To DEAN KOONTZ, who has offered his advice, ideas, and encouragement since the very beginning of my career. A long time ago, he told me to “think big” with my stories: now with The Saga of Seven Suns already longer than Tolstoy’s War and Peace, I hope this is what he meant! (p. v)

When computer game Red Dead Redemption II came out in 2018, it became a cultural juggernaut according to Tore Olsson. Olsson is a History professor and enthusiastic gamer who offered a course at the University of Tennessee on Red Dead Redemption II and the enrollment soared!

Red Dead Redemption II has sold 50 million copies. It generated $725 million in sales from its opening weekend.

“The story is set in a fictionalized representation of the United States in 1899 and follows the exploits of Arthur Morgan, an outlaw and member of the Van der Linde gang, who must deal with the decline of the Wild West while attempting to survive against government forces, rival gangs, and other adversaries. The game is presented through first- and third-person perspectives, and the player may freely roam in its interactive open world. Gameplay elements include shootouts, robberies, hunting, horseback riding, interacting with non-player characters, and maintaining the character’s honor rating through moral choices and deeds. A bounty system governs the response of law enforcement and bounty hunters to crimes committed by the player.” –Wikipedia

Tore Olsson is fascinated by Red Dead Redemption II because he believes it actually teaches history of the 1899 time period as well as providing a satisfying gaming experience. This is a game I want to play! How about you? GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Preface — ix

Introduction — 1

Part I The West

1. 1 The Idea of the West 9
2. 2 The Indian Wars 21
3. 3 The Iron Horse 33
4. 4 Cows and Cowboys 45
5. 5 Guns, Gunslingers, and Violence 57
6. 6 The Pinkertons 69
7. 7 The Wild Bunch 81
9. Part II The Deep South
11. 8 The Paradox of Race 95
12. 9 From Old South to New South 105
13. 10 The White-Hooded Menace 115
14. 11 The Tragedy of Lynching 125
15. 12 In the Fields 137
16. 13 Working on the Chain Gang 149
17. 14 Mr. Jim Crow 159
18. 15 The Lost Cause 171
19. 16 New Orleans, 1899 183
20. 17 Votes for Women 195
22. Part III Southern Appalachia
24. 18 The Appalachian Myth 207
25. 19 The Scramble for Appalachia 219
26. 20 The Blood Feud 229
27. Epilogue — 241
28. Acknowledgements — 245
29. List of Illustrations — 249
30. Notes — 251
31. Index –– 265

In John Woo’s original classic film, The Killer, hitman Ah Jong accidentally hurts a bystander during a shootout: a night club singer named Jennie, whose corneas are severely damaged as a result. Hoping to get out of the hitman business, Ah Jong takes one last job in order to secure the money to pay for an expensive surgery to restore Jennie’s eyesight, but along the way, his guilt leads him to return to the club where Jennie sings, saves her from a mugger, and introducing himself as a stranger. They fall in love, of course. Much violence follows.

This 2024 remake genderswaps the “hitman” for a lovely female assassin named Zee, played by the talented Nathalie Emmanuel. Much of the original plot of The Killer has been discarded.

This version of The Killer  has Zee unintentionally wounding a woman–a young night club singer named Jenn (Diana Silvers)–while killing five thieves. But then Z’s next job becomes killing Jenn, who witnessed a theft of 350 million Euros worth of heroin. Rival bands of gangsters are fighting over the stolen heroin, and Jenn is caught up in the action because she’s dating one of thieves. Zee can’t bring herself to kill Jenn because she’s basically innocent. Zee decides to team up unexpectedly with Paris Detective Sey (Omar Sy), who is trying to bring down the politically connected bad guys but keeps getting blocked by police corruption and bureaucracy.

While this remake of The Killer is nowhere near as good as the original, I’m a fan of female assassins (like Zee and The Black Widow). Mildly entertaining if you can accept a large body count. GRADE: B

For those of us who can’t get enough of Dune, Titan books has just published The Art and Soul of Dune, Part Two. You can read of my review of The Art and Soul of Dune, Part One here. Where the first volume focused on the production of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune. The Director shares his thought process on the decisions he had to make during the filming of the movie.

This new second volume focuses on more detailed subjects like the design of spacesuits and battle gear. The costumes for the Fremen are also explained.

