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Dan Moren is one of my favorite new writers from the last few years. His "Galactic Cold War" series brought the science fiction spy craft stories I didn't know I needed, but need them I did.

Dan left many a hint that this would be the last book, and through most of the nail-biting action and cat-and-mouse intrigue I honestly could not tell if this would be a victory lap or a "Rogue One" style sendoff, and honestly I was ready for it either way. It was a quick read, perfectly paced with multiple points of view and intertwined storylines, and it brought a satisfying conclusion.

I love the setting Dan has created, and I'm hopeful he feels there are more stories to tell within it. Whether his next book takes place here, or is more urban fantasy like his excellent "All Souls Lost", or something brand new, I'll be pre-ordering it and can't wait to read it.

I was in the middle of reading The Armageddon Protocol, the latest science fiction thriller from Dan Moren. He’s my favorite newish author, with six novels out now, each better than the last (and the first one was excellent). More people should know about his books.

Anyway, I set that aside to begin reading a 2017 book by Yale historian Timothy Snyder. It offers ““twenty lessons from the twentieth century, adapted to the circumstances of today” and is the source of many quotes and memes going around the last few days. It’s a quick easy read. If you voted for the guy and think the current panic is hyperbole, I recommend reading this book if only to reassure yourself that it is hyperbole and to see what to watch for to ensure you’re on the right side of history if the bottom ever were to fall out. And for the rest of us, this book offers practical lessons and advice drawn directly from times and places much like ours you can use to defend what you hold dear.

My previous exposure to urban fantasy has been mostly limited to Christopher Moore's "Death Merchant Chronicles" series, and this new offering from Dan Moren reminds me greatly of Moore's books. Luckily for Dan, the Death Merchant Chronicles are some of my favorite books ever.

The humor is more subdued than Moore's books, more like Dirk Gently than Hitchhiker's Guide on the Douglas Adams humor scale. The setting was compelling, feeling like the world we live in with additional layers just out of reach of most of us. The protagonist seems like someone I'd like to know and hang out with (carefully). The surrounding cast of characters was three dimensional, and the antagonists had believable motivations.

I saw the twist coming about two hundred pages before it hit and ... I did not care. It was still delightful, maybe even moreso because I'm immersed in the big tech world the plot intersects. The resolution was equally delightful, and I found my reading sessions grew longer as I approached the end of the book.

Moren wrote some of my favorite books I read last year -- I tore through his series of sci-fi spy thrillers -- and I enjoyed his style applied to a new genre. I hope there's more in this series!