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Confluence #1
Fluency
NASA discovered the alien ship lurking in the asteroid belt in the 1960s. They kept the Target under intense surveillance for decades, letting the public believe they were exploring the solar system, while they worked feverishly to refine the technology needed to reach it. The ship itself remained silent, drifting. Dr. Jane Holloway is content documenting nearly-extinct languages and had never contemplated becoming an astronaut. But when NASA recruits her to join a team of military scientists for an expedition to the Target, it’s an adventure she can’t refuse. The ship isn’t vacant, as they presumed. A disembodied voice rumbles inside Jane’s head, "You are home." Jane fights the growing doubts of her colleagues as she attempts to decipher what the alien wants from her. As the derelict ship devolves into chaos and the crew gets cut off from their escape route, Jane must decide if she can trust the alien’s help to survive.
250 pages, ebook
First published June 18, 2014
About the author
Jennifer Foehner Wells
18 books1,319 followersAs a child growing up in rural Illinois, I had the wild outdoors, a budding imagination, and books for company. My interest in science fiction was piqued early on when a family friend loaned me a Ray Bradbury compilation, among loads of other wonderful scifi books.
Learn more about Jen at:
www.jenthulhu.com
Learn more about Jen at:
www.jenthulhu.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,001 reviews
January 28, 2015
Oh how I wanted to like this book. A first contact novel, supposedly hard SF (it's not), with a linguist as the protagonist. It's getting buzz and acclaim everywhere and a huge number of 5-star reviews. And yes, it has a gorgeous cover.
After reading it (50 pages in, I already knew I wasn't going to like it; at 100 pages, I had to force myself to keep going), all I can say to those 5-star reviewers is "Are you freaking kidding me? This is what you consider great science fiction?"
First of all, the writing is just not good. This was a self-published novel, and as much of a cliche as it is to say this - it shows.
After being hit with cliche after cliche (hearts galloping in chests, trembling fingers) and adverbs and adjectives swarming every sentence, I found myself thinking "fan fiction." This reads like fan fiction. And in fact, the author's other major work appears to be a Stargate fan fiction novel.
Problem two is that the characters behave like idiots, and frequently in highly unrealistic and unprofessional ways, just because the author wants to write something clever or amusing.
Dr. Jane Holloway is a character right out of a teenager's fan fiction story. Thanks to "some accident of birth, some odd mutant gene, some quirk of brain chemistry" she can "learn new languages as easily as she breathes." This makes her of interest to NASA, which is about to launch a mission to Mars. Except, it turns out, the mission isn't really to Mars - it's to a big alien spaceship sitting in the asteroid belt, which they've known about since the 1960s, but just now have the technology to go investigate. They figure Dr. Holloway might help them talk to the aliens.
Who have not responded to any radio signals and whose ship has done nothing for the last 50 years. So why exactly do they think there are even aliens to talk to?
Not content to make Dr. Holloway some sort of super-linguist, she also turns out to have a backstory involving her parents' tragic death in Australia, and Dr. Holloway then having an adventure in the Amazon in which she singlehandedly saved her team from hostile tribesmen while suffering from malaria okay are you fucking kidding me?!
Dr. Alan Bergen, the scientist/astronaut who "doesn't spend much time around women," is this romance/sci-fi novel's safely tameable semi-alpha male, informing us in the above passage just how awesome "Indiana Jane" Holloway is.
So of course they go on the mission, and find that there is alien intelligence on board the big unmoving ship.
There was some serviceable sci-fi in this novel, as when Jane makes contact with the surviving "crew," and starts to learn about its mission. There are perils aboard the ship, though most of the action is forced by arbitrary authorial fiat or by characters behaving like idiots.
I mean, how likely is it they'd send a first contact team, aboard a thin metal can surrounded by vacuum, to go meet an advanced alien race carrying 9mm pistols? Really? I guess about as likely as the U.S. Air Force deciding that the thing to do with a crashed alien space ship is to start vivisecting the aliens alive. Because no one in the Air Force has ever read a science fiction novel or thought through the ramifications, I guess.
I also found it amusing that the Indian-American scientist has to tell Jane that she's not familiar with Hansel and Gretel because she wasn't raised on Western fairy tales, but then she's the one who explains to a NASA astronaut what "Terran" means.
