Seargent York (1941)

I just watched Seargent York (1941) tonight, really a great movie for something as dated and forced accents go.  It starred Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan and a young unrecognizable girl named June Lockhart.

Seargent York is a good movie for 78 years old, showcasing Gary Cooper who at the age of 40 when this movie was released played the part of a young man that you thought would be in his early twenties.  Born and raised in Daniel Boone country in Tennessee, Alvin goes through a time where he goes out to sow his wild oats by boozing and gambling while his poor old mother goes to church and prays for him.

Alvin meets his girl, Gracie, she looks like a teenager and immediately the two know they are going to marry.  Alvin's plans don't work out, so when he goes out to reap his revenge he is struck by lightning, blowing up his rifle.  Then while walking home he passes his mom's church where Walter Brennan is the preacher and gets that 'Old Time Religion'.

This movie is based on the life of Alvin York, WWI hero and was awarded the Medal of Honor and other numerous awards and medals from other countries for his life-saving work during the war to end all wars.  He also gets the girl in the end, but that was a done deal before he went to war.

Back to June Lockhart, movie and TV star and from my childhood, the TV show Lost in Space.

See if you can find it, for what we would call a flag-waving propaganda movie today, it was probably a top movie for its time.

Blogging with Grammarly

If you don't have Grammarly added to your browser, then add it. In my opinion, it is the best money can buy, which is free.  They do have a paid version but unless I can start making real money doing little blogs like this then I won't try it.  Grammarly really helps me with my typing on a small keyboard and with punctuation.  Right now I have 4 errors, but you won't see them because Grammarly will fix this. Now grammar might be different if I purchased, or subscribed to the monthly payment of Grammarly, but hey, I could win the lottery.  Now 9 errors.  Wait for it . . .

All correct now, and the worst thing is I was using an 'e' in Grammarly.   Just 3 advanced issues that I have to pay to get rid of.   Or get more education.  One day.

Speeding Up My 8 Year Old Laptop (Part One)

I've got an old Acer laptop or notebook or whatever they're called and It is just dragging.  Not only have I had it 8 years but it had probably been on the market a couple of years before I bought it. I've always dual booted my computers between the latest release of Ubuntu and Windows 10's developer version, using Ubuntu most of the time. But everything drags.

I always install the freshest release of Ubuntu and everything drags.  It takes a couple of minutes to boot, then Firefox takes 30 seconds to load and all the other programs take a while, then when I get into Windows that just takes that much longer.

So I bought a Kingston 120GB SDD for $20.00 on Amazon and Ubuntu flies now, and Windows, well that has been an utter failure.   I don't have a copy of Windows since it's on a separate partition on my old hard drive so for now, it's Ubuntu 18.10.  Ubuntu boots in just under 30 seconds and Firefox starts in tow or three seconds.  I quit using Chrome because it would seem to stall my computer, but this weekend when I redo everything I'll get back with Chrome.  I'm not too worried about Google tracking me and there are a few things that Chrome does better.

This weekend I'll put my old hard drive in and follow some instructions I've found on Microsoft's website and I'll hopefully have windows working.
Until then it's Canonical all the way.

Lions of Lucerne by Brad Thor, Scot Harvath Series, Book 1

I decided to re-read one of the books that I guess you would call bro-mance books.  Spy thrillers were the All-American hero can't be slowed down or killed. Secret Service Agent Scot Harvath escapes avalanches, numerous concussions, gun battles, freezing water and saves our democracy and gets the girl in the end.

I think the only reason I like books like this was that I was brought up on Roy Rogers and John Wayne movies and this genre are just like those old westerns except modernized for today's way of life.

I won't really review it, I just wanted to get the audio-book and read along so I had to search for the best deal.  I just wished the library system I belong to had a better and bigger choice on audio-books.  I'll probably save some money and do the next book in the series, Path of the Assassin.

On a side note, the audio-book cover is one of the best book covers I've seen in a while.

