Vanished (Will S Hylton)

This one was very good and timely since I read it during Memorial Day.  It is insightful, interesting, and enlightening, 4/5 stars.​

Rum Diaries

Very interesting macho story, graphic, human, lush.  4/5 stars
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Accelerando

This one was awesome!  Thrilling ride. 5/5 stars.
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Downbelow Station

I could not get into this story and did not like it 2/5 stars.  There was too much indirect context.​

Chemical Burn

This one is another juvenile escapist fantasy story for teenaged boys with a terribly juvenile premise, plot, and cast of characters.  The martial arts fighting isn't bad but yuck. I have been striking out with my book selection recently.  1/5 stars.
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Wicked Charms

​Now I remember why I don't read Janet Evoanovich's books.  This one is for 12-year-old girls; the extreme cliché melodrama, cardboard characters, juvenile plot are not for adults; avoid this one, 1/5 stars.

New Earth

​Ben Bova's new book is not as bad as his last few and deservedly received some good reviews. The mystery unravels slowly; the characters are good; but the hackneyed plot tropes are terrible.  And the characters are frustratingly terrible at playing "20 questions" with the intelligent aliens, sigh.  2/5 stars.

The Whistler

Fun ride!  I enjoyed this one.  It has great characters, 5/5 stars.
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Otherness

Awesome!  It is just as relevant now as when he wrote it.  Great collection, 5/5 stars.
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A scanner Darkly

I dislike Philip K. Dick's stories and books and am extremely disappointed in the Hollywood machine for making science fiction movies only from his crappy material instead of the great masters.  This one is a terrible story of drug addicts, 2/5 stars.  Yuck.
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The Vital Abyss

This novella is a depressing interlude after the last published novel in 2016 before we are allowed to see the next one in December 2017.  The story line is interesting and it shows some continuation from earlier characters, foreshadowing the beginning of how humans will start to understand the mysterious technology of the proto-molecule and artifact.  5/5 stars (of course).
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