There are a number of favored locations often involved in contemporary science fiction that involves aliens visiting planet earth. Two such favored locations, Area 51 and Tunguska, Russia are both involved in this stand alone sci-fi tale that comes from prolific story teller B. V. Larson. With one location being in Russia and the other in the US, these two cold war rivals once again find themselves in a high profile race, but this time they are trying to be the first to get their hands on advanced alien technology. Despite this being a frantic race between rivals, this book actually starts out rather slowly with a vast array of characters being involved in a series of seemingly unconnected events; however, Larson eventually weaves all of the various threads together. It is when the characters come together and begin to interact that the story really takes off and eventually finishes on a high note that leaves you wanting more.

It is important, when killing a nun, to ensure that you bring an army of sufficient size. So begins Red Sister by Mark Lawrence. Nona Grey lives on an ice world where humanity huddles around the equator and jealously guards its remaining resources. Nona is a slave sentenced to hang for murdering a nobleman. She's ten years old. Abbess Glass of the Sweet Mercy Convent rescues her and Nona becomes a novice. There are ultimately three paths the nuns can choose, but for ten years Nona and the other novices learn the basics of combat, magic, and prayer. Political fallout from Nona's rescue, assassination attempts, and an ancient prophecy combine to add intrigue to a tale of friendship, growing up, and kick ass nuns.

Jay Posey once again decides to add new characters to the mix for Dawnbreaker and this time it really helps return the series to form. The new characters fill the void left by Three and they make Wren's storyline immensely more interesting. Wren's fate has been mostly dictated by others throughout the first two books and now he finally decides to take matters into his own hands. Cass and many of the other characters from the first two books are also back on center stage as the series picks back up and is once again running on all cylinders.

Morningside Fall, Book 2 of the Legends of the Duskwalker series, is like the second book of many other trilogies. It acts as a bridge from the first book to the last and resolves little on its own. In this case Jay Posey also chooses not to do much world building, which was also lacking in the first book, and instead chooses to introduce a bunch of new characters to the storyline. Most of these new characters have military training which results in there being a lot of tactical squad based combat throughout which makes this book feel more like a military Sci-Fi novel than anything else. Although these characters all start out with rather similar military-esque personalities, they do eventually differentiate themselves and grow on you thus rightfully earning their place in the story.

A lone wolf bounty hunter roams a bleak post apocalyptic landscape where scraps of humanity barely hang on and survive. There isn't anything all too unique about that premise, but this book manages to quickly set the scene and grab your attention with it. Without ever revealing anything about why the world has gone to hell, Jay Posey thrusts you right into the story at the start which very much reminded me of the feeling that you get when you start a new video game.  There is little up front world building, things just are the way they are, and you better figure things out quickly if you want to survive. The book starts just that way when Three, a bounty hunter, finds himself inexplicably drawn to help a woman and her young son who are clearly in a bad way. The woman, Cass, is a drug addict who lacks the money for her next fix, and along with her son, finds herself on the run from some really bad people. Three's sixth sense warns him that helping these two will be the decision that leads to his death but he does it anyway, and thus starts a gritty and compelling journey across a futuristic wasteland.

The Silo Saga enters its final book set up for success. Wool painted a picture of a bleak future where a dystopian underground society is all that manages to keep humanity on the right side of extinction. Shift then revealed who was behind the building of the silos and their published plan for delivering mankind to a better future; however, it also exposed that the official plan intentionally leaves out that a key decision will eventually made about who will and won't survive. All of this makes for excellent backdrop as the characters from both books converge to determine the ultimate fate of mankind.

Author Hugh Howey does a masterful job slowly revealing how his unique dystopian world functions during the first book of the series, Wool, but he never touches on the subject of how society morphed into that state. Well that is exactly what he does in Shift, as some much needed context is added to explain why things are the way they are. Since he jumps back in time to our contemporary world he needs to introduce a whole new set of characters, which is initially off-putting, but it eventually all comes together and sets things up for an excellent finale to the series.

Joe Ledger has been delivering action with an attitude for a while now and Dogs of War marks the 9th full novel in this action packed series.  Joe Ledger and the DMS have faced quite a diverse set of adversaries along the way including the likes of zombies, aliens, vampires, super soldiers, and even some yet to be explained phenomena, yes I am looking at you Nicodemus. Of course if you are considering reading book 9 then you likely know all of that already and you also know that those encounters have taken their toll on the DMS with most surviving members of Echo team carrying around some serious emotional baggage. What manner of madness has Jonathan Maberry cooked up this time and will the DMS even be able to find their "A" game to deal with it?

If you've burned out on the political machinations of Westeros, or real world politics in general, and are looking to lose yourself in something relaxing, then you need The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison. It's the fully realized world building and personal storyline that sets this book apart from other recent works. The story follows young Maia, half-elven and half-goblin, as he struggles with his sudden ascension to the throne of Ethuveraz, the elflands. The obvious themes of racism, youthful insecurity, and the power of a good heart could easily become too sweet but Addison carefully blends them into the story.

With the Earth in a state of ruin, mankind has retreated to living underground where a dystopian society has evolved to ensure continued existence. The inhabitants of the underground silo know that their self contained ecosystem is a fragile balance so they must dole out harsh consequences to anyone who disobeys the rules. These people have lived underground for generations and know nothing of how they got there or why the outside world is so inhospitable; however, they do know that crimes are punished by being sent outside through the single airlock at the top of the silo. The world outside is so toxic that even their best protective suits offer only offer a couple of minutes of life, yet everyone sentenced to die this way is asked to perform a vital service for the rest of the silo before they perish - a cleaning of the external sensors. Would you do such a favor for those who sentenced you to die?