STORM OF ARRANON

Two worlds with a tenuous peace must overcome generations of misunderstanding to battle an alien force that threatens to destroy both planets from within.

Sheahan’s story begins with a bang: Alien invaders assassinate a world leader and declare that the planet belongs to them. The idea sounds farfetched, but, sure enough, by the next day the planet’s communications have gone down; the main characters fear the worst. The universe is made up of two worlds that generally work together but contain very different races, with cultures that often conflict each other. The heroine, Erynn, is from Korin, a militaristic planet that values order and technology. Arranon, on the other hand, values teamwork and nature. Although there’s a natural dichotomy here, the tension between characters of opposing (or mixed) races never fully develops. In fact, character development suffers as the plot races forward. Characters’ motivations are murky; relationships tend to materialize spontaneously without much context or explanation. Even important battles and events happen without much fanfare, and the story moves too quickly toward its climax, without stopping to detail characters’ actions. Still, despite the book’s unrelenting pace, there’s quality content here for sci-fi fans. The world may not coalesce, but there are plenty of twists and turns in the story to entertain readers. Erynn also brings a fresh perspective to a story that might otherwise be cliché. In a genre filled with male perspectives, a sassy female main character is a welcome change. With all the interesting ideas at work here, readers will likely want to check out the planned sequel.

Entertaining with a memorable main character, but the storytelling is rushed.