The Last House in the Galaxy

Andy Secombe

The blurb suggested a funny book, which was enough for me to give it a try.  I'm glad I did; this is a relatively light read, taking place all over the galaxy as the rebels try to steal a device out from under the Evil Dictator that would give them the advantage.  With not-very-subtle comparisons to Star Wars and a thoroughly British sense of storytelling, this wasn't so much laugh-a-minute as it was a case of reading for an hour and not realising that time was passing.

Although I didn't get the sense that it was part of a series, I'd be keen to see what else I can find by Secombe.  If it's much like this book, it'll be totally worth the effort.

Date finished: 21/03/09
Year total: 12

The X Files: Goblins & Whirlwinds

Charles L Grant

Two separate stories, these are set near the first season of the show, before too much of the Conspiracy is looked into.  Goblins deals with a military experiment gone astray, and comes to a climax at night in torrential rain.  Whirlwinds takes place in the Southwest desert and involves Indian magic.

Both were good reads, and it's possible to pick up the conversations as they flow on the show; I'm not sure a non-fan would get much out of these stories, but they were a good way to spend an afternoon, almost nostalgic.

Date finished: 18/03/09
Year Total: 11

Doctor Who and The Murder Game

Steve Lyons

Featuring the Second Doctor, Ben and Polly.

Year Total: 1

Ubik

Philip K. Dick
1969

Two things drew me to this book: it had rounded edges, which is unusual, and the forward is written by Michael Marshall Smith, who I like.

I haven't read a lot of science fiction, as I don't like plunging into a completely foreign world where I don't know the basic rules. I was expecting this to start strange and foreign, and get worse from there, but it was written in a far more subtle way than that. I was intrigued, but I didn't feel totally lost.

The story progresses at a steady pace, with Joe Chip as the star of the show. When his boss is killed by an attacked from an enemy company, Joe must hold his colleagues together until he can figure out what to do next, but things start to go wrong, and Joe needs to figure out why before anyone else dies.

Date Finished: 11/06/07
Year Total: 15