Sci Fi Experience and Vintage Sci Fi Participation

As I noted in my First Book of 2016 post, I decided to participate in two Sci Fi events that are going on right now.

Image art supplied by Chris Goff.

The 2016 Sci-Fi Experience begins December 1st and runs through January 31st, 2016.
It is hosted by Carl at Stainless Steel Droppings.

The Sci-Fi Experience will hopefully give people an opportunity to:
a) Continue their love affair with science fiction
b) Return to science fiction after an absence, or
c) Experience for the first time just how exhilarating science fiction can be.

Since I have been increasingly enjoying Sci Fi this past year, I fall into the a) category.

Here are Sci Fi books read (or reviewed) in December, 2015:
1. Audible Book Review: The Genuine Particle by Stephen Punt; Comedy, Radio Broadcast; my rating 4.25. (Not read in December but review posted.) 
2. Audible Book Review: Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld; Steampunk, Fantasy Adventure; my rating 4.5. 
3. Audio Book Review: Goon Squad, Vol. 2: Without Sin by Jonathan L. Howard; Sci Fi, Comic Storytelling; my rating 4.0. 
4. Book Review: Xenonauts: Crimson Dagger by Lee Stephen; Sci Fi, Fantasy; my rating 4.5.

Read in January, 2016:
5. Audible Book Reviews: Three X Minus One #VintageSciFi Stories; Vintage Sci Fi; my ratings 4.5, 4.25 and 4.25.
6. Audible Book Review and #Giveaway: Time Heist: Firstborn Saga Volume 1 by #Anthony Vicino; Sci Fi, Mystery; my rating 4.5.
7. Book Review: The Feral Sentence: Part One by G. C. Julien; Dystopian, Sci Fi; my rating 4.0.
8. Book Review: Brilliance (The Brilliance Trilogy Book 1) by Marcus Sakey; Sci Fi, Suspense Thriller; my rating 5.0.
9. Audible Book Review: To Live Forever by Jack Vance; Vintage Sci Fi; my rating 4.0.
10. Book Review: Steamborn (Steamborn Series) (Volume 1) by Eric R Asher; Sci Fi, Fantasy, Steampunk; my rating 4.25.
11. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein; (Review to be linked.)

I have several books already lined up for January, including some Vintage Sci Fi titles.

The Vintage SciFi Not-a-Challenge event is hosted by Andrea at Little Red Reviewer.

I am starting with these Vintage titles (the first three I listened to as First Book(s) of 2016); The review links are above under Sci Fi Experience:
1. X Minus One: Protective Mimicry (October 3, 1956) by Algis Budrys, Ernest Kinoy - adaptation
2. X Minus One: Cold Equations (August 25, 1955) by Tom Godwin, George Lefferts - adaptation
3. X Minus One: Target One (December 26, 1957) by Frederik Pohl, George Lefferts - adaptation
4. To Live Forever by Jack Vance (original publication 1956)
5. The Moon is A Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein.

Sunday Post January 3, 2016/It's Monday! What are You Reading? Plus Mailbox Monday January 4, 2016

I am linking with Sunday Post at Caffeinated Book Reviewer.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading now at The Book Date.
Thank you to Sheila for the years that she handled this meme.
Thank you to Kathryn for taking up the baton.

What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week. It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

We had a busy last week of 2015 as several closings had to be completed to qualify for homestead. 
Our daughter and her family have been out of town and hopefully she will be back in the office tomorrow. 
I was a little relaxed on reading as I needed to finish the reviews for my challenges. I was pleased to enjoy my First Books of 2016. I posted five reviews, the usual memes and several challenge wrap-ups and 2016 Challenge posts. 

I enjoyed visiting early in the week and some on January 1st and some more earlier today -- checking out First Read posts. :-)
Thanks as always to all the nice people who visit me.

These were last week's posts:

• Sunday Post December 27, 2015/It's Monday! What are You Reading? Plus Mailbox Monday December 28, 2015.

• Book Review: You're Never too Old to Laugh by Ed Fischer; Comedy, Aging; my rating 4.0.

• Book Review: Zion's Road: A Love Story about Faith and Redemption by Imani Wisdom; Romance, Suspense, Inspirational; my rating 4.0.

• 2015 Alphabet Soup Challenge Completed Successfully.

• Book Review: Fatal Judgment (Guardians of Justice Book #1): A Novel by Irene Hannon; Romantic Suspense; my rating 4.5.

• Book Review: Frozen Past (A Jaxon Jennings' Detective Mystery Thriller Series, Book 1) by Richard C Hale ; Suspense Thriller; my rating 4.25.

• The Official 2015 TBR Pile Challenge - Completed Successfully.

• MBS First Book Of The Year 2016.

• Martha's Bookshelf***Friday Pick Giveaway January 1, 2016. Open Worldwide. Ends 1/7/2016.

• MBS 2015 Reading List.

• MBS Best of 2015 Reading List.

• 2016 Alphabet Soup Challenge.

• TBR Triple Dog Dare 2016.

• 2016 Netgalley Reading Challenge.

• MBS 2015 Audiobook Challenge Wrap-Up - Completed Successfully.

• 2016 Audiobook Challenge.

• Audible Book Review: Jingles All the Way: A Christmas Tail by Barbara Morgenroth; Kids, Dogs; my rating 4.25.

• Sharing Beyond Books #234 Comment Giveaway January 2, 2015; Open Worldwide. Ends 1/9/15.

• Sunday Words of Encouragement January 3, 2015.

Finished Reading:
1. Audible/MP3

X Minus One: Cold Equations (August 25, 1955)
Written by: Tom Godwin, George Lefferts - adaptation
Narrated by: Fred Collins
I enjoyed this quick story full of sci fi irony!
I selected this for Vintage Sci Fi reading.
Publisher's Summary
X Minus One premiered in April 1955 on NBC and ran until January 1958. Like its predecessor series, Dimension X, X Minus One featured stories by the greatest names in modern science fiction: Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein, Clifford Simak, Robert Bloch, and many more.
Public Domain (P)2012 BN Publishing

2. Audible/MP3

X Minus One: Protective Mimicry (October 3, 1956)
Written by: Algis Budrys, Ernest Kinoy - adaptation
Narrated by: Fred Collins
This one was a bit zanier with more irony.
I see a theme I will note in my review.

3. eBook/Kindle

Two Tickets to the Christmas Ball: A Novella
by Donita K. Paul
This is delightful! 
I will post a review and giveaway this week.
Click on book title for full description.

4. Audible/MP3

X Minus One: Target One (December 26, 1957)
Written by: Frederik Pohl, George Lefferts - adaptation
Narrated by: Fred Collins
And more irony!
These are fun listens.

Currently reading:
1 eBook/Kindle

The Colossus
by Ranjini Iyer
I am 50% into this - engaging but a bit strange.
Maxine Rosen, a demure, clumsy, Chicago caterer gets more than she bargains for when she discovers her father’s coded research document linked to health pills unearthed from the ancient Indus Valley civilization. The pills, she learns, carry frightening secrets about the true nature of her father’s death; a truth that may be more than she can bear. Enlisting the help of handsome professor Julian McIntosh, Max travels across the continents to unlock the mystery of her father’s research, struggling to keep one step ahead of a powerful German pharmaceutical company who will stop at nothing to keep the disturbing document under wraps.

2. Audible/MP3

Time Heist: Firstborn Saga Volume 1
Written by: Anthony Vicino
Narrated by: Adam Verner
This is good so far. 
Time Travel Sci Fi is a favorite genre for me. :-)
I received this audio title from the author
Publisher's Summary
We tried to kill ourselves. We had the weapons. We had the desire. Somehow, we failed. Humanity survived. Go figure.
They called it the Dissolution, but it's been a couple hundred years and if you ask around, nobody in Unity remembers what all the fuss was about. What everybody had been so willing to die for. Nobody cares.
I don't, at least. I've done my part. Worked Time Vice for the better part of 20 years putting the bad guys into a Stream dream. Now I want out.
The numbers on my arm tell me I'll be dead soon. Less than a day left. I can live with that. What I can't live with is knowing a Unity leader helped Malcolm Wolfe, the man who murdered my wife and a million other innocents, escape prison.
Finding Malcolm means uncovering secrets that could tear Unity apart from the inside. But if I don't stop him, there probably won't be a Unity to save anyhow.
Looks like we might get a chance to wipe ourselves out after all. Now I just got to catch him before my numbers catch me.
©2014 Anthony Vicino (P)2015 Anthony Vicino

3. eBook/Kindle (NG)

The Dirt on Ninth Grave (Charley Davidson Book 9)
by Darynda Jones
This will be the first time I have read rather than listened to a book in this series. I'm interested to see if it "feels" different.
I received this through NetGalley. Release date 1/12/16.
In a small village in New York lives Jane Doe, a girl with no memory of who she is or where she came from. So when she is working at a diner and slowly begins to realize she can see dead people, she's more than a little taken aback. Stranger still are the people entering her life. They seem to know things about her. Things they hide with lies and half-truths. Soon, she senses something far darker. A force that wants to cause her harm, she is sure of it. Her saving grace comes in the form of a new friend she feels she can confide in and the fry cook, a devastatingly handsome man whose smile is breathtaking and touch is scalding. He stays close, and she almost feels safe with him around.

But no one can outrun their past, and the more lies that swirl around her-even from her new and trusted friends-the more disoriented she becomes, until she is confronted by a man who claims to have been sent to kill her. Sent by the darkest force in the universe. A force that absolutely will not stop until she is dead. Thankfully, she has a Rottweiler. But that doesn't help in her quest to find her identity and recover what she's lost. That will take all her courage and a touch of the power she feels flowing like electricity through her veins. She almost feels sorry for him. The devil in blue jeans. The disarming fry cook who lies with every breath he takes. She will get to the bottom of what he knows if it kills her. Or him. Either way.

January 3, 2016
We start again "In the Beginning" reading The One Year Bible again along with my husband and others from our church.
I will also be listening (sometimes) to the companion commentary online.

I posted five reviews last week to complete my reviews for 2015. 
I also posted numerous challenge/dare posts that are fun for me. I plan not to wait until the last week/day of 2016 to finish this year's challenges. :-)

NetGalley friends:
eTreasures has two new books available - they will be releasing later this month:

Starting Over         //   Loving, Living & Legends
by Barri Bryan     //    by Jack Horne
Mature coupe starting over//    Poetry 

Welcome to Mailbox Monday.

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week and explore great book blogs.  This Meme started with Marcia at A Girl and Her Books (fka The Printed Page) and after a tour of hosts has returned to its permanent home at Mailbox Monday. Thanks to the ladies sharing hosting duties: Leslie of Under My Apple Tree, Serena of Savvy Verse & Wit and Vicki of I'd Rather Be at the Beach.
Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

I received two tour titles for review in February, 2016. I also received one title from an author and one through NetGalley.
I purchased six ebooks at Amazon at $.99 each and one at $2.99. These are the last of my purchases until April 2016.
I added more free kindle titles to my library.

Are your mailbox and TBR piles blooming?
First - I received this lovely gift from one of our blogger friends.
Two beautiful blue scarves, truffles, a candy bar, loose tea (delicious!) and a handmade ornament - (I am putting that with my keepsake ornaments).  Thank you so much to my friend Miki. 

Review Titles

I received four titles for review:

Received from Great Escapes Book Tours for review in February:

City of Gold
by Carolyn Arnold
New Series
Genre – Suspense, Adventure
• Series: Matthew Connor Adventure Series (Book 1)

Received from iRead Book Tours for review in February:

Emmy Nation, Undercover Suffragette
by L. Davis Munro
Historical Fiction
This sounds like a fun heroine.

Received from author:

The Feral Sentence: Part One
by G. C. Julien
The year is 2087, and the federal government has implemented a new sentence for criminal convictions—banishment to a remote island.

AND I have one more title from NetGalley:

What We Find

by Robyn Carr

Harlequin/MIRA
I was invited to read this for the
hardcover release April, 2016.

Won

NONE

Purchased

[I still have two Audible credits to use before the end of 2015.]

I purchased six Kindle titles for $.99 each, and one for $2.99, as they caught my eye and I plan to make no more purchases for several months as I participate in the TBR DARE again:

The Knowing: Book One
Ninie Hammon

Act of Mercy: An Immortal Ops World Novel

(PSI-Ops / Immortal Ops Book 1)

Mandy M. Roth

Loved by the Dragon Collection
Vivienne Savage

The Crusader's Bride

(The Champions of Saint Euphemia Book 1)

Claire Delacroix

Avoidables Complete Boxset 1
Rachel Medhurst

Mandrake Company (Books 1-4)

Ruby Lionsdrake

($2.99)

Snowy Night with a Stranger (Scandalous)
Jane Feather, Sabrina Jeffries, Julia London

Free

Over the past week I added 50 free Kindle titles to my library. Titles found linked through Bookbub, Bookfun, Ereader News Today, Free Par-tay, Ignite Your Book, Inspired Reads, Pixel of Ink or Kindle ebooks.

Sunday Words of Encouragement January 3, 2016

Our church is starting the year with a focus on prayer! A substitute Sunday School teacher played an impressive video of a message by Jim Cymbala, the pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle. He reminded the people that Jesus threw out the wicked money changers with the declaration: My house will be called a house of prayer.... It is not a house of preaching, music or entertainment, but a “house of prayer”.

When you are in trouble, pray; when intimidated, pray; when afraid, pray. When you receive blessings, pray and give thanks.
When you pray, God comes. Prayer brings God’s power and grace.
Prayer is the conduit, the channel for His power and grace.
Let us come boldly to the throne of grace... Hebrews 4:16.
Spend time in prayer. Give your troubles and concerns over to God.

Pastor’s sermon was “Fasting with Prayer”. We are sharing in a 21 day fast starting today. The purpose for us is threefold: 1) for our church; 2) for family, especially lost loved ones; and 3) our individual need. I will be listening to the CD and then praying to select my “need”, the nature (partial or complete, food or other item) and form (time element one meal a day, three times a week, alternate days, etc.) of my individual fast.

Why do we fast?
Fasting reminds us that we can get by without most things, but not without God.
Fasting helps us humble ourselves and recognize that we must depend on God.
Fasting helps train and discipline our passions; control desires. (If Satan can't have you he wants you to become ineffective.) 1 Timothy 4:7-8.
Fasting may acknowledge sin.
Fasting shows you what you need to relinquish (anger, fear, jealousy, etc.) and what you can have (joy, peace, etc.).

Arthur Wallis stated: ‘[fasting] demonstrates that you mean business.’ It gives notice to God that the matter is a priority.
The goal of fasting is to make more time for God; talk to God; draw away from things of this world to focus and grow closer to God.

Here is an older worship song that I think is appropriate for the message 

and the New Year:

A Verse for Today:
Hebrews 4:16.
“Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

My prayer today: Lord, Thank you for the opportunities of a New Year. Direct my steps as I prepare to seek a closer relationship with You.

Sharing Beyond Books #234 January 2, 2015

Hello again and Welcome to Sharing Beyond Books, SBB!
Ugh- Tonight was a first. I had this post completely ready to post at 8:30. When I clicked to see where it was it was gone. I apparently had two blogger tabs open at one time and saved the old version after the scheduled one. Blah!

I didn't go see Star Wars last week as I was having back spasms and didn't want to sit in the theater that long. Everyone else enjoyed it.
We had a nice New Year's Eve dinner with seven friends from church and a wet and quiet New Year's day.
I hope everyone else had a safe New Years.

Thanks to everyone who commented last week.

Eleven of you have not tried Windows 10. Three of us have tried it and Alyn tried it on her brothers computer. We all are good with it... at least I was until this week when one of my computers started acting up. It will not open on the start button and it is hard to close apps on the task bar. My son worked on it before he left but it is still not acting right. :-(

~~~~~

The Winner from SBB #233 comments is: #5 Rita who can make a GC choice if international or book choice from the Updated ARC/Review titles or (not yet updated) Love titles - all linked near the end of the post. I'm hoping to update the book choices - maybe the beginning of next year, lol. Please let me know your choice by completing the WINNER FORM.

WEEK #234

(One Question.)

Poetryinleaves asks: 1)Do you like/follow business or company pages on Facebook? (not counting using giveaway accounts) I assume people don't want a hundred pictures of chocolate bars posed in different ways, clogging up their feeds. But you tell me...

  Most of the sites I like at Facebook are book/publishing related. There are only one or two connected to my title company and I can't think of any connected to my law practice. I no longer spend much time on Facebook since I stopped playing the time sucking games a year or so ago.

Image found at BlueNote Technologies.

Thanks to those who are sending in Questions. DON'T BE SHY! Surely everyone has a Q or two you'd like to ask. Input suggestions in this Suggested Question Form. At the end of each month I draw from the suggestions I used during the month and that person will get a book choice or GC. I thank everyone for submitting questions. Thanks for sending in questions! The supply of questions is dwindling so share some if you think of any -- even if they are duplicates I'll weed through or try to modify to use.

Your turn to share:
Poetryinleaves asks: 1)Do you like/follow business or company pages on Facebook? (not counting using giveaway accounts) I assume people don't want a hundred pictures of chocolate bars posed in different ways, clogging up their feeds. But you tell me...

SBB Comment Winners can choose a selection from the Valentine and "Love" books or the February 2015 Newly Updated ARC/Review List. (My daughter pulled several of the Christmas titles to give with gift bags we made up for the nursing homes. One of these days I will get together a new box of Christmas titles.)

SBB Rules:
a) Must be a follower.
b) Share a comment on the question above.
Open internationally and an international winner may get a smaller book or a $5.00 GC if I decide the mailing is too much.
I will pick a Comment winner from all comments made through Saturday January 9, 2015 at 5 PM central.

Audible Book Review: Jingles All the Way: A Christmas Tail by Barbara Morgenroth

This is a quick, fun story – perfect to bring smiles to kids and dog lovers.

Jingles All the Way: A Christmas Tail
Written by: Barbara Morgenroth
Narrated by: Jane M. Held

Length: 58 mins
Release Date: 07-01-15
Publisher: Barbara Morgenroth
Genre: Kids, Ages 8-10
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
Jingles is a dog on the lam. He's met the perfect person and wants to stay with her forever, but his former owners have millions of reasons why that's impossible. After escaping from uncaring owners, Jingles discovers canine paradise with Sassy Collins and her Eat Dog Eat Gourmet Take-Out Dog Dinner Shop. Sassy is easy to love, and Jingles falls hard for her. So does the town police officer, Ethan Monroe. But Jingles is carrying a secret that could destroy their happy family before it even begins.
©2014 Barbara Morgenroth (P)2015 Barbara Morgenroth.

Review:
Jingles is no wimpy dog with sparkly collars. He describes himself as a “dog’s dog”. He has run away from his uncaring owners seeking freedom and a better life. He sees a “Dogs Welcome” sign in a shop and slips in to discover that it is a gourmet dog food diner. Jingles quickly falls in love with the store owner, Sassy, who gives him a jingle collar and dubs him “Jingles”. She also feeds him wonderful meals.

The local police officer, Ethan, is falling for Sassy too and he is kind to Jingles. But when he finds a poster with Jingle’s image he has to call the owners. Jingles isn’t planning on letting anyone take him away from Sassy. He has to find a way to let Ethan know that his owners are up to no good.

This is a quick, fun listen. The story is told from Jingles’ point of view and he is completely adorable! Sassy and Ethan make a sweet couple. (I took a peek at the Kindle version and it includes some cute images!) The book is listed in "Kids" category at Audible but if you are a dog lover and want a quick smile – pick this up and enjoy.

Audio Notes: The narration by Jane M. Held is light if not inspired. She did give personality to Jingles' storytelling, and did great New York accents. Unfortunately the voice didn't really work that well for me and I don't think it added much to the cute story. (Listen to a sample to see how you like it as other reviews did like the narration more than I did.)

I received this audio from the publisher through Audiobook Jukebox. This is my last review for books read in 2015.