What do you think?
Rate this book
The Kalamatra Rebellion #1
Mind Raider
Keva Duste is an engineered human on a mission: find the weapon the corporate elite has amassed, and secure it.
Humanity has conquered the black, but not their own inherent greed. The four systems surrounding Kalamatra Station provide members of the Elite class with everything they could want: mined minerals, abundant food, and an entire system to call their own, a place of paradise and riches. But for some, that isn’t enough.
Terrans and common spacers suffer under untenable work conditions and crumbling, radioactive stations while the Elite thrive. Now the commoners are threatening to revolt.
With the four systems on the verge of civil war, the Codex Syndicate’s covert intelligence network learns of an Elite weapon designed to alter the common people to their genetic core. The Elite have planned to test deployment on the mutinous Red Sky colony and force their compliance.
Codex Syndicate agent Keva Duste is an ex-military, engineered human with a score to settle. Together with a renegade space captain, an Elite refugee, and two sentient AIs, she must race to locate the weapon and stop the genocide of the human race before it can begin. Can Keva save Red Sky from destruction before the Elite turn this weapon on the rest of the settlements? And if she does, will she ignite a revolution?
Humanity has conquered the black, but not their own inherent greed. The four systems surrounding Kalamatra Station provide members of the Elite class with everything they could want: mined minerals, abundant food, and an entire system to call their own, a place of paradise and riches. But for some, that isn’t enough.
Terrans and common spacers suffer under untenable work conditions and crumbling, radioactive stations while the Elite thrive. Now the commoners are threatening to revolt.
With the four systems on the verge of civil war, the Codex Syndicate’s covert intelligence network learns of an Elite weapon designed to alter the common people to their genetic core. The Elite have planned to test deployment on the mutinous Red Sky colony and force their compliance.
Codex Syndicate agent Keva Duste is an ex-military, engineered human with a score to settle. Together with a renegade space captain, an Elite refugee, and two sentient AIs, she must race to locate the weapon and stop the genocide of the human race before it can begin. Can Keva save Red Sky from destruction before the Elite turn this weapon on the rest of the settlements? And if she does, will she ignite a revolution?
306 pages, Paperback
Published August 8, 2017
1 person is currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
P.K. Tyler
38 books151 followersPK Tyler is the author of Speculative Fiction and other Genre Bending novels. She is an artist, wife, mother and number cruncher. She graduated Smith College in 1999 with a degree in Theatre.
After graduation, she moved to New York, where she worked as a Dramaturge, Assistant Director and Production Manager on productions both on and off Broadway.
Later, Pavarti went to work in the finance industry as a freelance accountant for several international law firms. She now operates her own accounting firm in the Washington DC area, where she lives with her husband, two daughters and two terrible dogs. When not penning her science fiction books she twists her mind by writing horror and erotica stories.
Like Genre-Bending Literary Fiction? Click here: http://www.pavartiktyler.com/specficr...
"Tyler is essentially the indie scene's Margaret Atwood; she incorporates sci-fi elements into her novels, which deal with topics such as spirituality, gender, sexuality and power dynamics." - IndieReader
After graduation, she moved to New York, where she worked as a Dramaturge, Assistant Director and Production Manager on productions both on and off Broadway.
Later, Pavarti went to work in the finance industry as a freelance accountant for several international law firms. She now operates her own accounting firm in the Washington DC area, where she lives with her husband, two daughters and two terrible dogs. When not penning her science fiction books she twists her mind by writing horror and erotica stories.
Like Genre-Bending Literary Fiction? Click here: http://www.pavartiktyler.com/specficr...
"Tyler is essentially the indie scene's Margaret Atwood; she incorporates sci-fi elements into her novels, which deal with topics such as spirituality, gender, sexuality and power dynamics." - IndieReader
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
May 4, 2019
Full review: https://girlswithguns.org/mind-raider...
I’m not sure if the problems here are a result of there being two authors credited on this story. It could certainly explain them. For rather than providing a single coherent vision, this feels like both its universe and characters are being pulled in too many different directions. It’s overstuffed with ideas and, instead of them being developed fully, scurries from one to the next, as if the writers were competing to have the final word. This comes to an end in a rather ludicrous finale. There, the entire plot takes a right turn, with the biological weapon which has formed much of the early focus all but discarded.
I’m not sure if the problems here are a result of there being two authors credited on this story. It could certainly explain them. For rather than providing a single coherent vision, this feels like both its universe and characters are being pulled in too many different directions. It’s overstuffed with ideas and, instead of them being developed fully, scurries from one to the next, as if the writers were competing to have the final word. This comes to an end in a rather ludicrous finale. There, the entire plot takes a right turn, with the biological weapon which has formed much of the early focus all but discarded.
September 6, 2017
(Included in the collection Dominion Rising)
This was a relatively okay read, but just lacked something for me. The main character was all over the place emotions wise, which kinda made sense because she was supposedly raised to be a military super soldier, grown and genetically enhanced, etc. It's just that she'd escaped 3 years before the book starts, so why on earth is she just now having this problem? And why, oh why, oh why does she agonize over the same damn questions over and over and over again????
Besides that there's also the fact that the story had slight inconsistencies - things like they need to change the names of both the ships they are traveling on... some names are tossed around for Keva's ship, but nothing's decided. Then on the way to the ships she calls them both by the new names. Really? When did she decide about hers and more importantly when did she learn the new name of the other one since she hasn't spoken to anyone from that one yet? At other times she informs others of something that's been decided (that moves the story forward or in a different direction) but there was nothing written showing any discussion or even just her thinking through options and making the decision.
And then there were the multitude of editing errors - repeating words, wrong words used, misspelled, or even spots where it looks like the author was trying two different ways of structuring a sentence and both options were kept.
Those thing make it sound like this was a horrible book, but it wasn't, it just wasn't quite as tight as it could be and while I liked the characters well enough, I just didn't fall in love with them. So I won't be looking into the next in the series.
This was a relatively okay read, but just lacked something for me. The main character was all over the place emotions wise, which kinda made sense because she was supposedly raised to be a military super soldier, grown and genetically enhanced, etc. It's just that she'd escaped 3 years before the book starts, so why on earth is she just now having this problem? And why, oh why, oh why does she agonize over the same damn questions over and over and over again????
Besides that there's also the fact that the story had slight inconsistencies - things like they need to change the names of both the ships they are traveling on... some names are tossed around for Keva's ship, but nothing's decided. Then on the way to the ships she calls them both by the new names. Really? When did she decide about hers and more importantly when did she learn the new name of the other one since she hasn't spoken to anyone from that one yet? At other times she informs others of something that's been decided (that moves the story forward or in a different direction) but there was nothing written showing any discussion or even just her thinking through options and making the decision.
And then there were the multitude of editing errors - repeating words, wrong words used, misspelled, or even spots where it looks like the author was trying two different ways of structuring a sentence and both options were kept.
Those thing make it sound like this was a horrible book, but it wasn't, it just wasn't quite as tight as it could be and while I liked the characters well enough, I just didn't fall in love with them. So I won't be looking into the next in the series.
August 9, 2017
I received a free copy of this book from the author for my honest review.
Space – Exciting, frightening, adventurous, dangerous! Keva Duste is an engineered human, engineered to be in the military. Extremely smart, brave and willing to go where no one else want to. Keva is on a mission to find and extreme weapon. She had been assigned the same job a year ago, but failed. Because she failed her mission, she was spaced (put into a space suit and ejected into space) where it was expected she would die. But she was rescued and did not return to the military.
Now she’s been called back to finish her mission. It is even more dangerous now as there is a price on her head, enemies everywhere, and an entire organization protecting their weapon. But thousands of humans are in danger and it is up to Keva and her crew to retrieve the weapon and save humanity.
The writing is excellent, the characters are well developed and the worlds created are exciting and well done. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to more.
Space – Exciting, frightening, adventurous, dangerous! Keva Duste is an engineered human, engineered to be in the military. Extremely smart, brave and willing to go where no one else want to. Keva is on a mission to find and extreme weapon. She had been assigned the same job a year ago, but failed. Because she failed her mission, she was spaced (put into a space suit and ejected into space) where it was expected she would die. But she was rescued and did not return to the military.
Now she’s been called back to finish her mission. It is even more dangerous now as there is a price on her head, enemies everywhere, and an entire organization protecting their weapon. But thousands of humans are in danger and it is up to Keva and her crew to retrieve the weapon and save humanity.
The writing is excellent, the characters are well developed and the worlds created are exciting and well done. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to more.
February 13, 2018
S.M. Blooding is a “sure thing” author for me, in that it’s virtually a sure thing that I will enjoy anything new she produces (a plug here especially for her Whiskey Witches series and spin-offs, which is on the top of my face urban fantasy list). No surprise then that I was really excited to find out (initially when it was included in the Dominion Rising anthology) that she had started a new series, The Kalamatra Rebellion, along with co-author P.K. Tyler. Mind Raider, it’s first book, is incredible fun, from its publisher’s blurb tagline (“One weapon to re-write everything . One team to stop it all.” - how can you resist that?) to the very last page of the novel. Codex Syndicate agent Keva Duste is a superb, kick-a**, lead character (my favorite kind) and her gang, a renegade space captain, an Elite refugee, and two sentient AIs, are just the motley crew needed. Locate a super-weapon and stop the genocide of the human race before it can begin? Pshah, nothin’ to it for this gang. Loads of fun watching them go about it.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
August 13, 2017
Keva Duste is a genetically and mechanically enhanced human built designed by the military. Left for dead when she overroad her control chip and disobeyed an order, she is rescued and hired by the mysterious Syndicate or a secret mission on the elite planet Terra Qar.
As is so often the case with secret missions, she quickly discovers that there's a whole lot more going on than she suspected and it will take her dead friend's sister, a couple of AIs and the sexy Captain Hale and his merry crew just to survive.
Mind Raider is the first story in the new Kalamatra Rebellion series; a space opera in the tradition of Asimov and Heinlein, full of spaceships and strange planets populated by space miners, settlers and elite one percenters. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I look forward to reading the rest of this collection.
As is so often the case with secret missions, she quickly discovers that there's a whole lot more going on than she suspected and it will take her dead friend's sister, a couple of AIs and the sexy Captain Hale and his merry crew just to survive.
Mind Raider is the first story in the new Kalamatra Rebellion series; a space opera in the tradition of Asimov and Heinlein, full of spaceships and strange planets populated by space miners, settlers and elite one percenters. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I look forward to reading the rest of this collection.
November 11, 2017
'Mind Raider' is a collaboration between authors PK Tyler and SM Blooding, of which this is the first in their series.
This had everything I enjoy in a good read. A main female character who knows her own mind and can think completely out of the box, and an AI who (illegally) is gaining a personality of her own. There's a lot in this book - all easily understandable, I might add - but the action, adventure and pace are jam-packed into these pages. The characters and the worlds are fully fledged and believable. You are there experiencing everything.
Having read PK Tyler's work, I was not surprised at the strong characters and the excellent storytelling. I apologise to SM Blooding as I have not read anything by her (yet!). This collaboration works very well and I can't wait to read 'Mind Worm' and the rest of this series.
This had everything I enjoy in a good read. A main female character who knows her own mind and can think completely out of the box, and an AI who (illegally) is gaining a personality of her own. There's a lot in this book - all easily understandable, I might add - but the action, adventure and pace are jam-packed into these pages. The characters and the worlds are fully fledged and believable. You are there experiencing everything.
Having read PK Tyler's work, I was not surprised at the strong characters and the excellent storytelling. I apologise to SM Blooding as I have not read anything by her (yet!). This collaboration works very well and I can't wait to read 'Mind Worm' and the rest of this series.
May 23, 2021
* read as part of the Dominion Rising anthology * I finished reading it and was mildly hooked by the story, that gets us to 3 stars in my world. But there’s nothing more to add more stars from there.
The authors working together show promise but this book feels unfinished in this state. Lots of world-building holes leaving things unjustified make the caste system barely believable and the characters’ motives unclear. The main character is the only one with any depth. Also, it’s full of typos, word omissions, ungrammatical sentences (probably due to unrevised corrections) and that is very uncomfortable to read in a finished book.
The authors working together show promise but this book feels unfinished in this state. Lots of world-building holes leaving things unjustified make the caste system barely believable and the characters’ motives unclear. The main character is the only one with any depth. Also, it’s full of typos, word omissions, ungrammatical sentences (probably due to unrevised corrections) and that is very uncomfortable to read in a finished book.
August 27, 2017
- read as part of the dominion rising anthology-
(Ich tendierte mal zu 4 Sternen, bis ich zu dem letzten Teil des Buches kam. Diese Wendungen im Finale sagen mir so gar nicht zu und negieren für mich irgendwie alles, was vorher passiert ist. Klar, dass war wahrscheinlich das Ziel der Autoren. Aber auf mich wirkte es irgendwie wie ein erzwungener Twist. Daher die 2 Sterne, denn momentan bin ich so verärgert, dass ich höchstens mit der Aussage "It was okay" einhergehe.)
(Ich tendierte mal zu 4 Sternen, bis ich zu dem letzten Teil des Buches kam. Diese Wendungen im Finale sagen mir so gar nicht zu und negieren für mich irgendwie alles, was vorher passiert ist. Klar, dass war wahrscheinlich das Ziel der Autoren. Aber auf mich wirkte es irgendwie wie ein erzwungener Twist. Daher die 2 Sterne, denn momentan bin ich so verärgert, dass ich höchstens mit der Aussage "It was okay" einhergehe.)
August 12, 2017
This is a book purchased as part of the Dominion Rising Anthology. An excellent plot and fast pace keeps the reader on the edge of their seat in this unique sci-fi offering by authors Blooding and Tyler. Some parts could have used a little more depth, but overall, it was a great read. Cliffhanger ending, so be warned the story leaves a lot of threads open at the end.
September 27, 2017
Space opera bliss. This epic had some shades of Dark Matter the TV show, and had captivating characters in spades. I really enjoyed this book and always had a hard time putting it down to get stuff done. It was fast paced and exciting, but more than that, I really enjoyed the depth of the characters. Well written and worth a read.
September 3, 2017
I didn't think I would like this book, but I feel in love with it. The story moves along and keeps you wondering what is going to happen next. I believe you'll enjoy this story has I have. Good Reading Everyone!!!!!!!!!!
August 15, 2017
this world was crafted so well that I felt immersed in it almost instantly. I look forward to reading the rest of the series!
January 10, 2018
This story is part of the Dominion Rising HUGE package. I thought it was okay. I didn't get bored reading this but I don't expect to look for the sequels either.
Read
February 16, 2020klll?
August 8, 2017
Wow, just wow.... I usually stick to fantasy and sci-fi Romance but I am glad that I took an Arc of this book. I totally love the world building and the characters fit in so perfectly in that world. Plenty of action, suspense, intrigue and drama that kept me glued to the pages until I finished. I hope that there will be more to this world! I received a free copy of this book and volunteered to review it.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews