Kyrathaba Rising

Kyrathaba Chronicles, Book 1

By: William Bryan Miller

Narrated by: Christine Padovan

Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

One hundred and seventy years from now, aliens decimate Earth. A relative handful of humans survive, hidden in deep subterranean enclaves that offer some protection from surface radiation. Although the main attack is now seven years in the past, one alien ship remains in orbit, and the conquerors are not content merely to let humanity lick its wounds...

©2013 William Bryan Miller (P)2014 William Bryan Miller

An Entertaining Blend of Scifi and Fantasy

Miller created a setting that should, by all accounts, be completely bleak and oppressive. Humanity's numbers are dwindling, there's an alien threat looming, and A-3, the small pocket of environment that the humans are sheltering in is becoming increasingly unstable.

Kyrathaba Rising is a hard book to summarize so readers will know what to expect. Be prepared for the story and setting to change drastically as chapters unfold, and if you think you know where the plot is going, you may find yourself surprised.

The characters are, for the most part, distinctive and likable and I'm looking forward to seeing how their stories turn out. I plan on continuing with this series and recommend to it anyone who enjoys both scifi and fantasy stories.

I'm a little wary to criticize Christine Padovan's reading performance, because I could never do what she does. She does multiple voices just fine, and I think her voice is professional and clear. However, she tends to draw out the ending of all of her sentences in an odd and incredibly distracting way, like she was reading sing-songish poetry. I saw a couple other readers/listeners complain about this and their reviews were mercilessly voted as unhelpful, but I feel like their complaints were valid. Putting the setting at 1.5x speed did seem to help a little, but I feel like it took away from the listening experience overall.

--I received a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.--

Original story

I really found Kyrathaba Rising an original story with some interesting concepts. On the one hand it is a scifi with an alien invasion, androids and lots of tech talk. On the other hand its a dystopia because earth has been destroyed and the remaining humans are trying to survive. But... there is also a fantasy element where some characters find themselves immersed in a World of Warcraft type game.

Unfortunately, the narration let the story down. The narrator tended to draw the last word of a sentence out to the point where it was such an annoyance I had to increase the speed to 1.5 so it wasn't quite as noticeable. This reduced my enjoyment of the book as it is quite dense with a lot of different plot lines happening at once and the higher speed meant it was difficult to follow. My recommendation is to try the sample before purchase to make sure the narration doesn't bother you. If it does bother you, consider buying it in print because it is a good story.

Great sci-fi writing for a debut novel

I don't normally write reviews but wanted to say this was a refreshing change, seeing a newbie author with a great story and concept, coupled with excellent narration throughout. I enjoyed Ms. Padovan's tone of voice - it made the story very enjoyable to listen to.

Looking forward to more from the author - looks like there will be a continuation of this series. If you like stories about aliens, and human survival (with a twist), you'll enjoy Kyrathaba Rising.

Very well written and crafted.

Usually attempts at fantasy and sci fi mixed don't mesh well. This book manages a very difficult task and intention, while also entertaining. Well worth the listen.

Sci-fi story with a small slash of fantasy.

Where does Kyrathaba Rising rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is one of the best stories I've read. If you are are a sci-fi fan and enjoy a little fantasy this is the book to read.

What did you like best about this story?

I was surprised by all of it. Mostly, I was impressed with the writing. This was edited well. I really enjoyed the parts that they Tolkien parts.

What does Christine Padovan bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

This was the first time listening to Charistine Padovan. She did well with the story.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

For some reason I was reminded of Anathem by Neal Stephenson. I'm not sure why but I felt a connection with this story and Anathem. Perhaps its the style.

Any additional comments?

This book really blew me away. One of the best sci-fi books I've read for the year.

Cool story - great character action

Honestly, you can't judge this particular audiobook by the sample. The main character, Sethra is doing a monologue into his implant as part of his diary - basically giving us the setting for why these humans are where they are today. So Sethra is asking questions to himself (reason for the narrator's 'up' tones here) for almost a full 4 minutes, then reverts to regular conversing. And Sethra is a geek, so he isn't going to speak like a Toast Masters speaker. (Think Sheldon or Leonard from Big Bang Theory).

I found there was some 'echo' in the prologue during Sethra's monologue, but once chapter 1 started, that went away, so it seems to me a couple of reviewers were only writing their reviews based on listening to the audio sample, thinking the narrator is elongating the last word in a sentence when hearing the echo and that she is speaking only in up tones, then reading Amazon reviews to get the gist of what the book was - then writing a review.

If you listen to the whole book (it IS very technical, so be prepared to listen closely), it's a pretty entertaining collection of characters. The narrator states the 'star' date and time in the beginning of almost every chapter like a Captain's Log from Star Trek - but that's how the author wrote it - I guess Mr. Miller wants to give us a sense of how much time is passing between each event and subplot. That sometimes seems a bit much because sometimes only hours have passed. But if you listen to this audiobook with stereo headphones, you can hear the warm, subtle shading in the narrator's tones as she mentions dates and times - it isn't monotone. Character voices were distinct and fun.

