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Outer Bounds #2
Fortune's Folly
Fortune has a secret.
Humanity, in its struggle to escape its own planet's demise, began sending colony ships from Earth almost seven hundred years ago in the desperate hope a handful would find some place habitable to human life and be able to continue our species. Only one ship survived.
It only survived because it found a vast swath of alien planets, all terraformed, all utterly abandoned. Alien megastructures cold and lifeless. Alien vehicles left in panicked lines, sealed from the inside, no corpses within. Empty space stations, with no one to run them but the dust. Resources everywhere, ripe for the taking.
But Fortune is different. Of all the planets colonized by humans after the chaos of Migration, this single, jungle-infested colony on the very edge of the known universe holds the key to the alien collapse…and to humanity’s survival. Everywhere else, advanced alien ruins mar every surface, every planetoid, every debris ring and asteroid, but of the creatures that made them, there is no sign. On Fortune, something survives…
Unfortunately for humanity, while time is running out, a rebellion is brewing, one that could save our species—or consign it to dust like the aliens that came before us. Now, seven hundred years after our first brush with extinction, the fate of the human race once again rests on the shoulders of a few: a seven-year-old sociopath and her combat-gifted big sister, a man who’s dreamed of the future, an infamous smuggler, and a Coalition pilot sworn to destroy the rebel cause.
This time, however, the stakes are higher. For lurking on Fortune is a secret.
An epic, post-apocalyptic science fiction adventure that will make you hold your breath, cry, curse the powers that be, and in the end question what, exactly, it means to be human. This is the SECOND book in the Outer Bounds series. Please start with Book 1: Fortune's Rising.
Humanity, in its struggle to escape its own planet's demise, began sending colony ships from Earth almost seven hundred years ago in the desperate hope a handful would find some place habitable to human life and be able to continue our species. Only one ship survived.
It only survived because it found a vast swath of alien planets, all terraformed, all utterly abandoned. Alien megastructures cold and lifeless. Alien vehicles left in panicked lines, sealed from the inside, no corpses within. Empty space stations, with no one to run them but the dust. Resources everywhere, ripe for the taking.
But Fortune is different. Of all the planets colonized by humans after the chaos of Migration, this single, jungle-infested colony on the very edge of the known universe holds the key to the alien collapse…and to humanity’s survival. Everywhere else, advanced alien ruins mar every surface, every planetoid, every debris ring and asteroid, but of the creatures that made them, there is no sign. On Fortune, something survives…
Unfortunately for humanity, while time is running out, a rebellion is brewing, one that could save our species—or consign it to dust like the aliens that came before us. Now, seven hundred years after our first brush with extinction, the fate of the human race once again rests on the shoulders of a few: a seven-year-old sociopath and her combat-gifted big sister, a man who’s dreamed of the future, an infamous smuggler, and a Coalition pilot sworn to destroy the rebel cause.
This time, however, the stakes are higher. For lurking on Fortune is a secret.
An epic, post-apocalyptic science fiction adventure that will make you hold your breath, cry, curse the powers that be, and in the end question what, exactly, it means to be human. This is the SECOND book in the Outer Bounds series. Please start with Book 1: Fortune's Rising.
707 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 19, 2016
470 people are currently reading
287 people want to read
About the author
Sara King
21 books786 followersAfter a long, twisted road, Alaskan Fury is my 15th book. The rest (aside from the first five or so ‘practice books’) spent the last 3-6 years languishing on my hard drive as I waited for some really cool editor at a big, traditional publishing house to notice me. It didn’t happen, even with a world-famous agent doing his damnedest to get my books out there.
So, because I’ve got a stubborn streak a mile wide—and some say because I’m a naïve, dumbass Alaskan—I’m striking out on my own and putting my books out there. Basically casting my dice to the Fates, and seeing what happens. If you like my books, please tell your friends. I don’t have a huge advertising team behind me, so word-of-mouth really helps.
On that note, my books never went through a copyeditor. What you see is the result of a few dedicated volunteers, all of whom have poured untold hours into the crafting of the book in your hands. They are awesome, steeped in awesome, sprinkled with awesome. Thanks, guys!
Further, I write fast. I can easily write 6 novels a year—8 if I don’t get distracted—and during those long years waiting for somebody to notice me, I was finding myself in the extremely frustrating position of watching my manuscripts pile up because traditional publishing companies can only take 1 or 2 novels by a single author a year. Keep an eye out for a bunch of new books from yours truly, as I've finally got an outlet for all that creative drive. :) Enjoy!
I can be reached at: kingnovel@gmail.com
Friend me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/kingfiction
So, because I’ve got a stubborn streak a mile wide—and some say because I’m a naïve, dumbass Alaskan—I’m striking out on my own and putting my books out there. Basically casting my dice to the Fates, and seeing what happens. If you like my books, please tell your friends. I don’t have a huge advertising team behind me, so word-of-mouth really helps.
On that note, my books never went through a copyeditor. What you see is the result of a few dedicated volunteers, all of whom have poured untold hours into the crafting of the book in your hands. They are awesome, steeped in awesome, sprinkled with awesome. Thanks, guys!
Further, I write fast. I can easily write 6 novels a year—8 if I don’t get distracted—and during those long years waiting for somebody to notice me, I was finding myself in the extremely frustrating position of watching my manuscripts pile up because traditional publishing companies can only take 1 or 2 novels by a single author a year. Keep an eye out for a bunch of new books from yours truly, as I've finally got an outlet for all that creative drive. :) Enjoy!
I can be reached at: kingnovel@gmail.com
Friend me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/kingfiction
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
April 20, 2017
What happened? Book one was so great! If I read correctly, the author purchased back the rights to the story and self published? I may be misremembering that but something has certainly changed and my guess is the publisher was pushing some edits to the story that really needed to be there.
I ended up hating most of the characters by the end of book two. Tatiana was devolved into an absolute air headed idiot, Anna's went from being a manipulative sociopath to completely socially inept and evil, and Quad was the most useless character ever. I could go on. Every character was stripped down to a level that reminded me of a teenage TV show on the CW.
The story also completely side shot from the first book. The first book had a solid foundation of rebellion and science fiction and here the author lost all control and tried to weave way too many plots into a single book: Alpha-Gens, Aliens, Phage, Rebellion, Ghost Ships, Anna's time warp... Maybe it will all come together in book three, but for now, book two reads as a mess.
I ended up hating most of the characters by the end of book two. Tatiana was devolved into an absolute air headed idiot, Anna's went from being a manipulative sociopath to completely socially inept and evil, and Quad was the most useless character ever. I could go on. Every character was stripped down to a level that reminded me of a teenage TV show on the CW.
The story also completely side shot from the first book. The first book had a solid foundation of rebellion and science fiction and here the author lost all control and tried to weave way too many plots into a single book: Alpha-Gens, Aliens, Phage, Rebellion, Ghost Ships, Anna's time warp... Maybe it will all come together in book three, but for now, book two reads as a mess.
June 7, 2016
I really liked the first book in this series, but this one was a bit disappointing. It still had the same great character depth, but the plot became quite confusing at times. There were several portions of this book that I had to read numerous times to simply comprehend what was actually happening. Also, this book seemed overly long. It had a lot of irrelevant details. As for the plot, at times there seemed to be too much going on and it made all the major events feel downplayed. Also, I am not a fan of the cliffhanger ending. I doubt I will personally continue this series. Book 3 has not been released yet, and I cant see this one being I wait anticipating being available. Glad it was offered as a kindleunlimited though.
August 6, 2016
Still loved the characters, except Poor Tatiana who was turned into a spoiled brat. But...
Bigger doesn't always mean better. Breakneck pacing, plus the huge number of new concepts introduced means this book suffers in comparison to the first Outer Bounds book.
The book would benefit from tighter editing, and possibly being broken into 2 to manage the narrative through-line more coherently.
Bigger doesn't always mean better. Breakneck pacing, plus the huge number of new concepts introduced means this book suffers in comparison to the first Outer Bounds book.
The book would benefit from tighter editing, and possibly being broken into 2 to manage the narrative through-line more coherently.
June 19, 2017
This series is a guilty pleasure read for me. The story is fun and super easy to read but the dialogue is worst I've ever encountered in a story I actually wanted to keep reading. The way the characters speak and interact with each other had me wondering it was meant to be 'young adult' but then there was too much sex and lust for that to be the case.
What kept me going was the richness found in each character's backstory and trying to piece together how everything came to be as we find it on Fortune. I find myself really wanting to know more about the history of this universe and it's inhabitants. Except for Tatiana...she really needs to be killed off already. How does the most bad-ass fighter pilot of the coalition turn into a spoiled brat who thinks of nothing but screwing her hunky boy toy boyfriend (and how many times must we be reminded he was a virgin??), collecting cool new toys for herself, and making a dangerous wild animal her pet. And we are supposed to believe Milar is into this nonsense?? Right.
And so, though I find myself quite often sighing and rolling my eyes with annoyed disbelief, I am looking forward to the next book in the series. Both books kept me happily reading for hours.
What kept me going was the richness found in each character's backstory and trying to piece together how everything came to be as we find it on Fortune. I find myself really wanting to know more about the history of this universe and it's inhabitants. Except for Tatiana...she really needs to be killed off already. How does the most bad-ass fighter pilot of the coalition turn into a spoiled brat who thinks of nothing but screwing her hunky boy toy boyfriend (and how many times must we be reminded he was a virgin??), collecting cool new toys for herself, and making a dangerous wild animal her pet. And we are supposed to believe Milar is into this nonsense?? Right.
And so, though I find myself quite often sighing and rolling my eyes with annoyed disbelief, I am looking forward to the next book in the series. Both books kept me happily reading for hours.
October 11, 2016
Wow, what a miserable book. Way too long...I really didn't care about any of the characters. They all seemed to hate each other very blindly. Way, way, way too much "techno babble" and unexplained references that I assume are supposed to be cute. Pretty much every character is painfully one dimensional and never seem to grow. A map or some sort of description of this place would be nice as to picture what Rath is or the "orbital" or "void ring". These "nephyer" are supposed to be bad ass's but no one has any problem dropping hundreds of them while no friendlies die or see to be phased. Meanwhile these AlphaGen guys seemed indestructible (in a very annoying way). Of course we don't actually get to learn about any of these guys but have to guess based off what little info is sprinkled in among the meaningless drivel that compromises about 95% of this book.
I have a rule where I will finish a book/series if I started it no matter how bad (and I've read some pretty lousy books by principle of this rule)...but when Book 3 comes out on this I will probably skip it.
I have a rule where I will finish a book/series if I started it no matter how bad (and I've read some pretty lousy books by principle of this rule)...but when Book 3 comes out on this I will probably skip it.
January 1, 2017
The first book in the series was great. This one took me over a month to read. I could not get into it. All the characters just seem to fall flat. Especially Tatiana, who wasn't too bad in the first book but in this one... I mean when did she turn into a spoiled beverly hills brat? At least in the first one she was cognizant of danger and like... not dying. In this one she's like "oh people are shooting at me I'm going to run over here and pick some flowers like a complete ditz"
Other than that it seemed like every other page there was some new gadget or technology that either got over-explained or never explained at all. By the end it felt very rushed and thrown together.
Of course we'll have to wait till the 3rd book because the ending pretty much didn't explain anything new.
Other than that it seemed like every other page there was some new gadget or technology that either got over-explained or never explained at all. By the end it felt very rushed and thrown together.
Of course we'll have to wait till the 3rd book because the ending pretty much didn't explain anything new.
November 4, 2016
Addictive but terrible. Plot goes nowhere, lots of violence, lots of skin & lust. Don't waste your time.
June 6, 2016
Thank the book gods, it is finally here!
After an agonizingly long wait, teased beta readings and a fundraiser, Fortune's Folly has finally been released to the masses. Oh what a day, what a wonderful day! The book, just like the rest of Sara's other works, is amazing. God I love reading her stuff!! Come on book 3!
After an agonizingly long wait, teased beta readings and a fundraiser, Fortune's Folly has finally been released to the masses. Oh what a day, what a wonderful day! The book, just like the rest of Sara's other works, is amazing. God I love reading her stuff!! Come on book 3!
March 14, 2017
Some of the worst dialog and character development I've ever read. I rolled my eyes multiple times. That being said, it had a surprising amount of violence and depravity for a novel that has dialog this juvenile. I'll finish the series.
(same review I have the first book)
(same review I have the first book)
June 7, 2019
1 star, again regretting that we don't have a half-star system here. Literally one of the worst books I've read of my own volition and I had to force myself to resist DNF'ing for the first time in years at several points. Awful, dreadful and obtuse would be some of the more positive words I could use about my experience. Seriously, it must have gone down like this:
"Hey, I've got some ideas for new book. Or books, maybe a two-parter or even a trilogy. Its going to be EPIC!"
"What kind of ideas?"
"Well, I want something like 'Dune'. You know whatever made that planet special and kept the whole galactic power struggle going."
"Like the Spice?"
"Yeah!"
"Hm, not sure what to think. I know I like to put parika on my eggs, does that help?"
"I think I can work with that somehow... but no worms. At least no BIG worms, I don't like them! Smaller wormy creatures, ok, but that's as far as I can go... Maybe they could change later into butterflies or something similar?"
"OK, what else?"
"Hm, not sure if the Freemen work here but definitely at least one Messiah figure. Even make it a girl. Or more than one. Heck, even maybe some aliens that folks don't know were aliens. Maybe they don't even know it themselves, how wild would that be, especially if we repeat it a few times? Oh and let them have really crappy lives in some cases, full of despair and even slavery!"
"Freedom fighters, I can dig it!"
"Oh we've got to have some serious Star Wars stuff in there. Rebels would be freedom fighters, right? And they face all kinds of evil Galaxy dudes and lots of robots and weird weapons that go zoom and shoot light and energy! Oh and weird hyper-tech sword-fighting!"
"I can feel a toy deal coming!"
"Yeah! Heck, we can even make the ships be aware, too, like I've read in other books! Like Transformers from Avatar on the Death Star fighting Thanos! Goodness gracious it just writes itself, albeit I'll have to make it all uneven and poorly paced to hide some stuff!"
"Cool! And maybe even something like the Force or the whole parallel dimension so that when people die, they come back and are re-invented!"
"Absolutely! One of them could even be an old wise dude that everyone underestimates - I don't know if I should make him green or not... maybe he'll just like vegetables in a way."
"I hear you!"
"Ooo, how about Matrix and Terminator combos? It's real but it's not but good golly we'll have tons of weapons and gun fights! Zoom, pow, vroom and more!"
"Man, that is neat!"
"And you know what else? I want like X-Men stuff in there, maybe Avengers, too. Oh yeah, like Wolverine and Dr. Strange, all in one! Damn, where are my old comics?"
"Heroes! Amazing!"
"No, not heroes per se, because I'll have most folks be unlikeable. How about anti-heroes? Or even anti-anti-heroes?"
"Go for it! What else do you need?"
"Well, at some point in the book, I want to use the word "pulchritudinous" Because reasons..."
"That would be unique for sure! What else?"
"Hm, not sure. I'm thinking some Tolkienesque references - you know, small people, some with big hairy feet - and Harry Potter themes. I want ALL of it!"
"Wow! Any sex appeal?"
"Yeah, that's got to pop up, too. Random sex and all the women have huge knockers but the actual consummation only happens on occasion when it just pops up out of the blue. And lots of issues with unwanted pregnancies even in this advanced civilization!"
"Adult sci-fi! Sweet!"
"But I also want kids to be interested!"
"Wasn't the hero stuff enough, not to mention the kind of wizard looking into all dimensions thing?"
"Maybe. Hey, what if we also have kind of a parallel kids team? And let's write parts of it in Young Adult format, maybe even go as far as to dip into Middle Grade!"
"Gosh. How are you going to pull all that off?"
"Oh I'll just keep writing until I think everyone is too confused or even unconscious enough to keep up. A clusterf*ck to end all clusterf*cks!"
"Nice, nice!
"But seriously, if the reader doesn't have to fight to keep this book from being a DNF at least 7 times, well, it's just not worth it!"
"Oh I don't think you'll have to worry about that. This sounds like it'll be so random, ill-conceived, over-plotted and poorly edited that at least this reader will never touch another of your books again! The sheer torture sounds delicious!"
"Awesome! Well, let me get to it, there are suckers out there waiting for this...."
"Hey, I've got some ideas for new book. Or books, maybe a two-parter or even a trilogy. Its going to be EPIC!"
"What kind of ideas?"
"Well, I want something like 'Dune'. You know whatever made that planet special and kept the whole galactic power struggle going."
"Like the Spice?"
"Yeah!"
"Hm, not sure what to think. I know I like to put parika on my eggs, does that help?"
"I think I can work with that somehow... but no worms. At least no BIG worms, I don't like them! Smaller wormy creatures, ok, but that's as far as I can go... Maybe they could change later into butterflies or something similar?"
"OK, what else?"
"Hm, not sure if the Freemen work here but definitely at least one Messiah figure. Even make it a girl. Or more than one. Heck, even maybe some aliens that folks don't know were aliens. Maybe they don't even know it themselves, how wild would that be, especially if we repeat it a few times? Oh and let them have really crappy lives in some cases, full of despair and even slavery!"
"Freedom fighters, I can dig it!"
"Oh we've got to have some serious Star Wars stuff in there. Rebels would be freedom fighters, right? And they face all kinds of evil Galaxy dudes and lots of robots and weird weapons that go zoom and shoot light and energy! Oh and weird hyper-tech sword-fighting!"
"I can feel a toy deal coming!"
"Yeah! Heck, we can even make the ships be aware, too, like I've read in other books! Like Transformers from Avatar on the Death Star fighting Thanos! Goodness gracious it just writes itself, albeit I'll have to make it all uneven and poorly paced to hide some stuff!"
"Cool! And maybe even something like the Force or the whole parallel dimension so that when people die, they come back and are re-invented!"
"Absolutely! One of them could even be an old wise dude that everyone underestimates - I don't know if I should make him green or not... maybe he'll just like vegetables in a way."
"I hear you!"
"Ooo, how about Matrix and Terminator combos? It's real but it's not but good golly we'll have tons of weapons and gun fights! Zoom, pow, vroom and more!"
"Man, that is neat!"
"And you know what else? I want like X-Men stuff in there, maybe Avengers, too. Oh yeah, like Wolverine and Dr. Strange, all in one! Damn, where are my old comics?"
"Heroes! Amazing!"
"No, not heroes per se, because I'll have most folks be unlikeable. How about anti-heroes? Or even anti-anti-heroes?"
"Go for it! What else do you need?"
"Well, at some point in the book, I want to use the word "pulchritudinous" Because reasons..."
"That would be unique for sure! What else?"
"Hm, not sure. I'm thinking some Tolkienesque references - you know, small people, some with big hairy feet - and Harry Potter themes. I want ALL of it!"
"Wow! Any sex appeal?"
"Yeah, that's got to pop up, too. Random sex and all the women have huge knockers but the actual consummation only happens on occasion when it just pops up out of the blue. And lots of issues with unwanted pregnancies even in this advanced civilization!"
"Adult sci-fi! Sweet!"
"But I also want kids to be interested!"
"Wasn't the hero stuff enough, not to mention the kind of wizard looking into all dimensions thing?"
"Maybe. Hey, what if we also have kind of a parallel kids team? And let's write parts of it in Young Adult format, maybe even go as far as to dip into Middle Grade!"
"Gosh. How are you going to pull all that off?"
"Oh I'll just keep writing until I think everyone is too confused or even unconscious enough to keep up. A clusterf*ck to end all clusterf*cks!"
"Nice, nice!
"But seriously, if the reader doesn't have to fight to keep this book from being a DNF at least 7 times, well, it's just not worth it!"
"Oh I don't think you'll have to worry about that. This sounds like it'll be so random, ill-conceived, over-plotted and poorly edited that at least this reader will never touch another of your books again! The sheer torture sounds delicious!"
"Awesome! Well, let me get to it, there are suckers out there waiting for this...."
October 19, 2016
There is one problem with reviewing audiobooks, peeps, and it's remembering names and trying to spell them correctly. I just spent 30 mins going through other people's reviews to get the names I need, and I still couldn't find them all. *grins*
Anyway, I adore Sara King's books. They are always so far-reaching and mind-blowing, and Fortune's Folly is no exception. The narrator here is also wonderful and brings all the characters to life.
Overall, this is a book of many revelations:
- Anna is finally taken down a notch (yay!). She is such a horrible little psycho, I was fervently wishing for her to die.
- We meet Quad who is far better at all things tech than Anna, but much more naive, which makes Anna a real danger to him.
- Tatiana and Milar are my faves. Tat is an awesome character. She is self-centered and spoiled, but not enough to make her unlikeable. This puppy knows hat she is doing, and Milar loves her no matter what. In this book, Tatiana makes a major discovery about Fortune's unique resources and why they are there.
- Josie Brackett and Magali. I wasn't very happy with those two. On one hand Magali is responsible for some freaking epic fights in this book, on the other hand, her mind is going, and she wallowing in self-pity when she is not kicking ass.
- Joel and Jean do a mind-blowing heist of the century, which is really funny. But then Jean goes and spoils it, and the rest of the book the duo picks up the pieces.
- Dobie continues being awesome, especially after Quad turns him into a comic book character with his upgrades. I love ho he stays with Anna to keep the little psycho in check.
- Whiteman Joe and Peter. Peter is still a whiner, and I totally don't like him, but I enjoyed Joe's new depth of character and his role in the plot. He was a treat!
- Finally, Alpha Gen. This plot like starts okay, but by the end of the book it's mess. New characters are introduced left, right and center, and I couldn't keep up with hat as going on which is why I had to lower the rating.
Oh, nearly forgot! Yolk babies were really good too. Overall, a really chaotic listen, but an epic one at that. Recommended.
My review of Fortune's Rising.
* * *
Вот есть одна большая проблема у рецензий на аудиокниги: очень часто не знаешь как пишутся имена персонажей и приходится перерывать множество чужих рецензий, чтобы их найти.
В общем, книги Сары Кинг я очень ценю. От неё всегда можно ожидать широчайшего построения мира, поражающего воображение своей замысловатостью. Эта книга - не исключение, да и рассказчица на аудио только добавляет ей глубины, прекрасно передавая характеры группы героев.
Книга эта также полна сюрпризов:
- Маленькая психопатка Анна наконец-то получает по заслугам. Гип-гип ура! Как же я не переношу её характер!
- Мы знакомимся с Кводом, который умеет путешествовать во времени и пространстве. В качестве бонуса, он умнее Анны, однако она опаснее, о чём ему постоянно напоминает Доби.
- Доби - ну просто шикарный персонаж! Особенно когда Квод превращает его в характера из комиксов своими апгрэйдами. Я уважаю его решение остаться с Анной, так как он единственный, кто способен минимизировать её ущерб.
-Детки желтка очень милые.
- Татьяна и Майлар - мои любимчики и играют чуть ли не самую важную роль в этой книге. Я люблю то, что Татьяна - эгоистка до крнчиков ногтей, однако она смешная и прекрасно знает когда перестать нажимать на окружающих, чтобы не переборщить. Тат и Майлар случайно разгадывают тайны погибшей цивилизации Аашаанти и узнают почему Фортуна - такая необычная планета. К тому же, Татьяна ненавидит Анну, что большой плюс в моей книге.
- Магали и Джози Бракетт. Я ими не очень была довольна, так как Магали переживает раскол в сознании после совершённых ею убийств, и постоянно себя жалеет, хоть она и ответственна за совершенно эпичные бои в этой книге.
- Беглец Джоэль и Джин начинают свою часть сюжета шикарнейшей афёрой, забирая весь желток с Фортуны, однако Джин косячит, и остальную часть книги, парочка старается исправить своё положение.
- Питер и Белый Джо. Питер - ещё один противный персонаж, постоянно жалующийся на жизнь, однако я была рада за Джо, который наконец-то получает важную роль в сюжете.
- И последнее, Альфа Джен. Началось всё с ними понятно, но последние процентов десять книги - это сплошной хаос. Новые персонажи впрыгивают из-за углов и появляются какие-то безумные петли в повествовании.
В общем, концовка грязная, из-за чего оценку я свою занизила. А так, конечно, книга поражает воображение своим масштабом. Читайте!
Anyway, I adore Sara King's books. They are always so far-reaching and mind-blowing, and Fortune's Folly is no exception. The narrator here is also wonderful and brings all the characters to life.
Overall, this is a book of many revelations:
- Anna is finally taken down a notch (yay!). She is such a horrible little psycho, I was fervently wishing for her to die.
- We meet Quad who is far better at all things tech than Anna, but much more naive, which makes Anna a real danger to him.
- Tatiana and Milar are my faves. Tat is an awesome character. She is self-centered and spoiled, but not enough to make her unlikeable. This puppy knows hat she is doing, and Milar loves her no matter what. In this book, Tatiana makes a major discovery about Fortune's unique resources and why they are there.
- Josie Brackett and Magali. I wasn't very happy with those two. On one hand Magali is responsible for some freaking epic fights in this book, on the other hand, her mind is going, and she wallowing in self-pity when she is not kicking ass.
- Joel and Jean do a mind-blowing heist of the century, which is really funny. But then Jean goes and spoils it, and the rest of the book the duo picks up the pieces.
- Dobie continues being awesome, especially after Quad turns him into a comic book character with his upgrades. I love ho he stays with Anna to keep the little psycho in check.
- Whiteman Joe and Peter. Peter is still a whiner, and I totally don't like him, but I enjoyed Joe's new depth of character and his role in the plot. He was a treat!
- Finally, Alpha Gen. This plot like starts okay, but by the end of the book it's mess. New characters are introduced left, right and center, and I couldn't keep up with hat as going on which is why I had to lower the rating.
Oh, nearly forgot! Yolk babies were really good too. Overall, a really chaotic listen, but an epic one at that. Recommended.
My review of Fortune's Rising.
* * *
Вот есть одна большая проблема у рецензий на аудиокниги: очень часто не знаешь как пишутся имена персонажей и приходится перерывать множество чужих рецензий, чтобы их найти.
В общем, книги Сары Кинг я очень ценю. От неё всегда можно ожидать широчайшего построения мира, поражающего воображение своей замысловатостью. Эта книга - не исключение, да и рассказчица на аудио только добавляет ей глубины, прекрасно передавая характеры группы героев.
Книга эта также полна сюрпризов:
- Маленькая психопатка Анна наконец-то получает по заслугам. Гип-гип ура! Как же я не переношу её характер!
- Мы знакомимся с Кводом, который умеет путешествовать во времени и пространстве. В качестве бонуса, он умнее Анны, однако она опаснее, о чём ему постоянно напоминает Доби.
- Доби - ну просто шикарный персонаж! Особенно когда Квод превращает его в характера из комиксов своими апгрэйдами. Я уважаю его решение остаться с Анной, так как он единственный, кто способен минимизировать её ущерб.
-Детки желтка очень милые.
- Татьяна и Майлар - мои любимчики и играют чуть ли не самую важную роль в этой книге. Я люблю то, что Татьяна - эгоистка до крнчиков ногтей, однако она смешная и прекрасно знает когда перестать нажимать на окружающих, чтобы не переборщить. Тат и Майлар случайно разгадывают тайны погибшей цивилизации Аашаанти и узнают почему Фортуна - такая необычная планета. К тому же, Татьяна ненавидит Анну, что большой плюс в моей книге.
- Магали и Джози Бракетт. Я ими не очень была довольна, так как Магали переживает раскол в сознании после совершённых ею убийств, и постоянно себя жалеет, хоть она и ответственна за совершенно эпичные бои в этой книге.
- Беглец Джоэль и Джин начинают свою часть сюжета шикарнейшей афёрой, забирая весь желток с Фортуны, однако Джин косячит, и остальную часть книги, парочка старается исправить своё положение.
- Питер и Белый Джо. Питер - ещё один противный персонаж, постоянно жалующийся на жизнь, однако я была рада за Джо, который наконец-то получает важную роль в сюжете.
- И последнее, Альфа Джен. Началось всё с ними понятно, но последние процентов десять книги - это сплошной хаос. Новые персонажи впрыгивают из-за углов и появляются какие-то безумные петли в повествовании.
В общем, концовка грязная, из-за чего оценку я свою занизила. А так, конечно, книга поражает воображение своим масштабом. Читайте!
August 8, 2016
I love this author and really like this series. This story is GREAT. The characters are interesting, the story complex in ways that are unexpected. It's a scifi story about a colony revolting with a few subplots mixed in.
I just wish Anna would turn a corner soon and stop being evil. The author teases so many opportunities for her to mend her moral compass, at least a little, but Anna doesn't seem to grow. She's supposed to end up saving everyone from the Phage. I wish she were a tad more likable. LOVE LOVE LOVE the yolk babies and Dobie. Brackett is a great addition, and Tatiana and her new pet are fantastic as well. The Alpha Gen subplot is a little less interesting to me, but I see how it's necessary to explain Mowgli and Anna.
I re-read the book that leads up to this one as prep and also read the accompanying novella about Anna rescuing Milar when she was four years old. I had forgotten the violence and cruelty in some of the scenes. I dislike that level of violence and wish it were at least more off-screen or not so extreme.
I just wish Anna would turn a corner soon and stop being evil. The author teases so many opportunities for her to mend her moral compass, at least a little, but Anna doesn't seem to grow. She's supposed to end up saving everyone from the Phage. I wish she were a tad more likable. LOVE LOVE LOVE the yolk babies and Dobie. Brackett is a great addition, and Tatiana and her new pet are fantastic as well. The Alpha Gen subplot is a little less interesting to me, but I see how it's necessary to explain Mowgli and Anna.
I re-read the book that leads up to this one as prep and also read the accompanying novella about Anna rescuing Milar when she was four years old. I had forgotten the violence and cruelty in some of the scenes. I dislike that level of violence and wish it were at least more off-screen or not so extreme.
January 16, 2019
Expected better
I tried to finish the book but couldn't finish that last 20%. The characters got sillier as the book wore on. Two major adult characters are reduced to teenaged parents-to-be by an unplanned pregnancy. A combat veteran can't pay attention to what she realizes may be the dying, last Sentient AI of a vanished race. She's busy shopping for the largest gun in the ship's arsenal, like she's a child in a toy shop.
The storyline is forced to treat some of this foolishness as sane/normal and it is degraded accordingly. It pushes the idea that a planet wide revolution is the result of a handful of farmers in pickup trucks getting guns. The characters do nothing to build a consensus in the populace or organize them in support of this huge struggle. All the major characters need do is shoot down a bunch of bad guys publicly and the revolution is on.
I'm curious about the rest of the series story but I don't expect that I'll read the next installment. The book is very uneven.
I tried to finish the book but couldn't finish that last 20%. The characters got sillier as the book wore on. Two major adult characters are reduced to teenaged parents-to-be by an unplanned pregnancy. A combat veteran can't pay attention to what she realizes may be the dying, last Sentient AI of a vanished race. She's busy shopping for the largest gun in the ship's arsenal, like she's a child in a toy shop.
The storyline is forced to treat some of this foolishness as sane/normal and it is degraded accordingly. It pushes the idea that a planet wide revolution is the result of a handful of farmers in pickup trucks getting guns. The characters do nothing to build a consensus in the populace or organize them in support of this huge struggle. All the major characters need do is shoot down a bunch of bad guys publicly and the revolution is on.
I'm curious about the rest of the series story but I don't expect that I'll read the next installment. The book is very uneven.
July 7, 2016
Ok I loved the first book immensely the characters and the plot all had things they had to do and show up. Sadly this isn't the case with the second book. The characters are mostly to self absorbed and even the characters fighting for the good side are just out to do what they wish and damn the consequences for there really isn't none. Oh look we happen to have the invisibility cloak with us and a super robot who has the ability to kill thousands of other robots. Who is the bad guy here the Phag that we only hear about when Tatiana is buried in the ship and completely ignores something I didn't think her character would be able to an undead ancient alien but what does she do? Whines and whines about why cant she be a normal person. Overall I don't believe I will be reading the third book if this is how the writing will be.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2017
I can see why the author had a disagreement with the former publisher about the direction for this series. She really opened it up. The first book was a tight little character-based story about an evil empire and some pure-hearted colonists, and their smuggle friends, and their rebel friends, and some unusual children, and a sentient robot and some odd conditions (shriekers, yolk, etc). Cool sci-fi.
But in this book, it gets way bigger. It kind of goes along like the first one, and then you meet some ancient aliens, and then you meet some alphagens, and then it gets complicated.
I still like it when the good guys win, and when the bad guys lose, and when the issue is in doubt for a while. Can't wait to read the next one!
But in this book, it gets way bigger. It kind of goes along like the first one, and then you meet some ancient aliens, and then you meet some alphagens, and then it gets complicated.
I still like it when the good guys win, and when the bad guys lose, and when the issue is in doubt for a while. Can't wait to read the next one!
August 22, 2018
This book was a slog of a read. It's like all the characters from the first book took some drug that gave them personality disorders. In particular, Tatiana has a bad case of diarrhea mouth and is pretty unrecognizable from the character in the first book. To add insult to injury, the book offers no proper ending, just a random stopping point that leaves you wondering how many more book do you have to read/buy to get some real resolution. Great premiss, but the execution is disappointing.
Props to the author for going independent, but a voice outside your own head when it comes to editing and character development would in this case be a very good thing. You don't have to embrace the old-school publishing industry to accomplish this either.
Props to the author for going independent, but a voice outside your own head when it comes to editing and character development would in this case be a very good thing. You don't have to embrace the old-school publishing industry to accomplish this either.
July 19, 2016
I did not like this book. The first one in the series (borrowed not bought) was decent and so I continued on but the plot got stupider and stupider as it went on. Every other scene was a character who was weak but determined and threatened someone else with a gun who relented. The main characters includes super smart kids who had mind-bending powers to control the forces of the universe but kept making terrible mistakes of emotional immaturity. The plot got more unrealistic as it went on, with the main characters miraculously surviving one ridiculous situation after another. Every time it looked like someone would finally die it would be ... a trick of some sort.
January 2, 2024
Readability 5. Rating 6. That was weird. And long. And pretty dark and grisly. And sprawling, although perhaps convoluted would be slightly unfair. I would also say that technobabble can only really work if you mean it. But King does a good job creating characters and getting inside their heads. The best part was Anna and Quad destroying the universe of the story and picking up in a new universe, never to return - bold, well executed, and kind of funny. I would note that it does score well in terms of being memorable - yes, I was annoyed when I finished with some of its shortcomings, but those have faded a bit while the strengths have remained.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 11, 2017
This book was all over the place. It felt like Sara King thought of EVERY cool scenario she wanted and just threw it onto a page and tried to write a story around it. It lost all credibility very quickly. I thought the first book was great and had a story that really drew me in and made me want to read this book. However, this book never had an engaging story. The characters never developed. Tatiana become the most ANNOYING character ever. One second she was kicking the butts of every bad guy, the next she's whining and complaining. This book was not enjoyable to read at all.
Currently reading
November 15, 2016I've decided not to read Fortune's Folly. I enjoyed the first two books of the series but the more I read the slower the progress of the story, and I have the feeling that Sara King could write hundreds more pages without making any appreciable progress. I'd enjoy following this series IF it actually went some place, but it reminds me of a soap opera on TV that you know will go on forever with nothing actually being concluded.
May 5, 2017
I read the first book in this series at least a couple of years ago. I wish I had read it again just prior to beginning this second book. It took me about halfway through Fortune's Folly to remember who everyone was and what was happening. There was so much going on plot-wise, I kept having to go back to figure out who was related to who and why they were taking certain actions. And then everything ended abruptly with no resolution. I guess this means there will be a Book 3.
July 9, 2018
I really do like this series a lot. But Tatiana is still very insufferable. Her character alone almost made me stop reading. She is...i dont know Naive or immature for the type of character she is supposed to be. There was new tech that was either thrown in there with no explanation or thrown in there with too much explanation. This book seemed to bring up more questions rather than answer anything from book 1.
August 17, 2016
Characters are starting to get annoying and childish. Minimal character growth or understanding of new situations. Still going to keep up with the series mostly because of the world building, but much harder to get through then the second one.
September 27, 2016
Had to put this down at only 20%... The first book in this series, and this one also began to read like a screenplay... waaaay too much time spent describing minute details that contributed nothing to the story...
December 28, 2016
Even Better Than Book One!!
Can't put this book down. Even though I sometimes get annoyed at some of the characters (Tatiana), these books are so well written that you can't help but stay invested. I can't wait to see where the next book goes.
Can't put this book down. Even though I sometimes get annoyed at some of the characters (Tatiana), these books are so well written that you can't help but stay invested. I can't wait to see where the next book goes.
March 25, 2017
A great sequel to continue the adventure. I still find the character of Tatiana to be completely ridiculous and unrealistic, but the rest of the players are interesting and well done, and the story is a rip-roaring ride into a future civil war. Now to patiently wait for book #3.
April 8, 2018
Enjoyed book #1 but felt parts of book #2 was overly convoluted & hard to follow. Kept expecting some explanation or background to the story but instead received a cliff hanger with no book #3. Made me kind of wish I’d spent my time on another book or series.
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December 19, 2025Originally thought this was a two books series, so was looking forward to the wrap-up. However, it's a 3 book-er! really interesting stories
Edit: April 2020 -- it's been a couple years since I read this and the 3rd book is not out yet. Wishing the 3rd book would be released soon...
Edit: April 2020 -- it's been a couple years since I read this and the 3rd book is not out yet. Wishing the 3rd book would be released soon...
September 2, 2016
the story starts to get a little too introspective with the female characters and makes some plot line jumps like there a missing chapters.
January 12, 2018
Not nearly as fun as book 1 - a bit more chaotic and hard to follow. Sara has a real taste for gore / splatter and pain - not really my thing. I may skip book 3 - I may not. TBD
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