Books for October

Storm: The Black Sphere by E. L. Young

Review

In STORM's latest adventure, a group of scientists working on a top secret project have been killed in a bombing. Only one of them still survives, and he is on the run from a corporate warlord who wishes to steal the information he conceals and kill him. When STORM learns about the bombing from the niece of one of the scientists, they suspect foul play. And so Andrew, Gaia and Will are plunged into a world of lies and secrets, where no one is who they seem and danger is everywhere. Their allies in the MI6 aren't going to help them this time, as they don't want civilians getting in the way of their search for the missing scientist. Desperate, they turn to an ally of a friend, a retired mercenary named Elke. Elke may be helpful, but will she bring them into as much danger as she helps them avoid? And is she even who she seems to be? With lots of explosions, strange attack drones, a suspenseful finish and a statement on green energy, this book is a blast! Oh, and all the gadgets are based on real, already working inventions.

Written in Bone by Sally M Walker

Review

In Written in Bone, you get a look at the lives of the Jamestown colonists from a very different perspective of that of their homes and the artifacts they left behind. You will learn about them from the bones they left behind. The first skeleton is that of a teenage boy, who was probably killed by a blow to the head, possibly in a confrontation with the local Native American Indians. He, unfortunately, had many other health problems, such as a rotten tooth that had caused a huge cavity in his jaw (ouch!). Through careful examination and a bit of guesswork, the archaeologists who excavated his remains were able to figure out who he probably was.

Many other skeletons were excavated in the making of this book, including a plot in a cemetery which contained three lead coffins, from which archaeologists were able to get a sample of air from the colonial era! One thing you will learn is that even the rich of Jamestown lived much, much worse than we do today. Anyway, this is an excellent book, and I thoroughly recommend it.

-- JackW - 28 Oct 2009