Review of The Ripsons
Posted: 07 Apr 2024, 08:41
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Ripsons" by Joe Morrow.]
The Ripsons by Joe Morrow is a science fiction novel that explores the consequences of the crash of an alien spacecraft that is kept secret. John and Geraldine Ripson are college professors who are offered the opportunity to join a top-secret operation with the task of studying alien creatures and their spacecraft. They're arm-twisted into accepting by Mr. Lee, the project's director, so they have a strong scientific interest and moral reservations at the same time. Their discoveries about Mr. Lee and his superiors' agenda will worry them.
Joe Morrow drew inspiration from UFO folklore for the start of this novel. An alien spacecraft crashed on Earth and the three aliens aboard were taken by the US military to be studied in a secret facility. The place is not called Area 51 but is pretty much what you can expect from the secret place depicted in conspiracy theories.
After the beginning, the author offers a lot of background information about the protagonists, so we understand where they come from and how they think. That's important to understand the motives behind their actions during the novel.
John and Geraldine Ripson are among the people brought into the top-secret project despite being civilians because of their scientific skills. They think that ethical and moral issues are to be taken into account when dealing with the aliens. On the contrary, Mr. Lee was picked as the project's director because of his nationalist belief, so his priority is to discover anything useful to make the USA the only superpower in the world.
The story spans several years starting from 1963, with occasional leaps forward in time. The pace is mostly slow with occasional events that are particularly significant and sometimes intense. Honestly, sometimes, I had the impression that some bits might have been cut out. To be fair, occasionally, an event might seem irrelevant just for its significance to be revealed later. In general, the pace is quite slow with sudden peaks when something crucial to the plot happens. On a few other occasions, some important events seemed even too rushed.
Honestly, this is not a novel suitable for readers who are looking for an action-packed story. Flashbacks are used to dig into the protagonists' background and a lot of dialogues offer a strong character development that in my opinion is the best part of the novel. The Ripsons bring ethical and moral dilemmas, Lee is a sort of fulcrum for the nationalists, and his second in command Mocaber is sort of caught in the middle.
The editing could be better. There are many errors, especially misspelled words, so I have to take a star from my rating. I don't think the problem with the pacing is bad enough to take another star. Therefore, my rating is 4 out of 5 stars. The story has a development I found great with food for thought about the diverse agendas of people involved in studying alien sentient beings with various ramifications and twists. If you're interested in this kind of story, I recommend The Ripsons. It contains swearing and some violent moments, so it's not suitable for readers who are very young or impressionable.
******
The Ripsons
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The Ripsons by Joe Morrow is a science fiction novel that explores the consequences of the crash of an alien spacecraft that is kept secret. John and Geraldine Ripson are college professors who are offered the opportunity to join a top-secret operation with the task of studying alien creatures and their spacecraft. They're arm-twisted into accepting by Mr. Lee, the project's director, so they have a strong scientific interest and moral reservations at the same time. Their discoveries about Mr. Lee and his superiors' agenda will worry them.
Joe Morrow drew inspiration from UFO folklore for the start of this novel. An alien spacecraft crashed on Earth and the three aliens aboard were taken by the US military to be studied in a secret facility. The place is not called Area 51 but is pretty much what you can expect from the secret place depicted in conspiracy theories.
After the beginning, the author offers a lot of background information about the protagonists, so we understand where they come from and how they think. That's important to understand the motives behind their actions during the novel.
John and Geraldine Ripson are among the people brought into the top-secret project despite being civilians because of their scientific skills. They think that ethical and moral issues are to be taken into account when dealing with the aliens. On the contrary, Mr. Lee was picked as the project's director because of his nationalist belief, so his priority is to discover anything useful to make the USA the only superpower in the world.
The story spans several years starting from 1963, with occasional leaps forward in time. The pace is mostly slow with occasional events that are particularly significant and sometimes intense. Honestly, sometimes, I had the impression that some bits might have been cut out. To be fair, occasionally, an event might seem irrelevant just for its significance to be revealed later. In general, the pace is quite slow with sudden peaks when something crucial to the plot happens. On a few other occasions, some important events seemed even too rushed.
Honestly, this is not a novel suitable for readers who are looking for an action-packed story. Flashbacks are used to dig into the protagonists' background and a lot of dialogues offer a strong character development that in my opinion is the best part of the novel. The Ripsons bring ethical and moral dilemmas, Lee is a sort of fulcrum for the nationalists, and his second in command Mocaber is sort of caught in the middle.
The editing could be better. There are many errors, especially misspelled words, so I have to take a star from my rating. I don't think the problem with the pacing is bad enough to take another star. Therefore, my rating is 4 out of 5 stars. The story has a development I found great with food for thought about the diverse agendas of people involved in studying alien sentient beings with various ramifications and twists. If you're interested in this kind of story, I recommend The Ripsons. It contains swearing and some violent moments, so it's not suitable for readers who are very young or impressionable.
******
The Ripsons
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
