Daisy's Run: With a Slow Start, yet a Solid Sprint toward Future Tales
Daisy's Run immediately thrusts readers into a harrowing tale of the perils of space. Through twists and turns, readers will learn there is much more to Daisy than meets the eye. And not only is there more to Daisy, every character has their secrets to hide. As Daisy tries to unravel the truth, new discoveries meet her at every corner, and the story's final revelation surprised me, even as my skepticism meter had increasingly grown throughout the journey.
Other than the first chapter, the story starts a bit slow for my tastes, and I think that's the first element that lost it points in my mind. After thrusting characters into danger (and a poorly written sex scene), Daisy spends the next few chapters adjusting to life on a space ship traveling for six months. It took just a bit too long for the novel to progress through this first act.
Generally speaking, I enjoyed the author's voice, though there are moments where the dialogue feels a tad wooden (though given the overarching plot of the story, I could argue that was intentional). More importantly, there are plenty of moments throughout this story where I scratched my head at the "science" thrown around by the author (a fireball flying through the air without gravity? I asked a physicist friend of mine, and he said that was entirely impossible). So if you're looking for a hard science fiction tale, do not read this book. If you're looking for an action-packed sci-fi thriller that reads like a movie, consider its pages.
Now this story begins a much larger series, titled "The Clockwork Chimera." From what I can tell, four other books in the series are already available. After reading Daisy's Run, I'd say I'm intrigued, and if the second book shows up on my Kindle for 99 cents, I might pick it up.
Final Score: 7/10. I've given it four stars, but it earned that fourth star just because of its compelling finish.