The Galapagos Incident

A Space Colonization Thriller (The Solarian War Saga Book 1)

By: Felix R. Savage

Narrated by: Ryan Kennard Burke

Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Asteroid squatters. A genocidal enemy. Saving lives has just been added to her job description....

Evicting people from their homes is a crappy job, but Elfrida Goto knows that somebody has to do it. If she can't evict the squatters from asteroid 11073 Galapagos, it'll further delay a project she cares deeply about: terraforming Venus. Unfortunately, Elfrida's remote telepresence robot isn't cooperating, and neither are the asteroid's inhabitants. When an enemy fleet attacks her home base and heads straight for Galapagos, her mission changes in a hurry.

Teaming up with a wannabe Star Force pilot, Elfrida hits on a plan to save the squatters. If she survives long enough to put it into practice, she'll go up against the most dangerous enemy humanity has ever known....

The Galapagos Incident is the first installment in The Solarian War Saga, a series of suspenseful space operas with a strong comedic edge. If you like fast-paced space thrillers, geeky references, and books that keep you thinking, then you'll love Felix R. Savage's extraordinary look into our interplanetary future.

©2014, 2015 Felix R. Savage (P)2016 Felix R. Savage

awesome!

I have already read this series in ebook format, so my listening again in audio should be an indication of how very much I love this author! Elfrida is my favorite scifi character, ever! The narrator did a fine job, especially with pronouncing the Japanese (Galapagan?) words. I have recommended this series to friends and family, and will continue to do so.

complex and requires patience

Two and half centuries in the future, mankind has colonized a fair portion of the solar system. Most of the settlements are in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. These large and small planetoids contain the raw materials necessary to make building possible. The UN, now the largest governing body of humanity, is advancing its most ambitious project to date, terraforming Venus. Unfortunately, for the tiny colonies on certain asteroids, it means flinging their homes into Venus to cool and oxygenate the atmosphere. It is Alfrida’s job to relocate them to Ceres.

Mars was the first and most obvious choice for terraforming, but had to be abandoned when it was taken over by hostile artificial intelligence. 11073 Galapagos is an asteroid whose worth is now too great to leave the 30,000 Japanese refugees in place. Their 80 year-old world will be stripped for its valuable minerals and then flung into Venus. The inhabitants don’t want to leave and Alfrida must convince them or watch them all die.

The Galapagos Incident is far too complex to describe in a reasonable way in a summary. The general theme is political correctness, religion and corporate greed run amok. The listener is asked to be patient as the groundwork is laid for this and future sequels. There is a lot going on that is unclear: possible alien attacks, malicious artificial intelligence, terrorist cells and subversive factions. There is a fair amount of humor, some of it subtle, starships named after famous 20th Century rock bands and spoken emojis. It is complicated and sometimes confusing. Those interested in space opera will be familiar with this world building.

Felix Savage performs the novel. His voice is pleasant and works well for the many female characters. He has great skill in pronouncing the many Japanese words and names. There is a subtle humor to his voice as he pronounces the blatant sarcasm of the giant recycling company: Carbage LLC and its spaceship, The Carbage Can. It is a good performance, but may not be for everyone; listen to the sample to be sure it is right for you.

The Galapagos Incident is complex and requires patience. You will either love it, and want to continue on to the sequels, or give up in mid-volume. Space opera is a personal taste, as the author is building an entire societal construct very different from our present. That takes effort and may not be for everyone. It is probably unfair to judge the book on its own; as it is clearly part of something much larger. There are many good and unique characters in a complex plot.

Audiobook was provided for review by the narrator.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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