Guy Haley’s Reality 36 (2011) and Omega Point (2012) should be read as just one long book. Subtitled “A Richards & Klein Investigation,” both books feature Richards–a Class 5 Artificial Intelligence–and Otto Klein–a combat cyborg–who find themselves helping various Government agencies as the threat level zooms to disaster. Some unknown power is attempting to conquer the 36 Reality Realms–cyber worlds for the world’s game players. This entity wants to use the digital worlds as a launching point for an attack on our real world.

While Richards and Klein investigate the invasion of the Reality Realms by a hostile entity, Veronique Valdaire–a skilled computer scientist–flees our reality to find her mentor, Professor Zhang Qifang, in the Reality Realms while teams of assassins hunt for her.

In Omega Point Richards also enters the digital Reality Realms and links up with a talking Bear and a lion that can shift from cloth to stone. Meanwhile, hostile elements attack Klein and Veronique in the real world as they try to find a hacker named Waldo who can threaten k52’s plan to destroy all the humans on Earth.

Reality 36 was Guy Haley’s first novel and the convoluted plot carries over to Omega Point. Haley learned from these books because the other Haley novels I’ve read, The Emperor’s Railroad (2015) and The Ghoul King (2016), are much shorter and satisfying. You can read my reviews here and here. GRADE: B (for both books)

There are over 2000 covers to various Batman comic books and graphic novels. Batman Cover to Cover only collects a few hundred ranging from the 1930s to the 2000s. I started reading Batman comic books in the 1950s. They were cheap–a dime–and available everywhere. Down the street from my grandparent’s house was a drug store that had a large magazine section that included comic books. Every time my mother and father would take us to visit my grandparents, I managed to wrangle a trip to the drug store where I’d buy a couple of comic books, usually The Flash and Batman, my two favorites.

Basically, comic book covers marketed the product. That’s why the cover artwork on comic books look so bold and daring. Batman Cover to Cover brings back a lot of memories. Did you read comic books as a kid? What were your favorites? GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION — 8

The dark knight — 10
You never forget your first time / Reflections by Neil Gaiman — 34
Fearsome foes — 46
Creating the covers in the golden age / A chat with Jerry Robinson — 72
Welcome to fun city — 74
The dynamic duo — 85
Batman by design — 102
The cover logo / An examination by Rian Hughes — 126
Death traps — 128
Guilty — 150
Creating the covers in the silver age / Recollections by Neal Adams — 156
The Batman family — 158
Bats — 177
Creating the covers today / A chat with Bob Schreck — 186
Bizarre Batman — 188
Secrets of the Batcave — 195
Batman covers around the world — 206
A death in the family — 208
Assembling the covers — 220
Milestones — 222
World’s finest — 231
The greatest cover? / Alex Ross, Chip Kidd and Mark Hamill choose — 238

Anthony Boucher wrote science fiction and was the celebrated editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. Boucher also wrote mysteries like Rocket to the Morgue which blends a locked-room mystery with a Science Fiction cast of characters.

Lieutenant Terence Marshall, with the help of Sister Ursula, tackle a very quirky case. Hilary Foulkes, son of a celebrated writer, guards the literary legacy of his father by demanding premium royalties for reprint rights. This policy generated a lot of enemies for Hilary. And, Lieutenant Marshall discovers as he investigates a series of attempts on Hilary’s life, that many “persons of interest” are Science Fiction writers. Boucher creates characters based on Robert Heinlein, L. Ron Hubbard, and John W. Campbell.

This mash-up of detection and Science Fiction is an entertaining selection in the “Otto Penzler Presents American Mystery Classics” series. This edition includes an insightful Introduction by F. Paul Wilson. Perfect Summer Reading! GRADE: B+

Jerry House, Jeff Meyerson, and many other commentators on this blog love the music of the 1960s. When I stumbled across this CD in a Salvation Army thrift store, I realized I hadn’t heard some of these songs for decades. Yes, included on this compilation disc are very familiar songs like Leslie Gore’s “It’s My Party” and The Platter’s “Red Sails in the Sunset.” But, when’s the last time you listened to “Give Him a Great Big Kiss” by The Shangri-las? Or The Secrets’ “The Boy Next Door.” How many of these songs do you remember?

The only song I remember from one of the Proms I attended was “The Look of Love” which is a great Slow Dance song. Do you remember your Prom? GRADE: B+

TRACK LIST:

As the war between the evil vampires of the Red Court and the White Council of Wizards heats up, rogue Wizard Harry Dresden is “drafted” by the White Council as a Warden and tasked with defending Chicago. Almost immediately, Dresden explores the horrific events at a film festival. Dresden discovers the daughter of one of his closest friends is involved in Black Magic.

As usual, the action of the novel increases page by page. Dresden’s talking skull, Bob, plays a key role in the plot. There are several battles in Proven Guilty but the last confrontation may be the best in the series so far. Jim Butcher knows how to ratchet up the suspense and danger. If you’re looking for a fast and furious Summer Read, I recommend Proven Guilty. GRADE: B+

Patti Abbott and I have expressed our longing for theater on this blog several times. Fortunately, Terry Teachout of the WALL STREET JOURNAL has provide some alternatives for theater lovers during the coronavirus pandemic. The first was the online availability of ACT ONE and next was THE DEEP BLUE SEA. Now, Teachout recommends the American Player Theatre (in Wisconsin) for two more online plays: Shaw’s Arms and the Man and Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar.

Sure, some people might not find the ZOOM format appealing, but beggars can’t be choosers. If you have a hankering for theater, here are two plays that might delight you. Both plays are available for free at pbswisconsin.org/out-of-the-woods until July 26.

Of the essays in Private Investigations, I like the ones that dealt with the author’s writing career best. Jeffrey Deaver’s “Plot Twists: This Writer’s Life” tells how Deaver left his job as a lawyer to become a successful thriller writer. I admire Cara Black’s “Field Notes a la Maigret From Paris,” where Black shows how her love of George Simenon’s novels about Parisian police inspector Maigret led her to writing 19 books in her Private Investigator Aimee Leduc series set in Paris.

The most moving essay (for me) was William Kent Krueger’s story about his mentally ill mother who was an alcoholic and suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. I was engrossed in Jacqueline Winspear’s “Writing About War” which shows how her experience of war as a child impacted her writing in the Maisie Dobbs series (a former World War I nurse who becomes a private investigator).

Carole Nelson Douglas’s “Godfathers, Nancy Drew, and Cats” explores the impacts of various events on her writing career. This collection ends appropriately with Anne Perry’s “I Want to Be a Magician” which captures the spirit of her writing. If you want to know more about these writers, these essays reveal some hidden truths, insights, and fascinating background stories. GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction : solving the mystery / Victoria Zackheim — 1
Ghosted / Hallie Ephron — 7
Plot twists : this writer’s life / Jeffrey Deaver — 21
An extra child / Sulari Gentill — 33
Field notes à la Maigret from Paris / Cara Black — 45
Lydia and Jack / Connie May Fowler — 57
The land of the morning calm (and other military mysteries) / Martin Limón — 81
The clay that we shape / William Kent Krueger — 95
Origins and destinations / Ausma Zehanat Khan — 105
A trick of the light / Kristen Lepionka — 110
The mystery of deception / Lynn Cahoon — 131
The long shadow of war / Rhys Bowen — 143
I don’t know this word / Rachel Howzell Hallie — 155
The beams keep falling / Steph Cha — 175
Writing about war / Jacqueline Winspear — 187
Can we live without mystery? / Tasha Alexander — 207
Godfathers, Nancy Drea, and cats / Carole Nelson Douglas — 221
The mystery of my lost voice / Caroline Leavitt — 243
Remembering the dead / Charles Todd — 259
Nuns, magic, and Steven King / Robert Dugoni — 273
I want to be a magician / Anne Perry — 287

Acknowledgements — 301

About the Contributors — 303

Diane and I were walking around TARGET when I noticed a display of Good & Gather Sparkling Water. Several flavors were displayed, but the one that caught my eye was the Ginger Peach Sparkling Water. I love ginger and I love peaches so this looked really good. So, I bought an 8-pack.

Part of the problem of trying New Things is that the result might be Disappointment. When I tasted a glass of Good & Gather Ginger Peach Sparkling Water I didn’t taste any ginger. And, I didn’t taste any peach. All I tasted was fizz.

Do you drink sparkling water? Do you have a favorite? GRADE: F

The winters in Western New York can be harsh. Arctic temperatures, blizzards, heavy snow, and treacherous ice abound. As a result, our roads deteriorate from the wild temperature changes. Our street was full of potholes set to damage vehicle suspensions and create tire wear. Fortunately, our city government decided to use some of the coronavirus money they received to pave streets that needed it.

Two days ago a team of workers showed up and stripped out street down to bedrock. Yesterday, another team showed and paved our street. It was stinky. But, today, these photos show you what the finished job looks like: smooth as glass! How are the roads in your community?

Here we are at the penultimate volume of The Great SF Stories series. Volume 24 features the best of 1962, a time where I was reading Science Fiction novels and short stories almost every day. I remember being wowed by Cordwainer Smith’s “The Ballad of Lost C’Mell.” Poul Anderson’s powerful “Kings Who Die” impressed my 14-year-old mind. R. A. Lafferty’s “Seven-Day Terror” remains one of my favorite Lafferty stories of all time. Harry Harrison caused waves with “The Streets of Ashkelon” with its religious aspects.

Do you remember these stories? Any favorites here? GRADE: A-

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction by Martin H. Greenberg – 9

1. “The Insane Ones” by J. G. Ballard (AMAZING, January 1962) – 15
2. “Christmas Treason” by James White (MAGAZINE OF FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION, January 1962) – 29
3. “Seven-Day Terror” by R. A. Lafferty (IF, March 1962) – 59
4. “Kings Who Die” by Poul Anderson (IF, March 1962) – 69
5. “The Man Who Made Friends with Electricity” by Fritz Leiber (MAGAZINE OF FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION, March 1962) – 109
6. “Hang Head, Vandal!” by Mark Clifton (AMAZING, April 1962) – 121
7. “The Weather Man” by Theodore L. Thomas (ANALOG, June 1962) – 139
8. “Earthlings Go Home!” by Mack Reynolds (ROGUE, August 1962) – 185
9. “The Streets of Ashkelon” by Harry Harrison (NEW WORLDS, September 1962) – 195
10. “When You Care, When You Love” by Theodore Sturgeon (MAGAZINE OF FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION, September 1962) – 215
11. “The Ballad of Lost C’Mell” by Cordwainer Smith (GALAXY, October 1962) – 267
12. “Gadget vs. Trend” by Christopher Anvil (ANALOG, October 1962) – 295
13. “Roofs of Silver” by Gordon R. Dickson (MAGAZINE OF FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION, December 1962) – 315