Monthly Archives: June 2019

Jun 20 2019

A romance from the grave

Texas FreeRecently, I updated my credentials to virtually check out books from my local library. Free is a good price, right? Unfortunately, apparently, there is little demand for science fiction at my library, so I looked at titles in the romance genre.

When I first read romance novels, I had a list of authors who were my “go to” writers. One of them was Janet Dailey. Generally, she did a good job of integrating setting, plot, and character, and that’s no easy task, because romance writers are under a lot of pressure to produce, produce, produce. Romance readers seem to be perpetually thirsty for new novels, and I saw a new series by Janet Dailey, so I checked out Texas Free,  copyright 2018.

The opening states that the events happened in 1985, which would have been at Dailey’s peak, in terms of both popularity and proliferation. The story is actually a good one, if a bit formulaic. Rose Landro returns to her childhood home in Texas, on the run from a Mexican drug cartel. Unsure of her welcome, but desperate, she stakes her claim on land that should have been hers, as it belonged to her grandfather who had intended to deed it to her before his untimely demise. As the land is an access point to water for cattle, her stake is controversial, and the reader follows the twists and turns of the plot, wondering if Rose will succeed in establishing a homestead, and if any of her neighbors will assist her in her quest.

Janet Dailey has penned a great many books, but the copyright page indicates that this one belongs to a “Revocable Trust” created by some folks who share the same last name. So, is this “Tylers of Texas” series a repackaged group of novels from earlier, or are her heirs using a ghost writer? I suspect the latter, as Janet Dailey died in 2013.

Ghost writing has been around a long time, and there are sometimes very good reasons for using the process. Celebrities who are good at something else often write books, but the more honest ones have a “with so and so” under the author line. Both Tom Clancy’s and Robert Ludlum’s publishing careers have gone on without the author as other, named writers, do the work, but these ghost writers are a least named in the fine print. As I have the eBook version of Texas Free checked out, I might not be seeing it, but if there is an acknowledged ghost writer I didn’t find it. On the other hand, authors I know have reprinted their books with new titles to “up date” them. I kinda think that is cheating a bit, but reputable writers do it.

As I have a back list title that I republished as an eBook (Trinity on Tylos) I am not complaining about republishing, but unless there is a dusty old manuscript, or computer file somewhere, a back list title should be just that. A novel written by someone other than the named author breaks the contract between a publisher and the reader. If I see an author’s name, I expect that the author wrote the book, and I doubt that I am alone in that expectation.

The entire Tylers of Texas series has publication dates after 2013. FYI.

Jun 15 2019

The Apocalypse Troll by David Weber

TrollI’ve been re-reading some titles that I have in my “Nook” library, as I am unsure of what will happen with that since Barnes and Noble has sold out. One of my all time favorite science fiction authors is David Weber, who is best known for his series writing, especially the books about Honor Harrington. However, early in his career he wrote a few stand alone books, including The Apocalypse Troll. It’s a thrilling story, well told, and very much showcases Weber’s knowledge of military tactics and the geography of North Carolina.

As the story opens, Colonel Ludmilla Leonova is assigned the task of attacking an instrument of the dreaded “Kangas” a Troll, slang for a human brain in a mechanized body. This brain, conditioned to fight and kill humans, is not quite indestructible, but very close. Leonova is both brave and determined, however. She’ll seek and destroy this enemy of humanity, through space and time itself.

Thus, Leonova ends up on earth in the year 2007, and as this book was released in 1999, a near future story when it was written. After her fighter crashes, she is rescued by Captain Dick Ashton, who is incredulous, but convinced by her steady demeanor and the advanced tech of her space suit and weapon that she had indeed traveled back in time in pursuit of a malevolent enemy. This sounds as if it very much strains the concept of suspended disbelief, but the captain also convinces the upper echaleons of United States military and the President himself that Leonova is who she says she is, and that the Troll is somewhere on the planet, ready to wreak havoc on humanity. Weber does this quite skillfully, introducing a panoply of characters, one of his trademarks.

All sorts of military hardware and personnel are put into play as the Troll uses a less than honorable religious leader to whip susceptible citizens of the southeastern U.S. into angry mobs, and western North Carolina becomes the battleground.

Weber’s story is a good one, and the reader isn’t left with that sense of “what next?” that accompanies series books. For fans of David Weber, this story is a treat, and for readers who haven’t yet read any of his military fiction, it is a good introduction. The book is still available used and an an eBook from the publisher, as well as other sources.