Praxis

By: Justin Knight

Narrated by: Scott Glennon

"Knight is a writer to watch. Fun, witty, and unafraid to tackle the big topics in SciFi." - Dragon Award winner Nick Cole

"Knight's blue collar characters are genuine and engaging. The time spent getting to know them heightens the impact when they are thrust into a gripping & savage fight for survival." - Jon Mollison, author of Sudden Rescue

"Action packed, engaging characters, and one of the most creative premises I've encountered." - Bre Faucheux, author of Violet Drake

"Compelling characters that feel real. Its got a bit of everything from corporate intrigue to a romance you can root for. Stella work." - Jon Del Arroz, Dragon Award-nominated author of Rescue Run and For Steam and Country

A group of blue collar workers are selected to run the first manned space station, Praxis, at the edge of our galaxy. It will be part of mankind's bold ambition to explore beyond what we know.

But trouble is heading right for them. A gang of vicious alien pirates are fleeing justice, intent on continuing their bloody campaign, and Praxis is in their way.

The workers will have to defend themselves, unarmed, against a ruthless enemy intent on killing them. The biggest threat though, may be the station itself....

©2017 Justin Knight (P)2018 Justin Knight

3.5* - blue collar sci fi

3.5* overall.... When I read other reviews, I wondered if maybe I wouldn't enjoy this story.

As others note, the story moves relatively slowly for the first part of the book - no plot tension with our main characters, foreshadowing of tension among the warehouse workers that don't materialize, getting to know characters without getting too deep into their personalities (so that we can engage with them emotionally when the action finally hits). We're given some implausible reasons why our cast of characters end up travelling together to Praxis, so that they can be in the right place at the right time for when the main action starts (my opinion, as an academic who teaches human resources management: on a trip of this magnitude, no HR manager in his/her right mind would send this particular mix of characters to a high-stakes isolated project unless there were no other candidates available). We also have to squint our eyes and not dwell too deeply on the economics/practicality of shipping paperback novels, bottles of beer, high heeled shoes, king sized beds, and arcade game machines into space. In terms of writing style, as a North American reader/listener, I'm not used to hearing 'whilst' in place of 'while', so that was a bit distracting. I noticed numerous patches of writing where the author used redundant words and phrases (e.g., "psychological effects of the mind", "small, little pizza shop", "the waitress stood ready again as the ladies looked over the menus again") -- all distracting. And, finally, I'm almost positive that the author confused 'solar system' with 'galaxy'. Having identified all of these flaws.....

I completely agree with other reviewers who felt that things started getting quite interesting shortly after the characters' arrival on Praxis. I was curious to know about the fate of each of the characters, and to see how the author eventually wove together the two arcs (one involving the Praxis crew, the other involving aliens). The author gave us some gritty violence and a bittersweet ending, wrapping up the story in a satisfying way. I think that if the author gave us some of that grittiness in the first half of the story, it might have won over some of the less positive reviewers.

Regarding the narration, I have mixed feelings. While I'm not used to hearing this laid-back tone of speaking in audiobooks, I can appreciate how it made the characters more blue collar-ish. Right? We can't have Sir Richard Attenborough narrating this particular story, as much as we enjoy his voice in nature documentaries and Jurassic Park. So, re-booting my expectations and increasing the playback speed slightly (to 1.10-1.15x), I found that his male voices (with the exception of EJ, who sounded sort of like Rocky Balboa) and his expository tone were fine. His voice for Mickey's wife? Meh, I didn't enjoy her voice at all -- I think the narrator gave her the completely wrong tone of voice, given her strong character and decisive personality (she kind of sounded like she was perpetually half-asleep, or a drowsy-drunk, or something). When I get grumbly in audiobook reviews about narration, it's typically because character voices don't sound realistic, making it much harder for me to empathize with those characters. So, given this, there's no way I'd give this narration a full 5 stars, but I definitely wouldn't give the narration a failing grade either.

So, I wouldn't put this story on my list of 10 best books I've listened to during the past year, but I don't regret listening to it and definitely wouldn't put it on my list of 10 worst audiobooks that I've listened to during the past 12 months.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Worth checking out if you love classic sci fi

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

This was a pretty good book. It started a little bit slow, but it really finished strong. There was plenty of character and world building, which I enjoy. I thought it was well narrated which helped keep my interest through the slow beginning. All in all, if you like classic sci fi, this is worth checking out.

A Story with a lot of Potential

I really enjoyed the story and concept of it however it seemed at times the author rushed certain parts where it could have been more in depth. Now I'm not sure if that was due to how it was written or the performance from the narrator however overall it was a good story concept that could have been expanded more of that world. If the author continues the story I think if they are more detailed in their writing as they were in character development it will help out a lot.

I'd definitely read a continuation to this story and timeline if one was written.

Great Story!

I received this audio book for free in exchange for my honest review. This is a very well written story with excellent characters backed by wonderful narration that you will thoroughly enjoy.

Slow at the start, but what a finish

The book is a little slow at the beginning, a lot of character building. But once they leave for praxis the story takes offf. The last half is edge of your seat storytelling. Parts of the story were a little predictable but that can be said for most stories. But the unpredictable parts (that’s most of it) was so good. The author left an opening for a second book and I look forward to the possibility. Don’t hesitate to spend a credit for this book, it is well worth it.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Great

One of the best science fiction stories I have come across and the narrator was very good also
Thank yo

good but could have been a little bit shorter

usually I'm saying it's the books or not long enough in this case I think the length of the book didn't do it well the book was good don't get me wrong but the start of the book was a little bit slow and sloppy the ending of the book was incredible and I think if the book was shorter it would have been better but the book was good and very enjoyable

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

Fun space adventure

If you could sum up Praxis in three words, what would they be?

Dockworkers in space

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mickey, Management stuck in the middle, doing the best he can in a situation that goes from bad to worse

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

A reader did a decent job, but sometimes he rushed through scenes and read too fast

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

And you thought unions were bad.

Any additional comments?

This story has some good high concepts that I haven't seen before or very often. I hope space travel truly can be like this one day

Praxis

Decent story. I wish there were more time spent on when they were in space. Narrator did a good job. I received this audiobook for free through Audiobook Boom for my unbiased review.

Not a good Experience

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Someone in a Galaxy far far away.

What was most disappointing about Justin Knight’s story?

Everything.

How could the performance have been better?

Get another Narrator.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

My ears hurt.

Any additional comments?

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.That does not mean a review is on Auto and gets a great review.

I am sorry to the Writer and Narrator but you both can do better...... improve your work and you will get a better honest review.