STATIC

TITLE: STATIC

AUTHOR: L.A. WITT

Pages: 236

Date: 11/02/2014

Grade: 5+

Details: Received from Riptide Publishing

            Through Love Romances and More

Own / Kindle

The blurb:

After two years together, Alex has been dreading the inevitable moment when Damon learns the truth: that Alex is a shifter, part of a small percentage of the population able to switch genders at will. Thanks to a forced implant though, Alex is suddenly static – unable to shift – and male. Overnight, he’s out to a world that neither understands nor tolerates shifters...and to his heterosexual boyfriend.

Damon is stunned to discover his girlfriend is a shifter, and scared to death of the dangers the implant poses to Alex’s health. He refuses to abandon Alex, but what about their relationship? Damon is straight, and with the implant both costly and dangerous to remove, Alex is stuck as a man.

Stripped of half his identity and facing serious physical and social ramifications, Alex needs Damon more than ever, but doesn’t see how they can get through this.

Especially if he’s static forever.”

----------------------------------------------------

My thoughts:

Every now and again I pick up a book that blows me away, a book that is more than a good story, a story that does more than entertain me. Some books manage to touch me on a deeper level and make me want to go out and shout the title from the rooftops, bully people into buying and reading the book now, immediately. ‘Static is one of those books.’

For starters there is the story of Alex and Damon who have been dating for two years. They have grown so close that Damon wants to marry his girlfriend, although she doesn’t seem to be as eager as he is to tie the knot. Damon knows there is something bothering Alex. She seems to have mood-swings, suffer with bouts of depression and uses alcohol to medicate herself on occasion. Damon has no idea why Alex is this way but accepts her as she appears to be, darker periods and all.

One night, after she has visited the parents she’s estranged from, Alex fails to contact Damon. Worried about the woman he loves Damon goes to her house only to be confronted by a handsome man when the door opens.

Damon is shocked to discover this man is Alex; that the girl he has been dating for two years is in fact a shifter, one of a small percentage of people capable of changing their gender depending on whether they feel male or female. Not that Damon has a problem with the idea of shifters. In a world where most people disapprove of shifters and would prefer to deny their right to live their life in whatever body they need to, Damon is among the accepting minority.

The problem is that Alex is no longer able to shift. Thanks to an implant that was forced on him without his consent, Alex is now static in his male body. And Damon is straight.

The problems Alex and Damon face are endless. Living in a world where shifting is considered an anomaly and most people only know Alex as a girl, the man Alex finds himself confronted by discrimination, gossip and bullying.

“This world is designed for people whose brains match their bodies, and fuck anyone who not only can but needs to change from day to day or hour to hour.”

Imprisoned in his male body even when everything inside him screams that he is female is almost impossible to deal with as is the thought that he is stuck in this situation thanks to an illegal operation inflicted upon him by his parents. And to top it all off there’s the fact that illegal implants can pose a health risk while removal of it is both very dangerous and not always successful. And finally there is Damon, the man Alex loves, the partner he kept secrets from, his very straight lover who may not be able to stay with him now that he’s no longer able to be female.

Damon has his own set of problems to deal with. He’s worried about his partner’s health both mentally and physically of course but there’s more. Once he gets used to the idea that his girlfriend is now male, and possibly locked into that body forever, Damon has to sort out his feelings for Alex.

“Of course he’s Alex. But he’s not. But he is.”

Damon is lucky that he has friends he can talk to, people who understand shifting as well as his doubts and confusion.

“What you need to do is stop looking for the woman you knew. Just look for the person.”

But advice, no matter how good, isn’t always easy to follow. If Damon is sure of one thing it is that he is straight. And Alex, at least for now but maybe forever, is male.

“I loved Alex and always would, but didn’t know how to love him now. What would happen when we got tired of not touching?”

Damon’s journey from confusion, through stubborn loyalty to the understanding that things haven’t really changed as much as he’d thought was breath-taking.

“I loved him the same as I loved her because they were one and the same.”

The night when Alex discovers he has far more support than he could ever have imagined is the same night when Damon discovers that love is love, no matter what body your lover happens to be living in.

“The intimacy was still there from before this had all started, right there waiting this whole time for us to come and get it.”

This was the section of the book I read with tears in my eyes. The ending of the book put a huge grin on my face and made me happy. The scenes where it all comes together for Alex and Damon touched my heart and will stay with me for a very long time.

“I’d had to learn to navigate some unfamiliar terrain, but the desire was still there because I wanted Alex, in every way, on every level, I wanted Alex.”

This book was a compulsive read for me on every level. I loved the way in which it was written, found myself completely engrossed in the story, felt all the feelings for and with the characters and couldn’t stop reading until the very last page.

In the author’s Note L.A. Witt says the following:

“By the time I finished Static, I had a much deeper and more sympathetic understanding of people whose gender identity doesn’t fall into the culturally accepted binary of male-bodied men and female-bodied women.”

The author continues by stating that she hopes the same will be true for the reader and I can assure her that it was definitely the case for me. I can’t speak for anyone else of course, but I’d challenge anyone to read this book and not walk away with a better understanding of gender issues. I’ve no idea why it is easier for me to imagine how painful it would be to lose the ability to shift between genders than it is to imagine the feeling of living in the wrong body but for me that is how it worked. It is as if this book has removed blinkers from my eyes; as if I can suddenly see and understand things that were always there but out of focus for me.

This is the sort of book that should be required reading for everyone. Stories like ‘Static’ make a subject that is hard to deal with for a lot of people more accessible and will, hopefully and over time, create understanding and thus, a better and more tolerant world. I’m sure some will say I’m naive and overly optimistic but I have to believe that the day will come when people will be allowed to be who they need to be without the rest of the world feeling entitled to tell them they’re wrong.

The author added that she hopes her readers enjoy the story. I hope my review has made it clear how much I loved this story and the message it so eloquently shares.

HEAVEN'S FALL

TITLE: HEAVEN’S FALL

AUTHORS: DAVID S. GOYER & MICHAEL CASSUTT

Pages: 415

Date: 16/12/2013

Grade: 4+

Details: no. 3 Heaven’s Shadow

             Received from Tor through Nudge

Own

The first thing you need to know about this book is that it is the third and final title in a trilogy. While I won’t go so far as to say that this book can’t be read without having read the first two instalments I would strongly recommend against such a course of action.

The story:

Twenty years have passed since the Near Earth Object christened Keanu – and I still like that play with words – took several hundred humans from the only home they ever knew and forced them to create a community for themselves in space. Over the course of those years the people on Keanu have travelled through space while learning to live with and within Keanu’s confines. Now Keanu is on its way back to Earth with a mission that needs to succeed in order to save not only all human life but also the home planet of those who create the NEO.

Reivers, the semi mechanical enemies of Keanu’s creators, have successfully established themselves on Earth after being forced to flee the NEO and have started a process that will destroy the planet if they manage to bring it to a successful conclusion.

Rachel Stewart is in charge of the small group of humans and one alien whose only goal is to find a way to stop and destroy the Reivers before they can finalise their programme. But alone on a planet they don’t really know anymore, in a world most of which is controlled by those Reivers, it appears their mission may be doomed to fail before it has properly begun. It will take help from unexpected quarters as well as some startling developments on Keanu to provide any hope for our heroes as well as the billions of lives they are trying to save.

My thoughts:

This story is told from several perspectives in alternate chapters which worked very well for me because it separated the science chapters from those concerned with emotions and impressions. The result of the multiple voices is that even a reader like me, who often gets bogged down in the scientific aspects of a Science-Fiction novel, has no problem staying with the story. Whenever the narrative appeared to be getting too technical for my liking the perspective would change and take me, for example, from a mechanical creature with thought process I could barely follow into the mind of a 14 year old girl whose emotions where all to recognisable.

What I really liked is that this book forced me to think about certain things. For example, you would think that returning to Earth after twenty years would be a dream come true for the humans on Keanu and that a girl who was born on the NEO and had only ever heard about life on her parent’s home planet would be delighted to go there. It took me a while to realise that it made sense for those same humans to yearn for a return to the NEO; earth wasn’t home anymore because home is, after all, where the heart is. And after twenty years, the heart was firmly established on Keanu.

It is clear from the way this book is written that the authors are screenwriters. The story is told in scenes; each chapter having a different narrator and its own set-up. While I know nothing about screenwriting it is easy to imagine that it wouldn’t take too much work to transform the three novels in this trilogy into scripts. That doesn’t mean this book is harder to read than most novels though; quite the opposite in fact. All three of the books in this series are quick to grab the reader’s attention and easy to read. Having said that, I have to admit that the first book in this series was by far my favourite.

Overall I would have to say that this trilogy impressed me. The story is original, manages to create a fantastical yet easy to believe environment and gives the reader a fascinating combination of all too recognisable human behaviour and imaginative alien creations. And it doesn’t hurt at all than in the middle of all the danger and action there is time for a philosophical observation or two:

“Assuming anything that had happened in the past twenty years was an adventure. Yes, she’d had had unusual experiences – but so had those she left on Earth. Love was a unique experience. Parenthood. Work. Accomplishment. Failure. Death. Adventure was really just life, the days flowing into and out of each other.”

While this book concludes the ‘Heaven’s Shadow’ trilogy, I won’t be surprised if the authors decide to revisit these characters in the future. The way the book ends allows for a whole new story-line in a brand new universe. If that story becomes available one day, I will be among the first readers to dive into it.

THE PLAGUE FORGE a review by Dermot Kennedy

TITLE: THE PLAGUE FORGE

AUTHOR: JASON M. HOUGH

Pages: 435

Date: 08/10/2013

Grade: 4.5

Details: no. 3 The Dire Earth Cycle

            Received from Titan Books

            Through Nudge.

Own

This third book in “the Dire Earth cycle” continues the search by Skyler Luiken and the Belem community for the last three Builder artefacts. Even though the community leaders are in the dark as to what will happen once all five artefacts have been returned to the Builder ship in orbit above Earth, the general consensus is that the task must be completed before the final Builder event is due to take place, and if it is not the consequences for the whole of humanity could be dire. Meanwhile in Darwin, Grillo, and his Jacobites, continues to tighten his stranglehold on the city and orbitals with his extreme fundamentalism. Unfortunately for Skyler, Grillo also has possession of one of the artefacts. Without it he will be unable to finally unlock the Builders secret and uncover the real reason for all that has befallen mankind.

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series and Hough has written a fitting climax to this excellent trilogy. The pace never lets up and indeed increases with the story now happening on three distinct fronts. Tayla Sharma takes a team to North America to recover one of the Builder artefacts. Skyler follows the trail left by the Builder towers exodus to Africa, only to discover the source of the deadly SUBS virus. And in Darwin, Prumble and Samantha undertake a dangerous mission to retrieve the artefact which is being kept in a high security vault by Grillo.

Hough’s writing is assured and his character development memorable with some of the characters showing some surprising and unanticipated traits. I especially liked the characters of Vanessa, who has developed into an “Amazonian” type warrior, and Prumble who, notwithstanding his obvious un-athletic physique, proves himself to be a very accomplished insurgent against Grillo’s religious inquisition. Again Hough keeps the overall feel of the story upbeat, notwithstanding the fact that this all takes place in a dystopian world. Without giving away any spoilers, the climax was not what I had expected and I was pleasantly surprised how this unfolded.  I also appreciated how Hough calls in to question our automatic assumption to apply human morals to non-human entities. All in all I could not put this book down (even though I really didn’t have the time to allocate to reading this in two or three sittings) and found myself pulling an all-nighter just to get to the end of the story. Something I haven’t done in a long time.

Although the various story lines are all nicely concluded in this book, Hough has left enough openings to continue other aspects of the story in future releases. I, for one, will be waiting with bated breath for any further adventures from this author and will gladly recommend him to any lovers of the sci-fi genre or indeed anyone who enjoys a rollicking good yarn.

THE RETURNED

TITLE: THE RETURNED

AUTOR: JASON MOTT

Pages: 352

Date: 09/09/2013

Grade: 5

Details: Received from Harlequin

            Through NetGalley

Own / Kindle

The Blurb:

“Jacob was time out of sync, time more perfect than it had been. He was life the way it was supposed to be all those years ago. That's what all the Returned were.

Harold and Lucille Hargrave's lives have been both joyful and sorrowful in the decades since their only son, Jacob, died tragically at his eighth birthday party in 1966. In their old age they've settled comfortably into life without him, their wounds tempered through the grace of time ... Until one day Jacob mysteriously appears on their doorstep—flesh and blood, their sweet, precocious child, still eight years old.

All over the world people's loved ones are returning from beyond. No one knows how or why this is happening, whether it's a miracle or a sign of the end. Not even Harold and Lucille can agree on whether the boy is real or a wondrous imitation, but one thing they know for sure: he's their son. As chaos erupts around the globe, the newly reunited Hargrave family finds itself at the center of a community on the brink of collapse, forced to navigate a mysterious new reality and a conflict that threatens to unravel the very meaning of what it is to be human."

==============================================================

Every so often you find a book that makes you stop and think. You find yourself wondering “what if” and “what would I do”. And, if the book is really good, it doesn’t give you clear cut answers as to what would be right or wrong. Instead it gives you the opportunity to look deep inside yourself and try to figure out where you would stand if you found yourself in that particular situation.

This was such a wonderful book for me.

From the moment people who have been dead for years, if not decades, start returning to life, looking exactly as they did when they died and with only the wish to be reunited with the loved ones they left behind, the world is divided about what it means and how to react to it.

There are those who think it is a wonderful miracle. And then there are those who think it is a sure sign that the end of days have arrived. And some, like Lucille Hargrave are convinced it is a sign of doom to come right up to the moment they themselves are reunited with a dear one they have lost.

But, while it may be wonderful for most people to have the opportunity to spend more time with lost loved-ones, it is only a matter of time before there are so many Returned that housing and feeding them becomes an issue. There is an official Bureau put in charge of dealing with the Returned. While initially it’s task is to make sure that the Returned are reunited with their families and trying to find out what is going on and how it is happening, the focus shifts as the numbers of Returned increase. Soon the Bureau’s job has been reduced to one of containment, and the Returned are taken from their families and put in camps. With the Bureau getting increasingly inflexible, the wider population being scared about this phenomenon they don’t understand and those reunited with those they thought they’d never see again desperate to not lose them again, this is a situation heading towards an explosive finale.

There is an awful lot to be impressed with in this book. First of all, there is the way in which this book is written; thoughtful, in sparse language and with obvious love for the characters in the story. It would have been so easy to turn this story idea in to a high octane, thrill a minute sort of thriller. Jason Mott didn’t go that way though. Instead he tells his story, in which violence does occur, in a subdued and calm way. His characters are equally memorable, especially since they appear so very unremarkable. They aren’t super-humans trying to save the world; they are people like you and me, attempting to keep their lives from imploding while hanging on to those they love. In fact, Harold and Lucille are quite unlikely heroes. In their twilight years, neither of them expected to have to make the decisions and choices they are faced with in this book. But when they’re up against it they follow their hearts and do the only thing they believe to be right.

This book doesn’t concern itself with the how and why of the phenomena it has introduced. We don’t find out how it is possible that the dead return, or why it is happening. What we do get is a picture of what happens to the world, and those who live there, when endless amounts of deceased people suddenly re-appear. And this is done very well. The slow progression from wonder to worry from fear to panic to finally arrive at full on paranoia is as well delivered as it is realistic and frightening. People changing from friendly neighbours into lethal enemies. Peace-loving individuals suddenly contemplating violence it is all too easy to see how the situation would turn out that way.

This book throws up interesting questions. How would you deal with the return of a loved one who has been dead for years; would you just be happy and welcome them back into your life and home or would it scare you? How would the world deal with all the extra people that suddenly need to be housed and fed? How would the people whose loved ones didn’t return deal with what could be experienced as rejection? And how long would it be until the whole world descended into chaos?

And I like that the book doesn’t try to give answers to these questions. By setting the story in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere and almost exclusively dealing with the reactions of the people who live there and are brought there, the author gives us an environment in which world-wide dynamics are being played out on a small scale. For the reader this means that it is easier to understand all sides of the story, although that doesn’t mean they agree with all the different conclusions people come to.

This is a wonderful book about love, and the things we’re prepared to do because of it. This is a book about faith, and what it means when the realities of life no longer fit in with what you have believed in for all of your life. This is a story about being true to your beliefs and your feelings. It is both uplifting and heartbreaking. This is a story that will stay with me for a very long time.

“Some folks locked the doors of their hearts when they lost someone. Others kept the doors and the windows open, letting memory and love pass through freely. And maybe that was the way it was supposed to be (…)”

THE EXODUS TOWERS: A review by Dermot Kennedy

TITLE: EXODUS TOWERS

AUTHOR: JASON M. HOUGH

Pages: 524

Date: 09/09/2013

Grade: 4.5

Details: No. 2 The Dire Earth Cycle

             Received from Titan Books

             Through Nudge

             Reviewed by Dermot Kennedy

Own

The mysterious aliens known as the Builders have planted a new elevator in Belem, Brazil. They have also left behind strange Black Towers which seem to nullify the SUBS virus. Skyler Luiken and the rebel Orbitals have started a new colony but they soon fall foul of a new menace. Skyler also discovers a crashed Builder ship and soon uncovers that the ship is altering the subhumans, making them faster, stronger and meaner.

