Konnici na Liriite - Chevalier Du Lys

This was my eightieth book I've read this year. I don't count short stories but this year I've heard some audiobooks so that help achieve this mark. One thing is for sure: It couldn't be a better book to commemorate.

Some minor spoilers ahead but with a title "The Last Days of Ector"...

The story is set on Ector, one of the planets in the Valedor System (or Duriel System if you are an Eldar). There we see some gang wars as a way to impress the Crimson Castellans who watch and enlist the best of the best. One of the best is a female who is turned out because of that... particularity. With her another man-boy is turned out because he defended that she should be accepted. Insubordination is not a trait Crimson Castellans appreciate - if you want to know why - it's not reveal in this book but I bet it has something to do with half the chapter turned to Chaos some years before.

After the ordeal they become aware that a hive fleet Leviathan is inbound to the planet. The Crimson Castellans say that the three planets are doomed. There is no stopping them (is not said here but they had fought another Hive Fleet several years before). The three governors disagree to help one another but they all will stand and fight. After all billions and billions lives will perish since is not possible to evacuate them all. After this meeting all the tale is focus on Ector (Valedor will be dwelt in another novel written by the same writer).

From this moment on the book tells us of fighting in different hives and the encounter with some eldar who strangely enough are helping humankind.

Some interesting points.... Brother-Sergeant Yoth is important because the eldar Isarion said that he should not hesitate 53 years from this day in the planet Malefix. The phoenix lord Asurmen makes an appearance even if brief. It was interesting as well as the Crimson Castellans made their choice. Either they defend to the last man or try to escape because as you should know (I told you before :) half their numbers fell to Chaos and most of them (good guys and chaos guys) died at the... claws of the tyranids.

I really enjoy the aura of despair, of unavoidable defeat and of the grimdark the 40K transcribes. People talk about grimdark of other fantasy books but so far this world is the grimmest. If I am not mistake this guys coined the term grimdark(ness) and this book is that. Look at the title. There is no hope before the Great Devourer. All will perishable. The only thing you can do is sell your lives dearly. I think I had a solution for this... do what Switzerland do.. Every house should have a firearm. If Ector with countless billions had one arm for each inhabitant they would not fall.

Read this - then go to Valedor as I am going to do...

This was one of the most interesting of Judge Dredd audiobooks I've heard. We've got a hijack of a train by a old cadet who was turned out by Dredd. I really enjoy this story. We've got some good development of Judge Dredd which was interesting and a good plotline. Another interesting part was the inclusion of the Bike of Dredd which turn out to be his greatest ally. Didn't know they were IA.

James Swallow is a BL freelancer and I've heard great things of him. He didn't disappoint me here...

I really enjoy this audiobook. Probably my favorite by far albeit some minor things that made me think I was playing the Fire Warrior game where I could kill everyone with a single fire warrior.

The first story is a tale about a pathfinder as he tries to revenge his squad. With flashbacks it was a nice tale and I really enjoy reading about the Tau and their technology advance. You don't need to be an expert in the game to know that a pathfinder could destroy three tanks, two walkers, kill a squad of space marines, a space marine captain (sergeant?) and put on rout a squad of hard fought cadians. Like I said - I thought I was playing the Fire Warrior game. Some other flaws only players would catch. There is a review on this book that he talks lengthily about that. It's a very good review.

This flaws in a share-world can destroy completely a writer. Look at CS Goto reference in the other review. The writer was mocked in everything he wrote... then one day he stopped writing. Every forum made fun of him... There is also a rulebook guy (I don't play the game so I don't memorize their names) that is not that famous with gamers as well.

Nevertheless - for a guy who just want to read a piece of fiction of a world we love - and is not a Space Marine fan - is a great read.

The audiobook edition I heard had a second story and it was perfect story of a fire warrior as he try to gain time so the earth caste could leave the planet. Perfect in every way. Small and simple.

The Tau are truly unique character with some communist/fascist ideologies. They are an Utopia for some. The Greater Good is a goal humanity should pursuit. Of course retaining our unique personality but at the same time having in mind the Greater Good of humanity. The Tau Greater Good is of course impossible - because each of us are unique - I imagine what would happen if ants had large brains... they would be Tau. For the Greater Good!

Well this book was one I had some interest because:
1- It was written by CL Werner
2- I thought it was in Orks perspective (if anyone could do it, it would be him).

The second point was not true but I didn't mind. I really enjoy the story about the remaining 37 soldiers of the Cadian 267th. They travel the toxic deserts of Sanzu and came across a Adeptus Mechanicus facility where a few isolated tech priests are conducting some secret research. There they fight a big ork called Morkanaut. The equivalent of Dreadnought of the Space Marines but with an ork within it.

