The House of Saints

Venus Ascendant, Book 2

De: Derek Kunsken

Narrado por: Justine Eyre

The Stunning conclusion to the Venus Ascendant series, from the world of The Quantum Magician.

George-Étienne and his children have formed The House of Styx, after finding a mysterious artefact on the surface of Venus herself. But with the discovery comes great risk, not only from a planet that kills with its very touch but also from the banks and powers of old Earth, who will stop at nothing to claim this new technology for themselves. From humble origins, The House of Styx is determined to become one of the most powerful families in the known galaxy or die trying.

©2023 Derek Kunsken (P)2023 Recorded Books

Excellent sci fi!

Great character development, exciting plot, believable characters, and a fantastic and vivid setting. 15 word minimum.

the ending is wonderful, but it’s a long journey to get to that payoff

I have mixed feelings about this one because there is a spectacular story here, but it takes until the final 20 chapters—about 80% of the way in—for the book to really find its feet.

Up until that point, the plot drags due to repetitive emotional beats and a lot of character indecision. While I’m always happy to see LGBTQ representation, I found these specific portrayals a bit one-dimensional in their vulnerability.

Often, marginalized characters are written as perpetually distressed; I would have much preferred to see these characters handle their challenges with more agency, boldness, and intellect.
I look forward to stories where characters are 'people first'—defined by their strengths and actions rather than just their internal angst.

If you can navigate the slow-moving middle, the ending is wonderful, but it’s a long journey to get to that payoff

Hard sci-fi meets phenomenal character development

Once again, the author brings together a natural world, a theoretical world, and a different social order to both engross the listener or reader and make them think.

Well-written, and transporting for the listener. Just fantastic. Balancing marginalized people and how they contribute against a "when do we eat grandma?" level of survival need in a failing colony on a hostile planet.

checks a box

I cannot stand the narrator's breathless style. Maybe she was struggling to breathe in the slight wisps of plot that drifted by in the otherwise hot dense unbreathable atmosphere of this book. Now we know the back story of the Venusian Congregate. Check.

how bad this series is vs the quantum books

I was really hoping this book better than last. wanted sci-fi not some romance of adult and minor trans person ?