Dead and Alive, by Dean Koontz

Dead and Alive by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The third in the Koontz's Frankenstein series, Dead and Alive wraps up a number of the various threads from the prior 2 books while leaving the plotline open for continuation (spoiler: Koontz did indeed carry on the series beyond the originally planned trilogy, according to my local public library). I liked this one probably more than the others in part because so much of what was happening was psychological -- particularly with the replicants. Also, the joke about the naked district attorney running down the street gets an extra star for portraying New Orleans so accurately.



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Ashfall, by Mike Mullin

Ashfall by Mike Mullin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Beyond being a decently written postapocalyptic YA novel with a strong storyline, I think I most appreciated Ashfall for its portrayal of just how precarious our modern existence is. The planet, relying on the U.S. transportation system, only has about 20 days' supply of grain at any given time (at a homeland security conference I learned that the island of Manhattan only has about 1 days' worth of food -- think about that for a second). In turn, without adequate food and water supplies, society devolves pretty damn quickly, whether you're talking about looters with shotguns or religious nuts with Flavor-Aid. Lucky for our protagonist that he's in the Midwest, where the girls know how to fix machines and build grindstones, even if the corn is buried under a foot of ash. Oh, and Mullin gets bonus points for his portrayal of a refugee camp in which the military officials are baddies, out to protect corporate interests rather than human beings, not a surprise to anyone who's ever heard of Blackwater. Ashfall is the first portion of a trilogy, so we should get a fairly long-term view of this brave, new world.



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The Last Myth

The Last Myth: What the Rise of Apocalyptic Thinking Tells Us about America by Mathew Barrett Gross

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I read this book over just a couple days, I found it that interesting. The authors cover a lot of bases here, from the historical background that led to the societal mindshift that led to the first apocalyptic myths to the reasons why apocalyptic thinking is so prevalent in much of mainstream American society now. But these aren't just discrete points in human history; a thread ties them all together. What impressed me most, however, is how the authors went a step further in the modern-day discussion of apocalyptic thinking to address how this approach to life, the universe, and everything is affecting (and in most cases harming) not just the U.S. but the world as a whole. Also, the final chapter provides a useful summary of all the material in the book, once again tying the content together (the writer in me always appreciates a good conclusion).



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City of Night

City of Night by Dean Koontz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


City of Night makes for a good bridge within the series. A great deal is happening, and the reader doesn't necessarily have to have read the first book to enjoy this one. New characters are presented, the world is drawn more clearly, and further details are revealed. I perhaps wish the villain was a bit more nuanced a character: I like my evil a little more ambiguous. The one drawback I've found is that I'm becoming concerned that some of my local officials here in New Orleans are actually replicants. It would actually explain so much.



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White Horse

White Horse by Alex Adams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


As I read through most of this novel, I was thinking I would give it 3 stars. White Horse had an interesting premise with a multi-layered apocalypse (if Big Pharma didn't scare you before reading...). The lead character was generally likable but somewhat flawed. Some portions of the plotline stretched my credulity, even for science-y fiction. But one villanous character kept popping up like a slasher movie serial killer, and that annoyed me. But the last couple chapters and the plot twists revealed completely blew me away and redeemed the novel for me. Apparently a second book is planned, and I look forward to seeing where this story goes.



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Neonomicon, by Alan Moore

Neonomicon by Alan Moore

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I haven't read any Lovecraft, so I can't speak to how this story compares to the original. However, despite being a brutal read, it did have its moments. I particularly enjoyed the "meta" aspects of it: the little bits of commentary about Lovecraft in a story riffing off of Lovecraft, the mention of plush Cthulu's, etc. And the illustrations are fabulous, with a wonderful level of detail.



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Salvation on Sand Mountain

Salvation on Sand Mountain: Snake-Handling and Redemption in Southern Appalachia by Dennis Covington

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


As a child in a fundamentalist, independent Baptist church in West Virginia, snake handling churches were given as a cautionary tale about misinterpreting the Word of God and worship being too theatrical. (At the other end of the Continuum of Batshit was the Catholic church, for their pomp and circumstance, idols, Mary worship, and infant baptism.) So, I was very curious about this inside look at the snake handling culture. And what an inside look it was -- Covington became almost a de facto member of the community, and indeed handled snakes himself during worship services. Nonetheless, he remained seemingly objective about the foibles of his subjects, although that may have been a result of writing retrospectively after those ties were broken. Worth the read if you're interested in the Protestant sects of the U.S.



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Reading Challenges: Improvement

February brought with it the end of cable TV in the Librarienne household, and not coincidentally I read more books. Regarding my nonfiction challenge, I read 2 qualifying works (The Canon and Quiet). Additionally, these 2, plus Ship Breaker, count toward my personal challenge of reading from my own collection. If I read another 3 in March (and it looks like I will), I will have caught up in that category. Full steam ahead.

Between Shades of Gray

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I first heard about the Baltic purges about 10 years ago, when a friend mentioned that her Latvian mother and grandparents had been in a Soviet prison camp for a few years before coming to the US. Between Shades of Gray is a brutal but touching novel about 15-year-old who overnight goes from the usual teenage concerns to fighting for her life as an enemy of the Soviet state sent to prison camps in Siberia. Periodic flashbacks provide information about the slow progression toward the Soviet takeover, brief vignettes that meant little at the time to Lina, our protagonist. Sepetys based the story on reports from family members and others who faced similar circumstances as well as other primary sources, which make the tale that much more horrifying. The ending is rather ambiguous, leaving a large gap in the time frame between the denouement and the epilogue. But that too seems appropriate, considering how many people never knew the confirmed fates of loved ones swept up in the madness.



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