✍️ Author Link: Christopher Paolini

🥰 Who Would Like It?

People who enjoy a slightly realistic science fiction story with space travel. This book faces questions about coming into contact with extraterrestrial life, discusses interesting political and social complexities of space expansionism, and shows off some futuristic technologies that honestly do not sound too crazy. Bottom line, if you like space travel and exploration, you will love this.

🔍 How I Discovered It

I loved the Inheritance Cycle books which started with Eragon (Brisingr was my favorite of the 4) and so since I saw Christopher Paolini releasing this new book in what seemed like years, I decided to give it a go. Has also been a while since I read something so big.

⚠️ Spoilers Below ⚠️

📦 Compressed Summary

Kira is our xenobiologist who is ending her latest mission when she accidentally comes in contact with an alien relic that ends up covering her entire body like an exoskeleton, and also sending a signal to Jelly-like aliens (Wranaui) who attack from deep space.
Kira barely survives the alien attack and once she makes it back to human-controlled space learns there is an all-out war between humans and Wranaui, with the humans losing to the Wranaui's superior tech. Then a third force called "The Maw" appears and starts to destroy both Wranaui and humans.
Turns out Kira actually spawned "The Maw" from her relic on accident. Handily, this third enemy force causes some Wranaui to seek an alliance with humans and results in Kira playing as an intermediary between the species.
Kira realized "The Soft Blade" is meant to be a source of life and becomes an over-powered being as she unlocks its powers and brings an end to "The Maw" while also securing peace between Wranaui and humans.

🧠 Thoughts

- What I Liked About It

The world-building in this book is very well done. I felt like I had a good understanding of the general dynamics taking place and so this helped in involving me in the story. My favorite part hands down are the interesting technologies involved in this future world where humanity has left Earth and has started exploring the world beyond. That and the idea of coming into contact with an alien species so different from us, but finding somewhat common ground and working towards inter-species relationships.

- What I Didn't Like About It

I sort of wish there was a bit more romance in it. I was not too interested in Alan and I wanted more intimacy between Falconi and Kira, for example maybe she could have woken him up during FLT to talk and that would have been interesting but I understand this was not the main story. What Kira went through in the ending was also a bit too much of a shift for me to follow because she's now some "god-like being" and I'm not too happy about this because it went way too sci-fi too quickly. The process was cool, what we learn from her and what she can do is also interesting but it was just too big a change for Kira in my opinion.

🤓 Memorable Quotes:

Eat the path, or the path will eat you. - Inare, pg. 276

Everyone messes up. How you deal with it determines who you are. - Nielsen, pg. 311

It makes you feel good to blame yourself...because it gives you a sense of control. The hardest lesson in life is learning to accept that there are some things we can’t change. - Falconi, pg. 486

When air, food, and shelter are assured, only two things matter. Work and companionship. To be alone and without purpose is to be the living dead. - Gregorovich, pg. 513