Theft of Fire

Orbital Space #1

by Devon Eriksen

At the frozen edge of the solar system lies a hidden treasure which could spell their fortune or their destruction—but only if they survive each other first.

Marcus Warnoc has a little problem. His asteroid mining ship—his inheritance, his livelihood, and his home—has been hijacked by a pint-sized corporate heiress with enough blackmail material to sink him for good, a secret mission she won’t tell him about, and enough courage to get them both killed. She may have him dead to rights, but if he doesn’t turn the tables on this spoiled Martian snob, he’ll be dead, period. He’s not giving up without a fight.

He has a plan.

Miranda Foxgrove has the opportunity of a lifetime almost within her grasp if she can reach it. Her stolen spacecraft came with a stubborn, resourceful captain who refuses to cooperate—but he’s one of the few men alive who can snatch an unimaginable treasure from beneath the muzzles of countless railguns. And if this foulmouthed Belter thug doesn’t want to cooperate, she’ll find a way to force him. She’s come too far to give up now.

She has a plan.

They’re about to find out that a plan is a list of things that won’t happen.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Space, Space Opera, Fantasy, Adventure, Hard Science Fiction

500 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 11, 2023

About the author

Once upon a time, science fiction was about science and engineering. Was about big ideas for how technology can transform the world. Was about what a high-tech future might look like, and how it might feel to be a real person living there. Was about our hopes and aspirations.

But something happened. Somewhere along the way, our fiction lost hope. Began preaching our inevitable failure. Began sifting through the ashes of endless visions of decay. Began lamenting instead of inspiring. Began, above all, lecturing us for daring to have hopes, dreams, and desires, for daring to think that the universe is a better place with humans in it than without, that tomorrow might be better than today.

Well, some of us aren't interested in self-flagellation. And we're not done with the big ideas yet.

I'm Devon Eriksen. And I'm writing the Orbital Space trilogy as a love letter to every head-high pile of science fiction classics I ever hid in the back of a public library with. Because I think the era of whining is over, and humanity is going places again.

Along our three-volume journey from get-rich-quick-schemes and petty blackmail to the technological singularity and the fate of the galaxy, we'll explore post-terrestrial civilization from the frozen orbit of Sedna to the corporate boardrooms of Mars, meet mercenaries, genetically enhanced post-humans, and space truckers, learn about the existential crisis of waking up one day as a prototype AI, recklessly tamper with mysterious alien artifacts, fight an interplanetary war, and answer Fermi's famous question, "Where is everyone?" once and for all.

So strap into an acceleration chair, and slap on a high-g stim patch. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

Reviews

[Erin, erin.reads_ 🇨🇦]

Gifted copy provided by Devon Erikson for an honest review.

I’m DNFing this book at 23%

The start of the book hooked me, I love me some space pirates and underdogs. I also appreciate the science in this, it was present without being over the top.

I have no problem with swearing in books, let me be clear about that. But when you call the female character a bitch so often I lose track by chapter five it’s no longer an effective use of a swear word. If you’re going to call a character a bitch that much she better have done something to warrant it. Thankful this stopped at chapter five.

I was excited about the AI aspect, one to see what it added to the story and two to see how this new character factored in. But soon after about 22%… it gets a little red flag esk. The main character gets in a fight with the female character and chokes her out, and then goes on to question if the act turned him on THREE times. It just gave me the ick. The author also points out numerous times how doe eyed, small, and pretty the female character is.

“Somehow, without noticing it, I've pulled her close to me, twining my legs around hers for leverage. Her body bucks and heaves against mine, in a grotesque parody of the act of love.
Every part of her is tight, firm yet soft, perfectly shaped and proportioned, and I feel a strange, sick surge of arousal, arousal and then shame, shame and then resentment.”

“I didn't... get off on that, did I? No, no, I'm not... like that. I don't think I'm like that. Surely I would have noticed before?”

The next chapter

“I don't want to hurt her. I just want her to....
I don't know. Be different. Nicer. Be the person you would think she was from just looking at her.
Or, failing that, to be as ugly on the outside as she is underneath, so I can stop wanting to touch her. So I don't get a fucking hard-on just from getting close to her. That's what it was. Not the violence. I'm not sick.
I'm not.
She was just too soft and pretty, and I was too close, and it's been too long since I... nevermind.”

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this as a beta reader before it had an ISBN. One of the best sci-fi novels I've ever read. Great characters, plot, and not insulting to the reader's intelligence (which is rare for modern sci-fi...).

[Johnny Schmidt · Rating 4 out of 5]

[NOTE: I am a snob and only give out around five 5-star reviews per lifetime.]

A down-on-his-luck asteroid miner, a mysterious heiress, an ancient alien race--Devon Eriksen's Theft of Fire weaves these classic elements into a story that feels refreshingly cutting-edge, with prose as lean and no-frills as the hero's hand-rolled spaceship. The physics are so tight it feels like he spent hours plotting out each scene with a slide rule, and the characters so lovingly drawn I believed in them from the first line of dialog--including one of the most convincing post-GPT AIs I've seen in print. If you're tired of stories that preach at you, insult your intelligence, or feed you member berries like a kid in a zoo, if you're after a book that promises a good old-fashioned hard sci-fi adventure in the spirit of Gregory Benford or James S.A. Corey, *and then delivers so much more*, then this is one you won't want to miss.

[Needoptic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Were you born in the 80’s and grew up having your mind melted by Aliens at the age of six? Do you like the Stainless Steel Rat? Are you tired of victimhood and “the message” being interwoven into every single Hollywood production from the last decade? Then this book is for you.

A space trucker pirate, a gene-modified heiress to one of the wealthiest families in the system, and a witty AI partner for a heist of the century while dishing out old fashioned ass kicking, getting into 8g orbital battles, and pissing off half the galaxy.

[Frank Ch. Eigler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Space romance for guys

What a naughty trick! Devon makes the reader think it’s merely a great hard sci-fi story, imagining solving “The Martian” you puzzles (with plenty of frustrated swearing!). But then the story is folded inside out into a ladies’ romance with a protagonist and antagonist gradually and reluctantly falling for each other. I risked my man card reading and loving both sides of this book, but it was worth it. More please!

[Bastet · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you're into libertarian propaganda rife with misogyny, written by an Elon Musk fanboy who claims to have two wives, this is the book for you! It was not, however, for me.

[JT · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best new hard sci-fi I've read in a long time. It follows in the best traditions of Asimov, Heinlein, Niven, Vinge, Card, Zahn, and the like.

From the very first chapter, I was hooked. I read it straight through in two marathon sessions, because I just had to know what happened next.

As a space enthusiast and space systems engineer on contract with the Space Force, I especially appreciated the attention to getting the physics and astrodynamics as close to reality as possible, and exactly what one would expect in the next century. Like any good hard sci-fi, it examines the implications of technology on our society, home planet, and colonies out in deep space.

A key element of that examination is Eriksen's fresh take on artificial intelligence. He takes us inside the mind of the AI in an interesting way, and simultaneously makes that AI an integral character in a very charming and fast-paced story. Our heroes are at times noble, self-sacrificing, flawed, petty, conflicted, bold, surprising, and entirely relatable.

Set deep in the vast reaches of our solar system, our story has plenty of action, chases, twists and turns, and a nice cliffhanger to set up the next installment in the series ... which I can't wait to read.

But at its core, Theft of Fire is just a good old fashioned fun and engaging space tale! I'll definitely be watching this author for more.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one hell of a yarn. It has the character development of John Varley, the plot twists of Robert E Taylor, battle scenes that are reminiscent of Jack Campbell, and the dramatic angst of Stephen R. Donaldson. Behind it all lurks an irreverent Nivenesque humor.

This story grabbed me in minutes and called me back whenever I set it down.

[Jonathan Koan · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Note: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review)

This book has been slowly making the rounds among reviewers, as it has an excellent marketing strategy behind it (mostly from the author’s wife).

What’s surprised me about this book is how small the cast list is. There’s really only three characters in the book. The book is told from the perspective of Marcus Warnoc, whose ship is hijacked by Miranda Foxgrove. She forces Marcus to accompany her on her secretive, mission, and he is not up for it. there’s also a third character named Leela, but I don’t wanna reveal too much about her.

Outside of those three, there really aren’t other characters in the book. As a result, this book really gets to be an in-depth character study, and you really get to know, and understand the characters. Devon Ericksen gave them all excellent development and complexity.

The book is the first in a series, and thus promises a larger, over arcing story. I have a feeling that the sequels will be more plot based than this one, as this one was more to set up the world and characters.

There were a few things I didn’t like about the book. The biggest problem is I felt it was overlong. I think there were some repetitive scenes and other scenes that weren’t really necessary. A significant chunk of this book could’ve been cut out to make a flow faster and better.

Another problem I have with the book is the excessive language. I understand some authors like to use bad language in their books, and it is their prerogative. However, sometimes the more you add the less appealing, the book is to people who don’t want that stuff in there, and it just got to be too much for me.

There was also an interesting choice in the book to make certain parts of our modern day, carryover to the far future (SpaceX, BitCoin, others being the most prominent example), and it just seemed odd and implausible.

The book does have themes about trust and about individual opportunity that I found fascinating. It is not very surprising that this book was nominated for the Prometheus (Libertarian) Award.

The science behind the book seemed plausible and researched, but not overly descriptive, which I appreciated.

Overall, this is an enjoyable book, and showcases a unique and strong authorial voice that Eriksen has. I’m hoping book two focuses more on the plot and less on the language. I’ll give Theft of Fire a 7.5 out of 10.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a story. Hey, it's kark, but really good kark, OK?
By which I mean: debut novel, with first-novel rough spots. You'll have to be patient at the start, as he sets the story in motion. Not very promising then. But once you're past that, it gets interesting, then fascinating, then compulsively readable. It ends on a (rather crude) cliffhanger. Eriksen apparently intends to make this a trilogy (or more?), and I wonder if he can make the middle book work. Time will tell.

Here's the review that led me to read this, by author Neal Asher. He liked it a lot:
https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...
"What makes this stand out is simply that it is a thumping good read, with excellent breathless pace."

You'll be wanting to read the book, I think. Good stuff. Amazingly good first novel. High marks!

[John A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the wake of sci-fi franchises rife with incompetent storytelling and poor creative direction, it is easy to tell from the online discourse that fans hungry for good science fiction are deprived of such. In this current era of independently produced entertainment we have dubbed The Iron Age, it was inevitable that a work of fiction would rise up and stand out amongst the crowd. As Macho Man Randy Savage once said: “The cream rises to the top.”

Theft of Fire by Devon Erikson is such a work of fiction. Not a sweeping space opera fantasy like Star Wars or an idealized future like Star Trek. Instead, we’re given a book that uses the template of a submarine movie to explore the complex and tense relationship between a small cast of self-driven characters. Its the kind of story that, in the wrong hands, would be easy to get wrong. Fortunately, it is in the right hands.

Set a few hundred years in a future where humanity is a libertine-esque space-faring society, but still confined to our own solar system made possible reverse engineering alien technology found on an asteroid complex long since abandoned. This sci-fi universe feels at times like Cowboy Bebop in that the technology has grounded feel to it. Everything from space battles to the operations of the main ship the White Cat to the physics of traveling through space–it all has the feel of being grounded in the mechanics of real science and it leans into this aspect to its benefit.

The book is entirely in first person POV from only one character: Marcus Warnoc, a roughneck space-faring belter on hard times that have seen him resorting to piracy via highjacking mining shipments and raiding cargo bays. This illicit reputation is what leads Dr. Miranda Foxgrove, a wealthy heiress with high ambitions, to buy out his outstanding loans and essentially blackmail him and his ship into undertaking a covert mission that’s not entirely above board. Her refusal to divulge all she knows and keeping him on a need-to-know basis sets off a book’s worth of character conflicts unfolding from Marcus’ POV.

Theft of Fire is a masterclass of character writing. Marcus and Miranda couldn’t be more different and in every respect they are complete opposites. Their personal conflicts arise from conflicting worldviews, morals, values, judgements of character, ideals, and approaches to the myriad of crises that arise. Later, a third character named Leela comes into play but I won’t divulge much about her due to spoilers. While the substantive elements of the actual plot don’t materialize until the second half of the book, one is often too caught up in the substance of Marcus & Miranda’s many arguments and discussions to notice.

Few authors delve into the depths of characters explaining and conversing the way Devon Eriksen does. Marcus does not so much deliver exposition as he sits down and walks the reader through detailed thought processes on everything from his mechanical know-how to explaining the facets of space-faring life to the minutiae of fixing a software issue. To some readers, this might come across as boring, but Marcus’ inner dialogue is delivered like a construction worker explaining something he’s passionate about while you’re on lunchbreak together. It feels like a personal conversation, not an author’s exposition dump. It flows naturally from the character and gives the prose a personality not found in most books.

This review cannot go without mentioning how much this book leans into the hard science of its world. As before, its so well grounded in genuine science that it all feels plausible (aside from the space drives, which they admit they hardly know the exact reason they function. They simply do.) Marcus jury-rigs half of his ship, discussions about how AI works, nods to SpaceX, detailed examinations about the physics of creating microgravity by tumbling the ship through space, even the action of space combat feels more highly technical than seen in other works of science fiction. Everything comes together to make it feel like a functioning future that could exist. One of the book’s more interesting notes is how Marcus hammers home the genuine horror of the vacuum of space as a beast waiting to kill you on the other side of the hull.

In a refreshing twist of writing, rather than brushing past conversations about topics important to the characters, Eriksen leans hard into these and has characters work through their immediate hang ups with each other through a myriad of manners from casual conversations to eruptions of justified anger to impasses of character difference. It sounds like the CW’s “talking in hallways about feelings” but because the characters are actual characters, these segments work and by the time a discussion wears out its welcome, a different element of extended life together in the same confined spaceship rears up to take its place.

If a reader takes the story as it is delivered on its own merits, there is little to find to dislike. This may be the wrong book for some readers, but from a writing standpoint there’s very little to complain about. There’s a smattering of vulgarity, mostly F-bombs delivered by Marcus in the midst of angry outbursts, but it is not a non-stop blue streak. Readers who are not fans of this, may want to know ahead of time or avoid. There is also a somewhere primal and unintentional sexual tension between Marcus and Miranda, but is only lightly touched on and doesn’t devolve into raunchy exploits. Marcus, for all his faults, is not debaucherous character.

Theft of Fire is unlike any sci-fi book I’ve read. While my usual tastes runs deep in the fantasy genre, I’ve enjoyed sci-fi as well and Theft of Fire has situated itself as one of my favorites of all time. It is a shining example of the kind of unconstrained creativity that the indie publishing scene can deliver. Since it’s publication last October, it has garnered significant critical praise and is even nominated for a Prometheus Award

[Paul Brittain · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love what the author is doing with positive science fiction. My interpretation of the author is one with a view of the future that is heroic and successful and absent of the negative doomer philosophy ever present in our present socio-political zeitgeist. This book aims to be an antidote to the destructive and misguided ideology of de-growth and environmental sustainability at the cost of acceleration and progress. This, I can get behind. The central plot of "Theft of Fire"'s story, I enjoy.

I did want to love this book, but there are significant problems that prevent me from doing so. The quality of the dialogue needs to be improved, it's not good. I'm loath to declare it, I hate to feel compelled to voice the opinion, but it really does need work. The dialogue is unnatural, the flow feels wrong, there is too much repetition of ideas and of words (the author liked the word "pugnacious" too much) that is impossible to ignore. Characters launch into completely formed, well delivered dialogues in the middle of crisis. How a character is feeling and how they think is expressed explicitly in their dialogue. They tell you, not show you. This occurs throughout the book.

The book is written in the first-person, something that I've learned doesn't agree with me. As a design decision by the author, I won't hold it against him - it was interesting but not my cup of tea.

The structure of text and a propensity to deliver singular, short sentences on newlines was an unwelcome departure from the norm. Again, I really recommend future collaboration with a great editor.

The best chapter is #33 "The Edge of Sunlight", this is the first chapter without dialogue. The author really lets loose here with extraordinary writing, imagination, science-fiction goodness. More of this, please!

Will I read the sequel? I likely will. Do I hope and pray for a development of writing quality? You betcha'.

[Caleb Beers · Rating 5 out of 5]

In order to even begin talking about this book, I have to talk about the publishing industry first.
Traditional publishing is a bit like academia, in that it’s a dinosaur. It moves very slowly in both a proximal and a distal sense. Proximally, publishing moves slowly in that it can take years for an author to go from acceptance letter to distribution. Distally, it moves slowly in that the publishing industry has not adapted to the 21st century reality. It has adapted to 21st century *fashion*, certainly, but not to the realities of the digital age. For example, some publishers will ask prospective new authors to have a sizable social media following before taking a risk on them — but if a new author already has a social media following, then what the hell do they need a publisher for? After all, distribution and prestige are the only two reasons that authors need a publisher, and the second one is rapidly eroding, although traditional publishers remain blissfully unaware of this.
Enter Devon Eriksen. He self-published this book and promoted it mostly on Twitter, with his two wives (yes, two of them) helping out. Surprisingly, he has actually gotten some traction. Apparently, he moves a decent number of copies per month. If you’re someone who wants to write professionally (or even just have a large audience of your own), then this should excite you. The world of media is moving toward self-publishing as the default, I think, because the distribution once offered by publishing houses is now freely available to anyone with an internet connection. If Eriksen can pull this off — and by “pull it off” I mean becoming decently well-known — then that’s proof-of-concept for a new breed of author.
This all relates to the content of the novel, because it’s full of things that are verboten in traditional publishing. I’ve a list:

1. A character cannot be compelling unless they are flawed. Female characters in mainstream media are not very compelling, because they’re too perfect. If you create a female character who is genuinely flawed, then you’re a misogynist. Unless you’re a woman, in which case you’re suffering from internalized misogyny. Either way, it’s not permissible to make a genuinely flawed, thus genuinely interesting, female character.

But one of the main characters in *Theft of Fire* is a woman, named Miranda Foxgrove, who comes from a very wealthy background and is, as a result, an insufferable, entitled little goblin. But as we learn about her past, she becomes a *sympathetic* little goblin, because she went through some really fucked-up shit to become that way.

2. The main character, Marcus Warnoc, is an asteroid miner who spends months at a time isolated on his ship. He’s a tad bit thirsty, to put it mildly. As a result, he is attracted to Miranda, and expresses this frequently in his internal monologue. In traditional publishing, this sort of thing is forbidden, because traditional publishing considers male heterosexuality to be intrinsically offensive. If the author, or any male character, expresses attraction to a woman, this is automatically a horrible, objectifying case of the male gaze. This is another place where norms around discourse create unrealistic characters; to be politically correct, your male characters must never give the slightest hint that they’re attracted to women.

(A fun exercise you can do: take a description of a female character — written by a woman — and show it to someone. Tell him it was written by a male. He’ll immediately respond, “Oh, I can tell a man wrote this. His female characters are all hyper-sexualized”. Completely oblivious to the fact that he’s reading a female author. I have an answer on that here (https://qr.ae/pKqJOV).)

3. The book has no overt political message. Eriksen’s politics do show up in the book; it’s a capitalist world with very little government. The only governments in the book’s universe exist on Earth. Outer space has none. But there’s no preaching about it. The characters just live in an outer-space Wild West, and that’s all. I didn’t realize until I finished the book that it was set in an anarcho-capitalist future. The setting just *works* without the need to preach about it.
4. It’s actually entertaining. I’m not sure if traditional publishers make a deliberate effort to publish boring shit or if it’s just incompetence, but this is the first 21st century novel I’ve read that successfully entertained me. This is possibly because I’m not a great reader of fiction. Then again, the fact that Theft Of Fire entertained someone who normally doesn’t read much fiction should tell you something.
As to the book itself, I can praise more or less every aspect of it. The pacing is perfect, where every trough in the action is set up with anticipation of the next crest. The characters are all memorable and endearing and delightfully weird in their own way. The technological world seems perfect to me, but maybe that’s just because it confirms all of my own opinions about where things are headed.
One thing I have to note, however, is the research behind it. This is most definitely a *hard* science fiction book. Everything in it has been researched to a fine degree of precision that one normally does not see in science fiction. But — and this is the really astonishing part — Eriksen manages to pull this off without boring non-technical people. All of the science that is explained in the book can easily be read as “Cool science-speak” by someone who is not interested in the particulars.
(minor spoiler ahead)
More importantly, much of the research in the book shows up in *events* rather than lectures. For example, there’s one part near the beginning where a space ship nearly crashes into a space station. The space station repels the ship, and the means by which it does so are sound according to our current understanding of physics. Eriksen obviously put a lot of research into understanding exactly how a space station would accomplish a feat like this. But, as I noted before, this doesn’t take the form of a lecture. Eriksen merely describes the events as they occur; less technical readers will just accept that that’s how the book’s universe works. Whereas more technical readers can, if they want, go and do the research and realize that nearly everything described in the book is realistic with regards to how physics works. The author doesn’t lecture you on physics. He just allows physics to guide the events in the book, so that the realism is felt rather than seen.
Another point: Arthur C. Clarke famously said that “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic”. So if you’re going to write futuristic technology, you can’t explain it all the way down. By definition, if a technology has not been invented yet, then the in-universe explanation must me incomplete. Logically, this means you have to hand-wave somewhere. Eriksen does this really ingenious trick where he comes up with a hand-wave that is just as mystifying to the people in the book as it is to the reader. And because the characters accept it, so do you! As a general principle, if I want you to do something, I should make it easier for you to do that thing. Eriksen wants us to suspend disbelief, so he makes it easy for us to do that.
One big problem with a lot of indie books is the roughness. They’re just not as polished as traditionally published books, do to the lack of editors. *Theft of Fire* doesn’t have that problem. It’s quite polished. More so than some of the mainstream novels I’ve read.
tl;dr if you like hard sci-fi then buy this book yesterday. Stay away from it if you’re an easily-offended weenie. Peace.

[Robert Jenner · Rating 5 out of 5]

ETA: I just discovered today that nobody needs me to say one word about this book, because professional bloody SF legend Neal Asher just said it for me.

https://www.nealasher.co.uk/theft-of-...

Here's my review anyway:

This book takes the interstellar heist concept and twists it around to something a lot different than what readers are used to. I hate to use the word "deconstructed" because the term's been kind of abused lately, but that's sort of what the novel is doing. Defying impossible odds, making a daring raid on an impregnable target, and stealing something priceless, is - not to be too blunt - sheer suicide in any real-life scenario. In the real world, you'd probably just got shot. Even in a world centuries in the future where space travel is a commonplace reality, your ship would blow up or you'd get blown into space. This story pulls no punches in depicting the main characters' outrageous plan to steal something so valuable to literally everyone in the solar system that they would murder them on sight or at a distance to get their hands on it. The whole idea is ludicrous! Then the book says, okay, well, it's ludicrous. How do the characters get it done? More importantly, how do they survive doing so? The story of how that happens is action-packed yet realistic, and never abandons verisimilitude for a cheap plot twist that saves the day. In fact the action is so breakneck and pulse-pounding I was cursing when I had to get off the bus and get to work.

"Theft of Fire" presents itself as a gritty space opera, and it is. Frankly it's for people who found The Expanse just a little too nice and happy. However where the story's heart truly lies is a character study of three people so badly damaged and stunted emotionally that it's almost impossible for them to relate to one another. Only when they have to rise to the occasion and work together to solve a problem do they begin to see who all of them, including themselves, really are underneath. The author makes an interesting stylistic choice using first-person narration with an unreliable narrator (to the extent that any first-person narrator is reliable). It would probably have been easier to chart the characters' respective arcs with objective third-person. However, this way the reader not only has the opportunity to read between the lines and intuit the natures of Leela and Miranda, as well as Marcus' own situation, in spite of his emotional baggage, but also experience his growth and redemption as a human being right along with him.

This book is everything that today's post-modern slingers of "speculative fiction" claim they celebrate: a meditation on trauma, the nature of violence, power dynamics, a critique of capitalism (well, corporatism), even bodily dysmorphia and gender roles. However the characters approach their shortcomings and obstacles without wallowing in self-pity or blame (at least eventually). In outer space, with only a thin alloy shell separating you from decompression and floating in space as a frozen carcass for the next billion years, there's only one way to survive:

Stay calm. Think. Work the problem. Trust your crewmates. Watch your corners. Don't hesitate, but don't pull the trigger unless you know exactly what you're shooting at. Don't leave anyone behind. And when you've run out of cards to play, when all seems lost, and the story's about to be over - give it a good swift kick in the engine. Couldn't hurt.

[Rosemary · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was really gross, I stopped reading it because... just no.
Rating: M- there were distinct sexual themes, the main character guy was kinda gross, and there were also themes of abuse. Also, the Language was BAAAAD

[Olaf · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lolicon Expanse fanfic.

[Jay Brantner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as part of a judging team in the fourth annual Self-Published Science Fiction Competition (SPSFC4) where it is a quarterfinalist.

Theft of Fire is a thrilling space opera heist story with hat tips to myriad popular SFF tales. A pair of not-so-nice leads are thrown together into a high-stakes plot that brings out every single one of their character flaws, and they’re forced to overcome them and work together…or die.

Even as someone who doesn’t much care for thrillers and heists, I was really impressed with the pacing here. It keeps the tension high without recycling the same sorts of dangers, with interpersonal conflict at the beginning giving way to external conflict near the end.

I was less thrilled with the sexualization of the female lead, even as it was regularly lampshaded in the text. The lead *knows* that the woman on his ship is brilliant and not eye candy, but his gaze still slips into the eye candy a whole lot. Throw in an assault scene that’s inverted from 99% of what you see in the genre, and there’s the constant feel that the book is trying to break free of the old school sci-fi treatment of women but not entirely managing it. I respect the attempt, but I still take off points for the execution.

And for a book that did such a good job keeping my interest despite using so many classic tropes, the ending didn’t feel quite as fresh as the rest. Not bad, for sure, but not quite the page-turner as what had come before.

On the whole, this is a good read, but not without its flaws.

First impression: 14/20. Full review and SPSFC score to come at www.tarvolon.com

[Jason Whitehorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is phenomenal! The pacing was right up my street.

Slow at the start - which helped me get to grips with understanding the world I was being drawn into.

Faster in the middle with compelling dialogue and action. This helped me stay hooked and wanting to see what would happen in the next chapter.

Near the end it slowed down again, which was actually a masterful choice as the characters had a lot of unfinished business that needed to be wrapped up. However, left just enough loose ends right at the finish line to provide a brilliant hook for the next book in the series!

Finally, this book seems to have offended many softies who don't like reading hard to watch scenes between a man and a woman. They were great! I draw a similarity to Game of Thrones which takes hard to read (or watch) scenes and makes many people uncomfortable. Some don't like it, but personally I love how they were done. The book is not mindlessly glorifying bad actions, but justifying them in a twisted and imperfect - they had it coming - kind of way.

[Luca Masters · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always weird when I review a book by a friend (or in this case the husband of a parasocial Twitter friend) 'cause I know I'm supposed to give five stars. But I recently read The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and gave *that* four stars, so understand my rating in that context: it was very good, I enjoyed it a lot, but it was "only" Heinlein-level quality.

This is a sort of Firefly-esque universe, with a good "classic sci-fi" feel. The author clearly knows actual science, but uses it merely to make the technical aspects accurate. It's engaging and keeps up a good fast-but-not-hectic pace throughout.

Highly enjoyable. Impatiently awaiting the eventual sequels.

[Anderkent · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great debut!

Theft of Fire starts strong and doesn't slow down until the end, keeping you engaged throughout. A good mix of everything you need - solid action, intelligent scheming, character backgrounds and motivations that make sense. Add just the right amount of romantic tension in the right places, and the result is a page turner that's difficult to put down.

One only regrets part 2 is not out already!

[Lori E · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was fantastic! I’ll have to break my review into different parts to fully explain why this book was amazing.

From a plot and character perspective, the book was great. It had the right amount of action mixed with background information, and had a lot more space for character development than most books. The character development might actually be the best part of the plot, because one might assume that such a long book would be boring when there are really only three characters, but seeing how they change throughout the book really drove the story and made you want to keep reading. Characters can make or break a book, and these ones really make you invested in the story. I really liked how the characters learn more about themselves and grow, and also that none of the main characters are all perfect or all bad. They are extremely realistic, as real people have moments of heroism, and they also sometimes do things they are ashamed of or regret. The plot was also not easy to predict, but flowed very well and had a good cadence. So many books throw action scene after action scene at you without a good linkage between the scenes, but this book flowed exceptionally well and I was never left wondering if I missed something that would explain what was currently happening.

From a scientific perspective, the book was also great. As a scientist, particularly an asteroid scientist, I am always hesitant to read books about asteroid mining or outer space in general because I know I’m going to roll my eyes at some point because of incorrect information or because the author is trying to impress the reader with how much research they did. I was really excited to find out that neither of those things were the case here. While some of the science in the book is on the speculative side, the book is science fiction so it doesn’t detract from its realism to choose some background info that future research might prove wrong. The author did a great job having accurate science in the book while also making it flow. The few times where the book gets a little technical, it makes sense because the main character is a technical person, so you’re really just getting a look into how his mind works. The realism extends beyond the asteroid science and into astrodynamics too, which I also really appreciated. But if you are not a technical person, you will not be lost because the author also did a really good job explaining everything using simple and easy to understand language.

I also found the author’s treatment of artificial intelligence to be really unique, which is pretty impressive. I won’t give spoilers, but it really helped make this book stand out from the numerous other sci-fi space AI books.

As a gun enthusiast, I was EXCEPTIONALLY happy to read a book that finally used correct terminology and treated guns realistically. I also loved that this book used the “final frontier”/Old West style of humans’ future in space, as that is way more likely and exciting that some interplanetary government (just ask the crew of the Firefly).

Perhaps the one negative (besides having to wait rather impatiently for the next book), is that the book could use a little bit more background information on the current state of the Solar System. We get a little bit of info about Earth, but not much. Also, I think the book would have been better if a different company than SpaceX was named as the company that opened up space, because that ties the book to our current reality and broke the world a little bit for me. But that is all pretty minor.

Honestly, there was more about the book I wanted to write about, but I waited too long after reading the book to write this review and so have forgotten some of what made this book so great. I cannot wait for the sequel, and I’m sure it will be just as good as the first.

[Butter F · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theft of Fire is a truly amazing story. My favorite book that I’ve read all year! The author is a master wordsmith and storyteller. I couldn’t start reading a chapter late at night because I knew I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep!

There are two main things that I was impressed with: how the characters are written and how the action played out.

The characters: they act like real people, not like people being written if that makes sense. They aren’t idealized heroes and I don’t even like them that much. But I LOVE them as characters. Both Marcus and Miranda are flawed and not completely aware of that in the beginning of the book. The relationship stuff is toxic because both these people aren’t very great. But the book is aware of their faults (mostly). So watching them develop together was very captivating. I HATED Miranda in the beginning. I could not see any way that I could like her and yet at the end of the book I was rooting for her! I’m amazed at how my attitude changed. She is my favorite character for this reason.

The action: I think about halfway through the book is where the action begins and it was just a piece of art to experience. My heart was actually pounding! I wish I could forget it so I could read again! Things would get so bad and then the worst thing that could happen would happen and then somehow the characters still squeaked by. They would win, realize it wasn’t a win, and so have to fight even harder. What I loved is that even though the characters were against tricky odds they weren’t saved by the plot. And how it all ends is pleasantly unexpected but also the best way to end the fight. The way tension and release was handled in my mind was truly masterful. I don’t know how to gush about it more.


More thoughts (a tad spoilery):

One thing I didn’t like was how young Leela was. I know she’s an AI so not technically 12 years old, but I feel like for this story she should be a tad older.
There were a few other small things that could change but overall I was totally hooked and invested the whole way!

When I first started the book I admit I was nervous. When a woman is a nasty girl boss in stories she is typically an archetype for all that is wrong with feminism and I didn’t wanna be preached to BUT! I was pleasantly surprised and Miranda ended up being my favorite character! Not favorite person, I couldn’t stand being around her if she was real, but her character exploration is incredible.
I also loved Marcus character arc. I had no idea how he was gonna be convinced to go to Sedna because he was so stubborn and he hated Miranda so much. I also had heard this was an enemy’s to lovers story so I wondered how on earth he was going to get over his dislike. Yet both those things happened. Not in a way to push the story forward, but because it was a natural progression of Marcus’s character. ART

[Shakib · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Sci-Fi Gem That Burns Bright with Tension and Truth 🚀

🔥 Theft of Fire 🔥 is that throwback to classic sci-fi I didn’t know I needed. Like the great works of Asimov and Heinlein, Devon Eriksen writes with an economy of words that hones in on what truly matters. And in this case, it’s the complex, deeply human relationships within a found family—each member bringing vastly different needs, attitudes, and tensions to the table. 🚀✨

But what really stood out? The antagonistic dynamic between an ultra-wealthy elite and a member of the working class. 💰⚡💼 I don’t think I’ve ever read such a beautifully nuanced, brutally honest portrayal of class conflict in sci-fi. Their contextual behavior, unspoken power struggles, and simmering resentment felt raw and real—every interaction hit like a gut punch.

The story unfolds elegantly, its pacing and tension ratcheting up at just the right moments. The ending? Bittersweet perfection. But there’s a moment early on where things get very nasty—and I mean chillingly nasty. 😨 I actually felt scared. That’s how well it was written.

I’m so glad I stumbled onto this book—this is a gem. 💎 Can’t wait to dive into the next one in the series! 📖🔥

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of the approximately 15 million words I've read this year, I think I enjoyed this story the most. I'm not sure I would name it the best book, as like everything it has its strong and weak points, but as far as sheer enjoyment goes? Right at the top. Read it in a single sitting. Only took a break to pee once, and I brought my kindle with me.

To Mr. Eriksen I would like to say: Thank you for a phenomenal story. Perhaps your future releases will find their way to me before ten pm so that I don't wreck my sleep schedule next time. I have no regrets, but my colleagues will probably be happier if I'm not scowling at my coffee in the morning.

[Caleb Likes Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

Note: I was provided a free copy by the author for review; however, I will do my best to provide an honest and unbiased review. Thank you to Devon Eriksen & Christine Eriksen for the opportunity to read and review this book!

This is one of those self-published books I’d heard quite a bit about in the online book community, so when I was sent a copy I was very curious what I’d think about it. It seems that a significant portion of the people online who have read this book really loved it—I, unfortunately, was not one of them.

That said, there are things here I did enjoy, and I’ll certainly give credit for those. First things first, this book is told from a first-person perspective, and the main character, Marcus Warnoc, has an extremely strong voice. The writing style in general here has a lot of personality to it, and you really get a sense of the kind of character Warnoc is through it, even in the sections where he has no dialogue or personal reflection. The action, while rare, is well written and provided for some exciting moments here and there. I also thought the worldbuilding was mostly well done; the book takes place in the real world (galaxy?) sometime in the 2100s or 2200s (I forget which). This means that many real things, companies, and places are mentioned, which paint an interesting depiction of the near-future. It grounds the book in its setting well, and I enjoyed seeing what this version of the future, and what this future’s version of the next several decades, look like. There are also some interesting themes in this book, specifically discussing the role of AI, and I did find these to be thought provoking and well done.

Sadly, there are several things here that I did not care for. Firstly, probably my smallest issue, relates to the worldbuilding. It is generally well done, but there are parts of this book that go on for paragraphs at a time that are involved in current or recent events that did not work for me. For example, there’s a portion early in the book that spends several paragraphs explaining in detail who Elon Musk was, what people thought of him, etc; this is somewhat relevant since SpaceX is a big part of the worldbuilding in this book, but this specific section completely broke all of my immersion. This was probably the most overt example of broken immersion in the book for me, but it was not the only example. I also found these plot to be really uninteresting. Things do pick up slightly by the end, but to be completely frank, by that point I no longer cared about what was happening. The bigger issue for me, though, comes with the plot and characters. There are really only three characters in this book: Marcus, a space miner; Miranda, a descendent of Elon Musk who hijacks Marcus’s ship; and Leela, an AI created by Miranda. The character development overall is fine enough, but the issue for me is that I strongly disliked all of these characters in some way. Leela is probably the least disliked since she actually became somewhat endearing by the end, although she did start out rather annoying. I found both Marcus and Miranda to be borderline infuriating for much of the book, especially given that there’s a significant portion in which the plot stops for scores of pages, in which all that happens is these two characters bickering. Neither character expressed a single likable quality until very far into the book, at which point it I disliked them so much that it didn’t make a difference. Not only that, but it felt like these two tried to go from one side of the likability and relationship spectrum to the other in an instant. It is acknowledged by the characters that they are not very good people, so maybe the unlikability was intended, but it did not work for me. There are also other things that bothered me about these characters, but I think those are a bit more… distressing, for lack of a better word I can think of, than I’d prefer to discuss here.

I am sad to say this book was not very enjoyable for me. There were things that it did well, which I hope I was able to convey, but I was left with a feeling of not liking this book. That said, it does seem that a lot of people did enjoy it, so it seems I’m in the minority on this—I would encourage people to check the book out if it seems interesting, and it’s possible others would enjoy it more than I did.

Rating: 4.5/10

[Tabitha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never read The Expanse, but I loved the TV show, and this book made me re-experience those same feelings I had and fall in love once more with the hard sci-fi world of the spacefaring twenty-second century. MMC is a former asteroid-miner-turned-space-pirate who cobbled his own ship together with his dad like it's a Raspberry Pi, and FMC is a surgeon and cutting-edge AI researcher with an IQ of 158. The book gives you just enough information to know what the hell is going on, but doesn't exactly hold your hand on the finer points of orbital mechanics, drive signatures, "going dark" etc. so you gotta be able to keep up at least a little. It feels well-researched and thought-out. I love a book that feels like it's not dumbing things down for the reader's sake. The ability of the highly intelligent main characters to quickly solve problems and change tacks as new issues present themselves makes for an action-packed and satisfying read. The book touches on topics such as AI personhood, corporate monopolies, industrial accidents, the ethics of gene-editing, class disparity, and ends on a hopeful note, even though there's clearly a lot more that needs to be resolved in the as-of-yet-unreleased sequel. Despite the heavy topics, the humor and dialogue shines throughout, and the pacing is superb--I couldn't point out a slow point in the narrative if I tried. For a story that takes place entirely within a single spaceship with only two living beings on board who don't even like each other most of the time, it's a really tall order!

[Muir Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot get over this book. It has everything, it's like the author took all the best parts of every sci-fi book, movie or show he'd ever read/watched and combined them. I wouldn't call it dystopian at all. I also wouldn't call it utopian. There's ✨space capitalism✨ involved, socioeconomic classes are often divided by their access to simulated gravity, the "belters" are often elongated due to being born and raised in low gravity like in The Expanse, yada yada. Point being, I'd call it dys-hope-ian. It's not your typical "the world is ending and everything is terrible and we're all going to die" SciFi novel that you see in this age. SpaceX is literally in the book, still cooking along, the solar system has been colonized, and generally, a good chunk of the spacefaring population seems pretty well off.

That being said, overall, the book is about equality and equity, and what those things mean in a capitalist spacefaring society, and how one goes about taking down "the man," with a slow-burn enemies to lovers romance mixed in. Very Leia and Han Solo, if you ask me.

Icing on the cake: the science depicted is accurate and the author does not pull punches on the technical stuff, or treat the reader with kid gloves.

Five stars. Best hard scifi to see the light of day in a while.

[James Copley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done!

The Belters are very much reminiscent of Heinlein's Lunar citizens, if a bit more crass. I was pleased, but unsurprised at the history of this particular universe, especially the unnamed founder of SpaceX being touted as either an uncultured madman or unparalleled hero. Also unsurprising to see the United Nations finally getting erased by rocks from space.

However, what impressed me the most was the accurate portrayal of the toxic relationship between the two main protagonists. Most authors tend to mend fences much quicker, if only to facilitate cooperation in moving the plot forward. Instead, The author managed to maintain that contextual conflict throughout nearly the entire book, which I found to be quite unique.

One thing I wish had been done a bit differently. I know the AI, Leela, had a large part in the story, but I actually think she could have gone further. Perhaps an exploration of her apparent inability to have cognitive leaps of intuition. But that's just me. I'm a software engineer who deals with automation, so that's kind of my own passion.

Lastly, well done in accurately describing proper orbital mechanics in an understandable fashion.

[Kyle Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up on a recommendation from a well know software engineer who was a beta reader. Usually, I don't read much science fiction, until I started reading Andy Weir and I have been looking for something somewhat similar since. Having struck out on other "popular" sci-fi authors, something seemed different about what I was seeing of Theft of Fire. In the first sitting I tore through 200 pages - looking forward to the rest of the trilogy.

[Andrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting view of humans in space, but with caveats

I would rate it as 4-, mainly due to the slightly boring sex drama between main characters.
Found recommendation by John Carmack, and both he and the author said they are positive about space travel future. But (spoiler) it's not the merit of humanity, according to the plot of this book, so I am slightly dissapointed.