TITLE:   The Last Astronaut

AUTHOR:  David Wellington

DESCRIPTION:

"Mission Commander Sally Jansen is Earth’s last astronaut–and last hope–in this gripping near-future thriller where a mission to make first contact becomes a terrifying struggle for survival in the depths of space.

Sally Jansen was NASA’s leading astronaut, until a mission to Mars ended in disaster. Haunted by her failure, she lives in quiet anonymity, convinced her days in space are over.

She’s wrong.

A large alien object has entered the solar system on a straight course toward Earth. It has made no attempt to communicate and is ignoring all incoming transmissions.

Out of time and out of options, NASA turns to Jansen. For all the dangers of the mission, it’s the shot at redemption she always longed for.

But as the object slowly begins to reveal its secrets, one thing becomes horribly clear: the future of humanity lies in Jansen’s hands."

_______________________________

REVIEW:

An action-packed, adventure novel of alien first contact, as well as human social dynamics in space and under stress. The beginning starts off slowly, but the pace picks up.  Some of the characters I loved, others I felt needed to be shoved out the nearest airlock.  The alien was very alien and also (in the end), not so very strange.  The ending was poignant.

The one thing I wasn't particularly thrilled about was the format of the book.  The imaginary author is writing an in-world book about events after they have happened.  This author has interspersed the main story with little side commentaries/thoughts/confessions from various characters who where talking to NASA at the time.  These little interludes tend to interrupt the flow of the story.  I didn't have much luck with the audiobook, but the text version was much better.  I think this is why the audiobook didn't work for me.  It's easy to separate interludes from the main narrative since they are in italics.  In the audiobook they tend to run into the main narrative and cause confusion.  The narrator also didn't separate characters very well - they all sounded the same, despite attempts at different male/female voices.

A fun, entertaining reading experience.

Originally published at midureads.wordpress.com on March 3, 2018.

2012

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

I don't much remember what went on in this book, except there being a plot to replace the Queen with an automaton clone. Must have made an impression on me because I rated it 4 stars on GR. Oh, and the covers in the series are beautiful! I recently and reviewed the second book in this series.

Must Love Hellhounds by Various Authors

GR tells me that I loved most of the stories from this anthology. Must have been a good collection. I remember trying it out because it also included a story by Ilona Andrews -- a favorite author couple of mine.

Frostbite by David Wellington

If you don't yet know that an awesome vampire series by David Wellington's exists, then you haven't been paying attention. Like the Laura Caxton series, this one is creepy AF. My GR review tells me I recommend it to:

I loved it and I don't even like horror much! Here, let my gushing adoration convince you that you need to try Wellington's books.

Stray by Rachel Vincent

When I first read it, one of the most annoying things about this series was its heroine. She was a whiny, selfish brat who didn't care about the consequences of her action. One of the best things about it, as I continued to plod along, is how she changed! By the end of the series, the events have transformed her into the alpha her father always knew her to be. If that doesn't float your boat, maybe stay for all the violence and the gore? Oh, and did I mention that the series is complete? You can binge read it!

The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan

Maybe I have a soft spot for tortured, lonely werewolves or maybe it's something else. Either way, I just completed this series. While the first had impressed me, the second and third fell short. All I'm saying is that even with the cliffhanger at the end of the first one, it can easily be read as a standalone.

2013

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

I have had much to say about the second book in this series on this blog. All good things, I promise. Therefore, it won't come as a surprise that I loved the first one, as well! The ending blew me away even when I have become so jaded about last-minute twists that change everything. Check this one out!

He was a Hero, He Shouldn't have Died by Kenneth Mugi

If you asked me to describe this book in a word, I'd probably say weird. But wait, this is what I said in my review:

I got this book for free, in exchange for an honest review from Making Connections. Get your copy here.

This book is very different from the plethora of Paranormal novels out there- it turns the idea of Dorian Gray’s picture on its head.

What I really liked about it was that the touch of fantasy/paranormal elements didn’t overwhelm Kasumi’s story.

Another thing to like was that if the new edited version had any errors, I couldn’t find them.

There is enough humor to balance the darkness in the story.

I would have liked to see more of Morgan but watching Kasumi grow into her powers would be exciting too.

Hoping that there are some fight scenes in the next book!

This book isn’t for everybody but if you’d like to read something unique, give this one a whirl.

The Gods Among Us by D.C. Belton

An old read, an old review:

The author was kind enough to give me a free review copy.

You know those books that you just don't wanna put down? Not because there's something exciting happening in the story or it is a good story...not only that but mostly because the writing flows and the story is being told so smoothly that you just read on and on. This book was such a book.

The parts I loved the most began when Pallas is aboard the ship and meets the crew. Their humor, lightheartedness and loyalty towards each other made them lovable.

I also liked that we're set up to hate Elena in the beginning of the story but we find out she has more depth and understands political intrigue much better than her younger sisters give her credit for.

Othello, I feared and hated just like I was supposed to. Even when I laughed at his antics, I wasn't less creeped out by him!

About the gods and their machinations: a) I'm not yet sure if they're actually deities and not humans who know what opposable thumbs are, b) they just don't care whose life they ruin, do they? Even Pallas who claims not to believe in gods & goddesses can't escape their schemes!

Pallas keeps mentioning how her father must miss her and I couldn't shake the feeling that there's something wrong there. Poor Pallas!

What would have made the book even better was a little more world building, maybe? Or a map, so we could understand what this world is like even better.

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

Lovely, fun at times and sad at other times, quirky as heck read. I liked it, maybe you would too?

Well, those were my faves from the past years. You can also find reviews of books from 2018 that stuck with me. 

Using this novel for Halloween Bingo 2017 for the werewolf square.

Book Synopses

1. Dragon Horse by Peter Ward

As An-Lushan is pulled towards the dark, Rokshan must embark upon a dangerous journey and learn the innermost secrets of the dragons."

2. Assail by Ian C. Esselmont

3. Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson

 

4. The Fruit Hunters: A Story of Nature, Obsession, Commerce, and Adventure by Adam Leith Gollner

5. A Buzz in the Meadow: The Natural History of a French Farm by Dave Goulson

6. Half a King by Joe Abercrombie

Betrayed by his family and left for dead, Prince Yarvi, reluctant heir to a divided kingdom, has vowed to reclaim a throne he never wanted.

But first he must survive cruelty, chains and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea itself - all with only one good hand. Born a weakling in the eyes of a hard, cold world, he cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he has sharpened his mind to a deadly edge.

Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast, he finds they can help him more than any noble could. Even so, Yarvi's path may end as it began - in twists, traps and tragedy...

7. An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth by Chris Hadfield

In An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, Col. Hadfield takes readers deep into his years of training and space exploration to show how to make the impossible possible. Through eye-opening, entertaining stories filled with the adrenaline of launch, the mesmerizing wonder of spacewalks, and the measured, calm responses mandated by crises, he explains how conventional wisdom can get in the way of achievement-and happiness. His own extraordinary education in space has taught him some counterintuitive lessons: don't visualize success, do care what others think, and always sweat the small stuff. Read more.

8. Monster Island by David Wellington

So the amazing part about having read this book has nothing to do with the book itself. It was a personal achievement of finishing a 500-page long book in a day like I used to in the good old days. I thought I had lost that talent but it was just me being over-dramatic In short:

About the Book:

I liked it! It took me by surprise. Granted, I was sitting and waiting to get my documents attested by HEC at that moment and anything, even a Chinese food menu would have sounded good. (For those of you who do not how agonizing and aggravating this visit can be, it is akin to a day wasted at the DMV or so it seems on tv).

The book may have been written for a YA audience in mind but it kept me entertained even when I returned home (unsuccessful, I'd like to mention).

I really dug the level of violence that was included in the book because it only reinforced the idea that Stoker tried to get across to his readers. Vampires are unnatural and completely other-than-human.

The author went the extra mile when they included how the majority of the bloodsucking population was kept docile by pumping them full of drugs. The practicality of the situation hits home when we discover that the source of that drug is a vamp who gets all his supply from the very organization that is supposed to be hunting him and his kind!

Another part that I really loved was how natural it felt that the original vampire hunters would be the foundation of a vampire hunting organization. They had promised to stay vigilant, after all. Only now they could do it with the government's resources on their side.

Now for the nitpicking

The inner monologues of all the characters sounded quite similar, which took away from how much I had been enjoying the book. Maybe the author could have just shown us the actions when it came to the others and only left the monologues for the MC?

I found the inclusion of some parts to be unnecessary. This includes the appearance of the werewolves. Why throw a couple of werewolves in a story that was completely about vampires? Why do it close to the end as an afterthought or a gimmick? 

The biggest issue of them all was why were the vampire generals after Jamie in the first place. Just as in those cartoons where a villain wants to destroy the world, there was no clue behind their leechy motivations. 

A minor turn off happened as I read the vampire ball scene. It was too reminiscent of the one from the movie, Van Helsing, and completely unsurprising.A fun book that tries to stay true to the work that it is inspired by. Give this one a try! I can't really end this review without mentioning the best vampire series that I have read, can I? Read this one if you don't read any other vampire books ever.

I bought two of these pretties from Paperback Emporium. Get yours now!