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The Qubit Zirconium
MP3 CD Format Alien detectives stumble across a mystery that could tear apart their patchwork planet, the Crucible, in this riotous science fantasy novel from the smash hit game, KeyForge
Wibble & Pplimz, the Crucible's most unusual private investigators, must set off from their office in Hub City to clear the name of a former client. Along the way, their investigation broadens from a simple accusation of theft to include a missing person, a potential murder, and a highly unusual gem. Four interlinking incidents take them across the Crucible, as they attempt to solve the case. But there's something more sinister lurking evidence of a secret society that aims to discover the power of the Architects, and forever change the nature of the Crucible itself.
Wibble & Pplimz, the Crucible's most unusual private investigators, must set off from their office in Hub City to clear the name of a former client. Along the way, their investigation broadens from a simple accusation of theft to include a missing person, a potential murder, and a highly unusual gem. Four interlinking incidents take them across the Crucible, as they attempt to solve the case. But there's something more sinister lurking evidence of a secret society that aims to discover the power of the Architects, and forever change the nature of the Crucible itself.
- GenresScience Fiction
1 pages, Audio CD
Published January 18, 2022
7 people are currently reading
50 people want to read
About the author
M. Darusha Wehm
36 books67 followersM. Darusha Wehm is a Nebula Award winner and Sir Julius Vogel Award winner, the author of Hamlet, Prince of Robots, the game The Martian Job, and over a dozen other novels. Their short fiction has been published widely and their poetry has been a finalist for the Rhysling Award.
Writing as Darusha Wehm, their mainstream books include the Devi Jones’ Locker YA series and the humorous coming-of-age novel The Home for Wayward Parrots.
Darusha is a member of the Many Worlds writing collective and they are a fifth of the writing team Darkly Lem, the author of The Formation Saga which starts with Transmentation | Transience.
Originally from Canada, Darusha lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand after several years sailing the Pacific.
Writing as Darusha Wehm, their mainstream books include the Devi Jones’ Locker YA series and the humorous coming-of-age novel The Home for Wayward Parrots.
Darusha is a member of the Many Worlds writing collective and they are a fifth of the writing team Darkly Lem, the author of The Formation Saga which starts with Transmentation | Transience.
Originally from Canada, Darusha lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand after several years sailing the Pacific.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 11, 2021
The KeyForge titles published by Aconyte Books are an incredibly timely and hugely important reminder that science-fiction stories can be fun, light-hearted escapism instead of following the current trend of incredibly serious, almost grim-dark style of writing that seems to be dominating the genre at this time. While the latter fiction can be extremely enjoyable and engaging (see Tim Pratt’s utterly superb The Fractured Void, also recently published by Aconyte, as a great example) I think the past 18 months have demonstrated that there is a real need for fiction that is brighter and more upbeat: stories that can be a positive form of escapism to counteract the incredibly depressing events that have taken place across the globe. As such, I was incredibly excited to get an advanced review copy of The Qubit Zirconium, the latest KeyForge novel from Aconyte Books and penned by award-winning sci-fi author M Darusha Wehm. I first encountered Wehm in the Tales from the Crucible anthology, the first KeyForge book published by Aconyte, and was utterly delighted by their contribution, Wibble and Pplimz, Investigators for Hire which blended the colourful and chaotic KeyForge setting with a hard-boiled detective story, featuring two delightfully eccentric and quietly hilarious protagonists in the form of the worryingly enthusiastic shapeshifter Wibble, and the taciturn android Pplimz.
I found the story to be evocatively written, cunningly plotted and the most unusual tale in the anthology, and fell in love with the two detectives. They seemed like the most obvious characters in the anthology to deserve their own spinoff story, and I was therefore delighted when it was announced that they would feature in a full-length novel by Wehm. I grabbed a review copy from NetGalley as soon as I could, and while real-world events conspired to keep me from reading it immediately, I knew that when I was finally able to get around to reading it, it would be just the thing I needed to act as a pick-me-up. The Qubit Zirconium features the usual fantastic cover art I’ve come to expect from Aconyte, illustrator Natalie Russo delivering a striking and upbeat piece of art showing the duo travelling through a desert landscape; and it’s accompanied by an intriguing back-cover blurb that features a former client in need of help, theft, a potential murder, and a sinister secret society aiming to change the very nature of the Crucible itself. It all sounded hugely exciting, and I dived right in and got reading.
