Blue Star

[smtowngrl]

I am reviewing the novel Blue Star by John W. Holt.

An alien race finds itself sending out brave crews in search of a hospitable planet to continue their species. Drifting alone and relatively unafraid is a small crew of five aliens that find a prospective planet and that planet is Earth.

Extensive preparations need to be completed so the crew can blend in with humans as they prepare to send an invasion message back to their home planet. This first of the preparations is major cosmetic surgery. Next, a crewmember acquires not only property but also a business that will earn them capital as well as mine information about Earth and humans as the aliens ensure the Earth a hospitable planet.

The first human to enter the story is a young man named Henry Lucas. He has met with some family struggles in his high school years that resulted in not being able to fully realize his dream of going to college. Instead, he works at the neighborhood grocery store. Then, in one night, Henry finds himself on a remote hill with aliens and FBI agents where his life is about to change again.

The central question of the story is whether or not the aliens will be successful in their mission or will they be discovered and stopped before it is too late for the human race?

Overall I found this book to be a relatively fast read with a few formatting errors but nothing terribly distracting. While the story is a little slow to progress, the reader can enjoy the deliberate development of the characters and the shifting story perspective as seen through the eyes of some of the more prominent characters. Other authors I have read have seemed to have problems shifting the story perspective among characters but not Mr. Holt. The shifts were very smooth.

I would definitely recommend this book to others. I would give the book an overall rating of 3 out of 4 stars. As I mentioned, the book is a fast read and the author writes so smoothly that the reader can sit back and enjoy the story. There is an opportunity to guess what might happen next but the author doesn’t force that responsibility on to the reader. I do wish the story would have matured a little faster and had a little more action but overall I found the book very enjoyable and I’m looking forward to the next book. Thank you for the adventure, Mr. Holt!