Synopsis
AS DARKNESS DESCENDS, ATLAS MUST RISE.
In the sprawling tapestry of the Aurorion Galaxy, Atlas Viridian dreams of escaping the junk-strewn life of the Salvage Belt. However, his aspirations crumble when his father is arrested under suspicion of being the elusive terrorist, “Typhon.” Accused of aiding and abetting, Atlas is thrust into the relentless grip of Horizon Corporation, condemned to toil for resources beneath the surface of a distant moon.
Trapped in the Dome of Dierock 88, Atlas’ destiny becomes entwined with the clandestine machinations of “Vanguard,” a shadowy Black Operations group. Their motives remain elusive—Atlas is the key, but to what?
Learning to live with a ragtag group of very different people, he’ll navigate the treacherous depths and discover that Horizon’s facade of happiness conceals a darker truth: Deadly creatures, remnants of the ancient alien Kosmonautai, haunt the caverns below. Every descent brings not only deadly adversaries but inexplicable mental turmoil.
BENEATH THE SURFACE, SECRETS AWAIT.
In the crucible of survival, he’ll grapple with the tragic lives around him and the harsh truths of the galaxy he inhabits. Dierock 88 becomes a dangerous journey of self-discovery, challenging a young man to unearth the mystery of his own existence, and decide what matters most in an unfair, and cruel society. Will Atlas survive the descent and emerge from the darkness? Or will the battle within himself be his downfall?
TORN ALLEGIANCE. FRACTURED TRUST.
BE REBORN.
Review
Dierock 88 is a sci-fi debut that is engrossing and full of life.
Genesis
I first became aware of Dierock 88 when I was randomly scrolling through Twitter/X. Yes, another book found on the interwebs of social media. The first thing that really pulled me in was the cover. It’s simply a beautiful cover illustrated by Rafael Andres. It captures a scenic view in space with a mysterious person in a suit holding a glowing green sword like object. My eyes were immediately drawn to the sword leaving me thinking… is that a lightsaber? Why is this person on a rock? Where is that spaceship going in the background? Also, what the heck does Dierock 88 even mean?
Questions. I was left with a plethora of questions after a quick glance of the cover so… the cover did exactly what it’s supposed to do. It spiked my interest before even reading a single word of the description.
So I did what every person would do right? I commented on the author’s post saying “Hot dang, that cover is🔥. Where can I get it?” This is actually when I found out that the book wasn’t even out yet. S.A. Ernster was incredibly nice and offered a review copy of the book and I happily accepted. After reading through Dierock 88, I am so happy that I did.
Preamble
Dierock 88 is book 1 in the Kosmonautai series with the title of book number 2 already being announced. Paradiso is actively being worked on right now as you’re reading this. (S.A. you better be writing right now because I need more…)
Also, slight confession, for the life of me, I can not say the name of this series without butchering it. This is why even though I talked about Dierock 88 several times on my channel, I haven’t said the series name once. Welp, I’ll keep trying to sound it out because I am in for the ride with this series going forward.
Now, I talked a lot about the cover, the series, and basically everything besides the content of the book. Did I enjoy the story and did it live up to the epic cover? Well, you can see my thoughts below.
Aftermath
The opening scene in Dierock 88 is a perfect example of a story quickly hooking a reader. I immediately became intrigued, lost, and immersed into the story with the first paragraph giving me a glimpse into the world and our main character, Atlas.
“The cardinal rule of the Junk Scrappers trade was etched deep into the fabric of their existence: never work alone and never, under any circumstance, work untethered. Atlas had brazenly shattered both rules.”
From here in chapter one alone we get action, character development, world building, and more… all within the first chapter?! Wow, I was excited to continue forward and guess what? It only got better from here.
Not too far from chapter one, we are introduced to the main conflict in the story that is described in the book’s description, Atlas’s father is arrested under the suspicion of being a large scale terrorist. From here, our quirky and young protagonist is sent off to the prison rock/planet of Dierock 88… the title of the book! After being greeted with a warm welcome (he’s not) he is to serve as an indentured worker who mines under the surface of DR88. In the depths of these mines, we see some crazy things happen which I will not delve to much deeper in this review.
Does Atlas deserve to be here? Is his dad really a terrorist? Why the heck is this rock called Dierock 88?
We get answers to these questions and more.
World Building
From a world building perspective, Ernster does a fantastic job painting the immense universe our characters live in. I found beautiful descriptions throughout my entire read that made the world in this story feel alive.
Character Development
During this story, we see Atlas transform before our very eyes into something else entirely. Our character is lost in this expansive universe but, he is not without hope. There is a wide cast of characters in this story where you are not exactly sure who to trust. Who are your friends and who is just trying to take advantage?
Emotional Depth
Ernster’s prose and her ability to capture raw emotion from our characters is TOP NOTCH. My favorite relationship was the connection between a father and son that deals with our main character. You feel the fatherly love exuding from the page which also made me upset learning that he could potentially be a terrorist?!
The only way to find out the truth though, is to read.
Technology
This book is FULL to the brim of really cool technology that I just gobbled up. I think some would say that its pretty close to what you would typically see in a Cyberpunk book with holograms, neural links, net runner type of people (love the way this is executed in DR88) and more. I would not say that this is a cyberpunk story though with the main focus being science fiction. To me, it more or less felt like a sci-fi blend with fantasy with sprinkles of cyberpunk themes too.
Creatures
Yeah, there are some freaking crazy creatures in this story that I don’t want to describe here but WOW. We are not alone in this universe and the way it’s tackled in this story is very horrifying and awe inspiring at the same time. I had a blast seeing Atlas traverse the mines on this rock, traveling down dark tunnels into the unknown with maybe, just maybe something other than crystals pop out.
In terms of my tiny little issues comes from the tone of this book. Our main character is young which I think results in the tone flip flopping from serious to juvenile. At some points, it felt like I was reading a YA sci-fi book (which is fine with me if that is what its meant to be) but then the next page, the tone can shift to something more serious and dramatic followed by very gruesome scenes.
Also with a rock named DIE-rock, I was expecting the rock planet to be a little more bleak. If I am remembering this correctly, there were shops, bars, restaurants, and more that lessened the dramatic name of Dierock for me.
So did Dierock 88 live up to the stunning cover Image? Yes, I absolutely think so. This was a fantastic sci-fi debut from somebody who “has it” when it comes to writing. This book had everything I could want out of a sci-fi thriller.
- A character I could root for
- Overarching mystery that keeps you questioning what is really going on
- Intense action that gets your blood pumping
- Lore that expands your mind
- Technology that makes your jaw drop
- AND MORE
So overall, I recommend any sci-fi fan to check out this book. If you are a fan of Red Rising by Pierce Brown or Skyward by Brandon Sanderson, Dierock-88 will fit right up your alley.
4.5 stars.
I want to read it again… already!
“Kindly remain aware that you may encounter intermittent confrontations with extraterrestrial entities during the course of your hazardous exploits.”
Also, I have a Patreon that is completely open for new members where I will place your name at the bottom of all future reviews and in all future videos. No pressure at all, I can’t thank you enough for simply reading this review and watching my videos. You ROCK!
Thank you to my Patrons ❤️
Exalted Members
Timothy Wolff
Ouster Members
Mel
Follow Me on other socials
YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@BiblioTheory
Twitter/X – https://twitter.com/BiblioTheory
Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/bibliotheory
Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/BiblioTheory
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/bibliotheory
Leave a Reply