Participant in the 2019 Chaos Awards 7 organized by CreativeChaos and judged by me under the genre Sci Fic.

Book- Starfall
Genre: Science Fiction/Action/Adventure/Dystopia/Fantasy
Mature: No
LGBTQ: No

Author: Birdpaw

Book Title

The book title is one word and sums up the plot: it’s the galaxy that is at stake and I don’t think there could have been a better title than this.

Book Cover

The cover wore a black and silver look with the title being set inside a silver circle. The cover gave an adventurous feel from the colours chosen and I think this was suitable for the plot.

Book Description

The description seems okay to me. I think the last line could be fixed by a proper comma. I’d also suggest that there could be a portion included that tells how the Sanctum aims to solve the problems caused by the virus.  Also, even though the sentence, “Along with the microscopic monster casting its large shadow” seems ironic, it sounds true as we go through the book.

Plot

The plot is based on the Relief Effort Quarantine, REQ, set out to protect the galaxy before the unknown, dangerous virus wipes out lives. Nyra is one of the main characters and a member of the REQ, sets out in a quest of obtaining medicine packages that will help them fight the virus. Sounds easy? Not really. Further revelations are made as we dug deeper into the book.

Spelling, Punctuation, Grammar and Vocabs

Everything else seemed great to me but I’d suggest the author to put a key for some of the technical words that have been used.

Writing Style, Character Development, Flow and Setting

Action sequence is the sector where the author nailed it. The use of similes was also done beautifully. Some of the characters that stood out were of Nyra and Captain Garrett. I appreciate the effort of the author making Nyra a rugged character and I loved it. The setting seemed just a little bit confusing because there was a constant change of spaceships, trains and other things that I think the author will take care of.

Creativity and Enjoyment

The author did a great job in making the prologue enjoyable, especially with the involvement of the AI, Phoenix. The idea of the coin facing “tails” was another uncommon attempt yet the author was successful in making the readers fall for it. Further chapters are also made enjoyable with the friendly scuffle the members show.

The End