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Haven
It’s been generations since Eli’s ancestors crash-landed on an enigmatic planet, teeming with exceptionally hostile flora and fauna and cloaked in an impermeable bubble. Since the crash, the survivors have managed to hold their own against the planet, surviving but certainly not thriving.
To Eli, a bored teenager with a rebellious spirit, this is all just part of the routine. Now, having reached adulthood, he’s far more concerned about his future prospects.
When Eli unexpectedly lands an exciting career, he has no idea that it will take him on a journey beyond his wildest dreams.
To Eli, a bored teenager with a rebellious spirit, this is all just part of the routine. Now, having reached adulthood, he’s far more concerned about his future prospects.
When Eli unexpectedly lands an exciting career, he has no idea that it will take him on a journey beyond his wildest dreams.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 28, 2024
828 people want to read
About the author
Cam Stevenson
1 book8 followersCam Stevenson is a wannabe writer, who counts being a husband and father as his top accomplishments.
He is, by trade, a very long-time, award-winning software developer with dozens of successful (and unsuccessful) apps to his credit dating back to the 90's.
Cam is a history buff and a historical re-enactor, fascinated by the Loyalist side of the American Revolution and is an enthusiastic grunt with the King's Royal Regiment of New York and the Canadian Regiment of Fencible Infantry.
When he's not writing software (or words) or running around out-of-breath at a re-enactment, Cam is a voracious reader, largely of Science Fiction, with a special appetite for books centered around "bad real estate deals".
Cam lives in Oxford Station, Ontario with Wendy, his wife of 32 years, and a small overly confident cat named Oreo.
He is, by trade, a very long-time, award-winning software developer with dozens of successful (and unsuccessful) apps to his credit dating back to the 90's.
Cam is a history buff and a historical re-enactor, fascinated by the Loyalist side of the American Revolution and is an enthusiastic grunt with the King's Royal Regiment of New York and the Canadian Regiment of Fencible Infantry.
When he's not writing software (or words) or running around out-of-breath at a re-enactment, Cam is a voracious reader, largely of Science Fiction, with a special appetite for books centered around "bad real estate deals".
Cam lives in Oxford Station, Ontario with Wendy, his wife of 32 years, and a small overly confident cat named Oreo.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 5, 2025
Haven is an engrossing story of a young man living in a community of colonists, shipwrecked on a violently hostile planet. Isolated from the rest of the universe for the last hundred years while defending their little peninsula from the multitude of organisms which would like to kill them, their existence is suddenly upended by a mysterious arrival.
There was a lot of things I really liked about this novel, but I felt it was let down by some serious flaws.
First the good: the protagonist, Eli, is a believable character who is struggling to navigate the usual adolescent angst, amid a hostile world which makes harsh new demands on his resilience. I think readers will be drawn in by his plight, at least I was, because the author does a great job of putting the reader in his head.
The world-building stuff is authentic and intriguing - I wanted to learn more about the mysteries at the heart of the novel, and the wildlife with which Eli has to contend is imaginative and visceral. For me, good sci-fi evokes a sense of wonder, and this novel achieved that. Clearly, the author has spent a lot of time thoughtfully formulating the ins and outs of how this world works, and how the society upon it has been forced to develop. The world-building is introduced subtly without recourse to clunky exposition. There is clearly room for a sequel, and if one comes to pass I'll certainly read it. The novel did what successful first entries in series do - that is, give you a sense of the world opening out and making you want to know more about it.
There is some good writing to be found in the story and moments of wry humour which I enjoyed, but that takes me onto one of the main weakness of the novel. I thought that at times the sentence construction was quite clunky - not grammatically incorrect, just clunky - which broke up the rhythm. Like I say there is some elegant writing, but too much of it is a bit bland, I thought. I know the fashion these days is for a quite stripped back style, so it's a matter of taste perhaps.
The pacing of the book more widely was also quite uneven - there were protracted sections in which not a great deal happened and the dramatic tension dropped off a cliff, when it could have been escalating. At times I felt I was wading through extraneous detail about what the characters were up to, when I just wanted the story to get moving. All in all, I suspect the overall structure of the book is under-edited, whereas the prose gives the impression of being over-edited until it's a bit lifeless. I wonder if the author has either spent too little time editing, or conversely has taken on too much advice, resulting in the 'a camel is a horse designed by committee' phenomenon.
