Petersen’s Rock Garden is a unique and fascinating destination. The garden is filled with intricate and creative rock formations, sculptures, and buildings, all made entirely out of rocks and stones. Some of them you can even walk inside.
One of the highlights of Petersen’s Rock Garden is the “Castle,” a towering structure made up of hundreds of carefully placed rocks. The castle features multiple levels, staircases, and even a throne room, all built from a variety of different colored rocks. There are bridges built of stone crossing the moat.
In addition to the castle, there are also several smaller rock structures scattered throughout the garden, including a replica of Stonehenge, a rock chapel, and a rock-lined pond. All of these structures are surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens, complete with waterfalls, streams, and native plants. It’s a fun and quirky visit complete with a glow-in-the-dark display inside the museum.
Sabina Staley is the indomitable head of the Rifters, the well-loved guardian entrusted with the safety of Earth.
Sabina’s is the county commissioner of Caslow County. That’s how most of the residents know her. The county building is located in Settler, Oregon, where the veil between universes thins each year, revealing a portal traversing 42 realms, including our own. As the liaison between Earth and the mysterious Governors who rule the rift, Sabina embodies both the sophistication of a seasoned diplomat and the resilience of a seasoned warrior.
In her late 60s, Sabina’s countenance tells tales of experiences etched into the very fabric of her being. Tall and possessing stern, well-defined facial features, her captivating emerald eyes harbor a depth that belies her prim and proper exterior. Adorned with a crown of curly white hair and oversized, bubble-framed eyeglasses, her appearance seems a symphony of timeless grace intertwined with a touch of the 1970s.
Yet, it’s her spirit that truly captivates. Despite the years, her essence radiates with an undying youthfulness, an unquenchable flame that has weathered trials and remains unyielding. Behind the guise of her dignified demeanor lies a history steeped in valor and unexpected passions—a tale once whispered of an affair with a centaur that crossed through the rift, a fleeting moment from a past brimming with untold stories.
Within the Rifters, Sabina stands as the beacon of reliability and confidence. Her unwavering leadership has shielded her team, ensuring no losses under her watch. While she seldom joins the fray, her tactical prowess and strategic mind guide her team’s actions, and her meticulous planning is often the key to their victories.
But it’s not just her tactical genius that commands respect; it’s her unwavering dedication to her comrades. A tough but caring leader, she instills confidence in every Rifter. Her presence is a source of reassurance among the chaos of defending Earth from otherworldly threats.
Sabina Staley is a conundrum of contradictions—an epitome of grace and strength, of sophistication and wild pasts, of leadership and a warrior’s heart. She embodies the essence of the Rifters, standing as a testament to resilience, integrity, and the unyielding spirit required to safeguard Earth from the mysteries that spill forth from the rift.
Want to meet her? Start with a free book! The first novel in the Rifters series is free everywhere!
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The Gold Rush trickles to a fool’s quest and a string of stagecoach heists. In 1888, Earl Blacke decides to make a new start and become a better man. He escapes into the mountains, heading north. In the wilds of Oregon, a rift inside an ancient volcano opens and sends him into the future, into the present day. It also shaves forty years off his age, forty years to live over again and atone for what he’s done.
Starting over is hard to do. In current day New York, Daelin Long’s dream job at a publishing house goes the way of the dinosaurs her sister chases. With no money and nowhere else to go, Daelin accepts the librarian position in her sister’s dinky town in the middle of Oregon. Nestled inside ancient volcanic peaks, the town of Settler holds onto many secrets. Residents roam the streets with weirdly fashioned devices, and odd lights pulse in the night skies. People whisper of a phantom outlaw and start dying, murdered and missing their heads. On top of it all, Daelin’s sister is missing, and Daelin doesn’t know who to trust.
Earl knows more than he’s saying. He shares a notorious history with the phantom, one he’ll see remains buried. Keeping Daelin’s sister’s secrets is his only chance at redemption, and the only way to keep this world safe.
Reviews
“The world Pax creates here is like the Wild West meets Ghostbusters with some Stargate and a bit of Steampunk thrown in. Even though everything seems a bit familiar, it’s not, which is what makes it compelling.”CHOOSE YOUR OWN END
“This book catapults the reader right in mid-events and, like Daelin, one is forever trying to figure out the ins and outs of the situation. Though readers have one advantage in that we are prepared to believe. However, what in some books can be annoying, becomes an enjoyable ride, where you are constantly excited to see where the plot will take you next. I really enjoyed the slightly wacky and off center world of Settler.” AMAZON
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir is an engrossing read. He has a real flare for writing hard science fiction and making it exciting and readable. I liked it as much as The Martian.
It was full of adventure and problems and solutions through science. One surviving scientist wakes from an induced coma with no memory and has to solve humanity’s biggest dilemma. Then he discovers he’s not alone.
What started as a bleak mission – a suicide mission to hopefully save Earth and humanity – ended up being inspiring and full of hope. Weir shows us how humans can be low and how we can be at our best. Why can’t we always be so amazing, question? (You’ll get that when you read the book)
If you loved The Martian, you’ll love this book, too. We spend most of the story in space and discover new life and new worlds. Discovery of new life and worlds is my favorite part of sci-fi, so I was glad to see those two things in this story. Usually, I find a lot of award-winning books don’t stand up to the hype, but this one does.
Here’s the official blurb:
Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission—and if he fails, humanity and the earth itself will perish.
Except that right now, he doesn’t know that. He can’t even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it.
All he knows is that he’s been asleep for a very, very long time. And he’s just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.
His crewmates dead, his memories fuzzily returning, Ryland realizes that an impossible task now confronts him. Hurtling through space on this tiny ship, it’s up to him to puzzle out an impossible scientific mystery—and conquer an extinction-level threat to our species.
And with the clock ticking down and the nearest human being light-years away, he’s got to do it all alone.
I recently watched the Obi Wan Kenobi series on Disney and was impressed with the quality of the storytelling and performances. The series takes place ten years after the events of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith and follows Obi Wan as he tries to protect the secrets of the Jedi while living in self-imposed exile on Tatooine.
Ewan McGregor reprises his role as Obi Wan, and he delivers a standout performance as the iconic character. The supporting cast is also strong, with standout performances from Moses Ingram as a young scrapper named Katooni and Joel Edgerton as a familiar character from the Star Wars films.
The series explores the themes of redemption and responsibility, and it does so in a way that feels true to the spirit of the Star Wars franchise. The action sequences are well-done and the special effects are top-notch. Overall, I thought Obi Wan Kenobi was a great addition to the Star Wars universe and would highly recommend it to fans of the franchise. I give it a beer is optional rating despite the lack of dancing.
Spaceberg Orbital Rescue Squad 51 is first on the scene with the most decorated first responder in the Sol. Nikili Echols battles the mega disaster to save her family, everyone in trouble, and entire worlds. With time running short, she’s forced to team up with her ex-husband in order to rescue their daughter and save what remains of the solar system. His superstitions irk her like gas, but luck and organic plastic are what her plan needs to prevail.
Semper Audacia The last soldier’s last stand. War took everyone Leda knew, leaving her in the company of ghosts. Or is it madness? The siren blares. The enemy is coming. In an aging flyer, Leda ventures out to meet her world’s fate.
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir is an engrossing read. He has a real flare for writing hard science fiction and making it exciting and readable. I liked it as much as The Martian.
The series explores the themes of redemption and responsibility, and it does so in a way that feels true to the spirit of the Star Wars franchise. The action sequences are well-done and the special effects are top-notch. Overall, I thought Obi Wan Kenobi was a great addition to the Star Wars universe and would highly recommend it to fans of the franchise. I give it a beer is optional rating despite the lack of dancing.
