There must be something with new authors
and 2009; this is the 3rd novel I've read this year by a first-time author.
Although it was originally self-published on-line, David Moody's Hater,
found a publisher and, with that, should enjoy a lot of new interest. It
wasn't until the last few pages that I realized that this is the first
novel in a series. Finishing Hater, I can't wait for the next installment.
Set in an unnamed city in Britain, Danny
McCoyne works in the Parking Fine Processing office, a government job for
those workers on their way down. Husband and father, he watches his money
closely, as he doesn't have much to spare. After he gets home from a long,
tough day being shout at from upset people with parking fines or wanting
boots removed from their cars, he can't even relax in front of the television,
his kids are monopolizing it. But there are times where he and his wife
are able to escape from their modest flat. On one outing, they are at a
club enjoying one of Danny's favorite bands. However, mid-set, the lead
singer stops playing and simply stares out into the crowd. And then he
goes berserk-using his guitar as a weapon, he lashes out at his bandmates.
Danny and his wife escape the ensuing chaos and rioting patrons. Later,
the 24 hour news stations begin to show other seemingly acts of random,
vicious violence, eventually calling the instigators "Haters.".
These random acts are occurring all over the city, at such a rate that
the government tells people to stay indoors, create a "safe room,"
and to wait for further instructions. And then the military gets involved
and starts house to house searches.
Moody has written a book that is very
hard to put down. Interspersed with scenes of violence, shocking in it's
fury and randomness, Moody carefully introduces us to Danny McCoyne until
you really care about the character. You go with Danny to his job, experience
his home life, his interactions with his children, and witness his relationship
with his father-in-law. Then, when it appears that Haters are tearing society
apart, you hope that Danny is able to protect his family. Moody increases
the tension by investigating the mundane; if you are locked in your flat,
how do you provide for your family as your food stocks diminish? How do
you protect your family, especially if you don't know if one of them is
a Hater? How do you explain to your children the scenes of violence on
the television and out in your street? Suspenseful, disturbing, and utterly
enjoyable, Hater is world full of fear, mistrust, and madness. And
it is one of the best books I have read.
Users cannot mentally handle local replicas?
Thu, Sep 2nd 2010 6:20p Gregg Eldred This is from the "What's New in Domino 8.5, 8.5.1, 8.5.2" document (emphasis mine):
If you've ever wished using Mail were free of delays, but don't have the mind space for creating and maintaining a local replica, the new managed replica feature might be for you. When you create or convert an existing local replica to a managed replica in Notes, or your Domino administrator sets it for you via a policy, Notes creates a local mail replica and marks it as a managed replica. The next time you ope [read] Keywords: domino
ibm
notes
server
49
Star Island by Carl Hiaasen
Wed, Sep 1st 2010 11:50p Gregg Eldred The emergency medical technicians have
been called to a hotel in South Beach, responding to call concerning a
twenty-two year old female who has swallowed a "mix of vodka, Red
Bull, hydrocodone, birdseed, and stool softener." A rather typical
call for South Beach with the exception of the appearance of Bang Abbott,
an overweight, intrusive paparazzo. He wants to have exclusive right to
the pictures of the woman on the stretcher. However, when the EMT's wheel
out the woman, he realizes that this [read] Keywords:
207
Do You Know This Person?
Mon, Aug 30th 2010 8:20p Gregg Eldred Sorry, this is just too good not to share, and I actually received permission to post it. :-) [read] Keywords:
Backroads of Ohio: Your Guide to Ohios Most Scenic Backroad Adventures by Miriam Carey and Ian Adams
Wed, Aug 18th 2010 12:00p Gregg Eldred After reading several Backroads books on
other states, I decided that it was time to discover what the series had
to say and show about my home state of Ohio. Much like the other books
in the series, Backroads
of Ohio: Your Guide to Ohio's Most Scenic Backroad Adventures,
by Miriam Carey and Ian Adams, will appeal to residents of the state of
Ohio or those vacationing within its borders. For residents, this book
will provide you with short, interesting trips that would appeal to every
family mem [read] Keywords:
267
eWeek: Why Sharepoint 2010 Has Developers Excited
Wed, Aug 18th 2010 10:10a Gregg Eldred Microsoft's SharePoint 2010 may be one of the industry's most under-rated products, largely because it means so many different things to different people so no one group or demographic claims it over another. However, Microsoft has been adding more and more features to enable developers to better leverage SharePoint 2010. And as such, developers have responded, prompting SharePoint's popularity to rise among developers, according to Microsoft. SharePoint Server is one of the fastest-growing prod [read] Keywords: application
development
microsoft
office
server
sharepoint
workspace
112
MWLUG Logo in LEGO
Tue, Aug 17th 2010 11:51p Gregg Eldred Number Two Son's creation, 2 foot square. It's "sad" to report that he needed to purchase no new bricks. [read] Keywords:
American Craft Brewery Hops Across The Pond
Mon, Aug 16th 2010 11:50p Gregg Eldred This past weekend, I enjoyed a Stone Levitation, an excellent beer but one that seemed higher in IBUs than the quoted 45 (I'm certainly not complaining, a beer with high IBUs is perfect on a hot day, and Sunday, it was hot and humid). Now, from National Public Radio's Marketplace, I heard this today. One of the big guys in craft brewing, Stone Brewing out of Escondido, Calif., is looking to expand up and out of the U.S. market, into Europe -- a place known for a fiercely, shall we say, traditio [read] Keywords: wiki
