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From Darkest Skies #3
From Divergent Suns
The thrilling conclusion to the brilliant trilogy set on a distant world among the stars.A MISSING NUCLEAR WARHEAD. AN INTERSTELLAR CONSPIRACY. A DOOMSDAY CULT.In a remote city, a renowned performance artist commits suicide on video; from a long-abandoned space station comes impossible footage of a dead body; and in an isolated outpost, a secretive cult believes they are communing with the ancient alien Masters.How are they connected?Inspector Keon is trying to investigate, but once again his life has been flipped upside down. His wife, Alysha, is alive. His long search is over. Or, so he thinks. But his investigation is leading to a grand conspiracy by a powerful cabal and the forces of distant Earth reaching into every level of Magentan society.Is she involved?As he tries to learn the truth, the AI construct of his wife he created searches for her own place in this world and Magenta faces an existential threat. On the run, and with nowhere to turn Keon must decide who to The wife he loves or the AI who loves him.
- GenresScience Fiction
464 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 21, 2019
2 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 30, 2019
I really enjoyed the second in this series from Sam Peters, From Distant Stars, and was not disappointed by this book, which brings the trilogy to a close. As before, there's a satisfyingly well-portrayed colony world, set up by a mysterious race who turned up at Earth, transplanted humans (and killed many more), then disappeared, leaving their unmanned ships traversing the colony routes as lifelines.
On the storm-tossed world Magenta, central character Keon Rause, effectively a police officer, is trying to uncover a conspiracy that could wreck the colony while dealing with both his wife's apparent death (which by now he knows is faked) and an AI mockup of his wife that he created as a failed attempt to replace her. As before, one of the most interesting aspects is the built-in Servant, an all-purpose communication and information device which means there are quite often threaded conversations happening both verbally and mentally at the same time. Similarly the Tesseract, the AI that run's Keon's bureau is an interesting concept, which is explored far more in this volume than previous ones.
Although it's hard not to find Keon's obsession with finding his wife, which frequently gets in the way of logical action, irritating, there is once again a good mix of action and thoughtfulness, particularly in Keon's relationship with Liss, the AI substitute for his wife and the implications that arise about the nature and rights of artificial life.
My only real criticism of the book is that it feels rather less able to be read standalone than the previous volumes - I wouldn't read this one without at least reading From Distant Stars. This was particularly true for one (long gone) character (Gersh) who I can't for the life of me remember, but is clearly very significant.
From Divergent Suns pulls together the trilogy in a very satisfying manner. You do need to read the predecessor(s), but given that, it's an excellent book.
On the storm-tossed world Magenta, central character Keon Rause, effectively a police officer, is trying to uncover a conspiracy that could wreck the colony while dealing with both his wife's apparent death (which by now he knows is faked) and an AI mockup of his wife that he created as a failed attempt to replace her. As before, one of the most interesting aspects is the built-in Servant, an all-purpose communication and information device which means there are quite often threaded conversations happening both verbally and mentally at the same time. Similarly the Tesseract, the AI that run's Keon's bureau is an interesting concept, which is explored far more in this volume than previous ones.
Although it's hard not to find Keon's obsession with finding his wife, which frequently gets in the way of logical action, irritating, there is once again a good mix of action and thoughtfulness, particularly in Keon's relationship with Liss, the AI substitute for his wife and the implications that arise about the nature and rights of artificial life.
My only real criticism of the book is that it feels rather less able to be read standalone than the previous volumes - I wouldn't read this one without at least reading From Distant Stars. This was particularly true for one (long gone) character (Gersh) who I can't for the life of me remember, but is clearly very significant.
From Divergent Suns pulls together the trilogy in a very satisfying manner. You do need to read the predecessor(s), but given that, it's an excellent book.
February 22, 2022
A SFF police mystery romance. I loved it. Set about 200 years into the future on the planet Magenta, an inadvertent colony created by the mysterious Masters, who reshaped Earth and then took chunks of the population to different worlds and then disappeared.
The mystery of the Masters is the background and motivation for the plot, which starts simply in the first book with the deaths of some local Zen addicts. From there the plot thickens until by book 3 the stakes are really the fate of the planet Magenta. The Masters themselves are left to hang until a possible sequel to the series but that doesn't really impact the books and I was quite happy to let them sit there quietly.
At the heart of the plot is the death of the protagonist's wife. So far so traditional, fridged girlfriend/wife whatever. However the hero, Keon or Keys, illegally created an AI version of Alysha, who in fact may or may not be dead, and is definitely not quite the person Keys has created in his head anyway. Pragmatic me found it difficult to identify with the depths of his grief and longing for his wife; and he seemed to take quite a long time to realise that we never quite know even our most intimate partners as well as we think we do. However putting this aside, there are the ethics of creating a person, the realisation that that new life is forced into one mold and trapped there, and the coming to terms with the various different aspects of love (whatever that might be - thanks Prince Charles) which took the books beyond a simplistic dead GF idea.
The mystery of just what is going on and who is behind it, what Alysha discovered and whether she is dead/an AI/not dead/a traitor/a hero kept me engaged and I really had no clue who was the baddie. Indeed at one point I really was convinced that Keys was the big bad, then it was Alysha, then I had no idea etc.etc. Suffice to say that it explains itself very neatly and wraps most of the threads aside from the Masters. Keys flails around supported by a great cast including Rangesh who is channelling Keanu in Point Break; Laura the hard bitten cop; Liss, his AI robot creation; and Elizabeth Jacksmith, scientist and politician extraordinaire. And by the end he has grown as a person and as a cop and that feels natural and good.
Well worth a read.
The mystery of the Masters is the background and motivation for the plot, which starts simply in the first book with the deaths of some local Zen addicts. From there the plot thickens until by book 3 the stakes are really the fate of the planet Magenta. The Masters themselves are left to hang until a possible sequel to the series but that doesn't really impact the books and I was quite happy to let them sit there quietly.
At the heart of the plot is the death of the protagonist's wife. So far so traditional, fridged girlfriend/wife whatever. However the hero, Keon or Keys, illegally created an AI version of Alysha, who in fact may or may not be dead, and is definitely not quite the person Keys has created in his head anyway. Pragmatic me found it difficult to identify with the depths of his grief and longing for his wife; and he seemed to take quite a long time to realise that we never quite know even our most intimate partners as well as we think we do. However putting this aside, there are the ethics of creating a person, the realisation that that new life is forced into one mold and trapped there, and the coming to terms with the various different aspects of love (whatever that might be - thanks Prince Charles) which took the books beyond a simplistic dead GF idea.
The mystery of just what is going on and who is behind it, what Alysha discovered and whether she is dead/an AI/not dead/a traitor/a hero kept me engaged and I really had no clue who was the baddie. Indeed at one point I really was convinced that Keys was the big bad, then it was Alysha, then I had no idea etc.etc. Suffice to say that it explains itself very neatly and wraps most of the threads aside from the Masters. Keys flails around supported by a great cast including Rangesh who is channelling Keanu in Point Break; Laura the hard bitten cop; Liss, his AI robot creation; and Elizabeth Jacksmith, scientist and politician extraordinaire. And by the end he has grown as a person and as a cop and that feels natural and good.
Well worth a read.
February 5, 2022
Ok, so I a few notes about the ending, but I dont want to spoil it for anyone, so if you havent read it, do not open the spoiler section...
...So what I'm really saying, is that I found the ending quite satisfactory for the trilogy. There were a few loose ends that could be pulled on and I while Keon's story is over, I would enjoy reading something more set in this world (maybe looking at the battles between Fleet and Earth?)
...So what I'm really saying, is that I found the ending quite satisfactory for the trilogy. There were a few loose ends that could be pulled on and I while Keon's story is over, I would enjoy reading something more set in this world (maybe looking at the battles between Fleet and Earth?)
July 16, 2022
I've just finished reading the trilogy, of which this is the final part. All three books are page-turners. The action - and there is plenty of that - centers around Agent Rause and his search for the truth about his wife's death. Was she really a traitor? Or was she set up? This thread continues through each book, wrapped around political intrigue, complex plots (in more ways that one) and totally engaging characters. The majority of the story takes place on Magenta, a colony world; the other two major players are Earth and Fleet (Fleet being an autonomous organisation). It's tense, involving and at times emotional reading. The writing is tight, the world building evocative and the characters empathetic.
Action, intrigue and emotional depth. What more could you ask for?
Action, intrigue and emotional depth. What more could you ask for?
June 23, 2023
I hope this gets to Sam Peters, I couldn't find any other way to contact him.
This was GREAT. Please keep writing. I basically inhaled this after reading the other 2 in the wrong order. I went 2-1-3 and still loved it.
The characters, the story that felt resolved at the end of every book but then grew as the trilogy progressed.
Thanks for a great read!
This was GREAT. Please keep writing. I basically inhaled this after reading the other 2 in the wrong order. I went 2-1-3 and still loved it.
The characters, the story that felt resolved at the end of every book but then grew as the trilogy progressed.
Thanks for a great read!
March 25, 2021
Perhaps a slightly generous 4 star, but I did enjoy the series and I felt this book was my favourite.
Much modern SF rather disappoints me, so it has been a pleasant surprise to find a series which has held me throughout.
Much modern SF rather disappoints me, so it has been a pleasant surprise to find a series which has held me throughout.
December 23, 2020
Fairly good end to trilogy. Satisfying and realistic ending.
September 7, 2021
Superb
A great and satisfying end to an underrated gem of a Sci Fi series. Tackles weighty issues while remaining a fast paced story. High recommended.
A great and satisfying end to an underrated gem of a Sci Fi series. Tackles weighty issues while remaining a fast paced story. High recommended.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews