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Mosaic Mutable
A novella by the author of Seaborn and Winterdim.
Arckale has left his past behind, and for ten years he's been managing farm operations on the largest of the floating agri- and aquaculture cities in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. He's done everything he can do to fit in and settle down, but that doesn't mean he can be considered human by most standards. His differences and dangerous abilities are written all over his skin to the core of his bones. Arckale's a genetically engineered biowarfare weapons operative, bred and trained from birth to handle front-line chemical and microbiological weapon strikes, and even if he wants to leave that past behind, there are many--both friends and enemies--who will not ignore what's built into him.
Arckale has left his past behind, and for ten years he's been managing farm operations on the largest of the floating agri- and aquaculture cities in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. He's done everything he can do to fit in and settle down, but that doesn't mean he can be considered human by most standards. His differences and dangerous abilities are written all over his skin to the core of his bones. Arckale's a genetically engineered biowarfare weapons operative, bred and trained from birth to handle front-line chemical and microbiological weapon strikes, and even if he wants to leave that past behind, there are many--both friends and enemies--who will not ignore what's built into him.
- GenresScience Fiction
56 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 2, 2012
9 people want to read
About the author
Chris Howard
83 books129 followersChris Howard is just a creative human with a pen and a paint brush, author of Seaborn (Juno Books, 2008), Salvage (Prime Books, 2013), Saltwater Witch (Lykeion, 2005), and a shelf-full of other books. My short stories and essays have appeared in various magazines and anthologies, including “Lost Dogs and Fireplace Archeology” in Fantasy Magazine and “How to Build Worlds Without Becoming the Minister for Tourism” in Now Write! Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror (Penguin, 2014). My story “The Mermaid Game” appeared in the Paula Guran edited anthology Mermaids and Other Mysteries of the Deep (Prime, 2015), and “Hammers and Snails” was the Robert A. Heinlein Centennial Short Fiction Contest winner. I wrote and illustrated the comics Saltwater Witch and Salvage. My art has appeared on dozens of book covers, art cards, interior illustrations for publishers, authors, and Kickstarter projects. You can also find my art in Shimmer, BuzzyMag, various tabletop RPGs, and on the pages of books, blogs, and other interesting places.
Find out everything here: http://www.SaltwaterWitch.com
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Find out everything here: http://www.SaltwaterWitch.com
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 23, 2012
I'll give this four stars to offset Lorena's three, and hit that 3.5 she was after. As she said, this is a novella I liked a lot, but it left me wanting more. It's clearly left the stage set for lots of future development, and I hope we get to see more of this world and the people who live in it.
October 23, 2012
This book for me is very hard to rate since I liked it but it left me wanting more. So its more like a 3.5 than a simple 3. Let me explain why since it is a bit complex.
It is a very well written novella and the characters are fully fleshed out and interesting in themselves and in their role in the world. Their actions are a by-product of their inner thinking and everything simply flows in the story. The main characters, in such a short time, got to me and I was rooting for them to succeed and survive and keep going!
However, it is awfully short and even though the assassination arc is resolved, there is so much left hanging that it feels unfinished even though I know it is a novella. The world, although it is hard to get at first, is amazingly complex and full of detail. The explanations that we get as we delve into it are really detailed and require quite a bit of attention to grasp the concept of the new developments in technology and ways of life that this future holds. The glimpses of the people that inhabit it, of its history and of its marvels are like glimpses through a half-opened door.
It left me wanting more! I think that from this book (yes, I keep saying book and not novella, mainly because it felt like reading the amazing first chapters of an epic book!) a whole series could sprout and take root in the world that is presented and around the two main characters with ease. I would certainly go for it if it turned into a trilogy.
It is a very well written novella and the characters are fully fleshed out and interesting in themselves and in their role in the world. Their actions are a by-product of their inner thinking and everything simply flows in the story. The main characters, in such a short time, got to me and I was rooting for them to succeed and survive and keep going!
However, it is awfully short and even though the assassination arc is resolved, there is so much left hanging that it feels unfinished even though I know it is a novella. The world, although it is hard to get at first, is amazingly complex and full of detail. The explanations that we get as we delve into it are really detailed and require quite a bit of attention to grasp the concept of the new developments in technology and ways of life that this future holds. The glimpses of the people that inhabit it, of its history and of its marvels are like glimpses through a half-opened door.
It left me wanting more! I think that from this book (yes, I keep saying book and not novella, mainly because it felt like reading the amazing first chapters of an epic book!) a whole series could sprout and take root in the world that is presented and around the two main characters with ease. I would certainly go for it if it turned into a trilogy.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews