Review of Lightship
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Mary O Dougherty
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Review of Lightship
[Following is a volunteer review of "Lightship" by Stephan Besik.]
Lightship by Stephan Besik is a collection of four interconnected stories. “The Old Man” is set in the near future, presumably on Earth. “Damage Report” launches far into the interplanetary future, as remains of an ancient civilization are found on Planet Three. “Long Shot” is not so far in the future, after an accidental nuclear war has broken out between the major global superpowers. Finally, “Lightship” is set in modern times and follows a young engineer who has set out to create an efficient means for interplanetary travel.
I enjoyed reading the stories of Lightship, each one was sufficient to stand alone as its own complete and enjoyable story. However, reading them together brings new context to the entire literary universe of Lightship and the complete context tempts me to re-read the second chapter, “Damage Report”, which is set the furthest in the future.
An aspect of this book that is neither extraordinary nor unlikeable is the long descriptions of the setup or environment. In “Long Shot”, there are pages-long descriptions of the strategic set-ups of the multiple E7, Panther, and Mockingbird aerial support drones. The detail is helpful for feeling like the narrative is more solid, but I found myself wanting to skip ahead to the next paragraph after reading about exact positions and communications ranges. Similarly, in “Lightship”, there is an extensive description of the namesake, detailing where the cargo frame sits in relation to the control module, how the batteries and sail rings are oriented, and how the keel and gimbal build the frame of the ship.
I have almost nothing negative to say about this book. The only errors I found were inconsistent opening and closing quotation marks in long paragraphs of speech. I have a strong internal narrator and it was frustrating having to re-read a page once I realized it was still a character speaking. Otherwise, I quite enjoyed the individual stories, the connections between them, and the characters leading me through to the end.
Despite the occasional missing punctuation, I rate this book 5 out of 5 for its story and otherwise good editing. I noticed no misspellings or awkward sentences. The science, especially in the final chapter, was realistic enough to be feasible while still being seated in fantasy.
This is a good book for sci-fi readers who want to explore the possibilities of our future. There are some sexual references scattered throughout the book and “Long Shot” discusses technological violence in a modern wartime setting. “Damage Report” could be considered graphic for more sensitive readers, though it was handled well.
******
Lightship
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Lightship by Stephan Besik is a collection of four interconnected stories. “The Old Man” is set in the near future, presumably on Earth. “Damage Report” launches far into the interplanetary future, as remains of an ancient civilization are found on Planet Three. “Long Shot” is not so far in the future, after an accidental nuclear war has broken out between the major global superpowers. Finally, “Lightship” is set in modern times and follows a young engineer who has set out to create an efficient means for interplanetary travel.
I enjoyed reading the stories of Lightship, each one was sufficient to stand alone as its own complete and enjoyable story. However, reading them together brings new context to the entire literary universe of Lightship and the complete context tempts me to re-read the second chapter, “Damage Report”, which is set the furthest in the future.
An aspect of this book that is neither extraordinary nor unlikeable is the long descriptions of the setup or environment. In “Long Shot”, there are pages-long descriptions of the strategic set-ups of the multiple E7, Panther, and Mockingbird aerial support drones. The detail is helpful for feeling like the narrative is more solid, but I found myself wanting to skip ahead to the next paragraph after reading about exact positions and communications ranges. Similarly, in “Lightship”, there is an extensive description of the namesake, detailing where the cargo frame sits in relation to the control module, how the batteries and sail rings are oriented, and how the keel and gimbal build the frame of the ship.
I have almost nothing negative to say about this book. The only errors I found were inconsistent opening and closing quotation marks in long paragraphs of speech. I have a strong internal narrator and it was frustrating having to re-read a page once I realized it was still a character speaking. Otherwise, I quite enjoyed the individual stories, the connections between them, and the characters leading me through to the end.
Despite the occasional missing punctuation, I rate this book 5 out of 5 for its story and otherwise good editing. I noticed no misspellings or awkward sentences. The science, especially in the final chapter, was realistic enough to be feasible while still being seated in fantasy.
This is a good book for sci-fi readers who want to explore the possibilities of our future. There are some sexual references scattered throughout the book and “Long Shot” discusses technological violence in a modern wartime setting. “Damage Report” could be considered graphic for more sensitive readers, though it was handled well.
******
Lightship
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
Latest Review: The Summerland by Matian Ellis
