Book Review: Revenger by Alastair Reynolds
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 2 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction
Series: Book 1
Publisher: Orbit (US: February 28, 2016)
Length: 432 pages
Author Information: Website
Revenger was my first book by Alastair Reynolds, which makes admitting that it did not work for me all that much harder. Still, in all fairness, I had been warned by several others beforehand that this does not feel representative of much of his work (as apparently the target audience is YA). Instead of choosing something else as my introduction to the author though, I decided to throw caution to the wind and try it anyway, so that’s on me.
The story follows Adrana and Fura Ness, a pair of teenaged sisters who live with their ailing father on the planet of Mazerile. A series of bad investments have bankrupted the family and now the girls have little prospects for the future, which is why when Captain Rackamore turns up in his sunjammer hoping to recruit a new Bone reader for his crew, Adrana and Fura are quick to take him up on his offer. Because the two of them are Sympathetics, they are perfect for the job which involves mentally linking themselves up with a mysterious piece of technology called a skull on the ship, enabling the crew to communicate with other travelers using the long-established inter-galactic trade routes.
So without another thought spared to their dear old dad, the girls decide to run off and join Rackamore on The Monetta’s Mourn, beginning their treasure seeking adventures among the remains of lost civilizations. The galaxy is filled with crews like theirs scavenging the far corners of space for “baubles”, a term used to describe artificially enclosed planets that can contain all manner of precious valuables and wonders. But perhaps just as common are the ships that prey on these treasure hunting crews, waiting for others to do the hard work before swooping in and snatching away their bounty. Adrana and Fura end up learning this lesson the hard way when The Monetta’s Mourn comes under such an attack, the crew becoming the next victims of the fearsome space pirate known as Bosa Sennen.
So what worked and what didn’t? On a world-building level, I could appreciate what Reynolds was trying to achieve here. Revenger is a mix of hard sci-fi with something else that is less definable—a mythological, fabled element that belongs more in a fantasy novel, perhaps. The universe is filled with alien artifacts, ancient technologies, and other unexplainable mysteries such as individuals with special gifts. And while the story takes place in deep space and humankind has achieved the ability to travel among the stars, the atmosphere of the setting is nonetheless evocative of an era more befitting of the fifteenth to eighteenth centuries. Think the Age of Discovery, exploration and mercantilism, crews setting off into the great unknown on treasure voyagers hoping to bring home fortune and glory. It’s a classic maritime adventure novel complete with pirates, ship wrecks and hidden booty, except that it’s all superimposed over a science fiction backdrop.
But as fascinating as this all was, the disappointment came crashing down when, after getting through nearly half the novel, I realized very few of these elements were actually explored. All those new and unfamiliar terms that were being thrown around at the beginning, ostensibly teasing the reader and making us all think that explanations were forthcoming, ultimately led to no satisfying answers.
Then there was the main character of Fura. She’s everything I find distasteful in a teen protagonist—selfish, impulsive, arrogant, and naïve. She takes new experiences for granted, treats opportunities like she is entitled to them, and doesn’t think too hard about the consequences of her actions. I realize she’s supposed to be a teenager, but this type of attitude and thinking feels even more immature than is called for somehow.
Overall, I also found myself unenthused by the story. It’s possible that my dislike of Fura had something to do with it, though in general I thought the plot suffered from poor pacing. For a novel supposedly aimed at a young adult audience, it’s surprisingly slow. Things ticked up a bit when The Monetta’s Mourn came under attack by pirates, but then returned to a monotonous pattern once the dust settled.
I tried, but I just couldn’t get into this one. Revenger was definitely not what I expected from my first foray into Alastair Reynolds, but fans might be relieved to know I’m chalking this up to an anomaly which is not indicative of his usual work. I fully intend to try him again in the future, hopefully with a book that has a story and characters that are more to my tastes.
The BiblioSanctum 
Sad, since the library does have it
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I would say go for another one of his books if you can 🙂 Several others have made excellent suggestions!
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If you want to try some Reynolds that is good, try his short story collection called “The Best of Alastair Reynolds”. That was my first Reynolds and I must say, it was very satisfying.
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I’m not really big on short stories to tell the truth, though it’s admittedly hard to resist an anthology called THE BEST of Alastair Reynolds…I would imagine some of his strongest stories would be chosen for it 🙂 Thanks for the recommendation!
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I snagged Pushing Ice from the used book store sometime last year but still have not tried. So I also still can’t comment on Reynolds.
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I didn’t like Pushing Ice, it has characters behaving like children. I wouldn’t pick it as my first Reynolds: just go with Revelation Space…
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Thanks for the advice, I’ve also seen plenty of praise for Revelation Space!
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The few Reynolds I’ve read were very grand in scale, so I’m not surprised that the application to YA didn’t go over so well.
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Yes, in retrospect I really think I should have started with some of his grander scale stuff.
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I’ll echo what Robert just said: Reynolds works better on huge tapestries and galaxy-spanning events – this kind of narrow focus (and YA-oriented tone) does not become him, and is not representative of his more successful works.
I’m sorry your introduction to this author was so negative, and I hope your next attempt will work better 🙂
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Me too! Don’t worry, I definitely have not given up on Reynolds yet! Especially since I saw you’d also given Revenger a negative review, and I know how much you are a fan of the author. I’ll check out which books you rated highly and go from there, since it seems we have similar tastes 🙂
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Oh no! Always disappointing to start with the ‘wrong’ first book of an established author. Glad you have not been put off, I know a lot of sci if fans really rate Reynolds.
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Yeah, looking back, I think if I had known that this was his YA endeavor I would have chosen to start with another book. But I didn’t find out until soon after I started the book.
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Dang it, this premise sounds SO COOL! 😩 But I think I’ve read some of the same reviews as you have because despite that glorious-sounding premise, I ended up skipping it. I think I’ll probably star with Revelation Space or House of Suns instead. But thanks for taking the time to tell us why it didn’t work out for you!
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I know, I was so disappointed too! But you’ll probably fare well with Revelation Space or House of Suns – I’ve heard great things about both 🙂
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Great review. This is the first review I’ve seen for this and I’m sad to see it isn’t quite as awesome as it sounded.
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Opinions on it seem to be very mixed. Unfortunately, mine fell into the negative camp 😦
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Reynolds’ books have deteriorated fast over the years. His debut trilogy is excellent though, I would try that next…
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I have not really followed the publication of his books or others’ reviews of them, so I’m sad to hear about their deterioration! Thank you for the recommendation though, I’ll look into his earlier work 🙂
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I got excited hearing about the premise which combines hard sciences and myths, but I am disappointed to hear it falls short otherwise. Sounds like the book was trying to be too many things at once. Hope your next read is a better one!
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It really is a cool premise! Such a shame that I did not care for the protagonist or the story’s execution 😦
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Sorry this one didn’t work. I’m not familiar with the author but if I try him I’ll definitely start with something else. It’s too bad too because I love the tropes of alien artifacts and long- vanished civilizations! Sounds like it just wasn’t developed enough… and Fura doesn’t sound likable.
Thanks for the review!
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Yeah, Alastair Reynolds is an author I’d wanted to read for a long time, I guess I just chose the wrong book. Revenger did sound very interesting! Sadly, I felt this is was case where the ideas and concepts themselves were stronger than the storytelling.
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I won’t be reading this, I have only heard very mixed thing about this one and I really don’t want to waste my time. I’ll try Revelation Space if I want to read some of his works.
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The reviews are very mixed indeed. Seems like readers either loved it or hated it. I didn’t hate it, but unfortunately my thoughts fell more on the negative side of spectrum 😦
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Oh no! I haven’t read much Reynolds lately, but I used to love his work.
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Just the wrong book wrong time for me, I guess! I certainly won’t give up on Reynolds’ work though, I’m sure I’ll be reading more of him soon.
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Oh, woah. The one other review I’d seen was much more positive. This is making me rethink my decision to read it.
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It seems folks either loved it or hated it. I would check out some of the reviews to see what you think, because it does seem like a very polarizing book! 🙂
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I haven’t actually tried any of the author’s work before, but I definitely won’t be starting with this one! I’ve seen it in my local bookstore and was intrigued, but I think I’ll give it a miss. While I do still enjoy YA, I find adult sci-fi works better for me.
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I read both YA and adult sci-fi, but your comment made me think that maybe Revenger would have worked better as an adult novel. A more mature and likable protagonist would have certainly helped! 😀
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I’ve not read this author and I’m just going to straight up confess I’ve always felt a tiny bit intimidated by his books – which is just me. I am determined to try one though – just not this one. Thanks for the steer – perhaps I’ll wait for you to find the perfect breaking in point because I’m just lazy like that 😀 😀 (and also that would be jolly nice of you!)
Lynn 😀
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