Blog, Book Reviews

Book Review: Shattered Glass by Skip Schmidt

Five Stars

On Amazon

An extraordinary blend of historical and science fiction…

Schmidt’s work delves into past and present day Germany with vivid descriptions and deeply woven political plots. Shattered Glass is full of unexpected twists and suspense that will keep you turning every page. Anyone that enjoys time travel and mysteries, will find this entertaining.

A dive into the Einstein-Rosen bridge theory, Shattered Glass introduces us to two time frames, 1938 Nazi-Germany and the year 2013. We follow Lieutenant Eugen Scheele in the past as he tries to uncover the truth about Captain Kreider’s disappearance, whilst his great-nephew, Inspector Willi Scheele, must ascertain the appearance of Kreider in near present day.

Shattered Glass is a trip back inside the world of Nazi-Germany and the struggle of all who suffered from and were opposed to their reign. The stakes are high with lives hanging on Eugen’s and Willi’s next moves. But anything can happen in war.

Schmidt spares no detail. It is a thrilling ride with murder investigations, dark humor, sex, and constant edge-of-your-seat political tension.

You won’t expect what happens at the end.

Schmidt’s written voice can be enjoyed by the average reader and appreciated by those who like a more… perspicacious approach. Shattered Glass is not a fast or disposable read. It is something you want to sit down and absorb. The characters are genuine—their actions unpredictable and their emotions and relationships as organic as any in real life.

I recommend this work to those who are fans of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series.

Looking forward to reading more of his work in the future.

Amazon

Goodreads

Blog, Book Reviews

Review: Rise and Run by R. J. Plant

38521544Rise and Run by R.J. Plant

Delightfully engaging and humorous, packed with action… Plant describes the post-apocalyptic world in such vivid detail, you’ll feel like you’re the third consciousness.

Rise and Run follows Felix and Conor on their journey to uncovering their past as they struggle within themselves for dominance while simultaneously fighting for their lives. The heart of GDI, Government Directive International, is set on utilizing them as a biological weapon ─ unwilling, snarky, and a bit of a head-case delinquents.

The characters all have their own, very distinct, attitudes and accents, bringing forth comedic conversations, tension, and spell-binding questions. Everything around them, in every scene, is described in potent depth from the toxic air to the bloody carcasses and broken buildings. Plant is a master of subtly, especially in writing the flickers of emotion even the most hardened soldiers can’t repress.

A fluid and easy read, Rise and Run is all about the challenge of putting the puzzle together and tracking plot twists that never seem to end. The voices of the main characters are genuine and unfiltered. Plant combines the feel of a movie with a first-person shooter role playing game. It’s live action, split-second decisions, and spares no blood.

The main character’s witty perspective, Felix/Conor says everything that we feel as a reader in a rather dry, ironic manner that makes the harsh, thrilling reality that much more entertaining.

Rise and Run is a definite must-read for anyone who’s a fan of post-apocalyptic, thrillers, and hard science fiction. If you’ve got a crass sense of humor you’re going to like this very much.

 

 

(Spoilers beyond this point)

My personal reflection:

 

I thoroughly enjoyed this book from the vast amount of description and humor. Plant does a fantastic job of creating realistic settings and characters. The plot winds and twists and you never really know what’s going to happen next. This is one of the only books I’ve ever been able to read at a comfortable pace and not feel the desire to skip any parts.

There are a few moments where I got lost in the dialogue as to who was saying what, but nothing that tipped the scale. The only other trouble I had was at the very end. The perspective switches again like it did in the beginning and we watch the main character from a third party, someone I don’t feel connected to as a reader. I had hoped to see the main character healed/healing and maybe a moment of tenderness with another character, but the resolution isn’t definitive. It must be inferred from the other characters on the last pages.

In a way this is fitting with Plant’s style, the ever-elusive clarity on the character’s true situation (not the perceived one).  And, in its own way, this ending shows more to the story than we would not have understood otherwise. So all in all: in the words of a character from the United Irish Republic, year 2042, I call it a fecking good book!