Book Review – ‘The Luminous Dead’ by Caitlin Starling

A claustrophobic sci-fi psychological thriller to bury them all.

Genre: Science Fiction, Psychological Thriller, LGBTQIA+

No. of pages: 415

When Gyre Price lied her way into this expedition, she thought she’d be mapping mineral deposits, and that her biggest problems would be cave collapses and gear malfunctions. She also thought that the fat paycheck—enough to get her off-planet and on the trail of her mother—meant she’d get a skilled surface team, monitoring her suit and environment, keeping her safe. Keeping her sane.

Instead, she got Em.

Em sees nothing wrong with controlling Gyre’s body with drugs or withholding critical information to “ensure the smooth operation” of her expedition. Em knows all about Gyre’s falsified credentials, and has no qualms using them as a leash—and a lash. And Em has secrets, too . . .

As Gyre descends, little inconsistencies—missing supplies, unexpected changes in the route, and, worst of all, shifts in Em’s motivations—drive her out of her depths. Lost and disoriented, Gyre finds her sense of control giving way to paranoia and anger. On her own in this mysterious, deadly place, surrounded by darkness and the unknown, Gyre must overcome more than just the dangerous terrain and the Tunneler which calls underground its home if she wants to make it out alive—she must confront the ghosts in her own head.

But how come she can’t shake the feeling she’s being followed?

A phenomenal read, I was glued to the page from start to finish. I was a literal zombie trying to stay awake and read til the end because I could not put ‘The Luminous Dead’ down.  This was an outstanding novel that I want to recommend to all my friends. It’s been a long time since I have been both compelled and repelled at the same time when reading.

There is a creepy suffocating ambience that penetrates the story to have you feeling the little hairs on the back of your neck raise. In the last half especially I was squirming, pulling my feet from the floor and taking twenty second breaks to run around the room and shake the hee-bee-jee-bees from my limbs.

The only minute thing that held me back from giving this a perfect score was how the plot felt too long, and kept back-tracking on itself. It did add an air of desperation that enhanced to the reading experience, but left ‘The Luminous Dead’ feeling a snatch too long. Juxtaposing this was an incredible talent to keep the pacing from start to finish. It was carnage to me, each chapter left me wanting more. I am an instant fan of Caitlin Starling and eager to see what else she has written. Anyone who can keep me this engaged and creeped out at the same time is a 5 star author in my books.

The concept is out of this world too – exploring underground caves on alien planets (essentially in a space suit) with all manner of dangers to face, with a psychological thriller aspect – where do I sign. It was an easy add-to-cart for me. I most definitely was not disappointed.

Our protagonist, Gyre is a battler, she’s working hard to provide better opportunities for her life. Coming from nothing, she is not afraid to take risks for that life… and that’s how she ends up deep underground in treacherous territory, finding dead bodies and hiding from alien tunnellers that could either crush you to death as they make the tunnels collapse, or eat you for a morning snack. Gyre’s grit is amazing, yet soft and compassionate. We see her constantly measuring risk and reward with each new challenge.

Em is what I like to think of as a definition of ‘book smart.’ She has no qualms in chemically controlling Gyre to achieve her goals, is not chatty over the coms, treating Gyre much like a tool. It was in interesting journey to see Gyre’s influence (through need) in deconstructing Em’s clinical nature and become more than just a stoic, sparse voice over the com.

Lack of control, human connection, suffocation, creepy alien creature stalking you in the dark, and dealing with loss.

Enthusiastically recommend ‘The Luminous Dead’ to everyone.

Overall feeling: Outstanding!

© Casey Carlisle 2021. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘The Memory of Death’ (#3.5 Death Works Trilogy) by Trent Jamieson

This is the way you breathe new life into a series…

Genre: Paranormal, Fantasy, novella

No. of pages: 94

He thought he’d return from Hell a hero. But things are never easy when your business is Death.

Steven de Selby gave up his love, his life, and his lucrative position as Head of Mortmax, the corporation in charge of Death. Then he found himself banished to the briny depths of hell. But hell has never held him before …

Now Steven’s back from hell, after escaping from the cruel Death of the Water, but he’s not sure how or why, or even if. No-one at Mortmax trusts him, and he’s running out of time to prove he is who he says he is.

Steven is about to discover that hell really is other people, and the worst of them may well be himself.

There seems to be some confusion over this novella. The cover is calling it Death Works novel #4, yet Goodreads has it labelled as #3.5 – I guess Trent Jamieson is the only one who can clear all this up. And I’m wondering if the franchise ends here – will the story continue, or has interest and marketability of the Death Works franchise dried up? It has become a guilty pleasure for me. The references to Brisbane and its surrounds are my back yard. And I kind of like paranormal tomes that deal with various incarnations of Grim Reapers and the subject of the afterlife. Jamieson has a wit and irony about this world and protagonist Steven de Selby that I find alluring.

‘The Memory of Death’ sees Steven (in parts) dragged from The Death of Water where we saw his ending in ‘The Business of Death.’ Going into more detail will spoil happenings for this novella. But it sets up an interesting premise for this franchise to move forward. Turns the relationships of the characters on their head. It is such a genius twist that it renewed my interest and has me hoping that this is not the end.

A lot happens in this short novella. I did wish the first half was a bit punchier and clearer. It takes a beat for the reader to get enough information to make sense of things. In that sense it was disorientating for me and I kept putting the book down for a rest. Not something you want to hear about a novella. But once the story got its legs, it was in short, brilliant. So the pacing went from faltering to light-speed.

Steven de Selby has an arc of sorts – more like a reconstitution. He’s the same but not. I liked in ‘The Business of Death’ how he went dry – gave up drinking completely because it was starting to become a problem for him. I was not all too happy to see him start up that habit again. His relationship with Lissa is completely different, and the engagement is brought up but there is hope that it can get back on track – for which I am greatful. I was really starting to ship these two.

I was astounded and delighted to read a preview from ‘The Carnival of Death’ touted as the Death Works novel #5. This is a great under hyped series that I am happy to recommend to all my friends. There is even a bind-up of the trilogy available… I’m just praying that Jamieson continues this series because it’s a little taste of home and a little taste of weird.

Overall feeling: Don’t say it’s over…

© Casey Carlisle 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘The Business of Death’ (#3 Death Works) by Trent Jamieson

This series gets better and better – talk about apocalyptic endings!

Genre: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy

No. of pages: 225

Life is tough at the top when work is a matter of life or death.

It’s one thing to run Mortmax International as head of a team, but it’s quite another to rule alone. Staff fatalities have left Steven by himself on the Throne of Death, and there’s no time to get comfortable. The Stirrer god’s arrival is imminent, threatening life as we know it. Plus Steven has managed to mortally offend the only ally strong enough to help out.

And how can he ask someone to marry him when the End of Days seems inevitable? As if they’re going to think he’s committed. The portents don’t look good as a comet burns vast and looming in the sky and Steven can almost hear a dark clock ticking. He will have to play nice if he wants his ally back, and must address the madness of the Hungry Death within himself if he even has a chance at defeating the Stirrer god.

If he fails, Hell and Earth are doomed and wedding bells will be quite out of the question.

This was the cinematic ending (sort-of) I had been anticipating. I say sort-of because, though touted as a trilogy, there is a forth novella in this series, which supposedly re-boots the Mortmax universe. Leaving the series open for more possible sequels, or just concluding with a more open-ended and hopeful tone. The ending of ‘The Business of Death’ concluded with a PERIODT. It’s very final. Very satisfying in a romantic sort of way if you follow the tone set throughout the series, it makes sense. But I can see some readers not getting the sayonara they wanted.

In this instalment, Steven de Selby has gotten another promotion to Orcus as the managing directors of the worlds regional chapters of Pomps (grims) committed suicide, and transferring their collective power to Steven so he would stand a chance in fighting off a war of the coming Stirrer god. A god. One who rules over the dead, who is forcing an apocalypse and plans to decimate and take over the Earth.

There is all the sarcastic wit I’ve come to love from this series. I liken it to the Buffy franchise with the dark comedic tone. There were a few elements that held me back from truly getting sucked into the narrative this time around however: the first half of the novel is clunky. It didn’t have that flow, which made it feel like the plot was floundering even though it wasn’t. Because of this the pacing was patchy and I put the book down a lot. When things start to get really interesting in the second half the plot is magnificent, though I was pulled from the narrative again with really short and consecutive chapters. It was almost like Trent Jamieson really struggled in writing this conclusion. But that is the worst of it – some pacing and formatting issues. Jamieson’s writing is a pleasure to read, he can weave a great plot, surprise you, make you holler and laugh, and craft appealing and flawed characters, all wrapped up in Australiana – set in and around Brisbane (where I currently reside.) So the story strongly resonated with me, and I was so proud to have this calibre of writing come from my home town.

I was surprised to see even more character development from Steven as a main character, drying out from his alcohol addiction, facing death at least four times with consternation. He wasn’t this confident hero, blustering with bravado, Steven is a normal man, out of his depth, floundering for a victory with nothing but his determination. I really loved this trait and had me rooting for the underdog all the way through this series. I feel like we have an undervalued writer and under-hyped series on our hands. I’d really like to see this collection get more exposure internationally. A strong recommendation from me.

Overall feeling: Seriously cinematic!

© Casey Carlisle 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Wrap up – Reboot Duology by Amy Tintera

This is like a starter pack to the dystopian genre.

With a rock start, ‘Reboot’ was difficult to get into. With an unemotive protagonist (Wren) who has been brought back from the dead by the corporation HARC and used as a professional assassin, the first two thirds of the novel were hard to get into and relate with the main character. It took Wren’s relationship with love interest Callum to warm up the narrative and give it some interest. While I enjoyed the premise, storyline and started to invest in Wren as a main character; overall the writing style was a little dry and sparse. So the pacing faltered at the beginning because of a robotic protagonist, though the last third everything picks up and really engages the reader. I wish there was more resolution at the end of the first novel as well, there were so many unanswered questions I simply had to read ‘Rebel’ just to satiate my curiosity.

‘Rebel’ was a superior novel to the debut on all counts. Where ‘Reboot’ was predictable, ‘Rebel’ was complex. The characters really come alive. The plot more sophisticated. Thought the ending to ‘Rebel’ did feel a little rushed it brought the hero’s journey to a satisfying end. However there were still many unanswered questions around the mythology and origin of the reboots and HARC I wanted to delve into. But this is definitely a fun and interesting duology and does the dystopian genre justice.

Wren is a hard character to get to know and love. It’s all about describing actions and observations. We don’t get a lot of inner emotional dialogue until halfway. Maybe writing in third person could have avoided this disconnection and allowed the reader to identify with Wren much earlier? Her love interest, Callum, was so much the trope of the boy-next-door. A loveable loyal companion, I really wanted to see an arc of his own to struggle through. But he was a great juxtaposition to Wren. Without Callum this would have been a very boring read.

You can see a definite improvement from book 1 to book 2, and I’d say it’s an average rated read for this genre. The novels are short so you can power through them quickly. I love the concept, but feel there could have been more done to up interest and engagement of the reader. Something I’d recommend for the YA demographic as they are imaginative, fun, and uncomplicated.

I’m interested in contrasting Amy Tintera’s later releases, because if the trajectory of improvement holds, they should be some awesome reads!

For individual reviews click on the links below:

‘Reboot’ – https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2017/04/24/book-review-reboot-by-amy-tintera/

‘Rebel’ – https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2017/06/13/book-review-rebel-by-amy-tintera/

© Casey Carlisle 2018. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘Rebel’ by Amy Tintera

Zombie soldiers revolt against the evil corporation that created them… where do I sign up?

Genre: Y/A, Science Fiction, Dystopia

No. of pages: 340

From Goodreads:

Wren Connolly thought she’d left her human side behind when she dies five years ago and came back 178 minutes later as a Reboot. With her new abilities of strength, speed, and healing—along with a lack of emotions—Wren 178 became the perfect soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation). Then Callum 22 came along and changed everything.

Now that they’ve both escaped, they’re ready to start a new life in peace on the Reboot reservation. But Micah 163, the Reboot running the reservation, has darker plans in mind: to wipe out the humans. All of them. Micah has been building a Reboot army for years and is now ready to launch his attack on the cities. Callum wants to stick around and protect the humans. Wren wants nothing more than to leave all the fighting behind them.

With Micah on one side, HARC on the other, and Wren and Callum at odds in the middle, there’s only one option left…

A great follow-up to the debut novel ‘Reboot,’ I enjoyed this more than I expected. I went into this book not really expecting much, but as the relationships and mythology were explored further, I developed a new found appreciation for this new take on zombie super soldiers. There is a certain amount of predictability for ‘Rebel,’ I easily guessed the ending – but I mean it was pretty obvious given the title; but the twists and turns it took to get there certainly made a wild ride. With just about everything imaginable thrown at the reboot gang, this was an engaging read.

Our protagonist, Wren, felt more human; and I was able to connect with her character better than I had in the debut. She was able to emote and make human connection, where I had difficulty relating to her in ‘Reboot’ because of her cold stoic nature. Her love interest, Callum, still reminded me of a loyal Labrador in this follow-up, and felt like the grounding force amongst all the chaos for Wren. I liked how he found his place in the dysfunctional rag-tag group they formed while running for their lives.

The element of politics and alliances was a great touch and added a layer to the story telling, one-upping the plot complexity from the debut. The narrative still felt a little bland – but I’m not chalking it up to Wren’s nature like I did with ‘Reboot’ – I think it’s tone and style of Amy. And in saying that, I think this book could have been more engaging, which is why I’ve given it an average rating. It didn’t leave a large impression on me.

There wasn’t the great uncovering of the mythology and science behind the existence of reboots, or much explanation into the experiments being performed on them, it was cursory in nature, which is a shame – I like more science in my sci-fi. I was waiting for the nuts and bolts of the world building and that ah-ha moment around Wren, Callum, and HARC; but the impact was soft and not satisfactory.

Towards the end, a few things felt coincidental and rushed for the sake of wrapping up everything in a pretty pink bow, but with YA and Amy’s writing style, it worked. This is cute, and gave me a pay-off worthy of the duology, and makes me want to recommend to fans of dystopians. A fun and interesting read all up.

Considering it took me a while to get into and finish ‘Reboot,’ I completed ‘Rebel’ in one sitting over the course of an afternoon. The pacing and tension were handled better than the first novel, and even though the narrative was still dry, was much more engaging. I’m looking forward to trying out her latest series ‘Ruined’ and ‘Avenged.’

Overall feeling: I’ll give it a thumbs up

© Casey Carlisle 2017. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘Reboot’ by Amy Tintera

An emotion-less heroine is hard to connect with – but the story has potential.

Genre: Y/A, Science Fiction, Dystopia

No. of pages: 365

From Goodreads:

Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes she came back as a Reboot: stronger, faster, able to heal, and less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return. Wren 178 is the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas. Now seventeen years old, she serves as a soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation).

Wren’s favorite part of the job is training new Reboots, but her latest newbie is the worst she’s ever seen. As a 22, Callum Reyes is practically human. His reflexes are too slow, he’s always asking questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet there’s something about him she can’t ignore. When Callum refuses to follow an order, Wren is given one last chance to get him in line—or she’ll have to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before and knows if she does, she’ll be eliminated, too. But she has also never felt as alive as she does around Callum.

The perfect soldier is done taking orders.

It took me a considerable amount of time to really get into this book. I kept putting it down, interested, but not compelled to keep reading. The concept certainly had me hooked, but an emotionless protagonist was hard to connect with. It was also hard to become invested in the reboot’s plight when I am still trying to figure out HARC. We got some insight, but it was mostly speculation. I like that is wasn’t fully explained, but I needed more to feel like I got a decent pay-off on completing the novel.

Our protagonist Wren was a hard character to like for the first three-quarters of the novel. An unfeeling, unemoting, assassinating machine does not warm your heart. It was her connection to the love interest Callum that finally had me beginning to like her and invest in their relationship. The interaction she had with her roommate, Ever, was limited as well.  And later, when described as her best friend, I was still struggling to understand Wren completely. I think the narrative relies on the reader to attribute human emotions to the situations even though they are not represented in the written word.

Ever seemed a bit more present in the story. Where Wren was an observer for much of the novel, Ever was the subject. I got a quiet bravery and solidarity from her reflected in Wrens eyes.

Callum very much reminded me of a friendly puppy dog, always happy, wagging tail, smiling. The perfect balance to Wren’s stoic nature. He added layers of empathy that were absent and slowly engaged me in the story and shone a more flattering light on Wren. Though it seems he was only interested in her because she was cute. It wasn’t until much later in the novel we discovered other motives. And I wasn’t entirely convinced about how their relationship progressed. It didn’t fill me with love or angst… it was cute and okay, but didn’t sell me on the romance.

On the whole, the plot of this story is predictable. A few curve balls were thrown in with other arcs, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but they weren’t explored enough to give this novel the oomph it needed – I am expecting these to more developed in the second novel of the series ‘Rebel.’

Amy’s writing style is a little dry. She has moments of humour and manages to pace the novel well. But the beginning and middle sections of the book felt slow because of this flat narrative. Which could be in part because of Wren’s nature, and part because not much imaginative description and postulation regarding Wren’s surroundings and the world at large.

I’d recommend this to anyone who loves dystopian YA. It’s not the best I’ve read, but certainly entertaining.

For me, there felt like there were so many plot holes and unexplained phenomena to really get into, but we’ll see what happens in the sequel…

Overall feeling: just like another teen movie

© Casey Carlisle 2017. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.