Review: Well-plotted tale in a well-imagined sci-fi world
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 29, 2012
First in the Breathless novelette series, Suffocate does a wonderfully intriguing job of creating a future world, peopling it with characters, and seeding it with questions. The story has a pleasing completeness, like a single episode of a long-running TV series, which bodes well for further novelettes.Eria's father is about to be the first person in centuries to leave the Biome and walk in the hotly poisoned air outside. He's tested and retested his suit, and everyone's gathered to watch the spectacle. The story's told through Eria's eyes in a very convincing young teen voice. Hints of what's to come are scattered gently between her thoughts, coming together very naturally as the story progresses. Tragedy and conspiracy loom in this fast-moving sci-fi action adventure with surprises at every turn. The world-building is convincing. Explanations are kept to a well-timed minimum. And the reader is quickly invested in Eria's family, hopes and dreams.I hope there'll be more. I hope there'll be more soon. This looks like a really fun series.Disclosure: I received a free ecopy of this novelette from the author in exchange for my honest review.