Answers From Alyce

by Mistral Dawn

If someone asked you to explain what's going on in the world right now, would you be able to? What if the person who was asking had no prior knowledge of our world, how difficult would it be to help them makes sense of current events? That's the challenge Alyce is presented with when she's kidnapped by aliens who want her help in creating a museum of curiosities based on Earth's culture. Follow Alyce down the rabbit hole as she experiences the journey of a lifetime; the trip might just paint the reality you've become accustomed to in a new color...

294 pages, Paperback

Published April 22, 2019

About the author

Mistral Dawn is a thirty-something gal who has lived on both coasts of the US but somehow never in the middle. She currently resides in the Southeast US with her kitty cats (please spay or neuter! :-)) where she works as a hospital drudge and attends graduate school. Taken By The Huntsman is her first effort at writing fiction and if it is well received she has ideas for several more novels and short-stories in this series.

Reviews

[Vanda Denton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Out of the 144 reviews I’ve felt moved to write over the years, this is only the second one I wanted to give a five star rating.

Everyone should read this book. I would like to see it as compulsory reading in schools. Although Mistral Dawn addresses American politics in this entertaining book, it is relevant to all current democracies. If you want to know why our governments will not be recommending this to schools, read the book. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

[Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Answers from Alyce is a lean story of a woman abducted by aliens and asked about difficult American topics. Essentially, Alyce becomes a judge for a political science fair where she adjusts the alien's misunderstandings of various injustices. Even though the book is dialog heavy and includes a few repetitive elements, the author provides a well-written, creative presentation of a lot of information. What makes this book intersting is that Mistral Dawn covers a lot of ground of several social injustices, supported by examples and historical events, and delivered in an interesting and entertaining way. The depth of information is presented in a simple, yet witty way that avoids being cumbersome or sounding like a rambling manifesto. The story evolves into something more like listening to a teacher have a deep conversation with her students (who happen to be advanced, civilized creatures). Definitely worth a read.

[J.S. Burke · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Answers from Alyce” is a creative, down-the-rabbit-hole fantasy with outworlder perspectives on Earth policies. The aliens and their world are fun, especially the squid-like man and the sexy, charismatic “devil”.

I liked the discussion of corporate pollution with minimal oversight intertwined with politics, corruption, and minimal regulations. “It’s hard for most people to take the time to really look into what’s going on and untangle it all. Especially since, as I said, the mainstream media doesn’t do much to enlighten the public because the companies that own them are often involved in the corruption.”

There’s an in-depth discussion regarding the destruction of indigenous people, development of Jim Crow laws, voter suppression, dividing the poor to help the rich, health system problems, loss of unions, and more. The hypocrisy of abortion laws is discussed in relation to other laws that give men and non-pregnant women control over their own bodies; a corpse has more rights than a pregnant woman. Connections between misogyny, patriarchy, and women’s rights are discussed. “Answers…” explores the societal and environmental issues that need to be fixed, all worked into the story with slices of humor.

[A.C. Greenlee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightfully strange - as it should be!

I’m usually not one for books with any form of social commentary but this was good from beginning to end. With a full cast of colorful characters and a seriously wacky storyline, I stayed riveted to this book until the very end. You get that rabbit, Alyce!

[Zindaiya Resident · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting and unique delivery system for some insightful social commentary. Characters and environments are well described and amusingly drawn with the author's words. Worth a read.