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shanehawk's reviews
421 reviews
Fractured State by Steven Konkoly
4.0
Political assassinations. Overreaching state government. Creepy surveillance measures. 20-year drought. Gasoline rationing. Shady military contractors. Political activist groups for and against California secession. Mexican syndicates. Lingering conspiracies. Military tactics, vehicles and weapons. All within San Diego County and virtually my backyard! I literally live a mile away from the back gate of Camp Pendleton which is where a chunk of this story takes place. The locality kept me locked into this fast-paced thriller. I found this book and its sequel for free on Kindle Unlimited. Most books on there are misses and I’m thankful I found a hit. I was consumed right off the bat.
At the end of the book Konkoly, the author, is shown to have received a BS in English literature from the US Naval Academy and served eight years active duty for the Navy and Marines. His varied experience within our military brings effective knowledge to the table and creates a realistic dystopian near-future. The book indicates he researched well and knows how to develop characters to boot. I learned so many military terms. I appreciated the realism.
I docked my rating by a star because I felt he abruptly ended the novel without any clear resolutions. It sort of felt like he put a great amount of effort into it and was so tired of writing he just cut it off and probably shifted focus to the subsequent novel. I forgive him through because 90% of the book had me hooked and is one of the most exciting books I’ve read this year out of about forty total.
I look forward to reading the second in this series called Rogue State.
Thanks for the ride, Steven Konkoly, and thank you for your service.
At the end of the book Konkoly, the author, is shown to have received a BS in English literature from the US Naval Academy and served eight years active duty for the Navy and Marines. His varied experience within our military brings effective knowledge to the table and creates a realistic dystopian near-future. The book indicates he researched well and knows how to develop characters to boot. I learned so many military terms. I appreciated the realism.
I docked my rating by a star because I felt he abruptly ended the novel without any clear resolutions. It sort of felt like he put a great amount of effort into it and was so tired of writing he just cut it off and probably shifted focus to the subsequent novel. I forgive him through because 90% of the book had me hooked and is one of the most exciting books I’ve read this year out of about forty total.
I look forward to reading the second in this series called Rogue State.
Thanks for the ride, Steven Konkoly, and thank you for your service.
Rogue State by Steven Konkoly
4.0
The subsequent novel to [a:Steven Konkoly|4442737|Steven Konkoly|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1458225200p2/4442737.jpg]’s [b:Fractured State: A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller|28163599|Fractured State A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller|Steven Konkoly|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1457687589s/28163599.jpg|48167059] picks right back up where the prior novel ended. The first one ended without any real resolutions for the characters and this one wraps up some, but not all. Neither are standalone books and I assume the author has a third installment planned. The pace matched the first book and at moments I was holding my breath and on the edge of my seat. After one prominent death I was yelling to myself, "No no no!" This is as much a page-turner as the first one. I recommend them both to anyone interested in a post-apocalyptic story that’s plausible and filled with military action and jargon. Both free through Amazon Prime.
This series reads like a movie and I sort of hope it makes its way to the silver screen at some point. The action and drama intertwine perfectly for a well-balanced thrill ride.
This series reads like a movie and I sort of hope it makes its way to the silver screen at some point. The action and drama intertwine perfectly for a well-balanced thrill ride.
The Kids Don't Stand a Chance: Growing Up in Teach for America by Harris Sockel
3.0
2.5 stars
Sockel released a 30-page grousing session and called it a short story. I appreciate the fact this "Kindle Single" brought this Teach For America organization to light because I had never heard of it before. It seems he lays out legitimate criticisms of their system, but its overshadowed by his remonstration of his time spent with a particular set of children in New York. The part that really irked me and almost made me stop reading was where he talks about calling in sick into work every Tuesday just for a breather. That's a sign of a weakling and someone with no heart in the game for children's sake. He did not succeed because he was not committed. He was a young, pretentious prick lucky enough to have his parents pay for his daily $150-200 worth of paper.
Sockel released a 30-page grousing session and called it a short story. I appreciate the fact this "Kindle Single" brought this Teach For America organization to light because I had never heard of it before. It seems he lays out legitimate criticisms of their system, but its overshadowed by his remonstration of his time spent with a particular set of children in New York. The part that really irked me and almost made me stop reading was where he talks about calling in sick into work every Tuesday just for a breather. That's a sign of a weakling and someone with no heart in the game for children's sake. He did not succeed because he was not committed. He was a young, pretentious prick lucky enough to have his parents pay for his daily $150-200 worth of paper.
Ghosts in the Forest by Corinne Purtill
4.0
Compelling, poignant, laconic.
Indochina is a region I lack knowledge in historically and once I found out this story’s subject I delved right in. Purtill gives an engrossing overview of what these 34 people endured before, during, and after the reign of the Khmer Rouge. With the help of a translator, we get conversations right from the source. The author packed a mighty punch in under a hundred pages.
The reader receives a well-rounded education on these people who re-entered the world after being in a forest for most of their lives avoiding the terrors of war under the Khmer Rouge communists. Little did they know, when they came out of the forest in 2004 the war in the Indochina Peninsula had ended 25 years prior. It was intriguing reading how little they knew of the modern world. In a way they had traveled time.
It is free on Amazon Kindle and I recommend this short read to anyone remotely interested.
I’ll leave you with a couple quotes:
Indochina is a region I lack knowledge in historically and once I found out this story’s subject I delved right in. Purtill gives an engrossing overview of what these 34 people endured before, during, and after the reign of the Khmer Rouge. With the help of a translator, we get conversations right from the source. The author packed a mighty punch in under a hundred pages.
The reader receives a well-rounded education on these people who re-entered the world after being in a forest for most of their lives avoiding the terrors of war under the Khmer Rouge communists. Little did they know, when they came out of the forest in 2004 the war in the Indochina Peninsula had ended 25 years prior. It was intriguing reading how little they knew of the modern world. In a way they had traveled time.
It is free on Amazon Kindle and I recommend this short read to anyone remotely interested.
I’ll leave you with a couple quotes:
“The Khmer Rouge offered only one way to live, yet now, as their failed state disintegrated, there were endless ways to die.”
“Highlander people I spoke to regularly counted the absence of salt alongside death and bombing as the worst of their sufferings under Pol Pot.”
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett
5.0
Simply phenomenal. This was my first detective/crime/noir novel and I couldn’t have enjoyed it more. The pacing was smooth as butter and the dialogue was so quotable you know I’m sharing some at the end of this review. Published in 1930 and set in Depression Era San Francisco you get a feel of aged culture through Hammett’s dialogue. He wrote this novel extremely well and it’s apparent to anyone who gives it a go. The story is essentially about a woman who needs a detective to protect her from a few hoodlums in dire search of a small bird statue and will do anything to obtain it. By the way, this novel was adapted to the silver screen and Spade was played by none other than Humphrey Bogart.
The cast of main characters here is short, but sweet. Each one offers a different and fun dynamic. The protagonist, Sam Spade, is as hard-boiled as characters come. He’s so glib he’s up there with James Bond. He plays the private investigator and doesn’t take crap from anyone. The comically named Casper Gutman is a man who is both very fat and pink. Hammett doesn’t let you forget he is fat or pink for one second. Joel Cairo is from the Middle East as Hammett repeatedly refers to him as the “Levantine.” He is somewhat effeminate and is working in conjunction with Gutman. Brigid O’Shaughnessy plays the femme fatale and lures Spade into a mess of a situation. She plays innocent but throughout the novel new details build her up to be a woman who breaks bad.
The chapters are chopped up impeccably as there aren’t any which draw on too long nor any which abruptly end. Hammett’s pacing is immaculate as said before. The entire story fits within 215 pages or so depending on which edition you find. It can be easily read in a day of leisure.
Now for some of my favorite quotes:
Joel Cairo: “You always have a very smooth explanation ready.”
Sam Spade: “What do you want me to do, learn to stutter?”
Sam Spade: “Listen, Dundy, it's been a long time since I burst into tears because a policeman didn't like me.”
Sam Spade (Talking to Cairo): “And when you're slapped you'll take it and like it.”
The cast of main characters here is short, but sweet. Each one offers a different and fun dynamic. The protagonist, Sam Spade, is as hard-boiled as characters come. He’s so glib he’s up there with James Bond. He plays the private investigator and doesn’t take crap from anyone. The comically named Casper Gutman is a man who is both very fat and pink. Hammett doesn’t let you forget he is fat or pink for one second. Joel Cairo is from the Middle East as Hammett repeatedly refers to him as the “Levantine.” He is somewhat effeminate and is working in conjunction with Gutman. Brigid O’Shaughnessy plays the femme fatale and lures Spade into a mess of a situation. She plays innocent but throughout the novel new details build her up to be a woman who breaks bad.
The chapters are chopped up impeccably as there aren’t any which draw on too long nor any which abruptly end. Hammett’s pacing is immaculate as said before. The entire story fits within 215 pages or so depending on which edition you find. It can be easily read in a day of leisure.
Now for some of my favorite quotes:
Joel Cairo: “You always have a very smooth explanation ready.”
Sam Spade: “What do you want me to do, learn to stutter?”
Sam Spade: “Listen, Dundy, it's been a long time since I burst into tears because a policeman didn't like me.”
Sam Spade (Talking to Cairo): “And when you're slapped you'll take it and like it.”
What Has Government Done to Our Money? and The Case for a 100 Percent Gold Dollar by Murray N. Rothbard
4.0
Two economic essays written by Murray Rothbard, the Austrian-school scholar who studied under Ludwig von Mises. I have to say the first essay is much more enjoyable as it covers a number of things, central banking, false dilemmas, fiat monetary systems, debasement, historical analysis of the economies within kingdoms, etc. The second and much shorter essay serves as a treatise for returning to the gold standard. Gold-backed money may be an anachronism at this point as we delve into cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. Although, some of these alternatives are being adopted by central banks and can be manipulated to fund operations of government intelligence agencies.
I recommend the first essay wholeheartedly because it's scrutable even for those with little economic knowledge and effortless to follow along.
I recommend the first essay wholeheartedly because it's scrutable even for those with little economic knowledge and effortless to follow along.
Real Dissent: A Libertarian Sets Fire to the Index Card of Allowable Opinion by Thomas E. Woods Jr.
4.0
A collection of articles, blog posts, and interviews from Tom Woods partitioned into 54 easily navigable chapters. At around 350~ pages this was an easy read within two days. Woods holds four academic degrees--BA from Harvard, master's, M.Phil, and Ph.D from Columbia. He's written about a dozen books both published through large houses and by himself. His podcast has over 1,000 episodes. He's also appeared on just about every political channel you can think of. He's very well-researched and possesses the "seven C's" of communication needed to be an exceptional communicator. Suffice it to say, Tom Woods is the real deal.
The criticisms and counterarguments to left-wing positions, right-wing positions and the Libertarian movement itself were much appreciated. In my state I've been a registered voter of the "no party affiliation" variety since the age of 18. I've always been a contrarian, instigator type of person. Even with a liberal mind, Woods caught me off guard in a few instances throughout this book which I crave. I love getting knocked on my ass by a new perspective because I reject it immediately, then proceed to mull it over and wring it through my moral/ethical/philosophical lenses. The abundance of historical fact inserted throughout the book kept me going.
One's opinion of Tom Woods and this book are wholly contingent on one's political views. We all know dogmatic partisans and how obdurate they can be when anything challenges their ideology.
The criticisms and counterarguments to left-wing positions, right-wing positions and the Libertarian movement itself were much appreciated. In my state I've been a registered voter of the "no party affiliation" variety since the age of 18. I've always been a contrarian, instigator type of person. Even with a liberal mind, Woods caught me off guard in a few instances throughout this book which I crave. I love getting knocked on my ass by a new perspective because I reject it immediately, then proceed to mull it over and wring it through my moral/ethical/philosophical lenses. The abundance of historical fact inserted throughout the book kept me going.
One's opinion of Tom Woods and this book are wholly contingent on one's political views. We all know dogmatic partisans and how obdurate they can be when anything challenges their ideology.
Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House by Michael Wolff
2.0
Somewhat truthful, but not factual.
A watercolor version of events where the truth bleeds outside the lines often. Akin to an ardent Republican writing about a Democrat in office—same stuff, different team. Don’t take it entirely from me. Watch some interviews with Wolff on this book and you’ll see what I mean. Not worthy of a rating, imo.
Update a week later: Probably too harsh initially. It was entertaining and his writing style wasn’t too bad. I’ll give it three stars with the rest of my opinion still in mind.
A watercolor version of events where the truth bleeds outside the lines often. Akin to an ardent Republican writing about a Democrat in office—same stuff, different team. Don’t take it entirely from me. Watch some interviews with Wolff on this book and you’ll see what I mean. Not worthy of a rating, imo.
Update a week later: Probably too harsh initially. It was entertaining and his writing style wasn’t too bad. I’ll give it three stars with the rest of my opinion still in mind.
Anthem by Ayn Rand
4.0
My grandma recommended I read this novella sometime and I found it free on Amazon Prime. Its ebook version is only about 65 pages and can be read in under an hour. From what I’ve gathered, this is a succinct introduction to Rand’s “objectivism” creed. I really enjoyed the visuals and how magnetized I was within such an ephemeral read.
Before attempting to consider reading anything by Ayn Rand I sought opinions of others and they are varied to say the least. What I’ve extrapolated is most whom are against her haven’t read her work and if they did they were forced to by coworkers or family. It’s hard to set ideological differences aside when reading people’s work which may cause cognitive dissonance. I’ve experienced this myself and I now find it invigorating despite the initial discomfort. Leave your dogma at the door.
I don’t subscribe to any canon 100% but I can definitely see where Rand was coming from with criticizing collectivism as she wrote this in 1937. I recommend this read because it doesn’t require one to commit days of reading as compared to her more famous writings (Atlas Shrugged, The Fountainhead).
I will leave you with some of my favorite quotes. (These will make more sense after you’ve read it)
“MY HANDS… MY SPIRIT… My sky… My forest.”
“This is a great sin, to be born with a head which is too quick. It is not good to be different from our brothers, but it is evil to be superior to them.”
“The secrets of this earth are not for all men to see, but only for those who will seek them.”
Before attempting to consider reading anything by Ayn Rand I sought opinions of others and they are varied to say the least. What I’ve extrapolated is most whom are against her haven’t read her work and if they did they were forced to by coworkers or family. It’s hard to set ideological differences aside when reading people’s work which may cause cognitive dissonance. I’ve experienced this myself and I now find it invigorating despite the initial discomfort. Leave your dogma at the door.
I don’t subscribe to any canon 100% but I can definitely see where Rand was coming from with criticizing collectivism as she wrote this in 1937. I recommend this read because it doesn’t require one to commit days of reading as compared to her more famous writings (Atlas Shrugged, The Fountainhead).
I will leave you with some of my favorite quotes. (These will make more sense after you’ve read it)
“MY HANDS… MY SPIRIT… My sky… My forest.”
“This is a great sin, to be born with a head which is too quick. It is not good to be different from our brothers, but it is evil to be superior to them.”
“The secrets of this earth are not for all men to see, but only for those who will seek them.”