Review: The inspiration was obvious
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 12 6, 2012
Other reviewers have called this book a version of "Harry Potter in Space", and I have to admit that the comparision is very apt.  The main character here (Alexander Gravenstein) is a bit older than Harry was in the first book, but the secret trip to a special school for "gifted" children is a very similar start, and the way the classes works seems hauntingly familiar.The truth is that the more you read of the tale, the more it seems like this story is an attempt to create a new Harry Potter, but in a sci-fi universe with spaceship and lasers rather than broomsticks and wands.  Even the roles some of the secondary characters play can be compared to characters from the Harry Potter series.That soes not make this a good book, but it also means that the writer really needs to put together a dynamic and imaginative plot if they don't want people to find this story disappointing.  There were several aspects of the story which were new and different, but not many.  Overall, this story ended up feeling like a pale imitation of a story that I found a bit weak to begin with.  (I'm not a huge fan of the Harry Potter series.)I should note that the writing needs a lot of proofreading.  It looks like someone used a spell-checker on the story, but there are multiple incidents where an incorrect word ends up.  Usually you can switch/remove/add one letter and figure out what the writer meant to say, but it would have been much better if these mistakes had been removed before publication.