When Miranda is forced by her mother and sisters to leave Earth and cross the universe to the middle-of-nowhere planet her family has owned for generations she's beyond pissed. She fears she will be stranded there. Forever. Or at least the better part of her summer vacation.
All because her grandmother decided to die.
Really, no matter what century you live in, a teenager's life is never fair.
I set my phone inside my purse and wait for the inevitable lift off, reminding myself that there is nothing to worry about. Our mother is practically a goddess. I smile at that thought, closing my eyes.
We are on our way to Grandmother's planet.
Just one stop, first.
The Pool: Tower
The Clans of Terrasta continue to torment the young survivor of a doomed expedition to the planet as she seeks to save both herself and the planet.
Life somehow seems brighter the day the Salvation system comes online: a virtual paradise offering respite from decades of recession and warfare. But Salvation becomes a trap. Humanity sheds it flesh and falls into this digital realm, leaving a meager handful of survivors struggling to survive in the real world.
And then the invaders arrive.
This is the expansion of the story arc began in the popular short story "The Prophet" and features the future-hero Wanderer.
Several times in his life Priest had felt a stilling, as if the world itself had grown heavier, had weighed on his considerable frame and pushed him to a stop. It happened now as Ron reached for the door and Priest held his breath, forcing the warning to stay in his lungs. Ron might not have told Priest what sins he had committed worthy of jailing but Priest was a good read of character and he found Ron's lacking. The fool was too impetuous.
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There are books that make a reader think, "I could have written that." Then, there are books like these that make a reader sigh and say, "I wish I'd written that."
Other stories though - "Mama" and "The Mogul's Wife" - are close to perfect in the way they provide enough detail so you understand the world of the story, and why the characters act as they do. Both these stories and "Fleshsmith" also describe intriguing possible future/alternative worlds.
If you've considered a career in game design but aren't sure how the industry works, how game companies are structured and what a designer will be expected to know before they are employable, then this is a quick low-cost intro.
It's a really neat idea, and the character that Knowles explores it through is someone that we can relate to and root for as he grapples with his failures, both to his family and his species