Some reviews or taglines in the covers mention the non-stop action and amazing plotting of the book and yes, there is that too! But the characters and the growth (and losses) they experience through this book made me put the novel at the top of my favorites. Sanderson nailed the human part of going through such a crisis as an impending alien invasion, and enhanced it with crazy spaceship fights, crazy-yet-funny AI and a world of characters and a planet we truly want to know more beyond this first novel. I literally had to take a breather after I finished this book, something that never happened before. It touched me deeply, as if I knew Spensa and lived Detritus’ struggles against the Krell with her, as a friend. For me, Skyward opened a door to the possibility of living a book on a deeply emotional plane, something I’ve never experienced before.
Science Fiction
Review: Nophek Gloss (The Graven #1) by Essa Hansen
Nophek Gloss is Essa Hansen’s debut and the first in the author’s The Graven series. I have seen some categorize this book as Space Opera, but I do not see the sweeping elements one normally finds in a book characterized as such. In my opinion, this is just good Science Fiction. The caveat to this statement is twofold: 1) I am not very good at labeling sub-genres, and 2) Sometimes with SciFi it is the second book in the series that really develops the epic scope that can broaden the horizons to push the series into Space Opera territory. So, I will reserve final judgement for now, but know that this is the context into which my review is framed.
Review: The Gottingen Accident by James F. Mordechai
The Gottingen Accident is a novella that I absolutely flew through. Coming in at under 150 pages you get thrown into the action from page one.
Maths is not my strong suit, and it never has been. So starting a book that talks about Non-Euclidian Geometry had me a little worried, I had even googled the term before I started the book. Thankfully, you are in safe hands and I shouldn’t have worried at all. Over the course of the start of the book Mordechai finds ways to weave in the meaning, and demonstrates it without using overly-complicated explanations. Once you get to the weirder portions of the book you’ll be going right along with it. For me, I ended up picturing the Oldest House from Control (the super crazy sections) but with way less sharp edges.
Review: Catalyst Gate (The Protectorate #3) by Megan O’Keefe
the past couple of weeks. And it feels like I just read a 1600-page book, as it definitely appears like it was carefully crafted and planned that way. So, although the review focuses on Catalyst Gate I’m providing an overall review of the series, as the final book delivers on all the promises and questions raised throughout the trilogy and I can’t review the conclusion book without considering the previous tomes. Overall, there were a few slower moments in the second book—definitely on purpose—but in the end, I loved it through and through.
Review: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
It’s a blockbuster of a book, a space epic, a race against time, and a novel about cooperation, friendship, and the greatest sacrifice of them all. I cannot recommend this book enough!
Review: When the Sparrow Falls by Neil Sharpson
When the Sparrow falls is a literary scifi spy thriller in the vein of Altered Carbon meets the Iron Curtain – set in a future where people can have their consciousness digitized. The Triumvirate are, George, Athena and Confucius, three Super AI who rule the world apart from Caspian, a state that rejects all the Machine would offer and places strict law and harsh judgement on anyone using said tech from within their territory; it’s a place which finds comfort in state executions, and the only real escape is a bullet through the head or a needle in the back of the neck … if you can find Yoshik.
Review: Catalyst Gate (The Protectorate #3) by Megan E. O’Keefe
Catalyst Gate is the third and final installment in Megan E. O’Keefe’s The Protectorate series. This is a highly-anticipated release for many, and that is especially true for fans of the space opera trilogy who are looking for the story to end with a bang. If you read no more of this review, know this: to say it went out with a bang would be an understatement.
Review: Infomocracy (The Centenal Cycle #1) by Malka Older
It’s rare that I get fully engrossed in a fictional political narrative anymore. Sure, the vast number of Tom Clancy novels and movies deliver compelling, high-octane thrill rides, and The Manchurian Candidate (both the 1959 novel as well as the 1962 and 2004 films) still stands as one of the best election stories out there. But, when it comes down to it, the real world of politics (in the United States and elsewhere) is already rife with enough drama, deceit and decadence. Sometimes it’s just so damn tiring—and all of this coming from me, a genuine political junky. (On top of it all, most political stories just aren’t that good.) So, it came as a wonderful surprise when I read Malka Older’s debut novel, Infomocracy, that I found myself invested in a story so distinctly political again.
Review: Ten Low by Stark Holborn
This is a Sci-Fi set on a moon at the edge of the universe, where the reach of The Accord barely exists and lawlessness abounds. I loved reading a story about a backwater moon where the rest of the universe is clearly populated, if not entirely cared for. It gives the characters who live there a lot to fight for and not a lot to lose. The race across the landscape means you see farms where crops can’t grow, towns built like prison hulks, and shining fancy transport that is at odds with its surroundings. Somehow Holborn has taken this space-desert moon and filled it with life and with threats.
Review: Day Zero by Robert C. Cargill
(Terminator anyone?), you’re left alone to take care of an eight-year-old kid as his parents were both executed by a robot-nanny-turned-evil. But wait, there’s one more thing, you are a robot too. That is the premise of Day One by Robert C. Cargill. A dystopian story of survival and the relationship between an eight-year-old kid and his best friend who turns out to be a cyber-plush-tiger.
Guest Post: Cover Reveal – Mirror in Time, by D. Ellis Overttun
Hey, everyone! Author D. Ellis Overttun is back with another guest post. This time we are celebrating the cover reveal of the author’s soon-to-be-released 4th book, Mirror in Time. And with that I am handing the mic off. Enjoy!
Review: Gone (Gone #1) by Michael Grant
Gone was one of those books where the premise, the buzz (I mean Stephen King on the cover—it must be good right!) and the book itself was exciting, engaging and stress-inducing until the last chapters. It literally was 10 stars until it got to the climax of the story where my rating deflated to an 8 like an untied balloon left flying.