Rating 9 of 10 on my scale.  This is one of the books that got me hooked.

Lions of Lucerne by Brad Thor
Scot Harvath series book 1

Stay Hidden by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch Series #9

After reading Stay Hidden I've finally caught up to the complete series, that is until July 2nd of 2019, and after reading straight thru the series, I think I can go 5 months until I read another Mike Bowditch book.

In Stay Hidden, we find Mike Bowditch no longer a Warden, but a Warden Investigator, a Warden that investigates hunting accidents incidents (In law enforcement there are no longer accidents, ie car crashes) and sitting alone in his office being a 4 month rookie without the qualifications to investigate any incidents or murders while everyone else is at a shooting investigation.

Mike receives a phone call from an island off Maine about a death that could be hunting incident and is told by his superior to go investigate with another warden, that has the flu, and a Maine State Police Detective.  The detective is there to take over if the hunting incident turns to homicide.

Mike, being Mike has never played well with others so when the warden leaves with the body and the detective leaves for a court appearance Mike finds himself alone, with that chip on his shoulder that he must solve it before law enforcement returns.

Maquoit Island is run by the harbormaster, a mean tough man that will not allow his authority, which he really has none be usurped, even by the elected constable. Most of the people that live there year-round are lobstermen and feel they are outlaws kindred to the old west where the law is dealt out by the people themselves with no outside involvement.

With only a few hours before his superiors come to take over the investigation and Mike already in trouble with his Captain for the way he has run his first investigation, Mike works every angle to solve the crime.  Can he do it?

Paul Dorion has written a neat series and shows he is really capable of writing a best selling series.  I really suggest this series to anyone that enjoys law enforcement books and books about outdoor investigations.

I rate this 8 of 10. Really a good read.

Stay Hidden by Paul Doiron

Mike Bowditch series, book 9

Knife Creek by Paul Doiron, Book 8 in the Mike Bowditch Series

I've gotten through 8 of the 9 books Doiron has written to date in the Mike Bowditch series.  Knife Creek is not the best book in the series but definitely not the worst I've read.

Mike is on temporary assignment in an area that has been recently been overtaken by feral pigs. While stalking out a group of pigs, called sounders Mike and his girlfriend Stacey come across a sow rooting in the mud.  Stacey takes the sow down but another sow attacks her and that sow is taken down after mildly goring Stacey.  Shortly after that, the 250-pound male is taken out.  While investigating they find what the pigs had been rooting in the mud at.  The corpse of a week old baby

Mike, being the man of intrigue that he starts knocking on doors with the pretense of looking for more wild pigs.  Then he comes to THE house.  Two women and one is familiar but he can't put the face to what is in the back of his mind.

This starts out the 8th book of the series and it is pretty good.  Doiron really is good when it comes to putting down 'pen to paper' but he can be caught dragging a little every now and then.  Knife Creek is the start of a new way of life for Warden Mike Bowditch and tomorrow I start the 9th in his series, Stay Hidden.

I rate this a solid 6 of 10.

Knife Creek by Paul Doiron

Mike Bowditch series, book 8

Books vs Movies

VS

I know this is kinda off subject but I just watched 'The Girl in the Spiders Web' and I don't remember the book being anything like the movie, just the movie was blah.  Nothing except a different world and nothing like the book.  The Jack Reacher movies I can live with like they are a Jack Reacher from another dimension, just a foot shorter. I realize why it's done but why are some just so inferior? 

Now I gotta read that book again.  It's not like I have a hundred other books I want to read or re-read.

Widowmaker by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch series #7

I think Paul Doiron has it down now.  This is his 7th book of his Mike Bowditch Series and now each book is getting better and better.  It appears Mike is growing up at the age of 28.

The book starts with a Mike Bowditch pulling over a suspicious woman that keeps asking Mike to take him back to his residence so they can talk.  Naturally, this being a book and also the curiosity of what she might want wins MIke over to the idea of taking her home, but Mike is very cautious. The woman explains that her son is a young man that just got out of prison on a couple of crimes of a sexual nature after being caught being 18 and sleeping with his underage girlfriend from an affluent family. She also tells Mike that her son and mike are step-brothers. Queue the soap opera organ music. She asks Warden Mike Bowditch too help find his long lost brother, which Mike reluctantly does.

The book follows Mike going to the area that the woman, Amber Langston lives and the resort she works at, named Widowmaker.  Between a near death arrest, he has to make at the beginning to this book and a near-death experience his girlfriend Stacey has, the book follows Mike through his investigation of his missing brother.

I still suggest that Paul Doiron's Mike Bowditch series is worth the read.  The past couple of books are books hard to put down.

I rate this an 8 of 10.

Widowmaker by Paul Doiron

Mike Bowditch series book #7.

The Precipice by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch series #6

I seem to bounce around on my feelings about the books Paul Doiron writes for his Mike Bowditch series. His last book, The Bone Orchard was not as good as some previous books, but The Precipice is his best book yet, in my opinion. Paul did a really good job in all the areas of this book and kept my interest peaked the entire book.

Fact.  The Appalachian Trail goes through Maine, and include a stretch called the Hundred Mile Wilderness.

There is a sign at the southern entrance to the Hundred Mile Wilderness. It is made out of rust brown wood and painted with white letters, and it sends a stern and unmistakable warning to all who enter:

Caution. There are no places to obtain supplies or help until Abol Bridge 100 miles north. Do not attempt this section unless you have a minimum of 10 days’ supplies and are fully equipped. This is the longest wilderness section of the entire Appalachian Trail and its difficulty should not be underestimated.

Now for the review.  Two young women fresh out of college send a picture of themselves at the beginning of the trail and send it to their parents.  They say they should be through this leg of the journey in 10 days and they would contact their parents again when they have completed the Hundred Mile Wilderness trail.  After thirteen days the well to do and well-connected parents contact powerful people in high Maine government offices and the search begins.  Insert Warden Mike Bowditch.

As always Mike Bowditch thinks outside the box and with the help of his new girlfriend he gets started in the search and rescue.  Without giving away spoilers more deaths happen to make matters more urgent, both professionally and personally, Mike Bowditch gets the job done. As with all the books with one exception Mike Bowditch always gets his man or woman person. 

Sit back and read or listen to a very good story.  I've read some people suggest that The Precipice can be read as a stand-alone book but I really suggest that you start the series from the beginning.  I may be critical of a couple of books and have an issue with how he had described his sex scenes in the past books but this still is a good series.

I give this a 7 of 10, still a great book.

The Precipice by Paul Doiron

Mike Bowditch series, book 6

Massacre Pond by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch Book 4

If anybody looks at my shelf at Booklikes, or My Books on Goodreads you'll see I read series and start new series and usually, I'll read all the available books in that series. Now I'm on the Mike Bowditch series by Paul Doiron.  Paul Doiron is a writer from Maine that I think does mostly magazines, but I could be wrong about that.  I do know the 1st book in the Mike Bowditch series is his first book, and there was a lot of room for improvement.   He really did a good job on his second book and now I've made it to book 5 in the series, which I'll tell you about when I finish it.  I just started and haven't got through chapter 1 yet.  Mike Bowditch is a Main Game Warden and in Maine, they have the same power as a State Trooper.  Mike Bowditch also stays in hot water with his superiors because he gets his job done and makes his superiors look bad.  I like Mike because he is as human as all of us.  Doiron does a good job bringing his many faults up in the books.  All this and I haven't started my review.

