Five years after the events of The Return of the Jedi, the battle against the Empire continues, as the blossoming New Republic gears up for a final encounter with Grand Admiral Thrawn in the third volume of Timothy Zahn’s trilogy that truly launched the original Star Wars Expanded Universe. While Thrawn plans to cripple the…
Category: The Book Shelf
Licence to Kill (1989) – John Gardner
James Bond returns this week in John Gardner’s adaptation of the 1989 film, Licence to Kill. This is probably the most disjointed of his novels as he tries to marry his version of the literary 007 to the big screen version, and it doesn’t always work. In fact, throughout the book Bond thinks he must…
Star Trek: Federation (1994) – Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens
This week’s journey where no one has gone before is an epic novel that combines adventures with the crew of James T. Kirk’s Enterprise, with those of Jean-Luc Picard’s tying it in with the life of Zefram Cochrane, and the efforts of one of Colonel Green’s cadre, Colonel Thorsen. With a wrap-around story that takes…
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) – Agatha Christie
This week’s Agatha Christie isn’t quite the romp of the previous entry, but like all her tales, is wonderfully engaging and entertaining as she weaves a tale of murder, secret marriages, servants, doctors, drugs, wayward sons, and hidden secrets and truths. And in the middle of it all, Hercule Poirot. This one is a bit…
Star Wars: Prophets of the Dark Side (1993) – Paul Davids and Hollace Davids
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away… The young adult/tween series christened The Jedi Prince comes to a conclusion with its sixth book this week, that sees the culmination of the Alliance’s conflict with Kadaan the Dark Side Prophet who has installed himself as the new Emperor after doing away with the…
Win, Lose or Die (1989) – John Gardner
John Gardner’s eighth 007 novel is on the book shelf this week, and honestly, as much as I have been enjoying his take on James Bond, I think this may be my favourite one so far. Bond finds himself facing off against a terrorist organisation known as BAST who have plans to infiltrate a Russian/American/British…
Star Trek: Crossroad (1994) – Barbara Hambley
Space, the final frontier… As mentioned in previous reviews of Trek books, they can’t all be winners. As much as I wanted to enjoy this one, it was definitely a bit of a slog to get through. Hambley penned a dense story that doesn’t have the flow of a Trek tale, though with some changes,…
The Secret of Chimneys (1925) – Agatha Christie
Christie’s fifth novel is a bit of a romp filled with double identities, a murder, political issues, an empty throne, a renowned criminal, a love story, a missing diamond, and a week away at a manor known as Chimneys. We are introduced to Anthony Cade when he is working as a travel guide in Africa,…
Star Wars: Queen of the Empire (1993) – Paul Davids and Hollace Davids
The young adult Star Wars series, christened the Jedi Prince Saga, continues this week in a galaxy far, far away with book five, Queen of the Empire. Not quite as silly as some of the previous entries, this one still has its moments, as well as a bit of an environmental message as Han Solo…
Scorpius (1988) – John Gardner
James Bond’s adventures this week take him around England, and then over to the States in John Gardner’s seventh 007 novel. This time around Bond finds himself taking on an unusual enemy in a story that seems just as relevant today. James is assigned to investigate a religious cult known as the Meek Ones run…
The Mind Reels 