science fiction

Book Review: That Hideous Strength

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That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis

That Hideous Strength (The Space Trilogy, #3)
by C.S. Lewis
4 out of 5 stars
Jane and Mark are caught between the forces of good and evil. As the N.I.C.E. corporation offers Mark a job to lure him into their wicked schemes, Jane is approached by a very different group of people who have gathered around Ransom. They each have to decide what they believe in when it turns out that archangels and ancient legends are real.

This book has a very different format from the other books in the series, and Ransom is a side character in his own story. The trouble with Jane and Mark being the main characters, is that I don’t really like either of them. They are so wishy-washy and both their personalities are unattractive. However, they do both have extreme character development and really interesting internal journeys.

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Classic Book Review: Perelandra

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Perelandra by C.S. Lewis

Perelandra (Space Trilogy, #2)
by C.S. Lewis
4 out of 5 stars
In this second book of the trilogy, Ransom travels to another alien planet at the request of Maleldil. This time he goes to Perelandra (Venus), and encounters a new race of aliens, who are struggling with the same temptations from the Evil One that Adam and Eve fell victim to in our own world. Ransom must battle against the Evil Presence in order to protect the innocent new society that is just beginning to form.

I love the imaginative world-building in this book! There are so many different settings and alien animals and weird plants. Perelandra is such a strange planet with a perpetually cloudy sky and rolling islands that float on the seas. And even when you are more than halfway through the book, and you think you’ve seen all the scenery and met all the animals that Perelandra could possibly have, then there are still more mysteries and wildlife and extreme mountains and rivers to be explored.

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Classic Sci-Fi Review: Out of the Silent Planet

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Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis

Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy, #1)
by C.S. Lewis
4 out of 5 stars
Ransom is kidnapped and taken to another planet, where he escapes his kidnappers and must fend for himself on an alien world. Everything he encounters is entirely foreign and strange, from the water to the trees. The landscape is wild and inhospitable, and there are aliens who (he has been told) need a human sacrifice for some pagan ritual.

Malacandra is such a vibrant planet, with rich cultures and languages of its own. I love all the little details of the aliens and their society that make it feel like a real place. It’s utterly bizarre and wild, but with little flecks of familiarity that endear you to the alienness of it all.

The writing and story-telling are truly brilliant. The plot is exciting, and the writing draws the reader into each scene so that you are experiencing what Ransom is experiencing through every adventure. I love that there are a lot of philosophical questions and spiritual lessons in this book, but it never weighs down the plot or spoils the adventure.

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Book Review: The Telling

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The Telling by Ursula K. Le Guin
The Telling
by Ursula K. Le Guin

2 out of 5 stars


Sutty is an Observer visiting an alien planet to escape the political and religious unrest on Earth. But she arrives at a planet in the middle of their own religious upheaval where the old religions are illegal, and only small pockets of people in the countryside practice their beliefs in secret.

I DNF’d this book after page 63, because I was upset at the themes and attitudes behind the moral worldview of this book. Sutty is homosexual, and I didn’t like how that was approached and handled in this book. Continue reading →

Book Review: Ben Archer and the Cosmic Fall

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Ben Archer and the Cosmic Fall by Rae Knightly
Ben Archer and the Cosmic Fall (Alien Skill, #1)
by Rae Knightly (Goodreads Author)

3 out of 5 stars


Ben has no memory of when a “meteor” fell near his Grampa’s home while Ben was visiting there. There are government agents snooping around the crash site, and Ben’s Grampa is trying to keep Ben’s name out of it by hiding him away with his mother in the city. An alien named Mesmo is on the run from dangerous government agents, and tries to protect the innocent human witnesses from the “meteor” crash site. A mysterious shape-shifter tracks down Ben as a witness to the crash, and Ben and his mother are both in terrible danger.

I enjoyed the writing style in this book. It’s concise and clear, with a lot of emotional scenes between characters. The writer shows us the inner feelings of each character, and there is some powerful dialogue. The characters are deep and complex with authentic relationships. Continue reading →

Book Review: SpaceKid iLK

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Spacekid iLK by Andrew Hammond
Spacekid iLK: Invasion 101 
by Andrew Hammond 

4 out of 5 stars

iLK is a normal alien boy, flying around with his parents in a spaceship and invading planets. But when iLK’s father conquers Earth, he gets tired of being the supreme ruler of such a boring planet, and gives the job to iLK to teach him some responsibility. Earth is soon in danger, and it’s up to iLK to save the planet with the help of some friendly Earthlings!

I thought this book was hilarious! The writing is so clever and silly, and the plot is really imaginative. I loved the world-building with the aliens, and their culture of invasion and world domination. I especially enjoyed the complex family dynamics between iLK and his parents.
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Comic Review: Sci-Fu

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Sci-Fu by Yehudi Mercado
Sci-Fu 
by Yehudi Mercado

4 out of 5 stars on GoodReads


Wax is determined to be the best DJ in the world, but when his mixes accidentally answer an interstellar challenge, he’ll have to be the best DJ in the universe to protect his family and friends from the robots of Discotopia, where he fights against the evil King using the ancient art of Sci-Fu, a martial art that uses sound waves as weapons.

I’m not much of a fan of rap music, but I am a musician, so I was more than intrigued about a comic that uses music to fight off alien robots! I loved all the rhyming and rhythm. I could almost hear the music in my head as I was reading the book!
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