I’ve listened to this book twice and it was great both times through. The first go drew me in with this airship and the hell divers and the destroyed land beneath them. The second pass let me appreciate the characters more. Xavier (X to most) and his sorta adopted kid Tin are both great characters. Both have a lot on their shoulders and both save their little society in their own ways.

The setting really captured my imagination. Yes, this is post-apocalyptic fiction, but in this world, the apocalypse came a bit further along the human timeline. Even the remnants of the technology that was once available is just beyond what we have now. The Hell Divers jump to gather much needed supplies for their airship, keeping it in the air, away from the worst of the radiation for generations now. But stuff is breaking down, supplies are limited, and the situation becomes more and more desperate.

I did get a little chuckle over Hades being what once was Chicago. All those deadly lightning storms! And the monsters dubbed the Sirens! I’m a huge Dresden Files fan and I can just see Harry Dresden rolling over in his grave that Chicago has fallen to lightning and monsters!

Even with everything being in a desperate state, politics still plays a role in the management of the ship. So true. I can see why the rebels demand more meds and more food but their efforts end in a body count and could have easily ended them all! The captain was put in a very tough situation. She couldn’t let this minor rebellion grow but any body count earns her a bit more hatred from part of the population. Captain Ash earned my respect with her actions during this crisis.

I loved that the ladies were part of every aspect of this story. They were in the military management of the airship. They were Hell Divers. They were teachers, cooks, kids, drug addicted desperate people, etc. For a military post-apocalyptic scifi, this was a very important aspect for me and Smith met the challenge! Yay! It’s only practical to have women be on an equal footing at the end of the world.

The action never stops with this book. There were so many moments where I thought for sure this character or that was toast! I was on the edge of my seat the first time I read it. On the second pass, you could still catch me nibbling my fingernails as I relived this scene or that. This was a very enjoyable book! 5/5 stars.

The Narration: R. C. Bray is a delight to listen to. His deep voice for X is perfect. His female voices sounded feminine and his little kid voices were realistic. He makes a great Tin as well as a great Captain Ash. The pacing is perfect and he performs those emotional scenes perfectly. 5/5 stars

You need to read the first book in this series Hell Divers, not only to understand this world, book, premise and history of some of the main characters, but also it is a fantastic read and I highly recommend it.

Nicholas Sansbury Smith is back with the next book in his Hell Divers series, 10 years have passed and it's time for them to return to searching the surface:
Ten years ago, Hell Diver Xavier “X” Rodriguez fell to Earth, and the ship that he used to call home continued on trying to survive. Michael Everheart, who was known a Tin as a boy, has followed in X's and his father's footsteps to become a Hell Diver. While Michael dives to help keep the Hive alive and in the air Captain Leon Jordan now rules at the helm of the ship like a dictator. He has no ideals to return to the surface like the previous Captain did and does everything in his power to promote that the Sky is where they belong. When a mysterious distress call comes from the surface Captain Leon is set on ignoring it, but his iron fist rule is about to be challenged by those who can, The Hell Divers who keep the ship in the air and humanity alive.

The first chapter starts out with a bang and I'm pretty sure I said Holy Fuck a few times out loud as I was reading it. I could not believe the revelations that Sansbury Smith made as well as the pace of the book. The first chapter basically describes the pace and premise of the book. You do not get time to take a breath, so strap in and find a comfortable place to read as you'll be reading this book in one sitting.

I like that this book is placed 10 years in the future from the first. As what happened in the first book there were not any additional characters that really stood out that Snasbury Smith could continue the series right then and there. I like that we get to see a mature Tim and what his father and X did for him as well as the revolution attempt that shaped the man that he has become. Tim has become a great leader for his Hell Divers team Raptor and his will to sacrifice himself for the greater good of not only humanity but for his team members as well. It was also great to see Magnolia back in action as she was kind of a throw in Hell Diver from the first book. She is still pretty much the same character, which is interesting that the 10 years did not really change her at all, but she still adds the defiant one in the group.

It was also interesting to see that the devastation that occurred on Earth affected areas differently. This completely makes sense as I'm sure "Climate" and topography would shape creatures even those that were created when the world went to Shit. This also showed more of Sanasbury Smith's imagination and he was not stuck on just the creatures that he had created for the first novel. Yes they are still there, but this part of Earth has so much more scary things out there.


Honestly, this is one of my favourite series out there right now and is my favourite one that Sansbury Smith has written. The only thing wrong with this book is I now have to wait to get my hands on the next book in this series. Awesome read, and an Awesome series.
Enjoy!!

   

Nicholas Sansbury Smith takes readers on a roller coaster ride straight into Hell, where the fate of human kind is left in the hand of a few:

After more than two centuries following WWIII poisoned the planet and forced the remaining human population to live on massive airships that circle the Earth, humans are in danger once again. Most of the ships have fallen from the sky with failing technology with easily accessible parts to fix the problems, there is now only a couple left. The only way to keep the ships running is to salvage what they can from  which is turned in to a Hell where is where the Hell Divers are needed to complete these missions. X is the best and most experienced Hell Diver, he has completed the most dives and missions (most only make it to 7 Dives before they die). When one of the remaining ships is damaged in a storm they call for help, all of the human race may be doomed and it is up to X and the rest of the Hell Divers to try and save them.

This is the first book I have read by Sansbury and it blew me away. It is a sci-fi/post apocalyptic book and sci-fi is something I usually  stay away from, but the premise sounded really different and interesting so I took the plunge; I'm so glad I did. This was a real page turner and  you'll want to read this book in one sitting, it was really hard for me to put this one down. It grabs hold of you from the very beginning and never lets go. There is very little let up on the action sequences on both Earth and the Hive, though on the Hive it much more political kind of suspense as the Captain tries to deal with no only the impending doom of the other ship but that of her own as well. Sacrifices need to be made and not everyone is happy about the decisions that she makes.

The world building was really well done and the description of not only the mutated monsters on Earth but the landscape and hardships that the Hell Divers had to endure while on the surface was well written.There are certain situations that you feel the weather and cold they have to endure and in the case of one of the Hell Divers his struggle to survive on nothing. There is also the extreme radiation that they have to deal with on each dive that adds in another element of danger that they need to be aware of. I also did not think that this book was too sci-fi for me, I liked that it was more of an apocalyptic book than a sci-fi book. I never felt like I was not able to understand what was going on or the machinery or weapons that the Hell Divers and the Hive rely on. The idea of the Hell Divers is extremely inventive and not something I have read, or even heard of being done in books before, so Sansbury's imagination hits a home run in this book

This book had an awesome main character. I mean how can you not love X even with his flaws he does what he has to do so that the human race can survive. Talk about selflessness. He is there to serve the greater good of humanity. He doesn't know when his next or last dive will be but he never shies away from that responsibility. I liked that Sansbury had X become more humanized than this thing of legend to the other people on the ship, with him having to take care of Tin. It gave him even more of a purpose than before and a now reason to try to get back at all costs. I could read a many books with X or someone like him as the main character.

All I can say is What an ending! It was not one that I saw coming which I think every reader loves in this type of book. So I guess you can say (and probably tell) that I am excited for the next book in this series, the summer and this book release cannot come fast enough. I'm also going to check out the other series that Sansbury has to offer.Sansbury really impresses with this book.

Enjoy!!!

   

“Hell Divers” is a gritty, intense, violent, action-packed, post-apocalyptic thriller. It takes place 250 years after humanity bombed themselves to the point of extinction. The survivors took refuge in the same huge airships that dropped the bombs. Now there are only two left.

“The Hive” is one of them. Over-crowded and under-maintained, it carries more than 500 people, clinging grimly to life and hoping to find somewhere to land where the surface radiation and the storms won’t kill them.

“The Hive” is kept in the sky by teams of Hell Divers who scavenge parts and power cells from the surface. Their moto is, “We dive so humanity survives”. The average Hell Diver lives for fifteen dives before their luck runs our.

“Hell Divers” is strong on duty, sacrifice and a stubborn determination not to let the human race become extinct. The price is high and the people paying it are far from perfect: addicted to the adrenlin high of diving, haunted by their dead, seeking respite in drink and drugs. What they do is heroic but they are believably and engagingly human.

“Hell Divers” is a cinematic book, described in a way that enabled me  to be RIGHT THERE when anything was happening and in this book, something was always happening. From the first page, I could see the interior of “The Hive” and immerse myself in its shabby, decaying, poorly-lit, claustrophobic atmosphere. “Hell Divers” has “Make Me Into A High Budget TV Series” written all over it. I could see how the lighting would work and the angle of the shots. It’s completely absorbing.

I won’t go into the plot other than to say that things are bad when the book starts and get progressively worse. Nicholas Sansbury Smith keeps tightening the tension with the inexorablity of a sadist using a thumbscrew. He moves smoothly between the story lines of different groups of characters and rings out every ounce of emotion from the incessant need for sacrifice and struggle.

R.C: Bray was the perfect choice as the narrator. His rugged voice and intense delivery grabbed me  by the arm and dragged me through the fights and the deaths, the impossible odds and absence of good choices.

If you’re in the mood for an original thriller, tinged with military ethics, offset by human frailty and fear, you’ll love this book.

“Hell Divers” is book one of a trilogy. Book two comes out in July. My copy is pre-ordered.