Tuesday 22 January 2013

The Gravity Trilogy by Cherie Reich - A Review

Another of my goals for the year I forgot to mention was to do more to help promote my blogger buddies' books by airing reviews on my blog. So, to kick things off, here's my review of Cherie Reich's excellent sci-fi trilogy.


Blurb:

A Space Fantasy Collection including DEFYING GRAVITY, FIGHTING GRAVITY, and PULL OF GRAVITY.

Three alien couples in three space fantasy novelettes fall in love in this complete trilogy.

A Persean and a Medusan crash land on a post-apocalyptic Earth and must escape their prison cells in DEFYING GRAVITY. An Earthling and an Aresian flee their vicious peoples and fight for the right to live and love in FIGHTING GRAVITY. A Cupidian and an Earthling can't ignore the pull of love while they battle to save their home in PULL OF GRAVITY.

Review:

I bought this collection as three separate books but decided to review it as a trilogy. The three stories take place in the same universe and while not particularly linked in terms of story, share common themes.

First of all I was highly impressed by the amount of world-building that Reich has achieved in a short space. Each story can easily be read in a day, yet you get the sense of a completely constructed world with enough back story to give you a sense of what motivates the characters yet not being overloaded.

Each story features characters from different alien races meeting and falling in love, against the conventions of their people and in two cases, in the face of open hostility between the races. This romance element makes for something different in the sci-fi field. The only drawback was that by the last book, the outcome feels somewhat inevitable. There were also quite a few similarities between the first two stories (both feature the couples meeting in imprisonment scenarios) and given the settings these are both quite grimy in feel. The last story was quite different, Reich showing us a lush, pleasant world under the threat of war. I did enjoy the descriptions in all three stories.

I would recommend this collection to someone who hasn't tried much sci-fi and is a bit intimidated by some of the hefty tomes out there. There isn't much in the way of technical description - the stories take centre stage. It makes for a quick, enjoyable read, and a good way into the genre.

Bio:

A self-proclaimed bookworm, Cherie Reich is a writer, freelance editor, book blogger, and library assistant living in Virginia. Her short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies, and her ebooks include a horror novelette titled Once Upon a December Nightmare, a short story collection with authors Aubrie Dionne and Lisa Rusczyk titled The Best of Raven and the Writing Desk, a space fantasy trilogy titled Gravity, and a fantasy series The Foxwick Chronicles. She is a member of the Virginia Writers Club and Valley Writers.

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Purchase Links for The Gravity Trilogy:

Amazon US (ebook)
Amazon UK (ebook)
Smashwords (ebook)
Nook (ebook)
Kobo (ebook)
iTunes (ebook)

Amazon US (print)
Amazon UK (print)
CreateSpace (print)

Goodreads

32 comments:

Elise Fallson said...

I also read The Gravity Trilogy and thought it was great! Like you said, Cherie does a great job worldbuilding and creating her aliens. I liked all three stories but if I had to choose, I think I'd say the first one, Defying Gravity. Must be the antennae. I have a thing for antennae (;

Unknown said...

Reading Cherie's excerpts on her blog, I've come to know her to be an extremely talented storyteller. I need to move these up my TBR!

Great review, too. :-)

Heather R. Holden said...

Great review! I haven't read too much in the sci-fi genre, since I tend to gravitate toward fantasy and horror, but this trilogy sounds fantastic! I always adore anything that seems to have a strong sense of world-building. It makes the fictional universe seem more real, IMO. I'll definitely have to check this out sometime! :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I've only read the first story but it was really good!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

I prefer the lighter sci-fi. Heavy science stuff bores me.

Tammy Theriault said...

Great goal and a great way to start! Congrats to cherie

Empty Nest Insider said...

Congrats to Cherie! Thanks for the excellent review Nick!
Julie

Samantha May said...

I'm a fan of Cherie's! She really is awesome at world building :)

Cynthia said...

I've been looking into world building resources, and so I appreciate this recommendation. Inter-alien romance-- that sounds interesting too!

Cherie Reich said...

Aww! Thank you so much for taking the time to read and review, Nick!

J.L. Campbell said...

Thanks for the review, Nick. I stay away from Sci-Fi, but this sounds like I'd easily be able to wrap my head around it.

Francene Stanley said...

Cherie sounds as if she's worked out how to capture an audience with her books. When I was young, I read my grandmother's collection of Sci Fi and loved them. Most of the ideas which were wild in the early 20th centuary are now fact.

Writer Pat Newcombe said...

Great review Nick. Not normally my kind of read but it may tempt me to give it a go. Happy New Year to you and your family!

Nick Wilford said...

Elise - Glad you also liked them! It's hard to pick a fave, but I would say Pull of Gravity because it was, I think, a bit longer.

E.J. - She's definitely talented. Those TBR lists keep growing with the wealth of great authors around here!

Heather - Thanks! Hope you can check it out.

Alex - Definitely check out the rest. I want to read Cherie's Nightmare Collection soon, too.

L. Diane - I haven't really read any hard sci-fi stuff for a while. I think I would need to be in the right mood.

Tammy - Thanks!

Julie - Thank you!

Samantha - Yep, she is. I could learn a lesson from her!

Cynthia - No problem! Hope you get to check them out.

Cherie - You're welcome!

Joy - No prob. It's very accessible.

Francene - I know. It's funny how things work out!

Pat - Thanks! Hope you give it a go.

Christine Rains said...

Wonderful review. Cherie is fantastic with worldbuilding.

Melissa said...

I don't usually read sci-fi, but I might just have to read these. Great review!

Shell Flower said...

Thanks for reviewing these. I think I might need to read some of Cherie's books and this is a good place to start. Great honest reviewing, too. Way to support your fellow authors!

Julie Dao said...

This trilogy sounds amazing! I'm checking it out on Amazon right now. I've been meaning to try out more sci-fi since it's not a genre I typically read, so this is perfect timing!

Nicole said...

Thanks for this review. I haven't read Cherie's series yet, but it's on my list to check out.

Carol Kilgore said...

Wonderful review, Nick. I'm envious of how prolific Cherie is :)

Unknown said...

Congratulations Cherie. Your talent continues to amaze me.

Stina said...

I'm impressed, Cherie. World building for SF isn't easy (not that I've written any).

Morgan said...

Go Cherie! She's awesome. A great highlight, Nick. :D

Michelle Wallace said...

Congrats to Cherie!
I've just read my first space opera and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. It was Backworlds by Mary Pax. I'm not sure if I'd be able to handle the heavy sci-fi stuff...

Tara Tyler said...

excellent review! so sci fi romance, gotcha! cherie is a good word weaver!

Nick Wilford said...

Christine - Thanks. Yep, she is!

Melissa - Like I said, they're very easy reads for non-fans of the genre.

Shell - Thanks! Hope you enjoy them.

Julie - Enjoy! There's a few genres I need to expand into, too. :)

Nicole - Thanks! Those lists do tend to get rather long, lol.

Carol - Ha! Me too.

Jenn - Thanks for the support for Cherie!

Stina - I'm sure I wouldn't find it easy either!

Morgan - Thanks! Awesome is the word!

Michelle - I've got Backworlds on my TBR list. Looking forward to that one, too!

Tara - She definitely is!

DEZMOND said...

The book sounds delightful, I do love me sf!

Sherry Ellis said...

Great review! Cherie is such a talented writer!

Laura Eno said...

Great review! The trilogy is on my TBR list. Cherie has a wonderful way with words that I admire.

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

I agree, the world-building is fabulous

Kelley Lynn said...

It's on the TBR list! Can't wait to read it.

M Pax said...

I have the trilogy on my Nook. I'm looking forward to starting it.