Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of Grimspace (Sirantha Jax, Bk 1)

Grimspace (Sirantha Jax, Bk 1)
skywriter319 avatar reviewed on + 784 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1


Jax & Co. operate in an interplanetary system that is a blend of old and new: advanced Conglomerate planets exist in deliberate ignorance of planets occupied by non-human species that have only just begun to be explored. This is more Firefly than Star Trekbut let the comparisons stop there, lest you be disappointed. Firefly has a kind of ensemble-cast, Joss Whedon-directed magic that I have yet to see translate into the written form. GRIMSPACE doesnt quite have that magic, but is still a pretty decent read, especially if you dont read much sci-fi.

I found the characters a littleinconsistent. Jax was supposed to be this tough but damaged woman, and yet, thinking about my favorite fictional tough-girl heroine to whom I compare everything else (Kate Daniels from Ilona Andrews series), Jax didnt strike me as being consistently what she says she is. The romance felt very sudden, too, initial sparks of attraction flaming into declarations of love. Hrm. Color me unconvinced.

On a more personal note, I was quite distressed at the number of deaths in this book. I know death is a natural part of life and all, but the softie in me couldnt help but cringe every time a character I had just begun to get to know and like ended up dying in the most terrible way. I respect a few character deaths here and there, but killing off nearly everyone but the major characters felt excessive.

Still, I enjoyed GRIMSPACE for the most part. Im not sure Ill continue reading the series, but the ideas a good one, and the characters (those that are still alive by the end, that is) are pretty cool. Its no Firefly for me, but then again, what will be?