Review: Thrilling saga of survival on a hostile planet
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 27, 2014
Downloaded this for free, not expecting much.  Boy, was I surprised to find myself totally engaged in this fascinating world within the first few pages.  This is a wonderful, fast-paced adventure story about a small remnant of humans from Earth who escape from their dying home planet and seek refuge on Eden, an earth-like planet a galaxy away, only to find themselves in a place of constant terror and danger, their numbers being whittled away in the harshness of their new life. Add to the mix a power struggle within their own ranks brought on by a sinister group of misfits, some terrifying animal predators, and a mysterious, superior race set on the humans' total annihilation, and you have an amazingly addictive page-turner. The main character, seventeen-year old Ristan, is simply wonderful. His morality, selflessness, boyish self-doubts, courage, and ingenuity are qualities that really brought the suspense up several notches, because I was in a dither to get him through it all in one piece. Couldn't put it down. Lost sleep. This is a lovely morality tale and coming of age book wrapped up in a sci-fi/fantasy package. One suggestion for the author: Take out the Notes in the back of the book. They didn't add anything, lacked context, and diminished the power of the epilogue.