As a large fan of the Castle series I've reviewed most of the books in the lineage and one caveat I always presented was 'read them in the order they were published' and I stand by that as sound advice.

Castle Dreams may be the exception. While I wouldn't read it first or second, I wouldn't shy away from reading it last...particularly because the final book Bride Of The Castle is arguably the weakest of the eight.

The reason behind this is Castle Dreams is more of a 'what-if' story for the Castle Perlious Universe. It's essentially a story from a book within the Castle's vast library...a story within a story. As such, the events are fictional even within the fictional world of Castle Perlious.

Personally, I stand by reading them in order, but if you want to finish the series off in a better way...save Castle Dreams for last.

Like the vast majority of the series, Castle War! is absolutely entrhalling. An exquisite blend of humor, fantasy and story telling that you'll be hard pressed to put down for any length of time.

Being a part of a series of books, for maximum enjoyment start with Castle Perlious and work your way to Bride Of The Castle.

As is the case with many books aimed at the young reader (I found this book when I was 15), this book simplifies its subject. The only problem is that Peronism and Juan Peron the man are extraordinarily complex. Where this book succeeds is in the linear retelling of who Peron was and what he did, where it fails is in its interpretation of significance behind his actions. In other words, this book has no cultural sensitivity.

In PERON AND THE ENIGMAS OF ARGENTINA Robert D. Crassweller writes, "No one can know the order of precedence between spiritual and psychic appeals and those purely materialistic, and many have assumed that Peronist populism was all bread and no circus bartered for political support. But this is much too narrow a view of human purpose. A great deal that was religious and quasi-religious went into the enfolded depths of Peronism, and Peron made almost exquisite use of the spiritual themes and ethical values that time long forgotten had contributed to the civilization." (pp. 233) This book by Dechancie seems in large part to make this assumption, that Peronism was all bread and and no circus bartered for political support. It does not attempt to understand the spiritual implications inherent in the "caudillo" (strong leader) tradition of which Peron was a part. Such an attitude toward leadership is unheard of in Anglo-Saxon based cultures, in fact, the United States model of government is largely found in opposition to the idea of a strong central leader. It is inevitable then that if one does not view someone like Juan Peron within the context of the Argentine culture, one will not understand him and will project things on to him. Minds shaped by the political landscape of the United States often cannot help but view a strong leader with a hint of suspicion. We rejected the Monarchical system at our country's founding, and strong leaders often look like a monarchy to us. In fact, Juan and Eva Peron indeed became something of a monarchy for their people.

And that is exactly what happens in this book: the author consistently calls Juan Peron a dictator. Most well-researched biographies, such as the one I list above, note that Peron was far from being a dictator. He was elected three times by overwhelming popular support, and even then he often had to bargain for support. All of his decisions were made with the backing of overwhelming popular support. It's just that the setting and the tone of his government was so alien to the North American model that it would often be misinterpreted. Adding to the confusion, World War II had just ended - Peron addressed his followers from the balcony. It didn't "look" good to the North American observer (adding to the confusion, the name "Eva Peron" sounds strikingly like the name "Eva Braun"). And though Peron had admitted to admiration for Mussolini, Peron noted that Mussolini had made great mistakes and Peron never erected a fascist government. Further, there was no official anti-semitism in Peronism and some noted there was less bigotry against Jewish people in Buenos Aires during Peron's era than there was in New York City of the same time-frame. The Jewish population in Buenos Aires was at that time, and remains, one of the largest in the world. Thankfully, this book makes note of the fact that there were no slaughterhouses in Peronism and that Peron was eager to renounce his position of power and go into exile in Spain rather than engulf his country in a bloody civil war. It was the military dictators who assumed power after Peron who would disappear tens of thousands of people in the Dirty War (For a beautiful and haunting movie about the Argentine Dirty War, see the movie available on Amazon called THE OFFICIAL STORY).

Peron is ambiguous to one not fully aware of his history. Without full awareness of Peronism's history, one is forced to make assumptions about him and place him in the mental categories at hand. "Dictator" seems about right for those not familiar with the system Peron worked in and represented, and that is the word this book often uses.

I would recommend this book to someone interested in the linear narration of Peron's life (when he was born, where he served as a general, when he became President, when he fled to Spain, when he returned, etc.), but I would caution against taking the interpretations of the author too literally. The thing that I find outstanding about this book is the incredible parade of pictures, though all black and white they are very high quality reproductions (finding high quality reproductions from the Peronist era can be difficult). To see what the cover of this book looks like, search for the VHS video "Juan & Evita Peron" available on the Amazon site (this video is on my list of "Eva Perón - Biographies and studies of Evita" [#18 on my list]). The cover artwork is the same on both products (though the cover text, obviously, is different).

Ok, I have to be objective here, and not just rip the crap out of this book, which would be easy to do. First, it has no premise other than bashing the stuffing out of nanotechnology, a technology that I have come to really respect and admire. The hero is your classic neo-schizoid-male-loner-demon-plauged-loser-type. In other words a cardboard cuttout. I had high hopes for this book because of my interest in nano, but it became clear to me that this author had probably read one of those blurbs about new technology and said to himself: "ooh, this looks like a good thing to debunk in a novel." A very poorly written one at that. The premise is very Orwellian, with large clumsy dollops of 1984 splattered carelessly throughout the charred ruin of a plot. It can be summed as thus: Man, haunted by past, goes on secret mission, finds girl, gets girl, defeats global plot, kills mad scientist, has barbecue. A stunned herring could think of a better plot. For all those folks who read this as their first intro to nano, do not let this turn you off. READ THE DIAMOND AGE. It is like comparing a Bently to a matchbox car.

Innerverse by John DeChancie is an eerie science fiction audiobook (5 hours, 4 cassettes) drama about a nation, once part of the United States, now utterly controlled by nanotechnology that absolutely dictates the will of its zombie-like citizens. DeChancie story is brought to life in a full-cast dramatization presentation that offers the listeners a frightening glimpse of the logical extension of totalitarian power, and a powerful dark dystopia of technology at its worst, Innerverse is a captivating listening experience and highly recommended for science fiction fans and community library collections.

This is a stunningly brilliant and original novel that goes far beyond Orwell in exploring utopia and the people who try to build them. Thrilling action and suspense dovetail nicely with fascinating philosophical exchanges between characters. DeChancie never fails to entertain, and this novel is especially rewarding on many levels. Ignore any bonehead reviews to the contrary. This book deserves your attention.

In the early '90s, there were a lot of parody science fiction/ fantasy books. This is a pretty good example of one. If you liked the movie "Down Periscope" or if you like books by Craig Shaw Gardner, you will like this book.

Many sellers have this book for as low as 2 cents. I rate it a 3/5 in the grand scheme of things, but it's certainly a 5/5 for a purchase less than a dollar.

The Kruton Interface has a very clear John DeChancie patina;
Goofy character names, silly situations, sublte sexual inuendo, crisp dialog and sharp humor.

Most certainly reminescent of Down Periscope, it's a slapstick space comedy. While quite enjoyable, I do think it felt a little incomplete as if it were the first book in a series and not so much a novel into and of itself. That is to say the whole novel encompasses one mission that didn't seem quite as...epic...as it could be. Perhaps it was designed to be the first book in a series. Maybe it feels 'short' because I'd like to see more of these characters.

Regardless, the book is solid and humorous.

The United Lawfirms of Kruton make the book worthwhile by itself and the idea of a planet who's entire population are lawyers rivals anything Douglas Adams ever penned.

Not DeChancie's finest, not the finest book of it's kind but one does not need to be 'the best' to still be good.

The captain and crew of the Repulse deliver the humorous goods in this spoof of Star Trek (and other sci-fi) and lawyers. The Earth is threatened by a litigious race bent on suing us into submission. Earth's protection? A ship manned by an engineer who's an incomprehensible Polish-Scot, a very sedated ship's doctor, a navigator with no sense of direction, and a Captain who has screwed up every assignment. Can our 'heroes' stop the evil attorneys?

This one was such a fun read that I've kept it for when I need a laugh. It's worth a second read!

Dr. Demetrios Demopoulos, a scientist from the US circa. 1950's, has created what turns out to be an inter-planetary travel craft...and lands in what turns out to be an inter-galactic war. 'Fish out of water' is a term that applies here.

Dr. Dimension is a collaborative effort between John DeChancie and David Bischoff that works fairly well on many levels but comes up short on other ones.

On a whole, it's a very amusing and well written novel. Part Buck Rogers, part The Nutty Professor and part 80's Sitcom.

The execution of the book is very well done but it seems like you can tell which parts were written by which writer, or another way to say it is it doesn't feel fully homogenized. Whether it's the reader's imagination or reality, it does detract from the novel slightly.

However, on a whole, the book is a wonderful story. Dr. Demopoulos is a lecherous old scientist who is like a cross between Albert Einstein and Danny Devito in Taxi...an all around great character.

I'd reccomend both this book and it's sequal Dr. Dimesion: Masters of Spacetime to anyone who enjoys a good sci-fi book and particularly to anyone who is partial to old radio serials as the story passes an, obviously, intentional likeness to them.

The earlier Castle Perilous novels have had their ups and downs, but have always satisfied on the whole. Bride of the Castle, on the other hand, isn't worth picking up. DeChancie's humor, action, and witty dialogue are still there, but he tries to make the plot too big. There's the main plot of the wedding day of our hero, Gene. and our heroine, Linda, and Gene's doubts about whether and he can be a husband, and the temptation of infidelity before the wedding, which dissapointed me somewhat. Then there's a whole subplot about some guy we've never heard of before, and his struggle to return from an alternate universe to his own home. Confused? So am I, and I read the book. The latest Castle perilous novel take on a plot beyond it's needs, and then ends very abruptly, making it seem like the author didn't have time to come up with a more satisfying ending. New readers or fans(I know there are a few) of Castle Perilous, this book isn't worth your five bucks

Easily the weakest link in the otherwise solid Castle series. That being said it is enjoyable for a true fan of the Castle novels but not on the same level as Castle Spellbound or the original.

This book is more a soap opera than adventure. The characters spend more time trying to figure out what they want than any action taking place. Also DeChancie throws in a character(s) that make no sense and I couldn't figure out why he(they) were even in the story. This book didn't flow from beginning to end like it should. Add the confusion and lack of adventure there wasn't much to this book unless a person wants to keep up with characters in case of another castle book. This was the first of the castle books that I found disappointing, think before buying it!