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Rebirth: An Eden Prequel by Keary Taylor

October 29, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Rebirth an Eden Prequel by Keary Taylor Rebirth is a prequel to Eden, Keary Taylor’s hit dystopian-scifi novel.

As soon as I finished Eden, I knew there had to be more. The story just begs to be a series. (Personally, I’d love to see it become a graphic novel or comic series.) So, I was really excited when Keary announced that she had written a prequel story.

Random side note, as I write this review last week’s The Walking Dead episode, where they’re in the prison, is on and that’s right where Rebirth starts – in a prison. It was an unexpected, but fun, place to start the story. Perhaps the best thing about Rebirth is that it’s written from a different character’s point-of-view. This helps add depth to the overall story, similar to the way the multiple view-points bolster George R.R. Martin’s series A Song of Ice and Fire (HBO’s Game of Thrones is based on this series).

One week ago I thought I knew exactly how I was going to spend the rest of my life: looking at the gray walls of a prison cell. Figuring out how to survive the apocalypse wasn’t something I’d planned for.

Yet here I was, getting a second chance at the end of the world. [More from Goodreads]

We get a first hand look at America right after the Fall and the Rise of the Fallen (That’d be a badass title, right? Free to use.) Sometimes we read, or watch on TV, how hard it can be for a prisoner to adjust to free life. Not that I’m sympathetic to criminals, but imagine what it’d be like after an apocalypse of this magnitude! Wrapping your head around a whole new set of dangers. Keary adds that sense of the unknown to Rebirth and it pulled me back into the setting real quick.

Despite coming into the story from the viewpoint of a criminal locked up in isolation, he actually has a fairly neutral moral compass as the story progresses. Curiously though, the character we get to know in Rebirth is one that I don’t remember from Eden. I’ll have to go back and skim through so I can get my bearings. But it’s a fun little story that helps to expand the world of Eden.

I don’t want to give too much away but the book starts in a bad place and ends in a familiar setting. If you’ve read Eden, you’ll like how the stories tie together. I blazed through this bad boy in one sitting. For being so short, it packs a lot of action. Enjoy!


Buy Rebirth on Amazon

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Filed Under: Dystopian, Science Fiction Tagged With: , , , , , ,

In Her Name: Empire

July 29, 2012 By Leave a Comment

In Her Name Empire by Michael Hicks

In Her Name: Empire by Michael R. Hicks. Genre: Science Fiction. Published by Imperial Guard Publishing 2009.

In the first book of an epic futuristic fantasy trilogy, this is the coming-of-age story of Reza Gard, a young boy of the Human Confederation who is swept up in the century-long war with the alien Kreelan Empire. [Goodreads]

I read Empire a while back, last summer I think. But I started reading the omnibus edition which has three books so it reminded me to write a review. For those who are interested, you can get a free copy of Empire just by signing up for Michael’s newsletter. He doesn’t send a lot of email so, I’d say it’s a fair trade especially considering how amazing this book is!

In Her Name: Empire

The story centers on Reza Gard, a young boy who loses his family to a Kreelan attack. Kreelans are fierce, blue-skinned, female warriors. Following the attack, Reza is enslaved on a planet where they pick stones out of the ground so crops can be planted. During this part there’s an almost-rape scene. It’s not excessively explicit but just a heads up. Lets just say karma comes a-callin’.

The juiciest part of the story is when Reza has to forced into the Kreelan society. He trains with weapons, sleeps with magtheps, and is treated like a slave. But the struggle and how Reza not only copes but excels is inspiring. Reza’s training reminds me of Spartacus or Bloodsport, the harsh training and combat. There’s a beautiful love story that develops and a heartbreaking ending to the story. I’m really looking forward to continuing the series. This book has been neglected in my Kindle for FAR too long.

Michael builds a very convincing galaxy where the main topic on everyone’s mind is the struggle between the Human Confederation and the Kreelan Empire. The Kreelan society is intriguing too. They are matriarchal with a very cool legend to back up their beliefs. If you’ve ever read R.A. Salvatore’s Dark Elf Trilogy which features Drizzt and the Drow, you’ll have a vague idea what’s going on here. Except the Kreelans are not evil in the way the Drow Matrons are.

Outside of Star Wars and Star Trek novels, this is the best epic space opera I’ve come across.

So far, the In Her Name series is 9 books deep. Yes, 9 books!

Filed Under: Science Fiction Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Star Wars + Zombies = Red Harvest by Joe Schreiber

June 28, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Red Harvest by Joe Schreiber. Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction. Published by LucasBooks December 2010.

The era of the Old Republic is a dark and dangerous time, as Jedi Knights valiantly battle the Sith Lords and their ruthless armies. But the Sith have disturbing plans—and none more so than the fulfillment of Darth Scabrous’s fanatical dream, which is about to become nightmarish reality. [Goodreads]

Set in the time period known as the Old Republic, more than a thousand years before Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, author Joe Shreiber takes us to a Sith planet called Odacer-Faustin. The planet is home to a Sith Academy and we are treated to a glimpse of their training. Not surprisingly, the training is brutal and the dog-eat-dog attitude among students is what one would expect. The landscape is rocky and covered with snow, cold and rough like a Sith. The academy includes barracks, a library and a massive tower that houses the Sith Lord.

One particular student has stood out among the rest, Rance Lussk, an athletically built young man with flaming red hair. Few dared to approach him and those who had sparred with him not only lost but three had left the academy and one hung himself. For no apparent reason, Lussk challenges Wim Nickter to a duel. Nickter is humiliated by Lussk. Then, like the others, Nickter disappears.

The slightly reclusive Sith Lord in charge of this academy is Darth Scabrous. Rumor around campus is that the students who keep disappearing are ending up in the Sith Lord’s tower and being used for science experiments. Curiously, Nickter’s disappearance draws more attention than usual. Scopique, an older Sith-trainee, encourages Jura Ostrogoth to investigate their whereabouts and discover what is happening in Scabrous’ tower. Reluctantly, Jura agrees.

Darth Scabrous has come across information from Darth Drear, the founder of the academy on Odacer-Faustin. Scabrous wants to replicate a process that Drear discovered but was unable to complete. Part of that process requires a flower – a very particular, Force-sensitive flower known as a Murakami orchid. Obtaining a genuine Murakami, however, is difficult. Many bounty hunters have attempted to deliver the it but only one, a Whiphid named Tulkh, has found a real Murakami. In addition to being Force-sensitive, a Murakami requires a keeper to survive. In this case, the keeper is a Jedi named Hestizo “Zo” Trace.

Zo is interesting because she’s considered weak in the Force. Or perhaps, she failed her training at the Jedi Academy. In any case, Zo works in the Agricultural Corps utilizing her skill at communicating with plants. What surprised me is we don’t even meet Zo until we’re 38 pages into the book. Considering she is the primary character that just struck me as odd.

Scabrous obtains the orchid to complete his nefarious experiment. But of course, he must test it out and the first victim is Wim Nickter. At this point, Jura has made it into the tower, witnessing Nickter’s transformation. This is how the Sickness spreads, first Nickter then Jura and it only gets worse from there.

These things had transcended death. The power they held was beyond anything taught here at the academy. Before it, both Jedi and Sith were nothing, less than nothing, infinitesimal crumbs in the vast expanse of the universe. [pg.142]

Conclusion

Red Harvest is an interesting take on zombie plagues. I haven’t read Schreiber’s first book, Death Troopers, so I have no idea if the cause of the infection is similar or if his writing style is similar. In any case, Schreiber portrayed the Sith accurately and provided a unique glimpse into the Old Republic.

Although I enjoyed the book, I didn’t really feel bought into the story until about halfway through. I attribute that more to lack of known characters and not a deficiency in Schreiber’s writing skill. There a few points in the story where Zo all of a sudden uses some pretty cool Force powers. But since she’s not a Jedi Knight and clearly not very experienced in combat my reaction was more like, “Whaaaat?” For a zombie themed storyline it also had surprisingly little action. But overall, this is a solid addition to the Star Wars universe.

Filed Under: Fantasy, Science Fiction Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Fry me in the hotzone! Fireseed One by Catherine Stine

June 7, 2012 By 1 Comment

Fireseed One by Catherine Stine. Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Dystopian. Published by Konjur Road Press (2011).

Fireseed One, a YA futuristic thriller, is set on earth in 2089 where people ride tricked-out amphibious vehicles over toxic waters, dance in ice-themed clubs and eat fish that grow up on vines in floating warehouses. Varik Teitur inherits a vast sea farm after the mysterious drowning of his marine biologist father.

When Marisa Baron, a beautiful and shrewd terrorist, who knows way, way too much about Varik’s father’s work, tries to steal seed disks from the world’s food bank, Varik is forced to put his dreams of becoming a doctor on hold and venture with her, into a hot zone teeming with treacherous nomads and a Fireseed cult who worships his dead father, in order to search for a magical hybrid plant that may not even exist. (From Goodreads)

Note: This was a review copy provided by the author.

Earth has changed. The luckiest people live in Ocean Dominion while the unlucky live behind a massive wall, in a deadly land called the hotzone. Everyone is reliant on a crop called agar which is used for food and construction. That is until things go horribly wrong following a break-in at Varik’s house.

Fireseed One, a secret project, may hold the key to the planet’s survival and hope for equity between the zones.

Sweet Ice

Varik lives in Ocean Dominion and runs his recently deceased father’s agar farm. Varik’s house is a floating island made out of the agar his family farm grows which is pretty neat. Agar is a fast growing plant material that can be eaten and used to build things. Oddly, Varik’s farm has a near monopoly on the industry and he is the main supplier to the world. It’s odd because if it’s so vital why is there only one supplier? Minor issue. Anyway, I like the setting for the farm, it made me think of a more realistic version of Waterworld.

The unique imagining of future Earth as separate regions broken up by their geography – Land Dominion, Ocean Dominion, etc. – set up curious challenges and culture differences that backed up the storyline really well. One of the main threads in this story is conflict generated by an extreme case of haves and have nots. That issue fuels a lot of the conflict and lands Varik right in the middle of it.

Everyone receives news via the stream which is transmitted to implants in people’s head. The news is always sponsored by a company which has a short pitch at the end of the stories, it’s a funny touch because of how awkward and ironic they are. They’re almost like those ads in the movie Starship Troopers (Would you like to know more?).

Fry Me

The story started a little slow for me and it took awhile to get my bearings in this new world. It picks up after about 30 pages, after some world building and background info.

I really enjoyed the action and the conflicts in the story. There are lessons learned along the way – friendship, trust, misunderstandings – by Varik and Marissa. Both of whom develop nicely throughout the story. This is a science fiction/fantasy story but the characters are fairly normal people who get into extraordinary situations. They’re not super powered or magical which is a nice change of pace.

I’m a fan of great villains and that’s something Fireseed One didn’t really have. There is no single, serious villain. There are a few minor ones that Varik is up against including Marissa (who turns to Varik’s side), possibly Marissa’s dad, the ZWC leader, and the Fireseed cult. In fact, the biggest villain just might be the climate because that’s the only one that truly put lives in danger. Perhaps that’s the point.

In any case, I had a great time reading Fireseed One. It’s an imaginative, and enjoyable, book for young adults.

Filed Under: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Young Adult Tagged With: , , , , ,

HER WORLD IS CHANGED FOREVER – STARTERS

April 17, 2012 By 2 Comments

Starters by Lissa Price. Genres: YA SF/Dystopian. Published by Delacorte Books for Young Readers March 13th 2012.

Ever see the movie Surrogates with Bruce Willis? If not, here’s the general idea: “Set in a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and interact through surrogate robots, a cop is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others’ surrogates.” Interesting, right? Well, if you liked it, or think you’ll like it, then you’ll love Starters by Lissa Price. She takes the idea of living through a robot and one ups it, leaving you on the edge of your seat through the entire novel.

Starters takes place in the future America. After the Spore War is over, there are only two types of people are left; Starters and Enders. The lives of everyone younger than twenty and older than sixty were saved by a vaccination. Everyone else was wiped out by a genocide spore. In the new world, Enders are the ones in charge. Of everything.

One of the most interesting things about Starters is the life span the people live. It’s not uncommon to live to 100 or 150 and still be in good health. There’s even mention of someone living to 200! But good heath doesn’t always mean good strength or shape. Wanting to prologue their youth—and make a ton of money—a man known as the Old Man started a company call Prime Destinations. Or, as the Starters call it, the Body Bank. A place where Starters go and donate their body for an Ender to use. They in turn get paid a pretty penny.

The story follows Callie—a sixteen-year-old girl near Beverly Hills, California—whose goal is to take care of herself and her sickly younger brother. Living on the streets isn’t cutting it and she’s determined to make a better life for them. To do so, she decides to try renting her body to an Ender. Only it doesn’t turn out how she expected when she wakes up in the middle of her rental period. Now she has to find out why before someone else figures out she’s really herself and not an Ender using her body. There’s also the matter of a pesky voice she keeps hearing it, and if she should trust it or not.

I loved pretty much everything about this book. The one thing I did have a problem with was the love triangle of sorts. I’m not a fan of love triangles (I’m Team Edward, Peeta and Fade and to me, those other boys don’t exist). But this isn’t the typical love triangle. You start to care for the first boy, Michael, who’s with Callie from the start. He’s sweet and carrying and helps Callie look after her sick younger brother. What more could you want? Then when she’s dropped into the world of the body bank, she meets another boy. He’s charming, but there’s something not quite right about him. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but once it was revealed, I was left…stunned. And a little put off. I can’t say more, but you’ll have to read it to see what I mean.

It’s no secret that I’m a SF junkie. And this book was the perfect food for my addiction. It’s fast paced, well written and very imaginative. I never had to stop and think about what was going and I never questioned if this life was possible or not. It sucked me in from page one and didn’t let go until I finished. Lissa has created an incredible world in Starters and I can’t wait to see what happens next in Enders.

Also be sure to check out Portrait of a Starter: An Unhidden Story, Starters #0.5.

Filed Under: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Young Adult Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Obsidian (Lux #1) and Shadows (Lux #.05)

April 10, 2012 By 2 Comments

Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer Armentrout. Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction. Published by Entangled Teen.

Starting over sucks.When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I’d pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring…. until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.And then he opened his mouth.Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something…unexpected happens. The hot alien living next door marks me.You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon’s touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I’m getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades. If I don’t kill him first, that is.

People who I think will love Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout. People who love SF book. People who love books about aliens. People who love the TV show Roswell. People who love upper YA books with steamy make-out scenes. Basically I think a lot of people will love this book.

Obsidian is not just another alien book. It’s a fan-freaking-tastic book about aliens. Two of my favorite series are The Lorien Legacies and Daniel X. Both books about aliens told from the POV of a male alien. When we start out the book we basically know what were getting into. Aliens. With Obsidian we don’t. We become curious and skeptical as the hidden world of a small town in West Virginia is revealed to the MC, Katy. She’s not an alien. She’s a regular human girl who unknowingly befriends one.

It’s this friendship that is the root of all her problems since moving to this small town from Florida. As a huge reader (and book blogger. How cool is that?), Katy is perfectly happy staying home with her nose in a book. This is a character I can relate to. My idea of a perfect day would be curled up somewhere comfy and reading my way through my TBR pile. Then she meets Dee, the girl next door. They become fast friends. That is, until Dee’s (hot) twin brother, Daemon, tries to intervene. Daemon is the fuel that keeps Katy’s problems going. He doesn’t like Katy—if only she knew why—and he doesn’t keep that fact a secret.

The action really heats up when Daemon is forced to spend time with Katy. This is where we learn to love Daemon. And hate him. He’s the type of boy who will say all the right things, but with the flick of a switch, he’ll say all the wrong things, too. The tension that grows between Katy and Daemon is so think (read: hot) that you can’t help but read on and on until you’ve finished.

Entangled Teen is quickly becoming one of my favorite publishers. Their books just get better and better. Another thing I love about them is the novella’s they release with their books. The one for Obsidian is called Shadows.

Shadows by Jennifer Armentrout. Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction. Published by Entangled Teen.

The last thing Dawson Black expected was Bethany Williams. As a Luxen, an alien life form on Earth, human girls are…well, fun. But since the Luxen have to keep their true identities a secret, falling for one would be insane.

Dangerous. Tempting. Undeniable.

Bethany can’t deny the immediate connection between her and Dawson. And even though boys aren’t a complication she wants, she can’t stay away from him. Still, whenever they lock eyes, she’s drawn in.

Captivated. Lured. Loved.

Dawson is keeping a secret that will change her existence…and put her life in jeopardy. But even he can’t stop risking everything for one human girl. Or from a fate that is as unavoidable as love itself.

Shadows takes place about a year before Obsidian does. And while Obsidian is first person POV from Katy, Shadows is third person mainly revolving two new characters. Dawson, Dee and Daemon’s triplet, and Bethany Williams, the new girl in town. I don’t want to say much more about this book for fear of giving too much away, but it was a fun and fast read. After reading both I am left with so many questions (in a good way) that I can’t wait for Onyx, the second book in the series, to release later this year.

Another thing I love about this series. The book covers! And not just the models, but the background, the color. They’re just so vibrant. Here’s a glimpse of Onyx (and the blurb because I can’t help myself).

Being connected to Daemon Black sucks…

Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarre connection. I’ve sworn him off even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But against all common sense, I’m falling for him. Hard.

Our relationship issues aren’t out biggest problem…

The Department of Defense is here. If they ever find out what Daemon can do and that we’re linked, I’m a goner. So is he. And when a new boy shows up a school with a secret of his own, things get complicated fast. I need to choose between my own instincts and Daemon’s.

But then everything changes…

I’ve seen someone who shouldn’t be alive. Daemon’s never going to stop searching until gets the truth. What happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want from them—from me?

No one is who they seem. And not everyone will survive the lies.

Filed Under: Science Fiction, Young Adult Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

A Million Suns: Not Just Another Filler Book

March 27, 2012 By 6 Comments

A Million Suns by Beth Revis. Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian. Published January 2012 by Razorbill, a division of Penguin Group.

Lately the YA market has been full of trilogies. Nine times out of ten the first book rocks and you are pumped for the second book and then you get it and it was just kind of meh. That’s what I like to call a filler book. It’s only purpose is to get you from end of book one to beginning of book three. Personally, I think you could just chop it out the middle book and extend the other two instead of creating this whole other book. Now the purpose of this post? To tell you A Million Suns is NOT that book!

I read Across the Universe shortly after it was released last year. I liked, not loved, it. The world that was created was unique and their quest was interesting, but I didn’t click with the main characters, and the minor ones I did like ended up dead. But it was still good enough that I was left wanting to read the sequel. I downloaded it on my kindle (which is how I read AtU) the day it came out and started reading a few pages, though it wasn’t until that weekend that I really got into the book. And once I did, I was hooked. By the end I was blown away by how great this story had become.

Recap of Across the Universe (provided by goodreads):

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn’t do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed’s hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there’s only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

We’re left at the end of the book with Elder coming clean about being the one to wake Amy and her forgiving him and asking him to never leave him. She doesn’t want to be alone.

Fast forward 3 months and Godspeed is in chaos. Elder is trying his best to rule without Phydus, a drug that keeps the people onboard the ship subdued. Without it, they are thinking for themselves, not wanting to work, and causing harm to themselves and others. Basically they are feeling for the first time. And not only are they feeling, but they’ve just had a bomb dropped on them that they won’t be making it to Centauri-Earth. I think I’d cause a little ruckus too.

The book starts out with Elder as he struggles in his role as “Eldest” (though he refuses to go by the name). He tries to act tough, but deep down he still struggles with the idea of using the Phydus. Elder’s problem is that he’s so wishy-washy. I hate to say, but he is one of my least favorite male MC’s or love interests in YA. I don’t know what it is, but I’m not drawn to him. In anyway. Looks, personality, nothing. But, the more I think about it, the more I wonder if that’s the point. If he were sweet and romantic and incredibly handsome (everyone on the ship basically looks like one another, except for Amy) of course Amy, and the rest of us, would be drawn to him. And if she wasn’t, we would question her sanity. But giving us a male MC/love interest that’s just an average run of the mill guy makes you think. We don’t question Amy when she doesn’t run into his open arms. Because that’s what this book is about, choice. The choice to tell the truth or keep it hidden. To make your own destiny, or go with the norm. To pick the only guy close to your age, or not. And Amy is all about choice.

Which brings me to her. We left off AtU with Amy forgiving Elder but when we get to her in AMS, she’s sitting on the floor in the cryo chamber–her parents melting beside her. She’s wondering if she can forgive Elder. If she should let her parents melt and join her on the claustrophobic ship. Yes, Amy is almost as wishy-washy as Elder. But one thing that’s different about her, one thing that I love, is she fights for what she wants, for what she believes in. If she really wanted to doom her parents, she would. But she knows their fate would become the one she’s living now, and I don’t think Amy would wish that on her worst enemy.

Now I’ll get into the best part about this book. It keeps you guessing! We know that the characters are trying to find a way to speed up this ship and get to Centauri-Earth sooner than they’ve been told. But it’s not that simple. There’s one thing after another that blocks their path to freedom and the real kicker–the one that had me gasping out loud–is what makes this book incredible. Because never in my wildest imagination did I see this plot twist coming and you can tell the characters didn’t even.

But this twist wasn’t just handed to us (or the characters for that matter). No. Orion, before he was frozen, made a treasure hunt of sorts for Amy. He knew she wouldn’t take the news about the ship and let it alone. So he fed her curiosity, one clue at a time, until her and Elder seemed to care about nothing else. And that twist. Wow. Just…wow!

Their shocking discovery and the end of this book left me wanting, no, NEEDING, to read Shades of Earth. 2013 can’t come fast enough. You better believe I’ll be downloading it the day it releases and jumping right in.

Filed Under: Dystopian, Science Fiction Tagged With: , , , , ,