We join our intrepid heroes in something of a quiet period, with no clients on the books, resulting in Pplimz sitting at his desk quietly waiting, and Wibble trying to spin cards into a hat. Fortunately for us as readers, their downtime is interrupted by a video-call from a former client, Taupe the Tailor (or possibly Tailor the Taupe), an elf who’s found himself on the run and subsequently looking for help from the duo. Accused of stealing valuable jewellery from the Star Alliance, a newly-arrived faction on the artificial planet, the elf wants the detectives to prove his innocence. But as their investigation unfolds, it proves to be far more complex than a mere missing item of jewellery, and in fact uncovers a plot to fundamentally change the nature of The Crucible and the fate of its inhabitants. It becomes clear as the two detectives investigate that there is more to the Qubit Zirconium than it simply being an attractive piece of jewellery; why do so many beings across the entire Crucible want to possess it so badly that they would resort to theft, and possibly even murder? And what does it have to do with a mysterious group known as the Cult of the Architects, and their plans for the Crucible and every sentient being living on the artificial planet? In order to find out, the two detectives will travel across the Crucible and find themselves visiting a delightfully varied and colourful set of locations, as well as dealing with duplicitous inhabitants – alien and human alike – and getting into more than a few scrapes along the way.
As you read through The Qubit Zirconium, it immediately becomes clear that Wehm knows exactly how to write a compelling and intricate mystery thriller, deftly interweaving surprising events and colourful characters with complex motivations to create an engaging and multi-faceted narrative that is always utterly enthralling and keeps you on the edge of your seat. While the investigation begins with the simple theft of the Qubit Zirconium, like all great mysteries it soon becomes far more intricate and involved for the two detectives, with Wehm delving into the fascinating world of the Crucible and just what it means to live on the artificially-engineered world – and the lengths some people might willingly go to in order to try and fundamentally change it. Wehm obviously has an innate understanding of the setting, because they really get to the very heart of the Crucible, and indeed KeyForge as a whole, while still managing the incredible feat of expertly blending together light-hearted fun and complex moral and even philosophical issues. There were a number of times when Wehm’s narrative posed questions that seemed to have bearings on real-life matters and even my own life, and it was a fascinating – and unique – experience to be laughing on one page, and then frowning in contemplation the next.
In addition to the complex, interweaving narrative and the questions it poses, Wehm makes superb use of the varied locations and climates found on the Crucible to liven up the plot and even help it to progress. They populate the story with some fantastical locations for Wibble and Pplimz to visit in the course of their investigation – from the delightful-sounding Floating Pines Resort, populated with levitating trees, to the militaristic environs of a Martian outpost, and even Quantum City, an entire city built around the ruins of a starship that recently crash-landed on the Crucible. There are times when the novel is as much a tour of the Crucible and its inhabitants as it is a detective story: or perhaps its more accurate to say both are expertly blended together. Every location is engaging and memorable, and half the fun of reading the novel is anticipating just what strange and bizarre locale Wehm has dreamt up for us next. Quantum City is particularly fascinating, not just for the artful way in which Wehm brings it to life, but also for the potential that the city and its inhabitants – a Federation-like organisation known as the Star Alliance – have to shake up the Crucible and its population. It’s an intriguing setting, and one that I’d like to see explored in more detail by Wehm in later KeyForge titles.
Of course, I can hardly finish the review without mentioning the fantastic and varied cast of characters that Wehm populates the novel with, where even bit-part characters are described with such energy and detail that they feel like protagonists in their own stories. Wibble and Pplimz continue to be a delightfully dynamic and memorable pair of protagonists to follow along with as the narrative unfolds. Their gentle bickering and the unusual nature of their partnership creates a relationship that comes across as entirely organic and unforced, and each has a distinct basis for their character – from Pplimz’s quietly cynical humour and fastidioudness, to Wibble’s relentless cheerfulness and unwavering sense of adventure. And Wehm deftly gets across the alien nature of both detectives through clever use of pronouns and descriptions of the ever-changing nature of their physical forms, whilst still retaining that innate humanity that makes them truly engaging and unique as protagonists. The narrative even provides Wehm with some opportunities to really expand their characters beyond their fun and vibrant exteriors, posing both of them some questions as the plot advances that make both Wibble and Pplimz more sympathetic and three-dimensional to the reader.
Hugely imaginative, powerfully written and imbued with an innate sense of fun and enjoyment that makes everything sparkle with energy, and with an incredibly surprising ending that I didn’t even come close to predicting, The Qubit Zirconium is one of the best books yet published by Aconyte Books, and also one of the most enjoyable and engaging science-fiction novels that I have ever had the pleasure of reading. It’s an absolute joy to read, almost every page making me laugh or smirking due to Wehm’s infectious sense of humour and wit, and Wehm making spectacular use of the KeyForge setting and propelling it to even greater heights of fun and vibrancy. Reading The Qubit Zirconium has recharged my enthusiasm and passion for the science-fiction genre, and I’m absolutely certain it will do the same for anyone else who reads it. I cannot wait to see what Wibble and Pplimz will investigate next time, and I can be certain that I will be right alongside them and Wehm when they do so.
I found the story to be evocatively written, cunningly plotted and the most unusual tale in the anthology, and fell in love with the two detectives. They seemed like the most obvious characters in the anthology to deserve their own spinoff story, and I was therefore delighted when it was announced that they would feature in a full-length novel by Wehm. I grabbed a review copy from NetGalley as soon as I could, and while real-world events conspired to keep me from reading it immediately, I knew that when I was finally able to get around to reading it, it would be just the thing I needed to act as a pick-me-up. The Qubit Zirconium features the usual fantastic cover art I’ve come to expect from Aconyte, illustrator Natalie Russo delivering a striking and upbeat piece of art showing the duo travelling through a desert landscape; and it’s accompanied by an intriguing back-cover blurb that features a former client in need of help, theft, a potential murder, and a sinister secret society aiming to change the very nature of the Crucible itself. It all sounded hugely exciting, and I dived right in and got reading.
We join our intrepid heroes in something of a quiet period, with no clients on the books, resulting in Pplimz sitting at his desk quietly waiting, and Wibble trying to spin cards into a hat. Fortunately for us as readers, their downtime is interrupted by a video-call from a former client, Taupe the Tailor (or possibly Tailor the Taupe), an elf who’s found himself on the run and subsequently looking for help from the duo. Accused of stealing valuable jewellery from the Star Alliance, a newly-arrived faction on the artificial planet, the elf wants the detectives to prove his innocence. But as their investigation unfolds, it proves to be far more complex than a mere missing item of jewellery, and in fact uncovers a plot to fundamentally change the nature of The Crucible and the fate of its inhabitants. It becomes clear as the two detectives investigate that there is more to the Qubit Zirconium than it simply being an attractive piece of jewellery; why do so many beings across the entire Crucible want to possess it so badly that they would resort to theft, and possibly even murder? And what does it have to do with a mysterious group known as the Cult of the Architects, and their plans for the Crucible and every sentient being living on the artificial planet? In order to find out, the two detectives will travel across the Crucible and find themselves visiting a delightfully varied and colourful set of locations, as well as dealing with duplicitous inhabitants – alien and human alike – and getting into more than a few scrapes along the way.
As you read through The Qubit Zirconium, it immediately becomes clear that Wehm knows exactly how to write a compelling and intricate mystery thriller, deftly interweaving surprising events and colourful characters with complex motivations to create an engaging and multi-faceted narrative that is always utterly enthralling and keeps you on the edge of your seat. While the investigation begins with the simple theft of the Qubit Zirconium, like all great mysteries it soon becomes far more intricate and involved for the two detectives, with Wehm delving into the fascinating world of the Crucible and just what it means to live on the artificially-engineered world – and the lengths some people might willingly go to in order to try and fundamentally change it. Wehm obviously has an innate understanding of the setting, because they really get to the very heart of the Crucible, and indeed KeyForge as a whole, while still managing the incredible feat of expertly blending together light-hearted fun and complex moral and even philosophical issues. There were a number of times when Wehm’s narrative posed questions that seemed to have bearings on real-life matters and even my own life, and it was a fascinating – and unique – experience to be laughing on one page, and then frowning in contemplation the next.
In addition to the complex, interweaving narrative and the questions it poses, Wehm makes superb use of the varied locations and climates found on the Crucible to liven up the plot and even help it to progress. They populate the story with some fantastical locations for Wibble and Pplimz to visit in the course of their investigation – from the delightful-sounding Floating Pines Resort, populated with levitating trees, to the militaristic environs of a Martian outpost, and even Quantum City, an entire city built around the ruins of a starship that recently crash-landed on the Crucible. There are times when the novel is as much a tour of the Crucible and its inhabitants as it is a detective story: or perhaps its more accurate to say both are expertly blended together. Every location is engaging and memorable, and half the fun of reading the novel is anticipating just what strange and bizarre locale Wehm has dreamt up for us next. Quantum City is particularly fascinating, not just for the artful way in which Wehm brings it to life, but also for the potential that the city and its inhabitants – a Federation-like organisation known as the Star Alliance – have to shake up the Crucible and its population. It’s an intriguing setting, and one that I’d like to see explored in more detail by Wehm in later KeyForge titles.
Of course, I can hardly finish the review without mentioning the fantastic and varied cast of characters that Wehm populates the novel with, where even bit-part characters are described with such energy and detail that they feel like protagonists in their own stories. Wibble and Pplimz continue to be a delightfully dynamic and memorable pair of protagonists to follow along with as the narrative unfolds. Their gentle bickering and the unusual nature of their partnership creates a relationship that comes across as entirely organic and unforced, and each has a distinct basis for their character – from Pplimz’s quietly cynical humour and fastidioudness, to Wibble’s relentless cheerfulness and unwavering sense of adventure. And Wehm deftly gets across the alien nature of both detectives through clever use of pronouns and descriptions of the ever-changing nature of their physical forms, whilst still retaining that innate humanity that makes them truly engaging and unique as protagonists. The narrative even provides Wehm with some opportunities to really expand their characters beyond their fun and vibrant exteriors, posing both of them some questions as the plot advances that make both Wibble and Pplimz more sympathetic and three-dimensional to the reader.
Hugely imaginative, powerfully written and imbued with an innate sense of fun and enjoyment that makes everything sparkle with energy, and with an incredibly surprising ending that I didn’t even come close to predicting, The Qubit Zirconium is one of the best books yet published by Aconyte Books, and also one of the most enjoyable and engaging science-fiction novels that I have ever had the pleasure of reading. It’s an absolute joy to read, almost every page making me laugh or smirking due to Wehm’s infectious sense of humour and wit, and Wehm making spectacular use of the KeyForge setting and propelling it to even greater heights of fun and vibrancy. Reading The Qubit Zirconium has recharged my enthusiasm and passion for the science-fiction genre, and I’m absolutely certain it will do the same for anyone else who reads it. I cannot wait to see what Wibble and Pplimz will investigate next time, and I can be certain that I will be right alongside them and Wehm when they do so.
April 11, 2021
I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Keyforge book The Qubit Zirconium by M. Darusha Wehm, published by Aconyte Books, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.
So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.
I am going to try my best to not let that cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.
What is Keyforge
The Crucible is a giant word larger than the sun, an artificial planet that is constantly under construction by the the Architects.
They gather their materials by transporting them from other planets and worlds, often bringing that worlds inhabitants along for the ride.
The world contains every environment imaginable, from bustling urban sprawls, to deserts, to jungles, to meadows and everything in between.
The Architects communicate through the ethereal Archons who themselves are completely in the dark about the purpose behind the Crucible.
And so they gather bands of followers, to gather Æmber, a psychic substance that can be forged into keys that unlock the vaults if they architects.
Keyforge itself is a unique deck card game, developed by Richard Garfield, the developer best know for Magic: The Gathering and King of Tokyo.
It’s a really good game, you should go check it out, but I am not reviewing the game here, but I will soon.
The Story
The story sees alien detectives, Wibble and Pplimz, a team consisting of a floating fish and a snappy dressed cyborg, look to clear the name of a former client who has been accused of theft.
The case quickly gets complicated, and the pair find themselves embroiled in a race to find a missing gem that potentially has the capability of utilising the power of the architects and endanger everyone on the Crucible.
The story starts off slow as the detectives, who very much have an odd couple vibe going on, with Wibble being a thrill seeking extrovert and Pplimz being a lot more formal and cautious, travel to a crashed Star Alliance ship to do some basic PI work, and they are doing it more out of boredom than anything else, knowing the client is unlikely to be able to pay them.
The story gradually begins to pick up steam as the pair find a lot of dead ends, which have the advantage of introducing us to more aspects of the Keyforge setting, and soon they find out the item their client is accused of stealing could potentially have the power to destroy the Crucible.
The book picks up pace as they travel to other parts of the Crucible desperate to find the Qubit Zirconium, and whilst it lacks any real action, or overt danger, there is a bit of tension as they conduct the investigation.
Conclusion
The book is ponderous, and that’s not necessarily a bad, thing. I think its set out to give a good introducing to the setting, to really explore the world, and to show us the craziness of life on the Crucible.
I really enjoyed the characters, there were some obvious tropes being introduced, the Star Alliance are a thinly veiled Federation after all, and the Martians are the very picture of the little green men we joke about, but again, the card game is very much about taking obvious tropes and twisting them ever so slightly.
I very much enjoyed the story, but the conclusion did fall a bit flat, it just kinda played out and it didn’t really feel that interesting, it just happened, and the urgency of the situation sort of just fizzed out.
A big thing I like was the normalisation of characters introducing their pronouns, something you rarely see, but I can imagine would be vital somewhere like the Crucible, and there was also an acknowledgment that non-binary people exist, and indeed Pplimz is non-binary themselves.
I do want to see more work around this pair, but I would hope the end is a bit more interesting, as I said, it works, but there is little to make you feel any sense of urgency in those closing chapters.
I am gonna give this book 3 out of 5 stars, I would have given it a 4, but then ending just didn’t excite me anywhere near the way the rest of the book did.
The eBook is released on the 13th April and the paperback hits the shelves on 24th June.
So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.
I am going to try my best to not let that cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.
What is Keyforge
The Crucible is a giant word larger than the sun, an artificial planet that is constantly under construction by the the Architects.
They gather their materials by transporting them from other planets and worlds, often bringing that worlds inhabitants along for the ride.
The world contains every environment imaginable, from bustling urban sprawls, to deserts, to jungles, to meadows and everything in between.
The Architects communicate through the ethereal Archons who themselves are completely in the dark about the purpose behind the Crucible.
And so they gather bands of followers, to gather Æmber, a psychic substance that can be forged into keys that unlock the vaults if they architects.
Keyforge itself is a unique deck card game, developed by Richard Garfield, the developer best know for Magic: The Gathering and King of Tokyo.
It’s a really good game, you should go check it out, but I am not reviewing the game here, but I will soon.
The Story
The story sees alien detectives, Wibble and Pplimz, a team consisting of a floating fish and a snappy dressed cyborg, look to clear the name of a former client who has been accused of theft.
The case quickly gets complicated, and the pair find themselves embroiled in a race to find a missing gem that potentially has the capability of utilising the power of the architects and endanger everyone on the Crucible.
The story starts off slow as the detectives, who very much have an odd couple vibe going on, with Wibble being a thrill seeking extrovert and Pplimz being a lot more formal and cautious, travel to a crashed Star Alliance ship to do some basic PI work, and they are doing it more out of boredom than anything else, knowing the client is unlikely to be able to pay them.
The story gradually begins to pick up steam as the pair find a lot of dead ends, which have the advantage of introducing us to more aspects of the Keyforge setting, and soon they find out the item their client is accused of stealing could potentially have the power to destroy the Crucible.
The book picks up pace as they travel to other parts of the Crucible desperate to find the Qubit Zirconium, and whilst it lacks any real action, or overt danger, there is a bit of tension as they conduct the investigation.
Conclusion
The book is ponderous, and that’s not necessarily a bad, thing. I think its set out to give a good introducing to the setting, to really explore the world, and to show us the craziness of life on the Crucible.
I really enjoyed the characters, there were some obvious tropes being introduced, the Star Alliance are a thinly veiled Federation after all, and the Martians are the very picture of the little green men we joke about, but again, the card game is very much about taking obvious tropes and twisting them ever so slightly.
I very much enjoyed the story, but the conclusion did fall a bit flat, it just kinda played out and it didn’t really feel that interesting, it just happened, and the urgency of the situation sort of just fizzed out.
A big thing I like was the normalisation of characters introducing their pronouns, something you rarely see, but I can imagine would be vital somewhere like the Crucible, and there was also an acknowledgment that non-binary people exist, and indeed Pplimz is non-binary themselves.
I do want to see more work around this pair, but I would hope the end is a bit more interesting, as I said, it works, but there is little to make you feel any sense of urgency in those closing chapters.
I am gonna give this book 3 out of 5 stars, I would have given it a 4, but then ending just didn’t excite me anywhere near the way the rest of the book did.
The eBook is released on the 13th April and the paperback hits the shelves on 24th June.
April 13, 2021
I would highly recommend this book.
It is a fun & easy read and if you are like me and love your epic fantasy series, this would be a great palette cleanser between books. I will be following this author M Darusha Wehm and auto-buying their books.
The relationship between our two main characters Pplimz and Wibble was the highlight of this book for me. “The story was very entertaining. Sometimes feeling like a comedic road trip / buddy movie.” said Reviewer Rachel B and I couldn't put it better myself.
I am not a Keyforge player but I never once felt lost reading The Qubit Zirconium. This was a great first novel in this world of the planet Crucible. I enjoyed exploring the vastly different environments in this world as much as I did its characters.
The use of gender pronouns was written smoothly. It feels quite obvious that we might need to find out someone’s preferred pronoun in advance when dealing with so many other species. Well done to M Darusha Wehm!
- The blurb from the publisher, as they do it best -
Alien detectives stumble across a mystery that could tear apart their patchwork planet, the Crucible, in this riotous science fantasy novel from the smash hit game, KeyForge
Wibble & Pplimz, the Crucible’s most unusual private investigators, must set off from their office in Hub City to clear the name of a former client. Along the way, their investigation broadens from a simple accusation of theft to include a missing person, a potential murder, and a highly unusual gem. Four interlinking incidents take them across the Crucible, as they attempt to solve the case. But there’s something more sinister lurking underneath: evidence of a secret society that aims to discover the power of the Architects, and forever change the nature of the Crucible itself.
- Keyforge World -
Explore a world of infinite variety – wild science fantasy adventures on an impossible patchwork world of everything known (and unknown) in the universe.
In the center of the universe hangs the Crucible, an artificial world built from the pieces of countless planets. Over millions of years of new environments and societies being added to the world, cultures have expanded, creatures explore: adventuring, surviving, and even thriving. Meanwhile, Godlike Archons use the other inhabitants to compete in battle and unlock the secrets of the Crucible, gathering the mystical substance Æmber to enter Vaults hidden by the planet’s legendary creators.
KeyForge is the phenomenally successful multiple award-winning, multi-million selling collectible card game, created by Richard Garfield, designer of Magic: The Gathering. – The Crucible is a unique creation, containing a little of everything in the universe; a canvas for every kind of tale for all fans of science fiction and fantasy, with a wild and often comic twist. – Wibble & Pplimz debuted in the Tales from the Crucible anthology to great acclaim, and now have an adventure all of their own. M DARUSHA WEHM is the Nebula Award-nominated and Sir Julius Vogel Award-winning author of the interactive fiction game The Martian Job, several SF and YA novels, and the Andersson Dexter cyberpunk detective series. Originally from Canada, Darusha now lives in New Zealand after spending several years sailing the Pacific. They use the pronouns They/Them
Thank you to NetGalley & Aconyte Books for an advance copy.
It is a fun & easy read and if you are like me and love your epic fantasy series, this would be a great palette cleanser between books. I will be following this author M Darusha Wehm and auto-buying their books.
The relationship between our two main characters Pplimz and Wibble was the highlight of this book for me. “The story was very entertaining. Sometimes feeling like a comedic road trip / buddy movie.” said Reviewer Rachel B and I couldn't put it better myself.
I am not a Keyforge player but I never once felt lost reading The Qubit Zirconium. This was a great first novel in this world of the planet Crucible. I enjoyed exploring the vastly different environments in this world as much as I did its characters.
The use of gender pronouns was written smoothly. It feels quite obvious that we might need to find out someone’s preferred pronoun in advance when dealing with so many other species. Well done to M Darusha Wehm!
- The blurb from the publisher, as they do it best -
Alien detectives stumble across a mystery that could tear apart their patchwork planet, the Crucible, in this riotous science fantasy novel from the smash hit game, KeyForge
Wibble & Pplimz, the Crucible’s most unusual private investigators, must set off from their office in Hub City to clear the name of a former client. Along the way, their investigation broadens from a simple accusation of theft to include a missing person, a potential murder, and a highly unusual gem. Four interlinking incidents take them across the Crucible, as they attempt to solve the case. But there’s something more sinister lurking underneath: evidence of a secret society that aims to discover the power of the Architects, and forever change the nature of the Crucible itself.
- Keyforge World -
Explore a world of infinite variety – wild science fantasy adventures on an impossible patchwork world of everything known (and unknown) in the universe.
In the center of the universe hangs the Crucible, an artificial world built from the pieces of countless planets. Over millions of years of new environments and societies being added to the world, cultures have expanded, creatures explore: adventuring, surviving, and even thriving. Meanwhile, Godlike Archons use the other inhabitants to compete in battle and unlock the secrets of the Crucible, gathering the mystical substance Æmber to enter Vaults hidden by the planet’s legendary creators.
KeyForge is the phenomenally successful multiple award-winning, multi-million selling collectible card game, created by Richard Garfield, designer of Magic: The Gathering. – The Crucible is a unique creation, containing a little of everything in the universe; a canvas for every kind of tale for all fans of science fiction and fantasy, with a wild and often comic twist. – Wibble & Pplimz debuted in the Tales from the Crucible anthology to great acclaim, and now have an adventure all of their own. M DARUSHA WEHM is the Nebula Award-nominated and Sir Julius Vogel Award-winning author of the interactive fiction game The Martian Job, several SF and YA novels, and the Andersson Dexter cyberpunk detective series. Originally from Canada, Darusha now lives in New Zealand after spending several years sailing the Pacific. They use the pronouns They/Them
Thank you to NetGalley & Aconyte Books for an advance copy.
September 26, 2021
I liked the book, but there are several issues with it.
The characters in the book are great. The author made a lot of effort to make them interesting. The main heroes are funny, smart and the same time each with their own properties
The world of the Crucible is described in quite some details. You can find here different types of species, different types of areas/environments and the author described them well.
The idea about detectives working on a case by finding clues and then moving forward is also great.
The book also handles gender and race diversity great.
The issue with the book though is that by trying to put as many descriptions of the world as possible, events progress slowly. And the worst is at the end of the book. Several last chapters could be shortened several times and the book would not loose anything.
The detective part is too simple. It might be interesting for a teenager but not so much for the adults.
Another issue is about using different new terms that are not described immediately or at all. As a non-native English speaker, I had issues understanding if a word is one I do not know or it is made up.
The characters in the book are great. The author made a lot of effort to make them interesting. The main heroes are funny, smart and the same time each with their own properties
The world of the Crucible is described in quite some details. You can find here different types of species, different types of areas/environments and the author described them well.
The idea about detectives working on a case by finding clues and then moving forward is also great.
The book also handles gender and race diversity great.
The issue with the book though is that by trying to put as many descriptions of the world as possible, events progress slowly. And the worst is at the end of the book. Several last chapters could be shortened several times and the book would not loose anything.
The detective part is too simple. It might be interesting for a teenager but not so much for the adults.
Another issue is about using different new terms that are not described immediately or at all. As a non-native English speaker, I had issues understanding if a word is one I do not know or it is made up.
May 23, 2021
This book. So good.
That's it, that's the review.
This is a novel tie-in for the card game KeyForge. So if you're into that game, I must recommend this book. If you're not into that game, I also must recommend this book.
It's an excellent detective story if you take out the aliens and the sci-fi parts -- but I'm glad they didn't do that.
One of the best things about these Aconyte Books game tie-in novels is the gateway to new authors -- in this case, I had not heard of M. Darusha Wehm. Now I'm reading one of the author's other novels and I can't wait to dig into more.
The story is a detective mystery and one detective is a robot and the other is an alien fish. I think. Of course, they're a mismatched pair and hijinks ensue. It's all very fun.
That's it, that's the review.
This is a novel tie-in for the card game KeyForge. So if you're into that game, I must recommend this book. If you're not into that game, I also must recommend this book.
It's an excellent detective story if you take out the aliens and the sci-fi parts -- but I'm glad they didn't do that.
One of the best things about these Aconyte Books game tie-in novels is the gateway to new authors -- in this case, I had not heard of M. Darusha Wehm. Now I'm reading one of the author's other novels and I can't wait to dig into more.
The story is a detective mystery and one detective is a robot and the other is an alien fish. I think. Of course, they're a mismatched pair and hijinks ensue. It's all very fun.
December 19, 2024
A fun detective story that introduces the world of Keyforge to the reader. It felt very reminiscent of Zootopia with lots of biomes and an investigation that takes the characters from one location to the next.
This is the first book based on a board game (or card game) that I have read and found that it had nothing much to do with the game. Yes, the Crucible was there, the species and factions were there, but that was about it. This felt like a stand-alone novel that has had a Keyforge veneer plastered over the top. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it and the fan service didn't feel overdone, but this is very much a story set in the world of... rather than a novelisation of the Lore of the game or a weird story somehow incorporating the gameplay (thank goodness).
Definitely worth reading.
This is the first book based on a board game (or card game) that I have read and found that it had nothing much to do with the game. Yes, the Crucible was there, the species and factions were there, but that was about it. This felt like a stand-alone novel that has had a Keyforge veneer plastered over the top. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it and the fan service didn't feel overdone, but this is very much a story set in the world of... rather than a novelisation of the Lore of the game or a weird story somehow incorporating the gameplay (thank goodness).
Definitely worth reading.
March 12, 2022
I wanted to like this more. It was written well enough and I will probably revisit it again. Like Tales from the Crucible, it does a fine job in giving a tour of the Crucible as it touches on most of the factions in some way. But it is a bit overwhelming to keep track of all the different characters with bizarre non-human names. Forgive my anthropocentric preferences.
January 5, 2023
This is so much fun. I love the friendship between Wibble and Pplimz, the varied cast of aliens, and the idea of an area of space you can enter but can't leave The tried-and-tested solve-the-mystery plot formula works well. It's not a book that's going to change your life, but it's a very enjoyable way to pass a few hours.
April 18, 2021
A fun tale that opens up the world of the game. I hope more Wibble and Pplimz books are forthcoming.
August 7, 2024
Actually a pretty decent sci-fi/detective story. The world of Keyforge makes a surprisingly strong setting for a novel! It would be fun to see it as a series or film.
February 21, 2021
A mystery set in the wacky world of a CCG, featuring private detectives with a difference. Actually, a lot of differences.
The PIs - a female alien who floats, and a nattily-dressed nonbinary cyborg - are not even a little bit noir; they don't get beaten up while pursuing their investigation, they're rigidly ethical in their methods, and they're not desperate for money. In fact, they spend quite a bit of their own money on behalf of a client who they know can't reimburse them, at first because they're bored and want a mystery to solve and someone they vaguely know appears to be in trouble, and later because they come to believe that the world is at risk.
For the first third - while the stakes were low - I wasn't engaged. It's clear that the PIs are fond of each other, even though they have a mild mutual irritation/odd couple thing going because Wibble, the floater, is a thrill-seeking extraverted optimist and Pplimz is very buttoned-down. But their banter is in a formal cadence, and there's not a lot of emotional drive or action. The investigation is a slow series of try-fail cycles which show off the setting, but the details are mostly decorative rather than functional. Neither the main characters nor the various secondary characters they encounter are shown to us particularly deeply, and none of them became interesting to me; they're odd, sure, but there's such a relentless tone of respecting difference (which, certainly, is a good thing in itself) that their oddity becomes flattened and doesn't lead to much conflict. We're told that this is a world in which there's a lot of danger and in which many factions are battling; we're shown a comfortable, fairly safe world in which nothing really bad actually happens.
This continues to be the case throughout the book, but at least things pick up a bit when the fate of the world seems to be at stake . There's no more clarity, and not much more danger, but there is at least a plot question to drive things forward.
My previous experience with Darusha Wehm's books is that they do tend to be slow-moving and lacking in action, tension, and strong emotion, and this is not an exception, despite the opportunities offered by the setting. There are definitely people who will enjoy following the likeable protagonists through the interesting setting as they gradually unpick the puzzle, but for me it didn't have enough zing to it. The blurb's description of the book as "riotous" never comes anywhere close to being accurate.
Disclaimers: I know Darusha Wehm slightly, as we're both members of the Codex writers' forum and of SpecFicNZ. I received a pre-publication copy for review via Netgalley.
The PIs - a female alien who floats, and a nattily-dressed nonbinary cyborg - are not even a little bit noir; they don't get beaten up while pursuing their investigation, they're rigidly ethical in their methods, and they're not desperate for money. In fact, they spend quite a bit of their own money on behalf of a client who they know can't reimburse them, at first because they're bored and want a mystery to solve and someone they vaguely know appears to be in trouble, and later because they come to believe that the world is at risk.
For the first third - while the stakes were low - I wasn't engaged. It's clear that the PIs are fond of each other, even though they have a mild mutual irritation/odd couple thing going because Wibble, the floater, is a thrill-seeking extraverted optimist and Pplimz is very buttoned-down. But their banter is in a formal cadence, and there's not a lot of emotional drive or action. The investigation is a slow series of try-fail cycles which show off the setting, but the details are mostly decorative rather than functional. Neither the main characters nor the various secondary characters they encounter are shown to us particularly deeply, and none of them became interesting to me; they're odd, sure, but there's such a relentless tone of respecting difference (which, certainly, is a good thing in itself) that their oddity becomes flattened and doesn't lead to much conflict. We're told that this is a world in which there's a lot of danger and in which many factions are battling; we're shown a comfortable, fairly safe world in which nothing really bad actually happens.
This continues to be the case throughout the book, but at least things pick up a bit when the fate of the world seems to be at stake . There's no more clarity, and not much more danger, but there is at least a plot question to drive things forward.
My previous experience with Darusha Wehm's books is that they do tend to be slow-moving and lacking in action, tension, and strong emotion, and this is not an exception, despite the opportunities offered by the setting. There are definitely people who will enjoy following the likeable protagonists through the interesting setting as they gradually unpick the puzzle, but for me it didn't have enough zing to it. The blurb's description of the book as "riotous" never comes anywhere close to being accurate.
Disclaimers: I know Darusha Wehm slightly, as we're both members of the Codex writers' forum and of SpecFicNZ. I received a pre-publication copy for review via Netgalley.
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