Series Books

This book is a MAINSTAY in my reference library. Though I do only limited back-end development in the applications I work on, this is the first book I look for when I need to be pointed in the right direction. I highly recommend it!

I bought this book as a complete Oracle novice, transitioning from Microsoft T-SQL to PL/SQL. I was worried about the transition being difficult until I read this book.

It is one of those very rare books that presents advanced concepts in a context understandable by users of all experience levels. The author often throws in tips about Oracle PL/SQL quirks to watch out for, as well as some very applicable information about how Oracle works internally.

I've since become more comfortable with PL/SQL, and the book also serves as a great reference. I highly encourage you to read this book straight through.

I recommend this well-written book to anybody wanting to learn PL/SQL, as well as anyone needing a great reference.

Although the information was accurate and useful, I think the strength of this book was it's clear and logical presentation. It is easy to read and very helpful. For example, I needed to know how to dynamically build the "where" clause for select statements and his chapter on DBMS_SQL gave me the tools to accomplish my task at work.

This is definitely an excellent book. No one should rank it less than 5 stars just because it was published in 1996. Please do some research before talk. Actually, Scott Urman has wrote a book, "Oracle8 PL/SQL Programming", which was published in 1997. Buy this one if you want to learn PL/SQL 8.0.

Oracle 8 is out and in this book it only covers to Oracle 7. It is a very well written book. It is a valuable reference however it was published in 1996. Still looking for Oracle SQL Plus 8.0 AND the PL/SQL Programming. I hope the author steps up to the plate and updates his work.

In this extraordinary memoir from 1932-1934, Kitty Crockett Robertson describes her life on the North Shore of Massachusetts during the Depression, a time when she, a Harvard graduate, became a hard-working apple farmer to save the family farm in Ipswich. Her physician father had died, and Kitty, wanting to keep the farm from being sold for development, which her Boston-based brothers favored, decided to give up her job working at the Harvard Library to try to make the orchard profitable enough to save the land.

Working almost single-handedly, she spent the next two years doing all the dirty work, learning in the process that "The Depression was that time of leveling when she and her neighbors kept going on the strength they learned from each other." From her earliest days on the farm, she personally pruned trees, cleared land, repaired sprayers and tractors, gathered swarming bees into hives, hired five workers at twice the going rate (because they, too, needed to make ends meet), dealt with an arrogant banker anxious to foreclose, protected her apples at gunpoint when necessary, and then fought the weather, storms, and a December temperature drop to twenty degrees below zero in her efforts to bring the crop to market.

In the process she earned the love of her workers (who had regarded her, at first, as an idle "North Shore millionaire"), gave up everything in her personal life to devote herself completely to her task, worked up to 16 hours a day for two years during the apple and peach seasons, and gained new appreciation for the values she saw every day among her workers, the wholesaler who bought her drops and cider apples, and the purchasing agent of Harvard, who helped her make commercial connections to sell her crop.

Robertson, who became a newspaper and radio columnist in her later years, was a formidable writer who always recognized the values which unite people, regardless of their "class," and this quality pervades her personal memoir. Unfinished, because her life became too busy to finish it after 1934, it was discovered upon her death in 1979 by her daughter, and it is she who moves the story to its conclusion after 1934. Filled with personal detail and wonderful tributes to those who helped her, Robertson is never self-serving, readily admitting her weaknesses while stressing her efforts to succeed. A unique look at one farm and its history during the Depression, The Orchard is an extraordinary record of the times, written by a truly extraordinary woman. n Mary Whipple

My only complaint about this book is that it only covers two years of the author's life in detail. I hated for the book to end. I wish she had had time to write more, because she was an amazing person. Kitty's father, a doctor, raised his family in a colonial farmhouse by the ocean. Beginning in her childhood, he made Kitty learn to do a man's work in the orchard. He also gave her a series of boats to sail on the ocean. She loved the farm and the sea. She got a college education and a good job in a college museum, but gave it all up when her father died at the beginning of the depression. None of her brothers were willing to do the backbreaking labor to keep the heavily mortgaged farm working. Kitty quit her good job and immersed herself in running the orchard, which her father had always said would save the farm he loved. She lived alone except her beloved dog, with no money and little heat in the winter. Her own family seemed determined to see her fail. She found good, loyal friends though, and though her life was daunting, it was also full of the joy of nature and achievment. I can't praise this book enough.