The most interesting part was undoubtly the first twenty minutes. The ork attack, the toxic sand storm, the march throughout the desert and the discover of the facility. From that moment on was more or less the hunting of the ork machine or vice-versa.

Nevertheless a good story and a good conversion into a audiobook.

I am sorry but I didn't enjoy this novel at all. It was by far the worst Moorcock book. Well I have not read that many but I didn't enjoy this one. So we've got a mix between The Black Corridor and Warrior of Mars - but it sucked.

Humanity has come far to destroy our own planet with overpopulation and tension between nations. We've exhausted our own resources so what can humanity do? Send a colonization ship and destroy another planet. Yeah that will work. Stupid premises. Humanity can solve her own problems by escaping them. That's not solving... But it was the sixties so let's go...

We've got Jerry Cornelius and his wife and a fellow scientist were sent to alpha centauri to search for a planet to humanity. They found a planet but it's habitable. After a series of adventures with two factions that lived on that planet - they return home but humanity as already started a war...

I was not pleased how it was handled. Neither Moorcock nor Philip James (a pseudonym) gave this book anything interesting or good. Well - the only good thing was to discover the Immaterium (the Warp) so familiar with the warhammer 40k is probably related to this. They say it is another dimension and people can go crazy in it (which the scientist became).

Overall, the book is readable and with only 180 pages and a few drawings is easible read in an afternoon... but beware of Morpheus embrace... you will feel it.

I was tempted in created a new bookshelves called something like "How NOT to write a book".

If you are a woman then you shouldn't read this. There was only a woman and every single scene she was in - she was on someone like a dog on a bone... The last scene she enters there was no "action" but we were told she was a money grabber that the police was after.

Then you've got several other male characters - who were always "on" the woman (yeah she was taking turns...) or they were something manly.

The plot its simple, you've got yourself a paradisiac isle where some woman screws you but unfortunally you the crabs (the animal) are there and they are big and armoured - so armoured that rifles, cannons and even bloody ships can harm them. They are that strong. For those who understand me: Space Marines should wear that for an armour.

So, the crabs kills people, destroy ships - but not those of wood... those with metal like a bloody battleship but then the main character who was in the first book - sorry I forgot to tell you this was part two - discovers something that can kill them and voila. You've got 160 pages of pure crap.

I rarelly, if ever think... why am I wasting my time on this book but this is a first... I had to read it all. I really wanted to know if something worthy came out, but alas I was wrong.

If you want to read fast paced book with crabs as villains, or people for that matter - then read it at your own peril.
If you are a girl - then stay back. This is a book that will make you hate a man. Even if I must add - this book was written in 70's where some writers wanted to entertaint some particular genre of people. In this case young men who want to possess a beautiful perfect two-breasted girl (and she enjoys it too - even when someone forces upon her).

Crap - pure crap - mega crap

Probably the best audiodrama they produced. Full of twists and interesting tale where in the end everything connects. What a man will do to achieve it's fifteen minutes of fame.

This book follows Judge Dredd: The Big Shot!
This audiodrama is more focused on Steele her birth city. The past of Steele comes out. Excellent.

This tale was another one of my favourites. We've got Judge Dredd in jail?!? dam dum dam...

This audiobook was simple but had some eastern eggs connecting Dredd past. It was the first time I heard about aliens in Dredd world.

This book is not good but neither it's bad. It's about a group of young people as they do their Scooby Doo Mystery Club (in this case - with the intend to publish in the newspaper). After the last mystery they want a new one - in this case - alligators in the sewers.

Interesting premise - mildly interesting twist - but where were the alligators? Good images/landscapes of the sewers.

The end was good but I already knew it would end like that. Boy and Girl meant to be together and nothing could break them apart. Adversities easily surpassed...

Great Judge Dread story - a bit too small to my liking about a Dredd being a bodyguard of a celebrity. Great action scenes... Audiodramas as they should be. No narrators.

Easily the worst audiodrama they produced. Didn't hook me up. I think David Bishop is Big Finish and Judge Dredd's man.

This tale as a very good narration but I was not interested in their world and story. Nevertheless Big Finish really knows what they do.

In this book we've got the return of Judge Death and their acolytes. I was really interested in knowing that world as some similarities with ours. Even after the Islamic Caliphate done some horrible deeds there are people supporting them. Here is the same - with Judge Death but this is SF - Fiction. And IC is reality.

Review to come. Suffice to say I enjoy it.

This was a fun read. First of all it was my first audiobook. I am not fond of them but since it was given to me I cannot say no. I had no interest in purchasing the book because it didn't appeal to me but since it was free I said what a heck. Let us go ahead. I have now around 100 audiobooks I will read in the future as I work - since reading while working is not that advisable.

First of all - and nothing to do with the book itself I enjoy the narration. Our narrator was experience for what I search and it gave different voices to each character. Some like New sounded a bit fake but what a hell.

Some SPOILERS ahead (You are going to see the movie so what a hell... btw the girl in the movie doesn't enter a coma like here) sorry :)


I was so committed to the story that I took notes. More notes than any other book so far. And I enjoy it.

So, we find ourselves in the Glades a haven surrounded by a maze. We are Thomas, a boy that arrived at the glades to revolutionize their "peaceful" existence. Of course he doesn't know he is the bloody messiah. We've got friends like Chuck (a 13ish old boy who immediately fell in awe of us); Newt the british boy I told you about who was the second in command and probably had the weight of the world in his shoulder and you've got Minho the keeper of the runners (the guys who search the maze for clues to leave). Then it appears Theresa who is only important in half the book - the rest of the book she is in coma. And we've got some guys who doesnt like us - namely Gally. Then there is Alby the eldest and leader of the pack.

Of course most these guys have been there for months or years but only you are capable of solving every problem they have, have a telepathic link to the only girl in existence and be the hero. Of course you've got no bad qualities besides caring too much for everyone. I think you were inspired in me.

You are different from everybody else. It took months for someone to be a runner but you've done it in only a couple of days. You broke the first rule of the Glade to save two people so what would you earn? Be banished (killed) or take the place of the keeper of runners (Keepers are the leaders of something).

There are evil things there like insect-alikes that are cameras and some Grievers - Monsters that come out in the Maze at night (or not) and they try two things: One - kill a glader or sting it. The first... well you die and the second you hallucinate and start remember things from the past. Btw - they resemble slugs and have numerous weapons.

So Thomas, because he knows it all, got stung on purpose and voila a light falls on him. He knows how to leave the place but also he knows that he helped created the maze. Well, he is sixteen and there are kids there for two years so at 13 or 14 he help create a maze? Okk...

At around the 30th chapter (there are 61 plus an epilogue) the story starts going on a hot pace (bear in mind that this book is 10:00:00 long) and captivated me to right a phrase for chapter like

33 - The Sun dissapear; I trigger the ending
35 - The Maze is a code; They discover a door near the edge
36 - The Doors to the maze don't close; I know You
37 - Prison
38 - The night. The Plan. Gaby (who I know now is called Gally) Returns
39 - The prohecy - Everyone will die- One per Night - Gally kills himself - Minho leaves the maze
40 - Well, first it took hours to arrive to the abyss - but this time it took minutes
41 - The maps are burned; the maps are not maps
42 - The maps are not burned afterall.
42 - FLOATCATCH
43 - The departure
44 - There are 8 runners but it seems only Minho does anything
FLOAT CATCH BLEED DEATH STIFF PUSH

And so on...

I really enjoy writing like this. It gave me a new perspective on the book. Maybe it will only work on this one.. Don't know..

The ending was strange and it responded some questions giving us some more. It made me itchy to read the second book but for what I read it's not that good...

So at the end they leave the maze to find the creators looking at them and one of the creators with Gally (who supposedly had died) confront them but say nothing special - saying only that it was all a test. Training the best of the best. But suddently Gally tries to kill thomas but killed Chuck. Why? Why kill Thomas then? Chuck sacrifice himself OK I understand that . But why killed Thomas?

Then some armed men arrive and kill some creators escaping and while on a bus they meet a old woman saying that You are going to save everyone from the Flare - then they run over that said old woman. Inside the bus a woman explains to them that supposedly some powerful flares abated earth scorching some parts, killing millions and giving some disease that makes people go crazy and die (probably the sting from the Grievers was that). Supposedly the boys are the last hope from WICKED (World In Catastrophe Killzone Experiment Department) but those man who "saved" them are against WICKED because they think the trials to boys are inhumane.

The epilogue says that other trials are doing OK.

This book If I had to read it I would be bored to dead. It was not that good written. I think the author had in mind a film (or trilogy of films). The characters are not that well portrayed besides one or two characteristics. Newt is always worry about the welfare of everybody or Minho just want to leave and do anything but besides this two characters everyone else is not that well portrayed. Chuck is also a nice fellow. But Thomas was boring. As I said before he is the Messiah and he knows it. Damn.. Let us see the second book if he continues to be boring. And if Theresa is developed.


There are some good aspects in the book - Dashner invented new words to swear so it doesn't sound so bad if a child of ten read it.


Some questions remain... why Theresa has WICKED is GOOD written in her hand?
Why did they put Thomas there in the first place? Why him and Theresa are important?
Why the trials? What is the purpose of it since the boys did menial jobs like farming and butchering animals - how can this help to discover a cure to the plague abating earth?
There are others but my writing in the train was not that good and I cannot read it.

I give this book 3/5 or 6/10 if it was possible. It's not a solid book because of several important flaws like characters and the writing style but the mystery involved made me want read a chapter more and more. And that's what important in a book, no?