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Tag Archives: alien abduction

Dark Class (Class 5, #5) by Michelle Diener – Review

02 Monday May 2022

Posted by WWMB in Book Review

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5 stars, AI ship, alien abduction, aliens, Book Review, human interaction with aliens, romance, scifi, scifi romance, spaceships

Review of Dark Class

Book 5 in the Class 5 series stays true to form.  An ordinary woman from earth, going up against the bad guys of the galaxy with an AI and an attractive, sympathetic, elf-like alien to help her. 

Like her predecessors, Ellie has no extraordinary military, physics or astronaut training.  So, when she wakes up, alone, at a strange moon station she is way out of her league.  Make that way out of her solar system. 

Ellie puts the pieces together with the help of the disembodied voice.  The AI, Paxe, talks to her through communication systems and robots.  Paxe helps her survive and clues her in that the Grih may be her saviors.  When the Grih arrive, she thinks she is saved – but it is not going to be that easy. 

Renn, the Grih captain has been chasing a Tecran ship for weeks.  Lately, Tecrans have become the local villains, but are supposed to be surrendering and working on becoming better citizens.  But the Tecran captain knows that there is incriminating evidence at the moon base. 

Dark Class is a minute-by-minute, tense showdown between opposing sides with survival on the line for everybody.  The dangers of the moon, alien technology, and beings fighting for their lives makes this a page-turning action-packed story.  Fans of the Class 5 series will not want to miss this one.  But reading entire series is not necessary.  Dark Class stands well on its own.  Also, a new kind of AI is introduced….maybe leading to more stories.  That would be awesome.

Thanks to the author who provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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About Dark Matters by Michelle Diener

Waking up alone . . . Ellie Masters comes out of a coma to find herself the only inhabitant of an eerily empty moon station. She’s not on Earth any more, she’s not even in the right solar system. So when someone reaches out to her, tells her he’s her friend, she’s happy to believe it. The alternative is to be stuck alone with an enemy.

The hunt of his career . . . Grih Battle Center captain, Renn Sorvihn, has been chasing a rogue Tecran ship for over a month, convinced its captain is simply trying to delay his inevitable surrender and punishment. But when Renn follows the Tecran ship into an uncharted sector, and realises the Tecran have been working their way to a secret moon base for weeks, he suddenly understands things are most definitely not as they seem.

Caught in the crossfire . . . When the Tecran arrive, with the Grih hot on their heels, Ellie finds herself the catalyst for heightened danger to everyone. The Tecran see her as evidence of their military’s crimes, the Grih see her as a massive diplomatic complication, and her presence brings the whole confrontation up several thousand notches.

But Ellie isn’t alone, and her new friend has ways to help her. Time to outclass them all . . .

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Dark Matters (Class 5, #4) by Michelle Diener – Review

30 Wednesday Oct 2019

Posted by WWMB in Book Review

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5 stars, AI ship, alien abduction, aliens, Book Review, human interaction with aliens, Michelle Diener, romance, scifi, scifi romance, spaceships


About Dark Matters by Michelle Diener

A time bomb, waiting to go off . . .

Lucy Harris is on the run, not sure where she can turn to for help, or if help is even available. But even as her abductors chase her down, she realizes they don’t just want to recapture her, they want to erase her.

When your very existence puts a planet at the risk of war, there’s no choice but to do everything in your power to stay out of your enemies hands.

A predator . . . waiting for the chance to pounce

The powerful AI battleship, Bane, is accompanying the United Council envoy to Tecra to mete out the punishment the Tecrans have earned for breaking UC law. He revels in the power he’s about to have over his old masters. But his mission isn’t only to rain down retribution on the people who kept him chained for years, he’s also looking for a human woman his fellow Class 5 thinking system mentioned in the final seconds of his life. Paxe admitted to taking Lucy Harris from Earth, and Bane has been looking for her ever since.

A warrior conflicted . . .

Commander Dray Helvan thinks the Grih made a mistake in not pushing for war with the Tecran, but he’s had to accept the compromise, that he and the other envoys from the United Council will go to Tecra and dismantle its military from the top down. His mission is not one of his choosing, but when he and his team arrive, he’s handed a very different job. While he distrusts Bane on principle, when the thinking system tells him there’s a woman running for her life on the planet below, he will do whatever he has to to see her safe. And if that means war for Tecra, well, then it means war.

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Review of Dark Matters

In Dark Matters, Michelle Diener takes the adventure planetside to Tecra, home of the species that has been out there making trouble. The Tecrans, subverting the law in their part of the galaxy, are the instigators in this series. The rest of the UC (mostly) are the law and some of the good guys.

In previous books in the Class 5 series, the UC has attempted, with a fair amount of success, to quash the Tecran attempts. They have found and freed 3 humans, and 4 Class 5s, while a 5th Class 5 blew itself up. As far as anyone knows, there are no more Class 5s and no more imprisoned sentient beings. Meanwhile, in order to make sure the Tecran military is no longer causing problems, the UC sends a coalition to, effectively, occupy Tecra. This seemed a bit high handed to me at first. Then I thought about the Tecran military and their part in all the trouble. And I sort of agreed that taking control of Tecra from the top down, was needed.

Turns out, this was wise thinking. The Tecran military was hiding the fact that there was another imprisoned Earth woman. Lucy Harris’ escape, early in the book, is the catalyst for all the conflict and action.

Bane is the Class 5 ship that is angry with all Tecrans and would really like some revenge. But first, he will do whatever it takes to save Lucy. Helping Bane search for Lucy, is the Grih commander Dray Helvan. There were several, ‘almost saved’ moments for Lucy, but the Tecran military (and by now, it becomes apparent that this is a renegade portion of the military) always seemed to come between Lucy and her salvation.

The romance between Lucy and Dray was fast and fueled by the heat of the moment. Lucy herself, is a ‘make the most of right now’ type of woman, so I thought the romance aspect of Dark Matters worked well.

I really liked the planetary setting for a change in this series and a look at the Tecran people, most of who were unaware of the military actions. Yet they must put up with the discipline imposed on Tecra. This made for a bit of moral reflection on the part of the occupiers and also, for Bane. If the series continues, I will be interested to see where this goes on the planet Tecra.

Each book in the Class 5 series can be read as a standalone story, so you can start the series at any point. I can recommend all 4 books: Dark Horse, Dark Deeds, Dark Minds and Dark Matters.

Thanks to the author who provided a copy of her book in exchange for my honest review.

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The Survival Trilogy by T.J. and M.L. Wolf – Series Review

17 Monday Jun 2019

Posted by WWMB in Book Review

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3-4 stars, alien abduction, aliens, aliens on earth, ancient lore, Book Review, conspiracy, Hopi, M.L. Wolf, mystery, scifi, T.J. Wolf

I recently had the opportunity to binge read a 3-book series.  So today’s review is for all three books in The Survival Trilogy by T.J. and M.L. Wolf.  I’ve tried to keep spoilers out of it, so it should be fairly safe to read all about all three books.  So here are all three book blurbs, followed by my review.

About A Gleam of Light

In 1995, at the age of eight, Una Waters survived a terrifying encounter at 30,000 feet aboard Flight 564 from Dallas to Las Vegas. It changed her forever. After 21 years, and a decade away from the Hopi Reservation where she grew up as a child, a surprise plea for help brings Una back, to solve a mystery that threatens their traditional way of life. The U.S. Army’s sudden interest regarding a cave discovery in the Sacred Peaks has triggered alarm, leading to violence. With the help of friends, new and old, Una must confront her painful past, seek proof to qualify the ancient site for protection under law, and stand up to a stiff-necked general, whose agenda is more concerned with retrieving a mysterious power source.

About The Dragon’s Glare

In 2019, three years after recovery of a powerful Hopi artifact from a mystery cave in Arizona, Una Waters finds herself on special assignment from D.C. to Chinatown in New York City. Unexplained acts of violence, including a cyber breach at the NYPD threaten to disrupt the lives of immigrants, forcing military intervention from General Ashcroft, now with U.S. Cyber Security. When newshound and compadre Jack Howser arrives to investigate a reported UFO sighting, Una begins to realize an episode of “missing time” at the Chinese New Year’s parade may hold the answers. Finally, an out-of-this-world encounter confirms Una’s childhood beliefs in Sky People, hinting that our future lies in accepting the fact that we are not alone.

About Beyond the World

In 2020, a year after an out-of-this-world encounter in Chinatown, Una Waters ventures into Yosemite National Park with General Ashcroft, on their honeymoon. When a coded distress call pulls him unexpectedly away on duty, Una uncovers a UFO mystery and turns to compadre Jack Howser for help. Joined by friends from Explorers Club, their quest for answers leads to a string of unworldly campsites, ancient caves, living pterosaurs, and a military manhunt–all fueled by an Alien conspiracy that threatens the survival of humanity! Una comes to realize that Fear of the Unknown may be our greatest obstacle, and the fight to overcome it requires Transformation: a willingness to let go of the Lies we hold dear.

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Review of The Survival Trilogy Series

A Gleam of Light – 4 stars

A Gleam of Light is my favorite of The Survival Trilogy. I am appreciative of character-driven plots, and book 1 did a great job of defining the three main protagonists of the story. Una Waters, the Hopi Indian woman, Jack Howser, the reporter and Colin Ashcroft, US Army General. The three actually met briefly as children on an airplane flight that happened to bump into a mysterious UFO. Years later, fate brings them together again as the military develops a sudden interest in something on Hopi land.

Una’s childhood with her parents and later, her government job serve as her background to becoming the Hopi representative to face the Army and help protect the land. Jack is the reporter digging up a story and Colin is the general in charge of the Army operation to determine what is under the mountain on the Hopi land.

Kids getting into trouble, mysterious effects of touching an ancient artifact, the need to protect the land and the desire to learn the truth all affect the story that has an end that is also a beginning. There is a hint of a coming change and people like Una may be the ones to best make sense of it and survive the aftereffects.

The Dragon’s Glare – 3.5 stars

In New York City, 3 years later, a mysterious cyber attack is blamed on the Chinese. Colin Ashroft, now in charge of US Cyber Security, is there investigate.  Jack Howser is following up on reported UFO sitings and Una Waters is on special assignment. Again, fate reunites the three as they struggle to make sense of the violence in the streets, a mysterious underground organization and Una’s own lost time that may have been an alien abduction.

In book two, the plot is driven more by action than characters and the writing begins to take on a bit of a disjointed feel in several spots due to an absence of detail. Re-reading sections kept me on track, but the ominscient point of view lacked character connections. Una remains the main character keeps the story going.

The alien connection is ever present. Never thoroughly explained, only speculated. So is Una’s connection to the aliens and their future.

Book 2 introduces a new character, Rufus, who is the computer geek. He adds a little more interest to the story and risks his life to save Una during an pretty spectacular UFO incident. I really liked him and wanted more of Rufus in the story.

The climax of the story involves the perceived attack by the Chinese and the American response to it. The resolution of the conflict is the twist that wraps up the story, adds to the mysterious and keeps it the series going.

Beyond the World – 3.5 stars

On their honeymoon, Una and Colin can’t stay out of trouble. Make that troubles – of the alien and unexplained natures. And wouldn’t you know it, Jack shows up too. Along with a group of Explorer Club Kids, they hike through the forests and mountains of Yosemite. Along the way the weird and wonderful and often dangerous encounters never stop.

As group, they encounter all sorts of strange things including dinosaur-like creatures, mysterious abandoned camps, an AWOL soldier/friend of Colin and, of course, UFO sightings. Book 3 is pretty much all action.

Book 3 seemed to be about throwing out esoteric bits of information about the unexplained and the known. And then hoping the reader made a connection. Not all those interesting facts meshed well with the story. Interesting, but I would really have preferred the story to concentrate on only a few of those interesting things. Jack, as the reporter/researcher, is the spewer of much of that data, but it comes from other sources too. Bonus: you get to read about sea monkeys.

Book 3 lacked a well-defined plot, but with all the action, it might be difficult to notice. It did see the return of Rufus (from book 2) so that made me smile. You won’t believe where he has been!

Throughout the series, I really thought aliens would instigate a major upheaval in the state of the world and that Una would be well placed and equipped to deal with it and end up being the heroine. The series title includes the word ‘Survival’. However, that major change, hinted at over and over and over, did not occur in this book. The entire world survives. This left me no real sense of a conclusion. Only a sense of a possible future.

Alien conspiracy, Hopi, Chinese, similar ancient cultures separated by geography, invasion, military secrets and black ops, missile attack, red-yellow-white-black, teletransportation, alien abduction, transcendental wisdom. If any (or all) of these subjects have ever piqued your curiosity, The Survival Trilogy is what you should be reading. The Survival Trilogy is a good one for anyone who likes to have something to really ponder after the last page is turned.

Thanks to the authors who provided copies of their books in exchange for my honest review.

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