Massacre Pond is based loosely on a real-life story.  A rich hippie woman buys up thousands of acres and cuts off any hunting or lumber farming on her land and now she gets death threats by the dozen.  Somebody breaks onto her land and kills 6 moose and leaves their bodies.  Not poached just murdered for the lack of a better term.  Her term to be correct.  Mike Bowditch answers the call and that's how the book begins.  Bowditch, the whipping boy for his LT starts his work on the case, doing what is asked which is basically stay away from it but keeps getting pulled in more and more.  By the end of the book, Doiron has written a great book.  I am hooked on this series like I am with Craig Johnson's Longmire, C. J. Box's Joe Pickett, and others.  After I catch up I will be reading his new releases as they come out.  For me, 7 of 10  and means its a great book.

Massacre Pond by Paul Doiron
Mike Bowditch series book 4

The Bone Orchard by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch #5

The Bone Orchard is the 5th book in the Mike Bowditch series.

I need to give a word or warning in case anybody actually reads my blogs.  This book, along with the first book, The Poacher's Son, is written with sex scenes.  While I'm not a prude and a series I really like is Ann Charles' Deadwood series that seems to have more romance in them as the series continues, I think  Paul Doiron goes a little too far.  He gets into the "insert part A into part B" with his descriptive romance scenes.  If that's your thing fine. I think that's a lot of what my wife reads.  I just want to warn people about this so they don't recommend it to anyone they wouldn't want to read scenes like this.  They are only a couple of pages if that much, but I think it would a little too much for some younger readers that think they are reading about game wardens.  I'm not judging and I'm still reading the series. I'm already in the 6th book, "The Precipice" and while he's implied sex he definitely did not get as descriptive as he has before.

Now for the review.  The book starts out with two wardens answering to a 911 call about a veteran that returned from serving as an MP and losing most of his face when an IEP went off near him.  The wounded warrior had been taking his meds and drinking, locking himself in a barn and basically forced in what is called police assisted suicide.   One of the officers was Mike's former sergeant and friend.  Within a couple of days, she is shot in an ambush at her home and is near death, with Bowditch showing up to save her life.

"The Bone Orchard' follows former warden and now civilian Mike Bowditch as he tries to find the attacker of one of his best friend and mentor in Bowditch's usual style, that is going against the grain of authority.  For me, while I enjoyed the book but it was not his best book he's written.  My opinion is Doiron's main character ramble through much of the middle of the book making it not quite as exciting as I hoped it would have been.  If you're reading the series I would definitely read the book.

The Bone Orchard by Paul Doiron
Book 5 in the Mike Bowditch series

Bad Little Falls by Paul Doiron, Mike Bowditch #3

The reason I chose this series is that I really like the Joe Pickett series by C. J. Box and I wanted to read another series similar to it.  When you chose books to read for this reason you normally get disappointed, and I was.  I take partial blame because when you want a particular writing style and setting you normally won't get it.  The other I blame Doiron because his 1st book in this series is the first book he writes.  His 2nd was better and "Bad Little Falls" is really good.

Maine game warden Mike Bowditch stays in trouble and has just been transferred to Maine's equivalent to Siberia, as he calls it "the hinterland of Washington County".   Even though Washington County is the first place you can see the sunrise in the USA it's poverty-stricken which bring the problems of poverty, one of them being drug abuse.  Because of the poverty people turn to crime to pay for the drugs and sometimes that crime is murder.

Warden Mike Bowditch is again involved in a murder investigation, which is not in his job description and he is constantly reminded of this by his superiors and other law enforcement agencies. Doiron does a great job setting up Mike's troubles, both personal and professional and gives us a great story.

Bad Little Falls by Paul Doiron (2012)
Mike Bowditch series, book 3

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

First the book . . .

This story is about Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) meeting a man on a castle tour and the man knew everything about the castle. Later, Twain meets the man and they talk a while about how this man, Hank Morgan new so much about the castle. Hank didn’t tell a story, but left Twain with a book, or better yet a diary of Hank falling asleep and waking thirteen hundred years earlier.

Hank Morgan’s father was a blacksmith and his uncle a horse doctor. Hank ran a gun factory, starting at the bottom and learning everything, to quote:

“ I could make anything a body wanted- anything in the world, it didn’t make a difference what; and if there wasn’t any quick newfangled way to make a thing, I could invent one – and do it as easy as rolling off a log.”

So Hanks diary becomes the book “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court”.

Well if you’ve read the book, Clemens attacks a lot of issues of his day, our day too. Religion, not really religion but when it is organized so well that it attacks the way a person lives his life. Slavery. He hated it and it even haunted him. Most of what he wrote about slavery were his own feelings. Other things like monarchy, nepotism, politics, and poverty. He even made fun of ad campaigns like soap ads. He brought up some things that even strikes today, which is when he came across was people that would take things as fact if it was said. No evidence of proof, and if evidence was there, it was forgotten as soon as the words were spoken. He made fun of himself.

With the inventiveness of Morgan, he tells a story about how he overcomes these obstacles or at least the obstacles he chooses with modern tools and skillfulness he can create. And then he told of he destructing every advancement he made.

About the narrator . . .

Nick Offerman has this mid-western accent that does well with the book. It’s probably not easy to perform, being as dated as it is but he does a good job of it. To me, he started off slow, not very into it but this could have been by design. By the end of the book, he was really going strong. This could also be to Twain having modernized the language of the book as Hank modernized the culture. Maybe not award worthy but Offerman did a good narrative.

My thoughts on the book . . .

As I said before I started the book, the biggest reason I choose this was the narrator. The book is good, but dated and sometimes hard to keep up with the dated sayings of that time. I am reading the book along with the audio-book and it does give me footnotes to help and some insight on what Clemons/Twain was thinking, or at least what somebody else thought what he was thinking. I would love to see what Clemons would write if he were alive today. I would think he would have a field day mocking both sides of the aisle. With that said, please don’t take this as something I am trying to politicize. I do not participate in political debates of today. It’s like teaching a pig to sing. You will only annoy the pig.

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

If I'm Not Reading It's BAMA Football, Part 2

Part 2 and 2nd place. Clemson whooped us.  It doesn't matter if it was 1 point, they whooped us. By a lot more than 1 point.  There's a lot of positives from this season, but it looks like we quit playing after the 1st quarter in the Oklahoma game. Too many mistakes and obviously not enough points. Our young defensive backfield hurt us some after 6 injuries but we have no excuses.

Next year we have a good recruitment of 4 and 5-star players so I expect we'll be fighting in the mix for a shot at the final 4 but I don't like being brash and making bold statements.

I will say this, 99% of college football is sooo happy BAMA & Saben got beat.  Something they can rarely EVER say.  Only one team can say they beat BAMA this year. Can your team say that?

#RTR, #ROLLTIDEROLL

The End of All Things by John Scalzi

The End of All Things is aptly named because the last 2 books of this series absolutely ruined it. The books were good and enjoyable but just dragged the series down because it had nothing to do with the original 4. OK, it did, in a way but not the way I was wanting. This like the 5th book, The Human Division was made up mostly of short stories that only had maybe 4 or 5 stories that could have been connected and had a far better outcome for me, anyway.  Me, the armchair writer and storyteller that can sometimes have a rough time putting a sentence together in conversation, not counting writing.

Scalzi basically admitted that he had a lot of material left over after writing The Old Man's War series so he put these into two different books.  I did say I enjoyed them but I love to read series and these last two were not series material for me.

As an armchair writer and storyteller, or call me a Monday morning quarterback, I would have made this a different series, just the same universe as The Old Man's War. But hey, I'm not John Scalzi.  He makes a living writing.  I don't.

The End of All Things are stories of an unrecognized group of races called the Equilibrium, a never heard of secret consortium of races and planets that wanted to end the two most powerful governments in the known universe, the Colonial Union, which is made up of the human race with the exception of Earth and the Conclave, an alliance of 412 races that's technology far exceeds earth. The CU and the Conclave have always been at war and with the unknown Equilibrium always trying to stir up trouble between the 2, peace will never happen. These last two books are about all the worries and woes, politics and battles, and unsuccessful attempts at peace.

The End of All Things by John Scalzi
The 6th and final book in the Old Man's War series

The Human Division by John Scalzi

WOW.  I was not expecting this book to be as good as it was.  This book is made up of 13 episodes plus extras. I'm hoping these episode set up the next book, The End of All Things which I'm starting as soon as I finish writing this. The last few episodes were really good and made this worth the time to read.

I'm not going to do a review, because it would be 13 different reviews, but I can only say that the novellas or short stories or whatever you call them are as good as anything comparable.

I hope after the next book that I can say that this series is worth the read.  So far it has been.

As far as the rating goes, I'll give it a 7.

The Human Division by John Scalzi (2013)

The Old Man's War series

Amazon Link

LQLarry's blog

A Late Christmas Present from Jim Butcher

I saw a post on Reddit that gives us an update on Jim Butcher and where he is in his writing career. To see it go to his website or click here.  He has resumed work on Peace Talks. Unfortunately, there is still no release date, but he has posted an update on where he is, well what chapter he is on and mentions that he will start on book 2 in the Cinder Spires 2 called The Olympian Affair.

Jm also left us with a Christmas Story called Christmas Eve, which takes place between Changes and Cold Days.  No grading system required since it is a very short story.  Go to the link to his page for the short story.

Read January 1st, 2019)

The Observers by John Scalzi

If you look at my bookshelf at Booklikes or check out my 2019 read at Goodreads it would look like a scoreboard for John Scalzi.  The reason is that I started reading the Old Man's War series by Scalzi and the 5th book is The Human Division, which consists of 13 short stories.  I cheated a little and read the liner notes of the 6th book, The End of All Things and all these short stories from The Human Division seem to set the background for book 6.  I see some short stories or novellas after the 6th book so I don't know if there are to be any books after this.  I guess I'll find out later.

The Observers is about a group of Earthers that come aboard the ancient Clarke, a Corvette series ship over 50 years old that is also very small for a CU ship.  While observing, the death of the lead observer happens and now it is up to the 'B Team', introduced in the 1st story of the Human Division, to solve. Lieutenant Harry Wilson, a CDF technical advisor comes o the conclusion that somebody is setting the Colonial Union up for murdering the observer and saves the day.

Harry Wilson is one of the original old farts, a group of 75-year-olds that came from Earth to join the CDF and has been in 3(?) of the books so far and it looks like he will be one of the main protagonists in book 6.

The main reason for this review is if you have read my review this much, then you should know that you should not assume like I did and just think of The Human Division as just a collection of short stories. While you could probably skip this book, a lot of back stories and questions will probably be answered.  But then again, I haven't even started reading the 6th book, The End of All Things.

The Observers by John Scalzi

Book 9 in The Human Division Series

Episode 9 in book 5 of the Old Man's War

Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi

A funny thing happened while I was reading a series about a science fiction military space opera book.  A YA book magically appeared in my reader.  Now I'm not against YA books and YA series, I've read quite a few.  I've even read books and series for whatever would be a, for a lack of a better term because I don't know what to call them, but a pre-YA.  This turned out to be a pretty doggone good book.

Zoe's Tale is a retelling of The Last Colony without it being a retelling of The Last Colony.  As John Scalzi puts it:

    "Writing a parallel time novel does not, in fact, just lazily retell the story in a previous book is hard"

I guess Scalzi got a lot of heat after The Last Colony and left some unanswered questions about werewolves and what Zoe did when she was off-world and what she brought back with her when she came back to Roanoke.  To me Scalzi excellently wrote a book through a teenager's eyes about being uprooted from her home, starting a new colony, and seeing her family and friends being put through many dangers.  Since this is a YA book it also has her go through her first love and heartache.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Scalzi really did the parallel story and even changed the genre of the book. Kinda, sorta in a way.

I'll rate this 4.5 stars and a solid 8 on my grading. Great book in the middle of an average series.

Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi (2008)
Book 4 in the Old Man's War series

Super Dave: The Adventures of America's Most Dangerous Man

Yesterday we lost one of the most prolific writers of our time. Well if you asked him that he would tell you that.  Even if he wrote just one book.  Bob "Super Dave Osborne" Einstien died on Wednesday, January 2, 2019.  He was a writer of many TV shows going back to the '60s and of late writing for and playing a part in "Curb Your Enthusiasm.' I remember him mostly from the Johnny Carson Show where Super Dave would come out and then they would show a sketch of him getting blown up or something like that.

As of late, he would show up where I worked and when I would help him he would ask me if I knew a joke and I would tell him the best I could remember and then he would start chewing me out for wasting his time and telling me how crappy my delivery was and anything to humiliate me.  I loved it and he loved doing that to people.  I haven't heard how he died but I learned of his death from all the tributes to him. Super Dave Osborne finally did his last stunt.

And no, I did not read the book.

Super Dave: The Adventures of the World's Most Dangerous Man

Amazon Link

 

1st Impressions on Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi

I just started Zoe's Tale, the 4th book in John Scalzi's Old Man's War series.

This book is basically the third book, 'The Last Colony' as seen through the eyes of Zoe, the adopted daughter of John Perry and Jand Sagan.

I didn't read any other different point of view books like Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game so I'm sure this will be hit or miss for me, but after the prologue I am enjoying it. Zoe's not your typical teenager.

The Last Colony by John Scalzi

I rate this a solid 8, which means it's a very good read if you like the Old Man's War series.

I feel much better about the series now that I've finished "The Last Colony', book 3 in the Old Man's War series by John Scalzi. I really enjoyed this book and the direction it takes the series.

Finally, we get back to the major protagonist is the first book, John Perry and Jane Sagan along with their adopted daughter Zoe. John and Jane are living happily ever after on a planet called Huckleberry in a village called New Goa, but with this being a book things can't be left alone so the government steps in and stirs the pot. The CU wants John and Joan to run a settlement called Roanoke.

Here's how colonizing is described in the book.

Here’s one way to colonize: You take two hundred or three hundred people, allow them to pack what supplies they see fit, drop them off on the planet of their choice, say “see you,” and then come back a year later—after they’ve all died of malnutrition brought on by ignorance and lack of supplies, or have been wiped out by another species who wants the place for themselves—to pick up the bones.

This book is about colonizing a planet along with the politics of it.  Even if it's the wrong planet.  Anybody that knows American history you really shouldn't call a new settlement Roanoke.  When I read Roanoke I had to double check the title to make sure it wasn't "The LOST Colony."

Like I said earlier if your into this series you will enjoy the book.  I don't go too far on my reviews and I hope I've given you a reason to continue the series.  I really suggest you read the first two books in the series, Old Man's War and The Ghost Brigade.

The Last Colony by John Scalzi (2007)

Book 2 in the Old Man's War series

Amazon Link

Old Man's War Series Quotation

I'm reading the 'Old Man's War" series by John Scalzi.  Book One's protagonist is John Perry, a 75-year-old man that signs up for the CDF military. While reading book 3 of the series I found this quote one page into the book.  It best describes how one joins the CDF and what happens while enlisted.

"I spent seventy-five years on Earth, living mostly in the same small Ohio town and sharing most of that life with the same woman. She died and stayed behind. I lived and I left.

The next world is metaphorical. The Colonial Defense Forces took me off Earth and kept the parts of me they wanted: my consciousness, and some small part of my DNA. From the latter they built me a new body, which was young and quick and strong and beautiful and only partially human. They stuffed my consciousness inside of it, and gave me not nearly enough time to glory in my second youth. Then they took this beautiful body that was now me and spent the next several years actively trying to get it killed by throwing me at every hostile alien race it could."

Old Man's War was really good but The Ghost Brigade didn't quite live up to its introductory book of the series.  Book 3, 'The Last Colony seems to be back to what I like and well worth the read.  I hope it lives up to my expectations.

Larry