Meru (The Alloy Era Book 1 of 2) --by S. B. Divya

 Publisher: 47North

February 1, 2023

Paperback: 447 pages

ISBN-10: 1662505094

ISBN-13: 978-1662505096

English

cost at time of review: $14.44 ($4.99 Kindle)

5 Stars

 

I used to read a lot of hard science fiction but moved over to fantasy. This book has brought me back to the fold, so to speak. I was delighted to find it is not an adrenalin gusher, but certainly fits the page burner category in my book. The story is set 500 years or so in the future, during which time humans have been confined to Earth by their descendants, the Alloys, because of the human capacity to ruin a planet.

 

Jayanthi is the adopted human daughter of two alloys, who has sickle cell disease, and a fantastic education.  The alloys take care of the humans, there is no need for them go into space. They could not be allowed to pollute another planet, as they did to Earth and Mars. And until Jayanthi, humans weren’t too interested in going out there.

 

Once she learns of a planet, Meru, with more oxygen than is safe for most humans, but might be just perfect for her. Through a series of events, she will get to go there for a year, and if she does not pollute it, or get sick, she might get to stay. She will at least know, and perhaps open the door for other humans.

 

Her pilot-ship, named Vaha, and she develop a close relationship. And when Vaha disappears, Jaya shows initiative, and brain power no one knew she had. There are many unexpected twists and turn in this story, and not a dull moment to be had. By the time I was about 2/5ths of the way through it, I pre-ordered the sequel coming out next year sometime.

 

This is an epic space opera of fantastical dimensions. It reminds me of why I turned to science fiction so many years ago, it was hopeful. And why I gave up on it later, when so much became dystopian.

 

I heartily recommend this book! I read fiction for one purpose only—to escape my reality. I do not want downer fiction, I’m too much of a news junky. This book is my idea of a perfect escape. Thank you, S. B. Divya!

The Geography of Absence --poetry by Gayle Lauradunn

 Publisher: Mercury HeartLink

August 27, 2022

Paperback: 108 pages

ISBN-10: ‎ 1949652211

ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1949652215

English

Cost at time of review: $17.00

5 Stars

 

The poem from which the title is taken is Again, the Sahara which closes with this line, “…Alone we stand / under a sea of stars shielding a golden / geography of absence.” My copy is inscribed by the author with the notation, “Not all the absences have to be filled.” I share that inscription because it is true—the absence of sound does not need to be filled with talk or music; it can be enjoyed for what it is. Fortunately for us, Ms. Lauradunn filled many spaces absent of ink, with ink in the shape of letters and words and poetry to read, think about, and savor. 

 

The poems are in four sections, “before the ebb of the sea, if we could count the years backward, without the fall I will not know the sweetness,” and “woman seeks her shape” this last section is one poem of fourteen numbered poems. The first poem in the book, A New Key, starts the reader on a journey of life. “One stroke of the key / expands the cheat / into loss / Another stroke eases / the pain into anger.”

 

We journey through alpine forests to the Sahara, to anyplace in between she takes us. Mostly, I travel into myself. I related to just about every poem in this book, Miscarriage to The Missing, from Crossed Paths with the leading line, “Seahorses sing in a silent wail” to the last poem, Duncan Canal, Alaska a single poem written in fourteen parts. “…we step / with care but the muskeg / sucks us into colorful / “ and “in this secret / forest     death breathes // “ to the last poem, number XIV with the near closing lines of, “I bend   to my reflection / and rise with bear / “

 

Lost love, lost children, lost life are all in this collection. Some absences may be filled, many are there to savor, to love, to hold onto, and respect as absences. And yet, those absences are not holes, and Lauradunn fills those absences with beauty and light.

 

A wonderful book, one to read and contemplate, to chew and savor as a rare meal of perfectly spiced foods, as often as wanted.

Other reviews of this author: 

All the Wild and Holy: A Life of Eunice Williams 1696-1785 --by Gayle Lauradunn