Michael McCloskey

I started reading [a:McCloskey|375463|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1318903645p2/375463.jpg] with [b:Trilisk Ruins|12873167|The Trilisk Ruins (Parker Interstellar Travels, #1)|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328132606s/12873167.jpg|18025853] in mid-2012 and then went on to the [b:Insidious|7769608|Insidious|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347743355s/7769608.jpg|24080173], [b:Industrious|12873156|Industrious|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328148339s/12873156.jpg|24080174], [b:Ingenious|12873159|Ingenious|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328148396s/12873159.jpg|24080175] trilogy and devouring everything written since then. Looking back, I’ve been pretty impressed with McCloskey and his writing, rating his books solid “four stars”: nothing I’d read over and over and over again, but solid books I really liked and recommend to others.

McCloskey consistently spins up a well-thought-out, complex and sufficiently complete universe, inserts a good mix of both likable and disagreeable characters, invents a situation and turns them loose in it. His books are engaging, short, well-written, well-priced and easily-accessible (all the major ereader formats). I don’t know if this is his plan, but that combination makes for straightforward addiction to his books.

[b:The Eimar Beacon|25133305|The Eimar Beacon|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1426242079s/25133305.jpg|44830662], set in the P.I.T. Series universe, sends us off at a different angle than we had originally experienced in the various Trilisk books (also in the P.I.T. Series). (Makes me wonder if we’ll bump into Telisa eventually should Eimar lead to other books.) We are introduced to a whole new set of aliens/extraterrestrials, mostly through the humans who are seeking out this beacon. All these characters are well-developed and I found myself building attachments and dislikes throughout the book.

So, pick your favorite reading format, get the book and settle down for a short and very enjoyable read of The Eimar Beacon.… (mer)

Another excellent addition to the PIT series. I wait eagerly (and sometimes impatiently) for [a:McCloskey|375463|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1318903645p2/375463.jpg]'s releases. [b:Probe|28159493|The Celaran Probe (Parker Interstellar Travels Book 7)|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1449687791s/28159493.jpg|48172284] doesn't disappoint.

The series takes place in a post-contact universe — humans are aware that they're not alone in the universe and the PIT team is (among other things) off looking for artifacts. To some extent this book stands alone, but in order to fully enjoy and understand the various plot lines in [b:Probe|28159493|The Celaran Probe (Parker Interstellar Travels Book 7)|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1449687791s/28159493.jpg|48172284], I think you should read the others in the Parker Interstellar Travels list first.

The only reason this doesn't get a five-star review from me is that, while excellent reading, I'm not likely to read it again and again.
Some of the reasons I enjoy [a:McCloskey|375463|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1318903645p2/375463.jpg]'s books are that they're enjoyable, well-written, well-edited, well-priced, easy-to-read and fairly quick reads. I am already eagerly awaiting McCloskey's next book and I will eagerly tear through it as well.… (mer)

I initially read these three individually (in order) some time ago and thoroughly enjoyed them. McCloskey consistently exercises his skill in setting up an alternate/future world in which he inserts well-crafted characters, develops challenging situations and turns things loose to develop into a completely engrossing story. This trilogy is one of his best.

This time around, I inadvertently read them in reverse (3,2,1) order, looking for clues to how Bren's harnessed AI Meridian grows in ability, knowledge, power and cunning. I was particularly interested in these cores, how they were seeded, cultivated, utilized and ultimately discarded. Seeing them first from perspectives of the Spinners, then the eyes of the Chinese spy, and then finally from the UNSF and Black Core operative was a different way to approach this series. I found this pattern helpful in my search to relearn the origins of the AI Meridian only after I'd met it from a variety of different angles.

One of my favorite things about this world (specifically the [b:Parker Interstellar Travels|12873167|The Trilisk Ruins (Parker Interstellar Travels, #1)|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328132606s/12873167.jpg|18025853] world and in particular his recent [b:The Created|28351518|The Created|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1451104689s/28351518.jpg|48281848]) is how [a:McCloskey|375463|Michael McCloskey|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1318903645p2/375463.jpg] explores the future of our own nascent "internet of things" implementation. In the future, when truly everything is networked, every door, window, table, pencil, coffee mug and mosquito will have arrays of sensors, authentication, authorization and access to entire libraries of information, currency, power, monitors and actions. Our own world's current tendency to focus on the functionality first, leaving for distant second the issues of security and authentication makes for a scary backdrop to McCloskey's networked future.

I highly recommend immersing yourself in McCloskey's worlds for a time. Not only will you enjoy the story and meet some engaging characters, but you'll also gain some understanding of the "what-if" of our possible networked future.… (mer)