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Shai #1
A Kiss for Damocles
A Kiss for Damocles follows the journey of Shaifennen Roehe, a young homesteader who is the right girl in the right place to serve as a catalyst in her world’s, and eventually, her civilization’s, restoration. She must adapt from merely struggling to survive in a harsh world as her simple homestead becomes a boomtown, and then the keystone of a restored colonial government.
Meanwhile, competing Townie politicians and merchant princes have other plans for Hesperides Colony’s future and take a very personal interest in her as she inadvertently kicks over a few of their apple carts. And all the while, sinister, hidden forces watch and calculate and a centuries-old shadow war comes to a head.
Shai’s universe is one filled with fallen empires, implacable war machines, lost civilizations, hostile xenos, the occasional ancient unspeakable horror, and she’s going to bring the ruckus to every corner of it.
Meanwhile, competing Townie politicians and merchant princes have other plans for Hesperides Colony’s future and take a very personal interest in her as she inadvertently kicks over a few of their apple carts. And all the while, sinister, hidden forces watch and calculate and a centuries-old shadow war comes to a head.
Shai’s universe is one filled with fallen empires, implacable war machines, lost civilizations, hostile xenos, the occasional ancient unspeakable horror, and she’s going to bring the ruckus to every corner of it.
- GenresScience Fiction
456 pages, Paperback
First published June 25, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 10, 2026
This is a 5-star review. This book was great.
A Kiss for Damocles received this year's Prometheus Award for the work of fiction that best illustrates libertarian principles. And boy does it. I bought the book when nominations were announced.
Our protagonist is a young girl who lives in a small underground village. They live a slightly better than subsistence life because they lack any technological growth.
Both of those are odd conditions until you learn that there is an orbital system of gravity weapons controlled by a mid-level AI that takes a very dim view of any electronic signals that might indicate a technological capacity on the planet. At any whisper of a coherent electronic signal, Damocles drops a little gift from above that obliterates everything in the area.
Our young hero, Shai, is also a scavenger. She looks for wreckage from past millennia that can be used by her village either locally or as a matter of trade. She finds the jackpot - a largely intact warship that landed in the war that Damocles had finished many years ago. She ends up leading the trade mission to the local town to obtain supplies and negotiate access to her find.
Because it is her find! She found it. She owns it.
What follows are a predictable series of events orchestrated by politically powerful people who want to expand their control over the region. Shai and her village prefer the traditional form of government that existed before their planet was invaded millennia ago. That system of government traditionally was more respectful of individual liberty and local control. The larger town has fallen under the sway of a sort of proto-fascist ideologue who uses propaganda, currency manipulation, and outright violence in turn to concentrate power under his control.
We meet a variety of characters and groups through Shai's travels. One group appears to be quasi-mystical but in reality they have been collecting technology and resources with the objective of eventually going back into space so they can dismantle Damocles. A leader of the town's guard ends up being sympathetic to Shai even though the proto-fascist is running a successful campaign to bring the guard under his control.
There are many political themes underlying the book. Respect for diverse population groups. The plight of the individual against the collective. The use of fiat currency to control a population. The use of "education" to influence the next generation. Private property rights. Limited vs. unlimited government. Etc.
But while these themes are present, the author wisely never permits that subtext to upstage the text of the book which is an entertaining tale of a young woman discovering the potential key to liberating her culture from the legacy of foreign invaders.
A Kiss for Damocles received this year's Prometheus Award for the work of fiction that best illustrates libertarian principles. And boy does it. I bought the book when nominations were announced.
Our protagonist is a young girl who lives in a small underground village. They live a slightly better than subsistence life because they lack any technological growth.
Both of those are odd conditions until you learn that there is an orbital system of gravity weapons controlled by a mid-level AI that takes a very dim view of any electronic signals that might indicate a technological capacity on the planet. At any whisper of a coherent electronic signal, Damocles drops a little gift from above that obliterates everything in the area.
Our young hero, Shai, is also a scavenger. She looks for wreckage from past millennia that can be used by her village either locally or as a matter of trade. She finds the jackpot - a largely intact warship that landed in the war that Damocles had finished many years ago. She ends up leading the trade mission to the local town to obtain supplies and negotiate access to her find.
Because it is her find! She found it. She owns it.
What follows are a predictable series of events orchestrated by politically powerful people who want to expand their control over the region. Shai and her village prefer the traditional form of government that existed before their planet was invaded millennia ago. That system of government traditionally was more respectful of individual liberty and local control. The larger town has fallen under the sway of a sort of proto-fascist ideologue who uses propaganda, currency manipulation, and outright violence in turn to concentrate power under his control.
