Arh Gee
Great conclusion to the series!
I loved this series and almost missed this last book because it wasn't listed on Goodreads. Enjoyed the space opera and military sci-fi with a sweet love story mixed in to give it some depth. Glad the story came to a happy conclusion.
Paradise-1 by David Wellington was a fine read. I have to say it was more of scifi adventure than scifi horror. The story is told from the perspectives of two main characters, one a fail-daughter police officer and the other a doctor who seems to be suffering from autism. As punishment for workplace failures, they are sent to check up on a deep space colony only to have everything go wrong in-transit and find themselves in a fight for survival.
The book is well enough written and there is decent character development. The story was interesting and a quick read. If you are bored and looking for a distraction, this book is well worth a read.
Exadelic by Jon Evans was a unique and enjoyable book. The story centers around Adrian, a clueless but well-intentioned mid-level Silicon Valley type, who gets thrust into a reality shattering conspiracy. The story starts as what appears to the reader as Charles Stross style urban fantasy but ends up after various twists to be a William Gibson style cyberpunk novel culminating in the jailbreaking of reality. The book is objectively well written, and the characters are compelling.
As far as I can tell this is a standalone novel and the ending doesn't seem to leave any room for follow up novels. As such the book makes for a nice little nugget of reading that doesn't commit you to having to read an entire series. If you are looking for something a little different, then I can wholeheartedly recommend giving Exadelic a read.
Amazing! In Lords of Uncreation, the Final Architecture trilogy is brought to a conclusion that left me awestruck.
Adrian Tchaikovsky with the Final Architecture trilogy has written what can only be described as a space opera epic similar to the Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons and Commonweath Saga by Peter F Hamilton. Our protagonist Idis continues his arc as a messianic undying martyr figure who in this final installment of the series ventures into the metaphorical underworld and slays the titans. The crew of the salvage ship Vulture God are once again with him every step of the way and Tchaikovsky makes sure to bring every subplot in the series to a satisfying conclusion rather than leaving the reader hanging.
This is not a standalone novel but the third and final part of a trilogy, so make sure to go read Shards of Earth and Eyes of the Void before starting Lords of Uncreation. If you enjoy books by Adrian Tchaikovsky or enjoy space opera epics then I strongly advise giving the Final Architecture trilogy a read.
Hel's Eight is an enjoyable read and a worthy sequel to Ten Low.
It's a story that can be described as a dystopian space western taking place in a science fiction distant future. In this installment of the story our protagonist, Ten Low, finally gains answers to the true nature of the ‘ifs' and what exactly are the seekers. The plot is solid, the characters are flushed out fully, and the story is brought to a satisfying conclusion.
Like the first novel, I found it to be a page turner that I was able to finish in a single sitting. If you enjoy “space westerns” then Hel's Eight is exactly what you are looking for.
Observer by Robert Lanza is a book that toys with philosophical ideas surrounding the nature of reality and the human mind. Our main character is confronted with questions revolving around if we are an observer existing within reality or if our entire reality is actually manifested by the very act of observation. That if the later were true, then is there some way to hack reality itself by hacking the mind of the observer, modifying the human brain using computer implants, to change reality itself. That if one were to change the reality observed by the mind of the observer, does it actually mean reality itself was changed or is this change only in the mind of the observer?
There were decent subplots surrounding class, the struggles surrounding raising a severely disabled child, and some of the darker sides of workplace politics. The main character and other characters in the story were fully flushed out. The overall plot was compelling enough but I did find the conclusion of the story to be a bit unsatisfying.
I received an eARC from NetGalley
It's a well enough written book and not one I regret reading. If you are looking for an “airport book” to bide time while waiting or something to read while on vacation, Observer by Robert Lanza is in fact worth grabbing and giving a read.
I enjoyed Rubicon even though I did find the last quarter of the story a little frustrating. It's a story that at its core is centered around topics of existential dread, suicidal ideation, substance abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Rubicon falls somewhere into the genres of Science Fiction, Space Opera, and Military.
The plot follows the journey of an undying soldier who wants to die permanently rather than working out their own psychological trauma and interpersonal relationship problems. It's a classic trope some may recognize from Science Fiction classics like Armour by John Steakley. It makes for a solid and emotional story when paired with the science fiction genre.
