Against the Rising Force

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My Review:

For the sake of transparency, I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have been on a binge of dystopia lately, but decided to take a brief interlude and read Endi Webb’s Against the Rising Force (AtRF), the first of a short story trilogy, set in the Pax Humana universe. We are thrown in the story following Jacob Mercer on a galactic spaceship. He oozes testosterone. “Fast motorcycles, faster women, and blazing fast fighters” is his self-proclaimed motto. We see him on the brink of a great battle, and follow him through tense combat as he flies against a mighty Imperial fleet. The story is quick, and the action is plentiful.

Endi defines AtRF as a space opera. I agree with that. I would even add sweeping to that definition. The battle is on a massive scale. Think Star Wars Imperial Star Destroyer, X-Wing and Tie Fighter massive. You can tell from this first story that Mr. Webb has plenty of fodder for many more stories in this universe. His writing is crisp and clear, non-stop and action-filled. There is some crude language and a few curse words. The violence is typical for space battles, such as exploding ships. No gore.

If you are looking for a quick read with plenty of action, then consider picking up AtRF.

Futurity

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My Review:

By now I have read several Michael Bunker stories. So when I saw Futurity on sale, I jumped at the opportunity. I’m glad I did.

The story is about Malcolm, a college-age man with a burning curiosity to learn about time travel. He gets to meet a couple of professors who enlighten him on time travel. But what he discovers when he visits one of them will put in motion events beyond his imagination.

Michael tells the story first person, through Malcolm’s eyes. The narration has a journal entry feel, a conversational tone, to it. But this is fitting because the story begins with Malcolm interviewing professors, scribbling notes. Michael takes plenty of words to explain how time travel might be possible to the point you start thinking it is plausible. I guess that’s what good stories do for you.

As a Christian and a reader of sci-fi, I’ve developed thick skin when reading fiction. Many stories take concerted efforts to attack religion and Christianity, either directly or indirectly, which is fine, because (for whatever reason) the author felt it important. Michael takes the opposite approach, incorporating aspects of a Universal Creator in a fictional, entertaining story. It’s refreshing.

Even though I typically steer clear of time travel (time zones still confuse me), it seems like many stories I’ve read lately deal with it. In the case of Futurity, it was enjoyable.

Pennsylvania 2: Non-Electric Boogaloo

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My Review:

Pennsylvania: Episode 2 – Return of the Jedediah

I think my subtitle (based on a successful 80’s movie) for the second Michael Bunker short story I’ve read is cool, but not as cool as Non-Electric Boogaloo.

Michael ratchets up the action by 10 in the second installment of the Pennsylvania series. We find our young Amish hero fully immersed in the events of New Pennsylvania. Without giving too much away, he finds himself in a strange world where foreign forces are battling, using technology that is foreign to him. Why they battle, he doesn’t know. How he fits into it all, he doesn’t know either. No one is telling him anything, but one thing he does know is that he’s important, and people are risking their lives to keep him safe.

Michael’s prose is strong and clean, adding needed detail to tell a full story but leaving out the purple. He does well developing his characters as the story moves along. In all, Michael delivers in this second release to the Pennsylvania series. If you’ve read the first, get this to see where the story goes. If you haven’t, go buy the first and read it, then buy this one.

A Rumor of Angels: A Tor.Com Original

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My Review:

I found this short story in Some of the Best From Tor.com, 2013 Edition: A Tor.Com Original. As of this posting, it’s still free.

A Rumor is the first story in the book, so naturally I read it first. I expected a cheap Sci-Fi story, what I got was a literary treat.

It’s of a boy during depression-era America, like the blurb states. Even though there is a tinge of fantasy in the story, the narrative is of the boy and his stormy relationship with another uprooted family also travelling to the west. It transcends a simple fantasy. It’s a story of deeper meaning, of a boy coming to his own in a world that teeters on panic and hopelessness. But as long as the rumors of angels exist to the west, there may just be some hope left.

This is the first Dale Bailey writing I have read, and I enjoyed it. He is a master of words and bleeds his characters onto the page. I will see what else he has to offer. Hopefully he has some post-apocalyptic fiction. I would love to see him write PA in his grand style ;).

Pennsylvania Cover

Pennsylvania

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My Review:

Hmm, science fiction plus Amish. Future speculation versus anachronism.

At first when I found out about Pennsylvania by Michael Bunker, I naturally assumed it had to be a satire; a poor man’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, or something like that. How can a work of science fiction incorporate a people known, by religious ideology, to shun some technological advancement? So what I expected when I started reading and what it turned out to be were two different things.

Michael spins a great yarn in Pennsylvania. Jed is the name of the protagonist in the story, a young Amish man that is destined for great things. His great thing is moving to New Pennsylvania, a foreign, alien world with as much promise as the foreign land his forefathers inhabited when settling in America. New Pennsylvania is the utopia, the land flowing with milk and honey. But as young Jed finds out, things are not always what they seem, especially in New Pennsylvania.

It’s interesting to see how Michael relates Jed’s experiences to the reader. A wide-eyed, innocent Amish boy swept up in a world that is foreign to his comprehension. His reactions to situations carry the story along nicely and makes for an entertaining read. Many stories I read, especially Sci-Fi, typically contain one or two items that puts me off from the larger narrative, either religiously, morally, or ideologically. I’m not saying it’s wrong to do that. That’s the beauty of stories, that expression of varied ideas. What I’m saying is that it’s not often I read a story that I can so easily embrace. Pennsylvania is one of those few  stories. There’s no cursing (it is an Amish protagonist, after all) and no sexual situations. To me, it’s the type of story that would fit well with younger adults and children, yet it’s not necessarily young adult literature.

Plus, the cover is great. I mean, a horse and buggy with an ICBM (I think) launching in the background. You can’t beat that.

Luckily I came across this short story on the heels of Michael releasing the second part to his story, Pennsylvania 2: Non-electric Boogaloo. This means that I don’t have to wait long before I can indulge myself in the continuing journey of Jed and his companions. I’m sure the quality of the next installment will equal the quality of the first.

The Spiral Arm

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