What do you think?
Rate this book
The Sagittan Chronicles #1
The Wounded World
Upon returning to Pomegranate City, Quin discovers that his father has disappeared, taking with him knowledge that is precious to his government and leaving behind a very dangerous new Door. As he sets out on his journey to find his father, Quin hopes that he hasn't stumbled onto a problem that so big he cannot even begin to solve it.
This science fiction tale weaves the mystery of different worlds together with hope, friendship, and a little bit of romance.
This science fiction tale weaves the mystery of different worlds together with hope, friendship, and a little bit of romance.
- GenresScience Fiction
250 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2014
4 people are currently reading
68 people want to read
About the author
Ariele Sieling
71 books91 followersAriele Sieling is a Pennsylvania-based writer who enjoys books, cats, and trees. Her first love, however, is science fiction and she has three series in the genre: post-apocalyptic monsters in Land of Szornyek; soft science fiction series, The Sagittan Chronicles; and scifi fairytale retellings in Rove City. She has also had numerous short stories published in a variety of anthologies and magazines and is the author of children's books series Rutherford the Unicorn Sheep, and a series of books for authors called Writers Reach.
She lives with her spouse, enormous Great Pyrenees dog, and two cats.
She lives with her spouse, enormous Great Pyrenees dog, and two cats.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 12, 2016
The Wounded World is the first of the Sagittan Chronicles science fiction series by Ariele Sieling. To be clear, the work is soft sci-fi rather than hard sci-fi, which means its story relies on entirely fictitious science. Its purpose is to entertain, not to anticipate or warn about the future or consequences of science.
The book’s characters inhabit a highly advanced society which has two important technologies that set it apart from Earth. The first is the Doors (try to set the night on fire!), portals which allow people to cross any distance from a single city block to all the way across the universe. The other technology is planetary construction. These people actually build planets, and Earth was one of their projects. Fans of Douglas Adams’s books will find this idea quite familiar. These two technologies are crucial to the story’s plot. Our hero, a soldier and all-around tough guy named Quin Black, spends the story travelling through dozens of Doors in search of his father, Grise Black, who has nefarious plans involving unauthorized planetary construction. Quin is accompanied by his close friend John, who is a genius mathematician. The mathematics of planet construction and teleportation are never explained, but John spends a lot of time working with numbers that only make sense to him. The book has a fair amount of comedy, much of which centers on this off-kilter friendship between Quin (the muscle) and John (the brain).
The story is for the most part a manhunt, and it’s written quite well. The prose was good, the sentences were both descriptive and concise and I don’t remember seeing typos or formatting errors anywhere. It had an adventure aspect to it as well, which for the most part was done well. As a sci-fi novel, I was pleased with The Wounded World.
That being said, there were some aspects that I thought could have been developed much more. The book was good, but it could have been better. Grise Black, the antagonist, was underdeveloped. I didn’t understand very well how his motives connected with his goals or why his troubled relationship with Quin was the way it was. Besides that, the fact that this story’s setting is a society that actually created and monitors the planet Earth had so much untapped potential. For the first dozen pages of the book, I thought the setting was actually a futuristic Earth. When the setting is revealed, it’s in an offhand joke that John makes rather than in any kind of shocking grand reveal. These people, from a human standpoint, could be considered gods. Yet they have the same social ranks, the occupations, and even the same animals that are found on Earth. Having them more discernably alien, and having them bear some kind of burden over the conduct of Earth, could have been interesting to see. I’m imagining something like Theodore Sturgeon’s short story ‘The Microcosmic God’, or more contemporarily the Rick and Morty episode ‘The Ricks Must Be Crazy’. The Wounded World is the first of a series, so perhaps these themes are explored more in the other books.
The novel was clear of any sexual content or any strong graphic violence, so I’d say it’s appropriate for teens and young adults, though adultier adults may enjoy it as well. I’d recommend it for sci-fi fans and fans of adventure stories. Personally I enjoyed it, though I think it had some untapped potential.
The book’s characters inhabit a highly advanced society which has two important technologies that set it apart from Earth. The first is the Doors (try to set the night on fire!), portals which allow people to cross any distance from a single city block to all the way across the universe. The other technology is planetary construction. These people actually build planets, and Earth was one of their projects. Fans of Douglas Adams’s books will find this idea quite familiar. These two technologies are crucial to the story’s plot. Our hero, a soldier and all-around tough guy named Quin Black, spends the story travelling through dozens of Doors in search of his father, Grise Black, who has nefarious plans involving unauthorized planetary construction. Quin is accompanied by his close friend John, who is a genius mathematician. The mathematics of planet construction and teleportation are never explained, but John spends a lot of time working with numbers that only make sense to him. The book has a fair amount of comedy, much of which centers on this off-kilter friendship between Quin (the muscle) and John (the brain).
The story is for the most part a manhunt, and it’s written quite well. The prose was good, the sentences were both descriptive and concise and I don’t remember seeing typos or formatting errors anywhere. It had an adventure aspect to it as well, which for the most part was done well. As a sci-fi novel, I was pleased with The Wounded World.
That being said, there were some aspects that I thought could have been developed much more. The book was good, but it could have been better. Grise Black, the antagonist, was underdeveloped. I didn’t understand very well how his motives connected with his goals or why his troubled relationship with Quin was the way it was. Besides that, the fact that this story’s setting is a society that actually created and monitors the planet Earth had so much untapped potential. For the first dozen pages of the book, I thought the setting was actually a futuristic Earth. When the setting is revealed, it’s in an offhand joke that John makes rather than in any kind of shocking grand reveal. These people, from a human standpoint, could be considered gods. Yet they have the same social ranks, the occupations, and even the same animals that are found on Earth. Having them more discernably alien, and having them bear some kind of burden over the conduct of Earth, could have been interesting to see. I’m imagining something like Theodore Sturgeon’s short story ‘The Microcosmic God’, or more contemporarily the Rick and Morty episode ‘The Ricks Must Be Crazy’. The Wounded World is the first of a series, so perhaps these themes are explored more in the other books.
The novel was clear of any sexual content or any strong graphic violence, so I’d say it’s appropriate for teens and young adults, though adultier adults may enjoy it as well. I’d recommend it for sci-fi fans and fans of adventure stories. Personally I enjoyed it, though I think it had some untapped potential.
September 13, 2018
Earlier this year I reviewed All In, a prequel to The Wounded World. I can definitely detect a maturation in Ms. Sieling's writing style between this book and that one. All In features language that seems a little more polished and a little more natural. However, The Wounded World is still a quite well-written book. One based on a pretty unique and creative premise.
Readers of this book should be aware that it is soft sci-fi. That means that the science aspect is not supposed to be grounded in too much reality. There is science, yes, but there's an almost magical quality to it, making this story border a bit on fantasy. So questions of whether the events in the book could actually happen are irrelevant. Of course they can't actually happen. That's not what soft sci-fi and sci-fi/fantasy are all about.
The Wounded World is also intended to be a light read, so don't expect to go too deep into, for example, the relationship between Quin and his father or Kate and her brother. Those relationships exist to keep the plot moving along. They also make the characters feel more real by giving them some backstory, but they are not meant to be the main focus of the book.
The Wounded World is a light-hearted adventure through magical doors into unknown worlds. So if you're reading this one, just sit back and enjoy the journey. The fun of reading it is trying to guess where each new door will lead.
Readers of this book should be aware that it is soft sci-fi. That means that the science aspect is not supposed to be grounded in too much reality. There is science, yes, but there's an almost magical quality to it, making this story border a bit on fantasy. So questions of whether the events in the book could actually happen are irrelevant. Of course they can't actually happen. That's not what soft sci-fi and sci-fi/fantasy are all about.
The Wounded World is also intended to be a light read, so don't expect to go too deep into, for example, the relationship between Quin and his father or Kate and her brother. Those relationships exist to keep the plot moving along. They also make the characters feel more real by giving them some backstory, but they are not meant to be the main focus of the book.
