Four Stars: Second Skin, Too by Peter Darrach

November 8, 2012 by Leave a Comment

The classic science-fiction space adventure continues in Second Skin, Too, with interplanetary war, alien visitations and a couple of people just trying to keep a lid on everything!

I was freaking thrilled when Peter Darrach contacted me to review Second Skin, Too, the sequel to Second Skin. Despite my initial hesitations with the first book, I ended up loving the characters and story, and while Second Skin, Too slipped up a bit at the end, it was still a very enjoyable sequel. I’m very hopeful about the next book, though. I want more of the aliens! Why weren’t there more aliens?! Also, a warning, there may be some spoilers for the first book, so just go read the first review if you haven’t read the book ;-).
Second Skin, Too by Peter Darrach Goodreads | Amazon
Title: Second Skin, Too
Author: Peter Darrach
Pages: 316 (paperback)
Genre-ish: Classic Space Sci-fi
Rating: ★★★★☆ - Great characters, lagged a little
Setting: Second Skin, Too is set in the future when Mars and the Moon have been colonized and asteroid mining has become a major industry. In the previous book, we had our first encounter with an alien species,  showing that we aren’t alone in the universe, though most of the human population doesn’t know that. Tensions have steadily risen between Mars and Earth as Mars pushes for more and more independence from Earth, leading, some think, to an inevitable war.
Premise: Tensions with Earth have reached the point that Mars needs to send a peacekeeping mission for talks to Earth, and Max Cody and his fiance Elaine are headed to Earth. Previously Max was damaged and repaired by an alien creature, and now has super-human capabilities, which will come in use when he and Elaine go up against a warmongering company bent on war between Earth and Mars, including a CEO who will go to literally any extremes to get what he wants.

Strengths:

  • Once again, Darrach is very good at making a realistic sci-fi setting. I believe his details about the ships and mining operations, and even about Max’s super powers. Everything in Second Skin, Too is backed up with thoughtful and plausible semi-science ;-).
  • Max and Elaine (and Marion and Daniel, other secondary characters) are freaking awesome. I’m not usually a romance person, but Darrach does a wonderful job with happy and healthy adult romances where both parties are able to lead successful lives in addition to their personal involvements. It’s awesome and a model for romances everywhere.
  • More aliens! Towards the end of Second Skin, Too we get a few more hints and then some big reveals about the aliens involved in Max’s accident earlier. Learning more about Max’s second skin was definitely my favorite part!

Weaknesses:

  • I’m really not sure what is going on with these covers…. This one and the first one, they just turn me off majorly. How do you feel about Second Skin, Too’s cover? Also the title is just awkward to type…. I am just always disappointed to see awesome stories wrapped in less than awesome packaging, since it keeps people from discovering their amazingness!
  • Politics do not interest me…. It’s a problem. The main plot of Second Skin, Too is the war and trying to prevent the war and the peace talks and blah blah blah. I didn’t honestly care that much, which made it hard for me to pick up the book sometimes. For a book with such an awesome setting and freaking fantastic characters, there really should have been some adventure!

Summary:
Let me just say, I’m really hopeful about the third book, Tavern at the End of the Universe. First of all, that’s a great name. Second, it alludes to a lot more adventuring going on. These books have so much potential, but so far the plots just don’t seem to have taken advantage of it! In any case, if you like character driven books, Second Skin and Second Skin, Too are right up your alley. Max and Elaine are characters that I honestly feel like I’m friends with. Elaine feels like a big sister to me. I really enjoyed Second Skin, Too both for the interesting setting, technology and the comfort of characters that felt like friends. It’s just nice to read books like that ya know? Now if we could work on these covers…. I’m feeling something with a spaceship…. Thoughts?

Remember to subscribe for weekly reviews of awesome books!

Anya from On Starships and Dragonwings - A

 

 Second Skin, Too by Peter Darrach

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Four Stars: Second Skin by Peter Darrach

July 24, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Second Skin is a futuristic, spaceship-filled sci-fi story of Max Cody, a asteroid miner who has a close encounter just before the Mars space station comes under attack from nefarious politicians and Max and his shipmate Elaine must save the day!

