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The Nexus #1
The Nexus
*Books two and three of The Nexus Series are now available! Visit jkraftmitchell.com.
In this city, criminals may just make the best crime fighters.
The United Space Programs built the floating city to be a better place for humanity, free of the crime and corruption that riddled the cities of Earth. They failed. Less than a century old, the satellite metropolis of Anterra now harbors a massive criminal underground.
Jill Branch is just one of countless teenagers who have been sucked into the illegal activities of the city. She’s an errander--a pawn for crime lords to hire for their grunt work. But her latest task turned out to be more than she bargained for. Now she’s on the run from an undercover government agent. But she’s about to find out he doesn’t want to arrest her; he wants to recruit her. And if Jill agrees, she may be part of one of the most unique crime fighting projects in history.
In this city, criminals may just make the best crime fighters.
The United Space Programs built the floating city to be a better place for humanity, free of the crime and corruption that riddled the cities of Earth. They failed. Less than a century old, the satellite metropolis of Anterra now harbors a massive criminal underground.
Jill Branch is just one of countless teenagers who have been sucked into the illegal activities of the city. She’s an errander--a pawn for crime lords to hire for their grunt work. But her latest task turned out to be more than she bargained for. Now she’s on the run from an undercover government agent. But she’s about to find out he doesn’t want to arrest her; he wants to recruit her. And if Jill agrees, she may be part of one of the most unique crime fighting projects in history.
262 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2012
27 people are currently reading
500 people want to read
About the author
J. Kraft Mitchell
9 books11 followersJ. Kraft Mitchell writes speculative fiction. He can’t help it. He doesn’t plan on stopping any time soon. His first book, The Nexus, reached number one on Amazon’s juvenile science fiction best seller list. The series, which includes The Dark Beneath and Earth’s Shadow, continues to gain fans around the world.
He and his wife trained for ministry at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL, and now work with students and young adults at their church in Colorado. You can often find them surrounded by droves of hyperactive teenagers. They do it on purpose. Call them crazy.
He is the proud father of two beautiful daughters. Yes, being in a house full of girls creates an overabundance of drama in his life, but then again drama is something an author should be familiar with.
He and his wife trained for ministry at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL, and now work with students and young adults at their church in Colorado. You can often find them surrounded by droves of hyperactive teenagers. They do it on purpose. Call them crazy.
He is the proud father of two beautiful daughters. Yes, being in a house full of girls creates an overabundance of drama in his life, but then again drama is something an author should be familiar with.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
June 12, 2017
In beginning of the book, I was completely lost. Not because I couldn't comprehend the book, but because it was boring. I think a lot of my classmates felt the same way and as the book goes on you get into battles and training.
One thing that bothered me about the book was that the author didn't explain what the main character looked like until the end of the book. I had Jill pictured in my head the whole time. I was imagining her as a tall red-head that knew how to fight because of her job. Then, at the end of the book the author says that Jill is Korean and she barley knew how to fight when it came to training.
I did enjoy the end of the book though! (Besides the author not explaining her looks). The end was very drama filled, but ended up alright in the end. I don't know if I would read the second book, but I will take it into consideration.
One thing that bothered me about the book was that the author didn't explain what the main character looked like until the end of the book. I had Jill pictured in my head the whole time. I was imagining her as a tall red-head that knew how to fight because of her job. Then, at the end of the book the author says that Jill is Korean and she barley knew how to fight when it came to training.
I did enjoy the end of the book though! (Besides the author not explaining her looks). The end was very drama filled, but ended up alright in the end. I don't know if I would read the second book, but I will take it into consideration.
June 14, 2017
This was just bad. (Great first sentence, right?).
One of my classes chose this science fiction text as their class read-aloud and I had [rather] high hopes. It sounded engaging with just the right amount of simplicity to accommodate for a larg(er) audience. It was however, a complete letdown.
The majority of the action started about 40 pages away from the end of the book and J. Kraft Mitchell was still introducing the "workings" of the characters at that point, including but not limited to some of their physical descriptions. So much of what was occurring in those last 40 pages should have already been covered in the initial introduction to the story.
The tale just kept building and building, headed to Nowhere Land.
And I don't know if it was just my students and me, but we kept discussing the characters repeated eating of food while the 'no action' was taking place. No action folks, but we will eat a mean lunch .. again!
Lastly (as if that wasn't enough), the twist at the end was rather predictable (insert eye roll here). It takes all that time to get there and you virtually know where the story was going the whole time.
Yeah, this isn't a book I am going to reread again any time soon.
One of my classes chose this science fiction text as their class read-aloud and I had [rather] high hopes. It sounded engaging with just the right amount of simplicity to accommodate for a larg(er) audience. It was however, a complete letdown.
The majority of the action started about 40 pages away from the end of the book and J. Kraft Mitchell was still introducing the "workings" of the characters at that point, including but not limited to some of their physical descriptions. So much of what was occurring in those last 40 pages should have already been covered in the initial introduction to the story.
The tale just kept building and building, headed to Nowhere Land.
And I don't know if it was just my students and me, but we kept discussing the characters repeated eating of food while the 'no action' was taking place. No action folks, but we will eat a mean lunch .. again!
Lastly (as if that wasn't enough), the twist at the end was rather predictable (insert eye roll here). It takes all that time to get there and you virtually know where the story was going the whole time.
Yeah, this isn't a book I am going to reread again any time soon.
June 9, 2017
This was a good book except the speed of the storyline and all the talk about food. Besides that the book was overall pretty good.
February 17, 2017
Fantastic crime novel! This is easily a 5 star book for me.
Jillian is a great character and a strong person. She relies on her intelligence, experience, and instinct to get the job done in a way that left me eager to find out what happens next.
I like that various races and ethnicities are included in the book. It's a good mixture and one that is done naturally.
One problem I have is how Jillian immediately dislikes Amber. Whether it's over a guy or simply because of how Amber looks I felt like it cheapened her as a character somewhat. Amber doesn't respond or even seem to notice this attitude coming from Jillian and from what little we know of her and see about her she seems like a pretty nice person. It's shallow, petty behavior coming from a criminal who broke out of a government facility and then broke back in as part of a test. It doesn't mesh with her personality and plays into some female tropes that the book could have done without.
The plot of the book was exciting and the book was a pretty quick read for me. I love how the author showed off Jillian's skill and expertise as well as the twist that came at the end. She's not just a young woman playing at being a criminal. She has serious skills and knows exactly what she's doing.
An interesting point for me was the computer Sherlock. Instead of fighting against government oversight you instead see things from the other side. Secret agents working as hard as they can to ensure that Sherlock can see everyone and everything that goes on in Anterra. From actions to words written on a piece of paper. It was very interesting shift in dynamics.
Great, intelligent main character, a good plot, and aside from one or two points I disliked, it has great execution as well. Definitely a book worth checking out.
Jillian is a great character and a strong person. She relies on her intelligence, experience, and instinct to get the job done in a way that left me eager to find out what happens next.
I like that various races and ethnicities are included in the book. It's a good mixture and one that is done naturally.
One problem I have is how Jillian immediately dislikes Amber. Whether it's over a guy or simply because of how Amber looks I felt like it cheapened her as a character somewhat. Amber doesn't respond or even seem to notice this attitude coming from Jillian and from what little we know of her and see about her she seems like a pretty nice person. It's shallow, petty behavior coming from a criminal who broke out of a government facility and then broke back in as part of a test. It doesn't mesh with her personality and plays into some female tropes that the book could have done without.
The plot of the book was exciting and the book was a pretty quick read for me. I love how the author showed off Jillian's skill and expertise as well as the twist that came at the end. She's not just a young woman playing at being a criminal. She has serious skills and knows exactly what she's doing.
An interesting point for me was the computer Sherlock. Instead of fighting against government oversight you instead see things from the other side. Secret agents working as hard as they can to ensure that Sherlock can see everyone and everything that goes on in Anterra. From actions to words written on a piece of paper. It was very interesting shift in dynamics.
Great, intelligent main character, a good plot, and aside from one or two points I disliked, it has great execution as well. Definitely a book worth checking out.
December 19, 2012
I got this as a freebie when I was perusing cheap stuff on Amazon. I gotta say; going into getting these free books/books on sale, I don't expect a lot. I typically find sappy teenage romances where the plot has potential but the terrible writing completely kills it, and the male characters cry way too much for anyone over the age of 16.
I don't read a lot of sci-fi/futuristic society; I'm glad I made the exception. The Nexus was fantastic.
Despite some notable editing flaws (double words/double sentences, misuse of to/too, repetition of the same rephrased idea within the paragraph..) and some personal dismay (I hate the idea of a government having the ENTIRE CITY bugged - but I'm a quack), I loved this book. It kept me on my toes and interested. Suspenseful without being terrorizing, and detailed without being dry. The plot was wonderfully executed, and I thought I had the antagonist figured out 3/4 of the way through it... turns out I was totally wrong, which made me chuckle. Well played, JKM, well played.
I may read the next one, but we'll see.
I don't read a lot of sci-fi/futuristic society; I'm glad I made the exception. The Nexus was fantastic.
