Official Review: Enemy Immortal by Jim Meeks-Johnson

Post by **Shrabastee Chakraborty** » 10 Mar 2020, 03:09

Glad that you enjoyed the book and thanks for this awesome review. Space opera is not really my kind of tea though, so I will skip this one.

NetMassimo · Post by **NetMassimo** » 10 Mar 2020, 03:22

LauraLeeWasHere wrote: ↑09 Mar 2020, 17:39
... so anybody can read it.
Hmmm. This is the first time I've read one of your reviews so I'll go easy on you (sort of), but I don't know if this story is for "anybody". We immediately jump into Lord Ulmac's feeding on some poor, helpless aliens and by the time he had eaten off their fingers and toes and was just about to digest the brain I discovered my whole body was cringing. So, anybody? Again I say, "Hmmm."

I guess I underestimated some people's sensitivity. Being in contact mostly with people who read and watch science fiction and horror stories, I didn't see readers who might find Umlac too gross. That's another way being on OBC is useful as now I have a bigger picture!

Post by **Kibet Hillary** » 10 Mar 2020, 03:30

This sounds like an interesting story. It is good to see that the various cultures among the alien species make the story more interesting. Thanks for the informative review.

Ekta Kumari · Post by **Ekta Kumari** » 10 Mar 2020, 03:31

The plot does sound unique, and the important aspects of worldbuilding and character development seem to be well-thought-out by the author. Especially the rich development of non-human characters is something that is rarely seen, which is why this book stands out. Thank you for the detailed review.

dragonet07 · Post by **dragonet07** » 10 Mar 2020, 03:36

I love science fiction, but anything involving aliens has to be pretty well written to catch my interest. Based on the complexity of both human and alien characters and human-alien relationships, it sounds to me like this book is such a work. I have enjoyed some classics like the short story “Mars is Heaven!”, but one where aliens are not strictly evil sounds even more appealing. Thank you for the helpful review.

Miercoles · Post by **Miercoles** » 10 Mar 2020, 03:39

Science fiction is not my favourite genre but I appreciate a well-written story with interesting characters. That makes it a worthwhile read. Thanks for the review.

David+Hubbell · Post by **David+Hubbell** » 10 Mar 2020, 12:35

An excellent review, but my interest in sci-fi novels is more down to earth. I would be reading this book.

regzfulay · Post by **regzfulay** » 11 Mar 2020, 06:10

I am not really a fun of science fiction or anything fiction, most of the time I enjoy watching them first before reading them just like Star Wars I become addicted of it's book after watching the movie, but still enjoyed Quist character as well as Jade the lieutenant from the human defense of Earth.

LauraLeeWasHere · Post by **LauraLeeWasHere** » 12 Mar 2020, 15:52

NetMassimo wrote: ↑10 Mar 2020, 03:22
LauraLeeWasHere wrote: ↑09 Mar 2020, 17:39
... so anybody can read it.
Hmmm. This is the first time I've read one of your reviews so I'll go easy on you (sort of), but I don't know if this story is for "anybody". We immediately jump into Lord Ulmac's feeding on some poor, helpless aliens and by the time he had eaten off their fingers and toes and was just about to digest the brain I discovered my whole body was cringing. So, anybody? Again I say, "Hmmm."
I guess I underestimated some people's sensitivity. Being in contact mostly with people who read and watch science fiction and horror stories, I didn't see readers who might find Umlac too gross. That's another way being on OBC is useful as now I have a bigger picture!

Actually, it may be less about your review and more about this specific author getting to me. I watched the entire movie, Aliens, and didn't cringe once. (Okay. Maybe once.)
If I didn't make it clear, I thought your review was great.

LL

Chi Chiu Michael Mak · Post by **Chi Chiu Michael Mak** » 11 Jun 2025, 08:42

NetMassimo wrote: ↑23 Jan 2020, 08:05 [Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Enemy Immortal" by Jim Meeks-Johnson.]

4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review

Enemy Immortal by Jim Meeks-Johnson is a space opera set at the beginning of the 23rd century. Humanity might join a federation that includes a lot of species called the Entanglement, but a lot of people are against it because that would mean join a caste to supply a specific service. Human skills will be assessed in an inter-species mission that aims to solve the mystery of an alien colony that simply vanished. The Immortal Ascendancy, another alien power, has a peace treaty with the Entanglement, but the ambitious Lord Umlac is planning an invasion that puts the Earth in danger too. That's just the first complication for Lieutenant Jade Mahelona of Solar Defense Force and the other humans who are representing humanity in the mission.

Space opera is one of the most classic science fiction subgenres. It had a peak during the 1930s and 1940s, during the pulp magazine era with the publication of a lot of adventurous stories. In recent years, space opera is seeing a new period of glory with works that are much more than simple adventures of space exploration and wars against aliens. In modern space opera, not all aliens are evil and character development is important.

Jim Meeks-Johnson shows that he is indeed a writer of modern space opera with this novel where world-building is crucial in the story's development. The future he described is full of life with very diverse aliens species in terms of physical appearance and psychology. Communications can be difficult between different species, especially for humans, who are just getting to know the many aliens who are part of the Entanglement. Meetings with representatives of different species are used by the author to give details about them without slowing down the pace.

The protagonists are mostly humans, and that gives us the idea of their difficulties in dealing with aliens. Some aliens are among the important characters, including Lord Umlac, the main villain, and that gives us a better idea of their civilizations and their psychology. Jim Meeks-Johnson skillfully uses a multiple point of view to offer a great development of several characters and follow different events that are important for the story. That was probably the part that impressed me the most because not many writers can properly develop non-humanoid characters.

The humans part of the inter-species mission end up involved in events much bigger than anybody anticipated for a story full of action and twists. I found the plot engaging and well-thought because Jim Meeks-Johnson made a great use of the aliens. The various alien cultures and technologies were used very well to develop the story with consequences on the events.

Enemy Immortal shows a universe full of life with interesting human and alien characters. The novel contains no profanities and there are only very mild sexual innuendos between two human characters, so anybody can read it. The editing is good, with only a few little errors, none distracting. For the amazing quality of the world-building, the engaging story, and the interesting characters, my rating is 4 out of 4 stars. The story is perfectly self-contained, but I hope Jim Meeks-Johnson will write a sequel because his fictional universe is very rich and offers room for many more fantastic stories. I recommend this novel to anybody looking for a great science fiction story.

******
Enemy Immortal
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

The political tension between the Entanglement and the Immortal Ascendancy got me hooked. It might outdo the political drama in Star Wars (quite a low bar, I know). Can't wait to see the suspense thicken thanks to Lord Umlac invasion plans.