These are my picks for the top five fiction books I read this year:
5- Day of War by Cliff Graham (Lion of War #1)
Sometimes the Bible leaves out some of the awesome details. Graham has written this “fictional” account to give some color to the story of David, Saul, and the mighty warriors from their time. If you read 2 Samuel 23, it gives a fast account of some of David’s elite warriors, including Benaiah, who went down into a pit to kill a lion on a snowy day. Graham takes that single line and makes it come alive. He gives context by giving Benaiah strengths and companions and a mission away from David’s army, hunting a lion who has been killing around a village of Hebrews. The hunt is amazing and real and scary. The hunters kill the lion after a mighty struggle, only to be attacked by another lion who falls into a pit. Benaiah follows the lion down into the pit and the struggle is insane. Eventually, Benaiah kills the lion and escapes the pit. Wounded and exhausted he travels back to the village only to find it under attack by a group of Amalekites. A mysterious warrior (angel) anoints Benaiah and tells him he will defeat all of the Amalekites except one, who will escape. The warrior’s prediction comes true, and Benaiah saves the village. The rest of the book includes more of the story about David and his army as well as King Saul’s defeat at the hands of the Philistines which opens the path for David to take the throne of Israel. I like the way this writing brings the stories to life like movie scenes. I like the struggle and the power of the covering that Yahweh gives the warriors in the day of war.
This is for warriors, poets, and dreamers.
(Rated PG-13, Score 9/10, Kindle ebook, 369p.)
4- Red Sky Mourning by Jack Carr (Terminal List #7)
The easiest way to die in the thriller book is to attack the loved ones of the hero. James Reese is trying to settle down and live his own life, but the world has other plans for him. China is on the rise and on the clock. The USA is on a decline, destroying itself from the inside out. AI is developing fast. Weaponized platforms controlled by AI are on the horizon. These factors are coming together and key players are seriously thinking about war. China is putting pieces into place to take back Taiwan, control the Pacific, and cripple the west. Only a few things stand in their way – the current US president, an incomplete AI, and Alice. Alice is an AI who saved James Reese in previous stories. China makes a huge mistake. They try to take out James Reese, but they go cheap. You get what you pay for. The hit team fails to kill Reese and almost kills Katie, Reese‘s fiancé. So of course, Reese goes to war. He visits Beijing for a meeting with Chinese officials. They try to buy him out. He refuses their offer. They try to kill him again. He killed that hit team too. A different team kidnaps and threatens to torture him. That turns out to be a big-time backfire. Reese and a team from the CIA turn the tables and learn the details they need to finish the revenge thing and stop World War III. Alice plays a critical role in the story and is one of my favorite AI characters. She is unpredictable, learning, and growing in power. She models parts of her personality after Commander Reese, which gives her interesting depth and complexity. The author has a ton of interesting ideas about war, politics, foreign policy, and the future. I can’t say I agree with all of them, and I’m sure his writing style, amplifies them on purpose. When I read his books, I have to remind myself that these issues, threats, and dangers are beyond my control and not mine to solve. All I can do is manage myself and protect and love my family.
This is for protectors, preppers, and techies.
(Rated R, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Ray Porter, 15:28)
3- Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
This was my first LitRPG book. I’m still not sure exactly what that means but I think it means the characters end up in a role-playing game. In this book, the world (earth) is destroyed and changed into a big game for the universe to watch. Carl and his girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, get sucked into the game as Crawlers. It’s like Survivor, but a dungeon video game, but real life to them. They enter the dungeon as Level 1 on Floor 1. Donut gains the ability to talk and gain status as a crawler rather than being a pet. They start by defeating a group of goblins. Next, they find a training room and mentor who teaches them all about the game. Each floor collapses after a set time. Each deeper floor is filled with worser bad guys. Carl and Donut work together to gain levels, find treasure, build weapons, and stay alive. This book only covers the first two floors of danger and chaos. I think there are five others so far in the series. This is the type of book you should not read to wind down. It will get your blood pressure up and hook you into reading way past your bedtime.
This is for gamers and not for anyone easily offended.
(Rated R, Score 7/10, ebook, Kindle Unlimited, 446p.)
2- Golden Son by Pierce Brown (Red Rising Saga #2)
I’ve changed a lot as a person since last year when I read Book 1. I wasn’t in a great head place back then, and that probably biased my opinion. I was a little reluctant to continue the series, but Mike insisted. Book 2 is just as brutal as Book 1. Think Game of Thrones in space. Massive family powers wrestling for control of humanity and the solar system. Darrow is still on a mission to destroy the existing power structure, which has kept his red people enslaved. Now he is a Peerless Scarred. He is an elite gold warrior in the service of Nero au Augustus. But when he loses the final conflict in the academy, he loses his good standing in the family and its related protection. As Darrow waits for his contract to be auctioned off, he saves the Jackal from a bombing and makes a new alliance with him. Darrow goes to extreme measures to begin a new war among the golds. He goes to war against the Sovereign and the house of Bellona. He saves Augustus and others as they escape, winning a flagship in the process, which he names The Pax. He earns a Stained Obsidian warrior named Ragnar with the ship, who becomes his terrifying bodyguard. Darrow and his friends and allies martial their forces and go to war on Mars. The assault is devastating to both sides and ends with Darrow being captured by the Sovereign. There are several more twists and turns as the book closes. The brutality and killing reach a climax, and the book ends with Darrow in the hands of his enemies. I guess now I have to carry on and find Book 3. As with Book 1, some of the plot points felt borrowed from other stories, but they are fitted together in a long, complex, action-packed drama. The characters are marked by their strengths and weaknesses. There are themes of cruelty, betrayal, and greed laced throughout. These are balanced by hope, trust, daring, and love. Humans, it seems, are very complex. This story shows a lot of that.
This is for advanced readers who can handle lots of characters and twists.
(Rated R, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Tim Gerard Reynolds, 19:03)
1 - Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
Some books are made to be read without knowing much about them. They are adventures. The story is an experience of learning. They require a reader who is curious and willing to deal with the tension of not knowing and not having perfect clarity. This is such a story. Piranesi is a short book filled with mystery, exploration, wonder, and fantasy. It’s also about rescue, making the right choices, and consequences. I enjoyed the story very much. Thank you, Abbey, for recommending it to me. I have rarely read a book that exercised my imagination as thoroughly and allowed me to make sweeping inferences as it progressed.
This is for explorers, walkers, and skeptics.
(Rated PG-13, Score 10/10, ebook, 246p)
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