Still Falling

Solstice 31 Saga #1

by Martin Wilsey

Barcus is a working stiff looking for a good paycheck. When the Ventura and its crew enter orbit for a scheduled planet survey, the ship activates an automated defense system protecting the planet. Although the Ventura is destroyed in the attack, Barcus alone survives the harrowing fall to the remote planet surface. He struggles to remain alive and sane, and to discover why everyone he knew and loved on the Ventura was deliberately murdered.

Swinging between despair and fury, Barcus discovers that for every answer he obtains, there are more questions raised. Barcus is assisted by the Emergency Module, Em, his most useful tool. It is an Artificial Intelligence system contained in an all-terrain vehicle specifically designed to help him survive. Barcus soon finds himself in the middle of a planetary genocide of the local native population. He is unable to stand passively by as more people die, even if they are long lost colonists who fear "The Man From Earth" like children fear the monster under their bed.

Will Barcus ever find his way home? Will he find out who is responsible? Will his rage just burn this world down? Or will he find his soul in the eyes of a starving, frightened woman?

Genres: Science Fiction

406 pages, ebook

First published March 26, 2015

About the author

Martin Wilsey is a writer, hunter, photographer, rabble rouser, father, friend, marksman, story teller, frightener of children, carnivore, engineer, fool, philosopher, cook and madman. He and his wife Brenda live in Virginia where, just to keep him off the streets, he works as a research scientist for a government funded think tank.

Reviews

[Ben Raphael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for the AUDIOBOOK version narrated by Andrew Tell.
The audiobook was provided by the narrator at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.

When the Ventura enters the orbit of the planet Baytirus it is immediately destroyed by the planet's defense systems. The sole survivor (that we know of) is Barcus, and together with EM (his modified Emergency Module and the most creepy human-like AI ever with its own agenda) he must survive on a planet that mostly resembles the middle ages. He also discovers that many villages are being attacked with no one spared and he decides to intervene while trying to survive on the planet (since he has some pretty strong robotic AI controlled 'friends' along with him which prove very useful).

The story started off great and was very interesting but then its pacing slowed down considerably and I felt that I was showered with details that really don't impact the greater story much (or at all) and while these details do allow for a better imagining of the scenario I found them to be mostly distracting (since not much is going on during these rather tedious descriptions).
Halfway through the novel, the story picks up again and proper pacing returns.
Every chapter is preceded by a short investigation report of the historical events that occurred during the story, I really loved those little tidbits of information and I hope these will be kept for the subsequent novels.

The narration of Andrew Tell is excellent, his performance is spot on and I felt I was listening to more of an Audio Drama at times. His voice and words are crystal clear (even when using various accents for the various characters) and it was a joy to listen to.

[Deborah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a long and enjoyable listen with lots of action. There was quite a bit of graphic violence and descriptions of the atrocities done to dissidents and women so if that sort of thing bothers you, then you should probably pass on this one. The main character is driven to end the atrocities and is assisted by his AI unit who takes on a life of her own and appears to have her own hidden agenda. There is a narrative overlay that I didn't understand at first. It is snippets of a report done sometime in the distant future pertaining to the happenings on the planet and the main characters actions. . Something really bad is coming and he apparently was blamed for it. The story ends abruptly in a cliff hanger.

"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com."

[Bikram · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer.
I had requested and received audible version of this book for free from the narrator, in exchange for an unbiased review.

What I liked about the book -
This book has a tiny resemblance to my favorite sci-fi series Bobiverse, where you see people with advanced tech living in a primitive world. (But in case of "Still Falling", it turns out to be a double-edged sword. More on that in next section of my review.) Martin Wilsey builds an expansive world with interesting characters and a mildly intriguing plot. The characters get enough development time and grown on you.

What I disliked about the book -
So, the double-edged-sword thing... the super advanced tech makes it almost magical and removes any sense of danger. There are no real stakes and you know any hurdle the characters face is going to get solved soon. That makes the story dull. And even beyond that, at several sections, the story drags on without much progress. Pacing could've been much better with better editing.

Narration -
Narration by Andrew Tell is the best part of this book. He did an excellent job of giving each character a unique voice and brilliantly conveying their every emotion. I listened to the entire book only because of the narration.

[Cmoore · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story has pretty decent bones, and I actually kinda liked the story thread and characters, but that's as far as it went. The execution leaves much to be desired!  The writing is stiff, stilted, and often redundant. Awkward syntax runs rampant throughout! 
I picked up this story because I've  enjoyed Andrew Tell's narration of other books... unfortunately, you can have the best narrator in the world, but great narration can't turn a lump of clay into a bar of gold... Even with Andrew at the helm, I was only able to finish this book because I sped up the playback .

I received a copy of this audio title for free in exchange for an unbiased review. 

[Adam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started out interesting, however as it went on the book focuses on the minutia of every daily action, describing the wooden hook on wall, how Barcaus puts his belt and gun on. The story seemed to have died off, I wanted to like it however even when listening at 3x I still couldn't bring myself to finish.

[Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Instructive

If my space ship is shot down over a planet where life is similar to medieval Earth, I will find this book invaluable as a survival guide. Having an almost omniscient AI and some trusty high tech weapons would also prove handy.

[Grep · Rating 1 out of 5]

There's no way I'm listening to another 124 chapters, I'm at the end of 19 and have invested 5 hours into this story.
The protagonist is just such a white knight simp I couldn't take it anymore.
"Waaaaaaa, my shipmate who I had a crush on died" X 50 times.
"NO, M'lady, you will not bathe me and I will never take advantage of you and I want you to read more bee keeping books" (tips fedora).

The narrator is just OK, he's pretty monotone and doesn't really seem to enthusiastic.

This just seems so sanitized, even the robot murder massacres seem almost boring.

I'm so grateful that I'm old enough to ignore the sunk cost fallacy and stop reading/listening books that aren't worth finishing.

[Todd Gutschow · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not my thing...a bit boring...

I realize this is a first book in a long series...but I find it quite boring. There’s already too many plot holes and I don’t like the main characters interaction with the “less advanced” people of this world. It’s weird and a bit creepy storytelling. This is just not my thing.

[O.S. Prime · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thin slices of SF between thick slabs of medieval domesticity. I found myself looking forward to the little blurbs under the chapter headings, as those are where most of the SF was to be found. Ending unsatisfying, even for a book one of ...

[Robert Fayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking forward to the next book.

[Jed Moulton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing.

I love a good story. This one flows. Has believable characters. Wonderful foreshadowing and believable plot. Looking forward to the next one.

[Timothy Hamlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still Falling

A great start to what is going to be a phenomenal series. Can't wait for the rest of the series!

[Leo Goldin · Rating 1 out of 5]

too much romance for my taste

[Kristjan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The First Part of a Larger Story

Book: **
Performance: ****

The best I can say about this book is that I didn’t hate it. As stories go it was ok despite a general lacking of craft (the MC was pretty over the top with a lot of exposition slowing everything down). Fortunately I rather liked the MC and the narration made it fun to listen to. Each chapter begins with an unexplained extract from what appears to be some form of inquest … that hits at some form of disaster that the MC, and his trust AI sidekick, were involved in … then it jumps into the fantastic tale of Barcus (the MC) who is the “sole” survivor of an ambush of his survey ship by unknown planetary defenses who crash lands on the planet and has to hide from the native humans hunting him in sky ships that seem to just be transports for mercs on horseback Fortunately Barcus has a super, if mysterious, AI (that is pretty sketch … echos of HAL here) and two huge, advanced robotic machines that make him pretty much invincible (when he is riding in them at least). This of course allows him to pontificate at length about the bad guys … who were truly bad … and I am sure there is a reason, but it is not really explored here. Mostly this all allows him to add to his graphic, and rather gratuitous, body count (‘cause that is what you do with bad guys). There is also the expected love interest taken from the natives and a whole mess of anger and navel gazing that was mildly entertaining most of the time. So … basically you get a survival story that is entirely predictable that brings right up to where you might expect some conflict resolution … and then stops (with a whole bunch of questions waiting for the sequel).

In addition to the decent narration, the only thing that saved the story here was the world building … it was actually interesting if not well presented or explained. There is an apparent social hierarchy that resembles feudalism with “keepers” at the top and ignorant quasi-slaves (or serfs if you will) at the bottom and very little mobility … or recourse for abuse by those in the higher cast. It can be presumed that the keepers are the ones using (and perhaps trying to maintain) what technology remains on the planet, but it is pretty much a mystery how they tie into the planetary defenses that took out the scout ship (and the 2000 souls onboard) so quickly. All in all … this has the feel of being just the setup to a larger story that might be interesting enough to continue just to find out some of the answers … may be.

