"The first day of the end of the world started entirely without incident." Day Zero is told from the point of view of Pounce, a high-end 'nanny bot', shaped like a tiger and designed to be his charge's toy, caregiver, and best friend rolled into one. Said charge is eight-year-old Ezra, and so far things … Continue reading Day Zero – C Robert Cargill
"Stop asking for permission to be happy. Create your own happiness!" Tagline: "Define your passion, nurture your creativity, and take hold of your dreams." Stephanie Fleming is half of the family team behind a 'Happy Planner', Me and My Big Ideas (Mambi), and this book is - as well as a little tiny bit of … Continue reading Plan a Happy Life – Stephanie Fleming
"A ship may bob, safe at harbor, but that doesn't mean it hasn't experienced the wide world - or won't again." Escaping personal tragedy, former school teacher Charlotte Reed takes over her great-aunt's book-themed Bed and Breakfast, Chapters, in the historic seaside town of Beaufort, North Carolina. Business is going well, especially due to the literary-themed … Continue reading Booked for Death – Victoria Gilbert
"The dead human was lying on the deck, on their side, half curled around." The book comes with its own summary, far better than I could write, so here it is: When Murderbot discovers a dead body on Preservation Station, it knows it is going to have to assist station security to determine who the … Continue reading Fugitive Telemetry – Martha Wells
"I've had clients who thought they needed an absurd level of security." So, you read and loved the first four Murderbot novellas (starting with All Systems Red) - and if you can't nod to that you probably just need to go read the books, right? 😉 - with the only real caveat being that they were … Continue reading Network Effect – Martha Wells
"Not everything has to be so hard." The tagline for this book is "Make it easier to do what matters most", and I am all for that sentiment! I haven't read Greg McKeown's previous book, Essentialism, but while that was about doing the right things (rather than trying to do more), this is about asking … Continue reading Effortless – Greg McKeown
"'Is this really a good idea?'" I don't often review short stories, but I did buy (and read!) it, and it fits into my current read through of the whole Murderbot series. Plus, while at this point you obviously love the series and are buying the new books/novellas anyway, you might still have a pause … Continue reading Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory – Martha Wells
"The shape of a crown stood out in the emerald wax of the seal, and Lysande glanced at it once before looking away, staring at anything but that envelope." Lysande is a scholar, and an orphan. Adopted by the Queen of Elira, Sarelin Brey, she's risen to a position of trust and even friendship. But now … Continue reading The Councillor – EJ Beaton
"When I got back to HaveRatton Station, a bunch of humans tried to kill me." The Murderbot Diaries are by this point quite clearly one continuing story, so I'd have to suggest there's not much point reading this - novella, or review - unless you're up to date with the previous three installments. Go, I'll … Continue reading Exit Strategy – Martha Wells
"Ben stood in the basement and called upstairs, 'Mom, have you seen my dice bag up there?'" Phew, that's a title and a half! And really, the second part could have just been 'D&D group', although that might have put a few people off the book, I suppose. However, having 'discovered' D&D myself for the … Continue reading The Cleveland Heights LGBTQ Sci-Fi and Fantasy Role Playing Club – Doug Henderson
