Review: Terminal Core

Terminal Core by Lynn Steigleder
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Terminal Core has been described in other reviews rather well, so I'll skip the story premise except to say that it is the most original I've read since "Stranger in a Strange Land" ages and eons ago. Unlike space westerns such as "Firefly" by Joss Whedon, this novel has beasties and alien species along with humans. This is a combo sci-fi, horror, and western. Intriguing combination, however the science is extremely light.

It is a very interesting read, but there are a few problems that I hope the author, Lynn Steigleder, takes to heart. The number of characters and their backstories are almost insurmountable to consume in one novel. This book would make a tremendous outline for a 3-book series where the characters are explored so the reader can learn to love (or hate) them. Character development is okay as it is, but trying to get to know them and care about what happens to them is almost impossible because there are so many of them. They are likable for the most part.

About the short chapters and jumping around in points of view (POV). The problem isn't necessarily head jumping for the POV, it is that there are zero transitions from one jump to the next. When an author tells a story from several POV, there should be a one-sentence to one paragraph transition that leads into (causes a question to rise in the reader's mind) the next character's POV. For a smooth story flow transitions are crucial unless the abrupt change is intentional to cause tension as part of the story flow. There is a lot of jumping around in this novel and it makes for a choppy sort of flow. Sometimes this works very well in this novel as the action starts to speed up. Other times it is frustrating.

However, if you don't really care about writing craft and just want to read an unusual sci-fi/horror/western, then this is good reading fare for you.

I received this novel from the author in exchange for my honest review. This review was published simultaneously here on Goodreads and on my review blog Upon Reflection: http//uponreflectionblog.blogspot.com

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