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The Aliya War Universe
Cherry Pickers
At seventeen, Nikki Sotolongo has had it with being considered a kid. With her hopelessly romantic adopted brother Sam, Nikki figures the only way to prove to her ex-Marine mom that she's an adult is to lose her virginity. Problem is, Nikki's mom is director of a woman-only penal colony on the perfectly named planet Sisyphus. Worse, Sam has just been chosen for marriage by the local Sissy warlord - a fate that can literally mean death for an arachnid Sisyphus native like Sam.
So when a supply ship puts in with hot and handsome Jake on board, Nikki and Sam launch a sure-fire plot to procure Nikki's adulthood and save Sam: they kidnap themselves a Grade A cherry picker. Trouble is, Jake has other plans. So does Sam.
And somebody's trying to get Nikki fed to Sam's would-be bride.
So when a supply ship puts in with hot and handsome Jake on board, Nikki and Sam launch a sure-fire plot to procure Nikki's adulthood and save Sam: they kidnap themselves a Grade A cherry picker. Trouble is, Jake has other plans. So does Sam.
And somebody's trying to get Nikki fed to Sam's would-be bride.
- GenresScience Fiction
80 pages, ebook
Published September 17, 2016
6 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 23, 2019
Cherry Pickers by Bonnie Milani is a fast-paced, action-packed, humorous sci-fi romance that kept me glued to the page to find out what would happen next.
Seventeen-year-old Nikki wants to graduate to being the woman on the unforgiving all-woman penal planet of Sisyphus and she believes she needs to get a man to accomplish this goal. Ignoring the suspicious machinations of Madame Edith, she hones in one new arrival Jake and attempts to rescue/kidnap him with the help of her Sissy spider foster brother, Sam. Things soon get way out of control and Nikki has to attempt the impossible to save the colony and her Mah from disaster.
This is a light-hearted, funny story with a unique setting. An earth-like planet in which one hundred percent of the life forms are carnivorous, especially the plants. The most intelligent species are the Sissies - giant spiders with a strong matriarchal way of life and spider-like mating traditions. The balance between these Indigenous species and the colonists works though it is tenuous. Nikki, the penal director's daughter, has grown up on in the all-female colony. She is both resourceful, caring, impetuous, and wildly naive with a solid relationship with her foster brother, house 'bug' Sam. Sam is romantic, loyal, courageous and visionary, determined to change his society for the better. In addition to a well thought out world populated with colourful and enjoyable characters, the plot is fast moving with some great twists and exciting conclusion.
An enjoyable novella which packs a lot of punch. I loved every minute of it.
Seventeen-year-old Nikki wants to graduate to being the woman on the unforgiving all-woman penal planet of Sisyphus and she believes she needs to get a man to accomplish this goal. Ignoring the suspicious machinations of Madame Edith, she hones in one new arrival Jake and attempts to rescue/kidnap him with the help of her Sissy spider foster brother, Sam. Things soon get way out of control and Nikki has to attempt the impossible to save the colony and her Mah from disaster.
This is a light-hearted, funny story with a unique setting. An earth-like planet in which one hundred percent of the life forms are carnivorous, especially the plants. The most intelligent species are the Sissies - giant spiders with a strong matriarchal way of life and spider-like mating traditions. The balance between these Indigenous species and the colonists works though it is tenuous. Nikki, the penal director's daughter, has grown up on in the all-female colony. She is both resourceful, caring, impetuous, and wildly naive with a solid relationship with her foster brother, house 'bug' Sam. Sam is romantic, loyal, courageous and visionary, determined to change his society for the better. In addition to a well thought out world populated with colourful and enjoyable characters, the plot is fast moving with some great twists and exciting conclusion.
An enjoyable novella which packs a lot of punch. I loved every minute of it.
February 18, 2019
What happens when a girl coming of age on a remote prison planet filled with only women and aliens must find a mate? Predictable chaos and misunderstandings, sure. But add on to this the clash of culture and values from those alien life-forms, and you up the ante considerably.
Not since Orson Scott Card’s “Speaker for the Dead” have I read a book that so carefully considered both the similarities and complete “alien-ness” of a different species and how that would affect the relations between them and humans. Milani introduces a whole new complexity by making one of the aliens a “family member.” Card tried to do this and failed (it’s still a brilliant read, and far superior to “Ender’s Game”). Milani succeeds in ways I am still pondering. The alien lifeforms are called the Sissy (the planet is amusingly called Sisyphus and the trip tot he mountains demonstrates why) who are much like a blend of termites and praying mantises—living in a female dominated colony, whose queen mates, then eats the male. Nikki’s “brother” Sam is also coming of age, with the prospect of losing his life at the wedding.
The only downside of this novella is its length. You want it to go on much longer and explore more of these two cultures. But it is the headlong rush into action that highlights the youth and impetuousness of these two great characters. Get this book. Follow this author!
Not since Orson Scott Card’s “Speaker for the Dead” have I read a book that so carefully considered both the similarities and complete “alien-ness” of a different species and how that would affect the relations between them and humans. Milani introduces a whole new complexity by making one of the aliens a “family member.” Card tried to do this and failed (it’s still a brilliant read, and far superior to “Ender’s Game”). Milani succeeds in ways I am still pondering. The alien lifeforms are called the Sissy (the planet is amusingly called Sisyphus and the trip tot he mountains demonstrates why) who are much like a blend of termites and praying mantises—living in a female dominated colony, whose queen mates, then eats the male. Nikki’s “brother” Sam is also coming of age, with the prospect of losing his life at the wedding.
The only downside of this novella is its length. You want it to go on much longer and explore more of these two cultures. But it is the headlong rush into action that highlights the youth and impetuousness of these two great characters. Get this book. Follow this author!
February 26, 2019
Solid
What a surprise!
This sci-fi adventure is from the perspective of a teenage girl raised in an alien planet. Her relationship views are skewed by the local alien culture and fairy tales.
Non-stop action, the unique body language of the aliens, and the positive ending make this a story to revisit.
Read in KU
What a surprise!
This sci-fi adventure is from the perspective of a teenage girl raised in an alien planet. Her relationship views are skewed by the local alien culture and fairy tales.
Non-stop action, the unique body language of the aliens, and the positive ending make this a story to revisit.
Read in KU
September 23, 2018
Sentient spiders plus chivalry? Awesome!
A penal colony on a world ruled by sentient spiders...enter Grimm's Fairy Tales and damsels in distress! A wild ride that'll make you want more.
A penal colony on a world ruled by sentient spiders...enter Grimm's Fairy Tales and damsels in distress! A wild ride that'll make you want more.
November 14, 2021
The best way I can describe this is superbly fun and outrageous story is to reference three other pieces of entertainment. The last book I read that had spiders in it was Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It’s a mammoth book filled with zoological (is that the term for insects?) facts and exaggerations that ground the reader in a world where spiders are not only sentient but more advanced than humans.
What I felt when reading Cherry Pickers was that Cherry Picker is to Children of Time, as Star Wars is to Dune.
Bonnie Milani doesn’t need chapters dedicated to the intricacies of her spiders’ culture. All that’s needed is the relationship between the spiders and the human colonists, in this case, prisoners on a prison planet. Why is there a prison on a planet filled with giant spiders? Because we want their silk.
Simple. What Milani does incredibly, and not just in this book (I’ve read Monkey’s Luck and Home World previously), is use an easily understandable colloquial language and shorthand references to bring us a lived-in universe. Nothing in Cherry Pickers needs further explanation because Milani is a pro at this great tactic, delivering us a realised world without having to rely on heavy exposition.
Instead, we get a frenetic, heartfelt story which sounds nothing more than comedic if I were to say it’s about a teenage girl, looking to get her leg over to be considered a woman—but it’s so much more than that, and all within 80 pages.
If you’re not already reading Milani, I ask you, why the hells not?
What I felt when reading Cherry Pickers was that Cherry Picker is to Children of Time, as Star Wars is to Dune.
Bonnie Milani doesn’t need chapters dedicated to the intricacies of her spiders’ culture. All that’s needed is the relationship between the spiders and the human colonists, in this case, prisoners on a prison planet. Why is there a prison on a planet filled with giant spiders? Because we want their silk.
Simple. What Milani does incredibly, and not just in this book (I’ve read Monkey’s Luck and Home World previously), is use an easily understandable colloquial language and shorthand references to bring us a lived-in universe. Nothing in Cherry Pickers needs further explanation because Milani is a pro at this great tactic, delivering us a realised world without having to rely on heavy exposition.
Instead, we get a frenetic, heartfelt story which sounds nothing more than comedic if I were to say it’s about a teenage girl, looking to get her leg over to be considered a woman—but it’s so much more than that, and all within 80 pages.
If you’re not already reading Milani, I ask you, why the hells not?
March 13, 2018
An Imaginative Coming of Age Story
The product of a prolific and intricate imagination, “Cherry Pickers” by Bonnie Milani builds a very plausible world and places authentic and well-developed characters in it.
The main character sees her surroundings from an enjoyably practical yet romantic point of view, perceives wrong-doing and ethical behaviour with the same youthful naïveté and holds onto loyalty to bring her through adventures and misfortunes.
The narrative flows quickly, weaving its way around an alien culture which the author presents in just enough detail to give it a necessary reality but not to the extent of becoming an over-powering factor. And matched with the alien theme is the interest of a human rite of passage.
This author writes excellent, stylistic prose, using it to provide vivid, attractive description and to create suspense at a high level, when it is needed.
Although this is a novella which could perhaps have been presented as a novel, it is very well-worked and tightly controlled, with all strands of the storyline coming together in a very satisfactory conclusion.
Highly recommended to all SciFi, Fantasy and Young Adult readers.
The product of a prolific and intricate imagination, “Cherry Pickers” by Bonnie Milani builds a very plausible world and places authentic and well-developed characters in it.
The main character sees her surroundings from an enjoyably practical yet romantic point of view, perceives wrong-doing and ethical behaviour with the same youthful naïveté and holds onto loyalty to bring her through adventures and misfortunes.
The narrative flows quickly, weaving its way around an alien culture which the author presents in just enough detail to give it a necessary reality but not to the extent of becoming an over-powering factor. And matched with the alien theme is the interest of a human rite of passage.
This author writes excellent, stylistic prose, using it to provide vivid, attractive description and to create suspense at a high level, when it is needed.
Although this is a novella which could perhaps have been presented as a novel, it is very well-worked and tightly controlled, with all strands of the storyline coming together in a very satisfactory conclusion.
Highly recommended to all SciFi, Fantasy and Young Adult readers.
October 18, 2017
Spiders man! Like I don’t dig spiders. Yet, I really dug these arachnids. Should be a testament to how compelling the story was when every page was filled with my deepest fears. It was also filled with strong characters, a clash of conflicts, and a nasty villain far scarier than any spider. Oddly enough, this isn’t a horror story. It’s about a girl coming to age in a harsh colony settlement where just about everything around you wants to kill you. And, it’s filled with giant spiders. So, Australia.
Yet our main protagonist Nikki isn’t afraid of her spider, Sam. She isn’t afraid of anything. She just wants to be treated as a woman. To do so, she must snatch herself a cherry picker, on a world essentially devoid of men. Jake, she supposes, will have to do. But he’s not exactly willing and there’s a bit more to him than he’s letting on. As events unfold, Nikki will have to learn there’s more to woman-hood than sex – and spiders. Cherry Pickers is a fun, traditional Sci-Fi story set in Milani’s Homeworld Universe. It’s certainly one of my top picks. 8 out of 8 Hairy Legs.
Yet our main protagonist Nikki isn’t afraid of her spider, Sam. She isn’t afraid of anything. She just wants to be treated as a woman. To do so, she must snatch herself a cherry picker, on a world essentially devoid of men. Jake, she supposes, will have to do. But he’s not exactly willing and there’s a bit more to him than he’s letting on. As events unfold, Nikki will have to learn there’s more to woman-hood than sex – and spiders. Cherry Pickers is a fun, traditional Sci-Fi story set in Milani’s Homeworld Universe. It’s certainly one of my top picks. 8 out of 8 Hairy Legs.
December 31, 2019
A fast paced, fun coming of age story!
17-year-old Nikki wants to be considered an adult for all of the wrong reasons, so she sets her sights on handsome young Jake. One problem is that Jake is not who he appears to be. What could possibly go wrong?
I particularly liked the world building here. Imagine a planet with an Earth-like, breathable atmosphere, but carnivorous grasses and colonies of wild, and civilized spiders make survival tricky.
Sam, Nikki’s adopted spider brother was my absolute favorite. With his penchant for fairytales, sweet disposition, and heroic aspirations. I couldn’t resist.
In the end, Nikki learns that becoming an adult is more about what happens between one’s ears, rather than one’s lower extremities.
My only gripe was in wishing it was longer.
17-year-old Nikki wants to be considered an adult for all of the wrong reasons, so she sets her sights on handsome young Jake. One problem is that Jake is not who he appears to be. What could possibly go wrong?
I particularly liked the world building here. Imagine a planet with an Earth-like, breathable atmosphere, but carnivorous grasses and colonies of wild, and civilized spiders make survival tricky.
Sam, Nikki’s adopted spider brother was my absolute favorite. With his penchant for fairytales, sweet disposition, and heroic aspirations. I couldn’t resist.
In the end, Nikki learns that becoming an adult is more about what happens between one’s ears, rather than one’s lower extremities.
My only gripe was in wishing it was longer.
May 1, 2018
A quick and easy read with well defined and entertaining characters.
October 14, 2019
A sci-fi short with a complex and alien culture that the teenage human heroine has grown up in on a planet that is easy to die on quickly.
December 30, 2016
Cherry Pickers is a joy to read! Milani's author skills shine through in complex characters - even the arachnid variety! - and a plot that doesn't quit. Nikki makes for the perfect coming-of-age protagonist - sassy and smart, but sweet and vulnerable too. I enjoyed every second of her adventure, and was left wanting more.
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February 6, 2017This is my first book by Milani. She has an intriguing imagination. Cherry Pickers doesn’t quite fall wholly into any one genre. It’s not specifically sci-fi, dystopian, romance or mystery, yet it has elements of all quite deftly woven together. Maybe I didn’t read the description carefully enough, but I thought it was a different kind of story until I started reading. The story is set in a women’s penal colony somewhere in space, a place where, as the author writes, the code is “eat or be eaten” with carnivorous beings/things at every turn. The main character, Nikki is a spunky, if somewhat rash seventeen year old who’s main objective is to lose her virginity. Her reason: she wants to be considered a grownup so she can get her gun (right now she can only have a machete). The problem is, the only males around are talking “house bugs” in the form of giant spiders. One such bug is Sam, was raised with Nikki from when they were both infants and is considered “family”. Jake and Mah, Nikki’s mother, are the other significant humans along with the bad gals, Edith and her daughter, Mirry. The writing could have been tighter in a some places and there were a few edit issues. Mainly, there were places that suggested Edith was a bug, although other places indicated she was human. That was a little confusing. Overall, it was an entertaining read and I would read other books by this author. I’d be interested to see what her imagination can come up with next.
January 8, 2017
I would probably have been put off by the plot of this reading the description - but it's by Bonnie Milani, and that pretty much ensures I'll pick it up and read it regardless.
Seventeen-year-old Nikki lives on a woman-only penal colony, and the only man in her life is her adoptive brother, Sam, who happens to be a spider creature, one of the Sissyphus natives, and that just won't do for the task she has in mind. You see, Nikki wants to prove her coming of age, she wants to lose her virginity. Enter supply pilot Jake... but he might not be as keen as she hopes to seal the deal, and trouble is on the horizon. Sam might be lined up for his own part in a marriage ceremony, and Sissyphus brides have been known to eat their husbands.
All of this zips by at a brisk pace in this novella - and if you'd told me I'd be loving reading a story about attempts to lose virginity on a far-distant planet amid creatures nicknamed Sissies, I'd have called you crazy, but that's the talent of Bonnie. A fun read, a light read, and once more I tip my hat to a splendid writer, whose Home World novel was one of my reads of the year in 2016.
Seventeen-year-old Nikki lives on a woman-only penal colony, and the only man in her life is her adoptive brother, Sam, who happens to be a spider creature, one of the Sissyphus natives, and that just won't do for the task she has in mind. You see, Nikki wants to prove her coming of age, she wants to lose her virginity. Enter supply pilot Jake... but he might not be as keen as she hopes to seal the deal, and trouble is on the horizon. Sam might be lined up for his own part in a marriage ceremony, and Sissyphus brides have been known to eat their husbands.
All of this zips by at a brisk pace in this novella - and if you'd told me I'd be loving reading a story about attempts to lose virginity on a far-distant planet amid creatures nicknamed Sissies, I'd have called you crazy, but that's the talent of Bonnie. A fun read, a light read, and once more I tip my hat to a splendid writer, whose Home World novel was one of my reads of the year in 2016.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews