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Larissa
HOOK
A mean, backwater mining planet where the alien Q'rin rule. Taking the wrong side can get you killed and humans have little hope for escape.
LARISSA
A young woman with a talent for sports...and knives. She's beating the aliens at their own particularly harsh game until someone dies. Novy she must flee Hook.
OFF-PLANET
The stakes are higher, the competition even deadlier. Here, Larissa fights for survival --and for humanity.
A mean, backwater mining planet where the alien Q'rin rule. Taking the wrong side can get you killed and humans have little hope for escape.
LARISSA
A young woman with a talent for sports...and knives. She's beating the aliens at their own particularly harsh game until someone dies. Novy she must flee Hook.
OFF-PLANET
The stakes are higher, the competition even deadlier. Here, Larissa fights for survival --and for humanity.
284 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1993
1 person is currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
Emily Devenport
36 books192 followersLook for MEDUSA UPLOADED, published by Tor, available in paper, ebook, and audio. MEDUSA IN THE GRAVEYARD is due out from Tor in July 2019.
I've been published under three pen names: as Emily Devenport, I wrote SHADE, LARISSA, SCORPIANNE, EGGHEADS, THE KRONOS CONDITION, and GODHEADS. As Maggy Thomas, I wrote BROKEN TIME, which was nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award. As Lee Hogan I wrote BELARUS and ENEMIES. My books have been published in the U.S., the U.K., Italy, and Israel. I'm writing as Emily Devenport again, and I have two titles available exclusively in ebook: THE NIGHT SHIFTERS and SPIRITS OF GLORY. (Okay -- almost exclusively. TNS is also available in audio.)
I'm an undergraduate studying Geology, a volunteer at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, and a buyer for the Heard Museum book store.
I've been published under three pen names: as Emily Devenport, I wrote SHADE, LARISSA, SCORPIANNE, EGGHEADS, THE KRONOS CONDITION, and GODHEADS. As Maggy Thomas, I wrote BROKEN TIME, which was nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award. As Lee Hogan I wrote BELARUS and ENEMIES. My books have been published in the U.S., the U.K., Italy, and Israel. I'm writing as Emily Devenport again, and I have two titles available exclusively in ebook: THE NIGHT SHIFTERS and SPIRITS OF GLORY. (Okay -- almost exclusively. TNS is also available in audio.)
I'm an undergraduate studying Geology, a volunteer at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, and a buyer for the Heard Museum book store.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 1, 2022
Pretty good pulp science fiction with a very unforgivable cover given that our main protagonist, Larissa, is black, with a big chest and shaved head. This reminded me of Busby's work, such as Zelde M'Tana published a decade or so before this one. This is basically the story of Larissa's life from an early teen to young 20s as told from her perspective throughout. It almost has a diary like feel to it. Larissa was born and raised on a bleak mining planet called Hook which is now ruled by the alien Q'rin after humans lost the war to them a few decades ago. Humans are relegated to the fringes of the few bleak towns and cities and most work in the mines; not quite slaves, but pretty close. Larissa's father is a military guy so she had a decent house and such-- most humans do not. Nonetheless, Larissa is a tough cookie and with her gang of friends, she keeps getting into trouble. Finally, one such trouble leaves a guy dead and she has to flee the planet...
While this is a science fiction story, complete with various aliens in a Star Warsy kind of way, this could have been set in Ancient Rome with the same impact. Larissa, homeless on an alien planet takes to knife fighting in 'the pits', something close to a gladiator. She is quite good, one of the best, and even fights non-humans in the pit. She suffers trials, she suffers tribulations, she hangs in there!
Devenport's world building is not exceptional, but she does a good job giving us a feel for the seedy, rough existence of people in the slums (called Deadtowners), who live by stealing or whatever. Her working as a gladiator is not exceptional as there are other Deadtowners who work 'the pits', and she makes several friends along the way. Pure pulp adventure that will not tax your brain, but it feels like a set up for a longer series that was never written. Several hints were dropped at the end that suggest an interesting story behind the various alien races, but as there was no sequel, I guess we will never find out. Overall, a fun and fast read if you like this type of thing. 3 pulpy stars!!
While this is a science fiction story, complete with various aliens in a Star Warsy kind of way, this could have been set in Ancient Rome with the same impact. Larissa, homeless on an alien planet takes to knife fighting in 'the pits', something close to a gladiator. She is quite good, one of the best, and even fights non-humans in the pit. She suffers trials, she suffers tribulations, she hangs in there!
Devenport's world building is not exceptional, but she does a good job giving us a feel for the seedy, rough existence of people in the slums (called Deadtowners), who live by stealing or whatever. Her working as a gladiator is not exceptional as there are other Deadtowners who work 'the pits', and she makes several friends along the way. Pure pulp adventure that will not tax your brain, but it feels like a set up for a longer series that was never written. Several hints were dropped at the end that suggest an interesting story behind the various alien races, but as there was no sequel, I guess we will never find out. Overall, a fun and fast read if you like this type of thing. 3 pulpy stars!!
February 18, 2024
Larissa is a spin-off or sidequel from her first novel Shade, it takes a minor side-character and tells her story that runs partly parallel to Shade but is so self-contained that even if you haven’t read or heard of Shade you wouldn’t notice how much it takes from that novel.
What’s so odd about the book is that the overall arc and where the character ultimately ends up parallels a lot of what went on in Shade, at least in the broadest strokes. Larissa is drawn into the conflict between the Q’rin, the humans, the Aesopians, and the Lyrri, though all this is filtered through her own perspective, that of a knife fighter who does it for a living and unlike Shade is more prone to stand her ground and fight instead of running away.
Given all this, what applied to Shade applies here as well. The writing draws in you and makes the whole book an easy and fun read despite all its shortcomings. And I’m not even saying that mirroring the broad strokes of Shade’s narrative is a flaw, as the devil is in the detail and Larissa really is her own character in many ways. But the writing is really what makes you want to go on, it’s just a joy how Emily Devenport is putting words on the page.
Just one example is the very first sentence in the book “This may sound deranged, but I think I owe my interest in knives to the serial killer who murdered my mother when I was nine”. This gives you an idea of how unpredictable the book can be even when you know the broad strokes of where the story is going. Eventually, Larissa runs away from Earth, ends up on Z’taruh (the world where most of the action of Larissa and Shade take place), becomes a fighter, becomes part of Oshrii’s stable of fighters, and eventually escapes the planet in opposition to Oshrii, who is the dominant Q’rin lord on the planet and who has allied himself with the Lyrri.
The same politics that dominated the second half of Shade to a large degree come into play here as well with whole scenes lifted from Shade, only from Larissa’s point of view.
Like with Shade, I have a hard time saying whether this is a good or a bad book, as it reads so easily but I’m not entirely sure about the rest. It has an interesting setting and towards the end throws in some more info we didn’t even learn in Shade that recontextualizes the entire conflict between Q’rin and Aesopians and humans and Lyrri. We learn that the Aesopians long ago took Neanderthals from Earth and made them into the Q’rin, though the revelations don’t end there. We also find out what the Aesopians were before they remade themself to look like Earth animals. It turns out, that before they were Aesopians they were Lyrri, which puts a really interesting spin on it.
On the other hand, I sometimes felt like I was reading Shade all over again despite the different protagonist and her unique viewpoint. And I enjoyed Larissa’s viewpoint, sure. She’s more direct than Shade, has a better idea of who she is and what she wants, and despite the demons that haunt her (especially the serial killer that killed her mother and almost her and how that relates to her affinity for knives) has a better way of dealing with things.
I do want to know why Emily Devenport opted to write a second novel that was so similar to her first, was it her publisher or her own wish? And I still don’t know how I feel about whether it’s good or bad that this book eerily mirrors the first one.
What’s so odd about the book is that the overall arc and where the character ultimately ends up parallels a lot of what went on in Shade, at least in the broadest strokes. Larissa is drawn into the conflict between the Q’rin, the humans, the Aesopians, and the Lyrri, though all this is filtered through her own perspective, that of a knife fighter who does it for a living and unlike Shade is more prone to stand her ground and fight instead of running away.
Given all this, what applied to Shade applies here as well. The writing draws in you and makes the whole book an easy and fun read despite all its shortcomings. And I’m not even saying that mirroring the broad strokes of Shade’s narrative is a flaw, as the devil is in the detail and Larissa really is her own character in many ways. But the writing is really what makes you want to go on, it’s just a joy how Emily Devenport is putting words on the page.
Just one example is the very first sentence in the book “This may sound deranged, but I think I owe my interest in knives to the serial killer who murdered my mother when I was nine”. This gives you an idea of how unpredictable the book can be even when you know the broad strokes of where the story is going. Eventually, Larissa runs away from Earth, ends up on Z’taruh (the world where most of the action of Larissa and Shade take place), becomes a fighter, becomes part of Oshrii’s stable of fighters, and eventually escapes the planet in opposition to Oshrii, who is the dominant Q’rin lord on the planet and who has allied himself with the Lyrri.
The same politics that dominated the second half of Shade to a large degree come into play here as well with whole scenes lifted from Shade, only from Larissa’s point of view.
Like with Shade, I have a hard time saying whether this is a good or a bad book, as it reads so easily but I’m not entirely sure about the rest. It has an interesting setting and towards the end throws in some more info we didn’t even learn in Shade that recontextualizes the entire conflict between Q’rin and Aesopians and humans and Lyrri. We learn that the Aesopians long ago took Neanderthals from Earth and made them into the Q’rin, though the revelations don’t end there. We also find out what the Aesopians were before they remade themself to look like Earth animals. It turns out, that before they were Aesopians they were Lyrri, which puts a really interesting spin on it.
