Royce Sears-Sci-Fi/Fantasy Author

The World Awakening by Dan Koboldt My rating: 5 of 5 stars The World Awakening is the third (and hopefully not final novel) in the Gateways to Alissia by Dan Koboldt. Koboldt draws the reader into the world of Alissia though his likable characters and provides you with a healthy mix of modern tech alongside the ingenuity of a medieval society that's hell-bent on protecting its way of life from outside invaders. (Oh! and there's magic too!) Highly Recommended! Royce Sears View all my reviews

A Red Peace by Spencer Ellsworth My rating: 5 of 5 stars As I said on Twitter, A Red Peace is what Star Wars wishes it could grow up to become. A Red Peace  presents the reader with a well-developed cast of characters and draws you into their lives. Ellsworth creates a rich and dark universe for his characters to grow into and discover their potential. Highly recommended space opera! Royce Sears View all my reviews

Galápagos by Kurt Vonnegut My rating: 5 of 5 stars I read Galapagos as a recommendation by a close friend. I thoroughly enjoyed this Vonnegut novel. The perspective from which it is written is unique and fun...A ghost, telling a story over a million years? Fascinating read and highly recommended. Royce Sears View all my reviews

For anyone following my blog or requesting book reviews, I've been out of the loop recently due to life changes. Since early December I have changed jobs, bought a house, and moved into that new house. Since early January we have been trying to get internet access to the aforementioned new house. Thanks to a communications snafu between the power company and the cable company over the viability of a utility pole, red-tagged and slated for replacement on a normal, periodic schedule, the cable company would not climb the pole to activate our cable internet service. Last week, we finally got internet access to our new home... Some good news from all of this: it provided fewer interruptions to getting moved into the new house, performing maintenance, and outfitting my office/writing space. I'm back to writing... currently 53k words into this work in progress... and am slowly getting back to reading more as time permits. Royce.

Proxima by Stephen Baxter My rating: 3 of 5 stars I enjoyed Stephen Baxter's Proxima, although I found the pretzeled plot of interwoven timelines hard to follow. Baxter brings a healthy dose of realism to his work in the form of realistically designed spaceships and the real effects of relativity as we deal with interstellar distances in terms of human lives and its effects upon those travelers. Recommended for lovers of realistic, hard-edged science fiction! View all my reviews

Agent to the Stars by John Scalzi My rating: 5 of 5 stars There's no other way to put it... Scalzi is a brilliant science fiction author. Agent to the Stars takes the usually awkward first contact story and flips it on its head as Tom Stein, a junior entertainment industry agent, takes on a new client--A jello-mold from another planet. This jello-mold is a representative of a race who came to understand humanity via the television broadcasts we have beamed into space for years. They understand that image and appearance is everything on Earth and for them to be accepted, they need an agent who can shape their image into something people will come to accept rather than run screaming in horror from a creature that resembles the 1950's The Blob. Agent to the Stars is an imaginative and creative way to approach first contact, which I think only Scalzi could capture in his unique voice. Highly recommended for all lovers of science fiction. ...

The Island Deception by Dan Koboldt My rating: 5 of 5 stars In this action-packed sequel to The Rogue Retrieval Bradley Quinn travels deeper into the depths of Alissa, a strange and foreign world that's full of magic, danger, and adventure. Quinn adventures back into the world of Alissa in order to discover the secrets of real magic, though he must play along with the corporate plan in order to achieve his personal goals. Mystery, intrigue, and suspense are found between the pages of The Island Deception as author Dan Kobolt takes us back through the gateway with Quinn and his friends. Highly recommended reading! View all my reviews

The Rogue Retrieval by Dan Koboldt My rating: 5 of 5 stars The Rogue Retrieval by Dan Koboldt captures the reader's attention from the very beginning with Bradley Quinn's voice. Quinn is a small-time Vegas illusionist with dreams of making it big but a job offer that's too good to refuse becomes more than he bargained for. Quinn must use his wits and showmanship to survive when he learns this job is much more than just a stage-act. A fun and fast-paced novel, The Rogue Retrieval escorts the reader into a world of real magic, danger at every turn, and the stakes are life and death. Highly recommended! View all my reviews

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis E. Taylor My rating: 4 of 5 stars We Are Legion (We are Bob) is a smart, funny, nerdy, and fun read! Robert Johannson, otherwise known as Bob, sells his software company. With his newfound riches Bob invests in cryofreezeing technology that will be implemented upon his death--much to his dismay is very shortly thereafter. Bob wakes up 117 years later in a computer as a digital version of himself. We are Legion (We are Bob) explores "AI" from the viewpoint of digital copies of human minds. Bob, in his newfound existence, has the ability to replicate copies of himself as he explores the galaxy as a living Von Neuman probe. Taylor explores nerd/geek culture as Bob explores the galaxy and creates ever-so-slightly different copies of himself--creating the Legion of Bob. A galactic adventure geeks and nerds will love, We are Legion (We are Bob) tilts the familiar concepts of AI and space exploration in new...