In December 2019, on Yule (that’s December 21 for you non-pagany folks) I gave a gift to myself. I posted on Social Media the following image.
From the responses on Twitter and Instagram, I have a list of books I’m buying, reading, and reviewing.
Now a quick note about our current situation. COVID-19 has thrown my life into a bit of a tailspin, like everybody else. So, as I adapt to a new norm, a new routine, I’ve found working from home a bit of an adjustment. With that said, I am behind in my reading and my reviews. Forgive me. Hopefully, I can catch up. But I know you all understand. I trust everyone out there is staying healthy, happy, and safe. It’s not easy, and if anyone needs a chat or a “Hi! How are you?” Let me know, happy to help out where I can. In the meantime, books can be a delightful way to pass the time, and escape from all the nonsense happening in the world right now.
Here’s April’s entry:
Title: Empire of Light
Series: Voyance Book 1
Author: Alex Harrow
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: February 25, 2019
Heat Level: 3/5 – Some sexy fun times.
Pairing: M/M
Length: 350 pages
Genre: Sci-Fi, Dystopian, Gay, Pansexual
Warnings: graphic violence (including shootings, beatings, tasing, mild gore, depictions of a hanging, and execution by burning), explicit sexual content (including mentions of sex work, a sexual relationship that begins in a negotiated contract for sexual services, and on- and off-page descriptions of explicit sexual situations involving bondage, control, mild pain play, and Dominant/submissive dynamics), trauma (including an allusion to past physical and sexual abuse, and a depiction of a panic attack), deaths of supporting characters (including a young teen, mentions, and depiction of assisted suicide, and one queer character who is a person of color), as well as substance abuse (alcohol, smoking, drugs, and a mention of an overdose)
Synopsis:
Damian Nettoyer is the Empire’s go-to gun. He kills whoever they want him to kill. In exchange, he and his rag-tag gang of crooks get to live, and Damian’s psychokinetic partner and lover, Aris, isn’t issued a one-way ticket to an Empire-sanctioned lobotomy.
Then Damian’s latest mark, a suave revolutionary named Raeyn, kicks his ass and demands his help. The first item on the new agenda: take out Damian’s old boss—or Raeyn will take out Damian’s crew.
To protect his friends and save his own skin, Damian teams up with Raeyn to make his revolution work. As Aris slips away from Damian and his control over his powers crumbles, the Watch catches on. Damian gets way too close to Raeyn, torn between the need to shoot him one minute and kiss him the next.
With the Empire, Damian had two policies: shoot first and don’t ask questions. But to save the guy he loves, he’ll set the world on fire.
My Review:
Every now and again you come across a book where you swear the author set about creating a list of words, a vernacular guide for their novel. It’s almost as if each word used within the story was carefully selected to fit the feel and style of the world being created in the book. This is how I felt reading Harrow’s Empire of Light.
Damian is our main character and a perfect example of a diamond in the rough. He’s a gun for hire, an outlaw, and madly in love with Aris – a relationship that constantly gets him into more trouble than seemingly it’s worth – but then, love conquers all, right?
There are twists and turns, political intrigue, gunfights, violence of all sorts, explosions, betrayals, deaths galore, all taking place in a broken down section of society that is described perfectly as nowhere you’d ever want to be. Harrow’s world-building skills are to be commended. The scenes in my head as I read the book were picture perfect and I have no doubt this would make a most entertaining visual should it ever be made into a Netflix original.
And then we have The Voyance. Throughout the story, we are treated to small snippets of wondrous, out-of-control magic (psionic abilities?), that seem random and unfocused until we progress through the book and find that those trained can tap into their abilities and accomplish great feats. Harrow has been clever with this element of magic. There’s always a danger that magic can solve all problems. In Empire of Light, the Voyance is to be feared as a dangerous disease. Those who have it are hunted and exterminated, or ‘cleansed’ leaving the individual a former shell of themselves (think lobotomy). Having the ability is also a death sentence, as the magic burns through your body, using it up. However, Harrow never really tells us where this ability arose from, or the history of it. We don’t really have a full understanding of its limitations or its strengths. Normally that’s a thorn that will stick in my side and drive me wild, but in this tale, it works. There’s a yearning now to know more.
Empire of Light is an extraordinary dystopian story. It is gritty and raw, and from the list of trigger warnings listed above, definitely not for the faint of heart. But if broken-down sci-fi set in a political nightmare, focusing on the most marginalized community, and seeing heroes arise is your jam, then get the peanut butter and bread, because this is one hell of a tasty sandwich.
Rating:
Purchase Links:
NineStar Press | Amazon| Kobo| Barnes & Noble
Meet the Author:
Alex Harrow is a genderqueer, pansexual, and demisexual author of queer science fiction and fantasy. Alex’s pronouns are they/them.
When not writing diversity with a chance of explosions, Alex is a high school English teacher, waging epic battles against comma splices, misused apostrophes, and anyone under the delusion that the singular ‘they’ is grammatically incorrect.
A German immigrant, Alex has always been drawn to language and stories. They began to write when they realized that the best guarantee to see more books with queer characters was to create them. Alex cares deeply about social justice and wants to see diverse characters, including LGBTQ+ protagonists, in more than the stereotypical coming out story.
Alex currently lives in Salt Lake City, Utah with their equally geeky wife, outnumbered by three adorable feline overlords, and what could not possibly be too many books.
Pronouns: They/Them
J.P. Jackson 