GOODREADS BOOK REVIEWS
by MALCOLM TORRES
Cherry by Nico WalkerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Cherry by Nico Walker is a novel that has been adapted by Apple TV into a new movie. Both the book and the movie are jam packed with the horrors of drug abuse, war, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and armed robbery all set against a backdrop of twenty-something romance. As a reader of the novel or a viewer of the movie, you feel you are looking into the details of a life that is rapidly spinning out of control. From a somewhat normal late teen crush, to Army service in Iraq the story illustrates the course of so many young people who came of age in the early 2000s. Coming home from the war to a full blown OxyContin / Heroin addiction epidemic plaguing the US, the story paints the picture of a society gone wrong onto the day-to-day life of one young couple. Look beyond the book and movie and you’ll find it’s a mostly true story. The author, Nico Walker, is a young guy who grew up in Cleveland Ohio, served in Iraq, came home, suffered from PTSD, got addicted to drugs, robbed banks and is now in jail for armed bank robbery.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube review for Cherry (the book and the movie).
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Beacon 23 by Hugh HoweyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Hugh Howie perfectly applies the sea story elements of the classic ‘lighthouse keeper’ yarn to this far-future, deep-space action thriller. Beacon 23 takes you to the galaxy’s furthest reaches and puts you inside a tin can with a war veteran who suffers from post traumatic stress disorder. The beacon is floating at a junction where massive space cargo ships come out of warp drive, and the keeper is worried that warring aliens may be infiltrating the sector or is it just his flashbacks to horrific combat missions.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube review for Beacon 23 by Hugh Howie
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Adrift: Seventy-Six Days Lost at Sea by Steven CallahanMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
As a complete and total nut for sea stories, it's surprising that it took me 35 years to read this book. I saw the book in the book store and on line dozens of times, but for some odd reason I always put it back on the shelf and decided not to read it ... yet. When covid hit, being stuck at home, I finally decided time had come to read this excellent sea story.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube review for Adrift by Steven Callahan
Read my blog post on why it took me 35 years to finally read this book.
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The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart TurtonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Devil in the Dark Water is a murder mystery with all the moving parts and precision of a fine Swiss watch. Set in 1634 aboard a sailing ship on a stormy high seas voyage from Batavia to Amsterdam.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube video review for The Devil in the Dark Water.
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Adrift: Seventy-Six Days Lost at Sea by Steven CallahanMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
As a complete and total nut for sea stories, surprising it took me 35 years to read this book. I saw the book in the book store and on line dozens of times, but for some odd reason I always put it back on the shelf and decided not to read it ... yet. When COVID-19 hit, being stuck at home, I finally decided time had come to read this excellent sea story.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube review for Adrift by Steven Callahan
Read my blog post on why it took me 35 years to finally read this book.
View all my reviews on Goodreads
The City We Became by N.K. JemisinMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
World destroying forces attack NY at the moment the city’s soul is being born, but tough and endearing New Yawkers fight back. Watch my no-spoiler YouTube review for The City We Became
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Shadow Divers by Robert KursonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I am ranking SHADOW DIVERS by Robert Kurson as one of the top-5 best sea stories of all time. This book is jam packed from beginning to end with all the things that make up a great sea story.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube video review for Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson
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Island in the Sea of Time by S.M. StirlingIslands in the Sea of Time is a sea story and an epic sci-fi, time travel, adventure novel by S.M. Stirling. A freak meteorological phenomenon takes the Island of Nantucket and the Coast Guard Ship Eagle back in time to the year 1250 BC. While the locals on Nantucket struggle to survive, the Eagle and her crew voyage south to engage with the primitive Toltecs and east across the Atlantic to Bronze Age England. Pulse-pounding action, conflict, romance and several major culture clashes keep the pages turning. I really loved this one and look forward to reading the rest of the series.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube video review of Islands in the Sea of Time by S.M. Stirling
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Sailor Twain: Or: The Mermaid in the Hudson by Mark SiegelMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
A sea story with twists of gothic mystery and romance. This dark yet enchanting graphic novel, written and illustrated by Mark Siegel, is set aboard a paddle wheel steamer on New York’s Hudson River in the late 1800s. Originally published online in weekly installments, it gathered over 850,000 followers and went on to be a New York Times best seller. It features a sea captain, a mermaid and a large cast of fascinating characters. Learn all about paddle wheel steamers, King Neptune, the ancient mysteries of the deep, and late-1800s New York history.
Watch my no-spoiler YouTube video review for SAILOR TWAIN by Mark Siegel
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Bird Box by Josh MalermanMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
The only way you have not heard of this book is if you were living under a rock for the past many years. It was a run away best selling sci-fi horror novel and it was turned into a Netflix series that had over 50 million views and starred Sandra Bullock. It now has a sequel called Malorie. The entire time I was reading both books I was whispering OMG and WTF on every page.
Watch my no-spoiler video review for Bird Box and the Sequel Malorie on YouTube.
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The Gulf by David PoyerMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Another great sea story in the Dan Lenson series by David Poyer. Now Dan Lenson is the Executive Officer aboard a US Navy frigate on station in The Persian Gulf. He’s got his hands full serving under a captain who is burning hot with a personal vendetta against Iran. And, as always in the Dan Lenson book series (THE MED, THE CIRCLE, THE PASSAGE, THE COMMAND, CHINA SEA, and many others) David Poyer weaves in several sub plots involving sailors who are up to no good. Set in the mid-1980s, with the Iran Iraq war raging, The Gulf takes us back to those pre Desert Shield, Desert Storm and Gulf War days when the US Navy tried to keep the shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean open, while operating inside a hornet’s nest of warring oil-rich Arab Nations.
Watch my no-spoiler video book review for THE GULF by David Poyer on YouTube.
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China Sea by David PoyerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
David Poyer has written over 15 action thriller novels featuring Dan Lenson, a United States Navy officer. Each book finds Lenson aboard a different ship and heading into action on the high seas.
In China Sea, Lenson is the skipper aboard an old Knox class frigate that is being sold to Pakistan. Just when you think you know what’s happening in this sea story, the plot shifts into high gear. Lenson leads an almost mutinous crew through monsoons, pirate attacks, disasters at sea and shipwrecks, all while undertaking a top secret mission that breaks every US Navy rule and regulation. Plus there’s murder and intense at-sea combat.
Watch my no-spoiler video book review for David Poyer's CHINA SEA on YouTube
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Earthcore by Scott SiglerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is an excellent sci-fi, horror, thriller. Solid science, great characters, wonderful writing and an unholy terror 3-miles under ground. After 15-years in print, the author Scott Sigler has written a sequel entitled Mount Fitz Roy that is out now on Audible. You can listen to all of Scott Sigler's books for free on his weekly serialized podcast.
Watch my no-spoiler video review for EARTHCORE by Scott Sigler on YouTube.
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Dark Matter by Blake CrouchMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Looking for a sci-fi crime thriller? Dark Matter hooked me from the start and pulled me through with likable characters, mind-blowing science (quantum mechanics, travel between parallel dimensions) and faced-paced action. This book was written by the same author (Blake Crouch) who wrote the Wayward Pines novels which were adapted by Fox TV into a sensational miniseries directed by M. Night Shyamalan. A gread book and well worth a read.
Watch my no-spoiler video review for DARK MATTER by Blake Crouch on YouTube
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Something in the Water by Catherine SteadmanMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book by Catherine Steadman checks all the right boxes for me: ✅ Crime ✅ Thriller ✅ Sea Story. Steadman is a skilled actor and author who has the ability to create tension on the page. She also wrote Mr. Nobody and has The Disappearing Act coming out in June 2021.
Watch my no-spoiler video book review for SOMETHING IN THE WATER by Catherine Steadman on YouTube.
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Altered Carbon by Richard K. MorganMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
This award winning science fiction novel has been adapted into a multi-season series by Netflix. And it's chugging along into season two. This book and Netflix series combo makes it a complete package for Sci-Fi lovers. To begin, the book is dark and sleek set in right-around-the-corner far-future San Francisco. It grabs your attention with very likable characters, mystery, a love story and violence in the first few pages. The characters are so likable that you gladly chase them through a complex plot that spans centuries and several galaxies.
WATCH MY NO-SPOILER YOUTUBE REVIEW HERE
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Nocturnal by Scott SiglerMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
A San Francisco homicide detective uncovers a cult of killers living in the forgotten catacombs beneath the city. Part alternate reality and part police procedural, with really nasty bad guys and swashbuckling good guys. Hard core science fiction, horror & crime fans can listen to Nocturnal as a free serialized podcast at www.scottsigler.com or read it in paperback, hardcover or eBook.
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Into the Raging Sea: Thirty-Three Mariners, One Megastorm, and the Sinking of El Faro by Rachel SladeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Since El Faro sank in 2015 I've been wondering what happened. I mean seriously, how the hell does a big cargo ship steam into a hurricane and sink ... especially in this high-tech day and age? Lucky for me and all us old salts who care about ships and sailors, Rachel Slade has been wondering what happened to El Faro too. Rachel Slade is a top notch investigative journalist who set her laser-sharp attention on the sinking of El Faro and spent several years finding the answers to all the tough questions.
WATCH MY NO-SPOILER VIDEO REVIEW ON YOUTUBE
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Youth & The End of the Tether by Joseph ConradMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
When it comes to Sea Stories Joseph Conrad is one of the kings, the grand daddies, the true old salts before whom even today's saltiest sailors are nothing more than deckhands. Joseph Conrad is right up there with Jack London, Herman Melville and Homer himself. Conrad was born in Poland, grew up in France and joined the English merchant Navy where he spent several decades working aboard sailing ships trading between Europe, Africa and the Far East during the second half of the 1800s.
Perhaps you've read The Heart of Darkness, Nostromo, Lord Jim, The End of the Tether, Under Western Eyes, The Secret Agent, Victory or Almayer's Folly? Conrad has written several books that are considered to be classics, but his short story YOUTH is my favorite. It's a true sea story from the very first word to the last, complete with adventure, tall tales, a crazy captain, storms, disasters, near mutiny, and a voyage to top all voyages.
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Hyperion by Dan SimmonsMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
If you're like me you have 30 science fiction novels on your all time top-10 list (LOL). You may ask: "Malcolm, how can you have 30 books on your top-10 list?" And I will answer, "Well, Shipmate, the decimal system allows for an unlimited number of numbers between 0 and 1. So there."
Seriously though, if you have not read Hyperion by Dan Simmons, read it and get ready to say "Move over Enders Game, Snow Crash, Dune, Neuromancer, 2001 Space Odyssey, Fahrenheit 451, The Martian, Starship Troopers, 1984, Infected, Altered Carbon, The Island of Doctor Moreau, Jurassic Park, et al. All y'all gotta move on over because I'm putting Hyperion on this lofty shelf." Hyperion won the 1990 Hugo Award and I've hear rumors it's in development with the SYFY Channel.
WATCH MY VIDEO BOOK REVIEW HERE
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The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth WareMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Mystery writer Ruth Ware checks all the boxes on my list of requirements for a great sea story: Luxury yacht (check), Gourmet food (check), Free top-shelf liquor (check), Trapped at sea with no cell service (check) and ... Murder (check!). This is a perfect book to cuddle with during the winter in your easy chair or toss it in your beach bag for a summer read at the sea shore. With Ruth Ware, a repeat New York Times best seller, you are in the hands of a murder mystery master.
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