A Personal Mistake by Larry Shields; Ghosts in the Library by Patricia Y. Deering; Lost Actresses: Moder (An Alien Abduction Romance) by Yvonne James

 A Personal Mistake by Larry Shields; Ghosts in the Library by Patricia Y. Deering; Lost Actresses- Moder: An Alien Abduction Romance by Yvonne James 

A Personal Mistake by Larry Shields 

You know that old adage about books and covers? Well that applies to Larry Shields’ A Personal Mistake. The cover makes it appear as though it's a Science Fiction Dystopian Thriller of human characters vying against AI. Well, the only things that fit are that it stars human characters and involves AI. 

In fact it barely qualifies as Science Fiction. It is more of a Contemporary Lit coming of age novel about a man finding his niche in computer technology and AI networks. It's a great book but wasn't at all what I expected. It's an insightful character study about a highly intelligent but emotionally wounded man in search of his own legacy and personal happiness.

The book consists mostly of chronological incidents in the life of its main protagonist Jeremy Walker from six years old to adulthood. These incidents reveal a lot about his character and the type of man that he would later become in the face of Big Tech and financial success. 

Jeremy's early life led to emotional scars that never healed. As a child he lost a few family members. These losses contributed to an emotional divide between him and his parents. With his mother receding into a drugged stupor and his dad suppressing all displays of feeling or affection, Jeremy learned self reliance right away. 

Some of the most interesting childhood chapters that reveal Jeremy as an independent resourceful mature young man are when he leaves his affluent neighborhood to a tougher part of the Bronx to play baseball with the local kids. His self defense against bullies and his ability to not only improve his ball playing game but to teach and involve other kids comes in handy later in life. 

Even though he switches his primary interests from baseball to computers and computer programming, Jeremy still implements the lessons that he learned on the baseball diamond.

Part of making the most of one's connections to build a solid interpersonal network is to study trends, understand what people want, and learn how to implement them.

 Jeremy receives a computer programming degree from Stanford University, begins his career at Oracle, and then starts his own AI consulting firm, MaxGen. He did this because he studied and observed the technological world and recognized that tech interests were veering towards AI. 

Jeremy doesn't only study the market but makes use of interpersonal skills for practical reasons. He leads various teams, makes important connections, builds a solid interpersonal network and understands people’s concerns about AI’s encroachment.

 He delivers an effective speech where he understands the issues concerning AI like lack of privacy, replacement of human oriented jobs, data misinformation, and the possibility of AI taking on more human attributes. He says these concerns can be discussed and solved with cooperation between humans and AI, not against each other. 

Jeremy's experiences make him an effective executive and programmer but it also gives him a troubling private life. His troubled background of loss, isolation from his parents, and fighting for position never went away. Instead it contributed to a long history of mistrust during conflicts with colleagues, particularly his wife Samantha’s family members who helped him finance and build MaxGen.

The competition between Jeremy and his in-laws becomes heated. His in-laws use drone technology to spy on his meetings. Later he uses money and position as weapons in a long game to minimize their involvement before completely buying them out. 

Jeremy's distrust spreads to his wife, Samantha. During some questionable moments, he accuses her of siding with her family over him. Jeremy's early distrust crystalized into suspicion bordering on paranoia and created a toxic home life despite financial and professional gain.

Jeremy's competitive nature was created on the baseball field, the daily grade grind, business and his private life. One of the few stress relievers was his friendship with the assertive tomboy Robin Simon. Her brash honesty and more approachable nature contrasted with the reserve that Jeremy built through trauma. Her friendship became a constant during youth, school, college, and early adulthood. 

However, Robin's presence causes other issues as Jeremy's conflicts with Samantha increase. He wrestles with doubts, insecurities, business pressure, familial and marital struggles, and questions concerning the nature of AI, a system that he had a hand in creating, promoting, and profiting off of. 

Jeremy finds himself in danger of becoming the ruthless narcissist that he once despised. Robin becomes an emotional outlet that changes their relationship and compromises their current lives and Jeremy's marriage. It's not a wise decision but instead one based on suspicion and emotional weakness. It is a foolish choice that affects his entire present and his family's future. 

Ignore the cover. A Personal Mistake is a fascinating dissection of a man weighing a changing technological world along with his own aspirations and darker nature. It's a probing honest look into a human character, flaws and all. The only mistake the book makes is downplaying that potential by promoting itself as just a narrative against Big Tech. 

Ghosts in the Library by Patricia Y. Deering 

Patricia Y. Deering 's Ghosts in the Library has a fun premise that combines paranormal comedy with suspenseful murder mystery. Deering delivers on setting, atmosphere, and characters. It could almost be a success until the final third where the plot falls apart.

 Library Assistant Vonnie Talbot encounters the ghost of her ex-husband, Caleb, haunting the Trainsville Public Library where she works. That isn't the only issue as Brad Roberts, library board president is missing and Vonnie is named primary suspect on account of their tempestuous relationship. It's up to Caleb and the other ghosts who haunt the library to do some spirited investigations of their own (pun intended).

The most intriguing aspects of the book are the ghostly characters and their haunting location of the public library. The Trainsville Public Library becomes a spiritual center that connects various characters living and dead. It makes sense for a library to be such a place. Most of the ghostly characters in the book have physical or emotional connections to the library. That protectiveness leads to many humorous moments which turns this paranormal Mystery into a gentle comedy. 

The mystery starts out pretty strong concerning Vonnie’s involvement. Her antagonistic relationship with Roberts is elaborated upon as is her kindly nature. Vonnie also has a troubled personal life particularly when it comes to romantic relationships. 

There are some chilling moments. There are some pretty interesting leads and clues. It could be an air tight mystery unfortunately it doesn't remain that way. The final chapters make the reader wonder if they received a copy with a few missing chapters or if there will be another volume to tie the loose ends together.

Those chapters are a huge disappointment to a book that started out so promising and still has an impressive ghostly and witty atmosphere. Maybe a more decisive ending would give this book more than a ghost of a chance. 

Lost Actresses-Moder: An Alien Abduction Romance by Yvonne James 

Yvonne James’ Lost Actresses-Moder: An Alien Abduction Romance is a likeable science fiction romance with a decent central couple and generous hints at a larger story arc.

Emma is an aspiring actress who goes to a very unusual audition. When she wakes up, she finds out that she and 23 other women have been put in stasis and are heading for the planet, Moder 343 years from Earth. She and Kendra, another awakened actress, get caught in the middle of a war between alien species and a royal command for the Husbandry Sector of Moder to find willing brides among the abducted women. Emma becomes attracted to Captain Turza who has sworn to protect the Earth females and reciprocates her feelings but is not in the Husbandry Sector and therefore ineligible to receive Emma as his bride. 

The book takes a very disparate tone between the first and second halves of the book that changes Emma and the reader's perception of the plot accordingly. At first it's a highly suspenseful thriller where Emma realizes that the audition is a set up and she is uncertain where she is or what her abductors want. 

Turza frightens Emma with his odd appearance, authoritarian demeanor, and unusual language which she needs an injection to alter her brainwaves before she can understand and translate. She is put into a strange place, out of her element, and has to survive and adapt centuries away from her home. 

It doesn't help that she had been told that Earth was destroyed in the interim so she, Kendra, and the other women wouldn't have a home to go back to if they turned them down. They have no choice but to acquiesce and adjust to this odd situation.

Luckily, Emma has a talent for adapting to her circumstances and improvising for a solution (no doubt self-taught by her acting experience). While visiting an alien landscape, Emma and Kendra hunt for provisions, defend themselves with alien weapons, and explore a beautiful but potentially dangerous landscape. 

Emma never loses her guard even in front of royalty. She is able to use the Queen's command of marriage against her to allow her freedom in selecting her own groom. Emma is a woman who knows her own mind even in another galaxy.

Emma's thoughts towards her circumstances also change the more she gets to know Turza. When they first meet, he is a career soldier who has a job to do and must follow it to the letter. He is to deliver the Earth females to his home world so they can marry Moder’s male residents  and continue the species. No more no less.

He begins to display his more vulnerable nature the more that he gets to know the Earth woman. Emma and Turza’s relationship moves from opposing forces, to fire forged allies, to close friends, to lovers, to soulmates during this eventful time. Emma causes Turza to question his allegiances to his home planet and the monarchy that he swore to uphold. 

Emma and Turza's romance is pretty complete through the events in the book but there are plot threads left dangling. Kendra is also put through the courtship rituals but her fate is left open ended. Then there are other women who came with Emma and Kendra whose stasis pods have yet to be opened and will be in for rough awakenings when that time comes.

These subplots are left hanging no doubt for future volumes to resolve and for the characters to find their own intergalactic adventures and romances.