vampire, Endless Pain and about thirty other games I would play anything from Marvel Superheroes to homeless losers, from humans to aliens, from men to women, from children to old people or from monsters to saviors.

/Rune S. Nielsen