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The Kystrom Chronicles #1
The Immortality Thief
Far off the edge of human existence, beside a dying star lies a nameless ship abandoned and hidden, lost for a millennium. But there are secrets there, terrible secrets that would change the fate of humanity, and eventually someone will come looking.
Refugee, criminal and linguist Sean Wren is made an offer he knows he can’t refuse: life in prison, “voluntary” military service – or salvaging data in a long-dead language from an abandoned ship filled with traps and monsters, just days before it’s destroyed in a supernova. Data connected to the Philosopher’s Stone experiments, into unlocking the secrets of immortality.
And he’s not the only one looking for the derelict ship. The Ministers, mysterious undying aliens that have ruled over humanity for centuries, want the data – as does The Republic, humanity’s last free government. And time is running out.
In the bowels of the derelict ship, surrounded by horrors and dead men, Sean slowly uncovers the truth of what happened on the ship, in its final days… and the terrible secret it’s hiding.
Refugee, criminal and linguist Sean Wren is made an offer he knows he can’t refuse: life in prison, “voluntary” military service – or salvaging data in a long-dead language from an abandoned ship filled with traps and monsters, just days before it’s destroyed in a supernova. Data connected to the Philosopher’s Stone experiments, into unlocking the secrets of immortality.
And he’s not the only one looking for the derelict ship. The Ministers, mysterious undying aliens that have ruled over humanity for centuries, want the data – as does The Republic, humanity’s last free government. And time is running out.
In the bowels of the derelict ship, surrounded by horrors and dead men, Sean slowly uncovers the truth of what happened on the ship, in its final days… and the terrible secret it’s hiding.
448 pages, Paperback
First published October 11, 2022
284 people are currently reading
7314 people want to read
About the author
Taran Hunt
3 books185 followersTaran Hunt spent her childhood writing stories about unicorns until Battlestar Galactica, K. A. Applegate’s Animorphs, and Brian Greene’s The Elegant Universe turned her head. She got her degree in physics at Cornell University, studying weird exoplanets and the abstract elegance of math. After graduation she returned to her first love: storytelling. She works in theatre in New York City, where she lives with her partner and their increasingly round cat. She spends her limited free time weaving, making chainmail, and learning every language Duolingo has to offer.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 429 reviews
October 18, 2022
Fun, resonant, and compulsively readable-- The Immortality Thief perfectly balances action, intrigue, and heart, with a lovable main character you'll want to guard with your life.
***
I blurbed this one! (See above.) The real talk is, I read this book so quickly because of its pacing, and didn't realize how protective I was getting over Sean until, idk, 2/3rds of the way through when I was like IF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS TO THIS MAN I WILL TAKE TO THE STREETS, etc.
***
I blurbed this one! (See above.) The real talk is, I read this book so quickly because of its pacing, and didn't realize how protective I was getting over Sean until, idk, 2/3rds of the way through when I was like IF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS TO THIS MAN I WILL TAKE TO THE STREETS, etc.
October 24, 2022
Yeah. I'm pulling the plug on this one. I'm really not enjoying the writing: it's conversational without being profound and quickly lapses into conspicuous repetition. The sociopolitical background is interesting and the short chapters make for a propulsive read, but it's unfortunately not enough to make me want to tackle a couple hundred more pages of anemically predictable plot beats that make singularly boring what should be exciting and defining moments. Lastly (if I may just nitpick for a moment), this book has some of the most *boring* character names that I've ever encountered in science-fiction. Sean, Brigid, Benny? We have got to imagine better than that.
May 17, 2024
Sean Wren is a criminal and linguist who is sent on a quest to an abandoned spaceship on the verge of being destroyed in order to retrieve the philosopher’s stone. while there he comes across some secrets that the governor has been hiding about the fate of humanity and some misinformation that has been spread for decades regarding immortality and the alien species known as The Ministers. this really was a fun and fast paced space opera with equal amounts of humor and heart. the ending left on a cliffhanger so i’m looking forward to reading the sequel whenever it’s released.
as a huge fan of the “reluctant ally” trope, of course i enjoyed every minute of Sean, Indigo and Tamara’s interactions (Indigo is my personal favorite). they’re all on opposing sides but they still protected each other, even when it went against their original plans. i thought the action scenes were written well and the world building kept my interest— there’s a couple absolutely brutal deaths too. i didn’t expect to get attached to the characters but they were all so distinct and likable in their own ways.. just a pleasant surprise all around.
as a huge fan of the “reluctant ally” trope, of course i enjoyed every minute of Sean, Indigo and Tamara’s interactions (Indigo is my personal favorite). they’re all on opposing sides but they still protected each other, even when it went against their original plans. i thought the action scenes were written well and the world building kept my interest— there’s a couple absolutely brutal deaths too. i didn’t expect to get attached to the characters but they were all so distinct and likable in their own ways.. just a pleasant surprise all around.
September 15, 2022
OH! MY! WORMS (Yes, I had to mention the worms)! THIS WAS AMAZING, BRILLIANT, SENSATIONAL AND SO ON.
For the first 11% or so I could tell it was good, but wasn't sure how much I'd like it, and then it just kept getting better and better and now it's one of my favourite books. So if you feel like clocking out early you can, but I'd suggest you keep reading because it's so worth it.
The chapters have titles and some of them are hilarious, as is Sean's personality. He likes to assign things and people (and aliens) names in his head and constantly makes jokes, even when faced with near death.
Sean is also very kindhearted and never loses that which I think sends a good message. He's always for doing the right thing and that makes me so happy.
Indigo is ADORABLE. His past actions aside, you can't convince me otherwise. I love him and his light language.
OH YES, since I mentioned languages, Sean is good at them and is basically surviving with just that ability which gives me confidence in my own language learning abilities. If Sean can make it through a walking death trap, then I can surely make it through everyday life as well.
Tamara is the last member of our little trio, and you know what? I love her too. I love everyone, all the characters, it's impossible not to. Anyway, she's this hardened soldier who softens up during her reluctant alliance with Sean and Indigo. She does what needs to be done, and has some secrets of her own.
The plot was so compelling that I had a hard time putting the book down. I read it in two sessions, the second only necessary because I started the book too late the first time and was getting sleepy near the end. Otherwise I would've binged the whole thing in one go, it's that type of book.
Every situation the characters find themselves in could potentially lead to certain doom, the chapters aren't long which also makes it easier to keep going and a lot of them end in mini cliffhangers so you just HAVE TO know what happens next.
Speaking of cliffhangers, there's a huge one at the end. I NEED THE NEXT BOOK ASAP!!! I fell in love with this world and the characters inhabiting it and I'd love for it to have several sequels, spinoffs and movies. Or a tv show instead of movies, because then all the cool details could make it in.
If you like twists at every turn, space ships filled with monsters and the found family trope THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU!!! GO READ IT. GO. NOW. GO.
*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*
For the first 11% or so I could tell it was good, but wasn't sure how much I'd like it, and then it just kept getting better and better and now it's one of my favourite books. So if you feel like clocking out early you can, but I'd suggest you keep reading because it's so worth it.
The chapters have titles and some of them are hilarious, as is Sean's personality. He likes to assign things and people (and aliens) names in his head and constantly makes jokes, even when faced with near death.
Sean is also very kindhearted and never loses that which I think sends a good message. He's always for doing the right thing and that makes me so happy.
Indigo is ADORABLE. His past actions aside, you can't convince me otherwise. I love him and his light language.
OH YES, since I mentioned languages, Sean is good at them and is basically surviving with just that ability which gives me confidence in my own language learning abilities. If Sean can make it through a walking death trap, then I can surely make it through everyday life as well.
Tamara is the last member of our little trio, and you know what? I love her too. I love everyone, all the characters, it's impossible not to. Anyway, she's this hardened soldier who softens up during her reluctant alliance with Sean and Indigo. She does what needs to be done, and has some secrets of her own.
The plot was so compelling that I had a hard time putting the book down. I read it in two sessions, the second only necessary because I started the book too late the first time and was getting sleepy near the end. Otherwise I would've binged the whole thing in one go, it's that type of book.
Every situation the characters find themselves in could potentially lead to certain doom, the chapters aren't long which also makes it easier to keep going and a lot of them end in mini cliffhangers so you just HAVE TO know what happens next.
Speaking of cliffhangers, there's a huge one at the end. I NEED THE NEXT BOOK ASAP!!! I fell in love with this world and the characters inhabiting it and I'd love for it to have several sequels, spinoffs and movies. Or a tv show instead of movies, because then all the cool details could make it in.
If you like twists at every turn, space ships filled with monsters and the found family trope THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU!!! GO READ IT. GO. NOW. GO.
*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*
September 5, 2023
💀 DNF at 32%.
This one could have been SO good. Only that it wasn't 🙄. The premise is pretty great (space opera featuring a criminal/linguist forced to hunt for the Philosopher’s Stone? YES, PLEASE!) but when you get past the 30%, feel like you've been reading the same chapter over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again ("we're being attacked by monsters, we fight, we win, we escape" repeat repeat repeat repeat) and don't give a fish about any of the characters, it's time to move the shrimp on and give the book a proper DNF graveyard burial and stuff.
April 13, 2023
Stars: 3.5 out of 5.
Surprisingly, this book pulled at all of my heartstrings. Even though it's monster horror in space, it made me care about the characters. Well, at least the main ones.
I mean, you can't help but feel sorry for Sean, who survived the destruction of his whole city and saw his family and everyone he knew lying dead at the hands of the Ministers. I understand why he clings so desperately to Benny, even though they have absolutely nothing in common apart from that tragedy that defined their childhood. It's not a healthy relationship and clinging to it is slowly destroying both of them.
I was also impressed by the sheer capacity for compassion Sean has, even after everything he went through. Or maybe because of it? He saw so many people die that now he tries to do everything in his power to help other in need, because he doesn't want any more deaths. And once he is stuck on the ship full of monsters with two people who, in his eyes, are responsible for the Kystrom massacre, he doesn't immediately classify them as enemies. He has the moral strength to overcome that anger and see them for what they are - people.
I also liked Tamara and Indigo and how we progressively got to know more of them and get glimpses of humanity from the emotionless Minister and the battle-hardened soldier. They have to collaborate to survive long enough to recover data that is vital for both their races survival. In the case of the Ministers, that meaning is very literal.
The setting itself is the stuff nightmares are made of - a derelict ship left by a dying star. So vast, so dark and silent... and full of monsters that are very very hard to kill, because the scientists who created them were experimenting with immortality. And now those monsters are angry with their creators. For creating them in the first place, for the horrors they were subjected to during that creation, and for abandoning them to die on this ship without a second thought. It reminded me a bit of the video game Dead Space, which I never could finish because I'm a chicken.
There is a lot to love about this book, but there are a few flaws as well. The flashbacks, even though they serve a purpose of explaining Sean's frame of mind, get annoying after a while. I wish the author could have found other means of passing the information to the reader.
The characters other than our main trio are two-dimensional at best, and Benny was so devoid of redeeming qualities it was almost caricatural. The story also started dragging towards the end. It was like the author kept putting away the resolution and throwing more and more obstacles in our characters' way. They had already been through so much though, that I experienced danger fatigue. I just wanted them to be done with this ship one way or another.
All in all though, I really loved this first book in a new series and I will check out the next one, especially considering the twist at the end.
PS: I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Surprisingly, this book pulled at all of my heartstrings. Even though it's monster horror in space, it made me care about the characters. Well, at least the main ones.
I mean, you can't help but feel sorry for Sean, who survived the destruction of his whole city and saw his family and everyone he knew lying dead at the hands of the Ministers. I understand why he clings so desperately to Benny, even though they have absolutely nothing in common apart from that tragedy that defined their childhood. It's not a healthy relationship and clinging to it is slowly destroying both of them.
I was also impressed by the sheer capacity for compassion Sean has, even after everything he went through. Or maybe because of it? He saw so many people die that now he tries to do everything in his power to help other in need, because he doesn't want any more deaths. And once he is stuck on the ship full of monsters with two people who, in his eyes, are responsible for the Kystrom massacre, he doesn't immediately classify them as enemies. He has the moral strength to overcome that anger and see them for what they are - people.
I also liked Tamara and Indigo and how we progressively got to know more of them and get glimpses of humanity from the emotionless Minister and the battle-hardened soldier. They have to collaborate to survive long enough to recover data that is vital for both their races survival. In the case of the Ministers, that meaning is very literal.
The setting itself is the stuff nightmares are made of - a derelict ship left by a dying star. So vast, so dark and silent... and full of monsters that are very very hard to kill, because the scientists who created them were experimenting with immortality. And now those monsters are angry with their creators. For creating them in the first place, for the horrors they were subjected to during that creation, and for abandoning them to die on this ship without a second thought. It reminded me a bit of the video game Dead Space, which I never could finish because I'm a chicken.
There is a lot to love about this book, but there are a few flaws as well. The flashbacks, even though they serve a purpose of explaining Sean's frame of mind, get annoying after a while. I wish the author could have found other means of passing the information to the reader.
The characters other than our main trio are two-dimensional at best, and Benny was so devoid of redeeming qualities it was almost caricatural. The story also started dragging towards the end. It was like the author kept putting away the resolution and throwing more and more obstacles in our characters' way. They had already been through so much though, that I experienced danger fatigue. I just wanted them to be done with this ship one way or another.
All in all though, I really loved this first book in a new series and I will check out the next one, especially considering the twist at the end.
PS: I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
October 6, 2024
On my blog.
Galley provided by publisher
The Immortality Thief is, hands down, one of the best books I’ve read this year. Tense and action-packed, it’s a complete thrill ride, a book you won’t want to put down even for the barest of seconds.
We follow Sean, who’s had his arm twisted (read: a bomb inserted into his brain) into joining a taskforce (read: group of criminals) into exploring an abandoned ship which is in the process of burning up in the death throes of a star, in search of the secret to immortality, rumoured to have been discovered by its crew. But the ship isn’t as abandoned as it was made out to be, and Sean finds himself alone in its hollows, forced to ally with his enemies, in a race against time to get the data.
This is a book that sucks you in from page one. Sean is a compelling, and not always truthful, narrator and the setting and its horror elements keep you on the edge of your seat. You can’t put the book down, because to do so would be to deny yourself the immediate satisfaction of finding out what happens next.
The strengths of this book are twofold: in the pacing and the plot, and in the characters. Let me start with the first. This is a long book, over 600 pages, and yet it doesn’t ever feel like it drags. You’re on the edge of your seat for its entirety, as it drip feeds you more and more information. It’s kind of hard to quantify this book: it’s a thriller, but with horror elements, but it’s also science fiction, with, occasionally, fantastical bits creeping through. One of those that you have to read to find out (that’s a hint!).
Probably my favourite aspect of it, though, is in the second strength of the characters. It’s trite and cliche to say it but each and every one of them leaps off the page. Although really, it’s their relationships that shine through the most. Specifically, the one which grows between Sean, Indigo, and Tamara. If you like books where enemies are forced to work together to survive, then this book will be right up your alley. I loved watching the development of their relationship across the book and really, they’re a key reason I’m hoping there’s news of a sequel soon (especially with that cliffhanger! You can’t just leave it like that!).
So, come October, this is a book I’ll be begging everyone to read. I would seriously consider this one of the best sci fi novels of the year, if not the best, so add it to your TBR! Don’t miss out!
Galley provided by publisher
The Immortality Thief is, hands down, one of the best books I’ve read this year. Tense and action-packed, it’s a complete thrill ride, a book you won’t want to put down even for the barest of seconds.
We follow Sean, who’s had his arm twisted (read: a bomb inserted into his brain) into joining a taskforce (read: group of criminals) into exploring an abandoned ship which is in the process of burning up in the death throes of a star, in search of the secret to immortality, rumoured to have been discovered by its crew. But the ship isn’t as abandoned as it was made out to be, and Sean finds himself alone in its hollows, forced to ally with his enemies, in a race against time to get the data.
This is a book that sucks you in from page one. Sean is a compelling, and not always truthful, narrator and the setting and its horror elements keep you on the edge of your seat. You can’t put the book down, because to do so would be to deny yourself the immediate satisfaction of finding out what happens next.
The strengths of this book are twofold: in the pacing and the plot, and in the characters. Let me start with the first. This is a long book, over 600 pages, and yet it doesn’t ever feel like it drags. You’re on the edge of your seat for its entirety, as it drip feeds you more and more information. It’s kind of hard to quantify this book: it’s a thriller, but with horror elements, but it’s also science fiction, with, occasionally, fantastical bits creeping through. One of those that you have to read to find out (that’s a hint!).
Probably my favourite aspect of it, though, is in the second strength of the characters. It’s trite and cliche to say it but each and every one of them leaps off the page. Although really, it’s their relationships that shine through the most. Specifically, the one which grows between Sean, Indigo, and Tamara. If you like books where enemies are forced to work together to survive, then this book will be right up your alley. I loved watching the development of their relationship across the book and really, they’re a key reason I’m hoping there’s news of a sequel soon (especially with that cliffhanger! You can’t just leave it like that!).
So, come October, this is a book I’ll be begging everyone to read. I would seriously consider this one of the best sci fi novels of the year, if not the best, so add it to your TBR! Don’t miss out!
December 2, 2022
3.5 stars
Despite a tropey premise, this was a pleasantly fresh science fiction story. I often suffer from reader fatigue after reading so many similar stories so I always get excited when something feels unique or special.
I liked this one and found it to be a solid story, even though it didn't quite reach the level of a new favourite. I especially liked the sections in the past which helped to flesh out the characters' history.
I would recommend this one to anyone looking for a new story that holds its own within the sci fi genre.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
Despite a tropey premise, this was a pleasantly fresh science fiction story. I often suffer from reader fatigue after reading so many similar stories so I always get excited when something feels unique or special.
I liked this one and found it to be a solid story, even though it didn't quite reach the level of a new favourite. I especially liked the sections in the past which helped to flesh out the characters' history.
I would recommend this one to anyone looking for a new story that holds its own within the sci fi genre.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
October 17, 2022
Beginning as an archaeological/translation job, then a political clash between humans and aliens, and finally becoming a haunted house story full of monsters with sharp teeth, the “Immortality Thief” is a fun and violent story of alien contact, theft, grief, forgiveness and friendship.
When a clandestine four-person crew is forced into a job (three are criminals who are told this will get them out of jail and their charges) arrive on board an ancient long lost ship, main character and linguist/translator Sean Wren thinks his work will be pretty quick, once he deciphers the ancient Ameng language’s instructions or logs left by the ship’s previous occupants, a thousand years ago. This was a research vessel, full of brilliant geneticists and the like, who were trying to figure out how to make someone immortal. This information is highly prized, but much could be done with any other papers and data the team finds on board. Oh yeah. The ship is within easy range of a star soon to go nova. So, no pressure, Sean.
Almost as soon as they get inside the ship, they discover a woman, emaciated and dirty, which should be impossible—no one was supposed to be on board this long abandoned ship. Then, a group of Ministers arrive (Ministers are aliens who destroyed the city Sean and Benny (his long time friend and fellow thief/prisoner on this mission) come from. Years earlier, the Republic had colonized planets, one being where Sean and Benny were born. The Ministers took exception to the colonies, and one day arrived on Sean’s planet and killed everything in Sean’s home town, including his parents and younger sister. He and Benny left the planet together, and have been thieving and when possible, Sean has also worked as a translator. He’s one of the very few alive who can read Ameng, which is why he was drafted for this time pressure job).
With the arrival of the Ministers, violence ensues, with Sean separated from his crew, and in the custody of the Ministers, who see Sean’s Ameng reading ability as useful, as they, too, are there to recover the scientists’ research.
Then monsters appear, terrifying creatures of claws and teeth, that superficially appear similar to the Ministers (who look like androgynous, small statured humans), and then small, murderous children also dog everyone’s footsteps, picking off team members.
Sean eventually finds himself in the company of one Minister, and the emaciated woman, who is a Republic officer. The three agree to work together, as they fight their way painstakingly to the location where they believe the head scientist stored her invaluable research.
I had not expected such a series of both fun and terrifying encounters once the small initial team arrived on board. Sean has a tendency to cause trouble, and his mouth and contrary impulses frequently have caused Benny and him grief on jobs (this is how they ended up in prison at the book’s open). Sean is also a mix of grief and kindness, never having gotten past the loss of his family and home, and also being able to reach out to others, even those he should hate. In fact, it’s his kindness that helps him connect with the Minister and Republic officer, named Indigo and Tamara, respectively. Though a thief, he’s not a murderer, and wrestling with his assumptions for the first time ever due to his two companions, prompts some serious soul-searching, making Sean a compelling protagonist. Tamara's and Indigo’s characters are also revealed gradually, stripping the trio of many of their preconceptions about their respective factions.
There are also revelations about why the Republic and Ministers are all on the ship, looking for the immortality data, but it’s the friendship that builds amongst the trio that really kept me reading. (And the running away from monsters, too!)
The book ended up where I wasn’t expecting it to, in some senses, and dropped a shocking fact at the end, so I am anxious to read the next book.
Thank you to Netgalley and to Rebellion for this ARC in exchange for my review.
When a clandestine four-person crew is forced into a job (three are criminals who are told this will get them out of jail and their charges) arrive on board an ancient long lost ship, main character and linguist/translator Sean Wren thinks his work will be pretty quick, once he deciphers the ancient Ameng language’s instructions or logs left by the ship’s previous occupants, a thousand years ago. This was a research vessel, full of brilliant geneticists and the like, who were trying to figure out how to make someone immortal. This information is highly prized, but much could be done with any other papers and data the team finds on board. Oh yeah. The ship is within easy range of a star soon to go nova. So, no pressure, Sean.
Almost as soon as they get inside the ship, they discover a woman, emaciated and dirty, which should be impossible—no one was supposed to be on board this long abandoned ship. Then, a group of Ministers arrive (Ministers are aliens who destroyed the city Sean and Benny (his long time friend and fellow thief/prisoner on this mission) come from. Years earlier, the Republic had colonized planets, one being where Sean and Benny were born. The Ministers took exception to the colonies, and one day arrived on Sean’s planet and killed everything in Sean’s home town, including his parents and younger sister. He and Benny left the planet together, and have been thieving and when possible, Sean has also worked as a translator. He’s one of the very few alive who can read Ameng, which is why he was drafted for this time pressure job).
With the arrival of the Ministers, violence ensues, with Sean separated from his crew, and in the custody of the Ministers, who see Sean’s Ameng reading ability as useful, as they, too, are there to recover the scientists’ research.
Then monsters appear, terrifying creatures of claws and teeth, that superficially appear similar to the Ministers (who look like androgynous, small statured humans), and then small, murderous children also dog everyone’s footsteps, picking off team members.
Sean eventually finds himself in the company of one Minister, and the emaciated woman, who is a Republic officer. The three agree to work together, as they fight their way painstakingly to the location where they believe the head scientist stored her invaluable research.
I had not expected such a series of both fun and terrifying encounters once the small initial team arrived on board. Sean has a tendency to cause trouble, and his mouth and contrary impulses frequently have caused Benny and him grief on jobs (this is how they ended up in prison at the book’s open). Sean is also a mix of grief and kindness, never having gotten past the loss of his family and home, and also being able to reach out to others, even those he should hate. In fact, it’s his kindness that helps him connect with the Minister and Republic officer, named Indigo and Tamara, respectively. Though a thief, he’s not a murderer, and wrestling with his assumptions for the first time ever due to his two companions, prompts some serious soul-searching, making Sean a compelling protagonist. Tamara's and Indigo’s characters are also revealed gradually, stripping the trio of many of their preconceptions about their respective factions.
There are also revelations about why the Republic and Ministers are all on the ship, looking for the immortality data, but it’s the friendship that builds amongst the trio that really kept me reading. (And the running away from monsters, too!)
The book ended up where I wasn’t expecting it to, in some senses, and dropped a shocking fact at the end, so I am anxious to read the next book.
Thank you to Netgalley and to Rebellion for this ARC in exchange for my review.
March 27, 2023
A group of people is gang-pressed into salvaging data from an old, stranded space ship, before it is destroyed by a supernova. They encounter unexpected problems of a horrific kind. And lots of tunnels and tight spaces and darkness. And various enemies, going for the same prize.
Very short chapters, pushing the reader along, with a mildly funny tone, jumping back and forth between the now and the before. Going in, I was looking forward to the horribleness inside. I expected the underdogs to ride into the sunset at the end. At least those that make it out again.
I liked the flashbacks, it‘s a nice way to give backstory in small packages. It should have made me emotional, but it didn‘t.
Plenty of things kept happening, alas the story never grabbed me. All the episodic bits and pieces did not get the movie running in my head. I skimmed a lot in the middle and thought about DNFing this a few times.
I thought about it, but I still haven’t figured out yet, why this didn‘t work for me. There is lots of action, the characters become more interesting as the story progresses, there is low-key humour, I should have liked this. But I never really connected, the story left me cold. The ending was ok, if rushed and the cliffhanger was just silly. Off we go to the sequel. Not.
This could be a fun movie, with the right amount of mischievous humour on top of the suspense and the horror elements. Less haunted house, more caving horror with mutated beings. SciFi light. Shorter would have been nice. Some plot holes. Still giving it three stars for the potential. 2.75 stars? ☀️☀️☀️
Very short chapters, pushing the reader along, with a mildly funny tone, jumping back and forth between the now and the before. Going in, I was looking forward to the horribleness inside. I expected the underdogs to ride into the sunset at the end. At least those that make it out again.
I liked the flashbacks, it‘s a nice way to give backstory in small packages. It should have made me emotional, but it didn‘t.
Plenty of things kept happening, alas the story never grabbed me. All the episodic bits and pieces did not get the movie running in my head. I skimmed a lot in the middle and thought about DNFing this a few times.
I thought about it, but I still haven’t figured out yet, why this didn‘t work for me. There is lots of action, the characters become more interesting as the story progresses, there is low-key humour, I should have liked this. But I never really connected, the story left me cold. The ending was ok, if rushed and the cliffhanger was just silly. Off we go to the sequel. Not.
This could be a fun movie, with the right amount of mischievous humour on top of the suspense and the horror elements. Less haunted house, more caving horror with mutated beings. SciFi light. Shorter would have been nice. Some plot holes. Still giving it three stars for the potential. 2.75 stars? ☀️☀️☀️
April 11, 2024
Wow, this had everything I wanted - except for a touch of romance, but it didn't promise me that so I can't complain 😂. Action-packed, fast-paced and well-written, this story grabbed my attention from the first chapter and never let go. It was one of those books you just don't want to put down though it was far too long a book to complete in only one sitting, which was even better!
The characters were complex, layered and engaging and whilst the story is written entirely from Sean's point of view I still felt as though we got to know Tamara, Shay and Benny equally well. I loved that no-one was too perfect, I much prefer my characters to be flawed, it makes them so much more believable - and easy to relate to! Sean is a delightfully good man who will do bad things for good reasons. The moral compass is strong in this young one, but his innate goodness and always expecting the best of others does cause him untold problems.
The world-building was excellent, cleverly woven throughout the story so as not to overwhelm. I felt as though I were standing in the ship alongside Sean at times. The foreshadowing was also creative and subtle, I did suspect that amazing twist at the end and can't wait to see where the author takes us next.
The characters were complex, layered and engaging and whilst the story is written entirely from Sean's point of view I still felt as though we got to know Tamara, Shay and Benny equally well. I loved that no-one was too perfect, I much prefer my characters to be flawed, it makes them so much more believable - and easy to relate to! Sean is a delightfully good man who will do bad things for good reasons. The moral compass is strong in this young one, but his innate goodness and always expecting the best of others does cause him untold problems.
The world-building was excellent, cleverly woven throughout the story so as not to overwhelm. I felt as though I were standing in the ship alongside Sean at times. The foreshadowing was also creative and subtle, I did suspect that amazing twist at the end and can't wait to see where the author takes us next.
September 12, 2023
This was another one of my series-sampling audio listens, to see if I might want to pursue it in print someday. The verdict: Yes, probably, although I’m undecided on whether I’ll stick to audio or do it in print.
Audio Narration
The narrator is Rory Alexander. I liked his narration. He was easy to listen to, with a pleasant English accent and good distinction between characters, not that there were many characters he had to narrate in the first place. There are several characters, but only three that get much page time.
Story
The story focuses on Sean, one of two survivors from his home of Kystrom, who apparently has a tendency to get himself in trouble. He ends up in prison, and is coerced into going with a team of other convicts to an enormous derelict ship about to be destroyed by a supernova. His objective is to retrieve data believed to be on it that holds clues to immortality. Naturally this data is in high demand, so there’s some competition and things quickly go awry. I didn’t find this creepy, but there’s a lot of creeping around, sometimes in the dark, trying to avoid getting attacked by enemies, so it might seem creepy for some.
This is a simple, straight-forward story. There are some mysteries about what happened on the ship, and about the motives of the different factions, but I thought things were telegraphed pretty obviously and I predicted most key plot twists well before they happened. I can’t necessarily think of anything else I’ve read that was very similar to this, and yet it felt familiar anyway. It had a lot of familiar tropes, I guess. They were things I enjoyed though, and I think my tolerance for simpler stories is higher in the audiobook format.
I liked the characters and would like to spend more time with them. I’m a sucker for the trope where , so I think that contributed to my enjoyment.
The main plot of this book is resolved by the end, but there are several open threads left hanging and a “huh?” moment near the end that was clearly intended to try to hook people into reading the next book. I’ll wait until the series is complete before revisiting it.
Audio Narration
The narrator is Rory Alexander. I liked his narration. He was easy to listen to, with a pleasant English accent and good distinction between characters, not that there were many characters he had to narrate in the first place. There are several characters, but only three that get much page time.
Story
The story focuses on Sean, one of two survivors from his home of Kystrom, who apparently has a tendency to get himself in trouble. He ends up in prison, and is coerced into going with a team of other convicts to an enormous derelict ship about to be destroyed by a supernova. His objective is to retrieve data believed to be on it that holds clues to immortality. Naturally this data is in high demand, so there’s some competition and things quickly go awry. I didn’t find this creepy, but there’s a lot of creeping around, sometimes in the dark, trying to avoid getting attacked by enemies, so it might seem creepy for some.
This is a simple, straight-forward story. There are some mysteries about what happened on the ship, and about the motives of the different factions, but I thought things were telegraphed pretty obviously and I predicted most key plot twists well before they happened. I can’t necessarily think of anything else I’ve read that was very similar to this, and yet it felt familiar anyway. It had a lot of familiar tropes, I guess. They were things I enjoyed though, and I think my tolerance for simpler stories is higher in the audiobook format.
I liked the characters and would like to spend more time with them. I’m a sucker for the trope where , so I think that contributed to my enjoyment.
The main plot of this book is resolved by the end, but there are several open threads left hanging and a “huh?” moment near the end that was clearly intended to try to hook people into reading the next book. I’ll wait until the series is complete before revisiting it.
May 27, 2022
The Immortality Thief is an outer space sci-fi title that borders on horror. I was enthralled by the story and found myself reading it every time I had even a few minutes to spare. Back in the late 1970's, when I was a teenager, my father and I would love reading this kind of sci-fi and discussing both the science and ethics of the books.. I would love to have him back so he could read this and we could discuss it together.
This story would also make a great video series, especially if the ship's horrors are brought to life.
This story would also make a great video series, especially if the ship's horrors are brought to life.
October 18, 2022
I love a good space opera. I gobbled up The Expanse series and still mourn the cancellation of the TV show Firefly. I took a chance when I requested an advance copy of this debut novel by Taran Hunt and I'm happy I did. I'm even happier to report that it appears to be the first in a series.
Sean and his partner in crime, Benny, are offered a chance to clear their record if they will travel to a distant, abandoned ship that is about to be destroyed by a supernova. It is believed that the ship contains the mysterious Philosopher Stone that purportedly is the secret to eternal life. It turns out to be an offer they cannot refuse: to do so will result in their deaths by an explosive implanted in both of them by a crooked Senator of the Republic government who wants the Stone for personal gain.
Upon arriving at the long-dead ship, Sean and Benny discover they are not the only ones in search of the Stone. They are met by the lone survivor of a Republican expedition and shortly thereafter by a group of Ministers, a long-lived alien race that currently rules humanity. All three parties have their own reasons for wanting the Stone but they must battle monsters who have survived on the derelict ship for a millennium and against the ticking clock of a star that is soon to go supernova.
This is a fast paced and well written novel with a compelling plot. The characters are interesting and even the evil Ministers prove to have a less sinister side. It's easy to root for the altruistic Sean and the strong-willed Republican Lieutenant Tamara Gupta as they uncover the secrets of the ship in their search for the elusive Philosopher Stone and the data it contains. I'm looking forward to the next installment in this new series.
Thank you NetGalley and Rebellion Publishing for an advance copy of this book. The publication date is October 11, 2022.
Sean and his partner in crime, Benny, are offered a chance to clear their record if they will travel to a distant, abandoned ship that is about to be destroyed by a supernova. It is believed that the ship contains the mysterious Philosopher Stone that purportedly is the secret to eternal life. It turns out to be an offer they cannot refuse: to do so will result in their deaths by an explosive implanted in both of them by a crooked Senator of the Republic government who wants the Stone for personal gain.
Upon arriving at the long-dead ship, Sean and Benny discover they are not the only ones in search of the Stone. They are met by the lone survivor of a Republican expedition and shortly thereafter by a group of Ministers, a long-lived alien race that currently rules humanity. All three parties have their own reasons for wanting the Stone but they must battle monsters who have survived on the derelict ship for a millennium and against the ticking clock of a star that is soon to go supernova.
This is a fast paced and well written novel with a compelling plot. The characters are interesting and even the evil Ministers prove to have a less sinister side. It's easy to root for the altruistic Sean and the strong-willed Republican Lieutenant Tamara Gupta as they uncover the secrets of the ship in their search for the elusive Philosopher Stone and the data it contains. I'm looking forward to the next installment in this new series.
Thank you NetGalley and Rebellion Publishing for an advance copy of this book. The publication date is October 11, 2022.
June 29, 2025
30 Books in 30 Days, Vol. 5
Book 23/30
This wasn't as good as I wanted it to be, but it was a pretty fun time. I'm not sure yet whether I'll read the sequel. This had really interesting concepts, but never moved from being a story that was just a fun way to spend my time to one that I felt compelled to finish. Not really sure why!
[3.5 stars, rounded up]
Book 23/30
This wasn't as good as I wanted it to be, but it was a pretty fun time. I'm not sure yet whether I'll read the sequel. This had really interesting concepts, but never moved from being a story that was just a fun way to spend my time to one that I felt compelled to finish. Not really sure why!
[3.5 stars, rounded up]
October 16, 2022
The Immortality Thief is Taran Hunt’s publishing debut and my goodness, it is one hell of a debut.
The story is not a particularly complicated one. Linguist Sean Wren is ever so slightly persuaded to go looking for something called the philosopher’s stone, which is a key component in the Republic’s fight against the inhuman Ministers, a long lived might be human, might not, race that currently rule humanity. Initially, they try to persuade him to undertake the task by offering to wipe his and his friend, Benny’s criminal record and also paying him lots of cash. Unfortunately, Sean has this little impish side that has to push, and they subsequently settle for putting a bomb in his and Benny’s head. They then send them to a long-lost space station type thingy that is hovering ever so closely next to an exploding supernova. Along with Benny and a member of the group that have ‘hired him’ they make their way there.
From here, as you can imagine, everything slightly goes pear shaped. In a race against time, because the planet is going to go full supernova in a matter of days,they realise that far from being abandoned for the last thousand years like they were told, the place has people, well a person, on it! And just to make the matters a little bit worse, a contingency of Ministers turn up to find exactly the same thing that Sean and the gang want. Oh! And there happens to be a ship full of monsters that either want to eat you or kill you, or maybe both!
Lots of things happen of things happen, but eventually Sean finds himself with the most unlikeliest of companions and the knowledge of where the Philosopher’s Stone is located on the small planet sized space station.
However, to get there, they have to navigate a space station full of mutants and monsters all intent on killing them. Not only that they will discover secrets along the way, not just about the nature of the station that they are on, but about themselves.
The Immortality Thief is one of those books that as soon as the it starts, it immediately decides that the fastest point from A to B is to run like hell. The plot moves along at a blistering pace revealing secrets like hidden doors so that you can catch your breath for a little minute.
The characters develop really well, and you find that it is not long before your allegiances change and you don’t know who your are rooting for.
The Immortality Thief is an enjoyable thrill ride of a book and if you like your sci – fi fast and explosive then get your mitts round this.
The story is not a particularly complicated one. Linguist Sean Wren is ever so slightly persuaded to go looking for something called the philosopher’s stone, which is a key component in the Republic’s fight against the inhuman Ministers, a long lived might be human, might not, race that currently rule humanity. Initially, they try to persuade him to undertake the task by offering to wipe his and his friend, Benny’s criminal record and also paying him lots of cash. Unfortunately, Sean has this little impish side that has to push, and they subsequently settle for putting a bomb in his and Benny’s head. They then send them to a long-lost space station type thingy that is hovering ever so closely next to an exploding supernova. Along with Benny and a member of the group that have ‘hired him’ they make their way there.
From here, as you can imagine, everything slightly goes pear shaped. In a race against time, because the planet is going to go full supernova in a matter of days,they realise that far from being abandoned for the last thousand years like they were told, the place has people, well a person, on it! And just to make the matters a little bit worse, a contingency of Ministers turn up to find exactly the same thing that Sean and the gang want. Oh! And there happens to be a ship full of monsters that either want to eat you or kill you, or maybe both!
Lots of things happen of things happen, but eventually Sean finds himself with the most unlikeliest of companions and the knowledge of where the Philosopher’s Stone is located on the small planet sized space station.
However, to get there, they have to navigate a space station full of mutants and monsters all intent on killing them. Not only that they will discover secrets along the way, not just about the nature of the station that they are on, but about themselves.
The Immortality Thief is one of those books that as soon as the it starts, it immediately decides that the fastest point from A to B is to run like hell. The plot moves along at a blistering pace revealing secrets like hidden doors so that you can catch your breath for a little minute.
The characters develop really well, and you find that it is not long before your allegiances change and you don’t know who your are rooting for.
The Immortality Thief is an enjoyable thrill ride of a book and if you like your sci – fi fast and explosive then get your mitts round this.
October 1, 2023
Written in the compulsive reading style of a thriller, it was easy to finish, just hard to enjoy.
CONTENT WARNING:
Things that were fun:
-Very visual. Others have said this felt like an old dungeon crawl video game or an RPG. It felt very tactile and atmospheric.
-Fast-paced. You didn't have to think about consistency, character interaction, or marvel at any prose. It was propulsive, which is nice in such a chonky book.
Things that detracted for me:
-Dialgoue. Sean is not funny. Sean thinks Sean is very funy. Everyone is always yelling at Sean. And when they yell at Sean, they make sure to use his name every time. His name is Sean, and the other characters love reminding you.
-Not how this works. The language translation Sean does really grated on me. And I have a personal and professional hang up around Tuskeegee style medical trials.
-Only the space ship was truly built. The characters and the world made no sense, really. To say you are stateless when only a city is wiped off the map is...well, it's still traumatic, but that's not how statelessness works either. The "twist" at the end fell flat because the entire time we were led to believe that everyone only tolerated each other.
A quick popcorn read that was just stale and flavorless for me.
CONTENT WARNING:
Things that were fun:
-Very visual. Others have said this felt like an old dungeon crawl video game or an RPG. It felt very tactile and atmospheric.
-Fast-paced. You didn't have to think about consistency, character interaction, or marvel at any prose. It was propulsive, which is nice in such a chonky book.
Things that detracted for me:
-Dialgoue. Sean is not funny. Sean thinks Sean is very funy. Everyone is always yelling at Sean. And when they yell at Sean, they make sure to use his name every time. His name is Sean, and the other characters love reminding you.
-Not how this works. The language translation Sean does really grated on me. And I have a personal and professional hang up around Tuskeegee style medical trials.
-Only the space ship was truly built. The characters and the world made no sense, really. To say you are stateless when only a city is wiped off the map is...well, it's still traumatic, but that's not how statelessness works either. The "twist" at the end fell flat because the entire time we were led to believe that everyone only tolerated each other.
A quick popcorn read that was just stale and flavorless for me.
September 12, 2025
3.5 Stars (when is Goodreads going to admit that we use that rating?)
IN A NUTSHELL
The Immortality Thief' was an impressive debut novel that had me signing up for the rest of this space opera series.
What I liked most about 'The Immortality Thief' was that it managed to remain a tightly focused personal story woven into a fully imagined universe. Focusing on the history and motivation of the main character, a young man whose whole city was obliterated while he was still a child, gave a richer context to this The action-packed, quest-oriented thriller.
I loved the strong visuals in the story. The vast decaying space station on which most of the action takes place, loomed in my imaignation like a ruined gothic cathedral. The monstrosities that infested the space station were scary and, in the case of the predatory children, disturbing.
The scope of the imagined universe and the depth of imagination behind it was impressive. It provided a context in which our hero finds himself caught between two natural enemies, both of whom contributed to the destruction of his people.
There were interesting ideas about language, trust and the relationship between the two. I particularly liked that one of the languages was expressed entirely through the use of coloured lights. Trust appeared in many forms: enforced trust that lasts only as long as survival depends on collaboration; trust born out of a common heritage or history that survives longer than a rational assessment of the data would suggest; and trust that comes from choices taken, risks shared and sacrifices made.
The pages were packed with action, spiced by the main character's reflections on his memories. Memory also became a theme in the book. The power and the inaccuracy of what we remember and how the memory of a trauma shapes not just our past but how we parse the present.
I felt the pacing was a little off in the middle section of the book, when the three main characters were fighting their way across the huge, decaying spaceship. I understood that this was an important experience for challenging and shaping the relationship between the three of them, but there were so many violent encounters, and they were so similar that I began to feel like I was trapped in a video game where I couldn't level up.
The final quarter of the book more than made up for any frustration. It had me turning the pages eagerly. The ending was unexpected but pleasing. I've already downloaded 'The Unkillable Princess' (2025), the second book in the series
IN A NUTSHELL
The Immortality Thief' was an impressive debut novel that had me signing up for the rest of this space opera series.
What I liked most about 'The Immortality Thief' was that it managed to remain a tightly focused personal story woven into a fully imagined universe. Focusing on the history and motivation of the main character, a young man whose whole city was obliterated while he was still a child, gave a richer context to this The action-packed, quest-oriented thriller.
I loved the strong visuals in the story. The vast decaying space station on which most of the action takes place, loomed in my imaignation like a ruined gothic cathedral. The monstrosities that infested the space station were scary and, in the case of the predatory children, disturbing.
The scope of the imagined universe and the depth of imagination behind it was impressive. It provided a context in which our hero finds himself caught between two natural enemies, both of whom contributed to the destruction of his people.
There were interesting ideas about language, trust and the relationship between the two. I particularly liked that one of the languages was expressed entirely through the use of coloured lights. Trust appeared in many forms: enforced trust that lasts only as long as survival depends on collaboration; trust born out of a common heritage or history that survives longer than a rational assessment of the data would suggest; and trust that comes from choices taken, risks shared and sacrifices made.
The pages were packed with action, spiced by the main character's reflections on his memories. Memory also became a theme in the book. The power and the inaccuracy of what we remember and how the memory of a trauma shapes not just our past but how we parse the present.
I felt the pacing was a little off in the middle section of the book, when the three main characters were fighting their way across the huge, decaying spaceship. I understood that this was an important experience for challenging and shaping the relationship between the three of them, but there were so many violent encounters, and they were so similar that I began to feel like I was trapped in a video game where I couldn't level up.
The final quarter of the book more than made up for any frustration. It had me turning the pages eagerly. The ending was unexpected but pleasing. I've already downloaded 'The Unkillable Princess' (2025), the second book in the series
October 1, 2023
Bloody hell … the last line 😳🤯
March 9, 2025
On reread in 2025 this is still a solid 5 star read, love love love.
————————————-
I received an eARC of The Immortality Thief by Taran Hunt through Netgalley, thanks Solaris! This book comes out today (October 11), and I highly recommend picking it up! It’s the first book in a scifi series called The Kystrom Chronicles, and it does what all series books should do in my opinion: give you a few intriguing loose threads that make you curious about the next book, but also a satisfying story by itself with closure to the main bits of the plot.
Main character Sean is sent to an abandoned spaceship to retrieve some mysterious data that might hold the secret to immortality, but he and the rest of the crew are definitely not prepared for what awaits them aboard the ship. We follow Sean as he encounters some very creepy and deadly creatures, unexpected enemies and unlikely allies, on a race against the clock to get what he came for, but mostly… to survive.
The spaceship setting is fun and creepy, and the story has some definite horror elements, which I liked a lot. This book also has one of my favorite tropes: a group of strangers who have to work together to reach a common goal and get to know each other in the process. (There’s probably a shorter name for this trope…) This applies to the trio of characters we see the most of, and I just adore them, and the way their interactions change throughout the book.
Also, the fact that Sean is a bit of linguist and that his language skills save the day several times, was an element that I really enjoyed as a former linguistics student.
I flew through this and am sad that I have reached the end already. 5 stars from me, looking forward to book 2!
————————————-
I received an eARC of The Immortality Thief by Taran Hunt through Netgalley, thanks Solaris! This book comes out today (October 11), and I highly recommend picking it up! It’s the first book in a scifi series called The Kystrom Chronicles, and it does what all series books should do in my opinion: give you a few intriguing loose threads that make you curious about the next book, but also a satisfying story by itself with closure to the main bits of the plot.
Main character Sean is sent to an abandoned spaceship to retrieve some mysterious data that might hold the secret to immortality, but he and the rest of the crew are definitely not prepared for what awaits them aboard the ship. We follow Sean as he encounters some very creepy and deadly creatures, unexpected enemies and unlikely allies, on a race against the clock to get what he came for, but mostly… to survive.
The spaceship setting is fun and creepy, and the story has some definite horror elements, which I liked a lot. This book also has one of my favorite tropes: a group of strangers who have to work together to reach a common goal and get to know each other in the process. (There’s probably a shorter name for this trope…) This applies to the trio of characters we see the most of, and I just adore them, and the way their interactions change throughout the book.
Also, the fact that Sean is a bit of linguist and that his language skills save the day several times, was an element that I really enjoyed as a former linguistics student.
I flew through this and am sad that I have reached the end already. 5 stars from me, looking forward to book 2!
March 2, 2024
What did I like about this?
The main thing that really helped was a couple of the characters felt interesting and distinct if not necessarily super deep. I enjoyed getting to experience the lieutenant whose uniform is in rags and has over the last two years of living alone descended into various neuroticisms. I enjoyed getting to know two characters who are Ministers. The rest of the cast is forgettable. The MC is distinct and decent enough. Cheeky but not really funny.
There are many aspects of the work building that are really interesting and well thought out. The Ministers have different bodies that have adapted to space living and subsequent differences in their culture and mannerisms. They have a unique language type that uses a system of shining light with different patterns and colors.
I love all the weird mutated species in this book and how horrifying some of them are.
And yet despite those cool things, this was not a fun read. I finished it because I wanted to see the author expound on the different world building ideas but actually reading this was unfortunately painful. And the sad thing is, I feel 90% of the problems were totally preventable. I don’t lay the blame at the author’s feet, I lay it at the publisher’s. This is the authors debut novel and I know how hard it is to produce something like this. First drafts are always rough. This just didn’t get any beta readers or editing!
Before I rant, here is the premise. The main character is a linguist nerd (which is a field I’ve taken several classes in) and ostensibly the book is going to explore the theme and implications of immortality. The premise is that a group of criminals are given a job to extract the data with the secret of immortality from a spaceship that’s been abandoned for thousands of years and is next to a dying star about to go supernova.
This data is called the Philosopher’s Stone (the key to immortality) and it’s a big deal to find it, imagine what this discovery could mean for humanity…but from early on there are these people called Ministers who are stated to be immortal. So that begs the question, who are these Ministers? Are they not human? Are they aliens or robots? It’s not explained what they are but they are certainly quite humanoid. The story progresses along with several of the main characters being Ministers and playing large in the plot, but the narrator refuses to explain what they are to us. And that’s a big problem because their existence undermines the whole premise. Apparently these ministers already have the key to immortality so then why is it a big deal for humanity to find the philosophers stone? Why would the ministers have that secret but the humans who are very similar don’t? Then, a third of the way through the book we have a “big revelation” that it turns out that the Philosopher’s Stone project on this ship was what birthed the ministers…you can tell that this is supposed to be a “big reveal” but it just doesn’t work.
Another big thing sloppily done is that the style seems like it’s supposed to be scary but never is. The horror isn’t horrifying even though there are pretty gnarly creatures revealed. I never once got a rising sense of dread even though bad things were coming in the dark. I don’t think the author has figured out yet how to write horror, how to build tension.
And then there are all sorts of other things done sloppily. The bad guys are pushovers, the setup is too tropey, obvious questions aren’t answered, there are flashbacks that feel completely random and unnecessary, not at all connected to the plot…when you’re in an active combat scene, the good guys have way too much time to talk and do all kinds of complicated things.
I didn’t buy two of the twists and there were two big coincidences late in the book. Spoilers ahead but, one of the main characters reveals once we are most of the way through the book that he just so happened to be the general in charge of assaulting the MC’s home planet. Really, the one person in the whole universe just happened to end up here?
There’s a scene where someone shoots a hole in the hull of the spaceship and a character is “sucked out to space” and half of their body burned by a star’s radiation…but then suddenly they are back in the spaceship and it’s said that there was only ever a small hole shot in the hull that a different character patched quickly. So what gives? Half of your body was fried by radiation from a tiny hole? Also the other character was unscathed?
Also a big part of the premise is that a star is about to go nova so they are racing against the clock to get the data out in time. So many books get really unscientific with this topic. Stars going nova is a process that takes millions of years to lead up to. You’re not going to be able to time when it happens down to the year let alone the minute and second like they do in this book! And then the idea that you can see it go nova but then you have time to outrun the shockwave…I highly doubt that that’s at all accurate.
Ok. I could go on and on about the problems. I actually originally compiled a huge list. But I don’t want to beat a horse to death. Here’s the thing. I’m a writer, and I’ve hosted a writers group and worked with many writers for 6-7 years now. This book would have been an amazing first draft. Or even third draft especially considering this is a debut novel! And writing a book like this is like really really complicated. There are a lot of things the author is doing well! It’s just that you have to put your book through the rounds of beta readers and multiple layers of editing starting with developmental edits and going from there. And it appears that this book just skipped all that. I think the author didn’t get the support they needed. Anyways. I don’t post reviews to revel in bashing things. I really don’t. I don’t think there’s anything funny about mocking or taking a book down to size the way many reviews do. It’s not been my intention to be mean in any way with this review and I hope that my intent shows. I think the author has a lot of great ideas and I would be open to reading the next book of theirs—provided it’s been edited, which is usually pretty apparent in the first thirty minutes—because I would enjoy getting to know their universe more. That’s all for now.
The main thing that really helped was a couple of the characters felt interesting and distinct if not necessarily super deep. I enjoyed getting to experience the lieutenant whose uniform is in rags and has over the last two years of living alone descended into various neuroticisms. I enjoyed getting to know two characters who are Ministers. The rest of the cast is forgettable. The MC is distinct and decent enough. Cheeky but not really funny.
There are many aspects of the work building that are really interesting and well thought out. The Ministers have different bodies that have adapted to space living and subsequent differences in their culture and mannerisms. They have a unique language type that uses a system of shining light with different patterns and colors.
I love all the weird mutated species in this book and how horrifying some of them are.
And yet despite those cool things, this was not a fun read. I finished it because I wanted to see the author expound on the different world building ideas but actually reading this was unfortunately painful. And the sad thing is, I feel 90% of the problems were totally preventable. I don’t lay the blame at the author’s feet, I lay it at the publisher’s. This is the authors debut novel and I know how hard it is to produce something like this. First drafts are always rough. This just didn’t get any beta readers or editing!
Before I rant, here is the premise. The main character is a linguist nerd (which is a field I’ve taken several classes in) and ostensibly the book is going to explore the theme and implications of immortality. The premise is that a group of criminals are given a job to extract the data with the secret of immortality from a spaceship that’s been abandoned for thousands of years and is next to a dying star about to go supernova.
This data is called the Philosopher’s Stone (the key to immortality) and it’s a big deal to find it, imagine what this discovery could mean for humanity…but from early on there are these people called Ministers who are stated to be immortal. So that begs the question, who are these Ministers? Are they not human? Are they aliens or robots? It’s not explained what they are but they are certainly quite humanoid. The story progresses along with several of the main characters being Ministers and playing large in the plot, but the narrator refuses to explain what they are to us. And that’s a big problem because their existence undermines the whole premise. Apparently these ministers already have the key to immortality so then why is it a big deal for humanity to find the philosophers stone? Why would the ministers have that secret but the humans who are very similar don’t? Then, a third of the way through the book we have a “big revelation” that it turns out that the Philosopher’s Stone project on this ship was what birthed the ministers…you can tell that this is supposed to be a “big reveal” but it just doesn’t work.
Another big thing sloppily done is that the style seems like it’s supposed to be scary but never is. The horror isn’t horrifying even though there are pretty gnarly creatures revealed. I never once got a rising sense of dread even though bad things were coming in the dark. I don’t think the author has figured out yet how to write horror, how to build tension.
And then there are all sorts of other things done sloppily. The bad guys are pushovers, the setup is too tropey, obvious questions aren’t answered, there are flashbacks that feel completely random and unnecessary, not at all connected to the plot…when you’re in an active combat scene, the good guys have way too much time to talk and do all kinds of complicated things.
I didn’t buy two of the twists and there were two big coincidences late in the book. Spoilers ahead but, one of the main characters reveals once we are most of the way through the book that he just so happened to be the general in charge of assaulting the MC’s home planet. Really, the one person in the whole universe just happened to end up here?
There’s a scene where someone shoots a hole in the hull of the spaceship and a character is “sucked out to space” and half of their body burned by a star’s radiation…but then suddenly they are back in the spaceship and it’s said that there was only ever a small hole shot in the hull that a different character patched quickly. So what gives? Half of your body was fried by radiation from a tiny hole? Also the other character was unscathed?
Also a big part of the premise is that a star is about to go nova so they are racing against the clock to get the data out in time. So many books get really unscientific with this topic. Stars going nova is a process that takes millions of years to lead up to. You’re not going to be able to time when it happens down to the year let alone the minute and second like they do in this book! And then the idea that you can see it go nova but then you have time to outrun the shockwave…I highly doubt that that’s at all accurate.
Ok. I could go on and on about the problems. I actually originally compiled a huge list. But I don’t want to beat a horse to death. Here’s the thing. I’m a writer, and I’ve hosted a writers group and worked with many writers for 6-7 years now. This book would have been an amazing first draft. Or even third draft especially considering this is a debut novel! And writing a book like this is like really really complicated. There are a lot of things the author is doing well! It’s just that you have to put your book through the rounds of beta readers and multiple layers of editing starting with developmental edits and going from there. And it appears that this book just skipped all that. I think the author didn’t get the support they needed. Anyways. I don’t post reviews to revel in bashing things. I really don’t. I don’t think there’s anything funny about mocking or taking a book down to size the way many reviews do. It’s not been my intention to be mean in any way with this review and I hope that my intent shows. I think the author has a lot of great ideas and I would be open to reading the next book of theirs—provided it’s been edited, which is usually pretty apparent in the first thirty minutes—because I would enjoy getting to know their universe more. That’s all for now.
April 9, 2023
Big sad that this wasn't for me. I didn't love the writing style or the characters. I felt that everything was just a bit surface level and flat. I wish it had been set on our universe because there just wasn't enough world building for my fantasy brain.
See the full review here: https://youtu.be/6yQtcnzoEts
See the full review here: https://youtu.be/6yQtcnzoEts
October 8, 2023
As close to Groundhog Day as anything else I’ve read, except this isn’t a day repeating, just the story.
Loved the start of this but it soon becomes a struggle, certainly not a page turner. Loved the refreshingly normal names; I stopped reading SF a while back because of the ridiculous names given to characters but this doesn’t fall into that trap.
Loved the start of this but it soon becomes a struggle, certainly not a page turner. Loved the refreshingly normal names; I stopped reading SF a while back because of the ridiculous names given to characters but this doesn’t fall into that trap.
February 25, 2025
5 ⭐
I wanted a sci-fi/horror, and this was exactly what I was looking for 🙌🏼 even came with some bonus comedic relief. It did not disappoint!
Right from the get-go I was invested in this. It captured me and held my attention throughout the whole book! It was fast paced, filled with action and just plain fun! I loved it. A lot of the time I did not want to put it down.
There are horror elements (⚫👄⚫, iykyk) that are clever and spooky. I mean, who doesn't love a good space monster? BRB while I go re-watch all the Alien movies.
This is the first book in a while were I can confidently say that I loved every single character! We have three main ones in this book and I loved them all equally. Even though there is only one POV (Sean Wren), you still get a really good feel and understanding of the other characters through him. I am REALLY hoping that there are other POVs in the second book because I need to know what is going on in Indigo's little head! please.
"I don't like my worms."
I wanted a sci-fi/horror, and this was exactly what I was looking for 🙌🏼 even came with some bonus comedic relief. It did not disappoint!
Right from the get-go I was invested in this. It captured me and held my attention throughout the whole book! It was fast paced, filled with action and just plain fun! I loved it. A lot of the time I did not want to put it down.
There are horror elements (⚫👄⚫, iykyk) that are clever and spooky. I mean, who doesn't love a good space monster? BRB while I go re-watch all the Alien movies.
This is the first book in a while were I can confidently say that I loved every single character! We have three main ones in this book and I loved them all equally. Even though there is only one POV (Sean Wren), you still get a really good feel and understanding of the other characters through him. I am REALLY hoping that there are other POVs in the second book because I need to know what is going on in Indigo's little head! please.
"I don't like my worms."
February 10, 2025
[This review can also be found on my BLOG]
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, blood, injury detail, body horror, self harm, war, death, death of parents, genocide
--
A brilliant debut, The Immortality Thief is a high stakes sci-fi adventure with a dash of horror that will keep you entertained all the way through. Don’t let the 600+page count daunt you because the chapters are short and the story is super compelling, you’ll be whizzing through and wishing for more as soon as you get to the end.
To sum it up the book is basically a locked room treasure hunt, where the room in question is an abandoned spaceship that is docked near a star on the verge of supernova. Long lost, the ship is known to hold data including the secrets of immortality - the Philosopher’s Stone experiments - and there are 3 groups with their eyes on the prize.
One is a handful of convicts who have been coerced into salvaging the data in order to avoid a life sentence in prison – our protagonist Sean Wren, smuggler and expert linguist, is part of this group. There is also The Republic, the last free human government, and The Ministers, an immortal species of alien trying to subjugate all of humanity – two groups that have been at war for centuries. But not only is time against them all, so are all the traps, monsters and secrets that have been hiding in the dark corners of the spaceship for the last thousand years.
Now going into this book I expected full on action but I was pleasantly surprised with how equally humorous and thought-provoking the overall storyline was, but there is of course a fair bit of tragedy, gore and terror involved too.
From the creepy monsters and murderous tech to venturing into the unknown, Hunt’s writing perfectly captured the eerie atmosphere and heart racing tension of always having to watch your back. Though the plot predominantly unfolds in the one vast setting, the worldbuilding is gradually fleshed out through character flashbacks and the secrets that are uncovered as the ship is explored, to give us an idea of the wider universe and its history. What makes this story in particular so original and refreshing though is the focus and commentary on translation, communication and languages.
Sean has a mouth that gets him into trouble just as much as it gets him out of it which made his perspective both endearing and annoying to follow. (If you like witty chapter titles then you’re in for a treat.) The guy has a good heart but lacks the usual qualities expected of a leading hero and it is his familiarity with the ancient language of Ameng that makes him a key player in the hunt. Thus he finds himself negotiating for his skills with an array of interesting characters.
Among those Sean finds himself having to work with, the most notable are of course Lantern Eyes and Indigo. The reluctant relationship and banter that sparks between this trio was so fun and was my favourite part of the book.
I’m not going to go in to much detail here because honestly it is so worth enjoying it first hand, but if you love stories full of twists and high stakes, a good monster chase, morally grey characters and reluctant alliances bordering on found family then you don’t want to miss this one!
I’m eager to get my hands on the next book in the series to discover more of this world Hunt has created and to see what happens next!
Final Rating – 4.5/5 Stars
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, blood, injury detail, body horror, self harm, war, death, death of parents, genocide
--
A brilliant debut, The Immortality Thief is a high stakes sci-fi adventure with a dash of horror that will keep you entertained all the way through. Don’t let the 600+page count daunt you because the chapters are short and the story is super compelling, you’ll be whizzing through and wishing for more as soon as you get to the end.
To sum it up the book is basically a locked room treasure hunt, where the room in question is an abandoned spaceship that is docked near a star on the verge of supernova. Long lost, the ship is known to hold data including the secrets of immortality - the Philosopher’s Stone experiments - and there are 3 groups with their eyes on the prize.
One is a handful of convicts who have been coerced into salvaging the data in order to avoid a life sentence in prison – our protagonist Sean Wren, smuggler and expert linguist, is part of this group. There is also The Republic, the last free human government, and The Ministers, an immortal species of alien trying to subjugate all of humanity – two groups that have been at war for centuries. But not only is time against them all, so are all the traps, monsters and secrets that have been hiding in the dark corners of the spaceship for the last thousand years.
"It probably won't bite," I reassured her.
"In my experience, spaceships don't. Not usually."
Now going into this book I expected full on action but I was pleasantly surprised with how equally humorous and thought-provoking the overall storyline was, but there is of course a fair bit of tragedy, gore and terror involved too.
From the creepy monsters and murderous tech to venturing into the unknown, Hunt’s writing perfectly captured the eerie atmosphere and heart racing tension of always having to watch your back. Though the plot predominantly unfolds in the one vast setting, the worldbuilding is gradually fleshed out through character flashbacks and the secrets that are uncovered as the ship is explored, to give us an idea of the wider universe and its history. What makes this story in particular so original and refreshing though is the focus and commentary on translation, communication and languages.
"There's no point resenting what's already happened; it's done. The only thing to do is make my situation better from here."
Sean has a mouth that gets him into trouble just as much as it gets him out of it which made his perspective both endearing and annoying to follow. (If you like witty chapter titles then you’re in for a treat.) The guy has a good heart but lacks the usual qualities expected of a leading hero and it is his familiarity with the ancient language of Ameng that makes him a key player in the hunt. Thus he finds himself negotiating for his skills with an array of interesting characters.
Among those Sean finds himself having to work with, the most notable are of course Lantern Eyes and Indigo. The reluctant relationship and banter that sparks between this trio was so fun and was my favourite part of the book.
I’m not going to go in to much detail here because honestly it is so worth enjoying it first hand, but if you love stories full of twists and high stakes, a good monster chase, morally grey characters and reluctant alliances bordering on found family then you don’t want to miss this one!
I’m eager to get my hands on the next book in the series to discover more of this world Hunt has created and to see what happens next!
Final Rating – 4.5/5 Stars
December 10, 2022
This was undoubtedly one of my favorite reads of this year. I was super excited going into it, it seemed exactly like something I would love, and it did not disappoint.
Tha Immortality Thief is a fun, fast-paced story following Sean and his friends on a potentially deadly quest they couldn't refuse. Sean is a criminal if you will, and he was pretty much forced into this not-at-all-dangerous task of going to an abandoned ship next to a star that's about to go nova. His group is searching for some extremely important data, and what could go wrong? If you guessed everything, you're right! Sean is suddenly alone but the ship is not abandoned, and enemies are turned into unlikely allies in the face of danger.
I have no idea where to start with this review, but I will say this is an interesting book from the get-go, and Sean is a great character to follow. He is potentially unreliable as a narrator, but at the same time very interesting, and you just feel compelled to keep on reading. Besides him, the plot itself is action-packed and you will want to keep on reading to see what happens next.
I am usually a sucker for character-driven books, and while this book has amazing characters, it is not lacking in plot at all. It is equally plot- and character-driven, and both aspects are really well done and strong here. It was a great book to binge-read, I was sucked into the world and didn't want to look away for a second. The entire 600 pages had me sucked in with my eyes glued to the page. It doesn't feel long at all, I didn't even notice how fast I flew through the book. I also love enemies to allies as a concept in books, and this novel does a fantastic job of making you understand everyone's motivations and really connect with the characters.
The characters were amazing, and so interesting to read about. As I mentioned we follow Sean, and for most of the book his unlikely allies Tamara and Indigo. They are all on different sides, so to speak, but they are forced to work together to survive. We see how their relationship changes as they get to know one another, and it was truly one of the best aspects of the book. I loved Sean as the main character, I thought he was a great character to narrate the story. He is funny and he has a very strong moral compass that often causes him more trouble than good. He is often caught in the middle, wanting the best for everyone, even the opposing sides and I thought that was a very interesting and fresh take. I liked how much compassion and understanding he had, the way he thinks about everything was really different, for lack of a better word. He deals with a great deal of sadness and grief and expresses himself with kindness and understanding rather than bitterness, and that is what really bridges the differences between the three characters we follow.
All in all, I absolutely loved this book and I would highly recommend it. I cannot wait for the sequel, especially with that cliffhanger of an ending! In the meantime, while I wait for the sequel, I will be trying to make everyone read this one.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!
___________________
that sure was an ending!!!
rtc
Tha Immortality Thief is a fun, fast-paced story following Sean and his friends on a potentially deadly quest they couldn't refuse. Sean is a criminal if you will, and he was pretty much forced into this not-at-all-dangerous task of going to an abandoned ship next to a star that's about to go nova. His group is searching for some extremely important data, and what could go wrong? If you guessed everything, you're right! Sean is suddenly alone but the ship is not abandoned, and enemies are turned into unlikely allies in the face of danger.
I have no idea where to start with this review, but I will say this is an interesting book from the get-go, and Sean is a great character to follow. He is potentially unreliable as a narrator, but at the same time very interesting, and you just feel compelled to keep on reading. Besides him, the plot itself is action-packed and you will want to keep on reading to see what happens next.
I am usually a sucker for character-driven books, and while this book has amazing characters, it is not lacking in plot at all. It is equally plot- and character-driven, and both aspects are really well done and strong here. It was a great book to binge-read, I was sucked into the world and didn't want to look away for a second. The entire 600 pages had me sucked in with my eyes glued to the page. It doesn't feel long at all, I didn't even notice how fast I flew through the book. I also love enemies to allies as a concept in books, and this novel does a fantastic job of making you understand everyone's motivations and really connect with the characters.
The characters were amazing, and so interesting to read about. As I mentioned we follow Sean, and for most of the book his unlikely allies Tamara and Indigo. They are all on different sides, so to speak, but they are forced to work together to survive. We see how their relationship changes as they get to know one another, and it was truly one of the best aspects of the book. I loved Sean as the main character, I thought he was a great character to narrate the story. He is funny and he has a very strong moral compass that often causes him more trouble than good. He is often caught in the middle, wanting the best for everyone, even the opposing sides and I thought that was a very interesting and fresh take. I liked how much compassion and understanding he had, the way he thinks about everything was really different, for lack of a better word. He deals with a great deal of sadness and grief and expresses himself with kindness and understanding rather than bitterness, and that is what really bridges the differences between the three characters we follow.
All in all, I absolutely loved this book and I would highly recommend it. I cannot wait for the sequel, especially with that cliffhanger of an ending! In the meantime, while I wait for the sequel, I will be trying to make everyone read this one.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!
___________________
that sure was an ending!!!
rtc
June 19, 2025
3.5 Really loved the book and it could be 4 stars , but for me the main character looks very weak, while the secondary characters Indigo and lieteunant Gupta are very good in doing their mission. Overall a good reading , i will continue this series .
June 2, 2022
4,5/5
No le he dado cinco porque creo que a veces alarga demasiado ciertas escenas. Fabulosa primera novela de Taran Hunt, autora a la que no conocía para nada. Ciencia ficción especulativa con escenario de terror. Muy a lo alien (nave laboratorio, monstruos chunguis, sobrevivir) pero también tiene alcance galáctico con viajes a la velocidad de la luz, razas alienígenas y tecnología avanzada. Recomendadísimo. Echadle un ojo que veo que no se está hablando para nada de este libro en ningún sitio.
No le he dado cinco porque creo que a veces alarga demasiado ciertas escenas. Fabulosa primera novela de Taran Hunt, autora a la que no conocía para nada. Ciencia ficción especulativa con escenario de terror. Muy a lo alien (nave laboratorio, monstruos chunguis, sobrevivir) pero también tiene alcance galáctico con viajes a la velocidad de la luz, razas alienígenas y tecnología avanzada. Recomendadísimo. Echadle un ojo que veo que no se está hablando para nada de este libro en ningún sitio.
July 24, 2025
Wow, this was bad.
TL;DR: This book is a highly repetitive unfunny and unhorrific jumbled clusterf*ck and its politics and messages are straight up offensive.
In non-spoler section I will say, that even if I ignored all the political implications behind the plot and tried to read it simply for entertainment, the book failed at it miserably. I bought it mainly for the sci-fi space horror (as is clearly written in the hashtags). Well, all the horor atmosphere had been utterly destroyed by the clown of a main character. I think the author was going for a loveable idiot with a heart of gold and cool jokes. But he comes off brain numbingly dumb, dumb as a box of hair, unfunny and simply unlikeable. The book is full to the brim with cringeworthy oneliners.
Secondly, the plot is highly repetitive, and the text is badly edited. It all goes after the same scheme every time. The characters run around the space ship for a bit, then get a bit of calm (to do some more of jokes and exposition), get attacked by monsters and proceed to running around again. A whole lot of redundant sentences, explaining something that was mentoned on the previous page, or explaining the plot like the readers are five.
And here I will go into some spoilers.
TL;DR: This book is a highly repetitive unfunny and unhorrific jumbled clusterf*ck and its politics and messages are straight up offensive.
In non-spoler section I will say, that even if I ignored all the political implications behind the plot and tried to read it simply for entertainment, the book failed at it miserably. I bought it mainly for the sci-fi space horror (as is clearly written in the hashtags). Well, all the horor atmosphere had been utterly destroyed by the clown of a main character. I think the author was going for a loveable idiot with a heart of gold and cool jokes. But he comes off brain numbingly dumb, dumb as a box of hair, unfunny and simply unlikeable. The book is full to the brim with cringeworthy oneliners.
Secondly, the plot is highly repetitive, and the text is badly edited. It all goes after the same scheme every time. The characters run around the space ship for a bit, then get a bit of calm (to do some more of jokes and exposition), get attacked by monsters and proceed to running around again. A whole lot of redundant sentences, explaining something that was mentoned on the previous page, or explaining the plot like the readers are five.
And here I will go into some spoilers.
April 30, 2023
it’s been a while since i read a true, honest-to-goodness scifi novel, and this one did NOT disappoint.
if you like complex and well-structured sociopolitical worldbuilding, unlikely friendships forged through a desire for survival that becomes so much more, quirky and hilariously adorable narrators, wholesome aliens, languages of light, and some good ol’ scifi horror— HOO BOY do i have a book for ya.
i loved how sean, indigo and tamara’s relationships developed throughout the book. they went from reluctant allies bent on killing each other in the end to absolutely ride-or-dies and there were so many sweet bonding moments along the way (don’t get me started on indigo teaching sean to say his name in his language, that scene was SO SOFT). tamara’s terse caring, indigo’s stoic wholesomeness, and sean’s annoying ass antics made each of them so endearing in their own ways. watching them bond and grow to care about each other more than the objective they originally set out to complete was so much fun and my heart is SO FULL.
on top of all the wonderful character interactions and scifi shenanigans, the monsters in this book are creepy as shit. weird ass creepy children who sneak closer when you’re not looking and swarm their prey, coral-mutation bullshit, humanoids with makeshift claws made of rusty surgical instruments, there are some CHILLING and tense moments in this book!!! made only better by the Gang arguing and yelling at each other while they try to make a plan.
in short: when the hell is the next book coming and to whom must i sell my soul to make it get here faster?
PS. if sean and indigo don’t get together in the next book i WILL cry about it.
if you like complex and well-structured sociopolitical worldbuilding, unlikely friendships forged through a desire for survival that becomes so much more, quirky and hilariously adorable narrators, wholesome aliens, languages of light, and some good ol’ scifi horror— HOO BOY do i have a book for ya.
i loved how sean, indigo and tamara’s relationships developed throughout the book. they went from reluctant allies bent on killing each other in the end to absolutely ride-or-dies and there were so many sweet bonding moments along the way (don’t get me started on indigo teaching sean to say his name in his language, that scene was SO SOFT). tamara’s terse caring, indigo’s stoic wholesomeness, and sean’s annoying ass antics made each of them so endearing in their own ways. watching them bond and grow to care about each other more than the objective they originally set out to complete was so much fun and my heart is SO FULL.
on top of all the wonderful character interactions and scifi shenanigans, the monsters in this book are creepy as shit. weird ass creepy children who sneak closer when you’re not looking and swarm their prey, coral-mutation bullshit, humanoids with makeshift claws made of rusty surgical instruments, there are some CHILLING and tense moments in this book!!! made only better by the Gang arguing and yelling at each other while they try to make a plan.
in short: when the hell is the next book coming and to whom must i sell my soul to make it get here faster?
PS. if sean and indigo don’t get together in the next book i WILL cry about it.
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