I’ve always been a huge Shadowrun fan. Probably because I’ve played the Sega Genesis cartridge so much that I’ve just fallen in love with that world, but I found out about it right when it came out. Back in 1990 I was living in California, and I must have gone into some hobby shop because I remember having all of the 1st Edition rules for the Pen & Paper game. I never had a chance to play through it with anybody, but I always thought that the world was awesome. You just can’t get any better than combining the cyberspace world of William Gibson with the Fantasy world of Gary Gygax.

And way back in 1990 I also picked up three books about Shadowrun, The Secrets of Power Series. I never took the time to read them, back then I never took the time to read anything, but they were another set of books that I always wanted to read. So back in August I purchased the series off E-Bay and started reading it after Mona Lisa Overdrive. I finally finished the first one this past Monday: Never Deal with a Dragon, and what a good book. The author is no Gibson, and the story takes a bit to come together, but it had a lot of different elements to the story and kept answering questions with more questions. By about 2/3rd’s of the way through I realized that the author couldn’t tie up everything he had set up, finally figuring out that Samuel Verner is the main character for the entire series.

I’m glad I’m finally taking some time to read through all the books I’ve always wanted to read, something as simple as reading just a half hour a night can make a huge impact. And getting a chance to read Timothy Zahn’s Star Wars trilogy or experiencing William Gibson’s Sprawl trilogy is a thrill unlike any other. The author can drill down deep in their subjects with hundreds of thousands of words to tell their tale, and if you’re willing to put some spare time into it you can see worlds that will never hit the film screen. And now I’m on my next trilogy, Shadowrun, and I can’t wait to see where it goes. I have so much already invested in the characters.

- D

Currently Playing: Lord of the Rings Online