This is my list for those last two months.

1. HYPERSPACE, Michio Kaku

2. PHYSICS OF THE IMPOSSIBLE, Michio Kaku. Both of these are "explanation" type books, attempting to put high physics concepts into everyday language, making them understandable for anyone with an adequate science IQ. I think he's successful. I learned a bunch about the history and development of physics theories, and about some famous physicists. I learned some stuff about string theory, and in the second book, I was surprised to learn that very little is actually "forbidden" by physics theories, including time travel, faster-than-light travel, invisibility and some forms of ESP. Very interesting, if time consuming reads. No rating on either book.

3. DEAD REIGN, T.A. Pratt

4. SPELL GAMES, T.A. Pratt. The third and fourth books of the Marla Mason series get stronger and more interesting as they go along. In the third, Marla finds herself banished from her city of Felport by Death himself, and it's going to take more than a little trickery to get Death out of her city. In SPELL GAMES, Marla has to defend her city against the manipulations of her con artist brother Jason, and his scam has attracted a dangerous figure from the magical world who threatens the entire city. These are both excellent stories with vivid settings and well-drawn characters. I give them each their own 8.5.

5. TWO FOR JOY, Eric Mayer and Mary Reed. This is the second of husband and wife writing team Mayer and Reed's series featuring John, the Lord Chamberlain to Emperor Justinian. John has the distinctive feature of being a eunuch, but this fact plays a minor role at best in this book. In this book, a "prophet" has come to the city of Constantinople, and is threatening ruin if he isn't given a high position of power within the Emperor's court. To demonstrate his powers, he prophesizes the spontaneous combustion of three "stylites", holy men who sit atop pillars in the city, and of course it comes to bear that three of two of these men burst into flames during a storm. What has caused this to occur? John is sure it isn't supernatural, and sets out to investigate the truth. These books are also very interesting, fun reads that depict a world I am generally unfamiliar with, but with which I am feeling more at home as I read. I give this book an 8.5 also.

6. THREE WEEKS TO SAY GOODBYE, C.J. Box. A standalone novel (not featuring game warden sleuth Joe Pickett), a young couple have adopted a baby girl, and now, a long time after the adoption is finalized, the father of the infant appears. Turns out he is the son of a wealthy and powerful judge, and there was an irregularity with the adoption - the boy never signed the papers. So he is within his rights to reclaim the baby. And his father wants to do so. But why? There's something not-so-nice going on here, and the adoptive father and his friends, a police officer and a wealthy gay socialite, begin to investigate. And they don't like what they are finding out. This was a pretty good, if at times uncomfortable, story, with solid characters. I thought the plot was a little over the top, but many mysteries of this style are. Still, very good read. 8.0

7. THE WORLD WITHOUT US, Alan Weisman. A look at what would happen to our world if suddenly people just disappeared. How long would it take nature to reclaim the world? What of our achievements would last? Which would disappear first? Would the dangers we have created (like nuclear waste and toxic wastes) affect the world after we are gone? It's a thought provoking book. I enjoyed it, and it made me think. No rating.

8. THE WOODS ARE DARK, Richard Laymon. I went back for another look at the car accident that is the writing of Richard Laymon. I don't know why, but I just have to keep reading his books. They aren't the best written things, and the subject matter is often plain old gross, but there's something about these horror novels. And this one is no exception. It's a pretty decent, fast read about some travelers who are captured and offered up to some sort of mutant woods creatures. The usual Laymon gore and sexual scenes are here, and there are some pretty cool characters in this one. 7.5

9. MURDER OF A ROYAL PAIN, Denise Swanson. This was funny. Swanson's latest mystery deals with a dental angle, and her dedication mentions a local dentist who I know quite well. In this one, school psychologist Skye Denison is roped into being a liason to a parent's prom committee. Wally, her beau, is out of town attending to an ill father, and they've hired a social worker to help Skye out at her job. But something's not quite right about this social worker, and strange things are happening. Finally, a mom who has been a royal pain in the butt is found dead in the prom fund raiser haunted house, and it's fully possible that Skye herself was the intended target. This series is more fun for me because it is written by a local author, and is set in the area I live. She even mentions a popular local restaurant called Merischka's, and she has gone through some trouble to research its long history for her tale. I may be rating this a little high because of my bias, but I'm going to give it an 8.5. It's better than Swanson's last book, in my opinion.

I blogged individually about TWO FOR JOY and about both Tim Pratt novels (DEAD REIGN and SPELL GAMES), and also wrote something about HYERSPACE and THE WORLD WITHOUT US .