Stuff I've read recently 3

Well I've picked up the pace a little bit, mostly due to the books being Science Fictioney and quicker reads than the classics and more serious books I try and labour through. A train journey down to London and back helped speed things up a bit too!! So anyway here's a list of the things I've read since...well since the last time I wrote on of these things.

Oh, and I've added "Visual Bookshelf" to my Facebook page, so any readers who are friends with me on that can check out what I'm reading at the moment and other stuff.

The Bible - God et al

Since the last post I've managed to get through Amos, Obadiah and Jonah - owing more to the shortness of these books than my reading pace. The books of Amos and Obadiah, prophesies of judgement against God's enemies and his own rebellious people contrast with Jonah who is very reluctant to go on a mission of mercy to a foreign kingdom. These books show the attributes of God, both the righteous God who must punish evil and the saviour willing to rescue mankind from their own sin.

Star Wars: Legacy of the Force: Inferno - Troy Denning

One of the shortest books of the series, but still worth paying the price. The galaxy has entered full on Civil War and the Jedi and even the Solo family are forced to face up to the fact that Jacen Solo is now truly their enemy and that he must be destroyed. Once again targeted and alienated, the Jedi and those who support them are considered enemies of the state. One of the notable things about this book is that it features the Sith from the Legacy comics in it.

Star Wars Legacy of the Force: Fury

A slower paced book that I whizzed through on the train and seemed to have a less dramatic impact on me somehow. This book wraps up several threads of the storyline while still leaving plenty of room for an epic conclusion. Again the galaxy is plunged into darkness and the Jedi struggle to hold on to their principles as they follow Jacen down in the hopes of ending the war.

Bad Twin - Gary Troup

A story written by a man who tragically disappeared on Oceanic Flight 815. Yes, this is a Lost tie-in book, but unlike a lot of tie-in fiction is is extremely well written and you don't need to be up to speed with the latest mystery to read it. There are several nods to Lost, notably the Widmore family, who also feature in the series and a number of companies and individuals who were part of the "Lost Experience" online game. The book itself did feature in the series, but was unfortunately destroyed before anyone could figure out the connection.
For the non Lost fan the story is about Paul, a detective hired to track the billionaire brother of Cliff Widmore, Zander, who is renowned for being a reckless soul and who Cliff thinks might be in danger. Drawn into a case much bigger than anything he's seen before Paul has to face danger himself and figure out who really is the "Bad Twin." A really great read, if a little rushed in parts, and worth picking up.

Analog Magazine, December 2007 - various

Analog is one of the primary Science Fiction magazines in America and I was fortunate to snag a copy on import from Borders and enjoyed seeing what contemporary SF writers are up to. The stories were wide ranging and interesting from spoilt billionaires who dive into supernovas for the thrill of it, legal battles between man and machine, alien visitors from Aztec legends and mystery on a distant human colony. With one exception, an immature and boring "Jesus just wanted everyone to be happy and if we all believed that instead of the stuff he actually said then the world would be so much better." the story was childish and similar stories were shot down for that reason at Uni so I don't see why it deserved a place in that magazine - no doubt atheists think it very clever though. On the whole though, very diverting and worth buying, if I spot another issue I'll definitely grab it.

Don't Waste Your Life - John Piper

Challenging from the front cover, the book shows how Christians can often waste the precious gifts that God has given them and challenges us to live our lives, to work in our jobs, to use our money, to spend time with our friends and all other activities to the glory of God, a monumental challenge we all fail at, but striving to do so will leave us able to live life without saying "I've wasted it!" when we reach it's end. An excellent book which I'd highly reccomend to anyone who calls themselves a Christian.

Well that's it for now, I'm already starting on my next set, but they're a bit thicker than these books and don't have as many lasers in them so they may take a bit longer, we'll see, but I think I've written enough for now so adieu.

Word of the post: Be - I can't find a definition, but I mean the prefix as in "bewitched"