New Book Review: Dark Matter

Tags

blake crouch, dark matter, quantum, Sci-Fi, science

4 of 5 stars

I found Blake Crouch’s, Dark Matter, to be an enthralling read! It had me sitting on the edge of my seat, wondering what I would do in the same situation and questioning what type of integrity I really have. This novel touches on scientific quantum studies, individuality (or lack thereof), emotional ties, psychological and post traumatic stress as well as a host of other really deep mental mysteries.

At the start of the book, I wasn’t sure if I was going to entirely like it due to the slower start but it ramped up pretty quickly when I wasn’t expecting it. Then it never let go. As a reader, you journey with the main character through his own mental and emotional struggles but also into the world of science. I’m no science nerd but this book made me really interested in quantum physics and the capabilities of a multiverse. Anyway, before I start, nerding-out completely, let’s get a brief synopsis.

The book follows Jason Dessen, a professor at a local college, as he spends an evening with his wife, Daniela and son, Charlie. You feel the comfort between Jason and his wife immediately. They have a really great bond. Later, as Jason sits with his buddy whose just won a prestigious award at a local bar, he questions whether his life would be different if he’d moved forward with his scientific invention related to quantum physics. He wonders if he could have been an all-star like his friend. He brushes this off as a simple “what if” and begins his walk home. While on his way, he is ambushed by a masked man and his life changes forever from that point on. When he wakes, he is in a lab. The people are acting strangely and even though he doesn’t recognize any of them, they seem to know him quite well. This is the start of Jason Dessen’s journey back home to his wife and son.

The scientific appeal of this novel is sci-fi to the max. But the suspense is just as strong a motivating factor for the reader. You want Jason to win. To find his family. But then there’s an extreme twist that makes you go “what the…”. That’s when you know Crouch has pulled you deep into the rabbit hole.

Raging Book Reviews Highly Recommended

*This book was purchased with my own money. Purchase a copy with free shipping through my Book Depository affiliate link CLICK HERE

New Book Review: The Argus Deceit

Tags

grossart, Sci-Fi, space

Rated 4 of 5 stars

The Argus Deceit by Chuck Grossart is Quantum Leap meets Stephen King-esque style of creepiness. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel by Grossart whose writing I’ve come to love. In the beginning of the story, we meet Brody Quail as a 52 year-old man who has gone through terrible unthinkable loss. The weird thing is…his life always ends at the same point. He never knows what happens before or after the day he’s living. Shortly after, Brody Quail is a ten year old boy playing with his buddies with the unthinkable, yet inevitable lurking around him and his little brother. After that day ends, you meet Brody Quail as a 26 year old, disabled veteran that relives his lackluster life and hard outer appearance until he’s met with three guys that want to rearrange his future. The last Brody Quail is sixteen and full of quiet admiration for a girl he likes, who actually may like him too. But that love is very short lived as he is thrust into the cycle all over again. That is, until he meets Constance “Connie” Drake…and things change forever (or do they?).

This story was very confusing in the beginning because the lives were so different. The years were all over the place so it wasn’t any type of foundation for the reader to hold on to. In the end, that is all explained in a glorious fashion. When I say, you must read this book to the VERY end to get every bit of nugget…you’ll be so curious as to the why, what and who…that you will zoom through the pages just to find out. You are not let down by the ending which is not quite one dimensional, but multi-layered.

Grossart writes with exploding action, heartfelt emotion and clever mystery. Even though in the beginning the stories repeat (to show the importance of how each day is the same for Brody Quail in each “life” he is in), you’ll enjoy the subtle changes as things start to crack and fall apart while Brody starts to realize that he is in a loop.

This story is for folks that like sci-fi done with a bit of mystery and suspense. If you’re tired of the same ole alien stories masquerading as sci-fi, then try Grossart for a refreshing sci-fi change.

Raging Book Reviews Recommended

COVER REVIEW

So I’m trying something new for writers that send me ARC’s…I’m going to review your book cover and back copy. I thought this would be a good addition to help for the final release. So here goes!

COVER: The cover is well balanced but doesn’t give the reader a good idea what the story is about. It doesn’t pull me in off first glance. It has a very sci-fi edge to it but after reading the story it doesn’t quite align. Maybe showing Brody Quail since he’s such a big factor of the story? Not sure if that’s the style you like. Just a thought. Leave a message below if you agree with my assessment of the cover.

BACK COPY: Back copy reads well! It doesn’t give away the story too much but definitely lets the reader know that they will be getting multiple lives of Brody Quail. Well done.

*This ARC was sent by the author for an honest review. The novel releases MAY 9, 2017.

 

New Book Review: Return of the Continuums

Tags

brody, novel, post-apocalypse, Sci-Fi

Rated 4 of 5 stars

Brody does it again in the second book in The Continuum Trilogy. Myra, Aero and Seeker rendezvous in deserts, mountains and the deep underground cavernous city of The Darkness of the Below. In the beginning of the book, all the main characters are separated and slowly making their way to each other. I enjoyed the thought process that Brody must have gone through in order to weave so many different storylines and locations together. There were some areas in the book that lend itself to “larger than life” ideals. The lightening scene was one such occasion. I found myself rolling my eyes and saying, “you couldn’t come up with something better than that?”. In this same way, I felt the first half of the novel lagged tremendously. BUT the second half of the novel redeemed itself in a big way. Once Myra, Aero and Seeker are finally joined together, we see the razzle dazzle of Brody’s writing. The characters are given added dimension in relation to their back story and their new challenges as well as friendships. There were many instances where the twist was expected yet still juicy to read and others where it was a total shock (such as the explanation of how the Doom occurred). Although, at the end of Book 2, you will definitely be waiting on pens and needles for the outcome of the surviving human race in Book 3, there were a couple other questions still lingering in the characters lives as well…who is really in love with who? Will someone sabotage saving the others because of jealousy? Bravo to Brody for entering another novel in the series that is a good foundation for what I hope will be a legendary ending!

Raging Book Reviews Recommended!

New Book Review: The 13th Continuum

Tags

brody, Debut, new release, novel, post-apocalyptic, Sci-Fi

Rated 4 of 5 stars

Jennifer Brody’s debut is a thrilling ride into the dark universe and and into the cold depths of the sea. This was an incredible read that I will not long forget! First, the premise revolves around the end of the world as we know it through a brutal rain down of what seems to be asteroids? or something more sinister. All the reader knows is that there is a group of chosen survivors that will escape the undoing by living in space, under water and underground. Brody does a great job channeling Aero’s bravery in space and Myra’s savvy smarts under the sea. We are eluded to the underground Seeker very briefly. This story is one of Myra and Aero’s escape from their separate worlds back to Earth. The journey they both endure will have you on the edge of your seat!

Brody did a brilliant job of creating worlds that we could visualize and touching on class issues and what power really means. Also, it shows how creating followers is an important part of power. I loved seeing the different lifestyles, rules and governing bodies and how they were so different than American values when given people the opportunity to lead themselves.

I thought the premise of the novel was better than the writing though. The writing could become a bit rushed in certain scenes (which I can understand from a book size point of view…if details were explained, it could be much longer). In some times though, I wish the explanations weren’t so rushed so that I could feel like I came up with something along the way as the reader. Even with its fast pace, it satisfies the readers curiosity. I will be starting the second book in the series immediately to say the least. Return of the Continuums will prove to be an interesting journey of both Aero and Myra along with their crews heading towards the First Continuum and each other. I’m interested to see whether other Continuums survived and what lifestyles they’ve led for the last thousand years.

*This book was received from the publisher at BookCon2016 for an honest review.

Raging Book Reviews Highly Recommended

New Book Review: The Phoenix Descent

Tags

adult, best reads, grossart, novel, phoenix, Sci-Fi, space

Rated 5 of 5 stars

Chuck Grossart is one of my new favorite authors! This novel is by and large one of the best pieces I’ve read all year. Ok, so it’s only February but you get my drift. It will be hard to top this one in 2016. I’m definitely buying a hard copy in March as I’m pretty sure I will re-read this one again. Ok, so here we go…

Grossart creates a band of entertaining characters in Sif, Hunter and Lucas. All three astronauts are sent on a mission to explore the depths of Mars. After waking from stasis and realizing their ship has slipped into a time warp, they see Earth as a black ball, not the green and blues we are accustomed to seeing. When they realize that the ship is returning to Earth as protocols have been set to do, they send Sif and Hunter down to earth to explore. What they find is a sci-fi readers dream and worse nightmare. Sif, Hunter and Lucas must find out the truth about what has happened to earth but also sees that the people who are left have been changed over the span of nearly 200 years.

This storyline is a movie must. I read it in a day, fully involved and couldn’t turn the pages quick enough. Great character development, awesome world view and has a heart-wrenching ending. Well done, Chuck Grossart…well done!

Raging Book Reviews Highly Recommended!