I was given this free advance review/listener copy (ARC) audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

#StillFalling #Solstice31Saga #FreeAudiobkFacebkGrp

[Norma · Rating 4 out of 5]

( Format : Audiobook )
"A full belly, warm bed and another day."
When the survey ship Venture is unexpectedly destroyed by a defence system, Barcus and his critically injured friend barely escape to the planet's surface and, with the death of his companion, he is alone with only his escape module's AI (Em) and a couple of other aspects to help him. Winter is coming and he needs to prepare. The planet has a small population, scattered villages, still fairly primative, which are being systematically wiped out with almost no resistance. Angered by this and his own sense of loss of his fleet companions, Barcus rescues two young people, a woman and a youth, and learns of the barbaric treatment they endure under their masters, the Keepers, including, for women, no right ever to say no to any command, under pain of death. Theirs is the brutal life of a slave even lower than a hunting dog. Whilst still always hoping to one day escape this world and revenge the deaths of his colleagues, Barcus meanwhile turns his desire for revenge initially on the Keepers.

The book is well written with an excellent opening, full of interest and action, with good characterisation and world building. However, about of a third of the way into the story, the author turns his attention to the minutiae of daily domestic life withing the refuge that is being established and the gentle love growing between Barcus and the woman first rescued. Although initially interesting, as the action slowed, so did the attention of this reader who was then unable to fully commit to the story again even after the action and intrigue resumed.. Interspersed throughout the main tale, however, were brief excerpts from a future document, Solstice 31, Incident Investigation Testimony Transcript, which suggest that there is
something terrible to come.

Narration by Andrew Tell is first class, his reading well modulated, pacing good and the presentation aligned nicely with the text. Each character has a distinctive voice so that it is easy to forget that this is the work of a lone narrator. Mr.Tell's performance adds to the already good writing of the author. and enjoyment of the book as a whole.

I knew nothing of the book's content when I requested via Audiobook Boom and was freely gifted by the rights holder, a complimentary copy of Still Falling, Thank you. Despite my reservation mentioned above, I enjoyed the fairly lengthy listen and remain intrigued as to what happens next. I will be looking out for a follow-up book as the story is certainly not over.

[Tom Sterling · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was at a book signing event a few months ago, specifically to meet one of my favorite authors, and ask them to sign my book. There was a long line at their booth, so I wandered around to look at some of the other authors.

Boy, am I glad that I did!

A booth full of really interesting looking science fiction books caught my eye, and as I was looking through them, the author, Martin Wilsey, stepped over and chatted with me for a bit. Mr. Wilsey had been a research scientist for a government think tank, and fun to talk with. I figured his books would be “hard science fiction” with attention to accuracy and details. I asked him which book he recommended for me to read first, and he suggested I start with Still Falling. Solstice 31 Saga: Book 1, which is the first in his Solstice 31 trilogy.

Wow! I was blown away! Page One finds the protagonist, Barcus, fighting for his life, plummeting down to a strange planet in an escape pod after his spaceship had been destroyed. He watches one friend die in front of him, and has no clue what happened to the ship or the rest of his crew.

I was right about the book being technical in nature, but I didn’t know that the story would be so engaging and fun. Mr. Wilsey crafted a world where AI is fully integrated into the ship and support equipment, complete with each piece of gear having an individual personality and agenda. The planet he crashes on has a rich and mysterious history and it is really interesting to follow along as Barcus discovers clues about what killed his shipmates. The planet had been colonized by humans 400 years earlier, and the population had somehow devolved into a feudal society complete with serfs and lords. Barcus and his AI partners Em, Ash and Stu build a fortress in the new world, and because of their bravery and superior technology, they are treated like lords, themselves, and begin to accumulate followers and allies.

There are flashes of Robinson Crusoe, bits of The Wheel of Time, and hints of Star Trek mixed throughout the book, but Still Falling is unique, interesting, and new. I already ordered the rest of the Solstice 31 trilogy!

An easy five stars!

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another KU read, meaning these are books I generally do not finish unless they make the cut. This one unfortunately did not.

Still Falling is a sci-fi survival story. Barcus was a crewman aboard a spaceship doing a routine survey of a planetary system. It was shot out of the sky, and Barcus appears to be the only survivor. Fortunately, an advanced AI also made it down to the planet with him. Barcus and the AI learn that this planet was settled by humans from an earlier wave of colonization, but they have reverted to a medieval state. Barcus has an advanced suit of powered armor, plus his robot AI and a horde of drones, so they are basically godlike beings on this world.

Barcus encounters some marauders who are massacring entire villages. Flying into a rage, he slaughters the entire band of marauders and rescues the sole survivors of the village, a woman and a child.

So there is a lot of internal monologue, with Barcus suffering PTSD and mourning his dead crewmates. It looks like the villager woman he saved is going to be a love interest. And the AI seems to have a hidden agenda. This could be interesting, but it actually reads as very dry and I just wasn't that engaged in the story. Part of it was that there isn't a lot of tension when Barcus and his AI are basically invincible and can mow down armies. I was tempted to skim ahead to see what the payoff is; this is apparently the first in a series.

This is a very techy book written by an engineer, so it goes hard on the SF elements, but it felt like a lot of self-published books written by smart people, well-written but flat.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Barcus is aboard The Ventura, a deep space survey ship with over 2000 other men and women when it enters the orbit of the planet Baytirus and is immediately shot down. Due to a bit of good luck, or maybe bad, Barcus is in a space suit in a shuttle when the Ventura is attacked and he manages to reach the planet safely. There he activates the Emergency Module AI, or EM, who takes control and formulates a plan to get him to safety. As Barcus learns more about the residents of the planet and the near medieval society they've formed, he finds himself unable to resist helping them.

Sci fi books don't usually end up on my to read list, but I love a good colonization story. This one hit all the right buttons for me, with the added bonus of a medieval setting that seemed like a fantasy book and a page turning puzzle. Those short incident investigation reports at the beginning of each chapter kept me hooked and reading on. The characters are great, Barcus isn't perfect by any means, but he's human and real and has everyone's best interests at heart. Even though the colonization part may be over, I'm invested in these people and I've already picked up the sequel.

The narration was well done, with different voices for each character, and he was really easy to listen to. I requested a copy of the audiobook, and I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book, it was a different take on the usual space travel books I read. Barcus is the sole survivor of a space accident and lands on a planet. He is aided by some advanced technology and may have found a lost colony. As he travels the lands he meets various people and finds a land reminiscent of early earth. He has a love interest and enough "problems" he has to work out to keep the story going. I am looking forward to the next in the series.
I should also mention the narration of Andrew Tell is excellent, his performance flowed well and kept the story going and interesting. I enjoyed all aspects of this audiobook.

[Victoria Haugen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one! And hope to listen to more in the series, it was awesome!
Very interesting sci-tale that literally takes you back to the middle ages (sort of) Really loved Barcus, great character, great struggles. I was drawn into the story and really enjoyed it throughout, both the story and narrator kept me interested. I'd definitely recommend this one, and am going to soon start on the second one :)
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

[odedo1 Audio book worm. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another masterpiece was discovered writing by Martin Wilsey and together with Andrew Tell a perfect story was born.

Once I started listening to this audiobook I just couldn’t put it down , forget sleeping I just had to keep going and after 15 hours I want more !

Truly was worth it and I fully with all my heart
Recommend this book to all.


Even so that I got this audiobook for free I believe that I reviewed it honestly.

[Emily Shaffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, it's my favorite from the trilogy. The story centers on Barcus the lone survivor of a catastrophic spaceship accident who finds himself on an uncharted planet.

The story was engaging and kept the reader in suspense with hints that all was not as it seemed. It was a fun romp with enough science in the fiction to help the reader suspend disbelieve but does not require a masters in physics to understand. It was a fun read.

[Ron Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is what sci-fi is all about! Cool tech, great character development, a compelling storyline, and lots of violence. Okay, I suck at writing book reviews, but I'm really enjoying this series. If you like good science fiction give this series a read.

[Volpot · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Reasonably good story. Dragged a little in places. Will likely look at buying any sequel

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ready for book 2!!

This was a really fun read with well developed, interesting characters. The genre combination is unique and enjoyable. I am excited to see what happens next!

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book it had a great story, and well developed characters looking for to the rest of the saga

[Brian Dingle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still Falling Martin Wilsey ISBN-13: 978-1507802380 ISBN-10: 1507802382

This book is Science Fiction, probably described as Hard Science Fiction, and does contain a small amount of Speculative Medicine.

