Steampunk – Rich Maloy

Series: Revenger by Alastair Reynolds

Rich — Tue, 19 Feb 2019 04:04:01 +0000

If you’re a fan of other Alastair Reynolds books and series such as the Revelation Space series, then you can appreciate his ability to create compelling characters, vast universes, and yet highly specific and detailed individual worlds. The Revenger series is all of those things, and yet completely and utterly different than any other book of his I’ve read.

Set in a ruined solar system far in the future, humanity continually rises up from the rubble of previous ruined civilizations, spreads out within the system, and relies on the technology of past ages, most of which they can’t replicate or build upon. While individuals struggle to keep themselves alive in the chaos of space, there’s a deeper conspiracy underlying the story, one that is just starting to get revealed at the end of book two.

As more books come out, I’ll continue to add them here. In the meantime, this is my new favorite series to recommend.

Series Reviews

Genre: Sci-Fi, Steampunk
Series: Revenger | Subjects: Series Review

Shadow Captain by Alastair Reynolds

Rich — Wed, 13 Feb 2019 04:59:22 +0000

Wow. This series is so good. What other author but Alastair Reynolds can create a world that blends space travel with steampunk? OK, the habitats are not strictly steampunk (i.e. powered by steam) but the descriptions make the habitations sound old-timey, gritty, and like everyone is bustling about with a cane and monocle. But I digress.

Book two in the series is told from Adrana’s point of view, and is just as insightful and intense. The action doesn’t move quite as fast as in Revenger, but it is just as good, and the deeper conspiracy is just under the surface the whole time.

I’m loving this series and can’t wait for book three to come out.

Publisher’s Summary

The gripping sequel to the Locus award-winning science-fiction adventure Revenger tells a story of obsession and betrayal as two sisters hunt for the greatest treasure in the universe.
Adrana and Fura Ness have finally been reunited, but both have changed beyond recognition. Once desperate for adventure, now, Adrana is haunted by her enslavement on the feared pirate Bosa Sennen’s ship. And rumors of Bosa Sennen’s hidden cache of treasure have ensnared her sister, Fura, into single-minded obsession.
Neither is safe; because the galaxy wants Bosa Sennen dead, and they don’t care if she’s already been killed. They’ll happily take whoever is flying her ship.
Shadow Captain is a desperate story of cursed ships, vengeful corporations, and alien artifacts, of daring escapes and wealth beyond imagining…and of betrayal.

Genre: Sci-Fi, Steampunk
Series: Revenger |

Revenger by Alastair Reynolds

Rich — Wed, 11 Jul 2018 02:33:52 +0000

When I picked this up, I was expecting something along the lines of Reynolds’ other books such as House of Suns (one of my all-time favorites) and the Revelation Space series. What I got was so completely different, I nearly gave up on it early on. After I finished it the first time, my initial rating was only 4 stars. But after some distance from it, I kept thinking about how my expectation got in the way of what is an absolutely fantastic novel. I gave it a second listen and was thoroughly entertained.

Reynolds does an amazing job of both building the universe and moving the action along. And it’s a wild combination of steampunk (on the habitations), space travel (intra-solar system only), and far-out sci-fi (from previous generations long since dead). The main character is a young girl and her character development is one of the best parts of the book.

Publisher’s Summary

A superb science fiction adventure set in the rubble of a ruined universe, this is a deep space heist story of kidnap, betrayal, alien artifacts, and revenge.
The galaxy has seen great empires rise and fall. Planets have shattered and been remade. Among the ruins of alien civilizations, building our own from the rubble, humanity still thrives.
And there are vast fortunes to be made, if you know where to find them….
Captain Rackamore and his crew do. It’s their business to find the tiny, enigmatic worlds that have been hidden away, booby-trapped, surrounded by layers of protection – and to crack them open for the ancient relics and barely remembered technologies inside. But while they ply their risky trade with integrity, not everyone is so scrupulous.
Adrana and Fura Ness are the newest members of Rackamore’s crew, signed on to save their family from bankruptcy. Only Rackamore has enemies, and there might be more waiting for them in space than adventure and fortune: the fabled and feared Bosa Sennen in particular.
Revenger is a science fiction adventure story set in the rubble of our solar system in the dark, distant future – a tale of space pirates, buried treasure, and phantom weapons, of unspeakable hazards and single-minded heroism…and of vengeance.

Genre: Sci-Fi, Steampunk
Series: Revenger | Subjects: Rich's Reco's