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Sliding Void #1
Sliding Void
Captain Lana Fiveworlds has a hell of a lot of problems.
She's sliding void in an ageing seven-hundred-year-old space ship, scrabbling around the edges of civilised space trying to find a cargo lucrative enough to pay her bills without proving so risky that it'll kill her. She's got an alien religious freak for a navigator, an untrustworthy android for a first mate, a disgraced lizard for a trade negotiator and a deserter from the fleet acting as her chief engineer.
And that was well before an ex-crewman turns up wanting Lana to rescue a barbarian prince from a long-failed colony world. An alien romance? Well, they never work out.
Unfortunately, for Lana, the problems she doesn't know about are even more dangerous. In fact, they just might be enough to destroy Lana's rickety but much-loved vessel, the Gravity Rose, and jettison her and her crew into the void without a spacesuit.
But there's one thing you can never tell an independent space trader. That's the odds...
She's sliding void in an ageing seven-hundred-year-old space ship, scrabbling around the edges of civilised space trying to find a cargo lucrative enough to pay her bills without proving so risky that it'll kill her. She's got an alien religious freak for a navigator, an untrustworthy android for a first mate, a disgraced lizard for a trade negotiator and a deserter from the fleet acting as her chief engineer.
And that was well before an ex-crewman turns up wanting Lana to rescue a barbarian prince from a long-failed colony world. An alien romance? Well, they never work out.
Unfortunately, for Lana, the problems she doesn't know about are even more dangerous. In fact, they just might be enough to destroy Lana's rickety but much-loved vessel, the Gravity Rose, and jettison her and her crew into the void without a spacesuit.
But there's one thing you can never tell an independent space trader. That's the odds...
96 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 11, 2011
About the author
Stephen Hunt
245 books340 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Stephen Hunt is a British writer living in London. His first fantasy novel, For the Crown and the Dragon, was published in 1994, and introduced a young officer, Taliesin, fighting for the Queen of England in a Napoleonic period alternative reality where the wars of Europe were being fought with sorcery and steampunk weapons (airships, clockwork machine guns, and steam-driven trucks called kettle-blacks). The novel won the 1994 WH Smith Award, and the book reviewer Andrew Darlington used Hunt's novel to coin the phrase Flintlock Fantasy to describe the sub-genre of fantasy set in a Regency or Napoleonic-era period.
Stephen Hunt is a British writer living in London. His first fantasy novel, For the Crown and the Dragon, was published in 1994, and introduced a young officer, Taliesin, fighting for the Queen of England in a Napoleonic period alternative reality where the wars of Europe were being fought with sorcery and steampunk weapons (airships, clockwork machine guns, and steam-driven trucks called kettle-blacks). The novel won the 1994 WH Smith Award, and the book reviewer Andrew Darlington used Hunt's novel to coin the phrase Flintlock Fantasy to describe the sub-genre of fantasy set in a Regency or Napoleonic-era period.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
January 13, 2022
This novella exceeded my expectations by leaps and bounds! I am so impressed by the incredibly detailed and complex world-building this author has achieved in so few pages. The characters he has created are more than memorable, they are completely fascinating. The writing is superb, the section of the book where we get to explore the ship through Calder's perspective as he learns his way around was so beautifully descriptive that it made me totally feel like I was really there! All in all this was a top-notch read and I can't wait to move on to the second book in the series!!!
Just reread this as I never went on and read the rest of the series back in 2019 and am doing so now...
Enjoyed this second read just as much as the first!
Just reread this as I never went on and read the rest of the series back in 2019 and am doing so now...
Enjoyed this second read just as much as the first!
November 12, 2015
Clumsy and clichéd. Sadly. Having taken advantage of the Amazon free download of the day sort of thing, I had nothing to lose. And with the second book already out, it couldn't be that bad...
The story starts out your basic science fiction trader story. The crew the obvious mix of human and template alien types. Then jumps to an equally template barbarian prince on ice world fantasy story. All too soon they all meet up and obvious plot 'twists' ahoy.
Normally, your imagination is supposed to enrich the story, in this case mine was imagining rubber suited aliens and flimsy sets that moved when touched. Strangely though, I really didn't hate it as much as it sounds — hence the two stars instead of a one — part of me hopes that the author was trying to be ironic. But I doubt it...
The story starts out your basic science fiction trader story. The crew the obvious mix of human and template alien types. Then jumps to an equally template barbarian prince on ice world fantasy story. All too soon they all meet up and obvious plot 'twists' ahoy.
Normally, your imagination is supposed to enrich the story, in this case mine was imagining rubber suited aliens and flimsy sets that moved when touched. Strangely though, I really didn't hate it as much as it sounds — hence the two stars instead of a one — part of me hopes that the author was trying to be ironic. But I doubt it...
March 28, 2021
3.5* stars, but it made me want to read the next in the series...
December 7, 2023
I just couldn't get into it. The writing wasn't bad, but I just wasn't drawn in. A solid 3 ⭐.
February 3, 2016
4.5 Stars
Sliding Void the first book in the Sliding Void trilogy by Stephen Hunt is a fantastic piece of science fiction that is tailor made for fans of the genre. This book does even more as it blends traditional fantasy elements with those of hard science. This was released originally as a serialized novel.
The fantasy elements are fun, but the science is what makes it awesome.
I enjoyed the story, the characters, and the writing...
"“For all the analogies heaped upon the understanding of such devices – think of it as knife to slice into the deeper realities of the universe – think of it as a translation device to convert the mathematical language of one reality into another – think of it as a piano’s tuning fork to . . . no, think of it as a big steaming shizzle-pile of the wrath of the gods, able to mangle the stuff of creation, mould it into spears and hurl it like one of Vega’s thunderbolts across the Creators’ phantasmal realm. Calder’s barbarian explanation made as much sense as any the sims had provided with their talk of advanced Brane theory, affine-parameters and T-duality.”"
Cool science too...
"“There might have been many a cheap entertainment sim that showed a hyperspace jump as little more than a navigator flinging a single lever forward on the bridge, followed by the stars accelerating into blur-lines, but the reality was far more time consuming, dangerous and prosaic. The Gravity Rose was breaching the very walls of space-time with an artificial wormhole, then translating the ship from one state of matter to another, sliding void across an alien plane of existence to shortcut the immutable laws of relativity and decades of slower-than-light travel between worlds. Any one of these acts was bordering on insane. Performing them all in a pre-programmed sequence was nothing short of reckless. Even the sniff of a significant gravity field would destabilise their homebrew wormhole into a homicidal tantrum. The particular curvature of local space-time had to be precisely mapped to allow the Gravity Rose to be translated into a protective dark-matter envelope, allowing the ship to exist in transit across the exotic plane of hyperspace, before dropping back into real space without smearing into a million tachyons. None of these you did at the flick of a lever helpfully[…]”"
Fun fun. On to the next part.
Sliding Void the first book in the Sliding Void trilogy by Stephen Hunt is a fantastic piece of science fiction that is tailor made for fans of the genre. This book does even more as it blends traditional fantasy elements with those of hard science. This was released originally as a serialized novel.
The fantasy elements are fun, but the science is what makes it awesome.
I enjoyed the story, the characters, and the writing...
"“For all the analogies heaped upon the understanding of such devices – think of it as knife to slice into the deeper realities of the universe – think of it as a translation device to convert the mathematical language of one reality into another – think of it as a piano’s tuning fork to . . . no, think of it as a big steaming shizzle-pile of the wrath of the gods, able to mangle the stuff of creation, mould it into spears and hurl it like one of Vega’s thunderbolts across the Creators’ phantasmal realm. Calder’s barbarian explanation made as much sense as any the sims had provided with their talk of advanced Brane theory, affine-parameters and T-duality.”"
Cool science too...
"“There might have been many a cheap entertainment sim that showed a hyperspace jump as little more than a navigator flinging a single lever forward on the bridge, followed by the stars accelerating into blur-lines, but the reality was far more time consuming, dangerous and prosaic. The Gravity Rose was breaching the very walls of space-time with an artificial wormhole, then translating the ship from one state of matter to another, sliding void across an alien plane of existence to shortcut the immutable laws of relativity and decades of slower-than-light travel between worlds. Any one of these acts was bordering on insane. Performing them all in a pre-programmed sequence was nothing short of reckless. Even the sniff of a significant gravity field would destabilise their homebrew wormhole into a homicidal tantrum. The particular curvature of local space-time had to be precisely mapped to allow the Gravity Rose to be translated into a protective dark-matter envelope, allowing the ship to exist in transit across the exotic plane of hyperspace, before dropping back into real space without smearing into a million tachyons. None of these you did at the flick of a lever helpfully[…]”"
Fun fun. On to the next part.
April 29, 2012
This is the first third of an SF novel about... It's hard to say. Dis-kingdomed medievalish prince with a price on his head is rescued by being put on a freighter starship. Things are starting to get interesting when the book ends.
There were some interesting characters and world building. There was a set-up for a plot that may become interesting. There was an ending that came much too abruptly.
I got this as a Kindle ebook. One problem with Kindle ebooks is that they're encouraging the sales of partial books as complete books, without an indication that it isn't complete. Selling a serialized novel isn't inherently bad, but it should be advertised as such. Calling this "book 1 of the Sliding Void series" is incorrect; this is really book 0.33 of the Sliding Void series. I've read other partial-book ebooks that had more complete, more satisfying endings than this.
I really liked Hunt's "Court of the Air". This booklet isn't nearly as complex or dense as "Court". It's fairly light space opera. With the misleading way this book was sold*, I don't know if I'm that interested in continuing any further.
This book would have gotten a fourth star, but for the way it is an incomplete book.
* I did get it for free through a one-day free offer, so maybe I shouldn't complain.
There were some interesting characters and world building. There was a set-up for a plot that may become interesting. There was an ending that came much too abruptly.
I got this as a Kindle ebook. One problem with Kindle ebooks is that they're encouraging the sales of partial books as complete books, without an indication that it isn't complete. Selling a serialized novel isn't inherently bad, but it should be advertised as such. Calling this "book 1 of the Sliding Void series" is incorrect; this is really book 0.33 of the Sliding Void series. I've read other partial-book ebooks that had more complete, more satisfying endings than this.
I really liked Hunt's "Court of the Air". This booklet isn't nearly as complex or dense as "Court". It's fairly light space opera. With the misleading way this book was sold*, I don't know if I'm that interested in continuing any further.
This book would have gotten a fourth star, but for the way it is an incomplete book.
* I did get it for free through a one-day free offer, so maybe I shouldn't complain.
September 25, 2012
This is the first novella in the series of a serialized science fiction space opera universe. It does what - I think - it sets out to do, which is to be a page-turning pulpy piece of entertainment. Certainly left me reaching for the second novella in the sequence, Transference Station. Reminds me a little of William Gibson, if he had gone more low-brow, rather than mainstream, in his choice of sub-genres. Good fun.
April 11, 2012
Surprisingly good for a low-priced Amazon read. Reminds me of the description of Pham Nugyen's backstory in Fire Upon The Deep, but, obviously, lacks that novel's scope. Still, a fun book I had a hard time putting down.
November 16, 2011
Change of pace from Hunt, with a return to hard science fiction. Reminded me of a classic Andre Norton novel that had been updated. Quite short; hope the follow ups will be longer.
August 5, 2012
Great stuff. Well written, engaging novella.
July 26, 2015
I have to stop being suckered in by free ebooks. This advertised as similar to Firefly. It's not. Not even close.
This isn't even a full book. It is a novella that ends with a cliffhanger trying to get you to purchase the further adventures of our not so intrepid adventurers.
Lana Fiveworlds, yes that is actually the lead character's name, is captain of the "Gravity Rose" a nine hundred year old freighter that she has inherited. Her crew is comprised of a cliched mix of human and alien types. She gets a message from a former crewman and ends up helping a dethroned medieval prince with a price on his head not only escape his frozen world but also become part of the crew of the "Gravity Rose." It is a mix of genres that does not play well together. I have no interest in finding out how the crew gets out of their predicament. Enough said.
This isn't even a full book. It is a novella that ends with a cliffhanger trying to get you to purchase the further adventures of our not so intrepid adventurers.
Lana Fiveworlds, yes that is actually the lead character's name, is captain of the "Gravity Rose" a nine hundred year old freighter that she has inherited. Her crew is comprised of a cliched mix of human and alien types. She gets a message from a former crewman and ends up helping a dethroned medieval prince with a price on his head not only escape his frozen world but also become part of the crew of the "Gravity Rose." It is a mix of genres that does not play well together. I have no interest in finding out how the crew gets out of their predicament. Enough said.
October 14, 2012
Sliding Void is a pulpy helping of science fiction written in a witty, knowing style. I loved the crew of the ship and the (mis)adventures they seem to get into. If you are a fan of space opera then this is top of the class fiction.
I should point out that it is in serialized novella format. It leaves you wanting more, but might not be for those who lack the patience to wait for the next in the series to come 'sliding' their way!
I should point out that it is in serialized novella format. It leaves you wanting more, but might not be for those who lack the patience to wait for the next in the series to come 'sliding' their way!
July 25, 2016
If this were a complete story, it would be solidly in the 3-4 star range.
Unfortunately, despite being listed as a novella, it reads like the first episode of a serial. 75% or more of the story is set-up, the first hints of the real conflict don't show up until almost the end, and nothing whatsoever is resolved.
That said, the characters are interesting, the future posited in the book is well done, and I'm interested to know what happens next.
Unfortunately, despite being listed as a novella, it reads like the first episode of a serial. 75% or more of the story is set-up, the first hints of the real conflict don't show up until almost the end, and nothing whatsoever is resolved.
That said, the characters are interesting, the future posited in the book is well done, and I'm interested to know what happens next.
January 19, 2012
This is a fantastic sci-fi book, with one chapter being largely more of the fantasy genre as well. The characters are varied and engaging and it's great fun. I can't really write much more than this in the review because it's a very short novella AND has a cliffhanger. I will be checking out the next one but I only wish there could be more, it's unacceptably short.
February 28, 2012
A very well written Si-Fi treat!
November 2, 2012
I really enjoyed this. Hoping for some more books in the series though.
January 24, 2022
I received a copy of this book from the author.
This is a fast paced story that combines medieval times with advanced space times and technology.
While I know that this sounds too far fetched to be an acceptable storyline, it works, and works really well.
Lana Fiveworlds has no knowledge of her life before adulthood. All she knows is that she was left the Gravity Rose. The ship is not only her means of making a living but also her home. She counts on the crew as family although they are not all humans.
Prince Calder Durk is in trouble. Who will rescue him from his enemies on this snowy backward world that he calls home?
Is Rex Maboto a magician, conjuror or con merchant?
This is the beginning of an enjoyable space series which I recommend.
This is a fast paced story that combines medieval times with advanced space times and technology.
While I know that this sounds too far fetched to be an acceptable storyline, it works, and works really well.
Lana Fiveworlds has no knowledge of her life before adulthood. All she knows is that she was left the Gravity Rose. The ship is not only her means of making a living but also her home. She counts on the crew as family although they are not all humans.
Prince Calder Durk is in trouble. Who will rescue him from his enemies on this snowy backward world that he calls home?
Is Rex Maboto a magician, conjuror or con merchant?
This is the beginning of an enjoyable space series which I recommend.
May 5, 2017
It looks like this is going to be an intriguing series, Lana Fiveworlds is a lady from the future who has an eclectic crew working with her as she takes her aging spaceship into a sci-fi adventure. I found the characters in this book some that I would like to sit down and have a talk with a few I would like to have a fight with. The author does a great job with the story and I think having all the books in the series to dive into would be great.
September 22, 2017
A space opera involving a misfit crew, a ship of uncertain origins, and now a man from a world that had been out of touch with interstellar travel for a couple of millennia. Not a bad bit of story-telling, and the author even has a sense of humor. Just not a sufficiently compelling story to continue the series.
March 4, 2018
Solid set up for the series
A lot of action. The characters are well described. And there are a number of very interesting characters. There are several intrigues established. I would have liked more material in this first novella, but the author did accomplish a lot in a short space.
A lot of action. The characters are well described. And there are a number of very interesting characters. There are several intrigues established. I would have liked more material in this first novella, but the author did accomplish a lot in a short space.
September 1, 2020
Space opera.
Author freebie. A novella about a ramshackle trading vessel. A prince from a lost colony is being stalked? This makes no sense but will be explained in later novels. A three race alliance is the setting. Human, Kraggen and skrill. Jump technology?
Author freebie. A novella about a ramshackle trading vessel. A prince from a lost colony is being stalked? This makes no sense but will be explained in later novels. A three race alliance is the setting. Human, Kraggen and skrill. Jump technology?
January 15, 2022
ok
I don’t like to give spoilers on the books that I read. I believe the blurb on the back is enough for you to decide if you will read the book or not. If you choose to read, enjoy!
I don’t like to give spoilers on the books that I read. I believe the blurb on the back is enough for you to decide if you will read the book or not. If you choose to read, enjoy!
May 10, 2017
Pretty good
New to me author but he spins a good tale. I enjoyed this book and the sci-fi he put into the story.
New to me author but he spins a good tale. I enjoyed this book and the sci-fi he put into the story.
February 16, 2018
Stiliding void
I am writing about this book talk sliding. I think very good for people help to ready. I think book litter shots in the chance of the book i was rather
Was
I am writing about this book talk sliding. I think very good for people help to ready. I think book litter shots in the chance of the book i was rather
Was
March 25, 2018
Entertaining introduction!
I found this entertaining introduction to a exciting new series for me. Excellent reading at bed time. Thanks Stephen Hunt. A new fan!
I found this entertaining introduction to a exciting new series for me. Excellent reading at bed time. Thanks Stephen Hunt. A new fan!
April 29, 2020
This was highly entertaining. Pulp scifi, which is always enjoyable.
Would recommend.
Would recommend.
February 26, 2017
Fairly good novella
This is packaged, once downloaded, as a chapter of a larger volume. I didn't think it was fairly described. I hate novels sold like shareware...
This is packaged, once downloaded, as a chapter of a larger volume. I didn't think it was fairly described. I hate novels sold like shareware...
August 7, 2013
Prince Calder Durk is having a pretty rough week. Betrayed by those closest to him, he finds himself on the run from an enemy army. A disreputable sorcerer, however, gives him one option for salvation: Exile. As it turns out, exile lies in a world previously unknown to Calder--as crew member on the starship Gravity Rose, captained by the foul-mouthed Lana Fiveworlds. For those of you who--like me--had only read Hunt's Jackelian series, this book may be a shock to you. In space, no one can hear you scream, but they can sure hear you swear, something the characters in this book do a lot of. Unlike the Jackelian books, the Sliding Void series was written for an audience of adult sci-fi fans. Aliens, robots and technical jargon abound, ensuring trekkies will feel right at home. The massive, city-sized Gravity Rose, along with the funny yet cute robots, reminded me especially of the old sci-fi series Red Dwarf (no smeg-heads here, sadly).
There isn't a whole lot of plot progression in the first volume, as it focuses more on character development. We get to meet the characters and feel them out, especially Calder. In the world of Sliding Void, learning is done via VR headsets which download information into people's minds Matrix-style. Once this is done to Calder, it's interesting to watch his newfound technological prowess clash with his medieval upbringing.
Sliding Void has an engaging narrative (barring the occasional formatting issue) and likable characters. That being said, I still prefer the Jackelian series, at least at this point. That steampunk world overflows with magic and wonder, while Sliding Void is pure science fiction. I guess it just depends on your personal preferences, really.
There isn't a whole lot of plot progression in the first volume, as it focuses more on character development. We get to meet the characters and feel them out, especially Calder. In the world of Sliding Void, learning is done via VR headsets which download information into people's minds Matrix-style. Once this is done to Calder, it's interesting to watch his newfound technological prowess clash with his medieval upbringing.
Sliding Void has an engaging narrative (barring the occasional formatting issue) and likable characters. That being said, I still prefer the Jackelian series, at least at this point. That steampunk world overflows with magic and wonder, while Sliding Void is pure science fiction. I guess it just depends on your personal preferences, really.
February 7, 2017
Let me share a quote from this book:
"There might have been many a cheap entertainment sim that showed a hyperspace jump as little more than a navigator flinging a single lever forward on the bridge, followed by the stars accelerating into blur-lines,"
If one is going to mock the classics it is best to do it in an obvious parody or a *really* good book. This is neither.
One thing that is particularly annoying about this book is the swearing. For the first 85% of the book the characters try again and again and again to swear, but all they manage to say is "shizzle". Shizzle? FFS. It cannot effectively replace short, snappy swear words because it doesn't have the punch. It can't replace longer ones because it is silly and obviously inoffensive. Swearing is not necessary to storytelling but if an author has a character that swears they should faithfully report that swearing.
What else? The female captain who is not a strong role model but a thinly disguised love interest/damsel in distress. Really irritating.
A desperately disappointing experience.
"There might have been many a cheap entertainment sim that showed a hyperspace jump as little more than a navigator flinging a single lever forward on the bridge, followed by the stars accelerating into blur-lines,"
If one is going to mock the classics it is best to do it in an obvious parody or a *really* good book. This is neither.
One thing that is particularly annoying about this book is the swearing. For the first 85% of the book the characters try again and again and again to swear, but all they manage to say is "shizzle". Shizzle? FFS. It cannot effectively replace short, snappy swear words because it doesn't have the punch. It can't replace longer ones because it is silly and obviously inoffensive. Swearing is not necessary to storytelling but if an author has a character that swears they should faithfully report that swearing.
What else? The female captain who is not a strong role model but a thinly disguised love interest/damsel in distress. Really irritating.
A desperately disappointing experience.
February 4, 2017
When I started this book, my reaction was "Hot diggidy! This guy can WRITE!" I was dragged into the story immediately. Not only that, but the writing was evocative, the characters were developed, and, as far as I can see, error-free (which is very difficult to pull off -- even with professional editing).
But then I hit the half-way mark and the story ground to a screeching halt and bogged down into trivia. After that, it was mostly like slogging through hip-deep quicksand until the last scene (he writes really good action scenes). It was almost as if the author needed more words and started stuffing whatever he could think of into it to "flesh it out".
This book is an unabashed set-up for the series. The hope being that you'll buy the follow-on books and as such, it has a huge hole at the end. If you want to find out what happens next, you have to lay down some scratch to see.
The book is "90 pages" short and it looks like the next book in the series is about the same length. I don't know how that translates into number of words (maybe 25,000 words?), and that's just a novella.
But then I hit the half-way mark and the story ground to a screeching halt and bogged down into trivia. After that, it was mostly like slogging through hip-deep quicksand until the last scene (he writes really good action scenes). It was almost as if the author needed more words and started stuffing whatever he could think of into it to "flesh it out".
This book is an unabashed set-up for the series. The hope being that you'll buy the follow-on books and as such, it has a huge hole at the end. If you want to find out what happens next, you have to lay down some scratch to see.
The book is "90 pages" short and it looks like the next book in the series is about the same length. I don't know how that translates into number of words (maybe 25,000 words?), and that's just a novella.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews