"Encrypted" - which I read (almost) in one go, interrupted only by work and very little sleep - is a delightful story that reminds me strongly of two very beloved books: Lois McMaster Bujold's "Shards of Honor" (the first issue of her famous Barrayar series) and the more recent steampunk magic novel "Havemercy" by Jones and Bennett (reviewed before). However, "Encrypted" manages to avoid the issues found in even those books -- yes, even yours, ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
solo! :-) --, making it a truly enjoyable read with complex plot, believable (and captivatingly flawed) characters, a truly unique setting and storytelling that matches the fast pace of the events to a proverbial T.
It is difficult to sum up its content without spoilers, so I decided just to give a list of tags I use to describe it: science fantasy, military scifi, romance, naval steampunk, cryptographics.
"Encrypted" is one of the few novels that uses science not only in terms of useless gibberish or as backdrop for the hero(ine)s romantic interest, but as a truly thought-out plot device, despite all brilliance of the scientists involved and the science fictional / fantasy elements used in a believable fashion.
As of now, I mourn the death of one character, wish for more on the two main characters, and look forward to what happened to another character, who appears grown-up in the author's next novel "The Emperor's Edge".
You can find Encrypted here on Smashwords, where I also left a copy of this review (minus the personal references).
solo! :-) --, making it a truly enjoyable read with complex plot, believable (and captivatingly flawed) characters, a truly unique setting and storytelling that matches the fast pace of the events to a proverbial T.It is difficult to sum up its content without spoilers, so I decided just to give a list of tags I use to describe it: science fantasy, military scifi, romance, naval steampunk, cryptographics.
"Encrypted" is one of the few novels that uses science not only in terms of useless gibberish or as backdrop for the hero(ine)s romantic interest, but as a truly thought-out plot device, despite all brilliance of the scientists involved and the science fictional / fantasy elements used in a believable fashion.
As of now, I mourn the death of one character, wish for more on the two main characters, and look forward to what happened to another character, who appears grown-up in the author's next novel "The Emperor's Edge".
You can find Encrypted here on Smashwords, where I also left a copy of this review (minus the personal references).