“Exodus Towers” is the second book from Hough and continues on the story begun in “The Darwin Elevator”.  Skyler and the rebel Orbitals have created a new colony in Belem but soon run into trouble with a sinister cult of immunes, When the mysterious Black Towers suddenly up sticks and move off in different directions of their own volition, Tania Sharma, leader of the rebel Orbitals, knows instinctively that this is somehow linked with the next imminent Builder event.

Meanwhile in Darwin, Russell Blackfield has secured control of the remaining orbital habitats on the Darwin elevator and enlists the services of crime lord Grillo to restore law and order to the streets of Darwin. A decision he soon comes to regret …

I really liked this follow-up by Hough. The pace is fast and the characters well developed and above all, likeable (even the bad guys!). Even though this is a dystopian novel, the narrative never gets bogged down in the misery inherent in such scenarios. In Skyler Luiken, we have an anti-hero who reminds one of Mal Reynolds from Joss Whedon’s “Firefly” or Jaine Fenn’s Jarek Reen. Luiken is part ships captain, part scavenger and part likeable rogue. His no nonsense approach is nicely balanced by the analytical almost dithery approach of the Tania Sharma character. 

However, for me Russell Blackfield steals the show as the quintessential bad guy. Blackfield just oozes nastiness, never has a good word for anyone and as a result has no confidants. This last fact also shows up his shortcomings and when he contracts Grillo to clean up Darwin he realises how out of his depth he really is. Grillo on the other hand, is as methodical as he is ruthless and quickly shows Blackfield how to really rule with an iron fist, and it doesn’t take long for Grillo to show his true ambitions.

The suspense is maintained throughout by the unfathomable agenda of the Builders, a race of aliens so technologically advanced that they seem almost magical, even if we haven’t actually met these mysterious beings yet. The fact that so much remains unknown about the Builders only adds to the drama and leads one to ask whether all the machinations of the human survivors will ultimately be in vain.

Jason M. Hough has created a rip roaring story that never lets up on pace or wonder and has delivered one of the best debut science fiction novels this reader has read in a long time. I look forward with relish to the next instalment of this excellent story.

THE BONE SEASON

TITLE: THE BONE SEASON

AUTHOR: SAMANTHA SHANNON

Pages: 454

Date: 24/08/2013

Grade: 4+

Details: No. 1 Bone Season

            ARC received from Bloomsbury

            Through Nudge

Own

“I committed high treason just by breathing.”

The year is 2059; the place Scion London. For just under two hundred years the people in England have been divided into two groups; those who are capable of clairvoyance and those who aren’t. For just under two hundred years those who have the sight, can communicate with spirits and can touch the Aether - the spirit realm - have been prosecuted. When clairvoyance was declared an epidemic, those capable of it became outlaws; people to be hunted down, caught and eliminated.

Nineteen year old Paige Mahoney is one of those “cursed” with clairvoyance and has been working for Jaxon Hall, a powerful crime lord, for more than two years. As a dreamwalker, Paige is capable of entering other people’s dreamscapes, a power Jaxon is determined to explore and exploit.

But Jaxon is not the only one with an interest in Paige’s powers. When she has to use her powers to protect herself, Paige attracts the attention of those whose existence she wasn’t even aware of. Her subsequent arrest should have lead to a swift execution, but instead Paige finds herself transported to Oxford, a secret and hidden place, ruled by non-human entities. A place where clairvoyance is not only normal but also exploited to fulfill the needs and desires of the Rephaite overlords.

From the moment she arrives, Paige’s only goal is to make it back to London and her friends; a wish which appears impossible. Assigned to Warden, Paige is put through training which should prepare her to join the ranks of the clairvoyant army protecting the secret city. But is that all her captors want from her or do they have ulterior motives? And if they do, what might they be? Do all Rephaite expect the same from her or are there divisions among their ranks as well? Is the enigmatic Warden really Paige’s enemy or is there something else going on? Whatever Paige may discover, one thing is for sure; her life is in more danger than ever before and will never be the same again.

This is a difficult book to summarize in a meaningful way. Samantha Shannon has created a credible and very complex world and throws her reader into the middle of a character and action filled story. And, if I’m honest, I have to admit that I felt a bit lost and confused while reading the first part of this book. The world described in this book may resemble ours, it is also very different. And with Seven Orders of Clairvoyance - each having their own subdivisions and powers - it does get a bit hard keeping everything straight in your head. And the same can be said about the characters; there are enough of them in this book that the reader has to continuously pay attention in order to keep them all separated.

The author does try to make it easier on her reader by not dumping all the details about this world on them in one go. But, while this certainly makes the reading easier and the story move faster, it also means that it takes longer for the reader to get some understanding of what exactly is going on, how this world works and who is playing what role in this story. Of course this is the first title in a seven book series, and any world expected to entertain the reader for that long has to be complex and well developed. And while I’m full of admiration for the way in which Shannon managed to create a realistic world and one I could easily picture in my mind, I also have to admit that there were times when I was taken out of the story by the amount of information I had to absorb.

But, and I can’t stress this enough, it is well worth sticking with the story. Paige is a wonderful, strong, flawed and therefore completely realistic main character and I found it impossible not to get caught up in her fears, hopes and desires. The Warden is an enigmatic character that will keep both Paige and the reader guessing for a long time. In fact, there were quite a few things in this story that took me by surprise. Certain characters were introduced and I would be convinced that I knew exactly what their role in the story was going to be, only for my theory to be proven completely wrong. And I do like it when an author manages to keep my on my toes and guessing.

I also greatly appreciate that although this book is the first installment in a series and it is quite clear from the last pages that there is a lot more story to come, the author didn’t leave her readers with a massive cliffhanger. She did leave more than enough questions unanswered and facts shrouded in mystery to make me very curious about where this story is going to be taking us next, though.

It is hard to know how to categorize this book. There is a lot that reminds me of Young Adult titles such as Twilight and The Hunger Games while there are other aspects to this book that make it feel more like an adult book. I know it is being marketed as a book for adults by the publisher but in my opinion this is a perfect example of a crossover title. Anybody who enjoys a well written, imaginative and thrilling story will get a kick out of this book.

While this is a great adventure story, set in an intriguing and terrifying world and a definite page turner, this book is a lot more too. It is a story about growing up, about being different and coming to terms with that, about finding your own strengths and learning to rely on them, and most of all a story about trust. This is not a predictable book, nor does it go for easy answers; black isn’t always black nor is white always white. There were a few surprises in this book that I didn’t see coming and I fully expect there to be a lot more of those in the books to come.

And yes, I am looking forward to the rest of this story. I can’t help feeling that with this world and its inhabitants having been established in this first book, the subsequent stories will be even more intriguing and captivating.

Samantha Shannon turns out to be an author with a rich imagination and a good eye for detail. She knows how to draw her readers into her world and keep them there, captured by a need to know what is going to be happening next. I have no idea when the second Bone Season title will be released but I do know I’ll be among the first to read it when it does.

THE DARWIN ELEVATOR; A review by Dermot Kennedy

TITLE: THE DARWIN ELEVATOR

AUTHOR: JASON M. HOUGH

Pages: 475

Date: 26/07/2013

Grade: 4+

Details: no. 1 The Dire Earth Cycle

            Received from Titan Book

            Through Nudge

Own

“The builders came to Earth and constructed an elevator from Darwin, Australia into space. No one knows why, or if they will return”

Following the arrival of the cable, humankind has built space stations at various altitudes along the space cable. Living in the space stations are scientist, agriculturalists and other, privileged people. Several years later a plague envelopes the planet turning humans into feral animals. The only ones protected are the rare “immunes” and the people who live within a 9 mile radius of the space elevator which exudes an Aura of protection. Of course those living in the space stations are also protected, due to their isolation from earth.

Skyler Luiken is one of a group of scavengers who roam the planet in mothballed ex air force aircraft, searching for anything useful which can be sold to the elites who live in orbit. What’s unusual about Luiken’s team is that they are all “immunes” meaning that they don’t have to use cumbersome haz-mat suits while out plying their trade.

The political balance of Darwin sits on a knife edge with Neil Platz in control of the orbital habitats and Russell Blackfield controlling the ground station of Nightcliff, the anchor point for the space elevator. The orbitals control food production, owned by Platz, who has his own dark secrets, and the ground-station controls the supply of Air and Water to the orbitals.  

This is the setting for this debut novel from Hough. First thoughts are that I liked this first book in the “Dire Earth Cycle”. There have been a plethora of dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels released in recent years and it is reassuring to finally find one that doesn’t make me want to “slash my wrists” after reading it. The main characters are well developed and, unusually for such a novel, actually have a sense of humour, something severely lacking in a lot of other books of this particular genre such as Hugh Howeys “Wool” series. Skyler Luiken is a reluctant hero, who more or less by accident finds himself drawn into the political battle for the ultimate control of mankind’s destiny. He has to pit his wits against Blackfield who is a “baddie” in the true classical sense of the word.

And still, the power struggle may only be the start of humankind’s problems; for the builders are returning…

The gulf in the quality of life between the “Orbitals” and the Darwinians is huge. The orbitals live in relative luxury, completely removed from the daily and constant struggle for survival which is the lot of most of the earthbound population, all of whom are dreaming of one day ascending to space to a life without fear of starvation or premature death.

This was a fast-paced and thrilling read. And while it is clear that there is more story left to tell I am grateful that the author didn’t leave me stranded on one of those heart-stopping cliff-hangers that seem to be all the rage these days.

I was very pleasantly surprised with this first offering from Hough, who managed to instil a sense of hope and optimism, and not a little humour into a subject which too often is portrayed in a truly grim manner, and I look forward to the next two instalments in the series, “The Exodus Towers” and “The Plague Forge”.

HEAVEN'S WAR

TITLE: HEAVEN’S WAR

AUTHOR: DAVID S. GOYER &

              MICHAEL CASSUTT

Pages: 431

Date: 22/07/2012

Grade: 4

Details: No. 2 Heaven’s Shadow

            Received from Tor

            through Book Geeks

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After two simultaneous but separate missions to an unidentified object in Earth’s orbit go horribly wrong Zack Stuart is the only astronaut staying behind in its interior. Four of his colleagues and rivals are on their way back to earth, the rest have died on the object affectionately named Keanu.

Meanwhile on earth 187 random people have been picked up from the rival space stations in Houston and Bangalore by big flying orbs and are on their way to Keanu. Amongst those abducted are Zack’s 14 year old daughter Rachel, Gabriel Jones the father of the now deceased astronaut who caused a disaster on Keanu and Pavak Radhakrishnan, the son of the commander of the Bangalore space ship who is safely on his way back to earth.

It is now very clear that Keanu is not an asteroid or planet but in fact a space-ship, one that had a good reason to travel to earth, one that wants to recruit humans into its war against a force that could destroy the universe and one that is starting to fail.

The humans on Keanu will have to adjust to their new living arrangements, learn how to survive on a space-ship that appears to want to accommodate them but still holds many dangers, marvels and nightmares. But most of all, they have to figure out a way to make it back to earth in order to protect their home from disaster.

Before I say anything else about this book let me state that if at all possible you should not read this book unless you have read its prequel: Heaven’s Shadow. The story in this book starts at the exact moment the first book ended, and although there are some references to what happened in the first book you need more background information than can be found here if you want to truly enjoy Heaven’s War.

And this truly is a story to enjoy. It is action packed, filled with suspense and with just about enough pure science-fictional fact.

Because the perspective in the story switches between the main characters the reader is introduced to the strange habitats on Keanu on several different levels, ranging from teenage girl to fully qualified scientist. It also means that the book is filled with cliff-hangers. Most chapters, and individual narratives, end on a pivotal moment forcing the reader to keep on reading. But since the chapters you need to read before you arrive at the resolution of your cliff-hanger all end on similar highs there is always this urge to keep on reading.

Another advantage of the alternating narrator set-up is that the reader gets an insight into characters and their motivations without the need for lengthy descriptions. The actions, thoughts and emotions as described by the characters give each of them their own, unique personality.

The space-ship, Keanu, is a marvel consisting of several habitats, all completely geared towards their individual and very diverse inhabitants. As small groups of humans explore various parts of Keanu, the reader gets an insight into the set up of the space-ship as well as the different life-forms it accommodates. Having said that, I did feel that a little more information about the non-human occupants and their role in the struggle against the common enemy would have been helpful. In fact, that lack of information in favour of action would be my one, minor, reservation about this book.

Overall though, this was a gripping space adventure and a true page-turner. This is also very much a story in the middle of a beginning and (as far as I know) the end in the next book. While the book starts where the first book ended, it also finishes at such a moment that the reader is left with no idea what exactly is going on or might be about to happen next. It will be a long wait for the third book and an answer to the questions this story has left the reader with.