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Return of the Spider
This is the kind of book that keeps you thinking, though, it really does. I don't read much James Patterson, but he never fails to deliver, at least in my eyes. The story was good, really good, and is a penchant for a good read. I can't fault it other than the book needs to finish and off the villain, though. It's too easy to get caught up in the fact that these days, a killer like Sonej wouldn't last too long, given modern systems and stuff like the ability to hide in plain
Eric Johnson
Apr 301 min read
Yes, I miss war
Okay, first things first. If you don’t know me, I am a US Army veteran who served 12 years of active duty and 3 years in the Army National Guard. Nothing is more exciting than the military was, and as somebody who served for 15 years, I miss it. Yes, the military is its own machine, and I find myself with the Iran war, wanting to participate. I am an action junkie, and therefore, the “thrill” of combat and the uncertainty drive me to play war games on the laptop I’m writing t
Eric Johnson
Apr 253 min read
Tides of Acerba: Paradisi Chronicles (Caelestis Series Book 4)
One thing I realized about this series is the amount of life in the stories. There are things that fly, things that do things in the land and sea, and that's animals. In my books, I hardly mention those things, and frankly, as a former Soldier, I was basically told not to mess with the wildlife. I kinda realist that David Drake was apparently told the same thing, and therefore in his stories (except for like one) he hardly mentions populated planets with wildlife. Anyway, the
Eric Johnson
Apr 161 min read
The Toll So Far
As of this writing, we’re, I guess, back at war with Iran. Why are we bombing Iran? Nobody, not even Trump, has a clue why he did it. They say he has contradictory behavior, so nobody knows his plans, and well, I don't think he knows what he’ll think next in a few minutes. It’s sad that people actually voted for this madness. On one hand, I don’t mind war; I served in Iraq and Afghanistan and didn’t flinch when it came down to the brass knuckles of fighting in those wars. I s
Eric Johnson
Apr 92 min read
Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2003 to 2005
As a young Sergeant who deployed to Iraq in 2004, I really didn't know the scope of what occurred prior to, and during this time, as reflected in the book. I remember the country flaring up during the first Fallujah, and I spent a week kicking in the doors. But as an FO, I didn't see the ultimate bigger picture of what had occurred prior to and during my time in-country. It's interesting that my Squadron Commander was in this book, if not just a few lines of words. Anyway, th
Eric Johnson
Apr 91 min read
Through Ddaera's Touch: Paradisi Chronicles (Caelestis Series Book 3)
What is different from the first book is the change in perspective, from first person to third person. It's fine, but overall shows a different outlook for the story in this book. I think the only "ding" is the dialogue's cleanliness. Somebody in at least Jaxon or Ford's mentality would curse more, but then again, of course, I don't decide what goes in that book, but that's my only critique of the story. Other than that, Louisa doesn't waste words and keeps it flowing nicely,
Eric Johnson
Mar 301 min read
Iran's Grand Strategy: A Political History
With the current conflict in Iran going, I thought to myself. "How about I learn some more about Iran", other than a book on the Iran-Contra Affair years ago. It was a good book, and shows what the methodology of the Iranian government, and how it came to be, up until I believe 2024, before Trump's second term. Overall it's a slow read, but informative. I skipped the nuclear deal stuff because well... I think I heard enough about it, and felt that while it's good to learn som
Eric Johnson
Mar 251 min read
Chickenhawks and Patriots
Chicken hawks and Patriots exist among us. What is interesting about “chickenhawks” is a rare sort of politician who never served, could have served, decided not to serve. Then they have the nerve to parrot war talking points, to the degree of some politicians, like Trump, to claim that they’re “more military than the military.” Which is surprising since the only exit strategy for Trump was to dodge the draft five times. That’s not right, and so do other “chickenhawks” like S
Eric Johnson
Mar 223 min read
Still At It...
So here we are, still at war. What is the strategy? I don’t know, and neither does our president, who started this war, to do… what? On one hand, as much as I dislike Trump and his political movement, he did get Iran back for all those deaths in Iraq during his first term. I understand Iran isn’t the best country in the world, but overall, I feel that you have to wonder what the fuck is going on with his mind. I don’t know what made him think (probably the Epstein Files were
Eric Johnson
Mar 172 min read
The Military Dimension: Mark II by David Drake
It's David Drake, and those who know, know. This is a compilation of his selected stories from Hammer's Slammers and another storyline that I'm not familiar with. Anyway, the book has a reference to his story of the Bolo super tank series, and probably the least liked of them, along with a couple others that I didn't read and like. As a military veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Afterword is perhaps the best that I've read so far by him. He acknowledges the wars
Eric Johnson
Mar 141 min read
The Rise and Fall of Skye Wright
Like all of Jeffrey Matucha's books, it takes you to the land of Punk that I could have at some point existed in. However, the book is about Skye, and frankly, she goes through a lot, and at the end, it isn't surprising. In a way, I expected it earlier, but it took its sweet time getting to the downfall. It's carried on into another book, which at some point I will read (another book I just bought is taking priority), but the book is good, and harkens to the punk life that as
Eric Johnson
Mar 51 min read
Thoughts on the New War
As an OEF and OIF vet, I’ve seen both wars in one tour. Iraq was first, and this was, of course, the first actual conflict that I participated in. I won’t go into particulars, but it opened my eyes to combat, what little I did anyway. I think Afghanistan was better, but again, despite my efforts, I saw little combat, but worked with my JFOs and Fos, who saw more of the conflict than I did from being in the TOC most of the time. With Iran now, who knows? On one hand, the Irani
Eric Johnson
Mar 22 min read
1984
I mean, yeah, it gets better towards the end, and frankly, it's a book to consider reading at least once. It's probably what the Trump Administration is shooting for, and the parallels are pretty interesting. While thankfully this story (to some degree) is fiction, the realities of what happens in Russia, China, and now, the USA, are what dictators hope for. It's a chilling tale and sure to raise some questions on what the Trump Administration wants. All dictators want what t
Eric Johnson
Mar 11 min read
Money, Lies, and God
Unfortunately I'm having some technical issues reading this book. For those who finished it, I applaud you, but it seems Kindle just doesn't want me to read this book. From what I did read however, was a way to pick out who's who in the Christian Nationalist spectrum. It is a somewhat eye-opener, but also the methods of the Christian Nationalist movement is a little easier to understand, and deal with. The key to learning about your enemy is how they tick, and what they think
Eric Johnson
Feb 211 min read
FM 31-21 Guerrilla Warfare and Special Forces Operations
As Army FMs go this is an informative one, to say the least. The book is in itself in the boring vernacular of the manuals that the Army puts out. It takes no sides, and focuses on the manual content that it's supposed to. Some of this I had picked up elsewhere, so I skipped a few portions of the book, since it wasn't relevant to me needing just plain information. The interesting note is that it was taken from the original manual written years ago. More or less, it's a rehash
Eric Johnson
Feb 191 min read
Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics
The only knock against this book is how it's formatted. It's done sometimes with some US Army books, but overall, it's tolerable, so I'd like to give it 4.5 stars. Other than that, it's a good read. As I learn more and get curious, I wanted to get an idea of feminism, so why not just buy a book on it? This isn't the last and only book on the subject, but as I peel away some layers of thought, I thought it would be interesting to read it. And it's good, real good, and descript
Eric Johnson
Feb 141 min read
Brave New Dawn (Sentenced to War #15)
As an ending to the series, it's interesting how this all turned out with the series end. The book was good to read, and I frankly wish it would continue on. But, as I think about it, it was a good way to close up the series, too. JN Chaney made sure to make sure that the story had ended. Whether or not he'll pursue (there is a "prequel" series out now) the universe as it ended, but if it does, I'll be sure to read it. 5 out of 5 stars. https://amzn.to/40a6hNX
Eric Johnson
Feb 111 min read
Built to Move
While I do admittedly live a near sedentary life, this book helps me look at things, and find some balance (no pun intended, sorta) with my life, and get me moving more, since I don't move as much as I maybe should. In any case the book is filled with some good examples on how to get more motion and range from your body through some practical exercises. Some are easy, some are hard, like the first one in the book where you learn to stand up without using your hands and such.
Eric Johnson
Feb 81 min read
Into The Void (Sentenced To War #14)
One thing with books is that, especially with scifi) Is that you gotta come up with some stuff to keep people interested? I don't know how interested people are in my books, but it seems that I at least make people think. This book, it makes you think about the possibilities the characters go through, and how you can write something similar or take your own approach. The story is good, and kinda makes me wonder what else is out there by JN Chaney and such. I have one more boo
Eric Johnson
Jan 261 min read
Under Two Moons (Paridisi Chronicals #2)
I have to admit the series is pretty good science fiction. It boils down to Machiavellian power moves, but overall, I like the books. Admittedly, I'm looking for some F-bombs or something to make me feel better, but the cleanliness of the words is not going to deter me from reading a book like this. It's pretty interesting, with the plot there, as in it's there in your face without it being in your face, more or less. The storytelling does a good job of being relevant and doe
Eric Johnson
Jan 221 min read
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