Tag Archives: aliens

Book Review of “Bowl of Heaven” (2012)

bowl of heaven

Cover art for the Benford and Niven novel “Bowl of Heaven”

I just finished reading the 2012 novel Bowl of Heaven authored by two science fiction heavy hitters: Gregory Benford and Larry Niven.

The basic idea is that a colony sleeper ship from Earth on its way to a new system encounters a megastructure in space. This is a sun that has been manipulated so its light thrust is directed allowing the entire solar system to be navigated across the galaxy.

At the back end of the system is essentially a bowl with the surface area of millions of Earths.

It’s more than curiosity that causes the command crew of the starship “SunSeeker” to investigate. Their ramscoop technology has become increasingly inefficient threatening the success of their voyage, so they enter the bowl system looking for answers.

They send a shuttle into the bowl and the landing team, lead by lovers Cliff and Beth, encounters a number of differing beings that seem intelligent. However, when Cliff’s party breaches the airlock, the aliens try to capture them. Beth’s team is scooped up immediately, but Cliff’s people escape.

As you’d expect from “hard science” writers Benford and Niven, details about the “shipstar” system and “bowl world” abound. Parallels to Niven’s “Ringworld” are inevitable.

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The Second Wave is here!

second wave

Promotional image for the upcoming Starry Eyed Press anthology “Second Wave.”

Ten of my drabbles (the maximum number allowed) are featured in this anthology.

A SINGLE MOMENT –– A HUNDRED WORDS –– A UNIVERSE OF POSSIBILITIES
What happens after the unknown has arrived? When the echoes of first contact fade, humanity is left to navigate the tremors of change — new alliances, fragile peace, simmering conflicts, and the birth of strange, dazzling futures.

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Book Review of “Strike Dog: Military Science Fiction Across a Holographic Multiverse” (2018)

strike dog

Cover art for Ashley Pollard’s novel “Strike Dog”

Way back in 2023, I read and reviewed Ashley R. Pollard’s military SciFi novel Bad Dog: Military Science Fiction Across A Holographic Multiverse.

It’s part of the “Gate Walker” trilogy and today, I just finished book two: Strike Dog. This continues the adventures of Marine Sgt. Lara Tachikoma and traveling through these gates to different worlds.

Spoiler Alert! This book was published in 2018, but you may not have read it yet. You have been warned.

Actually, Tachikoma is sent off to officer’s training school (as mentioned in the first novel) so she becomes Lieutenant Lara Tachikoma. She’s also somewhat unusual in being able to stay mobile while the gates are active and to pass through them to alien destinations.

Thus the search is on to find others like her so teams of scientists and military support units can explore these worlds.

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Book Review of “To Sleep in a Sea of Stars” (2020)

to sleep

© James Pyles

I just finished reading To Sleep In A Sea Of Stars (2020) by Christopher Paolini and was really impressed. One of the biggest points for me is that the book is over 800 pages long and it didn’t drag at some point.

From the blurb on Amazon:

Kira Navárez dreamed of life on new worlds.

Now she’s awakened a nightmare.

During a routine survey mission on an uncolonized planet, Kira finds an alien relic. At first she’s delighted, but elation turns to terror when the ancient dust around her begins to move.

As war erupts among the stars, Kira is launched into a galaxy-spanning odyssey of discovery and transformation. First contact isn’t at all what she imagined, and events push her to the very limits of what it means to be human.

While Kira faces her own horrors, Earth and its colonies stand upon the brink of annihilation. Now, Kira might be humanity’s greatest and final hope . . .

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Seven Drabbles Accepted Into “Second Wave”

second wave

Promotional image for the upcoming Starry Eyed Press anthology “Second Wave.”

I’ve just had seven (out of the ten submitted) of my science fiction drabbles accepted into the Starry Eyed Press anthology “Second Wave.”

Here’s the short blurb:

For Second Wave we are looking for stories centering on the aftermath of initial contact with aliens. Show us what impact first contact had. Give us changing politics, cultural and social transformation, alien perspectives, reinforcements at the front, veteran viewpoints, colonization, interracial exchange… but keep in mind we do enjoy adventurous, thoughtful and uplifting stories.

Here are some samples of my stories:

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My New Stories in “Drabbles: First Contact” (2025)

promo

Promotional image for my stories in the anthology “Drabbles: First Contact.”

My first publications for 2025 are now available in the Starry Eyed Press anthology Drabbles: First Contact (Amazon US). Click the following for the global link.

For those of you who don’t know, a “drabble” is a complete story that is exactly 100 words long, no more, no less.

“First Contact” is a reference to humanity’s first encounter with an extraterrestrial species. These contacts can be friendly or terrifying or a lot of other things.

Twenty-six authors contributed a total of over thirty drabbles to this anthology. It is currently available for Kindle but will also be coming out soon in paperback.

Four of my stories made the cut:

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Eviction Day

beach junk

PHOTO PROMPT © Mr. Binks

Eliab strolled through another collection of junk. It was only a small sample of the enormous task they were facing. They had given so-called “modern humans” 200,000 years to build a civilization harmonious with themselves and their planet.

As predicted, they failed miserably. He was of the majority opinion, but “the Big Guy” kept giving them chances. Finally, the literal weight of evidence against humanity became evident even to Him.

The last of them had been evicted, resettled on thousands of primitive worlds to continue the experiment. Now Eliab’s team would have to spend millennia reclaiming Earth for productive use.

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“Far Futures Book Three – Deep Space” is Available Now!

far futures 3

Cover art for the Blue Planet Pres anthology “Far Futures 3”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

It’s here.

My science fiction short story “Confluence” is now available in the Blue Planet Press anthology Far Futures Book Three – Deep Space.

The Amazon blurb says:

In Far Futures Three, some of the talented and rising authors in science fiction from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia, have offered their diverse visions of life in deep space. Stories of broken generations ships and malfunctioning holograms. AI enhanced humans fleeing the solar system. Alien abductees taken light-years away. A NASA spacecraft highjacked in a perilous first contact scenario. Pirates and scavengers and more.

Here’s a small sample:

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“Far Futures: Book Three” Available for Pre-Order Now!

far futures 3

Cover art for the upcoming Blue Planet Pres anthology “Far Futures 3”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that my science fiction short story “Confluence” will be appearing in a Blue Planet Press anthology. “Far Futures Three – An Anthology of Deep Space” is now available for pre-order at Amazon!

You can read my original announcement for further details including a short sample of my tale.

The book will become available for sale on October 8, 2024 but you can reserve a copy now. Then in October, it will download onto your Kindle device.

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My Short Story “Confluence” to be published in the anthology “Far Futures Three – An Anthology of Deep Space”

far futures 3

Cover art for the upcoming Blue Planet Pres anthology “Far Futures 3”

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.

My science fiction short story “Confluence” has been accepted for publication in the Blue Planet Press anthology “Far Futures Three – An Anthology of Deep Space”

The story requirements are:

Space exploration. From the outer planets of our solar system to the edge of the Orion Spur and the even more distant Andromeda Galaxy. How will we get there? Generation ships? Faster than light engines? Dimensional warping? Wormholes?

Hopefully, my tale has a unique perspective on the subject. Here’s a small preview:

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