Andreas' Other Books - (O-P by author)

Jerry Oltion - The Getaway Special

Vaguely similar in premise to Red Thunder, The Getaway Special is about a scientist who invents a very cheap hyperdrive, and the consequences of his invention.

Unlike what he thinks will happen the discovery and it's revelation leads to instant mayhem as the powers of the world are brought to the brink of war. The fragile balance of power before the invention is shattered. The US government persecutes the inventor and the commander of the pilot on which the experiment was made, forcing them underground. This is followed by a Heinlein-esque jaunt around the galaxy and discovery of new beings.

While not perfect, I found that The Getaway Special embodies a Golden Age optimism about our future which kept bringing a smile to my face. Sure, it's cliché that the inventor and the shuttle pilot (yes, she's female) become lovers. Sure, it's cliché that they make a spaceship out of readily available materials (a septic tank among other things). But this does not detract from the fun of the story. 20050920

Frederik Pohl - Gateway

In this SciFi classic, an asteroid is found orbiting the sun. It contains an ancient spaceport filled with ships. Volunteers come and travel on the ships. These cannot be controlled, but they can take the passengers on incredible adventures. A trip can yield immense riches, or death. And there is no way of knowing beforehand. Gripping tale mixing psychology and adventure.

Frederik Pohl - The Coming of the Quantum Cats

Novel with a lot of jumping between timelines. It has aged badly and is probably only enjoyable for the dedicated Pohl fan.

Jerry Pournelle - Birth of Fire

If you can get past the vintage seventies feel of the book, this is a nice and simple story about a young convict who comes to Mars and later leads a freedom fight. Oh, and he also finds love and belonging.

Jerry Pournelle - King David's Spaceship

Set in the same universe as The Prince, this is the story of a human planet that needs to prove that it can put a ship into orbit in order to gain full membership in the Empire. Mildly entertaining, but no big deal.

Jerry Pournelle - Janissaries

Nothing like an old seventies classic, down to the black and white illustrations. Picked this up a long time ago at the Seal Beach second hand bookstore. Thanks Nate.

The story is rather cliché and it has been done before. Alien race kidnaps band of earth soldiers. Commander of band is student of military history. Band plopped down on alien world inhabited by primitive humans. Mayhem ensues. Good clean fun!

Pournelle is normally strongest when teamed with Niven, but he does well when there is a strong military component. Actully, I did not have great hopes for this title, but it grew on me. Both the macroplot (the aliens and so on) and the microplot (showing the locals how to use a pike) work very well. As usual, feelings and relationships are almost painfully caricaturised, but who reads military SF for the women? This is the first part of three, and unfortunately all the volumes are out of print. The book stands well on it's own, but I really want to know what happens next. 20030730

Jerry Pournelle and S.M. Stirling - The Prince

Omnibus consisting of:

• Falkenberg's Legion

• Prince of Mercenaries

• Go Tell the Spartans

• Prince of Sparta

This is the collection of all the Falkenberg stories. Plain military SciFi of decent caliber. However, the fact that the first two novels are in fact lashups of earlier works set to a common frame gives the whole story a somewhat disjointed feel. The individual episodes are good though, and so are the characters. Interestingly, these novels are set in the same universe as The Mote in God's Eye, but centuries earlier.

Francesca Prescott - Mucho Caliente

Not my usual fare, this ended up in my hands because it was written by my neighbor's sister. It is a romantic comedy about a recently divorced woman who moves to Ibiza to get away from her boring ex-husband. On the flight, she happens to sit next to Emilio Caliente, latin pop superstar. The latter is running away from his annoying manager and her demands. Naturally, our heroine is a huge fan. Hilarity ensues as she keeps running into him, her ideal sex-god man.

I wasn't expecting much, but this book is very funny. Very far from the bodice-bursting romance novel I thought I would have to slog through. In tone, it is like a good romantic comedy film. Light-hearted, with a neurotic protagonist and a whole host of misunderstandings, Freudian slips and missed connections. Prescott's characters are well rounded and funny. They feel real and, just like real people, evoke love, loathing, annoyance and exasperation. The plot is perhaps a bit convoluted, and explicitly designed for maximum hilarity and heartbreak, but it works. Prescott manages not to stray beyond the line into "just plain silly". A "light summer read"? Perhaps, but I still found myself rooting whole-heartedly for our heroine. And that doesn't happen if I'm not engaged in the book. 20090125