A rich sci-fi mystery thriller set in a technologically advanced and politically corrupt galaxy.
In the Ascension Galaxy, people are defined by their status as a noble or commoner, and Sir Cobran Derithal comes from a house of minor nobles. He had a promising military career until an explosion shattered his leg and killed his fiancee. He recovers with his sister and nephew on his home planet of Jarissa, but family problems force him to test his new mechanical leg and travel to the capital, where his sister fears for a young noblewoman’s safety; his powerful and domineering brother is arranging a marriage for him to a mysterious woman; and his wealthy, extravagant cousin Edwin receives an upsetting note and asks for his help. These seemingly unrelated adventures eventually weave together in surprising and delightful ways, as Cobran delves into the intricacies of noble society and finds that he must compromise his morals. Johnson-Weider (West Pacific Supers: Victory at Any Cost, 2012) creates a complex, textured high-fantasy world, complete with political intrigue, societal conflict, romantic histories and, of course, space aliens. Cobran emerges as a compelling, likable frontman—determined, loyal and competent. Although the myriad characters and worlds can at times be confusing, readers will be rewarded by a persistent, close read, as each character has unique and evocative quirks that will draw readers into the complexities of the Ascension Galaxy. Although the prose can be a bit repetitive at times, Johnson-Weider ably intertwines Cobran’s calculated investigations with his complex fictional world and provides a consistently thrilling, action-packed story, leaving readers completely fulfilled—if perhaps a bit shellshocked.
A complex, addictive sci-fi adventure.Pub Date: Jan. 20, 2013
ISBN: 978-0983798446
Page Count: 434
Publisher: Blue Moon Aurora, LLC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 21, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Categories: GENERAL FICTION
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BOOK REVIEW
The phrase “tour de force” could have been invented for this audacious novel.
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Four men who meet as college roommates move to New York and spend the next three decades gaining renown in their professions—as an architect, painter, actor and lawyer—and struggling with demons in their intertwined personal lives.
Yanagihara (The People in the Trees, 2013) takes the still-bold leap of writing about characters who don’t share her background; in addition to being male, JB is African-American, Malcolm has a black father and white mother, Willem is white, and “Jude’s race was undetermined”—deserted at birth, he was raised in a monastery and had an unspeakably traumatic childhood that’s revealed slowly over the course of the book. Two of them are gay, one straight and one bisexual. There isn’t a single significant female character, and for a long novel, there isn’t much plot. There aren’t even many markers of what’s happening in the outside world; Jude moves to a loft in SoHo as a young man, but we don’t see the neighborhood change from gritty artists’ enclave to glitzy tourist destination. What we get instead is an intensely interior look at the friends’ psyches and relationships, and it’s utterly enthralling. The four men think about work and creativity and success and failure; they cook for each other, compete with each other and jostle for each other’s affection. JB bases his entire artistic career on painting portraits of his friends, while Malcolm takes care of them by designing their apartments and houses. When Jude, as an adult, is adopted by his favorite Harvard law professor, his friends join him for Thanksgiving in Cambridge every year. And when Willem becomes a movie star, they all bask in his glow. Eventually, the tone darkens and the story narrows to focus on Jude as the pain of his past cuts deep into his carefully constructed life.
The phrase “tour de force” could have been invented for this audacious novel.Pub Date: March 10, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-385-53925-8
Page Count: 720
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2015
Categories: GENERAL FICTION
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PROFILES
PERSPECTIVES
Five friends meet on their first day of kindergarten at the exclusive Atwood School and remain lifelong friends through tragedy and triumph.
When Gabby, Billy, Izzie, Andy and Sean meet in the toy kitchen of the kindergarten classroom on their first day of school, no one can know how strong the group’s friendship will remain. Despite their different personalities and interests, the five grow up together and become even closer as they come into their own talents and life paths. But tragedy will strike and strike again. Family troubles, abusive parents, drugs, alcohol, stress, grief and even random bad luck will put pressure on each of them individually and as a group. Known for her emotional romances, Steel makes a bit of a departure with this effort that follows a group of friends through young adulthood. But even as one tragedy after another befalls the friends, the impact of the events is blunted by a distant narrative style that lacks emotional intensity.
More about grief and tragedy than romance.Pub Date: July 24, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-385-34321-3
Page Count: 322
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Nov. 14, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
Categories: GENERAL FICTION
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