And there are several android characters in this story - I expected the narrator to sound like Data did in Star Trek: The Next Generation to voice them and she did. I actually think Ms. Padovan's narration for this particular story made it even better than how it is written.

The author tends to overdo having his characters explain their actions in the beginning, as if he is very intent to make sure we understand what is going on, but once it's rolling past the first couple of explanation chapters, you are very much intrigued and drawn into the world of Kyrathaba Rising. The humor is there from the beginning and helps keep it from ever being boring.

I enjoyed the written version and very much enjoyed this audio version. Highly recommended for sci-fi buffs :-)

YA fiction

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

It was over before it began. No time commitment at all

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

I was interested in the subterranean survival and how the androids gained sentience. The fantasy portion felt entirely too corny.

How could the performance have been better?

The narrator was in character, but I couldn't suffer it. Most annoying voice EVER

Did Kyrathaba Rising inspire you to do anything?

Not download any more short books

Any additional comments?

It was too fast-paced. More explanation and character development would have gone a long way. It was a fun premise, but the execution was more young-adult than I had hoped for.

Bad aliens vs. rad poisoning

Where does Kyrathaba Rising rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I've listened to a lot, perhaps 300+ audiobooks. I will put this in the top 200.

What other book might you compare Kyrathaba Rising to and why?

This is a thinky-thinky question and I am posting this while I am tired. I have read a few other stories that involve a virtual reality, and I have read some books that mix SF and Fantasy. Then there are a few stories that involve mind-controling aliens with tentacles. So, I would compare this book to those.

What three words best describe Christine Padovan’s performance?

distinct, geek accent

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Almost. It is a little long for that. I was OK with breaks.

Any additional comments?

Kyrathaba is the name of a virtual reality world. Set in the future by nearly 200 years, humans exist in only subterranean remnants. The Earth suffered a devastating attack from aliens and what few humans are slowly dying out due to radiation poisoning. Sethra, a member of compound A-3, has found a way to enter Kyrathaba, and perhaps stay there indefinitely. Things look grim and Sethra, along with a few close friends, seriously contemplate the possibility that humanity as we know it may not be able to continue in their current form.

The story starts off with Sethra and Byron sharing a morning beverage of U Tea. Since they live in these completely enclosed underground capsules, everything, including their urine, is recycled. I am sure you can figure out what goes into the U Tea. Of course, I was enjoying my own morning cup of tea when I listened to this part of the book. And yes, I stared at my tea suspiciously.

So you can see that I was sucked into the straight-faced humor of the book right away. I enjoyed learning about the characters first, letting their current world unfold around me as Sethra and his friends went through their daily routine. Radiation poisoning is killing them off bit by bit. Even though they continue to reproduce as quickly as they can, attrition may well win out; humans are facing the very real possibility of becoming extinct. Compound A-3 has a regular security force who have a regular schedule. Their food is bland. The medical staff and care is the best they can maintain under such circumstances. And there are robots, which is the cool part in all this gloom.

While Sethra looks deeper into the possibility of long-term virtual reality habitation, Earth has a bigger issue. There’s an alien ship in orbit and it’s sole purpose is to monitor the remaining humans. I don’t think humanity could stand up to a second alien invasion. Meanwhile, the geoscientists explore drilling further into the Earth to escape the radiation and expand their living quarters. They discover an underground cavern with a clean water source. In exploring the depth and width of the water source, they make a very surprising discovery. I think this was the secondary plot line I enjoyed the most and want to learn more about. So many questions!

Kyrathaba itself is a Dungeons and Dragons kind of world; there’s magic, Orcs, plenty of sharp weapons, and paragon points to be earned. This magical world complimented, rather than contradicting, the science fiction tone of the larger story. I don’t always enjoy scifi and fantasy melding, but in this case it was done very well. The story had a good mix of characters, both male and female characters having crucial roles to the plot. Plus we had a range of ethnicity and ages. Definite plus!

My one criticism lies in the use of radiation poisoning to be the initial driver of the plot. I did radiological work for several years, dressing in yellow Tyvek, full-face respirator, nasal swabs, etc. To make it very simple, you either have a radiation source emitting radiation or you have radioactive particles that you have ingested or inhaled. For the first, you put shielding between you and it and you should be good. Shielding can be lead, several meters of earth, etc. And compound A-3 had all that in place between it and the surface of the contaminated Earth. The story didn’t really mention the possibility of the population all repeatedly inhaling, imbibing, or ingesting radioactive particles. Basic HEPA filters would take care of this problem and would be the first solution for signs of radiation poisoning. Also, with enough radiation to be causing prolonged radiation sickness over generations, then we would see the electronics failing left, right, and center. Electronics do not hold up well in the glow of radiation. At the best, they get buggy and stay that way. In this tale, we have a lot of cool tech and all of it was working just fine, showing no signs of electronic wear due to prolonged exposure to radiation.

But if I wasn’t such a know it all, the radiation threat would probably work just fine. Over all, I enjoyed the tale and the multiple plot lines. I really want to know what is in that big cavern pool of water! I want to know what happens to Sethra and his friends in the virtual world of Kyrathaba. There are enemies every where it seems, human, alien, and potentially something else. Indeed, there is plenty of worth in this book to propel the reader into the next installment.

The Narration: Padovan did a decent job of narrating. Her characters were each distinct. In fact, she did most of the book with a geek accent which was well suited to many of the characters as they were half raised by their computer implants. Her male voices could use a bit more masculinity, but that is my only negative comment.

An interesting mix of Fantasy and Sci/fi.

This book is a hybrid, it that it tells a sci fi story but also has fantasy elements, due to some actions by some of the characters. Earth has been invaded and humanity's survivors live deep underground in vaults, trying to hold on. The aliens are trying to infiltrate and finish them off. Some of the survivors decide to try and merge with a computer network game in a closed loop they set up to give up their bodies and become the ghosts in the machine, so to speak, living their lives in an RPG game setting. Menawhile, the other survivors try to dig in and survive. With an alien menace and natural attrition taking place, will humanity survive? Read it to find out.
The main characters are engaging, with realistic reasons for their actions, and are pretty well fleshed out. Some of the supporting characters are a little 1 dimensional, but not so bad as to drag the story down. The action scenes are well done, keeping you on the edge of your seat, and the whole struggle and how they survive is well drawn out. With both fantasy and sci fi elements, this stor should appeal to a wide range of readers.
Christine Padovan's narration is good as always, bringing life to the characters, and moving the story along nicely.All in all, a book worth listening to, and a story worth following further.

I was given this book at no cost in by the narrator in return for an honest review through Audiobookblast dot com.

Even after aliens destroy the world, WoW is played

Late 22nd century the world has been destroyed by aliens. Humans have retreated underground to live in caves and bunkers, hiding from the remaining aliens and the radioactive fallout of the war.

The protagonists in the story find out that the aliens actually have spies amongst the survives, appearing to look human. They get into a fight with the alien spy, which alerts the human government to the hidden aliens, kicking off part of the story. The rest of the story follows the group of protagonists as they retreat into a virtual reality world. This virtual reality world is the Kyrathaba of the books title, as is an advance World of Warcraft type game where you buy swods and armour and live as a knight. Oh, but the safety elements haven't been programmed yet, so if you die in the game you die for real.

So the book gets to have its humans vs aliens (and robots are there too) story, while also having a swords and broads fantasy story. It's like the author couldn't choose which type of story he wanted to decided "why not both?". This would be fine, except neither part really reaches what it is aiming for. The story is enjoyable enough but it just doesn't reach the heights I think it wanted to.

The book opens with a 1st person info dump. "I am Bob. I am 22. I am x feet tall, with blue eyes and brown hair. Today is [insert date]." It is really clunky and not a great start. Thankfully it become apparent very quickly that this is a diary type entry by one of the characters, and the book soon moves to a 3rd person perspective. This is better, although Miller still relies on putting in information or wording that isn’t required, doesn’t make sense or is just clunky. Often (I think) in an attempt to make the world feel more real. The most glaring ones that jumped out at me were where it was from the alien's perspective and there are statements like "the ship moved over the continent known as North America". Get rid of the 'know as'. Another was something like "the planet is 70% hydrogen di-oxide*, which the humans call 'water'." Aren't hydrogen and oxide also human names/words? If we are clarifying that humans call it water wouldn’t we also clarify humans call it hydrogen di-oxide, because the aliens actually call it "gorblesnark" or something.

*I'm 75% sure it said hydrogen oxide, not di-oxide but forgot to go back and check. If it did say that, then that would be wrong.

And then the narration. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more with a different narrator. Hard to know. What I do know is that I didn’t enjoy this narrator, for several reasons. The one that jumps out at me most is the accent of the reader. I think it is an accent issue. Either way, the end of most sentences is elongated, particularly when there is an R noise there. The issues is called “vocal fry” I believe. The last syllable is elongated or raised in pitch. It made every character sound like a Valley girl, a California surfer dude or possibly Zapp Branigann of Futurama. It really made it difficult to listen to.

Added to this Padovan didn’t really differentiate any character voices at all. They sounded the same. And finally, other than a few locations, she didn’t really put in any emotion or inflection to the reading. It felt flat for most of it. In fact, the vocal fry issue actually caused the inflection on some things to be completely wrong. It gave an exhaust “I can’t believe this” feel to things that should have had excitement, or sarcasm or urgency or anger or anything other than the “ugh, really?” inflection.

Overall, it was just difficult work to listen to it.