Exemplar

by Alastair Wells

On Earth, technology is forbidden …

On the new worlds, technology is everything …

A wild ride into the future of humankind.

After damaging climate change, humanity is divided, torn into the technophobic nature-worshippers on Earth and the banished children of science on the new worlds.

Jaruss awakens, drifting 300 light-years from Earth, trapped, memoryless, and alone. Who is he, where does he come from, and what are these recurring nightmares that trouble his sleep? To find out, he must outwit an efficiency-obsessed AI and join the dangerous crew of the stealth ship, Pangolin.

Thought-provoking interstellar adventure brilliantly executed.

Starts in the vein of an Andy Weir novel (The Martian, Project Hail Mary) and then picks up serious Firefly vibes.

Genres: Science Fiction

388 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 25, 2024

Reviews

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise and story were interesting but I had to give up because the dialogue was so awkward and stilted. Also, the space pirates were comparing things to bears and pineapples. WTF?

[Roland Waddilove · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my kind of book

I read about 100 pages and then have up. It just didn't appeal to me. I found the lack of characters (one person and an AI) and history of the world dull. Maybe things happen later on, but I couldn't force myself to read any more.

[William LeGro · Rating 3 out of 5]

decent story, poor writing

The plot is imaginative. The writing, though, is often tone-deaf. Early on there’s a multipage monolog by the ship that is plainly the author’s political agenda speaking about today’s current events, and that’s repeated frequently throughout. Sometimes the dialog is realistic, other times it’s stilted in the way actual people would never talk. A few chapters are pure filler — unimportant, and why they were included is a mystery. A good editor would have killed them. And a huge hole: how is it that a few thousand scientists decamped to Pohnpei, a Micronesian island of 129 square miles, and there managed to develop space science and technology to the point of near-light speed travel? Using antimatter? Which now is a product only of particle accelerators? Which are enormous construction projects. I mean, that calls for intensive manufacturing of everything needed, from tools to colliders to plastics and metals and computers and…and all the kinds of things not at all available on a tiny remote island in the Pacific with few natural resources beyond phosphate. How all this could happen in such a place is just not even mentioned. We’re expected to think, well somehow they managed. The book ends on a cliff-hanger — and while I would like to know what happens next because the overall story held my interest, I don’t know if I can put up with more turgid dialogue and improbable science and even more improbable events.

[Luke Shiras · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I started reading this I thought I was in for a treat because the author seemed to have a deep grasp of the science behind the fiction and how it would dictate how the story progressed. In fact, it was so science-heavy, that I began to worry it was going to become all science and no plot.

But once we get past the first third of the book and the set-up/background of interstellar space travel and what spurred it, the story shifts to some classic Sci-Fi storyline. This is where the book loses momentum. The plot itself isn't bad but the characters and dialogue are rather flat and feel more like tropes of a YA book than the realistic and fact-based introduction we started with.

I'm not looking for "adult content" but I would like to have more grown-up reactions and motivations. I want to see these characters as real people responding to real problems, where their own faults, mistakes, and misunderstandings limit their successes and how they grow and overcome those obstacles. I'm not interested in caricatures of "space-heroes". I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Read Ng · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like hard science fiction. I heard about this book and thought it showed promise. I even purchased both books #1 and #2.

Well it does pretty much stick to the hard science fiction route. Does mention relativistic travel, but does not attempt to explain any of the science. Steers away from FTL science discussions.

I was not a fan of the writing style. A bit slow paced. Comes across as separate tales with just a meager thread to connect the pieces. Ends with some mild questions to lead into the next book in this "Sequence". Perhaps the author ended this book a bit prematurely in his haste to get out book #2? I guess I will have to read more to see how the author brings it all together. Overall I still enjoyed it, but it was not enthralling. I am hoping book #2 will become more engaging.

Have a GoodReads.

[Akshita · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story and plot are really good, something I could instantly connect with, considering how the human race is moving forward.

Although, there were a lot of technical terms and complicated aero-tech jargon which made it difficult for me to lose interest in the story quite too many times.

But I did read this book twice, and am sooo looking forward to reading the sequel…

All in all, it is a must-read for all those who are into space engineering, aeronautics and related stuff. The story is supposed to be science-fiction, but it was definitely something than can become a reality much sooner than we would anticipate.

PS: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Abbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disjointed and clumsy. The writing was not great. The dialog was annoying and felt like the characters were trying way too hard to be nonchalant. I was sucked in by the world building and thought that it was interesting but it gradually became unrealistic in a way that really annoyed me. A thousandish years in the future, interstellar ftl travel and suspended animation is commonplace and people occupy many many planets, yet they do not have universal genetic sequencing, still have gold as a status marker, and still use the phrase “high school”? The unlikelihood of other aspects of this far future have already been mentioned in other reviews. I want to give that extra star though because it did, in fact, wholly capture my attention for almost half of the book.

[RUSSELL SHEARER · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily:

This is a wonderful blend of hard science with interesting themes, creating a narrative that is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally engaging. The character development is superb, and the plot twists keep you on the edge of your seat.

One of the standout aspects of this book is its vivid world-building. The contrast between the technophobic society on Earth and the advanced civilizations on the new worlds is brilliantly depicted.

Overall, Exemplar is a well-crafted adventure that will leave you eagerly anticipating the next installment in The Autonomous Sequence. Highly recommended!

[Fred Bloggs · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty unimaginative and dull. Really, more than 1000 years onto the future, and a non-intelligent AI is the norm? I could live with that as a plot device, but the awful fixation on a particular word at various times. "Scutoid" springs to mind. Oh, and look up internecine. The expository dialogue was pretty lame as well. Pages of the 'BES" explaining earth's (unlikely) history. Why have I given it 2 stars - well the basic plot ideas is vaguely interesting, and there's an awful lot more bad self-published SF or there.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exemplar gets off to a good start but then loses focus. At first, we follow Jarus, who is rescued from suspended animation in a survival pod in deep space. He remembers basic information but lacks any memory of his personal history. He works his way into the crew of the ship that has rescued him, and with their help, he sets out to discover who he is. So far, so good.
But then the plot complicates, and the action bogs down with unnecessary infodumps.

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a hard science fiction story, yes, but the author sees to have irrevocably lost the plot.

After about the fifth super-irrelevant tangent, I just couldn’t follow along. At one point, I wasn’t clear on who the protagonist of the story was intended to be! It’s almost as if the author tried to weave together 6-7 short stories, all with different themes.

I had to give up, although I made it through 3/4 of the book.

[Becky Rosas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Alastair Wells for the ARC of this book.it starts out like a book in the style of Andy Weir then moves into a Firefly like vibe. The characters are very interesting and have a lot of great background. The main character has a mystery about him that is an important part of the book. I can’t wait for the second book. A great read!

[C. Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Slow start but gets bettet.

I almost stopped reading in the first quarter of the book. A lot of
Information dumping, with no discernable story. Fortunately, it got better in the second quarter, turning into space opera. There was some additional information dumping toward the end, but I did finish and enjoyed most of it.

[Jacktar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read

I enjoyed the book, no fantasy space beasts, but enjoyable. Was really getting in to the Beysian AI, but the script flip was actually even better… I like writing that doesn’t telegraph the story, and that leaves you anxious to find out what happens next, and on that note, I’m off to the next book…

[Stephen M Blank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good character, good plot, an awful lot of descriptive wording

I liked the basic premise and once the characters appeared, I liked them. But that took a long time, there was a lot of descriptive and declarative speaking - history lessons to a large part - which slowed up plot development.

[John Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a little "preachy" in parts as it tries to explain how we got there from here. There's the main character who has no memory of his life before rescue. There's the 'expert system' that seems kind of dull. Then come the space pirates. Then we run into gangs on a space station.
Overall the writing is professional, the hard science seems fairly good, although I think that the time dilation would cause more issues. The cultural science seems a bit sketchy to me.

[Victor Schreffler · Rating 5 out of 5]

laying a great foundation

For a well developed space opera. Lots of plot lines, excellent science, engaging characters. The author is painting an engaging story on a large canvas. I’m hooked. Can’t wait for the next installment.

[Larryw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written

This book started out slowly, without much plot setup. However the story quick!y morphed into a pretty good story with interesting story, of which this is obviously a first installment.
I am keen to read further installments.

[Larry Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good beginning…

This was a good introduction to the cast of characters, the storyline and the complexity of the protagonist. I enjoyed it and really look forward to the next installment

[Robert Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

space gang threads

The depth of detail tying all the characters together was very deep.
I almost got impatient with the amount of time spent on describing every little trinket around them. Fortunately I speed read.

[Andrew Sawczyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would consider this book a "deserted island" book in that if I was marooned on a deserted island there is a slight chance that I would finish it. Apparently "hard sci-fi" translates to the inability to write human characters and dialogue.

[davidandcillla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why is this so difficult?

I liked the story but why is it so difficult to find the next in the series?
I'm going to read the next book it I can find it

[Steve Smiley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heavy science fiction, but an engaging tale. Keeps you invested and moving forward.

[T.L. L. Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

Highly recommend this thrilling scientific ride. The plot will keep you going but the characters will have you wanting to know what happens next.

[Arnold Coley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoughtful Read

Interesting book with a firefly like feel for the crew. The book seems to be headed a certain way, and I'll read the next one to make sure.

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exemplar

This is a very interesting and well written book. It looks at the idea of travel between stars in a realistic manner and manages make a good story out of it.

[Ian Forsythe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some neat ideas.....

[Laszlo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average

[Cheryl Lane · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a DNF for me. Made it halfway and just couldn’t get into it.

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just finished "Exemplar" and I have already checked to see when the second book of this series comes out. ("Instrumental: Hard Science Fiction: The Autonomous Sequence, Book 2" is expected to be available on April 17, 2025.) The first adventure in this 2-book series came to a satisfactory ending but there is still another adventure to come, as was obvious from the ending of this book.
That's OK with me. I found "Exemplar" to be an exciting adventure with good characters. The plot held my interest throughout the book and left me wanting more.

It seems that our protagonist has no memory of anything prior to waking from a fugue state, alone, aboard an automated mining ship on an interstellar voyage. The mining ship is attacked by The Pangolin, a ship of interstellar traders who operate on the edge of legality. They desperately needed the engines from the mining ship but, were surprised to find the mining ship had an occupant. Jaruss is a bit of a mystery to the crew of the Pangolin, mostly because he doesn't know anything about himself.

Wells does a good job of creating interesting characters and a constantly moving storyline. Wells' scientific education is evident in his story-telling. He must have also, benefitted from his father's background as an English teacher and traveling story-teller. Wells gets it right , both in the science and the story. Can't wait to continue the adventure.