Riftmaster

by Miles Nelson

How do you hold on to hope when you’re being repeatedly wrenched between worlds?

College student Bailey Jones is plucked from his world by a mysterious and unpredictable force known as the Rift, which appears to move people at random from one world to another. Stranded on an alien planet, he is relieved when he meets a fellow human, the self-styled Riftmaster, who is prepared to assist him. Although curious about his new companion’s real identity, Bailey hopes that, with years of experience of the Rift, this cosmic traveller can help him find a way to return to Earth. But first, as the two of them are ripped without warning from one hostile planet to another, Bailey must rely on the Riftmaster to show him how to survive.


Riftmaster, an adventure, an exploration, is concerned with loss, and letting go, while still holding onto your humanity and identity, even when life seems hopeless.

288 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 5, 2020

Reviews

[K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible exercise in world-building, this book frames unique and beautiful settings—worlds so gorgeously-detailed you won't soon forget them—and leaves you with a real sense of loss when it pulls them out from under you again. It doesn't shy away from tackling larger issues, either, from loss to morality to interpersonal relationships. It touches on all these through well-written, colorful and believable characters. It's definitely worth the price and the time it takes to read. It's set up very well for a sequel, too, and I hope to see one some day!

[Sara Uckelman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very solid book, reminiscent of Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter's "The Long Earth", which grew in complexity and execution towards the end. The writing style was not always to my taste (too much telling, not enough showing), but I enjoyed the _story_.

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read that keeps you enthralled from the first page to the last. The graphic description of the different worlds visited keeps readers on the edge of their seats. Couldn’t put this down!

[Robert Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very original story, well written and well worth a read.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first thought? This book is made of exceptionally smooth and satisfying paper. Maybe that's a really horrendously nerdy thing to say, but I've got to speak from the heart.

Three words to describe this book: Fantasy, worldbuilding, sci-fi.

What I like: This book held a wonderful trophy of nostalgia up, and reminded me of the days of my teenage years when I used to spend hours upon hours writing my own stories within the Star Wars cinematic universe. It reminded me of being fourteen, and watching Dr Who for the first time: a wonderful feat of inspiration and individuality.

Furthermore, the use of Rift-specific creatures straight from the mind of Nelson were both fascinating to read about, and interesting to envision. The writings of a natural born storyteller. I really enjoyed The Riftmaster's character, especially when they threatened O***** with a knife over calling them soft.

What I dislike (so far): The terminology used interferes with the reader's capability to understand context. For example, Bailey is introduced early on in the novel as a college student- which implies he's American- but later labelled as a Newcastle university student- which implies he's English. This is confusing at best. The use of They/Them pronouns is an interesting addition, but clumsily used interchangeably with He/Him (this might be the intended effect, but it just felt a bit forced to me.) The ending was good, but felt a bit rushed in comparison to the amount of time that Bailey and Riftmaster spent farming. (Less farming, more finale?)

Futhermore, Nelson institutes a lot of directly telling the reader about the scene that is being set, as opposed to showing it subtly, which sometimes makes the writing feel juvenile when read from an adult perspective. This book may be intended at a Young Adult audience, but adult references to violence and cannibalism seem to argue otherwise.

I also don't love the cover, it's a bit too- Picsart to look professional, and genuinely lowered my expectations of the book. I was pleasantly surprised, but still.

A note to Miles, in case you're reading this:

Miles,
In another life we met at your market stall and you signed a copy of this book for me. I'm sorry it took me so long to get around to actually reading it, and I hope you know that you're a very talented writer with an incredible knack for worldbuilding and a lot of true imaginative spirit. Please don't allow my review to deter your passion in any way, as it's not personal, but rather, just business. Your ability to create a multitude of fantastical worlds within one singular manuscript is quite remarkable, and should be adequately credited as nothing short of work from a very brilliant writer and wonderful person. The Riftmaster is a well-developed and three dimensional character who made me laugh repeatedly, especially when arguing with O*****, and honestly, I genuinely enjoyed reading this book. I hope to reread it when not doing a challenge and annotate my favourite quotes, so I'll probably come back and review it again once I've done that.

x

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riftmaster is an absolutely glorious journey through all the most interesting places in the known universe. It starts in a way that most portal stories do— Bailey, an average university student, is whisked away after a fight with his girlfriend and finds himself on another world. Here he nearly freezes to death in the snow, meets a community of aliens, and more importantly, encounters the mysterious Riftmaster. And then the Rift takes them again. And again. Each new planet that Bailey and the Riftmaster ends up in provides them with new challenges in how they’re going to survive, new species to encounter, and new experiences to carry with them on their travels. The worldbuilding in this book is PHENOMENAL. Nelson succeeds in making each planet feel fully alien and strange not just to the characters but to the reader, in a way that fully captures your imagination. The best way I can describe the feeling is that it’s sort of like the literary equivalent of watching Avatar for the first time. It blew my entire mind. The way he created such intricate cultures for each alien civilisation and for the Rifters themselves also made me think of Becky Chambers’s Wayfarers books (this is high praise, because she’s my favourite sci fi author). Even when he creates worlds that are so different to our own, Nelson draws attention to the commonalities between our human protagonists and the non-humans they encounter, and it is this core of compassion that is the beating heart of Riftmaster. The book centres the relationship between Bailey and the Riftmaster, and adds continual layers of depth to it as the plot goes on. Watching Bailey have to step into his own as the seemingly always-competent Riftmaster has to deal with things even he can’t handle adds such a nice dimension to the standard mentor-apprentice relationship. They have to rely on each other, and I love them both. The Riftmaster in particular was my favourite character, because of the way his backstory slowly unfurls over the course of the book and the way he deals with that going forward.
Anyway this book is INCREDIBLE, and you should definitely read it if you like sci fi with cool worldbuilding and a very human core.

[Spencer Ballard · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me Riftmaster sits in a rare, skillful cross section of being an comfortable, easy read while simultaneously taking risks and exploring potent themes. Nelson does not hesitate to plunge you right into the depth of the story, and every new world presented felt grounded, while also leaving room for my imagination to play. I was extremely impressed by the intelligent way this book weaved in queer themes without feeling forced or inauthentic. They are present, thought-provoking, and brought me to tears multiple times.

What appeared at first to be a more simple plot progressively grow in complexity and depth as it moved along, and I feel Nelson must have taken great delight writing this, knowing the twists and turns would have my jaw on the floor again and again.

[Julie-Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I've read in ages. Touches on morality, identity and loss all while weaving together a story you don't want to put down (I certainly didn't!). Absolutely blown away by the epic world building and details wrapped together in such a wonderfully unique story.

Nelson's writing style is nostalgic in a way which brings forth memories of delving into your first fantasy or sci fi and all the emotions which come with it. The character progression and interpersonal relationships really make this book such a gem and one I am so happy I picked up.

Riftmaster will always be on my recommended list for sci fi enthusiasts and newbies alike, I thoroughly enjoyed the read and can't wait to pick up more of his work!

[Andrew Waite · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb book. I knew very little about it before picking it up on a whim, other than the title sounding interesting and I’d recently read some other superb works from Elsewhere Press and had increasing faith in their quality, so I took a chance.

Without knowing any of the topics, theme or author, the twists that came later in the story were truly unexpected (I had some theories about what the twist was going to be, I missed the mark).

It was great to follow Bailey’ journey and experience throughout. The story, and ending, are perfect - that said I *really* hope Miles Nelson picks up some (or all) of the potential stories that could be told from this new universe.

[Auburn Langley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Alien worlds, identity issues, grief, wonder, and a cute sidekick/pet to boot.

The Riftmaster's story was nicely teased out alongside such in depth world building, 100% would recommend!!

[Cerys Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Couldn't put the book down. Great characters and a very interesting story