At Nerdarchy.com: My gaming resolutions for 2016

My weekly article at Nerdarchy.com lists my 2016 resolutions as related to tabletop role playing games. The big gist is that I'll be looking to expanding my horizons by playing new games, unfamiliar roles, and with new players.

Books read in 2015: No. 43 -- The Night of the Long Knives

by Fritz Leiber

Started: Dec. 27
Finished: Dec. 30

Notes: I'd never heard of this novel from this famous sci-fi/fantasy author, so I grabbed it for free at Amazon when I discovered it. Apparently it is a post-apocalyptic novel and has nothing to do with the infamous events in German history that bear the same name as the title.

Mini review: Holy shit, that was a good book, the best I've read in a long while. And the weird thing is, when I stop and think about the story, none of it should work, but it does. It's kind of a Mad Max meets 1950s science fiction tale, but honestly, there's not that much action. There is a little action, but most of it is the main character's viewpoint thoughts or his talking with others. I realize that doesn't sound all that exciting, but I promise, here it works. And deep down, or maybe not so deep, this is a philosophical book with a moral, talking about murder and war and violence. I'm sorry I hadn't read this one years earlier. This might now be my all-time favorite work from Leiber.

Books read in 2015: No. 42 -- White Space: Episode 1

by Sean Platt and David Wright

Started: Dec. 24
Finished: Dec. 27

Notes: These authors have worked together before to publish episodic fiction, much like an ongoing television show. I've read some of their work before and enjoyed it, so I thought I'd give them another go.

Mini review: These guys definitely know how to write like it's for television, slowly building an intense plot until it reaches a solid cliff hanger. Here a tragic event in a small town seems to have some rather unusual, perhaps supernatural repercussions.

Books read in 2015: No. 41 -- Inspector Zhang Gets His Wish

by Stephen Leather

Started: Dec. 23
Finished: Dec. 23

Notes: Yet another thriller writer I've been meaning to check out.

Mini review: I can't say I found the writing particularly strong in this locked-room mystery set in Singapore, but the characters and tale did have a certain goofy charm that made up for a lot. Not bad.

Books read in 2015: No. 40 -- 1000 Yards

by Mark Dawson

Started: Dec. 20
Finished: Dec. 23

Notes: Here's another thriller author I've been meaning to check out.

Mini review: This tale of an MI5 agent sneaking into North Korea to assassinate a group of officials didn't resonate with me, but that's okay as not every book is for everybody. The writing was decent enough, but I never grew to care for any of the characters, nor did I ever feel a real sense of tension, more of a feeling of a guy just going through his daily job.

At Nerdarchy.com: 'Twas the Night Before Gaming

This week over at Nerdarchy.com, I get a little silly with the holiday spirit and post "A Visit from St. Cuthbert," my D&D version of "A Visit from St. Nick." FYI: Cuthbert is a god in the D&D World of Greyhawk setting, as well as actually having been a saint in our real world.

Books read in 2015: No. 39 -- Jet

by Russell Blake

Started: Dec. 13
Finished: Dec. 20

Notes: For the last few years this indie thriller author has been tearing up the Amazon sales ranks, the New York Times charts, and all kinds of bestseller lists. This is the first book in his series about a Mossad agent who fakes her own death to escape her former life. Sounds interesting enough to me.

Mini review: The Jet character is quite intriguing, even more so in the end than the beginning, and the writing here is solid, but most of the side characters felt generic to me and little here ever felt real, more like I was in on a joke with the author while we were watching a spy movie together. If that made sense. Still, not bad and it did entertain.