Finally, the dialogue for some of the minor characters was quite indistinct, so I didn't get a sense of there being a cast of living, breathing people around Eli. This was a problem, because the later stages of the book has more of an ensemble, military SF vibe to it.
Despite the flaws - which some readers might totally disagree with anyway - the strengths of the book carried the day. It's an exciting, visceral tale with a heart, which would satisfy any fan of adventure sci-fi. I finished it quite quickly because I was invested in Eli and I wanted to know more about the world, and I do hope there's a sequel. I think that with a recalibrated approach to editing, this author could produce something really special.
There was a lot of things I really liked about this novel, but I felt it was let down by some serious flaws.
First the good: the protagonist, Eli, is a believable character who is struggling to navigate the usual adolescent angst, amid a hostile world which makes harsh new demands on his resilience. I think readers will be drawn in by his plight, at least I was, because the author does a great job of putting the reader in his head.
The world-building stuff is authentic and intriguing - I wanted to learn more about the mysteries at the heart of the novel, and the wildlife with which Eli has to contend is imaginative and visceral. For me, good sci-fi evokes a sense of wonder, and this novel achieved that. Clearly, the author has spent a lot of time thoughtfully formulating the ins and outs of how this world works, and how the society upon it has been forced to develop. The world-building is introduced subtly without recourse to clunky exposition. There is clearly room for a sequel, and if one comes to pass I'll certainly read it. The novel did what successful first entries in series do - that is, give you a sense of the world opening out and making you want to know more about it.
There is some good writing to be found in the story and moments of wry humour which I enjoyed, but that takes me onto one of the main weakness of the novel. I thought that at times the sentence construction was quite clunky - not grammatically incorrect, just clunky - which broke up the rhythm. Like I say there is some elegant writing, but too much of it is a bit bland, I thought. I know the fashion these days is for a quite stripped back style, so it's a matter of taste perhaps.
The pacing of the book more widely was also quite uneven - there were protracted sections in which not a great deal happened and the dramatic tension dropped off a cliff, when it could have been escalating. At times I felt I was wading through extraneous detail about what the characters were up to, when I just wanted the story to get moving. All in all, I suspect the overall structure of the book is under-edited, whereas the prose gives the impression of being over-edited until it's a bit lifeless. I wonder if the author has either spent too little time editing, or conversely has taken on too much advice, resulting in the 'a camel is a horse designed by committee' phenomenon.
Finally, the dialogue for some of the minor characters was quite indistinct, so I didn't get a sense of there being a cast of living, breathing people around Eli. This was a problem, because the later stages of the book has more of an ensemble, military SF vibe to it.
Despite the flaws - which some readers might totally disagree with anyway - the strengths of the book carried the day. It's an exciting, visceral tale with a heart, which would satisfy any fan of adventure sci-fi. I finished it quite quickly because I was invested in Eli and I wanted to know more about the world, and I do hope there's a sequel. I think that with a recalibrated approach to editing, this author could produce something really special.
February 10, 2025
Thank you to the author for the free copy of the book that I received! I thoroughly enjoyed my reading of Haven, and I look forward to seeing where Eli's story goes next.
I liked the uniqueness of the planet and the history of the fictional world. The author does a good job of making Eli feel like a real 18 year old boy. Eli's experiences are depicted in a way that I can only describe as being perfectly teenager. I enjoyed that we learned about this world through Eli and his questions.
My only piece of critique is that the information is a bit repetitive at times, and the middle of the book gets a bit slow.
Overall, I would highly recommend this book to any young adult science fiction lovers!
I liked the uniqueness of the planet and the history of the fictional world. The author does a good job of making Eli feel like a real 18 year old boy. Eli's experiences are depicted in a way that I can only describe as being perfectly teenager. I enjoyed that we learned about this world through Eli and his questions.
My only piece of critique is that the information is a bit repetitive at times, and the middle of the book gets a bit slow.
Overall, I would highly recommend this book to any young adult science fiction lovers!
January 4, 2025
“Haven” by Cameron Stevenson is a futuristic science fiction tale centering upon 18-year-old Eli; the book does not contain a complete story arc, so I anticipate there will be a sequel. Eli and his mother live on a colonized planet plagued with strange predators who may threaten them at any time, including killer bugs and deadly plants, some of which are carnivorous. When the herd of sheep he is assigned to guard are attacked by a new type of creature, his quick-thinking and decisive action earn him an apprentice’s job in Security, just in time to deal with a mysterious incoming spaceship. Thus, Eli and the Security team embark on a dangerous journey that meets with an unexpected outcome and leads Eli to question the leadership of his colony and give serious consideration to the “wild” theory put forth by his close friend and possibly future girlfriend, Mallory. I enjoyed this story, which featured imaginative creatures and possible danger around each corner, and I liked the character of Eli. The plot was engaging, so the book is well worth a read!
