Phil Rossi: Crescent Part 16

A new episode of Phil Rossi’s Crescent dropped this morning along with the great news that Jane has had a baby girl (and my spelling is rubbish but) called Bren Ashlin (sorry if I have mangled that) – so congratulations Phil.

The episode opens in Heathens with an unhappy Gerald meeting with Alvin and Jacob. Gerald gets away with a lie about what he told Nigel. They pass Gerald a Data Wafer with the co-ordinates of Geralds next salvage mission or as we know it Daros’s trap, but Gerald suspects it is a trap and decides to go anyway.

Next we catch up with Marisa and she is meeting with Captain Benedict and she finds out that she is benched, and then reinstated but has nothing to do with Nigel Swaren and is on deck duty. Marisa can not remember what she did to Mayor Kendall and has been under house arrest since the fight. After she leaves the Captain she bumps into Ina and there is a glimmer of recognition but neither of them can put their fingers on it.

Ina has been to the doctors to get medication for her father who has been sick for days. On arriving back at the apartment Donovan’s bed is empty and Ina cannot find him. A growl from above her is Donovan hanging on the ceiling, red flashes across her and a voice talks about the Key. Donovan falls and tells Ina everything is purple.

Next we are on Bean with Gerald, and Bean is not happy, then six raiders appear and lock their weapons onto Bean. A chase takes place as Gerald tries to find enough space for Bean to warp out of their. Then they come across a partially built structure floating as a call comes in from Nigel Swaren who demands they get out of there once Beans location is relayed back to him. Guns from the structure move round to take out the raiders… and then they target onto Bean as they are in a clear enough space to warp out of there…

Finally we are back on Crescent Station and in Nigel’s office as he loses the connection with Bean, and it becomes clear that Capt. Benedict is in the doorway. Gerald checks back in he has escapes. Nigel worries that Kendall knows about Galletia (again spelling not to sure), and orders that Gerald comes back quietly and calls him as soon as he is landed.

Episode Link

What can I say that I haven’t said already, this story is fantastic, does Kendall know about XX. As I have mentioned I am not around next week so there will be no updates on this for around a fortnight.

Scott Sigler: Passenger Part 1

A pleasant surprise yesterday evening a new Scott Sigler short story was waiting for me in iTunes, and it is a two 0r three parter.

The story is set in the Rookie universe a few hundred years before the Rookie (2568). The story focuses on Marcus leading a team into the aftermath of a nuclear attack on a planet. We get to met the Ki, Sklorno and Quyth warriors again ahead of “The Starter” which is nice. Anyway, onto the story the ship crashes and Marcus and his team are caught in a crossfire and come up against some serious next generation kit…

Episode Link

Scott is also at Dragon*Con at the weekend so I don’t expect an episode at the weekend, but as mentioned I am away next week so I won’t be commenting until a week Monday anyway.

Nocturnal is now looking like an October release date and there is lots of chatter and calls at the end of this episode, some updates from Scott on Earthcore II Mt Fitzroy, Ancestor II Descendent and things are not looking good, Scott didn’t/couldn’t go into too much detailbut I get the impression someone (Dragon Moon ?) think they own the rights to the sequels and Scott doesn’t agree. A damn shame, I was really looking forward to Mt Fitzroy…

Sports Talk Underground: 4.015

The final of the divisional preview shows dropped yesterday and I caught it on the way home last night.

This is the division that Larry and Ryan consider to be the toughest to call in the NFL, they make a good case for the Steelers and the Bengals.

Episode Link

That is it, the divisional previews are done, the ninth tie up show, picks that stick is to come and then it is football season

JC Hutchins: 7th Son Book 3 Episode7

The 8th episode of J.C. Hutchins 7th Son Novel dropped this morning and I listened to it this morning on the way to work.

The story focuses on the fate of Thomas and the delegates on the Evactus train. The group in the UN Assembly Hall start to think of a way to stop the train without using the brakes (as that is where the Nuke is wired to). Killroy 2.0 manages to persuade General Hill to give them his Code Phantom id and password so that they can access the Evactus schemas on the UN site.

Jack and John are discussing how to stop the train when John recalls his adventures in Alaska and the articulated truck and asks Vinnj if it is possible to decouple the train from the carriages. It seems that there is an emergency release switch in the train that will release the carriages and apply emergency brakes in the carriages leaving the bomb behind. The only problem is that whoever presses the release switch will have to jump back to the carriages whilst they are slowing and the engine is accelerating.

They pass the news onto Thomas and Thomas is the man for the job. He heads into the engine. As he gets into the engine he finds another murdered engineer and spies the Nuke. As he describes the bomb to the others General Hill informs everyone it is a Red Mercury bomb and not to be messed with. As Thomas braces himself for pressing the button and the leap back to the carriages Thomas is attacked by a Devlin that fell of the train in the fight and stabbed several times. Another fight occurs and a fatally wounded Thomas disables Devlin. Thomas releases the carriages and gives Devlin the last rites as the Red Mercury bomb detonates…

Episode Link

Another fantastic episode, I was just gripped from beginning to end. I did think that when a voice came over the intercom and Devlin attacked it was Alpha hacked into the comm link, but again I was wrong.

I won’t be doing an update next week as I am on Holiday, so I will have a fortnight to wait for the next step in the story.

Jack Palms 2: This is Life 13

It was a Bank Holiday yesterday so this morning’s drive to work was Seth Harwood’s Jack Palms 2 episode 14.

We pick up the story with Jack and Jane Gannon on the balcony and Jack is asking about the girls. It seems that Akeyovik is bring in young girls and then selling them to the city’s high rollers on an exclusive deal. So the girl that was killed in O’Malley’s car was O’Malley’s girl and that was how he knew that he was out and was ready to come in. Akeyovik now is not only into selling the girls but protecting his list of clients, some of San Francisco’s big names, and that is his main business. Now the FBI suspect that Akeyovik is using the privacy and the fact that the civil leaders are involved to get things that money can not buy.

Gannon gets a call and they have found another dead girl. Jack and Jane Gannon head over to the crime scene they chat about who’s girl was the last victim, Jack is worried that it is Mills Hopkins but Jane reassures him that Hopkins was a damn good cop and not involved.

The current dead girl is left on the street with no one seeing the body dumped, however Jane recognises the girl, on a past mission she was protecting the Mayor’s residence and the Mayor told her it was his daughter…

Episode Link

Another great episode and good news for Seth, Jack Wakes Up has found a publisher – or rather through Seth and his agents hard work Jack Wakes Up will be available to buy in March next year.

In other news it is Dragon*Con next week so there will be no episode (which is quite good as I am on holiday anyway so not blogging or listening to podcasts)

Larry From the Underground: Episode 18

Another show from Larry Dyer from Sports Talk Underground dropped yesterday and I caught it on my way to work.

The is an NFL related country fair with some Mike Vick chatter and a mention on preseason injuries.

This weeks main event is Larry’s story on why he is such a big fan of KISS and as with all thing Dyer it is about the family.

Random thoughts end on an emotional moment from Larry and we are through for another week.

Give these guys a listen, I can’t praise the Sports Talk Underground highly enough (if you hadn’t already guessed), I also believe their NFL recap show cover 32 returns this year for a second season.

Sports Talk Underground: 4.013 & 4.014

Both of these episodes arrived yesterday and I caught them last night and this morning.

I can’t believe that we are now seven episodes into the return of the Sports Talk Underground, it really feels like they have never been away. Larry and Ryan breakdown the both the AFC and NFC West in these two shows.

Episode Link 4.013
Episode Link 4.014

Just a quick note, the prediction competition closes next Friday so head over to SportsTalkUnderground or mail them in to promotions@sportstalkunderground.com

Phil Rossi: Crescent Part 15

A new episode of Phil Rossi’s Crescent arrived this morning, and I listened to it on the way to work. After two long episodes this is a more manageable 25 minutes.

The story centres this week on Donovan Cortez. He grills Ina about the trip to Onra 3 and why she didn’t bring anything back. This is a guilt trip as he saw Ina hide the rock in her draw. Ina then tells Donovan that she is pregnant – it is not Gerald’s but her lab assistants from way back.

Donovan steals the Sangineite rock and hides it in his own drawers. Donovan experiences a dream where the Sangineite is carved into a beetle (or a scarab) and is used as a key. There is then violet light and Donovan gets his old surgical tools and carves the rock into the beetle…

Episode Link

There was no chatter this week, I guess that Jane has had her baby. A great episode it really does seem that things are coming to a head on Crescent Station

JC Hutchins: 7th Son Book 3 Episode7

Caught the latest episode of JC Hutchins 7th Son trilogy on the way to work this morning and it was another ripper.

The episode opens with Father Thomas on the train (and no mention of the person behind him) and as he enters the next carriage he finds a grim sight, six brutally murdered passengers, and on General Hill’s urging he searches the bodies and realises that they are the Secret Service personal assigned to protect the President, so Thomas is on his own, so he arms himself an moves on through the train.

Next we head over the UN and the Marines have been ordered to withdraw for debriefing, also the one to blow up the line are to be withdrawn. Major Bennett also refuses to take the Clones with him.

Catching back up with Thomas again he moves on to the last car, the remaining cars were empty, as he enters the car it contains the delegates and the President. They are shell shocked and stunned looking defeated and beaten. There is no sign of Alpha and the Secretary General tells him Ghosts have attacked, and then two vapourware wearing Devlin’s attack Thomas.

Back in the Assembly Hall Jack, Killroy 2.0 and John contact General Hill and Hannah Vinnj listens in trying to get to the bottom of the situation, NSA agents are outside which she hasn’t authorised access to just yet. Is code phantom real, are they really clones, she can not decide.

There is a fantastic fight scene and this is transmitted to General Hill and the Clones with Vinnj listening on. Eventually Thomas stuns one, and then in the confusion President Hale shots the final Devlin. It is revealed through the fight that the train contains a Nuke, and Alpha is not on board…

Episode Link

Another drama filled episode, the commute from work flew by. I can’t see how Thomas gets out, but I assume he is going to rescue President Hale, but JC is not adverse to killing off his clones so we wait and see, next Wednesday can not come quickly enough.

Jack Palms 2: This is Life 12

Listened to Seth Harwood’s Jack Palms 2 on the way to work this morning.

We pick up the action again in the hospital room where Shaw is threatening to break Free’s fingers and Free comes up with a name, just O’Malleys partner. Shaw is not happy so he breaks Free little finger, as Jack intervenes again, Freeman gives up another name – Franklin Clarence is tied up tight with Akeyovik. Clarence is revealed to be the chief of the San Francisco police.

Shaw, Gannon and Jack retreat to the canteen and Gannon tells Shaw to head to Walnut Creek and arrange a raid on Prescott Court, careful not to include SFPD and alerting Clarence while Gannon takes Jack to a FBI safe house. On arriving at the sage house Jack is weighing up the options, run and hide from Akeyovik or go to the safe house, he chooses to trust Gannon. As they enter the safe house it is revealed that it is Gannon’s own home and that she is married to another FBI agent on the same case.

The penthouse apartment is expensive and filled with expensive furniture and as we meet Jane’s husband Tom he is cut off from explaining about the perks that comes with their status. Jane reveals that O’Malley’s killer is not what this is all about, we presume it is about taking down Akeyovik. Jane then receives a call, someone has tried to kill Freeman but Free has overpowered and killed his would be assassin. Jack states that the leak could only have come from the FBI.

The episode closes with Jack asking Jane about the murdered girls and what this is really about…

Episode Link

Another great episode from Seth, I am really not sure if I trust the Gannon’s but my radar has been well off target before, I guess they are going to be crucial to the plot and helping Jack out of his current problems. Anyway – give Jack Palms a listen and if you like it send Seth some love at sethharwood.com