The End of October

This book reminded me so much of the first part of Stephen King's The Stand. It was riveting! Even though it was very science heavy, I really enjoyed this book. After living through covid - it felt very real and possible. A microbiologist dismisses one of his colleagues findings about an odd virus that played itself out in an internment camp in Indonesia. Henry Parsons decides to make a quick trip out there himself to see what's going on. What he finds instead is a hot zone - a hot zone that will soon cripple the whole world and bring the super powers close to launching all out war. The story follows the spread of the virus and the escalation of war. It gets a little slow towards the end and I had no idea how the book would finish it - but I enjoyed it. Listening to suspenseful music while reading this - definitely help put me on edge!

Going Clear

LORD HELP ME! This book was outta control. I wish it was science fiction. You ever read a book and it lifts the curtain and it's like you can see clearly for the first time? That's what this was. Obviously I'm familiar with the controversy surrounding Scientology and I know that this religion was created by the Science Fiction legend, L. Ron Hubbard, but other than that... I didn't know anything. Reading this was eye opening and terrifying. All religions are unique, but this "new one" is pretty freaking scary. Lawrence Wright does an amazing job outlining L. Ron Hubbard's life, early stages of Scientology, its ties to Hollywood, and the terrifying reality for those that get sucked into it. Scientology is INSANE. I get all belief systems are a little "unique" but this one is out of the ballpark. You have to read it to believe it.  After reading this I cannot wait to watch some of the documentaries and read more. It's almost unbelievable.