April 1, 2025
Haven is a scifi that takes place on an exoplanet. On this planet is a colony that has existed for 100 years. A fluke of the planet’s characteristic caused a space ship to crash land there 100 years ago and since then, they have been hoping for a rescue from Earth. The situation on the planet is well laid out and the main character is likeable. He has a love interest, but I couldn’t really get into her character. Over the course of the story, more details about the complex situation on the planet are squeezed out. I enjoyed this process. It is so much better than a simple problem and a simple solution. To compound the dynamics in the colony, the planet is a hostile place and the colonists have to keep adapting in order to ensure their survival. In the midst of all this, still another development throws the whole order of things into chaos and takes the story off in another direction. The story ends with a lot of loose ends. I’m guessing there’s going to be a sequel. All in all, it is well told, continually moving, and enjoyable.
April 18, 2025
Haven by Cameron Stevenson is a gripping and immersive sci-fi coming-of-age novel set on a harsh and mysterious exoplanet. The story follows 18-year-old Eli, a goatherd at the edge of adulthood who longs for a more meaningful role in the small, struggling society of his ancestors. His life takes a dramatic turn when he earns the chance to become a security apprentice, embarking on a mission that opens up a much bigger world than he ever imagined.
Eli’s journey is both exciting and emotionally grounded, and his relationship with his girlfriend Mal—a curious and determined science enthusiast—adds an intriguing layer to the narrative. Mal’s theories about the planet’s hostility introduce a thread of mystery that builds throughout the book, keeping the reader guessing and engaged.
The dialogue is sharp and believable, the pacing tight, and the world-building rich without ever feeling overwhelming. I was completely hooked from start to finish and left eager to see what happens next. A well-written, thought-provoking debut that I’d highly recommend to any sci-fi fan.
Eli’s journey is both exciting and emotionally grounded, and his relationship with his girlfriend Mal—a curious and determined science enthusiast—adds an intriguing layer to the narrative. Mal’s theories about the planet’s hostility introduce a thread of mystery that builds throughout the book, keeping the reader guessing and engaged.
The dialogue is sharp and believable, the pacing tight, and the world-building rich without ever feeling overwhelming. I was completely hooked from start to finish and left eager to see what happens next. A well-written, thought-provoking debut that I’d highly recommend to any sci-fi fan.
June 2, 2025
Haven by Cam Stevenson is a thrilling sci-fi read about a society barely getting by on a planet where everything is hostile towards them. The main character, Eli, is young, adventurous, and eager to explore what is beyond the settlement where he has grown bored and restless. As luck would have it, an incident near his home forces him into a security job where he will get all the adventure and excitement he wants from life.
The world is a wonderful setting, vividly brought to life with its details and quirkiness. The author is quick to describe the hostility all around them and the despair of being forgotten by Earth. I liked how the danger is noted early on and does not seem to let up - it feels like the characters are always living on a knifes edge throughout.
Eli was a worthy lead, brave, adventurous and inquisitive, which were also his flaws as he never seemed to know when to leave things alone. This made him a great protagonist as he is accurate to his age and the profile the author sets out for him. I really liked him and his story, and look forward to what comes next.
The world is a wonderful setting, vividly brought to life with its details and quirkiness. The author is quick to describe the hostility all around them and the despair of being forgotten by Earth. I liked how the danger is noted early on and does not seem to let up - it feels like the characters are always living on a knifes edge throughout.
Eli was a worthy lead, brave, adventurous and inquisitive, which were also his flaws as he never seemed to know when to leave things alone. This made him a great protagonist as he is accurate to his age and the profile the author sets out for him. I really liked him and his story, and look forward to what comes next.
April 8, 2025
This was a great sci-fi story of the survival of a group on people on a planetary body. It has a sense of mystery as what the people thought was accidentally happening was actually instigated by external forces. The story plot was great and I hope there is a sequel to this book.
January 13, 2025
I enjoyed this story. Interesting characters and development, coupled with a backstory with details that are slowly revealed.
Looking forward to more.
Looking forward to more.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews