Tag: Aliens

Posted in Book Reviews, Short Story Collections

REVIEW: X-Files: Trust No One (X-Files Anthology #1) Edited by Jonathan Maberry

Posted on by elishasbookreview

*Spoilers Ahead*

We all want to believe. The truth is still out there. The X-Files have been reopened. IDW Publishing and series creator Chris Carter have authorized new investigations into the weird, the strange, and the mysterious. New York Times Bestseller and multiple Bram Stoker Award-winner Jonathan Maberry brings together some of today’s top storytellers for a series of anthologies featuring all-new case files from the X-Files. Scully and Mulder continue their journey into darkness as they face aliens, monsters, shadow governments, and twisted conspiracies.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

I know it’s been awhile since I’ve posted a review and since I revisited the X-Files extended universe. However, I was reorganizing my bookshelf and since I have a few X-Files books of my own, I thought I’d revisit the anthology collections. I think a show like X-Files is best in that short-form content, however like anything else not all of these stories I thought were that good. None of them were ‘bad’, I just found them kind of middle of the road ‘meh’. So enough preferences, let’s open the old case files and talk about X-Files: Trust No One!

“Catatonia” by Tim Lebbon – 5/5⭐ Starting this collection off with a bang! This story delves into the mystery of a group of teenagers who have gone comatose until “angel music” blasts through the town and the teens rise to feast on others blood. References to the Nephilim, and I liked that. Story had a fair ending.

“The Beast of Little Hill” by Peter Clines – 4.5/5⭐ Heartwarming story. Seemingly two different alien species get frozen in the same small town. It’s good to know that the act of domesticating animals may not strictly be a human hobby.

“Oversight” by Aaron Rosenberg – 4/5⭐ This story involves Supervisor Skinner and I liked getting to see some stories with his perspectives. He seems to take some of what Scully and Mulder do seriously. Story had a solid ending.

“Dusk” by Paul Crilley – 3.5/5⭐ Here we get to see the X-Files duo poke fun at the whole Twilight craze amongst teens. I did like the symbolism mentioned, but it started feeling like a giant ‘back in my day’ rant. Justified ending.

“Loving the Alien” by Stefan Petrucha – 3.5/5⭐ This story is being told from Scully’s point of view. Most of her inner dialogue is her worrying about not being able to find Mulder who went on a solo alien hunt. I mean it’s nice that we get the fan service that she does care about him, but I believe we get more than enough of that through the context of the show.

“Non Gratum Anus Rodentum” by Brian Keene – 5/5⭐ Another story led by Director Skinner. I liked that we got to see what we went through during the Vietnam war, it made me crave a monster story that takes place during a foreign country during wartime.

“Back in El Paso My Life Would be Worthless” by Keith R.A. DeCandido – 4/5⭐ This was an interesting look into how the other agents view Scully and Mulder. I don’t think they deserve to be disrespected outright, but maybe that’s because I’m biased. The other agent got his just desserts in the end, and I think it was well deserved.

“Paranormal Quest” by Ray Garton – 4/5⭐ I loved seeing the X-Files duo getting to poke fun at the ‘paranormal reality TV’ genre. The bad guy was an interesting take, just someone who has powers that they are eventually unable to control. No menace or harm intended.

“King of the Watery Deep” by Tim Deal – 3/5⭐ I originally had this rated a 3.5/5, but I decided to lower it. I did like how we got some Arabic/Muslim/Cultish lore. Always fascinating to me about how similar legends can be. Ending was kind of meh to me.

“Sewers” by Gini Koch – 5/5⭐ We have an X-Files take on Killer Croc from the DC Comics Universe! I liked how the author was able to explain how the same creature kept popping up every so often without making it too complicated. In my opinion, the best X-Files stories are the ones where the monster/alien/government creep just melds into the background.

“Clair de Lune” by W.D. Gagliani and David Benton – 3/5⭐ This was a lukewarm werewolf story that takes place in the backwoods of Canada. Nothing much to add here.

“It’s All in the Eyes” by Heather Graham – 3/5⭐ I don’t know why I feel lukewarm towards this story too. It has all the trappings for a fantastic X-Files story. Maybe this needed to be in a longer form story or something. It just felt like after the initial hook the story just started going through the motions.

“The House on Hickory Hill” by Max Allan Collins – 3.5/5⭐ Curse my notetaking abilities or lack thereof. I had to think awhile to remember what this story was about. All I have in my notes is that this was a good story, but the ending felt rushed. Good old fashioned haunted house story though.

“Time and Tide” by Gayle Lynds and John C. Sheldon – 4.5/5⭐ This story reminded me of old school creepypastas. Creepypastas are basically myths and legends written by those on the Internet. It has been fascinating to watch a new way we tell each other stories/myths/legends evolve and develop. For this story however, you just got to enjoy the ride. Don’t think too hard about the finer details.

“Statues” by Kevin J. Anderson – 4/5⭐ This story offers an intriguing answer on how these peoples turned into lifelike statues. Mystical water in these ancient cave systems originally discovered by the Anasazi.

Well, there you have it! My review of X-Files: Trust No One! I hope you liked it and I hope to be returning to writing this blog soon. For now, I’m still going to be taking things kind of slow until I can get back into the habit of writing.

Posted in Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Columbus Day (Expeditionary Force #1) by Craig Alanson

Posted on by elishasbookreview
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*No Major Spoilers*

We were fighting on the wrong side of the war; we couldn’t win. And that was the good news.
The Ruhar hit us on Columbus Day. There we were, innocently drifting along the cosmos on our little blue marble, like the Native Americans in 1492. Over the horizon come ships of a technologically advanced, aggressive culture, and BAM! There go the good old days, when humans only got killed by each other. So, Columbus Day. It fits.
When the morning sky twinkled again, this time with Kristang starships jumping in to hammer the Ruhar, we thought we were saved. The UN Expeditionary Force hitched a ride on Kristang ships to fight the Ruhar, wherever our new allies thought we could be useful. So, I went from fighting with the US Army in Nigeria, to fighting in space. It was lies, all of it. We shouldn’t even be fighting the Ruhar; they aren’t our enemy, our allies are.
I’d better start at the beginning…

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I have been looking for a sci-fi novel that involved first alien contact that didn’t leave the reader with their nose stuck in a military dictionary trying to figure out what was going on. I don’t usually read military fiction because the author can forget that not everyone reading their books may not know all of the military terminologies. Luckily Columbus Day explains all of the jargon and military slang. I like how the main character is telling his story like he’s talking to ordinary people, all of the lingoes is explained, and he explains various types of strategies and the pros and cons of each.

Another thing I enjoyed about Columbus Day is how the main character relates to the enemy as well as their allies. When the Ruhar first attack, Bishop and a ragtag team of military friends abduct one of the enemy soldiers to get intel on the enemy, and one of the other enemy soldiers got hurt by debris. Later, we learn Bishop felt guilty for not being able to check for injuries on the enemy.

“Soldiers are soldiers, whether they have fur, skin or scales. So, logically, the Ruhar lobbed a missile at the most imposing structure in the area, the potato warehouse, and took it out in impressive fashion. I mean, they blew the hell out of it, those soldiers must have had something against potatoes.” – Craig Allison, Columbus Day

However, my opinion of the story took a dip when the author introduced Skippy, an all-powerful AI built by ancient beings many millennia ago. I feel like the author hit a roadblock in the story and created Skippy as a way to get the story going again. The author then forces us to read a game of “Pete and Repeat” about everything we had learned up to this point. I felt this dialogue was unnecessary to the overall plot.

I have since gotten used to Skippy helping Bishop and other human soldiers. Once you get over that significant speedbump, the story smooths back out into military space action. Even with Skippy doing a lot of the critical technical aspects of the operation, this doesn’t slow the momentum down.

Overall, if you are looking for a sci-fi space adventure, then I would recommend Columbus Day. I would also recommend this novel if you are a fan of military fiction, space adventures, and just looking for an overall good story. Columbus Day will leave you binging the whole series before the day is over.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: The Humans by Matt Haig

Posted on by elishasbookreview

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*No Major Spoilers*

Our hero, Professor Andrew Martin, is dead before the book even begins. As it turns out, though, he wasn’t a very nice man–as the alien imposter who now occupies his body discovers. Sent to Earth to destroy evidence that Andrew had solved a major mathematical problem, the alien soon finds himself learning more about the professor, his family, and “the humans” than he ever expected. When he begins to fall for his own wife and son–who has no idea he’s not the real Andrew–the alien must choose between completing his mission and returning home or finding a new home right here on Earth.

I discovered this novel on a booklist that I receive in my email every other day. I only read the lists if the theme seems interesting to me, and that’s how I discovered this novel.

When this novel started, the commentary by the alien disguised as Andrew Martin was pointing out how alien humans looked to him. It kind of reminded me of Roger from American Dad. Roger has to dress up in various outfits to try and disguise himself so he can leave the house.

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Roger from American Dad 

I found this novel to be fascinating the way of character development from the alien’s point of view. Even though throughout the novel he remains fascinated with how us humans act, behave and believe, his overall opinion changes by the end of the novel.

Even though this isn’t a fully philosophical story, there is an over-arching plot. However, the challenges the alien faces on top of trying to stay under the radar in order to complete his mission makes for beautiful character development.

My favorite part of the story is when the alien gets sent into the mental hospital at one point, and the observations and people he meets there is fascinating for someone who has been in a mental hospital.

Humans, as a rule, don’t like mad people unless they are good at painting, and only then once they are dead. But the definition of mad, on Earth, seems to be very unclear and inconsistent. What is perfectly sane in one era turns out to be insane in another. The earliest humans walked around naked with no problem. Certain humans, in humid rainforests mainly, still do so. So, we must conclude that madness is sometimes a question of time, and sometimes of postcode.

Basically, the key rule is, if you want to appear sane on Earth you have to be in the right place, wearing the right clothes, saying the right things, and only stepping on the right kind of grass. – The Humans

I’ve got to say I really enjoyed this story on a variety of levels, everything from the character development to the philosophical approach the story had on the narrative. This story held my interest from beginning to end, the first letter to the final punctuation. This story is definitely recommended for those who enjoy sci-fi, aliens, a good overall story along with some thought-provoking undertones.

Posted in Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Doctor Who: The Good Doctor by Juno Dawson

Posted on by elishasbookreview
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*No Major Spoilers*

On the planet of Lobos, the Doctor halts a violent war between the native Loba and human colonists. Job done, the TARDIS crew departs – only for Ryan to discover he’s left his phone behind. Again.

Upon returning, the Doctor finds that the TARDIS has slipped hundreds of years into the future and that something has gone badly wrong. The Loba are now slaves, serving human zealots who worship a godlike figure known as The Good Doctor.

It’s time for the Doctor to face up to the consequences of her last visit. With Lobos on the brink of catastrophe, will she be able to make things right?

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I am a huge fan of Doctor Who I’ve watched both the “modern” and the “classic” series. I also enjoy the spinoff novels as well. Some stories can’t be told in an hour, so I look forward to the novels.

When it was first announced that the 13th Doctor was going to be a woman, I was against it from the start. I thought they were ruining 50+ years of tradition by making this drastic change.

When I started watching this newest Doctor, I was still against the change, but hopeful. I thought the 11th and 12th’s Doctor was getting too silly and losing plot threads left and right.

Overall, I am lukewarm towards this past season of Doctor Who. I felt the writing was hit-or-miss with some episodes, and some of the companions felt useless and like spare luggage at points.

So when the newest batch of novels was announced, I was excited to read The Good Doctor in particular. Graham is my favorite companion, and with him being featured on the cover, I thought he was going to be the only companion featured in this novel. Even though I was wrong, I was still hopeful about this story.

I didn’t realize the native Loba was a dog-like creature. Until the end of the first chapter, I thought they were cat-like. I haven’t read many sci-fi novels where the aliens were dog-like so this concept gets bonus points from me.

I felt like this is how a Doctor Who story should be told. No limit on run-time, and no rush to end the story. This novel was welcomed and restored my faith in the new writers for Doctor Who. The story was complete, whole, and didn’t seem to be rushed at the end.

‘On the horizon, looming over the entire town was a vast tower. It was almost the same shape as a block of flats, but, even in the gloom, Ryan could see it was painted dark blue. There were huge rectangular windows at the top of the stucture.

“Remind you of anything, Ryan?”

It was unmistakable.

It was meant to be the TARDIS.’ – The Good Doctor

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I like the message this novel sends a message about war. No matter who is in “the right” or in “the wrong” the roles get swapped over time. However, there is hope in times of chaos and war.

I would highly recommend this novel for lovers of Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Time Travel, and stories about wars. This novel will show some of the bad side effects of traveling through space and time, and I think you will enjoy the story as much as I did.

Posted in Audiobooks, Book Reviews, Novels

REVIEW: Subhuman: Unit 51 #1 by Michael McBride

Posted on by elishasbookreview
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*No Major Spoilers*

At a research station in Antarctica, five of the world’s top scientists have been brought together to solve one of the greatest mysteries in human history. Their subject, however, is anything but human.

Deep beneath the ice, the submerged ruins of a lost civilization hold the key to the strange mutations that each scientist has encountered across the globe: A misshapen skull in Russia. The grotesque carvings of a lost race in Peru. The mummified remains of a humanoid monstrosity in Egypt.

When a series of sound waves trigger the ancient organisms, a new kind of evolution begins. Latching onto a human host–crossbreeding with human DNA–a long-extinct life form is reborn. Its kind has not walked the earth for thousands of years. Its instincts are fiercer, more savage, than any predator alive. And its prey is the scientists who unleashed it, the humans who spawned it, and the tender living flesh on which it feeds.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I enjoy reading books based on conspiracy theories. I have reviewed a few novels in this category. So the summary of this thrilling novel caught my attention.

My only downside is that there were too many characters. I felt like I needed to take notes about who was who and why they were invited to the Antartic research base.

Man is not what he thinks he is; he is what he hides.

Michael McBride; Subhuman

Other than that negative, I found this book to be enjoyable. It has an interesting premise that the author pulls off fairly well. I felt like this novel was inspired by the Alien franchise. The description of the monsters reminded me of the Xenomorphs in the famous franchise.

I am interested to see how this series progresses from here. I will highly recommend this book to science fiction lovers. If you enjoy conspiracy theories and the Alien franchise, then this is the book for you!