After fifty years of war, humans and the plant-like Esool have made peace. Both species have agreed to use the Lightrail, a relativistic miracle, to travel to distant worlds and explore the resources and wonders of the universe. But the peace is still new, and not everyone is onboard. Earth First is an organization dedicated to preserving the purity of humanity, and they are willing to go to extremes to do it. Including pulling humanity back from the distant colonies, and closing the door on space travel forever. And out among the stars, prejudice lives on. Class distinctions between hard-working Blue Collars, educated but often arrogant

White Collars, and the soft, wealthy, and entitled Colonists have created a mounting tension that may be a bigger threat than any alien species. It is against this backdrop that a colony of humans, reluctantly led by a single Esool captain, crash lands on a planet that holds far too many secrets. Survival may be impossible. Citadel: First Colony is book one of the Citadel Trilogy.

Oh, well, an interesting start and a promising premise. Hot dog.

And there went my weekend. 😉 At least I enjoyed it.

There was something so fascinating about this story and the cast of characters he put together. It started out with a bang (well, more of a crash) and kept up a very satisfying pace. Kevin didn’t skimp on the science without lapsing into physics-class mode. There was even a hint of steampunk in this one which was a really neat twist.

I loved the main characters, especially the Esool captain, with his unexpected abilities and the two who ended up being the main characters of the big reveal at the end. (No spoilers!) There was such a compelling vulnerability and mystery around them.

The author in me couldn’t help but notice–and comment on now–some weaknesses in the writing, but I got caught up enough in the story that I didn’t care. And when I came to consider them more in depth once the story was finished, I realized that it’s the sort of things that most readers won’t notice or care about thus I’m not going to enumerate them here. So there’s me being a bitch, I suppose, for even bringing it up. But that’s what you’d expect from me, right?

Thoroughly readable, enjoyable, and super-cool book. I recommend it highly. Read it. Today, preferably. There will be a quiz on it at the next 5MinuteFiction. 😉

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