Second Skin was the first physical book I received for review, but because of it’s slightly strange cover, I didn’t pick it up right away! I’m glad that I have an obsessive need to read all review copies before any library books, though, because once I got into the main story of Second Skin, I was hooked.

Goodreads
Title: Second Skin
Author: Peter Darrach
Pages: 327 pages
Genre-ish: Spaceship Sci-fi
Rating: ★★★★☆ - solid story, just missed “wow” factor
Setting: Mars has been colonized and asteroids are being mined, which is risky business when there are people stealing ships and illegally retrieving ice from the asteroid belt.
Premise: Max Cody is a worker on a legal asteroid mining ship, but on his latest mission a strange event occurs. It seems to change him physically and just in time, because the illegal ice miner “Suicide” Sam is about to make life difficult….

Strengths:

  • A very realistic and scientifically grounded system (Darrach obviously did a fair amount of research!)
  • Max and Elaine have a wonderful dynamic, made me all squee-y
  • An enjoyable take on alien first encounters. It makes me hope there is going to be a second book that gets more into these new beings!

Weaknesses:

  • For some reason, there just wasn’t that compelling “wow” factor for me. I enjoyed Second Skin, but wasn’t completely hooked.
  • The cover art on the copy I got (and is picture above) kinda creeped me out. I understand what it’s about now, but it delayed me picking up Second Skin for a bit….
  • I was more interested in the aliens than the central plot, which was probably the “hooking” factor that was missing.

Summary:

I really enjoyed Second Skin, and really look forward to reading more in this world, but it just didn’t quite reach it’s full potential for me. If you want to read some classic spaceship sci-fi, definitely pick up Second Skin, but it probably won’t be a complete speed read for most of you :).

Remember to subscribe to get weekly reviews of awesome books!

-A
Anya from On Starships and Dragonwings

Similar Stories Reviewed
This World Must Die! by Horace Brown Fyfe – More space adventure!
Dune by Frank Herbert – Classic sci-fi, but on an even farther out planet!

Second Skin by Peter Darrach

Filed Under: Reviews, What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Five Stars: Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress

June 8, 2012 by 3 Comments

Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress is a classic sci-fi story about a world were humans can be gene-modified to no longer require sleep, making a new class of highly productive people, who become completely ostracized from a jealous non-modified majority; very compelling writing, story and characters, a wonderful read for everyone

I spotted this recommendation from Fantasy Cafe during the women in SFF month and am sooo glad I decided to give it a try. Nancy Kress is a new favorite author of mine, I just picked up the second book in the Sleepless trilogy and am going to need to start reading as soon as I finish this review ;-).

Goodreads
Title: Beggars in Spain
Authors: Nancy Kress
Pages: 400 (paperback)
Genre-ish: Classic Sci-Fi
Rating: ★★★★★ - Awesome story, writing, everything!!
Setting: Near-ish future where gene-modifying fetuses has progressed to removing the need to sleep, increasing intelligence and disposition in addition to physical features. It is still very expensive however, creating a new class of humans both more productive and more despised.
Premise: Leisha and Alice are accidental twins, Leisha having been modified and implanted at the same time that their mother became naturally pregnant. Leisha’s life continues to be dedicated to the intersection between gene-modified Sleepless and non-modified Sleepers and their numerous conflicts.

Strengths:

  • Amazing writing, simply amazing, compelling, a completely page-turner!
  • Humbly-strong female lead character who we follow from earliest childhood and is refreshingly level-headed
  • Jumps to other character’s perspectives a bit, which helps gives a lot of breadth to the story
  • Such an interesting premise for any one with interest in genetics!!

Weaknesses:

  • The action drags a bit here and there as the more classic sci-fi tend to do for the sake of story development
  • As classic sci-fi also tends to do, Beggars in Spain asks some tough moral questions that don’t really have any perfect answers, which can be frustrating if you aren’t in the mood for thinking too much.
  • While there isn’t really any super clear villains, one of the more misguided characters REALLY annoyed me….