In the second part of Denis Vileneuve’s Dune, there are a number of combat scenes. Villeneuve wanted to make sure the audience could discern who were the Good Guys and who were the Bad Guys by their battle gear.

If you have any questions about the two-part Dune movie, The Art and Soul of Dune, Parts One and Two should clear with up. Not only are these books a feast for the eyes, but a wealth of inside information is provided. Don’t miss these two wonderful books! And don’t miss the graphic novel! GRADE: A (for both!)

I loved 1967! I graduated from High School, I started my four year residence at Marquette University, and the music was especially wonderful that year!

AM Gold: 1967 offers a cross-section of the music from that year. I still hear local Oldies radio stations and Sirius/XM Radio’s “Soul Town” playing “I Second That Emotion” by Smokey Robinson & The Miracles. Still sounds great! 1967 was a big year for The Bee Gees, too. “To Love Somebody” and “Massachusetts” established them as a group on the rise.

There are a few One-Hit Wonders here: Keith’s” 98.6″ and Harpers Bizarre’s “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)”.

One of the biggest hits of 1967 was Bobbie Gentry’s “Old to Billie Joe.” Do you remember these songs? Any favorites here? GRADE: B+

TRACK LIST:

I’m a big fan of Edward D. Hoch’s mystery stories so when Crippen & Landru announced The Will O’ the Wisp Mystery I immediately ordered it. The Will O’ the Wisp Mystery is a series of six interconnected stories about David Piper (aka, “The Manhunter”), the head of the Department of Apprehension. After six convicts escape from prison, Piper follows to clues to discover where the escapees are hiding. But, Hoch is a crafty writer so there’s a much larger scheme lurking behind these six stories.

Also included are Father David Noone mystery stories. My favorite of this group is “Game of Skill” where a man threatens to blow up Noone’s church. I also liked “The Thing in Lover’s Lane” where two murders lead to a surprising conclusion.

If you’re a Hoch fan, The Will O’ the Wisp Mystery is a must read book! GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction by Tom Mead — 7

The Will-O’-the-Wisp Mystery

The Pawn — 11

The Rook — 25

The Knight — 41

The Bishop — 57

The Queen — 72

The King — 89

Father David Noone

Game of Skill — 105

The Thing in Lover’s Lane –124

The Sweating Statue — 145

One More Circus — 159

The Arrow of Ice — 176

Hand of God — 189

Searching for Sammy Sand — 205

Sources — 222

Think of High Potential as Elsbeth from a trailer park. Single mom Morgan gets involved in a murder investigation while she’s cleaning the police squad room–she’s the janitor. While LAPD Detective Karadec (Daniel Sunjata) dismisses Morgan’s analysis of the case, Lieutenant Detective Selena (Judy Reyes) sees Morgan’s potential. Morgan has a 160 I.Q. but her compulsions cause her to lose jobs. I’ve only watched the first episode of High Potential but I’m hooked! GRADE: INCOMPLETE but trending towards an A.

The Buffalo Bills are 5½ point favorites over the winless Jacksonville Jaguars. There’s a sense of desperation by the Jaguars to win this game and save their season. No one wants to start 0-3.

The Bills have several injuries to starters on their Defense so expect a lot of scoring in this game. There’s a chance of rain for this game so passing and running may be affected. More turnovers, too. Go Bills!

The Buffalo Bills play the Jacksonville Jaguars tomorrow night on Monday Night Football. How will your favorite NFL do today?

At the end of Disney+’s Wandavision Wanda Maximoff (aka, The Scarlet Witch) stole Agatha Harkness’ (Kathryn Hahn) witchy powers. Now, three years later, Agatha wants her powers back and decides to walk The Witches Road. In order to do that, Agatha needs a coven. In Episode 2 (of 9) Agatha recruits psychic Lilia (Patti LuPone) to avoid impending homelessness, ex-cop Alice (Ali Ahn) to find out what happened to her missing mother, Jen (Sasheer Zamata) who has a Goop-ish but unsuccessful wellness store, and Sharon (That ’70s Show’s Debra Jo Rupp) because Agatha bullies her into it. Together, Agatha and her coven walk the wild and dangerous Road.

Agatha All Along is the perfect series for the run-up to Halloween. If you’re looking for a TV show to put you in the spooky spirit, this is it! GRADE: INCOMPLETE but trending towards a B+