On the Shelf

Header Right Social

FacebookInstagramMeetupOn the Shelf Blog

Header Right Search

Science Fiction

Killjoys

by Leave a Comment

Recommended TV Series
Series Title: Killjoys
by SyFy & Universal Studios
Format: TV Series on DVD
Who it’s for: [Teens, Adults,]

“From the producers of Orphan Black and the creator of Lost Girl comes Killjoys. This sci-fi adventure follows a fun-loving, hard living trio of interplanetary bounty hunters (a.k.a. Killjoys) sworn to remain impartial as they chase deadly warrants around the Quad, a system of planets on the brink of revolution. A motley crew that always has each other’s back, until a dark secret threatens to tear apart their trio for good. Follow their adventures and discover their secrets with all 10 episodes back-to-back and uninterrupted.”  – via SyFy and Universal Studios

I picked this up because a former coworker recommended it.  I was looking for a new Sci-fi series that was like Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, or Eureka.  The DVD cover was quite attractive and intrigued me. Plus it was produced by the SyFy channel. The show has many similar traits to Firefly, Star Wars, and other science fiction entertainment.  I really like space operas with action, adventure, mystery, a lil romance, and fun.  This show has all of those elements yet somehow they put their own unique spin on it.  It will feel familiar to regular fans of Sci-fi but not exactly, the same plot twists, friendships, villains, rebellions, romance, robots, etc. A good thing (or bad depending) is that the show was not produced in the USA. This means it is short; there are only 10 episodes per season.  You don’t have to carve out 2 months of your life to binge all four seasons. Since every episode ends with at least one cliffhanger, I would suggest you checkout all 4 seasons on DVD at one time.

(Killjoys television series is inspired by the comic series written by Gerard Way, The true lives of Killjoys. The collected issues 1-6 are available in print format in Calvert County and digital format on hoopla .)

I would recommend this to people who like a bit of magical mystery with their typical episodic adventure space show.

Click to Request Season 1-4 on DVD!

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing

by Leave a Comment

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Adults

23-year-old designer April May lives and works in New York City. Leaving work in the middle of the night, she discovers a 10-foot-tall, Transformers-like statue on the sidewalk outside a Chipotle. She calls her friend and they make a video of April interviewing the statue she names Carl. By the next morning, she’s gone viral and Carls have appeared in more than 60 other cities around the world. What follows is a treatise on the nature of celebrity in the age of social media, and a discussion of humanity in a society rife with polarizing rhetoric. April establishes herself as a brand and struggles to maintain her own humanity, while the world tries to figure out what The Carls are, why they’re here, and what they mean for humanity.

There is a science fiction element to this story. The Carls are not your average street art. You’ll want to know how they got here and what their purpose is, but the bigger questions are about today’s society and culture and how fame, the internet, and the 24-hour news cycle impact all of us and our relationships with one another. Ending in a cliffhanger, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing leaves room for a sequel, which Green is reportedly working on.

Find it in the catalog.

Honor Among Thieves

by Leave a Comment

Honor Among Thieves by Rachel Caine and Anne Aguirre
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Teens

Zara Cole has endured a painful past and finds herself in rehab because of her antisocial behavior. Her past is the reason she chooses to live her life in the dangerous Zone and not moving to Mars with her family, balking at the thought of living the rest of her life inside of a dome.

Then she commits a crime that has her running in terror. Instead of receiving the punishment she’s certain she’ll get, she is instead recruited into a space exploration team, the Honors. Treated like super stars, Honors are an elite team chosen by sentient alien ships. With Nadim, Zara’s ship, and Beatrix, her fellow Honor, Zara begins to open up and discover who she is for the first time. Her bond with Nadim grows deeper than any she’s ever had but it becomes apparent there are many things he’s hiding about the mission, himself and his people.

Zara has spent most of her life protecting and fighting for herself. Now she is faced with doing the same for others she’s only just met.
Honor Among Thieves is a fun read with a main cast of likeable characters you’ll find yourself rooting for.
Find it in the catalog.

 

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

by Leave a Comment

Read the Book, Watch the Movie!
Book: Valerian and Laureline by Mézières, J.-C. (Jean-Claude)
Movie: Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
Movie Release Date:  21 July 2017
Starring: Dane DeHaan, Cara Delevingne, Clive Owen, & Rihanna

“An adventure film from Luc Besson, the director of The Professional, The Fifth Element and Lucy, based on the French comic book series by J.C. Mézières.  It is the 28th century, Alpha is the space-traveling city inhabited by millions of species from thousands of planets. Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) are special operatives that are part of the force that maintain order in this universe.  It is nonstop action as the two complete one mission after another.  One mission is special and assigned to them by the Minster of Defense himself. Enjoy the ride as they race to solve the mysterious force that is threatening the city of Alpha.”  -IMDb

I picked this up because of the cover. I like space operas and I really liked the other films Luc Besson had directed. The visuals were just as stunning as The Fifth Element but the story was not as engaging. I did enjoy it but if I could have stopped comparing it to The Fifth Element, I would have enjoyed it even more. It was a fun action movie with simple missions that go sideways so chaos ensues. The 2 main characters had that great chemistry of being in love but still annoyed with each other. There was a lil bit of mystery which, I figured out cuz I am a mystery queen. The secondary characters played by Rihanna and Clive Owens were cool. The alien races were original looking but not so out there I got distracted by their otherworldlyness. I would recommend this to people who like fun, nonstop action, adventures in space with bright imagery and a lil morality lesson with their entertainment.

Find it in the Catalog

Contagion

by Leave a Comment

Contagion by Erin Bowman

Publication Date: July 24, 2018

Who it’s for: Teens

 

Are you a fan of the Alien and Outbreak movies? If so, then this first of two books is for you.

In this science fiction/ thriller/ horror novel, an ordinary search and rescue mission on a hostile planet turns into a fight for survival for two teen girls. Althea, a microbiology intern, and Nova, a pilot, are sent with a rescue group to respond to a distress signal received from a drilling base on Achlys. When they arrive they find a disturbing video and a cryptic note left by a dead engineer, leading them on a search for survivors and answers to what happened to the inhabitants. They soon learn that something was lurking below the surface and experience first-hand what went wrong on this fringe planet.

Find it in the catalog.

 

The Darkest Minds

by Leave a Comment

Read the Book, Watch the Movie!

Book: The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
Movie: The Darkest Minds
Movie Release Date: August 3, 2018

Ruby first witnessed the effects of Idiopathic Adolescent Acute Neurodegeneration (IAAN) when her classmate spontaneously dropped to the cafeteria floor during lunch. This mysterious disease has since killed 98% of America’s youth population in rapid succession.  Those few that do not succumb to the illness emerge with an assortment of powerful (and frightening) abilities.  So frightening in fact that when Ruby awakes on her 10th birthday, her parents lock her in the garage and immediately call the police.  She’s then carted off to Thurmond, a government-run camp operating under the guise of “rehabilitation” manned by the US military’s new Psi Special Forces (PSF) branch.  Upon her arrival,  Ruby discovers that kids with her particular kind of abilities are considered especially dangerous and are to be executed on-sight.  In a desperate act of self-preservation, Ruby disguises herself and her abilities to escape detection.

Now 16, Ruby’s secret is out and a group called the Children’s League comes to aid her in her escape from camp.  In exchange, they want to train Ruby as a soldier in their fight against the government.  Perturbed at the idea of being used as a weapon, Ruby runs – right into a group of kids in search of East River, a haven hidden away to protect AWOL youth like themselves.  She joins their ranks, but she fears that her presence is putting her new friends in danger.  PSF’s and Skip Tracers are intent on tracking them down and Ruby’s lack of control over her abilities puts everyone at risk.  While war wages on the outside, Ruby must battle her want of companionship against her need to protect said companions.

The first in a series, The Darkest Minds is thrilling, heart-breaking, and a little bit terrifying from beginning to end, exploring themes of friendship, self-sacrifice, and overcoming fears along the way.  Find it in the catalog.