We meet a variety of characters and groups through Shai's travels. One group appears to be quasi-mystical but in reality they have been collecting technology and resources with the objective of eventually going back into space so they can dismantle Damocles. A leader of the town's guard ends up being sympathetic to Shai even though the proto-fascist is running a successful campaign to bring the guard under his control.
There are many political themes underlying the book. Respect for diverse population groups. The plight of the individual against the collective. The use of fiat currency to control a population. The use of "education" to influence the next generation. Private property rights. Limited vs. unlimited government. Etc.
But while these themes are present, the author wisely never permits that subtext to upstage the text of the book which is an entertaining tale of a young woman discovering the potential key to liberating her culture from the legacy of foreign invaders.
December 11, 2025
I read one of the short stories Mr. Pierce has created for the Tales from the Long Night and knew I had to have more and I went looking and discovered this novel.
The wonderful cross of western and science-fiction comes across in the language and circumstances on this post-apocalyptic world where an orbital bombardment had set off the planet's equivalent of the Yellow Stone Caldera. This story is set when the survivors of the colony caught in the crossfires between two interstellar empires finally are beginning to crawl out of their Volcanic Winter and face the "landmines" left behind by the war, specifically a space platform set to destroy anything that looks like higher man-made technology.
It's hard to advance when any advancement leads to precision orbital bombardment by an ancient long-forgotten-by-its-creators platform.
A young female scrounger finds the score of a lifetime, not only for her but her community. The waves of which will either be felt around the world, or stolen from them. A Kiss follows Roehe from find, to family, to foe. Can she keep her head and her temper long enough to gain the benefit without calling down disaster upon everything.
I just love the western flavor, the scrapy characters, and the defiance against a world that was never the cradle of humanity.
The wonderful cross of western and science-fiction comes across in the language and circumstances on this post-apocalyptic world where an orbital bombardment had set off the planet's equivalent of the Yellow Stone Caldera. This story is set when the survivors of the colony caught in the crossfires between two interstellar empires finally are beginning to crawl out of their Volcanic Winter and face the "landmines" left behind by the war, specifically a space platform set to destroy anything that looks like higher man-made technology.
It's hard to advance when any advancement leads to precision orbital bombardment by an ancient long-forgotten-by-its-creators platform.
A young female scrounger finds the score of a lifetime, not only for her but her community. The waves of which will either be felt around the world, or stolen from them. A Kiss follows Roehe from find, to family, to foe. Can she keep her head and her temper long enough to gain the benefit without calling down disaster upon everything.
I just love the western flavor, the scrapy characters, and the defiance against a world that was never the cradle of humanity.
January 10, 2026
Wow! Absolutely awesome sci fi adventure
I read/ reread all Pierce's Long Night stories in the Raconteur Press anthologies and really liked Shai's narrator style. So, I was thrilled to find an entire book told from Shai's viewpoint. Bad things happen. Characters die (which makes me sad). The worldbuilding is believable and incredible. The Imps are fantastic. Shai is loveable, an engaging narrator, and a surprisingly complex character. There is definitely humor, and it is often laugh-out-loud. I made a special note to mention Vivienne and the suit (LOL), as well as "Tadpole" and the littlie Archivist. This world is impressive, and the writing is amazing. I read this book in KU, but I will buy it to reread.
I read/ reread all Pierce's Long Night stories in the Raconteur Press anthologies and really liked Shai's narrator style. So, I was thrilled to find an entire book told from Shai's viewpoint. Bad things happen. Characters die (which makes me sad). The worldbuilding is believable and incredible. The Imps are fantastic. Shai is loveable, an engaging narrator, and a surprisingly complex character. There is definitely humor, and it is often laugh-out-loud. I made a special note to mention Vivienne and the suit (LOL), as well as "Tadpole" and the littlie Archivist. This world is impressive, and the writing is amazing. I read this book in KU, but I will buy it to reread.
June 11, 2026
Excellent world building
Pierce has written a fantastic story about cultures pulling themselves up from the depths of disaster. The differences between the sub groups flow so smoothly. I can't wait for more.
Pierce has written a fantastic story about cultures pulling themselves up from the depths of disaster. The differences between the sub groups flow so smoothly. I can't wait for more.
November 18, 2025
Awesome book. I can't wait for the sequel
July 29, 2026
Good young adult sifi
Good young adult si fi. Would not buy any additional volumes of this series.
But it did deserve the rating it got
Good young adult si fi. Would not buy any additional volumes of this series.
But it did deserve the rating it got
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews