Review of "Rogue Hunter: Gaia #2: Intruder" by Kevis Hendrikson

Summary:
THE HUNT CONTINUES! Narrowly escaping death at the hands of a gang of bloodthirsty space pirates, Zyra Zanr investigates the mystery of Gaia, hoping its secrets will lead her to the criminal Molly Black. But time is running out. Zyra will have to work fast if she is to stop the deadly plot that Black has hatched to destroy the InterGalactic Alliance. Book 2 of 3.


Review:
**Review may contain spoilers**
This is part two of a short story trilogy.  It picks up a few days after the end of the first story in the series.  The plot continues at a good clip.  After reading both the first and the second "episodes," I'm still finding myself interested in how the entire story will conclude.

Thus far, I have found general appeal in these stories rather than specific.  Generally, I like that the action doesn't drag.  I also enjoy the overall premise which is to find out how to destroy a massively powerful ship of extremely mysterious origins.  Sure, this plot has been done before in sci-fi.  But I'm totally ok with that.  Plots like that are timeless and fun.

Specifically, I do have one or two issues.  The character development for Zyra Zanr is iffy at best.  For example, there will be scenes (especially in the first story) where she is trying to crack a joke but fails.  So the impression is one of a rough around the edges girl made tough by a hard life.  Then, all of the sudden, this second part introduces the idea that she's a rogue hunter and, therefore, has some blood lust issues?  As in, she doesn't do bounty hunting for the money but rather for the satisfaction of the kill?

I was almost willing to let the rogue hunter/blood lust thing slide if it hadn't been for outcome of the various action sequences.  To-date, Zyra has gotten the snot kicked out of her in every fight she's been in except for one small scuffle in the first story.  To me, this is not a great a great track record for someone who kills for the pleasure of killing.  Her actions do not speak for her words.

Nevertheless, I am kind of hooked on these stories.  I think they appeal to the gamer geek in me.  Whatever nitpicking issues I may have with them, they do, for some reason, make me come back for more.

3.5/5 stars
Reviewed by Alain Gomez

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review of "Ferryman" by Nigel Edwards

Summary: "A mythology grew up around the Ferrymen, fostered by a mystique which they wrapped around themselves. Some thought them amoral servants of a ruling elite, sanctioned to undertake work beyond legitimate resolution; others with more fanciful imaginations – or who were more devout, depending on your point of view – believed them emissaries of Evil, with a capital E." Could the Ferrymen become real in your lifetime? Should they? Read this thoughtful and disturbing near-future science fiction story and decide for yourself. Review: This was a fantastic short story.  "Well-written" doesn't even begin to describe Ferryman ; it's engrossing.  The simple, clean style perfectly highlights our precise  protagonist.  If this future Edwards presents to us does in fact become a reality, the character he describes is exactly the type of person who would become a Ferryman: highly competent with the hint of a god complex. What's  especially clever abou...
Read more

The Short Story Project

I was introduced to the short story genre in high school and simply fell in love.  It's completely different from reading a novel.  A novel is a lengthy involvement.  Character development and plot must transport you into the author's world as the story gradually unfolds. Short stories are distinct experience.  A good short story writer will make you care about the outcome of the characters even though you may not necessarily know anything about them.  It is a complete experience in one sitting; not too unlike reading a poem.  You read the short story/poem for itself and not for the hope that it will drag out for 800 pages and then maybe have a sequel. The short story genre has become a lost art.  When newspapers were at their height, a writer could make a name for himself by publishing a short piece of fiction every week.  Charles Dickens is a perfect example of this.  Since then, the literary world changed.  You have to have an age...
Read more

Interview with Author Hugh Howey

Welcome to Book Brouhaha! Why don't you start out by introducing yourself and telling us a little about "Wool." Thanks for having me, Alain! I suppose I'm just this normal guy who just wrote a little story called Wool. It's about a group of people who live underground. When their society turns on itself, it threatens all of mankind. In a way, it poses the conundrum of every revolution: How do you destroy an unjust social structure without the collateral damage being worse than the injustices were? I suppose the most interesting thing about me, personally, is that I lived on a sailboat while I was in college. This led to a career as a yacht captain, which sent me all over the Caribbean and the East Coast. I didn't start writing in earnest until my wife dragged me away from the sea and into the mountains. I've always loved the short form. I've been told that it isn't as marketable, even though science fiction has a long and glorious history of c...
Read more