The Story: The main story is really about Roland Barcus, part of the crew of the Ventura approaching the planet Baytirus, when his ship is destroyed. The narrative describes his crash-landing on the planet, the death of his close friend and colleague Chen, and his struggle to establish his own precarious survival on this planet.
That struggle brings him into contact with Olias and Po, humans (it seems) of this planet who are part of the established culture and class system. In addition, his interaction with several persona in the form of Artificial Intelligence entities, the Emergency Module (EM), and two other structures, his own extra-vehicular suit named Ashigura, and a spider like structure Pardosa. All three of these appear to have their own particular characteristics, described over the course of the narrative in the story, although EM seems to have a level of control and influence somewhat higher than the others. There is also STU, which appears to be the AI associated with the shuttle.
The book involves the development of the description of these entities and their function while Barcus tries to prepare for winter and subsequent conflict with the indigenous class system, in particular, the Keepers, violent overlords enslaving this world.
There are levels in this book.The story itself is part of a report issued investigating ‘The Solstice 31 Incident,’ incorporating n evaluation of the AI functions and the activities of the hero, Barcus.
The book is interesting and exciting. The character development is competent. The world seems to be a description of a dreadfully misogynistic society, with not so veiled parallels to some organized religions.

Technical. The book is well constructed with very little technical problems that might distract the reader. Occasional quotation structure is a bit confusing, as is some dialog attribution. In addition, the book would probably benefit from a Table of Contents. I thought at first this might be the copy the author kindly sent me, but I could not find one in the Amazon Look Inside function either.
The use of Chapter tags at the beginning is an interesting approach to orient the reader.

Style. The story flows well, with only occasional areas of confusion, though some characters come and go without clear purpose. It is not self-contained; that is, the story seems to begin in the middle of the space-ship crash, which is acceptable, but still implies obvious further continuation in later books so that some issues are not resolved. There is a fair bit of violence, though much does give the reader a warm fuzzy feeling, given the appealing way the upper class treats the lower.
The dialog is believable, and the relationships are well developed and appropriately strung-out and rewarding. The development of interactions with AI’s is interesting.

Medicine. This book has some speculative medicine. A nasty injury is dealt with through the use of something similar to topical thrombin to stop excessive bleeding and then somewhat magical ‘nanites’, possibly also growth factors, used to bring internal injuries under control. In addition, a sick bay within the shuttle is utilized, and there is a passing description of skull fracture and sub-dural hematoma.

Summary. I will likely get around to reading the rest of the sagas once I catch up on these reviews. It appears that this is the first of a series, The Broken Cage, and Blood of the Scarecrow being the other two, and the flow of the story certainly invites the reader to check out the other two. Martin Wilsey Amazon Author Page

I enjoyed the book, and would give it 4.4 over-all.

[Zemmiphobe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book and will probably continue the series. The story was interesting and moved at an alright pace. I found the small report inserts that came between the narrative to be the most suspense giving driving aspects of the book. My only complaint is the quick jumping to anger mentality of the main character. I get that he's like really pissed and depressed that everyone he knows was blown out of the sky, but how/why does that make him want to yell at the people he is supposedly "setting free" just because they are terrified react in the only way they've ever known? To me it just seemed like a major character flaw which didn't sit right with how quickly everyone took to him. I feel like a more believable reaction to man like that would be a "lesser of two evils" grateful avoidance reaction. Overall though, I enjoyed the story and am curious about how it continues.

[Joanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Remember the movie The Stargate where Kurt Russell and James Spader go through a magic door to another planet where they have more knowledge and power than most of the people there? Still Falling is kind of like that except with a crashed spaceship instead of a magic door.

Martin Wileys's work is complete with spaceships, artificial intelligence, and sweet revenge. However, know that the first book is just the beginning of the full story and does not really stand alone.

"There are no happy endings, Po, because nothing ends."

...At least not until you continue the series.

Thank you to the author for giving me a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

[Michael Rhode · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a local blogger, I was given a copy by the author through a mutual friend. I'd describe this as a sf version of Robinson Crusoe with some overtones of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. As a classic space opera story, the plot rolls right along and carries the reader with it. I especially liked the characterization of the AI computers. This is definitely the first of a trilogy as the final pages reveal several major events to drive book 2, which I'm ordering now.