SFF

Beyond Kuiper: The Galactic Star Alliance

by Matthew Medney & John Connelly (text) & (text) & Utku Özden (illus.).
Heavy Metal. Nov. 2020. 330p. ed. by ed. by Stefan Petrucha. ISBN 9781947784192. pap. $24.99. SF
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Positioned as the first in a 10-novel series, this work by Medney (publisher Heavy Metal Magazine) and Connelly, an aerospace engineer for Lockheed Martin, serves primarily as an introduction to the characters and civilizations that will no doubt be fleshed out in the ensuing volumes. Readers meet Bernard William Herbert, who begins the search for alien life after a devastating explosion at CERN. Meanwhile, extraterrestrial civilizations have been working to ensure that humanity does not discover their existence.
VERDICT While there may be an audience for this, it is not a book that will have wide appeal. This novel caters to readers who enjoy hard sf in its most literal interpretation by including scientific theories and jargon that may not be accessible to average readers. The format and its reliance on footnotes to explain key elements is another drawback. But the chief issue is its complicated worldbuilding and thin plot, which all but ensures that only advanced readers of the genre may want this book.
Reviewed by Lydia Fletcher, Univ. of Texas at Austin , Nov 01, 2020
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