Ace of Aces Books

This is one of the most engrossing books I have read...I may be a bit biased as a fan of all things Japanese, but this -and its predecessor- has to be one of my favorite tales of feudal Japan and ranks up there with Shogun and the rest of Clavell's Asain saga. They are not historcally based, as the books of Clavell are, so the character is completely fictional....i'm pretty sure... At any rate...the book is a bit adult oriented as there is some sexual content, but anyone above 13 should be able to handle it without too many repercussions...but if someone is really reading this review to check the book for their child, then i suggest you just buy it...c'mon, its cheap...and scan it to see if its acceptable to you... Heck, just read the whole thing- one recommendation though- reading the first Sensei first will help A LOT.

A macabre story of mankinds last seven days on earth. This book was written in the late 1950's and at the height of the Cold War. In a nutshell rioting begins in communist Poland, the USSR invades, riots spread to East Germany, and so on. The book has 5 or 6 main characters, and we trace the end of the world through their eyes. We see the end unfold through the eyes of both soldiers and civilians. This is not an uplifting read, as the book is divided into "7 days", and man does not survive the 7th. I found the book hard to put down. Growing up during the Cold War, I first read this book in 1982 or 1983, and it was timely then. I have since read it again in 2005. Its still a good read.

A very chilling account of humanities last week on earth. The story begins with rioting in Poland, spreads to Eastern Germany, and eventually across the Iron Curtain. Warsaw Pact forces invade western Europe and its not long before the small atomic bombs start dropping all over Europe. We have to remember that this book was written 3-4 years before the Berlin wall had been built, and both East and West Germany had just been allowed to have armies again. There are lots of different characters on both sides, each of them with personal troubles or nationalist zeal. They all combine to make a really great read. It has been described as macabre, but I really think it is an excellent story. The author obviously had some experience with the Soviet Army occupation of eastern Europe in the 1950's , and the pay back the Soviets extracted from the German people after World War II. If you get a chance, to pick up a copy.

One of his early works, its a wild romp all the way through. May not be one of his best titles, but if your a rucker fan, its a must have... yarr!

Shadowfane is a mixture of fantasty and sci-fi. . . of course,though, it is the sci-fi that always rules. The whole book is gripping and it makes you want to find out what exactly happens next. . . and many things that happen are unexpected - lots of things are unexpected. It still is an excellent book and has a very good ending - at least I think it does

The Shape Changer (1972) is the third humor SF novel in the Lafayette O'Leary series, following The World Shuffler. In the previous volume, Lafayette O'Leary was caught in Melange without his psychic energies. He couldn't summon a gnat with the suppressor focused on him. But then he solved the riddle and regained his powers. Eventually, he returned to home and Daphane.

In this novel, Lafayette receives a note from some unknown source and goes out after midnight to a meeting at the Ax and Dragon. As he suspected, the note has come from the Red Bull, who has found a cave full of advanced devices. Red Bull brings along something called a Focal Referent Mark III to convince Lafayette to help sell the trinkets.

As usual, Lafayette tells Red Bull to be careful with the device, but goes ahead and pushes a button himself. Everything gets a little blurry and wavery, then snaps back to normal. Lafe takes the device and goes toward the palace.

On the way, he runs into some musketeers patrolling the alleys and orders them to accompany him to the palace. Yet they back him against a wall and frisk him, finding several valuable items in his pockets. Then Lafayette notices that he is not in his own body.

A group of Wayfarers ambushes the cops and frees Lafe, whom they call Zorro. He tries to talk them into going to the palace, but they dump him into a wagon and take him back to their camp. There he finds that Zorro is engaged to Gizelle and that she is feeling amorous. Lafe pleads that he is already married and then the real trouble begins.

Lafayette manages to elude the Wayfarers, but falls off a cliff. When he regains consciousness, he finds himself in the care of a kindly man named Lom. Offering Lafayette a grand breakfast, Lom tries to get a few answers from him. As usual, our hero is too busy talking to give straight answers.

In this story, Lafayette pops into and out of several bodies. One has wings and has a girlfriend. After Lafe kisses her, the marriage is announced and her father comes to congratulate him. After some fast talking, Lafe manages to put off the marriage for a while.

Along the way, Lafayette talks to Central about his problems, but gets little assistance. Then Nicodaeus calls to explain the situation. He also describes the main suspect in the case.

Eventually, Lafayette discovers that a usurper has captured Princess Adrienne and Count Alain. The usurper is now acting king. Since the man is wearing Lafayette's body and Lafe is back in Zorro's body, the circumstances are slightly delicate.

This tale has fast talking -- but hard of hearing -- Lafayette flying from one risky situation to another. He has 20/20 hindsight, but never thinks of the right actions ahead of time. Besides, he is still certain that everything can be cleared up if he can only talk to the person in charge.

Once again, Lafayette O'Leary is caught in strange circumstances and finds himself virtually helpless against his fate. Naturally, he still has a mean kick and a good strong uppercut and runs like crazy, but he is getting too old for all these reckless exploits. Enjoy!

Highly recommended for Laumer fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of crazy adventures, endless rationalization, and a touch of romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin

In reading some of today's screenplays, I have not found any that compare in its genre to this magnificent screenplay. She Lives is thought provoking, and keenly humorous. A must read!

Philip K. Dick Award winning author Russo spins an intriguing mystery in Ship of Fools. He delves deeply into what it means to be human. The crew of an intergenerational starship desperately seek a habitable planet. They are divided by class and religion. The ruins of a human colony lead them to an enormous alien vessel -- the first contact of humans with another intelligent species as far as they know. Will it save them or destroy them?

I picked this book of a rack of used .50 books expecting it to be yet another run-of-the-mill sci-fi/thriller story. However, i was greatly supprised by its ingenious plots, masterfull suspence, and front of your seat action . It begins as a group of scientists testing out a new superpowerfull military laser somewhere in the middle of the Pacific. However, in doing so, they manage to rip a huge hole in the ozone layer. Soon after, a storm forms and begins to kill off all the animals in the surrounding islands. Then it takes off from there with twisted science excitement. A must read.

I read this book years ago, and it has stood out in my mind. This is a gripping story about a young woman fleeing from a killer on a lonely mountain trail. Gail is trying to escape from the pressures of her family while on vacation, and she finally gets a chance to slip away to hike by herself. Somewhere on that remote trail, she meets Lew. His face is familiar, and she realizes that she'd seen him at the bank in town... Gail is drawn to him and dosen't know that she will end up fleeing to save her own life. Gail learns alot on this day-- about survival, and, oddly, about forgiveness. I will never forget this story of a young woman's courage and compassion.