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This is a collection of scholarly papers and replies to those on some solutions for global climate change. Cost and benefits are analyzed, along with research on effectiveness. In the final section of the book, and expert panel ranks the proposals as a group; their collected opinions and observations on those selections are also included.

The findings of these researchers mostly match Bjørn Lomborg's - throwing money at carbon reduction through taxes is the least effective method. Some of the most effective methods were very interesting to read about; this collection of experts really knows what they are talking about. Some of the statistics were a little over my head, but then I'm no economist. I couldn't get this book at a library, but instead through inter-library loan from the University of Idaho.

In summary, I am impressed with the knowledge in this textbook. Adding knowledge to the climate debate can only be a good thing, and some of these ideas would certainly work - reducing the impact of man on the world. Doing nothing is not an option.

This near-future story starts off as a thriller, and handles the page-turning suspense well. In a nutshell, a guy with money and cystic fibrosis plays fast and loose with a genetic researcher who crafts a virus to correct his disease at the DNA level. Of course, the researcher didn't code for patients without CF, and didn't think the virus could get out into the wild. While certainly not a new idea, it works well here.

There are three main characters, and chapters are focused on one of their points of view. We follow each as a new plague develops, with lightning propagation and a greater than 90% mortality rate. The gene researcher tries to figure things out, the hacker provides information, and patient zero deals with his angst. Each is well drawn and has a believable motivation.

By chapter 13, researchers in Japan develop a vaccine, and the whole character of the story changes. After the required vaccinations, the rest of the world gets ready to move on, and most labs stop working to find a cure. This leaves patient zero (and the other victims) as an outcast and the researcher full of angst. The hacker, on the other hand, has started to treat this virus, and DNA modifications in general, as a sort of computer language, and works to hack the bio-system.

Infected persons are susceptible to other mutations, and these are at the DNA level. Putting them together in camps leads the victims to share DNA, to become more alike. For the hackers, this means other modifications can be introduced. Both groups are now the "changelings" of the title, and both are shunned by society.

The dehumanization of victims and the fear of the uninfected lead to the climax of the novel, and reflect on how we treat the outcasts of our societies today. Protests and politics are both touched on. I found the transition from thriller to social commentary worked well.

Was the science correct, or close? I find it hard to believe that DNA modification would express itself so quickly, and the gene sequencer machines seem too powerful, but other than that the science felt fine for a near-future novel. A few of the computer terms were a little dated, but then this novel was published 10 years ago.

In short, author Syne Mitchell has crafted an excellent story, shifting gears partway through to arrive at a thought provoking conclusion. I plan to seek out her first novel, the Compton Crook award winning "Murphy's Gambit," in the near future. "The Changeling Plague" is worthy of five stars.

This is a story about a young wizard and a gambler, thrown together and sent on an adventure. They encounter a dead girl and her living elderly father, a wizard in his own right. Descriptions of Mythic Russia include people, places and creatures – including that of the title.

From the author's description, "A rusalka is a Russian ghost: a drowned maiden who dies for love will become a rusalka, haunting the river where she perished." A few other Russian beasties appear in this story – including bannik, leshy, and vodyanoy. The interactions of these between themselves and with the main characters form much of what I liked about this book.

Unfortunately there was a lot I had difficulties with. The thought processes of each main character were overly detailed, slowing any action to a crawl. I've read Heinlein's chapter-long discussions between characters easily enough, but found myself distracted or worse, nodding off during thought-filled paragraphs in this book. When the characters conversed, the dialogue wasn't much better, and could be repetitive at times. The book does contain a few action sequences, including most of the first chapter. These went by quickly, perhaps because the characters were focused on actions instead of thoughts.

Rusalka is the first book in a series of three, though it definitely stands alone as a complete story. I read the paperback version, from Del Rey and Ballantine. The rights have reverted to the author, who has rewritten and republished the following two books, Chernevog and Yvgenie. If I were to read the rest of this series, those are the versions I would seek out.

And that's the rub – I don't think I will, or at least not in the near future. C.J. Cherryh is an award winning author, and this book was nominated for a Locus Fantasy award in 1990 (losing out to Orson Scott Card's Prentice Alvin). I just don't have the stamina to work through another book like this one. After spending more than three weeks with these characters, Rusalka rates just 2 out of 5.

I greatly enjoyed this creepy story of robots gone mad, primarily because of the human element. The story is told through narratives of several different people - a phone phreak, an asian enthusiast, a native american policeman, an american soldier, and a politician's daughter among them. The tech here is mostly believable, a requirement for any book written this century. The exception is the AI, which is still "out there". Finally, this book is very much a thriller - whenever I sat down to read, it was 100 pages later that I surfaced, and I finished the book shortly after midnight.

Most of the reviews I have glanced at compare this book to World War Z, which I have not (yet) read. Thrilling story, engaging characters, and believable are all in the pro column; something I can't quite identify in the writing brings it down half a point. In the end, I really liked it.

Mary Doria Russell's "The Sparrow" is an award winning book, a story of first contact. It is told in two intermingled narratives – one leading up to the contact and one after the fact, a questioning of the sole survivor. While portions were though provoking, I find this book less than it should be.

I enjoyed reading about most of the personalities in the early part of the story, although many were more caricature than character. While reading these sections, my thoughts kept drifting to their eventual deaths, which was distracting. As a team, they were a little too conveniently matched, but then this is fiction after all.

The other sections of the book, dealing with the aftermath, were used to either to lead the next portion of the early story or to delve deeper into the main character's crisis of faith. This last part culminates at the end of the book in a too-neat wrap up. In the final chapter, the poise regained by the main character had me believing he had been faking earlier, which was probably not the author's intention.

This story doesn't fit into the category of Hard Science Fiction by any means. Most of the radio traffic and space travel is close to believable, but from that point forward it becomes less so. An oxygen atmosphere, bipedal humanoids, edible foods – it either strains credibility, or truly is Deus Vult (God wills it).

The latter phrase is used often by the main characters, and throughout the book this is in question. The title of the book refers to the fact that not even a sparrow falls without God knowing of it. Presumably the main character is representative of that sparrow, whose story we follow through both portions of the book. Up until the last chapter, I too wanted to follow this character, even though his path was very dark towards the end.

The most thought-provoking section was where the main character discussed the actions of the aliens, reflecting on the actions taken by many other cultures and the stories created to justify them. This and how it plays into a first contact situation was very interesting to me, and I will probably read the sequel to see how it all comes out.