SFF

It Takes Death To Reach a Star

Jones, Stu & . Vesuvian. May 2018. 324p. ISBN 9781944109523. pap. $17.99; ebk. available. SF
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The Third World War has come and gone. In the aftermath, everyone was so busy championing their religious ideology or acquiring wealth and resources that they failed to notice the small things. In the void arose the New Black Death, a disease that spread to every place on Earth except a gulag in Siberia. Survivors renamed this last inhabitable city Etyom, where two groups have emerged: the Robusts and the Graciles. Now through genetic modification, they live on several centuries later. One difference in this future world is a dimensional rift in which beings reside on the other side who can reach into the realm of humanity and manifest themselves as tormenting voices. Opening a portal to that sphere may potentially bring something worse than anything the world has yet known. With what remains of humanity caught in an internal elite-vs.-poor struggle, there is a need for some to rise above and care about something greater than themselves.
VERDICT There are lots of moving pieces in this interesting attempt at merging the best of apocalyptic fiction and sf from Jones ("Action of Purpose" trilogy) and Worthington (Children of the Fifth Sun). And fans of both genres may find it compelling.
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