Summary:
I have gotten the impression that Nancy Kress is a very well-known and renowned author that I just completely missed! Sometimes I feel like I live under a rock, because if this book says anything, Kress deserves all the acclaim. This is a must read for anyone who likes sci-fi at all, or has even though about trying out some sci-fi, or has any interest in genetics. Even if the premise isn’t super compelling to you, the writing is completely awesome and you’ll probably like it anyway!

Remember to subscribe to get weekly reviews of awesome books!

-A
Anya from About The StorySimilar Stories Reviewed:
Dune by Frank Herbert - Another classic and awesome sci-fi!
Crystal Singer by Anne McCaffrey – Space Sci-fi with a strong female lead :D

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

This World Must Die! Short Story by Horace Brown Fyfe

April 27, 2012 by 1 Comment


Short story This World Must Die! by Horace Brown Fyfe, examines the emotional and rational reactions to murder in a twenty second century space faring civilization

This World Must Die!As I was browsing my subscribed blogs today I came across an article about expanding your reading experience by Jessica from Sci-Fi Fan Letter as a guest post on Fantasy Cafe. At the end of the post, Jessica recommended a number of short stories that are available free at ManyBooks.net. Since it’s a rainy and cold afternoon and I’ve always been a fan of short Sci-Fi stories, I decided to try out the first one listed, This World Must Die! by Horace Brown Fyfe.

Title: This World Must Die!
Author: Horace Brown Fyfe
Pages: 34 (available as almost any e-format)
Genre-ish: Classic Space Sci-Fi
Rating: ★★★★☆ - Solid read, recommended
Setting: It’s the twenty-second century and humankind has pioneered settlements on Mars, the Moon and still on Earth in addition to a number of space stations. Murder has become fiercely outlawed and even accidental murder and suicide attempts are punished with lifetime sentences in the Moon jail. This has led to most of the “normal” population being so emotional disgusted by the thought of murder that even attempting mercy killing for the good of the species (ie to kill plague ridden insane people bent on infecting Mars) causes “normal” people to black out.
Premise: As it so happens, a plague that causes insanity and a one hundred percent mortality rate has broken out on an outer colony and a ship of quarantined people has been taken over by said insane people and is making a break for Mars. If they land they will inevitably spread the plague to everyone on Mars which will inevitably spread to Earth and Venus as well. There is no cure yet and they have know idea how it is even spread. Needless to say the ship needs to be stopped for the greater good. However all the normal military people that have been sent to do this admittedly horrible task have been physically unable to. This has led the government to turn to four prisoners who committed violent crimes because they are the only ones who have any hope of actually killing this ship of plagued people.

Strengths:

  • Very classic sci-fi in terms of spaceships and colonies and unforseen consequences to modern societies current direction
  • Strong writing and the two characters that become the main focus pull you in to them even in the few short pages that you have to get to know them
  • Interesting premise given the debates about the death penalty and when murder is acceptable in today’s society
  • Very fast read, only took me an hour
  • There is a picture in the format that I downloaded :D (I just did a pdf)
  • It’s free! What have you really got to lose?

Weaknesses:

  • It’s a sad premise and there is a lot of death and violence packed into the pages, as could be expected
  • Because of it’s length, obviously not a lot of development could occur
  • It basically ends up saying that violence is important to have in the population, and I’m not sure where I am going to end up on that internal debate (ie my head is still confused)

Summary:
If you have been wanting to try out some classic Sci-Fi but don’t want a long term commitment, this is a good one-hour stand. It isn’t as strong as some of the other classic short stories I’ve read (Asimov is pretty hard to beat…) but it does bring up an interesting idea and presents it with some characters I grew fond of.

Has anyone else read this? Go read it and tell me what you think! Anyone have any other recommendations for good short stories (especially if they are free!).

-A
Anya from About The Story

Similar Stories Reviewed:
Dune (Another Classic Sci-Fi story) 

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The Ship Who Sang by Anne McCaffrey

July 29, 2011 by Leave a Comment

I read a lot of Anne McCaffrey when I was younger, and some of her stuff is definitely for young adults, but I think she has some really interesting lesser known stories and this is one of them. This book is actually a collection of all the short stories about Helva (the ship who sang) named after the first short story. They flow fairly nicely if I remember correctly though, and I consider them basically a series.

Title: The Ship Who Sang
Author: Anne McCaffrey
Pages: 248 all told (paperback)
Setting: Far future in the same universe as other McCaffrey series since the grouping of settled planets that Pern is part of is in this universe. Basic space travel setting really except for the brain ships
Premise: Parents of severely physically handicapped babies can choose to have their children become part of the brain ships program where they are trained from childhood to control a space ship with their brains and then travel the galaxies on jobs for the company that loans them all the training to pay off their enormous debts. Helva is one such person who is also a fan of singing through her ship and goes on lots of adventures with her “brawns” who are plain old flesh and blood humans who help her out.

Strengths:

  • Fun main character who just happens to be a brain in a ship 
  • Interesting twist on classic space adventure
  • Short and easy to read
  • Even after quite a few years I still remember Helva very fondly :-)

Weaknesses:

  • Less memorable plot (since I certainly don’t really remember them) 
  • The premise is honestly a little bit creepy, I mean a human brain fused with a ship…
  • The “brawns” (Helva’s companions) are not as well developed or memorable
  • The stories have been criticized for locking away disabled children in ships and making them indentured servants to a company

Summary: While this collection might not be for everyone I found them enjoyable when I was younger and therefore they should be a quick and entertaining read. The stories also raise some interesting ethical questions about whether this sort of practice is a good or a bad thing, since it does enable people who would otherwise be unlikely to live on their own to travel the universe, but it also makes them indentured servants for the beginning of their lives unless they are quite lucky. Also because it is a collection of short stories that aren’t that strongly connected, it would be easy to set down and pick up again as you wished.

-A

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Dune by Frank Herbert

May 27, 2011 by 5 Comments

Last year I got it in my head that I wanted to read all those classics that true sci-fi book nerds are supposed to have read, and Dune was definitely on that list. When I am mentally able, I really love a good classic sci-fi novel. There is something so satisfying about the slower pace and lack of hand-holding of the classic style. Dune is an excellent example of this style in fact, something that makes it wonderful if that is what you are looking for, but horrible if you just pick it up at the airport because it looks interesting and you are bored….

Title: Dune
Author: Frank Herbert
Pages: 474 (paperback and not including the appendices)
Premise: Paul Atreides noble family moves to the desert planet Arrakis only sort of against their wishes. The people on this planet have some strange legends that Paul’s mother seems to have some hand in and a political plot against his family is soon making their lives even more interesting. As they then deal with the repercussions of those plots, it becomes clear that those legends are much more than just legend.
Setting: Arrakis is a harsh world that holds a great treasure: spice. It is fairly addictive, has wonderful health and mental benefits and attracts GIANT worms on the already fairly inhospitable planet. Those worms are also attracted simply by the patterned vibration of walking on sand though, so it’s not really the spice’s fault if you get eaten harvesting it. The native people, however, have found ways to deal with all these difficulties and so have free access to the spice. Between their diet and their adaptations to the harsh environment, they have some very interesting differences both biologically and culturally.

Strengths:

  • Absolutely amazing world building
  • Very well thought out native culture
  • Complicated and well developed political structure
  • Interesting character development
  • Very cool ways of describing the psychic sort of powers that develop
  • Eco-friendly message :D

Weaknesses:

  • If you aren’t that interesting in political intrigue, the politics get a bit boring in the beginning
  • A complicated world means that there is a steep learning curve for the vocabulary and customs for the reader
  • The book is definitely more world focused than character focused
  • As I said in the intro, it is classic sci-fi and so it is definitely not an easy read

Summary: It’s classic for a reason and got a lot of awards and recognition. It is an absolutely amazing world and I have to applaud Herbert for how thoroughly he must have thought about what life on a desert planet would have done to a people both biologically and culturally. An example of this is that the native people learn in childhood that you don’t cry because it wastes so much water. This makes the act of crying exceedingly significant in their culture. I think it’s safe to say that anyone who loves sci-fi really should read one of the great classics just to experience this amazing world.

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,