Tag: young adult

Polaris (2015)

By: Mindee Arnett

Following the events of Avalon, Jeth and his crew of teenaged mercenaries are on the run. There’s been some familial revelations along the way, which are making it difficult aboard the ship. When caught between a rock and a hard place, Jeth turns to the last person he’d thought he’d work with: an ITA soldier. However, he soon learns that everything in space comes with a price.

Guys, when I tell you I devoured these novels, I seriously devoured them. I don’t know if I could speak higher of Avalon and Polaris. The twists and turns are truly unique. The characters are brilliant. The world feels alive! Read these books. For real.

The Savage Principle (2014)

By: Tamara Rose Blodgett

This novella follows the story of the protagonist’s father in the years leading up to his reign as king of the sphere. It deals with the inner workings of sphere-dwellers versus Savages, and the secret of the outside world being safe for humanity.

I didn’t know this was a novella when I started reading it, so I kept expecting the story to shift back to the main storyline. However, I wasn’t disappointed. I liked the strong female characters in this novella, and I liked the backstory. That being said, it wasn’t enough to convince me to keep reading the books (there are seven total). So, this is where I hopped off the train.

Avalon (2014)

By: Mindee Arnett

This YA sci-fi follows Jeth Seagrave in his endless pursuit of buying his parents’ ship back from the mob boss he reluctantly works for. When he and his merry band of teenaged mercenaries stumble upon some heavy tech everyone in the galaxy desperately wants, Jeth runs the risk of losing everything he cherishes, including himself.

This novel was a breath. of. fresh. air. As opposed to the standard, it’s up to a bunch of sixteen-year-olds to save the world, Avalon focuses on this small part of the galaxy, on Jeth’s world. Should he fail, there would be catastrophic results, sure, but the world would keep spinning. I devoured these novels. Everything about this world was well-crafted, and the characters were engaging and believable. They’re clearly teenagers, but they’ve also seen some stuff. It was a great balance. Definitely read this book.

Scion of Conquered Earth (2016)

By: Michael J. Allen

A nameless teenager struggles to survive in an apocalyptic version of Earth where great, murderous machines and cannibalistic caravans of the Mad Max variety are out to get him at every turn. He ends up escaping on a run-down spaceship and takes off into the stars for an adventure across the star systems.

There were a lot of good parts about this novel. I liked the main character. I thought he was believable and well-crafted. And the chapters written in the P.O.V. of the AI were fascinating. I believe Allen did a great job showcasing the brainpower of a supercomputer, while still making it understandable for a human reader.

That being said, this book read like two completely different novels. One followed the Earth-bound nameless hero facing a plethora of unsavory acts to survive. The second followed a semi-seasoned pilot in his plight to save slaves and get money. It was quite jarring to transition between the two, especially as the chapter detailing him getting on the ship wasn’t clear in the first place. Things that should’ve been explained were glossed over, and difficult terminology was thrown around as though it was all commonplace.

This was a more difficult read, and a little hard to swallow, but overall an enjoyable book. Check it out if you either like Mad Max or Star Trek. It has elements of both.