This book was truly one of the most interesting and capturing books I have ever read. I felt like I was present in the story and now can't wait to go to Ipswich and see this old farm house.

The late Adele Robertson's story of her attempt to save her family's property by establishing a commercially viable apple orchard during the Great Depression is a true gem. Robertson, who later went on to become an award-winning columnist for the Ipswich Chronicle, writes in a clear first-person voice. At times wildly humorous and often poignant, the story is superficially about growing and selling apples. What it is really about is self-reliance and courage. It is no wonder that so many New England high schools now include this book on their reading lists -- Robertson (with the help of her daughter Betsey, who retrieved and edited the manuscript after her mother's death) has produced a riveting work that speaks to a woman's need to "make it on her own" without ever preaching about it.

The Orchard, a Memoir, is a great book. Last week I was on a long flight back to San Luis Obispo from Omaha and I had this book with me, a gift from my mom. I started reading it and totally forgot about the flight, never noticed the movie they were playing. A good number of times tears were just pouring down my face and I'd wipe them away, wondering if the people on the plane around me thought I was a bit crazy.
But I tell you, I'm crazy about this book! Honestly, I read a good deal and this is easily one of the most interesting, deepest, most powerful books I have read in years. Although true, a memoir, it reads just like a fine novel. I was so totally absorbed reading this rare gem of a find, that it was difficult to realize that the author had died some 20 years ago--she, Adele Crockett Robertson, seems so real, so full of life, so gutsy, so immediate.
Briefly, this is the story of a young girl, a smart, educated girl with a good head on her shoulders, who loses her job in the great Depression, and goes back to the family farm to try and save it from the bank. The many people in the book all come to life perfectly and there are surprises aplenty. I am a gardenwriter (author of Allergy-Free Gardening)and have farmed myself, and I appreciate what Adele went through. I would also add that this is no doubt the best picture of life during the Depression I've ever come across.
I plan to review this book every place that I can, because to my mind, this one is so good, so readable, so well worth reading, so enjoyable, so satisfying, that it completely deserves to be a best seller. Do yourself a favor and read this marvelous book!

Larry King is humorous. I read this book in 1 day I couldn't put it down! If you want to understand prayer from a wide range of people from different faiths and beliefs then you should get this book. I read it free from the library years ago and for some reason I just thought to myself maybe I will buy it. lol....hope you enjoy this book as I did.

This book is going on eight years old as I write this review, but I suppose it will always seem timely. Larry has quite a knack for just telling it like it is. As an admitted agnostic he has no agenda in passing along this delightful collection of tales and interviews with those who [mostly] have belief in God. And mind you, this is not a book on religion. True to its title, the book relates prayers - moments - that have moved others to prayer. In some instances it is the circumstance which catches your attention, and other times it is the prayer itself that provides the power. And Larry's personal asides are even more delightful.

All in all I was always interested in reading on to the next page, person, or prayer. This is an "un-fussy" book and a wonderful read.

This book will open your mind if you are agnostic, and it may make you angry if you are set in your conventional religious beliefs. This is not a politically correct book, and King takes some risks, but it is worth a good read whether you are spiritally inclined or somewhere in the middle.

Jeffrey McAndrew
author of "Our Brown-Eyed Boy"

Mr. King delved into the foundation of Spirituality and Religion and made simple an otherwise complex and controversial issue. The book focuses on the individual and his or her communication with God, while setting aside religious beliefs. I would like to recommend to friends who are too formal about prayers and to those who maybe agnostic such as Larry King in his book.

Mr. King delved into the foundation of Spirituality and Religion and made simple an otherwise complex and controversial issue. The book focuses on the individual and his or her communication with God, while setting aside religious beliefs. I would like to recommend to friends who are too formal about prayers and to those who maybe agnostic such as Larry King in his book.

This is one of my all time favorite quilt books. I've made several quilts from this book. The quilts are great and the instructions are easy to follow. I liked this book so much that I literaly wore out my first copy and ordered another one to replace it.
Tammy in Missouri

I just received this book and took the time to carefully look through it. Unbelievable! Beautiful quilt patterns with clear, concise, easy directions. Even includes up to 3 ideas per project for quilting. All of the quilts are pieced with a couple of Applique quilts thrown in for good measure. Just about every project is listed in 4 sizes. Sprinkled throughout the book are helpful hints to make quilting easier. I own other scrap quilt books and wish I'd seen this one first because I would Not have bought any others! Excellent book!!

I am a little disappointed by this book. There is nothing new or different, quite boring really.

I had been frustrated with previous scrap quilt and fat quarter quilt books that often called for significant yardage of certain fabrics, and then a few small pieces of fabric. I need something to do with all my bits and pieces--when I have lots of yardage, I'll go with a conventional pattern, thank you! This book is chock full of interesting quilts that truly utilize your scrap collection. I can easily pick out eight or ten quilts that I'd like to do from this book--usually it's hard to find more than five from any given publication that one actually wants to try. The book is well-laid out, too, and the patterns are easy to follow and able to be completed in a reasonable amount of time. I now grin gleefully whenever I get new scraps, because thanks to this book, I have plans for them!

I love this book. I go back to it from time to time. A good book for a quilters library. I have made several quilts in the book.
It is a book I would give as a gift to a new quilter for sure!

I HAVE READ JUST BOUT EVERY WINGMAN BOOK WRITTEN AND AFTER I ORDER THESE MY QUEST WILL BE COMPLETE. MACK MALONEY IS A TRUE AMERICAN AND HIS BOOKS PROVE IT. HIS BOOKS WILL MAKE YOUR IMAGINATION SOAR. THANKS MACK.

The whole Wingman series is great, but Sky Ghost and Return of the Sky Ghost really put a new twist into the story line. I am dying for the next installment to come out to find out how it ends!

maloneys books keep getting wearder and wearder. also hunter didnt show up in the book untell page 120. other than that it was great.

Read this book as fast as I read all the others. I'm trying to collect them all again after my parents threw out all my books. But as a fan to a good book, I'm continuing on reading and collecting. Still waiting for Hawk to make it back to the real world. Keep'em coming!!!!!

I STARTED THIS SERIES WHEN IT FIRST CAME OUT AND WAS HOOKED ON IT EVER SINCE.MACK MALONEY PUTS MOST AMERICAN'S VIEWS INTO HAWK HUNTER.AMERICAN' WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT AMERICA STAYS FREE, AND MY VIEW IS THIS"YOU CAN HAVE MY FLAG WHEN YOU PRY IT FROM MY COLD DEAD FINGERS"

Don't take everything he says literally and you'll be fine after reading this book.

The book is entertaining and very well written. The stories used to illustrate the points made are usually an adventure in themselves.

Richard Marcinko practices what he preaches and this book will tell you how to do the same.

Buy this book!

Great book. I like Dickie's straight forward, everything goes approach. Very practical and useful advice you can put to use right away no matter what your career is.

When I first put this tape in I thought to myself what the heck is this guy going on about. But I kept on going. It will grow on you. Richard's navy seal strategy to success is definitely one of the original motivational tapes out there. With a warriors attitude and what the author describes as "Testical Fortitude" you know your in for a ride. The author takes real navy missions and turns them into business strategies. With a philosophy of breaking rules only hurts the person who made the rules Richard just puts a foot in the face of whoever stands in the way. Dont be a follower. Set the standard not live up to it. Its a very inspiring look at a different approach to success. Exciting and motivating.

Another good motivational book from the Rogue, but I have seen much of the same ideas in a lot of his other books. I would still recommend it to anyone intrested in looking for a good motivational book.

I have read several business success books but none of the others even came close to this one. Marcinko cuts through all the politics and political correctness and delivers an excellent set of principles applicable to any industry. His war stories are more than just entertaining, they really drive home the points that he is making about the importance of planning, training, etc. This is must reading for everyone who is a warrior at heart regardless of their field of endeavor.

Wonderful! Very insightful and informative. A great addition to anyone's bookshelf. I highly recommend it.

This is an excellent book to aid in the understanding of Shawshank Redemption, whether studying english or mass media.
I found the book to contain additional details on story boards and amended scenes, which indicate the way the script writer, Frank Darabont, adapted the story to film.
Thoroughly enjoyed the script, especially as I can read it in places I can't view the film, i.e. work.

As a rule, don't buy shooting scripts if you want to write a screenplay. Shooting scripts are finished products.

That said, screenwriters can learn from this exploration of the classic movie (yes, folks, it is a classic, it's been shown a billion times on TNT), by reading the deleted scenes (my personal favorite is one about the publicity of Warden Norton's prison-to-work scheme, in which Heywood, played in the movie by William Sadler, gets his best and sharpest lines for someone who's supposed to be the dunce of the movie), the storyboards, the explanations of which scenes were kept, etc.

And for people who just love the movie, it's a must-own.

This is a truly fantastic piece of work!!! If you really enjoyed the movie, and is fascinated by the art of filmaking, this book is for you. More than just the script of the film, the analysis by Frank Darabont takes to a totally different level and perspective. It actually makes you think like a Director. Other than this, just being in the production yourself... This is a true making-of The Shawshank Redemption, that is totally worth the price.

As Frank Darabont says in the introduction of the book, who else would buy the screenplay unless they really want to know more about the film? Sticking to that idea, Darabont has given the film student/buff, and those who simply love the movie, a real treat with this book. Not only does it contain the screenplay, it's the screenplay (I emphasize) AS IT WAS WRITTEN BEFORE FILMING. He's published it exactly as he wrote it when he adapted it from King's novella. I point this out because, as Darabont himself points out in the intro, so many screenplays that are thrown out by merchandise wizards are nothing but the finished movie transcribed. And really, what good is that to someone who wants a deeper knowledge of the film?
Not only does he give us the original screenplay, he gives us a scene-by-scene comparison of the screenplay vs. the finished film, and why things got changed/added/left out. This, in particular, says a lot about Darabont to me. This is a man who wants to use his work not only to be what it is (a GREAT film), but to educate as well. This book inspires. He includes storyboards, as well (including a storyboard for a deleted scene- oh, goody, goody!) and introductions by both himself and Stephen King, and a summarizing bit of advice to budding filmmakers and screenwriters. I devoured this book in short time (one night), lol, and found myself going back to the film to compare and analyze- if you don't do the same after reading it, I'll eat my foot.. okay, maybe not. But something drastic, I warrant you. If you are at all inclined to learn about filmmaking, writing, or even if you just love "The Shawshank Redemption" (which is what lead me to the book in the first place), this is a real must-have. It's worth the price alone just to read what he had to say about filming Freeman's scene walking through the field after discovering Andy's message. Trust me. By the way, fellow "Shawshank..." lovers are welcome to ...discuss it. Enjoy this book, everyone. It's a real find. And I'm SO glad I chose to buy it. The ONLY reason I give it four stars as opposed to five is because, personally, I would have liked to have seen more storyboards.

Seamless--that's the writing of Virginia Smith. This author has the ability to move me along line-on-line and chapter-by-chapter before I even think to come up for air. "How long have I been reading?" I ask myself. Actually, I don't care; I simply pick up the thread of Mayla's unconventional approach to life and dive. Smith weaves Mayla in and out of a job loss, a Florida trip to patch up a relationship, and an online tete-a-tete. Can unconventional meet conventional and survive with faith intact? With her typical candor and strength, Mayla doesn't disappoint. And neither does Virginia Smith in Sincerely, Mayla.

I still say that my favorite book is "Just As I AM". I loved how it made me look at people differently, hopefully more like Christ looks at them. So when I heard there was a sequel, I wasn't sure I'd like it. But, Mayla is so real that I was immediately swept back into her story. I laughed, cried and just enjoyed Mayla all over again! She is a friend to those who really need one, a daughter/granddaughter to love and be loved by, and someone who isn't too proud to let the Lord still work in her heart. I highly recommend you get both books about Mayla to read and enjoy!

Sincerely Mayla is Virginia Smith's follow up to Just As I Am, where we first met Mayla Strong a young and very unconventional character and watched her come to faith. Sincerely Mayla brings us this lovable character as endearing as she was in book one, though a bit tamed in her appearance, sporting fewer piercings and less colorful hair.

In the thick of winter, Mayla finds herself unemployed, on the outs with Pastor Paul who Mayla discovers she has feelings for, and the proud owner of a pet that she finds in the middle of a storm. When faced with these disasters does Mayla do what every unemployed, lovesick, pet owning woman should do? No, of course, not. This is Mayla we're talking about here. She sets off for Orlando, not to visit the big mouse, but to reconnect with her grandmother and get away from her problems. But poor, Mayla. Her problems hop on the plane or zip through emails and the telephone to make her vacation anything but restful.

As an avowed suspense and mystery lover, I rarely make time for novels outside of this genre. Virginia Smith's books are one of the few exceptions. Smith does such a wonderful job of character development. She provides the reader with a unique cast doing battle with everyday issues and marries this with the struggle to live within their faith. Wrap all of this up with humor and a fun plot and you have one must read after another.

Sincerely Mayla certainly fits this mold and is another Smith winner. Through Mayla's innocence we see the world from a different perspective. We watch her struggle with her new faith and think about how we live out our own faith. Her innocence coupled with the basic desire to do the right thing makes Mayla a very loveable character. She faces the same life issues we all face and the reader can deeply empathize with Mayla, forming a strong bond with her. Don't miss Sincerely Mayla or any other Virginia Smith novel. Buy one today, you won't be disappointed.

I thoroughly enjoy Virginia Smith's Mayla books. This is book two in the series, and Mayla is a Christian now, but she still has a world of problems. Her boss lays her off so he can hire his niece to take her place, she finds a rabbit in a blinding snowstorm and takes him home with her and he promptly tries to chew up her bedroom. Her gay neighbor blames her because his partner became a Christian and moved out, and she makes a fool of herself in front of Pastor Paul, the man she dreams about becoming more than just a friend. Overwhelmed, she decides, against her mother's advice, to go to Florida and see her grandmother. But grandmother is a train load of trouble, all by her self. Funny, touching, with a ton of very human conflict, and a strong faith message. Who could want anything more?

"I've always said if the Lord had intended His people to live in snow He would have put the garden of Eden in the middle of the North Pole." So begins Sincerely, Mayla. With these opening words from Mayla Strong I immediately related to her. And even though she's a bit younger and more impulsive than I am, I stayed with her through the whole book, feeling her struggles, laughing at her joys, rooting her on as she tries to fix things.

Nobody can handle serious subjects quite like Virginia Smith. She deals with several "hot button" topics here, but with such a light touch that it never comes off as preachy. This is just Mayla, living her life, trying to be the person God wants her to be, and hitting a few speed bumps along the way. Smith has written a funny, touching sequel to Just As I Am. If you haven't read it, you will still enjoy Sincerely, Mayla., but you'll probably enjoy Mayla's story a lot more if you know how she started.

This is without doubt the best of all Star Trek stories, both in film and in print. It touches on many grand philosophical, scientific, and technological themes: machine intelligence (both in Commander Data and in the Borg), space-time engineering (the first time humanity has done this, via the efforts of Zefram Cochrane), the first contact from an alien civilization (the arrival of the Vulcans), the confrontation with true history (meeting Cochrane and finding out just who the man really was), and the ethics of highly advanced civilizations (the contrast between the Borg and humanity). This book and the film will without a doubt inspire many a young reader to take up the practice of science, and thus it will do the best job of all. Science fiction has the habit of coming true sometimes, but it also has the fault of underestimating. The future of humanity, as exemplified by the Star Trek crew of the year 2367, is a grand one to contemplate, but the true future will be much better: a world populated by humans and machines striving to be the best they can be; a future that is never static, for stagnation to intelligent life is an abomination. We will do genetic engineering of humans, to be the best we can be; we will do space-time engineering, to travel beyond any immediate confines; we will create intelligent machines, to be our friends and allies. All of these things we will do, and much more. Humans and all other lifeforms, organic or not, will be very different in the time frame set in this novel. But they will be restless, ambitious, and always yearning for more understanding, for more insight, for more knowledge: these traits will characterize the beings of the 24th century...and beyond.

"And you people...you're all astronauts on some kind of...star trek?"

That line, uttered by Dr. Zephram Cochrane in both movie and novelization, has to be my all time favorite from the Trek film series. The most interesting difference between movie and book, as far I am concerned, is that despite James Cromwell's fine performance I found the film's Zephram Cochrane incredibly annoying. I never developed a shred of sympathy for him, because the background the film gave me - the Third World War and its chaotic aftermath - wasn't sufficient to make me understand him. I don't know, not having seen the script from which J.M. Dillard worked, whether she added "Zef" Cochrane's tragic battle with bipolar disorder (a disease that before the War had an effective treatment), or if it was among the elements that inevitably got cut as the film took shape. But I do know that for me, it made all the difference in being able to care about this character and root for him.

The book follows the film with little filler added except for background on Lily Sloane and Zephram Cochrane, which gives it a similar pace. They complement each other well.

As usual, J.M. Dillard does a fine job of remaining true to the source material, while still elaborating on it. The story is an excellent one, with plenty of action and plenty of interesting science-fiction concepts for the more thoughtful to consider. It gives us a bit more insight into the "future history" between the near-collapse of civilization and the beginning of the Federation that has been hinted at but rarely detailed in various episodes of Star Trek, in various generations of series.

The plot and characterization are both excellent and the writing is fluid and professional. The book is a pleasure to read.

This is, of course, the novelization of the highly successful Star Trek: The Next Generation film of the same name. First Contact refers not to first contact with the Borg, for, six years later, Picard still bears the mental scars of his assimilation in the form of Locutus, but to Earth's first contact with an alien civilization. It is a story that had yet to be told, although Captain Kirk and his crew had met the extraordinarily old Zefram Cochrane, inventor of the warp drive, in an episode of the original series; additionally, there had been hints that this pivotal event in human history took place some time after a terrible Third World War on Earth.

As the story begins, the Borg have attacked the Federation, with one of their massive cube ships making a bee-line for Earth herself. Picard and the new Enterprise-E starship defy Starfleet orders and rush to the battle, after which they follow a small Borg ship through a time portal which takes them back to 21st-century Earth. The Borg plan is to destroy the Phoenix, the spacecraft which Zefram Cochrane launches and, by way of its successful warp drive test, captures the attention of a Federation scout ship. If that pivotal event does not happen, the Federation we all know and love will never come to be. While half of the senior staff is planet-side trying to make sure the Phoenix launch happens on schedule, the rest of the crew find themselves battling a Borg infestation onboard the Enterprise herself. Data is captured, Picard is in danger of letting his hatred of the Borg overrule logic and reason, and we get to meet the Borg Queen. Personally, I've always felt that the introduction of the Borg Queen was a disservice to the greatest Star Trek villains of them all. The Borg Queen is a complete contradiction that introduced a level of individual vulnerability into a collective that was, up until this time, faceless and seemingly invulnerable.

This is an impressive novelization of the film, making it a worthwhile read to those of us who are already familiar with the onscreen story. In particular, it provides a great deal of insight into the erratic nature of Zefram Cochrane himself; in the movie, he came across as basically a drunk, but the novelization does a much better job of explaining his behavior. That alone makes this novel a natural and extremely beneficial corollary to the movie.

Star Trek First Contact by J.M. Dillard was an excellent book. it showed emotion, fear, dispair, and anger. IT was a well written book considering it was made after the movie. I encourage all Star Trek fans to read this book and watch the movie.

So far, I have found the Stargate Atlantis books to be far superior to the Stargate SG-1 books. Many of the SG-1 novels are obviously written by inexperienced authors, and are little more than legitimized fan-fiction. Mind you, I have only read two Atlantis novels thus far ("Rising" and "Reliquary"), but both of them have been of higher-than-average quality, while out of the eight-or-so SG-1 novels I've read, only one or two have been of equal quality. Regarding "Reliquary", I was completely unsurprised to find out that the author (Martha Wells) is an already-established writer with many published novels. It shows in this book.

She does an excellent job of creating atmosphere. The first half of the book reads like a suspense novel, with the tension growing as the team explores an abandoned Atlantean outpost. When they find an unexpected survivor, things seem to be explained . . . until everything starts to go wrong. It isn't a very long novel, but the plot is so well-paced that you don't notice the length, or lack thereof.

The characterizations are quite good. The dialogue, the actions and interactions of the characters, all of it is true to the show. She also does a good job with descriptions (lending to the atmosphere). I thoroughly enjoyed this book. If given the chance, I will certainly read all of this author's Stargate novels, and I intend to look into her other books as well.

As a writer, it is extremely difficult to turn off my inner critic when reading a series tie-in like this. Historically, such books are an experiment in mental torture with their inaccuracies, poor style/construction, sophomoric plots, cardboard original characters, et al. Honestly, I can't even walk by the Star Trek section of any bookstore without physically cringing. Knowing the process of tie-in publication, you would think the license owners of these shows would be FAR more selective when choosing who expands their universes upon the page.

Ms. Wells, on the other hand, stands out from the pack with this work. Talk about a blast of welcomed fresh air! The characterization was scarily accurate, the plot/storyline well conceived and laid out, and the dialog had me literally guffawing out loud (John's thought of group therapy with sock puppets completely slayed me!).

Several reviewers mention the SGA episode, "Conversion," which shares a similar plot contrivance with "Reliquary," though in the latter, Shepp has the misfortune of becoming a gray-skinned werewolf creature psychically in tune with Ancient technology--as opposed to becoming a two-legged eratus bug that likes to combine kissing with stick fighting. Long story to short, considering the length of time the publication process takes (2-3 years ordinarily), Ms. Wells likely wrote her first draft while Season 1 was still on the air.

Thanks to her amazing way of bringing the SGA characters to life, such things are irrelevant.

If I had one bone to pick, it would be the POV-shifting in so many scenes. That's one of those writing Ten Commandments that should never be broken. POV-shift is annoying, even jarring to the reader, and it screams amateur. But in this case, it's a small point when the strength of the story is taken as a whole.

Looking forward to seeing what "Entanglement" has to offer!

I'm a huge fan of the show Stargate:Atlantis for many different reasons, most of them have to do with character growth and interaction. I usually shy away from books based on favorite tv or movie themes since most cannot stand up to the reasons I like them to begin with, but I bought a couple of the Atlantis novels in order to have something to read when bored at my third shift job. The first time I picked up Reliquary to fill in some time was the moment I was lost to it. I couldn't put it down and had the book finished within 48 hours of picking it up. This book is a must for any Atlantis fan who loves the characters and their interaction. Ms. Wells KNOWS these characters and all I kept thinking while reading the story is "this author has to be a fan of the show". What a fantastic adventure with our favorite characters. I'm not sure I totally understand the entire plot with the bad guy's motives, but it honestly doesn't matter since the adventure alongside the characters was entertaining and fulfilling in itself. I hope to see more of Stargate:Atlantis titles from Martha Wells. Five Stars and Two Thumbs Up!!

I found the books really good, but the entire time they were messing with the months and moments in every single story. For example this one takes place about four months after the issue with the teams biggest human enemy the Genii and after they did battle with a crazed wraith on another planet a couple of weeks later. I mean if they want to make the books they should do them in the order that the tv series played in rather then going back and forth and tossing certain details that they never mentioned in the show. But all in all this was a really good story, I especially got a kick when they mentioned the details of sheppards first conversion before he went through it a second time in season 2. I recommend this to any who like the tv show.

I bought this book to read it in the airport while on a trip, It was a great book, kept me very entertained.
Love how well the author got the characters, got a few laughs on Rodneys comments and Sheppard's attitude.
I recommend it, is a short book, good jepardy.


Andrea

I am actually looking for a new one to read on the trip back.