On the other hand, I sometimes felt like I was reading Shade all over again despite the different protagonist and her unique viewpoint. And I enjoyed Larissa’s viewpoint, sure. She’s more direct than Shade, has a better idea of who she is and what she wants, and despite the demons that haunt her (especially the serial killer that killed her mother and almost her and how that relates to her affinity for knives) has a better way of dealing with things.
I do want to know why Emily Devenport opted to write a second novel that was so similar to her first, was it her publisher or her own wish? And I still don’t know how I feel about whether it’s good or bad that this book eerily mirrors the first one.
July 23, 2021
I picked this up because I really liked the author's later book Medusa Uploaded, and I did enjoy this one too. It's a space opera with a heroine who grew up a military brat/street girl and through some bad decisions and bad breaks wound up as a knife fighter in pits run by a race (the Q'rin) which won a war with humans and their allies decades earlier. A lot of the story consists of descriptions of these fights, as well as some poignant incidents and conversations with the heroine's friends of human, Q'rin, Aesopian and Lyrris races.
November 30, 2017
Almost gave it 4 stars, but irked by (another) ROC Publishing disingenuous cover. It is a well written and paced story and I enjoyed it. Larissa is a great character, written as a woman of African lineage and short cropped hair, who is also physically very well endowed. She is not the skinny, flat chested white chick on the cover and I thought the true Larissa deserved better!
Currently reading
September 11, 2013I bought this book when I was 11? 12? years old and I recall my confusion when the main character was described as a dark-skinned black woman. I kept flipping back to the cover, wondering if I'd misinterpreted the picture, or the text, but no. I couldn't figure out why they'd gotten that so wrong. Oh, child me. So innocent. Anyway, yes, this cover is whitewashed.
I remember very little about this book, except that it freaked me right the hell out and I didn't like it and I never finished it. I think I checked out when the main character started dreaming about screwing her boyfriend from behind or something? (Jesus shitting Christ, what the hell was I even doing with this book.)
LOL, welp, now that I'm a grown ass woman, all those vague freaky memories of this just intrigue the hell out of me, so now that I've found it again, on the to-read list it goes. Actual review pending, hopefully.
I remember very little about this book, except that it freaked me right the hell out and I didn't like it and I never finished it. I think I checked out when the main character started dreaming about screwing her boyfriend from behind or something? (Jesus shitting Christ, what the hell was I even doing with this book.)
LOL, welp, now that I'm a grown ass woman, all those vague freaky memories of this just intrigue the hell out of me, so now that I've found it again, on the to-read list it goes. Actual review pending, hopefully.
December 18, 2015
Thoroughly enjoyable tale of a female human who fights professionally and personally on a planet ruled by human-hating aliens . The main character Larissa is funny, tough and smart and the writing is fast-paced and engaging. Nothing taxing about it, it would be a good beach read. My main criticism is that Ms. Devenport gives slight glimpses of an obviously very intricate alien culture and I would have enjoyed having Larissa (and the reader) learn anything about this culture, but that never happens. Another criticism is with the cover. In the novel, Larissa is a beautiful dark-skinned/black athletic female. Either some publishing exec decided having a person of color on the front cover would "hurt sales" or at the very least, the artist they hired never read any of the book. Either way, I dislike when the cover and story obviously don't match.
August 28, 2012
This had a well developed world with interesting alien characters. It reminded me a little of TOTAL RECALL (violence, thrilling-action scenes, sexscapades, political tensions, romance, etc...). The lead was a physically and emotionally strong black woman named Larissa, who fights to overcome the gruesome murder of her mother, the poverty and viciousness of her home plant, and political corruption.
I really enjoyed reading this. It was gritty, raw, and contained characters that were morally ambiguous. As a warning: this has a worthwhile, but bittersweet ending.
I really enjoyed reading this. It was gritty, raw, and contained characters that were morally ambiguous. As a warning: this has a worthwhile, but bittersweet ending.
February 26, 2024
So many bad reviews about this book are centered on the fact that the lady on the cover looks nothing like the titular character. I think this is a good reminder to never judge a book by its cover. I didn't think I would like the character of Shade, but Devenport found how to get the reader to connect with her.
It has been a while since a novel with more than 50 pages has helped me feel escapism.
It has been a while since a novel with more than 50 pages has helped me feel escapism.
February 21, 2011
The story in OK but never really gets you involved. I never felt one way or the other towards any of the characters.
April 23, 2015
I liked this one, but seriously, the character depicted on the book cover is supposed to be black.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews