Baskerville Book Reviews – Page 39 – Honest opinions from a lifelong book lover.

Review: The Fork, the Witch, and the Worm: Eragon

It’s been a year since Eragon departed Alagaësia in search of the perfect home to train a new generation of Dragon Riders.

Now he is struggling with an endless sea of tasks: constructing a vast dragonhold, wrangling with suppliers, guarding dragon eggs and dealing with belligerent Urgals and haughty elves. Then a vision from the Eldunarí, unexpected visitors and an exciting Urgal legend offer a much-needed distraction and a new perspective.

This volume features three original stories set in Alagaësia, interspersed with scenes from Eragon’s own unfolding adventure. Included is an excerpt from the memoir of the unforgettable witch and fortune-teller Angela the herbalist, penned by Angela Paolini, the inspiration for the character, herself!

Relish the incomparable imagination of Christopher Paolini in this thrilling new collection of stories based in the world of the Inheritance Cycle.

Review: Summer Frost (Forward collection)

A video game developer becomes obsessed with a willful character in her new project, in a mind-bending exploration of what it means to be human by the New York Times bestselling author of Recursion.

Maxine was made to do one thing: die. Except the minor non-player character in the world Riley is building makes her own impossible decision—veering wildly off course and exploring the boundaries of the map. When the curious Riley extracts her code for closer examination, an emotional relationship develops between them. Soon Riley has all new plans for her spontaneous AI, including bringing Max into the real world. But what if Max has real-world plans of her own?

Blake Crouch’s Summer Frost is part of Forward, a collection of six stories of the near and far future from out-of-this-world authors. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single thought-provoking sitting.

Review: Ark (Forward collection)

On the eve of Earth’s destruction, a young scientist discovers something too precious to lose, in a story of cataclysm and hope by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Divergent trilogy.

It’s only two weeks before an asteroid turns home to dust. Though most of Earth has already been evacuated, it’s Samantha’s job to catalog plant samples for the survivors’ unknowable journey beyond. Preparing to stay behind and watch the world end, she makes a final human connection.

As certain doom hurtles nearer, the unexpected and beautiful potential for the future begins to flower.

Veronica Roth’s Ark is part of Forward, a collection of six stories of the near and far future from out-of-this-world authors. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single thought-provoking sitting.

Review: Hellboy Omnibus Boxed Set

Hellboy’s major story, available in a special box set for the first time featuring slipcase art by the creator himself!

Previously available only as individual volumes, all four Hellboy series omnibuses (Seed of Destruction; Strange Places; The Wild Hunt; and Hellboy in Hell) are available together in a specially designed collection! Featuring an exclusive box with new art by Mike Mignola, expertly colored by Dave Stewart, this set is a marvel both inside and out.

Experience the original series through new eyes with this boxed edition set, featuring story and art by Mike Mignola, Duncan Fegredo, Richard Corben, Dave Stewart, and more!

Collects complete set of Hellboy omnibuses volumes 1-4.

Review: Great Illustrated Classics: Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Hound of the Baskervilles

For generations, readers have enjoyed classic literature. They have delighted in the romance of Jane Austen, thrilled at the adventures of Jules Verne, and pondered the lessons of Aesop. Introduce young readers to these familiar volumes with Great Illustrated Classics. In this series, literary masterworks have been adapted for young scholars. Large, easy-to-read type and charming pen-and-ink drawings enhance the text. Students are sure to enjoy becoming acquainted with traditional literature through these well-loved classics.

Review: The Names of the Dead

They locked him up. Now he’s out–for revenge.

Former CIA officer James ‘Wes’ Wesley paid the ultimate price for his patriotism when he was locked up in a French jail for an anti-terror operation gone wrong–abandoned by the Agency he served, shunned by his colleagues and friends, cut off from his family.

Now he is shattered by the news that his ex-wife, Rachel, a State Department analyst, has been killed in a terrorist attack in Spain. He also discovers that his young son, Ethan, is missing. But Wes didn’t know he had a son–until now.

Why was Rachel in Spain? And why did she keep his son secret from him?

Granted early release, Wes takes flight across Europe to search for the truth and exact his revenge. But can he catch the spies who betrayed him before they track him down? In order to find the answers and save his son, Wes realises he must confront the dark secrets in his own past–before it’s too late.

Review: Blue Madagascar

A candidate’s suicide. A death on the French Riviera. And a secret men will kill for.

A candidate for U.S. President, ahead in the polls and about to win the election, suddenly commits suicide. No one knows why. A mysterious woman the media has dubbed “the Invisible Woman” may hold the key.

During a botched jewel heist on the French Riviera, an American bystander is killed. This death triggers a worldwide hunt by intelligence agencies for something the dead American left behind – a secret so explosive they will let nothing get in their way.

U.S. Homeland Security Special Agent Casey Ramirez is a young woman with a troubled past. On the trail of a human trafficking ring, she uncovers a clue involving the dead American in France. The discovery catapults her into a deadly cat-and-mouse chase across Europe to find the dead man’s secret before it’s too late.

Review: That First Client: Find and Attract Your First Ideal Client

You’ve hung out your shingle “open for business,” but hear crickets. Where are your clients?
You’re an intelligent, confident woman—running a business shouldn’t be so difficult! Doubts creep in, and you begin to wonder, “Did I make a mistake?”No! You didn’t. You need a practical and easily implemented marketing strategy—and someone to guide you, cheer you on, and stop you from quitting. Filled with practical exercises and tried-and-true marketing methods, That First Client is the answer to your question: How do I get that first client? With this book in hand, you’re about to find out. And all without overwhelm!

Review: Blood in the Water : A True Story of Small-Town Revenge

A brutal murder in a small Nova Scotia fishing community raises urgent questions of right and wrong, and even the nature of good and evil, in this masterfully told true story.

Blood in the Water offers a dramatic narrative set in a unique, lovingly drawn setting, where a story about one small community has universal resonance and raises a disturbing question: Are there times when taking the law into your own hands is not only understandable but the responsible thing to do?

This is a story not about lobster, but about the grand themes of power and law, security and self-respect.

In June 2013, three upstanding citizens of a small town on Cape Breton Island murdered their neighbor, Phillip Boudreau, at sea.

While out checking their lobster traps, two Landry cousins and skipper Dwayne Samson saw Boudreau in his boat, the Midnight Slider, about to vandalize their lobster traps. Like so many times before, the small-time criminal was about to cost them thousands of dollars out of their seasonal livelihood.

Boudreau seemed invincible, a miscreant who would plague the village forever. Meanwhile the police and local officials were frustrated, cowed, and hobbled by shrinking budgets.

One man took out a rifle and fired four shots at Boudreau and his boat.

Was the Boudreau killing cold blooded murder, a direct reaction to credible threats, or the tragic result of local officials lacking the resources and authority to protect the community? As many local people have said, if those fellows hadn’t killed him, someone else would have.

Review: The Legend of Korra: The Art of the Animated Series–Book Two: Spirits (Second Edition)

Go behind the scenes of the animated series Legend of Korra Book Two – Spirits—created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko—the smash hit sequel to their blockbuster show Avatar: The Last Airbender!

This handsome hardcover contains hundreds of art pieces created during the development of the show’s first season, along with new sketches from the original creative team! Featuring creator commentary from DiMartino and Konietzko and a brand-new foreword by Korra voice actor P.J. Byrne, this is an intimate look inside the creative process that brought a new generation of Avatar heroes to life!