The Wounded World is a light-hearted adventure through magical doors into unknown worlds. So if you're reading this one, just sit back and enjoy the journey. The fun of reading it is trying to guess where each new door will lead.
December 19, 2021
The Wounded World is a fun science-fantasy romp following best friends Quin and John as they hunt for Quin's missing dad and slowly begin to unravel the mystery of a Door that appeared in the middle of said father's home.
Doors are methods of instant travel from one place to another. But this door is different. Potentially dangerous. But that doesn't stop ... well, one of our intrepid duo. :)
Quin and John are an interesting duo. Quin is the stoic warrior while John is the chatterbox scientist who likes mathematics often more than people (though this iteration of the archetype at least is a lot better with people that some of his peers). The plot of the story takes us across a multitude of different worlds as they strive to figure out what's happening and save the people who are in danger.
I think the interactions between our two leads was my favorite part of the story. Even though these are both character types we've all seen before, their iterations here are imbued with a comfortable camaraderie and a deep understanding of how each other think and act that tells us a lot about the length and depth of their relationship without someone having to monologue about it. These two have been working together for a long time and it shows.
The pacing in this book may be a little bit too fast for some -- the planet hopping can sometimes be wildly quick. But for the story it was trying to tell, I found the pacing to work well. It really is a whirlwind of a trip for the characters, so it should be for the reader as well. And it helps make it feel more natural as elements of almost everywhere they ended up traveling to had an impact on the finale.
It's not a perfect book. There are some things that raise more questions than they answer. (Like, if Earth is so isolated, why is their culture so close to that of whatever Quin and John are? Or are they all humans and there was some sort of population split before other alien races were found? It doesn't feel like they're human, but... eh.) But it was a quick, fun read and I actually felt the rising tension at every step of the journey. If it sounds like it could be interesting to you, it may be worth giving it a go.
Doors are methods of instant travel from one place to another. But this door is different. Potentially dangerous. But that doesn't stop ... well, one of our intrepid duo. :)
Quin and John are an interesting duo. Quin is the stoic warrior while John is the chatterbox scientist who likes mathematics often more than people (though this iteration of the archetype at least is a lot better with people that some of his peers). The plot of the story takes us across a multitude of different worlds as they strive to figure out what's happening and save the people who are in danger.
I think the interactions between our two leads was my favorite part of the story. Even though these are both character types we've all seen before, their iterations here are imbued with a comfortable camaraderie and a deep understanding of how each other think and act that tells us a lot about the length and depth of their relationship without someone having to monologue about it. These two have been working together for a long time and it shows.
The pacing in this book may be a little bit too fast for some -- the planet hopping can sometimes be wildly quick. But for the story it was trying to tell, I found the pacing to work well. It really is a whirlwind of a trip for the characters, so it should be for the reader as well. And it helps make it feel more natural as elements of almost everywhere they ended up traveling to had an impact on the finale.
It's not a perfect book. There are some things that raise more questions than they answer. (Like, if Earth is so isolated, why is their culture so close to that of whatever Quin and John are? Or are they all humans and there was some sort of population split before other alien races were found? It doesn't feel like they're human, but... eh.) But it was a quick, fun read and I actually felt the rising tension at every step of the journey. If it sounds like it could be interesting to you, it may be worth giving it a go.
January 26, 2022
4.5 stars
This was pretty different from other books I've read by the author, and yet I could see her writing style in the story. While I would classify this as science fiction with some time differential, it's not really strictly time travel. The premise of the book is that there is a race of people who have the technology to create doors to other places, either on the same planet or to other planets. But they also have the technology to create other worlds, with Earth being one of them. The two main characters are John, a mathematical genius who is an expert on the doors, and Quin, a soldier/muscle type guy fairly high up in the organization. They are best friends and together they make the story really quite interesting. Although the author doesn't really bother explaining the science (and in fact, Quin doesn't understand the science at all), she does show Quin puzzling out the science, making all sorts of measurements and that leads to some funny situations with Quin and John. I suppose some might consider this to be soft sci-fi, since the science of portals is more there to support the story, but I'm not a purist, so I really enjoyed meeting all the different characters and learning about the worlds. There was even a little bit of romance that added a nice dimension to Quin's character.
Ariele Sieling does such a nice job creating interesting characters and that was my favorite part of this story. I do think that the father, Grise, needs a lot more development though. He's mentioned throughout, but we don't really know all that much about him, and we only get hints about his motivations; I'm hoping we'll find out more in future books. If this is anything like the author's other series, Land of Szornyek, I will grow more and more attached to the characters in future books. I'm very excited about this new series and am off to Amazon to get the rest of the series!
I received an advance review copy from BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This was pretty different from other books I've read by the author, and yet I could see her writing style in the story. While I would classify this as science fiction with some time differential, it's not really strictly time travel. The premise of the book is that there is a race of people who have the technology to create doors to other places, either on the same planet or to other planets. But they also have the technology to create other worlds, with Earth being one of them. The two main characters are John, a mathematical genius who is an expert on the doors, and Quin, a soldier/muscle type guy fairly high up in the organization. They are best friends and together they make the story really quite interesting. Although the author doesn't really bother explaining the science (and in fact, Quin doesn't understand the science at all), she does show Quin puzzling out the science, making all sorts of measurements and that leads to some funny situations with Quin and John. I suppose some might consider this to be soft sci-fi, since the science of portals is more there to support the story, but I'm not a purist, so I really enjoyed meeting all the different characters and learning about the worlds. There was even a little bit of romance that added a nice dimension to Quin's character.
Ariele Sieling does such a nice job creating interesting characters and that was my favorite part of this story. I do think that the father, Grise, needs a lot more development though. He's mentioned throughout, but we don't really know all that much about him, and we only get hints about his motivations; I'm hoping we'll find out more in future books. If this is anything like the author's other series, Land of Szornyek, I will grow more and more attached to the characters in future books. I'm very excited about this new series and am off to Amazon to get the rest of the series!
I received an advance review copy from BookSirens for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
February 19, 2022
The Wounded World is the first book in the Sagitta Chronicles Series. I read a lot of books and can honestly say I’ve never read a book with this type of story before. Can you imagine coming home and finding a door in the middle of your living room? Where does the door go? How did it get there? It certainly wasn’t there when you left. Well that’s what happens to our protagonists Quin and John. On top of all that Quin’s father is missing. Would you go through the door? Of course, that’s exactly what Quin and John do and what they find on the other side is very interesting
This author is very good at character and world building. The characters are very believable and as I read the book I was able to visualise the different places Quin and John visited. The story will take you through a few emotions as you read it and learn about Quin and his father, as well as, what happens on the other planet.
The book is slow to get into but once you do you don’t want to put it down because you have to find out how it will end. I’m looking forward to reading the remaining books in the series.
If you like a good sci-fi adventure then you will enjoy reading this book.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This author is very good at character and world building. The characters are very believable and as I read the book I was able to visualise the different places Quin and John visited. The story will take you through a few emotions as you read it and learn about Quin and his father, as well as, what happens on the other planet.
The book is slow to get into but once you do you don’t want to put it down because you have to find out how it will end. I’m looking forward to reading the remaining books in the series.
If you like a good sci-fi adventure then you will enjoy reading this book.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
January 15, 2022
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I wanted desperately to like this book especially since I've liked all the other series this author has written but this book just wasn't doing it for me. I had a hard time getting into the story and keeping track of what was happening. There were a bunch of characters and places but I had a hard to conceptualizing and getting really attached or remembering them. I kept waiting for the book to get more interesting but it just wasn't happening for me. If you like other books that the author has written and Sci-fi you'll probably end up liking this.
I wanted desperately to like this book especially since I've liked all the other series this author has written but this book just wasn't doing it for me. I had a hard time getting into the story and keeping track of what was happening. There were a bunch of characters and places but I had a hard to conceptualizing and getting really attached or remembering them. I kept waiting for the book to get more interesting but it just wasn't happening for me. If you like other books that the author has written and Sci-fi you'll probably end up liking this.
April 6, 2018
An interesting book that kept me turning pages. Borderline fantasy over sci-fi (in other words, not hard sci-fi if that's what you're into). I want to follow the series. Grabbed me the first few pages and never let go.
August 9, 2015
This book's writing style thoroughly disagrees with me. If I had to describe it in a single word I would call it 'unhinged', like a dream that shifts randomly from moment to moment with only minimal relations between said moments. I had the same issue with The Chronicles of Amber, that also suffered from this.
Characters seem to pop up at random whenever they are needed. Wolf seems to be able to instantly teleport everywhere without even using Doors, showing up everywhere and seemingly involved in everything.
Another example is when Quin (man with implied military training) sneaks into the Globe to steal a book. He's being cautious, sneaking into a secure facility through a hidden entrance and finally locating the book he needs. At that exact moment, John (who is effectively a nerd and has been shown to lack caution) bursts in through the door exclaiming 'I knew you'd be here!'.
At this point some people might just continue reading, but for me the entire story jars to a full stop here leaving me to wonder only 'How the hell did John get there?'. Given the time he had, who he is, and the location, it's impossible. Unless you accept 'the plot demands it' as an answer. And if there are genuine reasons for his sudden appearance I would love to know what they are so I can frame things better.
I'm aware that having large info dumps to explain background isn't desirable, but a complete lack doesn't work either. I suffered from this with The Quantum Thief as well, yet where things became clear eventually in that book. It never does here, which is a huge turnoff for me. I like my plots to be solid and consistent, which this novel fails at.
Another problem is the lack of introspection. It never becomes clear to me why the main character (or any character) does what he does. Yes, he wants to find his father, but how the individual actions he takes fit into that is never made clear until after he did them and even then it frequently remains hazy.
This makes me not care about the characters, which is ironic because the characters don't seem to care much about each other either. Quin and John encounter Kate on a world, which they intend to escape together. Circumstances force them to flee without her and she's not mentioned again until they run into her again in a later chapter. If the main character doesn't care about Kate, why should I?
And that perhaps, is the thing that grated me the most. You have all these different worlds, but there is barely any world building, which makes all the places seem the same and very small, which is made worse by meeting the same characters over and over again. The entire book feels like a stage play with a handful of fixed sets and a small number of players, which isn't a bad thing in itself, but clashes hard with the world spanning subject of the novel.
In summation, I did not like it and thus give it one star.
Characters seem to pop up at random whenever they are needed. Wolf seems to be able to instantly teleport everywhere without even using Doors, showing up everywhere and seemingly involved in everything.
Another example is when Quin (man with implied military training) sneaks into the Globe to steal a book. He's being cautious, sneaking into a secure facility through a hidden entrance and finally locating the book he needs. At that exact moment, John (who is effectively a nerd and has been shown to lack caution) bursts in through the door exclaiming 'I knew you'd be here!'.
At this point some people might just continue reading, but for me the entire story jars to a full stop here leaving me to wonder only 'How the hell did John get there?'. Given the time he had, who he is, and the location, it's impossible. Unless you accept 'the plot demands it' as an answer. And if there are genuine reasons for his sudden appearance I would love to know what they are so I can frame things better.
I'm aware that having large info dumps to explain background isn't desirable, but a complete lack doesn't work either. I suffered from this with The Quantum Thief as well, yet where things became clear eventually in that book. It never does here, which is a huge turnoff for me. I like my plots to be solid and consistent, which this novel fails at.
Another problem is the lack of introspection. It never becomes clear to me why the main character (or any character) does what he does. Yes, he wants to find his father, but how the individual actions he takes fit into that is never made clear until after he did them and even then it frequently remains hazy.
This makes me not care about the characters, which is ironic because the characters don't seem to care much about each other either. Quin and John encounter Kate on a world, which they intend to escape together. Circumstances force them to flee without her and she's not mentioned again until they run into her again in a later chapter. If the main character doesn't care about Kate, why should I?
And that perhaps, is the thing that grated me the most. You have all these different worlds, but there is barely any world building, which makes all the places seem the same and very small, which is made worse by meeting the same characters over and over again. The entire book feels like a stage play with a handful of fixed sets and a small number of players, which isn't a bad thing in itself, but clashes hard with the world spanning subject of the novel.
In summation, I did not like it and thus give it one star.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 28, 2016
What if I told you that in the future, one could walk through doorways, seemingly near magical portals that allowed humans to travel throughout outer space? In "Wounded World," the line between reality and the unknown share a symbiotic relationship that transcends any science fiction novel I've read to date! I could not put it down and I don't think you'll be able to either.
When an unexpected and unauthorized door manifests in the middle of Quin Black's living room, he suspects his missing father of creating it, and leaving it behind. The knowledge that his father possesses is much sought after, and highly regulated to be deemed dangerous . These types of doorways are shortcuts between different worlds meant for Terra forming new planets, and common in the world Quin was reared in. Quin works for a futuristic government, and must find out where his father is to save the world from a catastrophic event. Accompanied by his friend John, Quin embarks on his mission, visiting other worlds in the process. He meets all different types of cultures, and faces different issues in each new world he comes across.
The World building in this novel is quite creative and unique. I found each planet they visited had a refreshing new environment and totally new experience. This novel is a must read, and can't wait to start the next book by Ms. Sieling.
You may view my review here: http://fanaticreviewsbyjess.blogspot....
When an unexpected and unauthorized door manifests in the middle of Quin Black's living room, he suspects his missing father of creating it, and leaving it behind. The knowledge that his father possesses is much sought after, and highly regulated to be deemed dangerous . These types of doorways are shortcuts between different worlds meant for Terra forming new planets, and common in the world Quin was reared in. Quin works for a futuristic government, and must find out where his father is to save the world from a catastrophic event. Accompanied by his friend John, Quin embarks on his mission, visiting other worlds in the process. He meets all different types of cultures, and faces different issues in each new world he comes across.
The World building in this novel is quite creative and unique. I found each planet they visited had a refreshing new environment and totally new experience. This novel is a must read, and can't wait to start the next book by Ms. Sieling.
You may view my review here: http://fanaticreviewsbyjess.blogspot....
December 13, 2014
This review was originally published by Kurt's Frontier on Invincible Love of Reading.
Synopsis:
Quin Black works for the government of a future civilization. This civilization has gates (called Doors) that can lead from one world to another. The technology also exists to build words. However, the knowledge to do both is highly regulated due to the consequences of doing it wrong. Quin’s father, Grise Black, has disappeared from their home in Pomegranate City, leaving behind a Door that he invented and is considered highly dangerous. Follow by his friend John, Quin sets out to find his father before this knowledge leads to a catastrophe.
Review:
The Wounded World is a very entertaining story with some thought provoking ideas. Ariele Sieling takes her hero from one world to the next searching for his father. Along the way, they meet different cultures with different problems. Ariele Sieling includes a good dose of humor in the book. However, the humorous elements seem to be more constant than I believe she intended, especially in the dialog. This lent an un-serious quality to the book. The book also tended to be more cerebral, and the pacing seemed to drag in parts. While not a page turner, it is still entertaining.
Synopsis:
Quin Black works for the government of a future civilization. This civilization has gates (called Doors) that can lead from one world to another. The technology also exists to build words. However, the knowledge to do both is highly regulated due to the consequences of doing it wrong. Quin’s father, Grise Black, has disappeared from their home in Pomegranate City, leaving behind a Door that he invented and is considered highly dangerous. Follow by his friend John, Quin sets out to find his father before this knowledge leads to a catastrophe.
Review:
The Wounded World is a very entertaining story with some thought provoking ideas. Ariele Sieling takes her hero from one world to the next searching for his father. Along the way, they meet different cultures with different problems. Ariele Sieling includes a good dose of humor in the book. However, the humorous elements seem to be more constant than I believe she intended, especially in the dialog. This lent an un-serious quality to the book. The book also tended to be more cerebral, and the pacing seemed to drag in parts. While not a page turner, it is still entertaining.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews