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nikkijazzie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
f18's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Interesting worldbuilding kept me reading but the characters felt like they had the potential to be incredibly compelling and yet never quite hit the mark. The end was very underwhelming.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Violence, and Gun violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, and War
Minor: Suicide and Gore
Regarding the main character's amputation:zandreadragmire's review
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
lleullawgyffes's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
jrt5166's review
4.0
There were parts that dragged, but overall, it was an intriguing beginning. I liked the far future society of Caribbean refugees on a planet far from Earth who had lived on this new planet so long that the idea of anything before was barely more than mythology. Mistaking aliens for gods is also a fun trope, even if I wanted to understand these aliens a bit better. Perhaps that's for the sequels.
bozimus's review
Started 10/21/2012....stopped reading 3/28/2013. Toooooooo slooooooooow
wealhtheow's review
3.0
The Azteca have finally found a way across the Wicked High Mountains and are descending upon Capital City, slaughtering all the Nanagadans that get in their way. The young mayor of Capital City has plans, but all they will do is delay the Azteca. The Nanagandans' only hope is that the explorer John deBrun can find a mythical artifact from long ago, the Ma Wi Jung. Helping John is the bioengineered (to be AWESOME) Pepper, while an Azteca spy skulks undetected in hopes of hindering their quest.
The writing is simple and clunky, and I had a hard time with the Caribbean style dialog. (ex: "Only one airship now. But just you wait. Soon it go be another. And when they see where we is, they go build a boat to come for we.") That said, I adore Pepper, who is fearsome and gruesome and unstoppable, and this book delivers some great moments from him as well as a hint at who he was before. Best of all is the world-building. A colony that loses its tech over time and comes to revere its technologically advanced forefathers as gods is nothing new, but the alien spins Buckell adds to the story are scary and fascinating.
The writing is simple and clunky, and I had a hard time with the Caribbean style dialog. (ex: "Only one airship now. But just you wait. Soon it go be another. And when they see where we is, they go build a boat to come for we.") That said, I adore Pepper, who is fearsome and gruesome and unstoppable, and this book delivers some great moments from him as well as a hint at who he was before. Best of all is the world-building. A colony that loses its tech over time and comes to revere its technologically advanced forefathers as gods is nothing new, but the alien spins Buckell adds to the story are scary and fascinating.
peterseanesq's review
5.0
Please give my review a helpful vote - https://www.amazon.com/review/R17N3H8H4IVLND/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm
Pepper has been looking to get off of the collapsed human colony world he has been stranded on for a long time. All that stands in his way is an invasion by a revived Aztec empire led by their horrific, blood-seeking gods. Fortunately, Pepper is uniquely qualified to deal with such inconveniences.
I listened to this book as an audiobook and it blew me away. I have been reading science fiction for fifty years. This book brought me back to the science fiction I read in my youth with captivating cultures and strange worlds. The author Tobias Buckell has put together the oddest cultural mash-up imaginable. The colony world seems to have one large habitable continent. The portion north of the "Wicked Highs" is Nanagada. Nanagada is under the control of a culture derived from the islands of the West Indies. This gives a lot of characters a colorful Jamaican accent. Nanagada seems to be a nice place with a lot of diversity and people who enjoy fishing and farming and a reasonable level of technological development.
South of the Wicked Highs, however, is Azteca, where the ancient culture of the Aztecs, with its Flower Wars and human sacrifice, has been reinstituted by "gods" known as the Teotl. The Teotl are aliens who want to conquer Nanagada and kill their ancient enemy in Nanagada, known as the Loa.
The story rips forward from the beginning of the Azteca invasion of Nanagada. We are introduced to John de Brun and his family on the eve of the invasion. The family is separated from each other by the invasion. There are near escapes abounding as John makes his way to Capitol City. In Capitol City, we meet Edward Haidan, who is the chief of the "Mongoose Men," Nanagada's bush-based military, and Dihana, who is the mayor of Capital City. The duty to defend the last vestige of decent civilization falls to these two. Into the mix we meet the mysterious Pepper, who is simply the most dangerous man in any world.
We gradually come to learn that Nagada is a devolved colony world. There was a war between humans, Teotl and Loa a long time ago. There is technology up for grabs that may determine the outcome of the Azteca invasion, and, maybe, the fate of human civilization beyond Nangada.
From start to finish, the book moves along with energy and excitement, revealing just enough to keep the reader tantalized by what is left unrevealed.
Buckel has done a good job of thinking out things like wormholes and nanotechnology. This is a refreshing bit of Golden Age writing with Jamaican spice. As a lifetime science fiction reader, I recommend this book.
Pepper has been looking to get off of the collapsed human colony world he has been stranded on for a long time. All that stands in his way is an invasion by a revived Aztec empire led by their horrific, blood-seeking gods. Fortunately, Pepper is uniquely qualified to deal with such inconveniences.
I listened to this book as an audiobook and it blew me away. I have been reading science fiction for fifty years. This book brought me back to the science fiction I read in my youth with captivating cultures and strange worlds. The author Tobias Buckell has put together the oddest cultural mash-up imaginable. The colony world seems to have one large habitable continent. The portion north of the "Wicked Highs" is Nanagada. Nanagada is under the control of a culture derived from the islands of the West Indies. This gives a lot of characters a colorful Jamaican accent. Nanagada seems to be a nice place with a lot of diversity and people who enjoy fishing and farming and a reasonable level of technological development.
South of the Wicked Highs, however, is Azteca, where the ancient culture of the Aztecs, with its Flower Wars and human sacrifice, has been reinstituted by "gods" known as the Teotl. The Teotl are aliens who want to conquer Nanagada and kill their ancient enemy in Nanagada, known as the Loa.
The story rips forward from the beginning of the Azteca invasion of Nanagada. We are introduced to John de Brun and his family on the eve of the invasion. The family is separated from each other by the invasion. There are near escapes abounding as John makes his way to Capitol City. In Capitol City, we meet Edward Haidan, who is the chief of the "Mongoose Men," Nanagada's bush-based military, and Dihana, who is the mayor of Capital City. The duty to defend the last vestige of decent civilization falls to these two. Into the mix we meet the mysterious Pepper, who is simply the most dangerous man in any world.
We gradually come to learn that Nagada is a devolved colony world. There was a war between humans, Teotl and Loa a long time ago. There is technology up for grabs that may determine the outcome of the Azteca invasion, and, maybe, the fate of human civilization beyond Nangada.
From start to finish, the book moves along with energy and excitement, revealing just enough to keep the reader tantalized by what is left unrevealed.
Buckel has done a good job of thinking out things like wormholes and nanotechnology. This is a refreshing bit of Golden Age writing with Jamaican spice. As a lifetime science fiction reader, I recommend this book.
agntsmyth's review
4.0
The presentation two warring civilizations based on the Caribean and the Aztecs was captivating. Buckell's world was totally believable and terribly exciting.