Despite some notable editing flaws (double words/double sentences, misuse of to/too, repetition of the same rephrased idea within the paragraph..) and some personal dismay (I hate the idea of a government having the ENTIRE CITY bugged - but I'm a quack), I loved this book. It kept me on my toes and interested. Suspenseful without being terrorizing, and detailed without being dry. The plot was wonderfully executed, and I thought I had the antagonist figured out 3/4 of the way through it... turns out I was totally wrong, which made me chuckle. Well played, JKM, well played.
I may read the next one, but we'll see.
September 19, 2012
Undemanding, quick read. YA/urban sci-fi with lots of technology and reasonable plot with good 'action' pacing.
Characters were interesting enough, though I'd like to see more in-depth character development and some of the supporting characters were more vivid than the main characters.
Characters were interesting enough, though I'd like to see more in-depth character development and some of the supporting characters were more vivid than the main characters.
February 10, 2020
4.5 stars
This is a futuristic tale of a world on a satellite floating above the earth. It was supposed to be a utopian world where crime didn't exist, but it didn't end up that way.
Jill Branch is an errander. Erranders run errands for the criminal element of the city. Jill is exceptional for her ability to be able to squeeze out of tricky situations and stay hidden. An underground (or hidden in the bowels of the satellite) government agency is trying to stem the tide of the criminal activity, and they want Jill's help, but first they have to find her, and Sherlock, the computer system that is aware of everything happening on the satellite is going to help them bring her in.
This is a clean and exciting read.
This is a futuristic tale of a world on a satellite floating above the earth. It was supposed to be a utopian world where crime didn't exist, but it didn't end up that way.
Jill Branch is an errander. Erranders run errands for the criminal element of the city. Jill is exceptional for her ability to be able to squeeze out of tricky situations and stay hidden. An underground (or hidden in the bowels of the satellite) government agency is trying to stem the tide of the criminal activity, and they want Jill's help, but first they have to find her, and Sherlock, the computer system that is aware of everything happening on the satellite is going to help them bring her in.
This is a clean and exciting read.
June 7, 2017
In my class we are reading this book. I'll admit I DIDNT want to read it at all in the beginning I don't really like sf. We are finishing up the book this week and I've noticed the action doesn't start till the end of the book. I also noticed that they liked describing food a lot. We would read about a chapter a day and for 2ish days straight they only talked about food and people talking. In that moment I didn't want to finish that book but finally the action started and it wasn't overly action filled but it was enough to keep me sorta entertained. I never would've read this book if it weren't for my class picking it.
February 24, 2021
Excellent read!!
November 15, 2014
This was an all around good book. The writing was crisp, the plot was taut, and the characters were introduced well. I say introduced, because there is not a lot of backstory around any character except the main protagonist, but I'm assuming more details about the other characters will emerge in the subsequent books of the series.
The overall feel I got from the book was it was like a two hour pilot episode for a new TV show. There were enough details to draw me into the world the author created, yet enough things left unresolved to entice me to find out more. If this were a TV pilot, I would definitely be tuning in next week for more.
I recommend this book to teenagers as well as advanced mid-grade readers. Parents need not worry about the content. There is some violence in this book, but it is not written about too graphically, nor is it the primary focus of the book.
There is no inappropriate language either. I was glad to see the author write "so-and-so cursed" instead of writing a bunch of swear words. I took this approach with Atomic Aardvark too. It lets the reader decide what cuss words were said, isn't vulgar, and doesn't come across as too cheesy (like when movies get dubbed for TV).
Give this book the attention it deserves and read it. You won't be disappointed!
This is the seventh book I've featured on my book's (Atomic Aardvark) blog called "Bobbing for Indie eBooks" . A feature where I promote and give away copies of self-published eBooks by authors I've discovered and whose books I have enjoyed.
The overall feel I got from the book was it was like a two hour pilot episode for a new TV show. There were enough details to draw me into the world the author created, yet enough things left unresolved to entice me to find out more. If this were a TV pilot, I would definitely be tuning in next week for more.
I recommend this book to teenagers as well as advanced mid-grade readers. Parents need not worry about the content. There is some violence in this book, but it is not written about too graphically, nor is it the primary focus of the book.
There is no inappropriate language either. I was glad to see the author write "so-and-so cursed" instead of writing a bunch of swear words. I took this approach with Atomic Aardvark too. It lets the reader decide what cuss words were said, isn't vulgar, and doesn't come across as too cheesy (like when movies get dubbed for TV).
Give this book the attention it deserves and read it. You won't be disappointed!
This is the seventh book I've featured on my book's (Atomic Aardvark) blog called "Bobbing for Indie eBooks" . A feature where I promote and give away copies of self-published eBooks by authors I've discovered and whose books I have enjoyed.
August 5, 2012
Love the tagline used on http://jkraftmitchell.com/ website:
"In this city, criminals may just make the best crime fighters."
The first novel in the Nexus series is about a future earth where a separate habitat is created above the earth as a place to be free of crime by the careful selection of residents. As you can imagine the effort was not truly effective.
We are introduced to the a group of individuals who are erranders - people for hire to retrieve and transport items, often stolen. One errander is a young woman who is later revealed as Jill Branch. She has a mysterious past but is a highly effective errander. So effective that she is targeted by a special United Space Program called The Nexus to help fight crime.
On the author's website is an announcement that the second book - THE DARK BENEATH - is due to be released in the fall 2012. I look forward to purchasing the next book.
"In this city, criminals may just make the best crime fighters."
The first novel in the Nexus series is about a future earth where a separate habitat is created above the earth as a place to be free of crime by the careful selection of residents. As you can imagine the effort was not truly effective.
We are introduced to the a group of individuals who are erranders - people for hire to retrieve and transport items, often stolen. One errander is a young woman who is later revealed as Jill Branch. She has a mysterious past but is a highly effective errander. So effective that she is targeted by a special United Space Program called The Nexus to help fight crime.
On the author's website is an announcement that the second book - THE DARK BENEATH - is due to be released in the fall 2012. I look forward to purchasing the next book.
May 9, 2013
A good YA sci-fi book. It reminded me a lot of "21 Jump Street" (the TV show, not the movie). The basic premise is that a secret government agency is recruiting younger kids who have been involved in criminal activities to help bring crime under control.
I would definitely look for the next book in the series and recommend this book to others.
I would definitely look for the next book in the series and recommend this book to others.
November 11, 2015
Interestingly, I enjoyed this fantasy YA thriller with no gore, sex or language (though it's referred to without expletives written). Author has a strong Christian background, which leads me to think Jillian & rest are given a 2nd chance for spiritual, as well as, the monetary reasons given. TTS-enabled eBook ©2012. Reread. Recommended.
May 4, 2015
There were some good parts but there were also some parts that lagged. I found myself wanting more answers than I ended up getting. Then to find out that the story does not end and there is a 4th one that might not even get done, very disappointing. Hopefully, the fourth book actually gets published so I can at least find out some answers and what happens to the characters.
March 10, 2013
This book to me was a lot like Minority Report meets Person of Interest. It was cool, moved quickly and had a unique little twist.
For someone looking for a fun YA SF read, I think this would be right up there for them.
For someone looking for a fun YA SF read, I think this would be right up there for them.
March 20, 2013
In was surprised how much I enjoyed this book. I got it free on amazon (yay!) and it was a great read. Awesome characters, interesting plot line and premise, and I'm excited to read the next book and see what happens next.
March 28, 2013
Just finished the book. I certainly enjoyed the book but feel as the story and characters were lacking depth. There are so many avenues for off shoots of this book so I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.
June 5, 2016
This was a really fun read with some great, intelligent characters and an interesting storyline. I liked the action and the concept and thought it was very well put together. I will definitely consider reading more from the series.
May 7, 2012
I really enjoyed this book. It was a very good introduction to what I assume is a series. Characters were well developed and the story was very good, it kept me guessing at every turn...
July 6, 2012
This is a futuristic take on Le Femme Nikita but for something that has been done before, he found an interesting spin on it. Good sci-fi.
August 26, 2012
I enjoy the book with a flavor of science fiction set on space station and a bit of action to catch bad guys. It is the first book of a few that will continue to build the excitement.
August 20, 2012
surprised at how much I enjoyed this book...looking forward to the next book.
September 29, 2012
Great story, interesting characters, slightly choppy writing at times.
December 11, 2012
I don't typically read sci-fi, but this one kept me captivated…I was surprised! Good for a quick read as it is a shorter book. Enjoyed.
February 5, 2013
This is definitely a YA book, but it was still a great (light) read.
I really liked the world and look forward to more books in this series...
I really liked the world and look forward to more books in this series...
May 7, 2013
Good ideas but the writing was immature, and lacked depth. I felt like it could have been so much more.
May 27, 2013
Enjoyable, but did not fully explore the effect that the central technology would have.
July 23, 2013
Wow, this is a refreshing read! It was about a future sci-fi thriller. I would like to read the next one!
September 21, 2013
I want a skybike so bad!
April 2, 2014
Very good book!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews