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SIO
Set in a near-future environment, mega-corporations have taken over the most habitable of planets, creating domed utopias for their devoted employees. Everyone else has been shunted off to a multitude of mostly habitable planets and moons where they scrape by as farmers and tradesfolk, miners and merchants, bounty hunters and scavengers.
James Marks and his crew of scav trash operate their ship, SIO, on a mission to obtain a mysterious piece of new tech. It changes everything and leaves him stranded somewhere he doesn’t recognize with a cute, if not a bit annoying, tech scientist. James doesn’t know, when he first meets Michael, but his life is about to change in a very surprising way.
James Marks and his crew of scav trash operate their ship, SIO, on a mission to obtain a mysterious piece of new tech. It changes everything and leaves him stranded somewhere he doesn’t recognize with a cute, if not a bit annoying, tech scientist. James doesn’t know, when he first meets Michael, but his life is about to change in a very surprising way.
223 pages, ebook
First published April 22, 2019
20 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
September 12, 2019
2.5 confused ★★✬✩✩
⇝Overall.
To be honest, I'm having a really hard time deciding on a fixed rating. I supposed it depends on whether I enjoyed this book or whether I just "tolerated" it. I guess I did like reading it, the characters were relatable and I did enjoy the Romance part.
There still should have been more plot-driven % in this book because oftentimes I wonder about the point of the story in general. Yes, they are fleeing, yes, they are hunted but there was way too little information. As a previous reviewer said, it felt like there were big chunks of the storyline missing. Also problematic was the fact that there was legitimately no introduction or further explanation of the world this story is set in. It's obviously science fiction taking place in space and on different planets, involving space ships and nanotechnology, etc. But even for a short story, this was meagre. It definitely disrupted the world flow at times because I am always bombarded by two sensations:
Despite the harsh critique I didn't in any way feel forced to read this book, so I still want to give those of you who prefer character-driven books to plot-driven books an idea of what to expect:
➺What’s happening.
James is a space-scavenger that does jobs in exchange for money to make ends meet in the brutal life of the year - IHAVENOIDEABECAUSETHEREISNOCONTEXT - ehem, sorry about that... at some point in the future, were electronic weapons, nano-technology, beaming and cyborgs are way more real than they are now (at least I guess so, governments and corporations don't let earthly peasants such as me know nothin' about nothin'). For one of his jobs he "accidentally" (aka out of sheer impatience and stupidity) abducts Peach corporation scientist Michael. Peach is infamous for doing dubious technic stuff such as creating chips for people that enable Peach to exterminate them on the spot.
Real nice fellas. Beamed to someplace remote, they have to make it back to civilization to make contact with James's crew, a bunch of space scav outlaws that all have to live with their fair share of crimes. While they try to do so, James and Michael get pretty close to each other - like...really close, both emotionally and physically.
It turns out that, if Michael were given the opportunity to choose, he would have stopped working for Peach a long time ago. For the first time in forever James wants to keep somebody close to protect them from danger. Bad things, he IS danger.
___________________
Writing Quality + ease of reading = 3* (owed to the lack of information/world building)
pace = 4* (pretty fast, obviously, but also rushed because of lack of information/world building)
plot development = 1* (apart from the fact that it was pretty predictable, there wasn't actually much plot - character-driven story, remember?)
characters = 3.5* (turns out I do have a thing for semi-cyborg outlaws)
enjoyability = 3*
insightfulness = 3* (At first I rated this a Zero, but I edited it because I just remembered that there was polyamory involved which I believe to be a highly important and under-discussed, even misunderstood form of sexual preferences)
___________________
This eArc was provided via #NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This book is for you if… you're not looking for more than a LGBTQII+ romance and don't care too much about the plot and what else makes for a good book.
⇝Overall.
To be honest, I'm having a really hard time deciding on a fixed rating. I supposed it depends on whether I enjoyed this book or whether I just "tolerated" it. I guess I did like reading it, the characters were relatable and I did enjoy the Romance part.
There still should have been more plot-driven % in this book because oftentimes I wonder about the point of the story in general. Yes, they are fleeing, yes, they are hunted but there was way too little information. As a previous reviewer said, it felt like there were big chunks of the storyline missing. Also problematic was the fact that there was legitimately no introduction or further explanation of the world this story is set in. It's obviously science fiction taking place in space and on different planets, involving space ships and nanotechnology, etc. But even for a short story, this was meagre. It definitely disrupted the world flow at times because I am always bombarded by two sensations:
1) wait, what am I missing? what happened?
2) I don't even know how I am supposed to imagine anything AT ALL.
Despite the harsh critique I didn't in any way feel forced to read this book, so I still want to give those of you who prefer character-driven books to plot-driven books an idea of what to expect:
➺What’s happening.
James is a space-scavenger that does jobs in exchange for money to make ends meet in the brutal life of the year - IHAVENOIDEABECAUSETHEREISNOCONTEXT - ehem, sorry about that... at some point in the future, were electronic weapons, nano-technology, beaming and cyborgs are way more real than they are now (at least I guess so, governments and corporations don't let earthly peasants such as me know nothin' about nothin'). For one of his jobs he "accidentally" (aka out of sheer impatience and stupidity) abducts Peach corporation scientist Michael. Peach is infamous for doing dubious technic stuff such as creating chips for people that enable Peach to exterminate them on the spot.
Real nice fellas. Beamed to someplace remote, they have to make it back to civilization to make contact with James's crew, a bunch of space scav outlaws that all have to live with their fair share of crimes. While they try to do so, James and Michael get pretty close to each other - like...really close, both emotionally and physically.
It turns out that, if Michael were given the opportunity to choose, he would have stopped working for Peach a long time ago. For the first time in forever James wants to keep somebody close to protect them from danger. Bad things, he IS danger.
___________________
Writing Quality + ease of reading = 3* (owed to the lack of information/world building)
pace = 4* (pretty fast, obviously, but also rushed because of lack of information/world building)
plot development = 1* (apart from the fact that it was pretty predictable, there wasn't actually much plot - character-driven story, remember?)
characters = 3.5* (turns out I do have a thing for semi-cyborg outlaws)
enjoyability = 3*
insightfulness = 3* (At first I rated this a Zero, but I edited it because I just remembered that there was polyamory involved which I believe to be a highly important and under-discussed, even misunderstood form of sexual preferences)
___________________
This eArc was provided via #NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
January 3, 2020
very, very average. the characters were fleshed out enough that they weren't one-dimensional, but i couldn't really call them complex either. the plot was a very simple, run-of-the-mill affair, with space scavengers trying to steal something for money. there was very little worldbuilding, which was irritating, and i didn't find the whole Anika plotline very believable. that being said, i don't think i would call it bad, just bland.
May 6, 2019
A Joyfully Jay review.
4 stars
SIO was something of a whirlwind and it’s one of those books that hits the ground running from the first page. We’re introduced to a Firefly-esque world where corporations and corrupt agencies run much of the universe. James and his crew are scavengers on the fringe and the jobs they take aren’t for the feint of heart. James is very much a bold adventurer, but one whose travels have taken their toll. His eye and leg have been replaced by mechanics and he has a history of making questionable decisions. He’s charming and loyal to a fault and he could have turned on Michael a dozen times, but never failed to protect him. We see Michael struggling to find his sense of self and his place in the world now that he’s finally free of Peach. His transformation from sheltered and broken into someone strong enough to stand as James’ equal is well written and believable. They are an exceptionally sweet couple together and even when the book struggled to find an even keel, James and Michael kept me focused and engaged in the story.
Read Sue’s review in its entirety here.
4 stars
SIO was something of a whirlwind and it’s one of those books that hits the ground running from the first page. We’re introduced to a Firefly-esque world where corporations and corrupt agencies run much of the universe. James and his crew are scavengers on the fringe and the jobs they take aren’t for the feint of heart. James is very much a bold adventurer, but one whose travels have taken their toll. His eye and leg have been replaced by mechanics and he has a history of making questionable decisions. He’s charming and loyal to a fault and he could have turned on Michael a dozen times, but never failed to protect him. We see Michael struggling to find his sense of self and his place in the world now that he’s finally free of Peach. His transformation from sheltered and broken into someone strong enough to stand as James’ equal is well written and believable. They are an exceptionally sweet couple together and even when the book struggled to find an even keel, James and Michael kept me focused and engaged in the story.
Read Sue’s review in its entirety here.
April 18, 2019
Review: Not too many reviews out there to gauge whether or not my opinion is consistent with what others are finding. As time time goes on, I am guessing this will reside in average-land. Here's why.
Pretty dam good writing marred by inexplicable insertions of filler romance crap. It is not that romance can sometimes build characters and enhance the story line, but driven to excess can almost always confuse the story line while diminishing the characters. Love born in a few days is what pushes this novel to stall interest while relieving the reader of a cogent and logical plot.
The supporting cast is never adequately developed as the there is no room to do so. What you get is hastily built personas that are over-the-top in order to compensate for their lack of depth. James Marks lacks depth as a main character, as he is driven by greed and libido, which leaves no room for giving two shits about him. Michael is a mewling, whimpering, addled douche bag that just happens to be a genius when the crew needs it the most. These plot devices a scattered throughout the novel where no effort is expended to enhance the novel with intricate and compelling scenes.
If I were given two choices: 1) Read this to completion or, 2) blow myself out the nearest airlock, I would be pressed in choosing.
Pretty dam good writing marred by inexplicable insertions of filler romance crap. It is not that romance can sometimes build characters and enhance the story line, but driven to excess can almost always confuse the story line while diminishing the characters. Love born in a few days is what pushes this novel to stall interest while relieving the reader of a cogent and logical plot.
The supporting cast is never adequately developed as the there is no room to do so. What you get is hastily built personas that are over-the-top in order to compensate for their lack of depth. James Marks lacks depth as a main character, as he is driven by greed and libido, which leaves no room for giving two shits about him. Michael is a mewling, whimpering, addled douche bag that just happens to be a genius when the crew needs it the most. These plot devices a scattered throughout the novel where no effort is expended to enhance the novel with intricate and compelling scenes.
If I were given two choices: 1) Read this to completion or, 2) blow myself out the nearest airlock, I would be pressed in choosing.
April 16, 2019
I received this ARC from IndiGo Marketing & Design in exchange for an honest review.
I am very pleased with this new-to-me author. The futuristic setting is a little grim to say the least. The human race has expanded beyond Earth and has colonized other planets. I wish there was more details about these planets/moons and where they are located. There doesn't appear to be many aliens around and the humans are mostly run by big Corporations. These are all very corrupt and many people are forced to scrape by doing dangerous and illegal jobs just to survive.
James (who reminds me of Han Solo) is a renegade/mercenary who tries to steal some mysterious "tech" from the Peach Corporation. He runs into Michael and things take a turn for the unexpected. Their adventure (and romance) is fast-paced and exciting. I love James and Michael as a couple. They are very sweet and I found it refreshing that geeky Michael mostly does the topping. His kink for James' cybernetic implants is also pretty hot.
I'm conflicted about Corin, Razor and Anika as they seem like such complex characters, but we don't get a chance to dig any deeper. One thing is for certain: good or evil, the women in this universe are extremely bad-ass.
I'm not sure if the author is planning any more books set in this universe, but I do see lots of potential for other stories.
I am very pleased with this new-to-me author. The futuristic setting is a little grim to say the least. The human race has expanded beyond Earth and has colonized other planets. I wish there was more details about these planets/moons and where they are located. There doesn't appear to be many aliens around and the humans are mostly run by big Corporations. These are all very corrupt and many people are forced to scrape by doing dangerous and illegal jobs just to survive.
James (who reminds me of Han Solo) is a renegade/mercenary who tries to steal some mysterious "tech" from the Peach Corporation. He runs into Michael and things take a turn for the unexpected. Their adventure (and romance) is fast-paced and exciting. I love James and Michael as a couple. They are very sweet and I found it refreshing that geeky Michael mostly does the topping. His kink for James' cybernetic implants is also pretty hot.
I'm conflicted about Corin, Razor and Anika as they seem like such complex characters, but we don't get a chance to dig any deeper. One thing is for certain: good or evil, the women in this universe are extremely bad-ass.
I'm not sure if the author is planning any more books set in this universe, but I do see lots of potential for other stories.
July 6, 2019
The book was alright, but i had a hard time connecting with the characters. They were running around all the time, plus James basically threw himself over Michael almost just after meeting him. It was just lots of running around and characters we didn't get to spend so much time with. So, sadly this book wasn't for me.
May 19, 2019
Wasn't a big fan of this one. The pacing is a bit of a mess and there's not much explanation or details most of the times especially when it comes to world building. There's barely any of that.
There's a few concepts that was interesting but the author never really touches up on it so I'm gonna give it 2 stars for that. The setting was good but as I said before there's barely any details. I wished she focused a bit more on world building rather than solely focusing on James and Michael.
The story was mostly about James and Michael being beaten up and running here and there but never dying. Hated the way James just threw everything he ever known just for Michael when he barely knows the guy.
Too much stuff has been skipped even the ending!! I was wondering how they will beat up Lyra and they just skipped it by knocking out James.
Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy for an honest review.
There's a few concepts that was interesting but the author never really touches up on it so I'm gonna give it 2 stars for that. The setting was good but as I said before there's barely any details. I wished she focused a bit more on world building rather than solely focusing on James and Michael.
The story was mostly about James and Michael being beaten up and running here and there but never dying. Hated the way James just threw everything he ever known just for Michael when he barely knows the guy.
Too much stuff has been skipped even the ending!! I was wondering how they will beat up Lyra and they just skipped it by knocking out James.
Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy for an honest review.
April 20, 2019
The writing, in and of itself, was fine, and the story is very fast-paced. So fast-paced that by the 10% mark, . The problem I had with this was that there was not enough previous backstory or character exploration provided for me to care. I felt the story as a whole would have been a lot stronger with proper set up for not only the main characters but also for the side characters and the villains. Because of these missing pieces, it did not make for a very compelling read.
June 1, 2019
DNF at 40%
I just couldn't get into the story or feel anything the characters which made impossible for me to believe in their romance.
I just couldn't get into the story or feel anything the characters which made impossible for me to believe in their romance.
March 9, 2020
DNF @ 54%. I enjoyed bits of what I read but it became predictable and a little repetitive. I left it to read another book and wasn't interested enough to come back to it. It's been 7 months, I'm not going to finish.
It wasn't bad, maybe if you stuck with it to the end you'll find something to keep you hooked.
It wasn't bad, maybe if you stuck with it to the end you'll find something to keep you hooked.
August 3, 2019
SIO is a science fiction novel about a 'scav' or scavenger who works with his rag-tag crew to complete illegal heists around the galaxy. The main character, James, is a likeable guy who does what needs to be done to keep the people he trusts safe, even if that means taking dangerous risks. That being said, he is generally one of the "good guys" and tries to avoid killing f he can help it.
The best part about this book was the world building and all the detail that was put into the descriptions. Even when the characters only stayed in the same place for a chapter, there was enough well written detail to make the setting vivid and interesting. I greatly enjoyed the universe that C. A. Blocke created, and felt the rules of society were well described throughout the book, without ever feeling like we were getting an information dump of back story.
Another positive thing about the book was how naturally the author depicted diverse relationships. I appreciated the depiction of a variety of sexualities and relationship dynamics, and the representation that this entailed. THat being said, I wish a little bit more time had been devoted to the development of the main relationship. The romance between the characters of James and Michael hit me out of nowhere like a truck. It felt like there could have been a bit more buildup before they were in "willing to risk my life for you" love.
The beginning and end of the book felt a little bit rushed, though the middle 85% reached a comfortable pace. I would have rated it 4 stars instead of three if the beginning and end had been a bit slower and more developed. Overall I enjoyed the book, and would recommend it to readers of LGBTQ science fiction.
The best part about this book was the world building and all the detail that was put into the descriptions. Even when the characters only stayed in the same place for a chapter, there was enough well written detail to make the setting vivid and interesting. I greatly enjoyed the universe that C. A. Blocke created, and felt the rules of society were well described throughout the book, without ever feeling like we were getting an information dump of back story.
Another positive thing about the book was how naturally the author depicted diverse relationships. I appreciated the depiction of a variety of sexualities and relationship dynamics, and the representation that this entailed. THat being said, I wish a little bit more time had been devoted to the development of the main relationship. The romance between the characters of James and Michael hit me out of nowhere like a truck. It felt like there could have been a bit more buildup before they were in "willing to risk my life for you" love.
The beginning and end of the book felt a little bit rushed, though the middle 85% reached a comfortable pace. I would have rated it 4 stars instead of three if the beginning and end had been a bit slower and more developed. Overall I enjoyed the book, and would recommend it to readers of LGBTQ science fiction.
January 7, 2020
Review will be up on my Wordpress shortly!
April 15, 2019
This book is incredibly fast paced. While I enjoyed the story, I think it would have been much better given a little bit more time to explore the background of the characters and to flesh out their relationship a bit more. The characters were fun and their interactions were great, it just needs a little work on the pacing.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews