Linked

by S.K. Newton

Librarian Note: Alternate/new cover edition for ASIN# B00HMNP5BM.

Everything is connected.

It is the year 11,012 AD. The world is powered by Luminum, an incredible and exotic particle, generated by the Sun. It is the source of the Link, a universal quantum communications system. The entire human race has one unified government, known as The Alliance. After cataclysmic attacks on all major settlements in the Solar System, most of the human population is dead or missing. As their world collapses, Helia, Adlan and Soren, are flung into a millennia-long conspiracy.

Helia learns a powerful and dangerous secret about Luminum, and the Link that has been encoded in her very genes. A secret that has her marked for death by the Alliance. Adlan finds himself fighting for his life on an icy outpost beneath Europa. As he tries to uncover the lies of the Alliance, and what really happened in the attacks, he begins to doubt his own intentions and sanity. Soren is trapped on the Lunar Settlement, and forced to trust a secretive, enigmatic man named Riss because he keeps saving her life. Ominous signs start to emerge that they face a much darker, and more terrible threat. Known only as the Architects, they seek to enslave or destroy any who remain. A war will soon begin, but only if Helia, Adlan and Soren, decide to fight it. Faced with the choice between living forever with the ones they love, and fighting powerful and unknown forces, the three of them, linked by a destiny greater than they ever imagined, will chart a course that determines the future of the human race.

Genres: Science Fiction

425 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Writing is something I've always done, since I was at least nine or ten. I wrote stories about children like me, in other places in the world I imagined. I wrote stories about animals. I chronicled my teenage years with an almost comical level of angst. In college, I ranted with virtual foam at the mouth, about my political beliefs in every school publication, and blog I could find.

And yet, for some strange reason, I never saw myself writing for a living, and certainly never writing novels. Fortunately, the universe has a way of course-correcting (life lessons from Lost)and I found myself with eight months to write and publish my first novel, Linked. It's a completely anonymous endeavour, and so I rely on the bravery of those willing to take a chance on the unknown.

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Building a whole world, in a far future which is drastically different from the present, is a big challenge, easy to flop. There's so much information to give the reader instantaneously. Newton deftly avoids the common mistake of beginning with a lot of explanation by jumping right into the story, which is a strategy that has its own pitfalls. As the book opened, I wasn't sure it was working (what is a Dyarc? What is Luminum?), but I quickly figured out enough to get through, and got caught up in the story. As I learned the lingo, I wanted to go back and re-read the beginning, to see what I'd missed, which is a good sign.

YA isn't my favorite genre. I think a lot of books are placed in the YA genre so as to avoid delving deeply into the big questions. In this case, Newton does an excellent job of delving. The primary characters are shown in their ordinary lives, then struggling to work through extreme difficulty. The reader gets to see them change and discover themselves, with plenty of depth and emotion, and with each their own distinct voices. The characters in Linked are willing to go into their intense pain, which is a convincing motivation to overcome their various weaknesses. The one exception I noticed to this was in the case of a character who is a habitual drug user, who suddenly has to quit. Apparently he detoxes and gets on with life in a couple days, which seemed entirely unlikely to me. But by that time, I liked him so much, and wanted so badly to know what was going to happen next, that I didn't have trouble ignoring that.

It took me a while to get all the characters straight in my head. There are a lot, and many have names that are unfamiliar. Newton does a pretty good job of managing them all, and tying together a lot of loose ends before the story is complete.

The plot is complex, and much more compelling than I would have expected from the description.

This book is very much in need of a line editor. I've never read a perfect ebook, but this one had enough problems to detract from the reading experience. It's unfortunate, because otherwise, the book is quite good; but the extra commas and dropped words make it seem amateurish.

Even so, I got thoroughly caught up in the story, enough that I didn't want to put it down, and will look forward eagerly to the next book in this series.

[Chief Sweetums · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a truly fantastic Sci-Fi novel about a very unique world. I really respect this author for creating such a detailed universe that could really be turned into a movie or tv series some day. There's nothing like it and those types of books are what draw me in. All the characters have very cool and creative names and the places described are so unique and different that you will turn every page hungry for more details and not want to put the book down!
This apocalyptic read is packed with action. I know the genre has been done time and time again, but this is truly unique. The author doesn't leave anything out and truly paints a vivid picture of what's going on. I became immersed in everything that was happening, especially the action parts, and I lost track of time. It's a great release from your day to day. It's so hard to write bout something that makes you this excited without giving spoilers away. I recommend this as a family read if you have teens and/or pre-teens. They will be excited to spend time with you if you're reading this together and they won't be able to help themselves from asking you to read more with them night after night.
There's suspense, danger, action, and despair on every page. The Alliance is this world's government and they are an extremely powerful and dangerous organization. They are responsible for practically wiping everyone out in some crazy attacks on the human settlements. Different threats send the characters are blazing across the solar system and fighting for their life. You can't help but become extremely immersed and root them on. It's been a long time since a book like this has come along and really allowed me that blissful escape that this offers. I tip my hat to the author and I highly recommend this book!

[Juli Manz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five star story. Horrible edting

I cried for the love story of Soren and Riss! There is strong character and plot development. That isn't the problem with this book at all. There is a great quote about pain, taken from Soren's time on the moon, that I shared on several social sites, which I appreciated since I live with chronic pain. I really enjoyed a lot about this book.

However, missing words, improper punctuation, diction, and other editing issues are prevalent. Did anyone actually read this before publication? I would love to edit this professionally; it really only needs copy editing and I love the story. Had I not cried for the love story, my editing irritation would have lowered the stars to a two. Yep. That many errors. Small errors, but many.

At a minimum, fill in the missing words that can only be accomplished with a thorough re-read. Many readers, such as myself, will not tolerate this many errors no matter how good the story. The first time missing words occurred, I almost exited; I'm glad I didn't, but S.K. Newton be wary -- you will lose readers with all these errors. Final note: when in doubt, leave the commas out. Don't use commas like you think you speak. Toward the end, your comma use goes crazy. I'm not sure what happened. The beginning usage was fine, but then. . .

Good luck!

[Val Serio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I’d give this an 7 out of 10 on writing, but five stars for the story. With a little more polishing, and better editing, this is an instant best seller. I don’t read a lot of deep time sci-fi, but the blurb sounded interesting and it was free so I took the plunge. With free books, I don’t often go past the first chapter or two, but this sucked me in. It’s a book where nothing is as it seems...and even the characters aren’t who you think they are. It seems like almost everyone is hiding something, and story builds and builds towards this incredible explosion of tension and chaos. It’s written less in the style of typical YA sci-fi, and more like a suspenseful thriller — each chapter ending is a massive cliffie.

I love that the story doesn’t start X time after apocalyptic disaster (like most dystopia/post-apoc), it’s right in the thick of it, with all the messiness, grittiness, madness and despair. It’s a world (solar system?) gone mad and things only get crazier and more unbelievable as Helia, Adlan and Soren discover their special roles in all of it. And I love it. Recommend for sure.

[Jolene Tucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm usually not a fan of sci-fi or speculative fiction but I'm glad I gave this book a chance! The characters are well rounded and thought out, making you laugh one moment and then angry the next. The multitude of perspectives are easy to switch between even though they aren't clearly marked and it adds multifaceted views of the story's central plot. The plot is wonderful, layering together story, character, and subtext to create a world that is vivid and interesting with characters you can't get enough of. You might think this is a book that you can pick up and read over the course of a few days or a few weeks but once you pick it up, it's hard to put down! Easy to read, easy to get into. Definitely going on my favorites list! There are a few bumps along the road but nothing that's not easily overlooked and those bumps definitely don't detract from the overall narrative of the book.

[Travesty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't usually read science fiction, but my friend gave me a heads up about this book so I decided to give it a go. I am glad I did! It's very well-written, clear and concise, and an interesting plot to boot. I really enjoyed reading from the teenager's perspectives, it seemed relatable and much more fun and easier to read than some of the other sci-fi books I've tried before. I don't wanna give too much away so I will stay away from discussing the story, but I definitely liked it. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys sci-fi/fantasy or who is looking for a good introduction to the genre. Hope to read more from this author!

[Marcin Walka · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first I never intended to buy a new book for I haven't finished reading other books that I have purchased previously. I was just browsing in Amazon and the first thing that caught my attention was the blue image or graphic design at the center of the book cover.haha..Then, I got curious saw that it's written by s.k. newton. Seems interesting for me, purchased it and now I'm starting to read it and loving every line of the story. I never thought that I will be satisfied with this book. I highly recommend it to people out there who want to purchase a book and read an interesting story. Actually my nephew like the story too, I'm going to share it with the rest of the family.

[Austin Quinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read. Newton delivers in fine fashion with this thoughtful and inquisitive science fiction thriller. From the first few pages on a was drawn in. I found it very hard to stop reading and ended up finishing it in several days (I've been very busy with school and work, so that's fast for me at the moment). I really enjoyed how far set in the future it is, and the characters, although young, were well developed and likable. I was excited to see a sequel is coming soon!

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a lot to love here, with three very different, yet engaging protagonists, a well executed plot, and a vivid writing style. However, this book is in dire need of a copy editor - missing words, heterograph mixups (it's/its abounded), and the occasional typo were just too distracting to overlook. This could easily go up a star if cleaned up a bit.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Desperately needs a good editor. I think there is promise here, but grammar and typos were distracting, and sometimes I couldn't tell what was happening with the plot.

[Velvetink]

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