Mini-Reviews of Books…
The R.E.M. Effect. J. M. Lanham, author. In this novel, the reader will find entertaining reading with some serious themes interwoven. Because my very first book Full Medical was a sci-fi thriller of this type, I’ve always been particularly fond of this subgenre which mixes sci-fi with thrills and suspense. This is one you don’t want to miss.
Mind-altering drugs are more common in real life than most people think. Big Pharma loves to peddle them, especially when they find out that their drug has other applications like alleviating pain by turning off the human brain’s ability to receive pain signals. Drugs for various brain problems like seizures find a new market amongst pain sufferers in this way. They aren’t necessarily addictive, but they’re still scary.
What happens when a drug to cure insomnia gives outliers in the test population of a clinical trial ESP powers as they dream? This sci-fi theme might become a newspaper headline in a not too distant future as Big Pharma strives to broaden its markets and create drugs with many application. The novel answers that question and adds duplicity by the pharmaceutical company as it colludes with the CIA, because the latter is interested in mind control for political purposes.
Channeling Crichton and other authors who have written tales describing future events that aren’t that farfetched, I found this book a good read that is well worth your time. My only complaint—and it’s a minor one—is that a lot of things are left unresolved at the end. To avoid spoilers, I’ll refrain from making a list. Of course, some of the best sci-fi stories share this feature as their authors leave their readers wondering.
I hope to read more by this author in the future, though, because he is a gifted storyteller.
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Teeter-Totter between Lust and Murder. Detective Chen is framed for the murder of a U.S. senator. As her partner Castilblanco moves to prove her innocence, they uncover a complex plot involving the underbelly of NYC as well as the overbelly corresponding to the rich and powerful. #3 in the “Detectives Chen and Castilblanco Series,” this book is now on sale at Smashwords and is available in all ebook formats. Use coupon code XW55G. Coming soon this spring from Penmore Press: Rembrandt’s Angel, an international tour de force involving a Scotland Yard expert on art heists and an Interpol agent. Chasing down some dealers in stolen artworks suddenly becomes very dangerous!
In libris libertas…
