Schism

Pearseus #0.5

by Nicholas C. Rossis

Librarian's Note: this is an alternate cover edition for ASIN B00FXOJQA8.

Humanity starts over. Again.

The prequel to the Amazon best-selling series, Pearseus.

If you like dark epic fantasy with a sci-fi twist, then you'll love Pearseus: Schism, the novelette that lays the back story to the series that has reached #1 on Amazon.

It's New Year's Eve, the year of 2099, but the distinguished guests aboard the Pearseus won't get to countdown seconds; soon they'll be counting bodies and survivors after the spaceship's crash landing on another planet.

The good news? The planet is seemingly hospitable both in resources and in terms of the natives' attitude towards earthlings.

The bad news? They might have come on this planet bare of possessions, but what they haven't been able to shed are the shortcomings of their human nature. Will that be the sole threat to a unified future, or is the new land and its first inhabitants not as innocent as they look?

Genres: Science Fiction Fantasy, Science Fiction

77 pages, ebook

First published December 15, 2013

About the author

Nicholas C. Rossis lives to write and does so from his cottage on the edge of a magical forest in Athens, Greece. When not composing epic fantasies or short sci-fi stories, he chats with fans and colleagues, writes blog posts, and enjoys the antics of two silly cats and his baby daughter, all of whom claim his lap as home. His books have won numerous awards, including the Gelett Burgess Children's Book Award.

In addition to his best-selling series, Pearseus, he writes short science fiction/speculative fiction stories, many of which have appeared in various collections and anthologies. These include Infinite Waters, which was voted one of the best 50 Indie books of 2015.

What readers are saying about Nick's fantasies:

"Most avid readers still have books from their childhood which they read over and over again. 'Runaway Smile' has joined the list."

"From the very first sentence I realized I was not reading a book, I was going on an adventure."

"Each story is like watching an old episode of the Twilight Zone."

For more on Nick or just to chat, visit him on:

Blog: http://bit.ly/1G79bQS
eNovel Authors: http://bit.ly/1JZEQct
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/18lyLr5
Twitter: http://bit.ly/1dKgsPT
Google+ : http://bit.ly/1IkzR22

Reviews

[Effrosyni Moschoudi · Rating 5 out of 5]

The spaceship Pearseus carries a motley crew of distinguished humans as a new millennium dawns but what starts as a celebration of human accomplishment, ends in tragedy. Thanks to a madman, First Mate Gerard Croix, precious lives are lost and Pearseus suffers irreparable damage. The humans find refuge on another planet where thankfully, the inhabitants are tolerant and peaceful folk.

We are then taken eighteen years into the future. The humans seem blissful in their current setup. They have created a new world that is seemingly peaceful. Their political system has divided authority among lawmakers, judges and commander Kibwe who held the executive power but has recently passed away. Enter the madman again, Croix, who has been plotting for a while, having just introduced to the people the Armbands – a law enforcement group of youngsters that reminded me of Nazi Germany. Croix’s devious plans included also the confiscation of the people’s digital files from earth – the only source of their knowledge and their cultural legacy to their children. Again, this brought to mind the burning of books in Nazi Germany and other practices that became an insult at the time to the freedom of speech and logical thinking.

As the madman hears voices in his head that urge him to seek ultimate power, tragedy ensues once again and the story ends with a big shocking bang that leaves plenty of food for thought. By the last page, Nicholas Rossis has set the perfect foundation for his dark Sci-Fi series that will undoubtedly gain a lot of fans, mainly because of its unique qualities. For one, it is not the run of the mill Sci-Fi story. It feels more like a familiar tale of political unrest here on mother earth, simply because the people never changed on this new planet, despite the radical alterations in terms of environment and circumstances. The author here reminds us, above all else, this simple truth about humanity: No matter how much we may evolve in terms of education, technology and the like, on any given society, you will surely meet the selfless hero but sadly also the plotting, power-thirsty madman who will stop at nothing to gain control.

This dark and raw, yet refreshing in its originality novella, has whetted my appetite beyond description for what follows next. The author has cleverly given us a couple of hints and mysteries to ponder upon. I am hooked and can’t wait to read The Rise of The Prince to find out more!

[Lisa Hapney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know I usually put some kind of disclaimer about whether I received the book from the author, publisher, etc. and I haven’t done that in the past month. I signed up for the free trial of KU and have been reading whatever I pleased of the books available. I do have more submitted books to read, but thought I’d enjoy checking out my trial subscription for a month. Anyway, any books recently that do not indicate where I got them came from the subscription. I’ve been pounding away pretty steadily at the list of books I picked to read from it before the 25th of the month.

Anyone who reads this blog sees comments by Nicholas Rossis fairly often. I first discovered Mr. Rossis’ writing from Rise of the Prince, Book 2 of the Pearseus series. As Book 2 did a good job of describing what had gone on before, I went ahead and read Book 3 after that. Given the aforementioned KU trial, I finally got around to reading Book 1. It was interesting to read the prequel to the other stories. I truly enjoyed reading the story itself instead of just the explanations given in the later books, though those explanations were plenty to allow me to know what important events had taken place in the past. However, reading the explanations in later books is kind of like reading a history book. You know what happened and you know it was important, but you didn’t get to see it yourself.

So, Schism begins on the ship Pearseus during a New Year’s Eve party, but none of the guests expect the turn that their evening will take. One man, listening to the voices in his head, changes all their lives and leaves the survivors struggling to pick up the pieces on the planet where they crash. Power is a seductive drug and those who seek it will stop at nothing to get what they want, but could there be something else leading the crashed colonists to seek control over their fellow passengers? That’s what you will have to discover on your own if you haven’t yet read this series. There are fantasy elements to this science fiction story, but it was all wrapped up nicely together and I didn’t have any problem moving in that direction with the author.

Schism filled in the pieces for me as far as getting to see it myself. I really enjoy Mr. Rossis’ stories and have now reviewed several of them. The Pearseus series is an excellent story about mankind starting over on a new planet, ill prepared as the characters are. Mankind has many issues in the manner we deal with one another and this book shows many of the ways that we treat one another, why we don’t fight for ourselves when we should, etc.

Anyway, having read the ending of the story previously, there really weren’t any surprises for me here. I was just filling in the back story. I really enjoyed the novella. It’s not all that long (under 100 pages), but it gives a more detailed explanation of the basic information for the beginning of the story if you started reading later in the series like I did. If you haven’t read the series then this is obviously the right place to start. I think this is an interesting series and that Mr. Rossis did a good job with it. The books that follow it are even better. I hope you get a chance to read the series.

Note: This review originally appeared on my blog and is worded as such, https://tjhapney.wordpress.com/

[Kenneth Kerr · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Great Prequel!
New Year's Eve 2099the spaceship Pearseus carrying celebrities and dignitaries crashes on another planet. The spaceship captain survives and leads the other survivors in building a new civilization. When he dies (Year 18) the group struggles with the classic philosophical challenges: Big government vs small government, dictator vs democracy, many strict laws rigidly enforced vs few general laws open to interpretation and compassion by one or more judges, and good vs evil.
Nicholas Rossis does an outstanding job with character development and describing the scenes of the story. Very interesting and enjoyable style where he uses descriptions more than he does dialogue to tell the story. It is very well written. One of the best short books I have read in a long time. I highly recommend this book.

[Dave Higgins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Combining issues of daily survival and a real sense of threat with questions of what the role of law and government should be, Rossis creates a story that is both engaging and thought-provoking.

The spaceship Pearseus was supposed to celebrate New Years 2099 in style. Instead it crashes on an unexplored planet. The survivors start to rebuild, but the death of the captain forces the burgeoning society to face the divisions at the heart of civilisation: when do individual rights outweigh the risk to the group? With many conflicting cultures to draw from and the opportunity to start afresh, will right be defined by those mighty enough to take it?

Although Rossis has clearly devoted much thought to the philosophy of society, this novella is first and foremost a science-fiction thriller not a political treatise. The ultimate outcome of the book is a natural conclusion of flawed people making plausible choices, rather than the supporters of an author’s pet theory demonstrating its inevitable triumph.

Perhaps ironically for a story so based in the nuance of legal theory, it is the science fiction that occasionally feels a touch dry. The initial sections set on the Pearseus before the crash – while mostly character-driven – do have a few patches of declarative sentences explaining the physical events rather than sharing the emotional struggles.

The characterisation is solid, with the 18-year gap between the Pearseus encountering difficulties and the captain’s death revealing clear development without implausible changes.

While Rossis creates a cast of leading characters, the driving personality (as befits a proponent of a single, strong leader) is First Mate Gerard Croix. At first apparently criminal and potentially insane, he is shown both to understand the inability of liberal democracy to efficiently answer questions of pure survival and to have a better perspective on the planet’s natives than leaving well alone.

Countering Croix’s (potentially necessary) tyranny are a gathering of civilised passengers, united by a desire to rebuild an enlightened society but burdened by philosophical disagreements over when survival justifies compromising ideals. Rossis’ ability to create plausible characters is especially evident in the internal debates these philosophical questions cause.

While this novella can stand on its own, there is a strong sense of it being the prequel it is. The dénouement provides neither evidence of whether the immediate solution to the internal conflict will hold even in the short-term nor any resolution to the issue of the planet’s natives.

Overall I enjoyed this book. I recommend it to readers interested in a more thoughtful approach to post-disaster fiction.

[Lorinda Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is meant to prepare you for the longer works to come by setting up the premise and the scene. As such, it’s successful, but it’s rather disappointing as a work that stands alone.
A pleasure expedition is hijacked by some unidentified force, whisked across time and space and deposited on an alien planet. The survivors have to reconstruct civilization as they struggle to survive. Hence, the characters are pretty much one-dimensional embodiments of political and social theories. To be honest, that’s not my favorite kind of characterization. I prefer for the characters to have more depth and complexity and for the morals of the story to be more subtly evoked through this depth. This book, however, is too short to carry out that goal.
Another objection I have is the speed with which the inhabitants reconstruct an Earth-like civilization. After they have been ensconced on the planet only 18 years, they already have sufficient power resources to make metal objects like heavy chains and to make luxuries like glass to glaze their windows. Furthermore, their knowledge was embedded in “e-libs” – something like our present-day hand-held computers. Again, they had to have power to keep these devices charged, or they would be of no use. (There is nothing like a paper book to preserve knowledge!) I realize that the pods that landed with them contained power sources, but I somehow doubt it would have been sufficient to last for 18 years. And any man-made object will deteriorate over time and cease to function.
The book is not heavy on description, but there is one striking image that sticks in the mind: “a beautiful waterfall sitting on a pocket of natural methane gas, which seeped out through a fracture in the rocks behind it. The gas fed an unending fire, and the vision of the bright flame shining through the falling water was as haunting and beautiful today as it has been when the first survivor happened across this enchanted place.”
The thing that intrigued me the most about the book was the unidentified alien force that corrupted Croix’s attitude and the other alien force that appeared to Barrett and advised her near the end. There is also the question of the planet’s natives. I’m hoping that in Book Two: Rise of the Prince more emphasis will be placed on both of these aspects. And I do intend to read the second volume, which is much longer and is undoubtedly more fully conceived.

[M.M. Jaye · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's New Year's Eve, the year of 2099, but the distinguished guests aboard the Pearseus won't get to countdown seconds; soon they'll be counting bodies and survivors after the spaceship's crash landing on another planet. The good news? The planet is seemingly hospitable both in resources and in terms of the natives' attitude towards earthlings. The bad news? They might have come on this planet bare of possessions, but what they haven't been able to shed are the shortcomings of their human nature. Will that be the sole threat to a unified future, or is the new land and its first inhabitants not as innocent as they look?

This is a fantastic (literally and figuratively) prequel that lays the groundwork for what looks like an exciting sci-fi/fantasy series. If my instinct is right (and the other excellent reviews confirm it) apart from an adventure, Nicholas C. Rossis will weave a story where philosophical and historical issues will be raised, raising the bar for both the reader and the genre as a whole. I'm really glad I bought and read this thoroughly enjoyable book because now I already know my next read: Pearseus, the Rise of the Prince, the first full-length novel of the series.

[John Priest · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know about anyone else, but I seem to approach a book in one of two ways:

1) Using a critical eye and jotting down notes when reading a book for a review.

2) Settling down with the book, relaxing and allowing myself to be drawn into the story, plot, the locations and getting to know its characters.

So it was very unusual when, after reading the first few pages of Pearseus that I realised I was lost in the world that Nicholas C. Rossis had created and I'd totally forgotten about the review!

I had been gently drawn into this Science Fiction book, entering the world that the author had made for his readers and before I knew it I was in that 'other place' and not wanting it to finish.

The descriptions of the characters were not over done; the pace of the book was just right and the scene descriptions were as real as you can get.

Nicholas C. Rossis has the skill and knowledge to write a 'believable' story; one that you can definitely lose yourself in, as I did!

As you probably know by now, I loved this book!

It was a gripping, thrilling book that had some cautionary words too for the people that read it and also the human race itself!

If you haven't already done so, I would definitely recommend you buy and read this book.

[Leisl Kaberry · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a lot to like from this Sci-Fi prequel from Rossis.
A civilisation that has been founded on a new world with similar attributes to earth, native (others) that occupy parts of the land and leaders that let their position of authority go to their head make up, in part, the Pearseus' history. And really that is what this novella is, a fascinating history of a civilisation over the beginning years. But it far from reads like a history book, the history is told in a set of scenarios each one containing critical characters that shape the world in its early decades.
While I enjoyed the well written and intriguing stories that introduced the civilisation of Pearseus, I would have liked to have seen more character development along the way. I felt that just as I was really getting to know characters, the story would move it's focus and therefore a new scenario present itself.
Having said that, I thought it was a neat and clever way to introduce this world and it's history as a prequel to the novel. A history that is brimming with thought provoking dilemmas that effect any kind of civilisation but certainly one that is not already built upon established moral rules and laws. I would be interested In reading where this series goes... Now that I have the history down.

[Harmony Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful little book. I read it in about two hours, and found it a very easy read.

Pearseus Year 18: The Schism, is a sci-fi prequel of novella length (about 77 pages), and chronicles a community after they have crash landed their space ship. The new planet proves inhabitable, and similar to earth in many ways. Except for its two moons, oh--and the natives.

Usually, I read with an editor's eye and make detailed notes. In this case, I found myself immediately drawn into the story and forgot to notate a lot of the points I otherwise would have done. That said, there weren't any major issues anyway. Yes, the book could do with some minor tweaks, and another proofread run, but--evidently--these didn't amount to enough to pull me out of the read. I blame the author fully for my remissness; its his fault for writing such a gripping tale!

I wanted to learn more about the characters and their lives, and the book stopped far too soon for me. Not because the ending wasn't well rounded (it was), but because Mr Rossis managed to pull me in right up close, and now I want more.

I offer a strong Four out of Five stars for Pearseus Year 18, and can see it achieving an easy Five with a little tweaking here and there. Bravo.

[Tim Hemlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicholas Rossis’ Pearseus: Schism, Book 1 of the epic fantasy series Pearseus, is a page-turner. It literally begins with a bang and doesn’t let up. The destruction of a spaceship on New Year’s Eve lands the survivors on a remote planet. As if that’s not enough, mysterious aliens taunt at the edge consciousness and reality. What are those voices in Croix’s head? Why didn’t Lucas heed his dream and the voice that came to him? What was Joe thinking? And did Barrett make the right decision? This sci-fi/ fantasy is as much an exploration of how societies pull together—or don’t—and evolve with all their imperfections, warring factions, and political intrigue. I don’t want to give too much away, but I thought Mr. Rossis perfectly portrayed Croix’s abuse of power and how easily manipulated the masses can be. As Croix himself says, it is “a fascinating world of cruelty and finesse in equal measure” where “fear [is] the great motivator.” My only criticism is that I would have liked this episode to be longer, but then I often feel that way when reading a book that I don’t want to end. So what did I do? Purchased Pearseus, Rise of the Prince, of course! Pearseus: Schism is a well-written, adventure packed introduction to a fascinating world. Five stars.

[Marigold Dicer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a different book to anything I'd read before. If you like myths and legends, history and humanity, you will like this book. It reads like a fictionalised version of history, but it's not our history. Scifi that brings a few hundred people stranded on an Earth-like planet, we see good and bad people struggle to hold onto the history of the human race while trying to build a new society. And of course, everyone has a different idea how this new society should work.
With multiple characters and mutliple POVs, I was worried it would get hard to follow but it never happened. Actually, I bought the 3 book boxset (which I recommend doing) and completely blitzed through the first book and was halfway through the second before I realised I had already finished book one.
The time gap should have clued me in, but anyway...
This is why I should read more indie books. I've never read anything like it before and I just don't think I would've been exposed to something similar by going to my local library. I'm really looking forward to finishing the series - how do you end something that has such a broad scope and scale?

[Philip Tolhurst · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having crashed landed on an unknown, but life supporting planet, the remaining crew and passengers set about rebuilding their lives. 18 years after the crash and one man's tyranny will provide to be the proverbial straw that breaks the camels back.

This is a novella in length at best and so there's precious few words spent on character development with the story really focussing on three people and a small number of supporting extras.

Where the story is let down is the extra terrestrial influence that plays such a big part of the story is never explained its just used as a plot device to propel the story along. However there appears to be two influencing forces at the outset but the good side is forgotten after the ship crashes.

It's a good read, well written and enjoyable but ultimately left me wanting greater explanations than were offered by the author.

[Loren Weaver · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the not so distant future, a space ship crash lands on a far away planet. It seems like an accident, or was it? However they got here, the survivors from Pearseus are left to set up a new civilization, if they can work together. And for a while, they do.

But the possession that seems to have brought them here is never so far away. And the whisper in the dark just adds to an already corrupt human nature... right? So when everything crashes, the civilization splits ... and we have the schism that creates Pearseus.

Schism is a shorter book that opens up the world and sets the stage for the drama that is about to unfold on the new planet Pearseus.

[Kindle Ninja · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating start to the series. It’s a clever set up that lays the foundation of the series and introduces us to some of the most interesting characters. It is evident that the author draws from several ideologies and I find the dialogues highly intelligent and thought-provoking, though at times it feels like reading lecture notes.

I particularly like how the clash of beliefs and ideologies are underscored to create the ultimate conflict that I can only surmise would figure prominently in the next book.

[MJ Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pearseus was a fun read. It was well-crafted with believable scenarios. The author seemed to draw from a number of fascinating areas for inspiration. I saw hints of mythology, Greek history, and certainly the clash between tyranny and freedom. (I just realized the author is Greek so no wonder!) I’m eager to read book #2 – especially to find out if one of the characters lives up to his namesake or if it was just a coincidence. I suspect the former...

[C.M. Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good dystopian sci-fi intro novel. Plenty of social conflict on a new world where the survivors of a calamitous space flight end up. Most of the story takes place 18 years after they land, after they have managed to begin to eke out an existence on their new planet. The story comes to complete conclusion yet still leaves a lot of questions unanswered, which I am eager to read the next book to find out about.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

A twisted tale of corruption, betrayal and people struggling to get by with what they have. I very readable short story.

[Chris The Story Reading Ape · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent taster for a promising series.

Combine mysterious voices and an unscheduled trip through hyperspace, with a study in human nature, human history and the need to survive on an alien planet (with existing inhabitants), and you have a very interesting read.

See my review also at:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...

[Colleen Chesebro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t know how I did it, but it appears that after reading the Perseus series, I neglected to read the very first book, a prequel novel, you could say. Without further ado, I contacted the author, Nicholas Rossis, and he kindly provided me with a copy. And… let me tell you! I was glad I did!

Just to be sure that I understood what I was reading, I looked up the word “Schism.” Dictionary.com explains that a schism means “a division or disunion, especially into mutually opposed parties.” I don’t think the author could have chosen a better word for the title of his book.

Schism begins when the “Pearseus,” a spaceship, crashes on an unknown planet due to the negligence of one of its top officers. Chaos ensues and the survivors have nothing left to do but to create a new civilization in order to survive. Much in the same way man has conquered the continents on earth, the survivors drive the natural inhabitants of the planet to a remote area far away leaving the survivors to rule the area they have settled.

However, factions within the surviving party have a different agenda. True to human nature, corruption within the rank and file causes some of the survivors to scheme on their own. A darkness creeps into the group of a kind that mankind has never seen before. The civilization known as Pearseus begins to fall apart. The schism is now complete and the stage is set for the Pearseus series.

I am so happy that I had the opportunity to read this first book. Although Nicholas Rossis does a superb job at keeping you abreast of the happenings in each book, this first book gives you a glimpse into the personalities of the crew and the catalyst that set the whole series into motion. You won’t want to leave this book out!

My Rating:

Character Believability: 5
Flow and Pace: 5
Reader Engagement: 5
Reader Enrichment: 5
Reader Enjoyment: 5
Overall Rate: 5 out of 5 stars