David Bushman

This book sounds up-front like the perfect kind of book for me. It's got a punny title, it's a LitFPS, and it doesn't take itself too seriously. While there are some deeper thoughts and themes in the book, they aren't the focus. This fits the game-aspect perfect, I feel. Video games also sometimes have deep themes, but the focus is on the gameplay mechanics and the boss battles.

Before I get too far in this review, I have to admit that I did frequently skim over the bits where we were getting game progress updates. While I enjoy LitRPGs, the part I like reading about the best in that genre is how the different ability trees work or what different upgrades do. I'm personally not nearly as interested in weapon stats or how much ammo the character is picking up. This might be a LitRPG vs. LitFPS thing, though. I'm not sure: this is the first LitFPS I've read.

I came across several instances where it seemed the wrong homonym was used. However, there was never a case of me being confused by what was meant. These homonyms did break the reading flow for a moment while I mentally substituted the correct spelling, but ultimately it didn't have much impact on my enjoyment levels.

There are several fun characters in the book, though some of them are an acquired taste. Paulie in particular takes some getting used to... and I never quite did. He was amusing, but very crass. Honestly, the characters I liked best were the ones that MC Cam met for the first time after the apocalypse started. There were some fun side characters to get to know, including Rory (effectively the game guide). The two people Cam knew from before the invasion—Paulie and Sandra—were two of my least favorite side characters in the book.

If this was a movie, it would be the kind of movie my family used to call "a BDF"—or "big dumb fun." It's over-the-top, fast-paced, and just fun. It's not too deep, there's no hidden meaning or puzzles. It's there for pure entertainment. Don't think about it much, just enjoy the ride.

One word of warning for ebook readers, though: at the time I read it, the Kindle Unlimited version had no chapter break links. It was not a problem while reading, but it made searching for my place hard when I went back to look something up from earlier in the book.

This is book one of a series, and you can tell: there's definitely a set-up for a sequel in the final mission that Cam and his squad tackle in this book. Earth is far from liberated from the alien menace. However, this does a very nice job of wrapping up the book-specific action and bringing things to a satisfying conclusion for the first book.

I am a fan of LitRPGs, so I had fun with this romp of a book. However, while I would happily recommend it to fans of the genre, I would NOT recommend it to anyone who doesn't like the genre. Also, I would hesitate before recommending it to new LitRPG readers. If you go into this without knowing what the genre is like, it might not be as enjoyable. I do think that it could be a good intro to LitRPGs (or LitFPS in this case) but the game elements are prominent enough that I think the target audience is definitely limited. For that audience, however, this is a fast-paced and amusing read.

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I read this book as part of the judging process for the 3rd Self Published Science Fiction Competition (SPSFC3), and while I was provided a review copy for judging purposes I read the book using the version available on Kindle Unlimited. My opinions are my own and do not reflect the thoughts of my SPSFC3 team or the competition as a whole.… (mehr)

The authors here investigate a murder that occurred near Troy, New York in 1908 that caused a brief, nation-wide sensation, as it involved a beautiful young girl with a very mysterious lifestyle. Where did a housemaid get the wherewithal to have nice clothes and travel? And who were the men that sent her such mash notes? And why were certain members of her family acting in such a strange fashion? The authors do a good job at reconstructing the investigation that was undertaken by the District Attorney, albeit I believe they used the old dodge of made-up dialogue in certain sections. The authors come up with a solution that, while it is certainly plausible, is based on a great many assumptions and circumstantial evidence, and isn't completely convincing. Still, the authors do a good job of setting time and place. The foreword to the book (and for that matter, the title) links the crime to probably its greatest influence -- it was a direct inspiration for the famous "Twin Peaks" television show, since one of the creators spent time as a child in the area of the murder, and had been told stories about it.… (mehr)

In 1908 the body of the young, blonde, and beautiful Hazel Drew was found floating face down in Teal’s Pond in Sand Lake, New York. In 1990 the television drama Twin Peaks debuted with the discovery of the body of the young, blond and beautiful Laura Palmer, dead by the side of a river.

The authors of Murder at Teal’s Pond are huge fans of Twin Peaks. Bushman is a curator at the Paley Center for Media and a former editor of Variety who has written books on Twin Peaks. Givens is host of the podcast Deer Meadow Radio, which has Twin Peaks as its focus.

So, what’s the connection between the TV show and the murder at the heart of their book? It comes from Mark Frost, David Lynch’s co-creator on Twin Peaks. His maternal grandparents owned a farmhouse in Sand Lake, and his grandmother used to tell him ghost stories about the murdered girl whose body was discovered in the pond.

When Bushman heard Frost tell the story of Hazel Drew in an interview, he contacted Frost for his blessing on a book project about Drew. Frost readily agreed, and wrote the foreword to the book.

The two authors spent five years researching the story of Hazel’s murder and have produced a book that is a rewardingly deep dive into the 1908 communities of Sand Lake and Troy, New York. But the true crime story at the heart of the book is frustrating. Hazel Drew’s murder was never solved. The authors provide possible reasons why, and speculate as to who the actual murderers may have been. But over 100 years after the fact they can’t do much more than that.

I enjoyed reading this book primarily because of my interest in history. The pictures the authors paint of life in 1908 have great detail, and there are a number of photos that help you to put yourself back into that time period. It’s clear that a lot of research went into the book. If you are a history buff you’ll enjoy this book.

A drawback though is the limited scope of the story. Confined to the greater Albany area of New York, it may not appeal to a wide range of history fans.

As for everyone else? Well, true crime fans will find the history perhaps a little TOO detailed for their liking. The inconclusiveness of the real life mystery will frustrate many. From a historical perspective I appreciated that the authors didn’t try to slant the book toward their conclusion too soon. But I suspect true crime fans will hate that, and it doesn’t make for a compelling arc to the murder mystery.

In his Foreword, Frost talks about “the pervasive threat of sexual violence that women face on an everyday basis” as being the thread that ties Laura Palmer and Hazel Drew. If the authors could have found a way to put that theme more front and center in the book, it would have been a much better read.

Murder at Teal’s Pond is a Two Star ⭐⭐ read for me. I enjoyed the history in the book, but ultimately was disappointed at the inconclusiveness of the main story.… (mehr)