Hi everyone! Theresa here. I won't be doing this segment every week, but it happened to fit in my schedule so here I am.... again :) If you haven't seen it, I posted a guest post over on Rachel Higginson's blog. It talks about my journey into publishing and why you should give sci-fi a try. Since that post covered pretty much everything that I'd write about in an intro, I thought I'd dedicate this Friday Reads to some "lighter" science fiction books that you might enjoy.
Under Different Stars by Amy Bartol
This book started hitting my radar right as I was about 10k words from writing "The End" on Broken Skies and, as an avid reader of Jennifer Armentrout's Lux series, I was excited to see a new book about aliens. I bought it the day it came out, but I was forced to wait to read it until I finished writing. Because there's a character in it who shares a name with Jax....and he's a guy. My Muse kept getting confused, so after much belly aching on my part (just ask Elizabeth, I really didn't want to wait on this one) I banned myself from my Kindle and wrote instead. Under Different Stars was well worth the wait though. With a cute and steamy romance, some great banter and some absolutely hilarious interactions between the guys, this book will be a definite re-read for me in the future.
This book started hitting my radar right as I was about 10k words from writing "The End" on Broken Skies and, as an avid reader of Jennifer Armentrout's Lux series, I was excited to see a new book about aliens. I bought it the day it came out, but I was forced to wait to read it until I finished writing. Because there's a character in it who shares a name with Jax....and he's a guy. My Muse kept getting confused, so after much belly aching on my part (just ask Elizabeth, I really didn't want to wait on this one) I banned myself from my Kindle and wrote instead. Under Different Stars was well worth the wait though. With a cute and steamy romance, some great banter and some absolutely hilarious interactions between the guys, this book will be a definite re-read for me in the future.
Timebound by Rysa Walker
The winner of the 2013 Amazon Breakout Novel Award, I first came to hear about this book when Amazon rolled out their Kindle First program. With this program, Amazon Prime members can choose one of four books every month to get for FREE! (different from the Prime Lending Program where you have to return the books). This was my first purchase through KF, and I couldn't have been happier with it. It's a complex tale involving time travel, paradoxes, alternate histories, cults and the Chicago's World Fair of 1893. As I'm writing this, it's also on sale for only $1.99!
The winner of the 2013 Amazon Breakout Novel Award, I first came to hear about this book when Amazon rolled out their Kindle First program. With this program, Amazon Prime members can choose one of four books every month to get for FREE! (different from the Prime Lending Program where you have to return the books). This was my first purchase through KF, and I couldn't have been happier with it. It's a complex tale involving time travel, paradoxes, alternate histories, cults and the Chicago's World Fair of 1893. As I'm writing this, it's also on sale for only $1.99!
Angelfall by Susan Ee
I'm not even sure where to start with this one besides to say it's one of my all-time favorites. I first discovered this book in 2011, back when it was self-published. A masterful post-apocalyptic tale with avenging angels and a subtle romantic build-up (the tension between Penryn and Raffe is PERFECT), Angelfall manages to throw in some genetic manipulation and even some pretty gruesome monsters. I will say that the cliffhanger in this one is a doozie. Thankfully, the second book is already out and the third book, I believe, is set to be published this year.
I'm not even sure where to start with this one besides to say it's one of my all-time favorites. I first discovered this book in 2011, back when it was self-published. A masterful post-apocalyptic tale with avenging angels and a subtle romantic build-up (the tension between Penryn and Raffe is PERFECT), Angelfall manages to throw in some genetic manipulation and even some pretty gruesome monsters. I will say that the cliffhanger in this one is a doozie. Thankfully, the second book is already out and the third book, I believe, is set to be published this year.
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
I was wandering around Goodreads one day looking for a new book to read when I stumbled across this one. This story has some pretty dark undertones. A mysterious illness spread across the US and the children that survive it are changed-- they develop a variety of powers some fairly benign and some...not so much. The children get carted off to live in what are essentially labor camps with downright awful conditions. What made this book stick out to me was the detailed writing and the action heavy plot line. It has a subtle romantic vibe, but the story is more focused on Ruby's journey to discovering who she is and who she can trust. This one also has a big cliffie at the end (with LOTS of feels), but the second book is already out.
I was wandering around Goodreads one day looking for a new book to read when I stumbled across this one. This story has some pretty dark undertones. A mysterious illness spread across the US and the children that survive it are changed-- they develop a variety of powers some fairly benign and some...not so much. The children get carted off to live in what are essentially labor camps with downright awful conditions. What made this book stick out to me was the detailed writing and the action heavy plot line. It has a subtle romantic vibe, but the story is more focused on Ruby's journey to discovering who she is and who she can trust. This one also has a big cliffie at the end (with LOTS of feels), but the second book is already out.
Shattered Veil by Tracy E. Bangheart
Of all of these books, this is the one that is heaviest on the sci-fi factor. The main character, Aris, is a pilot who gives up almost everything she knows, including her identity and her gender, to follow her childhood sweetheart into war. The story includes some flying skirmishes, daring rescues, interesting tech and some absolutely amazing world building. There is romance to the story, but it's even more subtle than in The Darkest Minds. This is Aris' story more than anything and she develops from a weak girl who goes along with everyone else to something much more.
Of all of these books, this is the one that is heaviest on the sci-fi factor. The main character, Aris, is a pilot who gives up almost everything she knows, including her identity and her gender, to follow her childhood sweetheart into war. The story includes some flying skirmishes, daring rescues, interesting tech and some absolutely amazing world building. There is romance to the story, but it's even more subtle than in The Darkest Minds. This is Aris' story more than anything and she develops from a weak girl who goes along with everyone else to something much more.
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