If you have read other books by J.S. Dewes and enjoyed them, then you will undoubtedly enjoy Rubicon. Rubicon is a book I can recommend to anyone who enjoys the space marine science fiction genre.
The Scourge Between Stars by Ness Brown is well written science fiction horror that surprises the reader by being more than just a spooky story with monsters lurking in the dark but also thought provoking hard science fiction. Within the first ten pages psychological horror is successfully harnessed to unsettle the reader with the relatively mundane. The true horror in this book is during the first 50 pages before the monsters lurking in the dark are known to exist, before any blood has been spilled and nothing horrible has actually happened. It's not the uncanny robots or thumps in the night that are truly terrifying but the unknown. Like with most things, once the protagonist and reader finally became aware of the monsters in the dark, that they are real, the story stopped being science fiction horror and became hard science fiction with a bit of action.
Other than the main plot involving monsters lurking in the dark, the story had various subplots ranging from the uncanniness of sentient artificial intelligence to the terrible psychological burden that comes with leadership done well. This is as much a story about morality and what it is to be human, as it is about monsters in the night. A daughters relationship with parents in a time of prolonged crisis, a first officers relationship with their ships captain, and the moment a junior is forced into the position of leadership because there are no other options. The realization that humanity dispite crossing the stars was still barely a type 1 civilization on the Kardashev-scale and while out in the wider universe runs the real risk of being accidentally stepped on by godlike advanced civilizations who don't even realize we are in the stellar neighborhood crawling around at their feet.
Do I recommend this book? Yes I do. I suggest anyone who enjoys science fiction and has the opportunity to grab a copy, do so.
I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley
The Blighted Stars is a lot of fun and a wonderfully written story. Equal parts space opera, scifi-horror, and socio-economic class commentary that even has a cute love story thrown in.
The story is mostly told from the perspective of a Mercator family corporate-prince named Tarquin and a former Mercator family bodyguard turned revolutionary named Naira. The mainstory arc revolves around these two characters reluctantly joining forces to uncover the true horrific nature of the family empire, Tarquin developing greater class consciousness while going through a heroes journey, and an unlikely love story between our two protagonists from opposite sides of the class-divide.
All around well written and a page turner. Although the story is built around classic tropes, it's kept from being stale or predictable by the scifi-horror element tied to the secrets uncovered about the family. I'd recommend this book for anyone who enjoys space opera, scifi-horror, or so-called woke-lit and of course any existing fans of Megan E O'Keefe.
No spoilers in this review. I really enjoyed the book. I was left pondering the social atomization in our individualist society, capitalist profit seeking, and how the whole push for the development of artificial intelligence fits into it all. It is rare that I come across science fiction that evokes strong emotion through both prose and storytelling. The book is proper science fiction and compared to a lot of stuff these days is very well written. I really hope more people discover this book and the author continues writing science fiction.
Frustrating to read because the main character is just so helpless by choice. The supposed protagonist is naive and selfish, the author frames it as virtue. Insisting on being helpless, refusing to use violence against those killing your people, friends, and family isn't a virtue but is disgusting selfishness. It's bad enough she refuses to defend herself, instead forcing other weaker people to die trying to protect her but in every situation she just lays there refusing to use her powers while her loved ones and subjects are being killed in front of her. She is a necromancer who selfishly refuses to kill people killing innocents or herself. It's especially bad when someone is as powerful like the main character of this book.
Really enjoyed this sequel. The Quantum Evolution books hearken back to the post-human genre popular in the 2000s and the Afro-futurism of Alastair Reynolds. Would recommend.
I really love this series and hope there are more books. There is something refreshing about the characters and plot compared to run of the mill scifi these days.
Really loved this book. Anyone who read and loved Blue Remembered Earth by Alastair Reynolds will love this book.
Really enjoyed this book and it's sequel. The Quantum Evolution books hearken back to the post-human genre popular in the 2000s and the Afro-futurism of Alastair Reynolds. Would recommend.
Descendant Machine is a space opera science fiction novel that can best be described as Star Trek combined with the whiplash twists and fate-of-the-universe stakes of a Marvel film.
Our protagonist is Nicola Mafalda, a navigator in the Continuance's vanguard scout fleet. The story arc is a morality play that is brought to a conclusion after a series of twists that allow Nicola to never give into pragmatism or compromise her personal morals. While the plot is easy enough to follow and the story is filled with humorous moments, the repeated twists were a little much at times.
This novel works as a standalone and can be read without first reading Stars and Bones. If you enjoy Star Trek or Marvel films then I can recommend reading Descendant Machine.
Thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for an advanced reading copy.
Well enough written but the main character being an immature child of a grown man made it almost unreadable. The supposed protagonist invokes feelings of contempt in the reader when as a man of almost 30 years old they constantly show less emotional maturity than a 12 year old boy. Not sure what the author is trying to invoke in the reader with the main characters constant self pity, always making emotionally charged bad decisions, and always yelling irrationally at other characters who are trying to talk sense into him then ignoring their sound advice. Even worse is the guy constantly is getting other people hurt or killed as a result of their emotional immaturity and the author frames this all as a virtue. Even worse is the man is a complete coward and the author frames this cowardist as virtuous.
Anyway... I imagine the author shares attributes with their protagonist because it's the only explanation for how they could write such a character then frame them as a virtuous protagonist. It would have been different if the main characters behavior was framed differently but it wasn't and as such made for a difficult read.
The saga of Darrow, The Reaper, continues in Light Bringer and it proves to be another great installment in the Red Rising series. The book begins where we left off in Dark Age with Darrow defeated, his legions lost, and his spirit broken. All the characters left surviving at the end of Dark Age return in this installment and most of the story this time centers around Darrow mending relationships he destroyed in that previous book.
To be honest, the book was a bit of a slog for the first few chapters but once the story gets going it becomes a page turner. The book ends with a satisfying conclusion to its core story arc and because it wraps up with a cliff hanger looming threat, I assume there are more installments planned for the Red Rising series. Just like all the previous books in the series it is well written and has a solid plot.
If you enjoy heroes journey stories or epic space opera, I strongly advise giving the Red Rising series a try. Light Bringer is not a standalone novel but the sixth book in a series, so make sure to read the earlier books beforehand or nothing will make any sense. All said, I eagerly await the next installment in the Red Rising series.
It's soooo good. Elizabeth Bear's scifi stories might not be for everyone but for those that it appeals to it is page turning and leaves you wanting more.
Fun book
Any fans of the late Terry Pratchett will enjoy this book. It is written in the same satirical and whimsical prose. I was happy to also discover this book is not Young Adult or New Adult but the type of General Audience material that decades ago dominated the fantasy genre.
Good book from a new author. I probably wouldn't have known about this book if I didn't use the website RisingShadow to track new releases. Maybe the publisher could buy some ads from Amazon to bump it up in the kindle store so more readers learn of it?
The book is painful to read, even more so than the first book in the series. This author makes everything painfully melodramatic with each and every character curled into a ball crying in fear the entire time and insisting on self pity filled helplessness. It's painful to read and makes both the characters and story unbelievable. Real people aren't like that, no one would be able to function and society wouldn't function. Maybe a single character being an nonfunctional emotional wreck constantly wrapped into the fetal position would be believable but every single character being a self pity filled victim that insists on being helpless? Unbelievable and painful to read.
Antimatter Blues is a worthy sequel to Mickey7 and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Our protagonist, Mickey, is neither the bravest nor the smartest but at the end of the day will grudgingly rise to the occasion. In this installment of the story Mickey has to save the colony from the consequences of his actions in the first novel and does so once again without ever making a coherent plan or taking full responsibility. While our protagonist may not be virtuous or heroic, he is relatable and, as before, eventually does do the right thing.
As with Edward Ashton's previous books the world building is solid and all characters are fully flushed out. The novel is both humorous and a page tuner. I wouldn't advise anyone to read Antimatter Blues before first reading Mickey7 because this is in no way a standalone novel. If you have already read and enjoyed Mickey7 then don't hesitate before reading Antimatter Blues.