Category: Books

  • Review: Eden M51

    Eden M51 by G.R. Paskoff My rating: 3 of 5 stars I recieved this book in exchange for a review (I think – I can’t remember, but I know it was something I either got for review or as a free prime read-ahead book) This book combined a few things I enjoy: space sci-fi, religion,…

  • Review: Truckers: The First Book of the Nomes

    Truckers: The First Book of the Nomes by Terry Pratchett My rating: 3 of 5 stars While this book started off kind of slowly, it does eventually pick up and get pretty darn interesting. The story begins with the last of the nomes making a desperate play to try and leave their lives behind because…

  • Review: Specials

    Specials by Scott Westerfeld My rating: 3 of 5 stars The story of Tally Youngblood is over. At least, the Extras chapters that were included at the end of this book seemed to suggest it was a kind of epilogue to the Tally Trilogy. I didn’t like this book as much as the the first…

  • Review: Leviathan Wakes

    Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey My rating: 5 of 5 stars So, I’m late to this series. There’s 7 books out of a planned 9 (plus novellas). There’s a TV show that I hear the authors love, despite its deviations from the books. (I haven’t seen it yet) I heard an interview on Sword…

  • Review: To Pixar and Beyond: My Unlikely Journey with Steve Jobs to Make Entertainment History

    To Pixar and Beyond: My Unlikely Journey with Steve Jobs to Make Entertainment History by Lawrence Levy My rating: 4 of 5 stars I think this book would probably pair quite well with Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration, although I haven’t read that one. If it’s…

  • Review: Milk Street: The New Home Cooking

    Milk Street: The New Home Cooking by Christopher Kimball My rating: 4 of 5 stars As you know by now, I like my recipes to have introductions. These can serve many purposes. They can introduce an unfamiliar recipe, contain a bit of biography, or explain different techniques the author has tried so that as you…

  • Review: Project Smoke: Seven Steps to Smoked Food Nirvana, Plus 100 Irresistible Recipes from Classic (Slam-Dunk Brisket) to Adventurous (Smoked Bacon-Bourbon Apple Crisp)

    Project Smoke: Seven Steps to Smoked Food Nirvana, Plus 100 Irresistible Recipes from Classic (Slam-Dunk Brisket) to Adventurous by Steven Raichlen My rating: 4 of 5 stars Everything you ever wanted to smoke, plus a bunch of tips. Very clear guidelines on the tools you need and what food to buy. A great intro paragraph…

  • Review: Cook It in Cast Iron: Kitchen-Tested Recipes for the One Pan That Does It All

    Cook It in Cast Iron: Kitchen-Tested Recipes for the One Pan That Does It All by America’s Test Kitchen My rating: 4 of 5 stars I’ve only made a couple recipes from the book, but I love a lot about it. I like the technical section that opens the book. I really like all the…

  • Review: Weber’s Big Book of Burgers: The Ultimate Guide to Grilling Backyard Classics

    Weber’s Big Book of Burgers: The Ultimate Guide to Grilling Backyard Classics by Jamie Purviance My rating: 3 of 5 stars What it says in the title and more. It’s burgers, dogs, etc. All the stuff you think of when you think of prototypical non-nerdy American grilling. Lots of good recipes with lots of variation…

  • Review: Barbecue Sauces, Rubs, and Marinades–Bastes, Butters & Glazes, Too

    Barbecue Sauces, Rubs, and Marinades–Bastes, Butters & Glazes, Too by Steven Raichlen My rating: 4 of 5 stars Raichlen has put together a great book on all the things that add flavor to our grilled, BBQ’d, and smoked foods. As is his style, he adds a biography for each of the recipes that explains where…

  • Review: Raichlen’s Burgers

    Raichlen’s Burgers by Steven Raichlen My rating: 4 of 5 stars What I like about this book is that Raichlen gives a little biography about each burger recipe. I’ve got tons of new recipes to try. I also like that he’s got some recipes for sides and sauces at the end. It’s not as comprehensive…

  • Review: Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture

    Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture by David Kushner My rating: 4 of 5 stars Once again Will Wheaton knocks it out of the park as narrator. Kushner does a great job telling the story of The Johns who created Doom. I was just a kid when those…

  • Review: The Mongoliad: Book One

    The Mongoliad: Book One by Neal Stephenson My rating: 3 of 5 stars This book grew on me slowly. At first I was intrigued, but wasn’t hooked. But eventually I grew to really love both the Gansukh/Lian chapters and the Korean/Japanese fighters’ chapters. The historical fiction is Neal Stephenson at his best and I did…

  • Review: Golden Son

    Golden Son by Pierce Brown My rating: 3 of 5 stars To be fair to Mr. Brown, I find it hard to fairly rate second books in a trilogy. They have to both be the middle part of what is essentially one large story split into 3 books (or pdfs or epubs) and also as…

  • Review: The Bloodline Feud (The Merchant Princes, #1-2)

    The Bloodline Feud by Charles Stross My rating: 3 of 5 stars This book was a free giveaway for Tor’s ebook club This book checks a lot of boxes for me: thriller, science fiction, multiple universes, alternate histories. But I just couldn’t get into it as much as I wanted to. I think it was…