There's a really purple sex scene, a lot of overwritten dialog with the alien, an unconvincing romance mashed with Dr. Halloway becoming ever more awesome, and finally a To Be Continued. Because they don't even get off the damn ship by the end of the book.
I'd have forgiven the bad writing if the story was great, and I'd have forgiven a story that stretches my suspension of disbelief if the writing was great. But it's amateurish writing and a story with huge plot holes and frequent unbelievable character actions. I didn't quite hate this book, but I did not like it, and it was bad. Will not be reading the sequel.
Also, the author knows jack about linguistics. Googling "monogenesis" and "polygenesis" is not research.
After reading it (50 pages in, I already knew I wasn't going to like it; at 100 pages, I had to force myself to keep going), all I can say to those 5-star reviewers is "Are you freaking kidding me? This is what you consider great science fiction?"
First of all, the writing is just not good. This was a self-published novel, and as much of a cliche as it is to say this - it shows.
Her heart galloped in her chest. In minutes she’d be stepping up to do her thing with no idea whatsoever of precisely what or whom she’d be facing. Dr. Jane Holloway would be Earth’s ambassador. Why her? Because some accident of birth, some odd mutant gene, some quirk of brain chemistry, gave her the ability to learn new languages as easily as she breathed. Did that mean anything once she’d left the safe embrace of planet Earth? She was about to find out.
She noticed the fingers of one hand trembling and gripped the armrests with determined ferocity. She’d maintained her dignity this long—she wasn’t about to let go of it now.
The unending, stifling journey was over. The nightmare of sameness, of maddening confinement, of desperate loneliness and unrelenting, forced togetherness, done. They’d finally climb out of this fragile, aluminum/lithium-alloy sardine-can that had kept them safe from the vacuum of space for ten months. They’d actually made it there alive.
The capsule vibrated violently. Jane glanced at Bergen for reassurance. His hand hovered at the clip that would free him from his harness and he grinned wolfishly through his ragged, blond beard. He was the closest she could come to calling a friend on this journey—and that label seemed a bit of a stretch.
The crew thrummed with the tension of tightly controlled excitement. It was a far healthier kind of tension than what had often prevailed over the last ten months. There’d been many a heated argument over issues as immaterial as who was eating disproportionately more of the chocolate before it all suddenly disappeared.
After being hit with cliche after cliche (hearts galloping in chests, trembling fingers) and adverbs and adjectives swarming every sentence, I found myself thinking "fan fiction." This reads like fan fiction. And in fact, the author's other major work appears to be a Stargate fan fiction novel.
Problem two is that the characters behave like idiots, and frequently in highly unrealistic and unprofessional ways, just because the author wants to write something clever or amusing.
Dr. Jane Holloway is a character right out of a teenager's fan fiction story. Thanks to "some accident of birth, some odd mutant gene, some quirk of brain chemistry" she can "learn new languages as easily as she breathes." This makes her of interest to NASA, which is about to launch a mission to Mars. Except, it turns out, the mission isn't really to Mars - it's to a big alien spaceship sitting in the asteroid belt, which they've known about since the 1960s, but just now have the technology to go investigate. They figure Dr. Holloway might help them talk to the aliens.
Who have not responded to any radio signals and whose ship has done nothing for the last 50 years. So why exactly do they think there are even aliens to talk to?
Not content to make Dr. Holloway some sort of super-linguist, she also turns out to have a backstory involving her parents' tragic death in Australia, and Dr. Holloway then having an adventure in the Amazon in which she singlehandedly saved her team from hostile tribesmen while suffering from malaria okay are you fucking kidding me?!
That wasn’t the reaction he expected. “You’re wrong. I had a chance to look over the other files. You’re the only person for this job. You’re the only one with the kind of stamina, talent, and sheer guts it will take to do this.”
Her expression was skeptical. “I’m sure it looks like that on paper—”
He let his frustration bleed through. “Look, they’ve spent months looking at linguists—we’ve been working with plenty of linguists already, on another, similar project—and none of them can match your level of natural ability and experience. Come on! You’re a goddamn living legend in your field—and you’re what? 35? Do you know what we’ve been calling you at NASA? We call you Indiana Jane.”
The smile snuck back, just for a second.
“Well, ok—I call you that—but it’s fucking true.”
She snorted softly and looked away.
He rolled his eyes. They’d warned him not to curse. “Sorry. You were right when you guessed I don’t spend much time around women.”
Dr. Alan Bergen, the scientist/astronaut who "doesn't spend much time around women," is this romance/sci-fi novel's safely tameable semi-alpha male, informing us in the above passage just how awesome "Indiana Jane" Holloway is.
So of course they go on the mission, and find that there is alien intelligence on board the big unmoving ship.
There was some serviceable sci-fi in this novel, as when Jane makes contact with the surviving "crew," and starts to learn about its mission. There are perils aboard the ship, though most of the action is forced by arbitrary authorial fiat or by characters behaving like idiots.
I mean, how likely is it they'd send a first contact team, aboard a thin metal can surrounded by vacuum, to go meet an advanced alien race carrying 9mm pistols? Really? I guess about as likely as the U.S. Air Force deciding that the thing to do with a crashed alien space ship is to start vivisecting the aliens alive. Because no one in the Air Force has ever read a science fiction novel or thought through the ramifications, I guess.
I also found it amusing that the Indian-American scientist has to tell Jane that she's not familiar with Hansel and Gretel because she wasn't raised on Western fairy tales, but then she's the one who explains to a NASA astronaut what "Terran" means.
There's a really purple sex scene, a lot of overwritten dialog with the alien, an unconvincing romance mashed with Dr. Halloway becoming ever more awesome, and finally a To Be Continued. Because they don't even get off the damn ship by the end of the book.
I'd have forgiven the bad writing if the story was great, and I'd have forgiven a story that stretches my suspension of disbelief if the writing was great. But it's amateurish writing and a story with huge plot holes and frequent unbelievable character actions. I didn't quite hate this book, but I did not like it, and it was bad. Will not be reading the sequel.
Also, the author knows jack about linguistics. Googling "monogenesis" and "polygenesis" is not research.
Want to read
December 5, 2014I bought this so fast after reading an interview where author responded to question about romantic subplot in her book like this:
"I don’t understand the controversy here. Nearly every major motion picture and television show, SF or not, contains romantic elements. People in all walks of life become attracted to each other, enamored of each other, all the freaking time…um…daily.
It’s a pretty major element of the human condition. Throughout history, so much of our art—poetry, paintings, music, has been devoted to exploring, understanding and celebrating attraction, lust, and love. CONNECTING with another human being, on a deep and spiritual level, loving that person, body and soul, is something nearly every human craves. Why, then, is it problematic in this particular genre?
I think a better question is this: why does most SF deny the existence of this natural aspect of human interaction? Or: Why is sex used in some SF as a commodity instead of as a connection? Or: Why is rape trivialized so much in fiction? Or: Why does a romantic subplot make a book “girly” and unworthy?
The answers to all of these questions lie in patriarchy, acculturation, entitlement, and hubris. I refuse to kowtow to these elements. Carol Shields said, “Write the book you want to read, the one you cannot find.” That’s all I did. I’ll learn all I can from criticism of my work, but this is one area where I will not bend.
*lifts the mighty hammer of feminism and hoists it to my back*"
February 9, 2017
I may be taking a bit of a different view on just who is the main character of this tale.
I'm sure most people will latch on to the leading female for her guts or supposedly for her language abilities which get nullified by the oncoming story. At least I agree that one complaint is valid against this tale: I expected a first contact story with an actual deduction of language and communication. Isn't it right in the title?
Alas, no. We get a high-tech pill solution, but I got over that really quickly because the tale was taking me some very interesting places.
Dreams, old civilizations, a wealth of technology at your fingertips, space-travel... even becoming a visceral part of a spaceship. That stuff is awesome, and I dug it, man. :)
So other than her and her slow-burn romantic interest who she saves on occasion, then just WHO IS THE MAIN CHARACTER?
It's the Alien Navigator. :) He's got a real personality on him. He's behind everything. Utterly everything. I can't help but be fascinated and impressed at the nature and scope of his lies and how willing he is to DO WHATEVER IS NECESSARY to achieve his goals. :) He really did have to get very creative, and I think I feel closest to him out of all the characters. :) He's the real star of the show. :)
Maybe it's just me! :) But I really enjoyed the hell out of my squiddy friend.
I'm sure most people will latch on to the leading female for her guts or supposedly for her language abilities which get nullified by the oncoming story. At least I agree that one complaint is valid against this tale: I expected a first contact story with an actual deduction of language and communication. Isn't it right in the title?
Alas, no. We get a high-tech pill solution, but I got over that really quickly because the tale was taking me some very interesting places.
Dreams, old civilizations, a wealth of technology at your fingertips, space-travel... even becoming a visceral part of a spaceship. That stuff is awesome, and I dug it, man. :)
So other than her and her slow-burn romantic interest who she saves on occasion, then just WHO IS THE MAIN CHARACTER?
It's the Alien Navigator. :) He's got a real personality on him. He's behind everything. Utterly everything. I can't help but be fascinated and impressed at the nature and scope of his lies and how willing he is to DO WHATEVER IS NECESSARY to achieve his goals. :) He really did have to get very creative, and I think I feel closest to him out of all the characters. :) He's the real star of the show. :)
Maybe it's just me! :) But I really enjoyed the hell out of my squiddy friend.
December 5, 2014
This book has it all! Clumsy writing! Bad science! Weak character development! Dumb, over-used cliches! If you're hungry for a book that un-ironically uses the Roswell/Area 51 incident as "backstory" and looks like it was never proof-read, this is for you!
Seriously though don't read this book. The writing is TERRIBLE, both technically and stylistically. And the story and details are deeply dumb--aliens using Linnean taxonomy, a "deep genetic language" that is mostly half-assed Latin, NASA scientists who are unbelievably laughable.
Steer clear. There's nothing interesting or new here.
Seriously though don't read this book. The writing is TERRIBLE, both technically and stylistically. And the story and details are deeply dumb--aliens using Linnean taxonomy, a "deep genetic language" that is mostly half-assed Latin, NASA scientists who are unbelievably laughable.
Steer clear. There's nothing interesting or new here.
January 3, 2018
This was an entertaining first contact novel. Sure, there are a great deal of first contact novels, but this had enough of a different take to feel fresh. I enjoyed the plot and action from this novel. A lot happens and the details around the alien ship are interesting. The author does great work with medical particulars, which went a long way in pulling me into the story. The action is good and there were enough twists and turns to keep me interested throughout. I loved having a female protagonist with an interesting backstory.
I will say that there was a romantic element in the middle of the book that didn’t quite work for me. I don’t mind a bit of romance in my sci-fi story, but honestly it felt forced. Author Wells is at her strongest describing action and moving a very interesting plot along. The romance felt contrived and out of place. The romance portions seemed to be more ‘tell’ than ‘show’ and largely came on strong in a few points in the story. I would have rather the author subtlety show us the growing attraction between the characters, rather than hit us over the head with overt thoughts and narrative.
This book is the first in a series and another where I thought the author did a nice job in resolving the plot of this story fully, while setting up the series. I’m interested in the next book, which received even stronger reviews, but I do have a very full TBR pile – hopefully sometime in 2018!
All in all, a very enjoyable first contract story with an imaginative plot and strong action. The author shines more with technical descriptions and action than character development and relationships, but still a fun, interesting science fiction tale!
I will say that there was a romantic element in the middle of the book that didn’t quite work for me. I don’t mind a bit of romance in my sci-fi story, but honestly it felt forced. Author Wells is at her strongest describing action and moving a very interesting plot along. The romance felt contrived and out of place. The romance portions seemed to be more ‘tell’ than ‘show’ and largely came on strong in a few points in the story. I would have rather the author subtlety show us the growing attraction between the characters, rather than hit us over the head with overt thoughts and narrative.
This book is the first in a series and another where I thought the author did a nice job in resolving the plot of this story fully, while setting up the series. I’m interested in the next book, which received even stronger reviews, but I do have a very full TBR pile – hopefully sometime in 2018!
All in all, a very enjoyable first contract story with an imaginative plot and strong action. The author shines more with technical descriptions and action than character development and relationships, but still a fun, interesting science fiction tale!
July 26, 2014
This is a toughie for me because this book has things I like. I love the idea of modern astronauts exploring an alien spacecraft way out in the solar system. Thats cool beans.
However the exploration itself turns out to be rather...uneventful? The ship is abandoned so its not like there's any intelligent aliens to interact with aside from the navigator alien who seizes the protagonist in a telepathic mind grip the instant she steps on board.
Theres two problems the crew has to face, neither of which they can solve and both of which they essentially fall prey to. First, is some species of space pest which is what eventually drives them off the ship. The second is some nanite disease which they can do nothing about.
From the perspective of the other crew members, exclusing the protagonist and her love interest, this was probably the most boring trip to a derelict alien spacecraft ever since literally all of the cool interactions and events take place within the mind of Jane.
All they do is stand around looking stupidly at the metal walls until some alien bugs try to kill them, at which point they run away.
Another big problem I had with the book was the author's opinion on humanity. Apparently it is within our nature to destroy anything we come across? An alien shuttle crash lands on Earth. The result? Of course we kill all of them and dissect them. Of course we are evil evil evil and also mind numbingly stupid beyond description. Oh except for Jane who is above all that for some reason.
And of course one of these 'shoot now dissect later' types is the commander of the mission and of course he abandons logic in the middle of the mission because he got spooked.
Its just a tad stereotypical. Not much unexpected happened really.
But my biggest complaint was the ending, or in this case the total lack thereof. Nothing is resolved. The mission is not concluded. The fate of the crew is not decided. We learn nothing more about galactic background plot. Not even the romance aspect of the book is resolved. The book just terminates in an extremely jarring manner, in a way that I assume is meant to indicate that readers should await the sequel to achieve any semblance of resolution in this story.
Its OK to have a cliffhanger in preparation for a sequel. But to resolve nothing and end the book in so awkward a way is really not OK.
However the exploration itself turns out to be rather...uneventful? The ship is abandoned so its not like there's any intelligent aliens to interact with aside from the navigator alien who seizes the protagonist in a telepathic mind grip the instant she steps on board.
Theres two problems the crew has to face, neither of which they can solve and both of which they essentially fall prey to. First, is some species of space pest which is what eventually drives them off the ship. The second is some nanite disease which they can do nothing about.
From the perspective of the other crew members, exclusing the protagonist and her love interest, this was probably the most boring trip to a derelict alien spacecraft ever since literally all of the cool interactions and events take place within the mind of Jane.
All they do is stand around looking stupidly at the metal walls until some alien bugs try to kill them, at which point they run away.
Another big problem I had with the book was the author's opinion on humanity. Apparently it is within our nature to destroy anything we come across? An alien shuttle crash lands on Earth. The result? Of course we kill all of them and dissect them. Of course we are evil evil evil and also mind numbingly stupid beyond description. Oh except for Jane who is above all that for some reason.
And of course one of these 'shoot now dissect later' types is the commander of the mission and of course he abandons logic in the middle of the mission because he got spooked.
Its just a tad stereotypical. Not much unexpected happened really.
But my biggest complaint was the ending, or in this case the total lack thereof. Nothing is resolved. The mission is not concluded. The fate of the crew is not decided. We learn nothing more about galactic background plot. Not even the romance aspect of the book is resolved. The book just terminates in an extremely jarring manner, in a way that I assume is meant to indicate that readers should await the sequel to achieve any semblance of resolution in this story.
Its OK to have a cliffhanger in preparation for a sequel. But to resolve nothing and end the book in so awkward a way is really not OK.
September 19, 2016
I was surprised at the number of mean-spirited reviews tallied for this novel by Jennifer Foehner Wells. I mean, how dare she categorize a book under SF&F>Science Fiction>Military>Space Fleet and include a romantic element to the story. That is not to say there aren't a lot of positive reviews, but, wow, the pot shots. I admittedly came at this book from the Romance>Science Fiction angle. Clearly we romance readers are a kinder, gentler crowd.
Ironically, I found the romance lacking, but the aeronautics, engineering and biology aspects of the book were absorbing. Was it accurate? I don't know and I don't care. This is a fantasy novel. It was engrossing, imaginative, lightly philosophical and action-packed. In a gender-bender of an action story, we get to see Jane kicking alien butt and carrying studly but unconscious Dr. Bergen away to safety. Linguist Jane rapidly ascends to being in charge of the mission due to her special skills, unique cognitive abilities and humanity.
A lot of the naysayers of this book take it to task for the way in which the military head of the mission, Walsh, was unprofessional and irrational. I interpreted it more as JFW pulling from the James Cameron canon of thought in movies such as Aliens, The Abyss or Avatar. In some ways, it felt like NASA set up the linguist on the team, Dr. Jane Holloway, to be the sacrificial lamb once they arrived at Target. Well, she surprised Walsh, the rest of the team, and herself. Fluency is the story of the birth of a leader.
A lot happens in this book, but there is such a good suspense factor that I don't want to spoil it. The spookiest alien movies swell the tension just before the hatch opens, and the best sequences penned by JFW are when the team first docks and explores the alien vessel. These early chapters are technical and tight, and filled with anxiety, gore and emotion. The author even manages to fluidly set up the attraction between Dr. Jane and Dr. Alan even in the middle of....well, I don't want to say. For the romance readers, I will note that this book is sci-fi heavy, with the romance taking up roughly 40% of the narrative.
There is an abrupt ending, but it isn't necessarily a giant cliffhanger. It reminds me of a season-ending episode of a TV series that teases a new thread for the fall premiere. I tuned in to Remanence.
Ironically, I found the romance lacking, but the aeronautics, engineering and biology aspects of the book were absorbing. Was it accurate? I don't know and I don't care. This is a fantasy novel. It was engrossing, imaginative, lightly philosophical and action-packed. In a gender-bender of an action story, we get to see Jane kicking alien butt and carrying studly but unconscious Dr. Bergen away to safety. Linguist Jane rapidly ascends to being in charge of the mission due to her special skills, unique cognitive abilities and humanity.
A lot of the naysayers of this book take it to task for the way in which the military head of the mission, Walsh, was unprofessional and irrational. I interpreted it more as JFW pulling from the James Cameron canon of thought in movies such as Aliens, The Abyss or Avatar. In some ways, it felt like NASA set up the linguist on the team, Dr. Jane Holloway, to be the sacrificial lamb once they arrived at Target. Well, she surprised Walsh, the rest of the team, and herself. Fluency is the story of the birth of a leader.
A lot happens in this book, but there is such a good suspense factor that I don't want to spoil it. The spookiest alien movies swell the tension just before the hatch opens, and the best sequences penned by JFW are when the team first docks and explores the alien vessel. These early chapters are technical and tight, and filled with anxiety, gore and emotion. The author even manages to fluidly set up the attraction between Dr. Jane and Dr. Alan even in the middle of....well, I don't want to say. For the romance readers, I will note that this book is sci-fi heavy, with the romance taking up roughly 40% of the narrative.
There is an abrupt ending, but it isn't necessarily a giant cliffhanger. It reminds me of a season-ending episode of a TV series that teases a new thread for the fall premiere. I tuned in to Remanence.
July 11, 2017
First Contact. Humans meeting extraterrestrial life for the first time. It's a great setup, ripe with tension, conflict and the potential for the exploration of what it means to be human in a big universe.
I love a good first contact story, and Fluency is... well, it's a passable first contact story.
The novel centers around the exploration of a derelict spaceship in our asteroid belt, a vehicle that NASA has known about for decades, but has been unable to reach. When it is discovered that the strange ship is in the path of a comet an expedition is launched, comprised of the best and brightest NASA astronauts and a world-renowned linguist Dr. Jane Holloway. Holloway (the central character) is a linguistic prodigy and her role in the mission is to manage first contact.
When the team reach the ship it is derelict and empty, or at least it seems so until Holloway collapses and finds her mind being telepathically engaged by the sole remaining E.T on the ship - the ships navigator - a being who has been stranded alone for decades. Holloway must then race to convince her colleagues that she is still sane and that the navigator is no threat to them while they deal with a dangerously decaying alien ship and the malevolent forces that killed the vessel's original crew.
While juggling all this she also has to face her attraction to a fellow crew member, and their budding romance... (A gruff voice cuts in) Sorry? What? Romance? In Science Fiction!? Scandalous! In my day the only romance in SF was between a grizzled, time-travelling space marine and Betty, his 40-kilowatt plasma rifle...
If that was your reaction to the revelation that this novel includes romance, then I recommend you avoid this book. (Perhaps it should carry a warning, to alert readers to the presence of pining, heartache and aching loins.) A few reviewers have complained about the romance aspects of Fluency, but I had no real issue with it. Romance happens, even if it doesn't happen much in SF, and the budding relationship in Fluency doesn't dominate the story.
What does detract from the story is one major deus ex, and a general lack of tension.
The Deus ex occurs early on in the story when the main character, due to her experience with languages, is able to spontaneously understand the alien language used on board (In both written and aural form). I didn't buy this, or the hokey explanation of all species sharing some sort of proto-language deep in their DNA or whatever that underpinned it. Rather, it seemed a very obvious structural requirement for the story to progress- a way to maneuver Holloway into being able to quickly communicate with the alien navigator.
This lack of tension is most obvious when the NASA team are assaulted by a horde of vicious alien beasts that resemble a sort of dog/scorpion/Predator hybrid. While these beasts are literally tearing strips off the crew in what should be a terrifying life-and-death battle the main character has time to amusingly reflect mid-combat on a scene from . This was cute, but the crew might as well have been popping off a few lazy rounds at the local shooting range for all the tension that there was in this scene.
Despite all this I didn't hate Fluency or even really dislike it. The story rattles along and doesn't stall too often, and the relationship between Holloway and the ship's sole resident alien is kinda fun. I don't know if I'd recommend this book, but I think Wells has potential, and I'm curious to see where she goes with her sequel.
2.5 Stars
I love a good first contact story, and Fluency is... well, it's a passable first contact story.
The novel centers around the exploration of a derelict spaceship in our asteroid belt, a vehicle that NASA has known about for decades, but has been unable to reach. When it is discovered that the strange ship is in the path of a comet an expedition is launched, comprised of the best and brightest NASA astronauts and a world-renowned linguist Dr. Jane Holloway. Holloway (the central character) is a linguistic prodigy and her role in the mission is to manage first contact.
When the team reach the ship it is derelict and empty, or at least it seems so until Holloway collapses and finds her mind being telepathically engaged by the sole remaining E.T on the ship - the ships navigator - a being who has been stranded alone for decades. Holloway must then race to convince her colleagues that she is still sane and that the navigator is no threat to them while they deal with a dangerously decaying alien ship and the malevolent forces that killed the vessel's original crew.
While juggling all this she also has to face her attraction to a fellow crew member, and their budding romance... (A gruff voice cuts in) Sorry? What? Romance? In Science Fiction!? Scandalous! In my day the only romance in SF was between a grizzled, time-travelling space marine and Betty, his 40-kilowatt plasma rifle...
If that was your reaction to the revelation that this novel includes romance, then I recommend you avoid this book. (Perhaps it should carry a warning, to alert readers to the presence of pining, heartache and aching loins.) A few reviewers have complained about the romance aspects of Fluency, but I had no real issue with it. Romance happens, even if it doesn't happen much in SF, and the budding relationship in Fluency doesn't dominate the story.
What does detract from the story is one major deus ex, and a general lack of tension.
The Deus ex occurs early on in the story when the main character, due to her experience with languages, is able to spontaneously understand the alien language used on board (In both written and aural form). I didn't buy this, or the hokey explanation of all species sharing some sort of proto-language deep in their DNA or whatever that underpinned it. Rather, it seemed a very obvious structural requirement for the story to progress- a way to maneuver Holloway into being able to quickly communicate with the alien navigator.
This lack of tension is most obvious when the NASA team are assaulted by a horde of vicious alien beasts that resemble a sort of dog/scorpion/Predator hybrid. While these beasts are literally tearing strips off the crew in what should be a terrifying life-and-death battle the main character has time to amusingly reflect mid-combat on a scene from . This was cute, but the crew might as well have been popping off a few lazy rounds at the local shooting range for all the tension that there was in this scene.
Despite all this I didn't hate Fluency or even really dislike it. The story rattles along and doesn't stall too often, and the relationship between Holloway and the ship's sole resident alien is kinda fun. I don't know if I'd recommend this book, but I think Wells has potential, and I'm curious to see where she goes with her sequel.
2.5 Stars
February 26, 2015
I've given up on this book just shy of halfway through. Let me just say; there's nothing wrong with a romantic subplot, but when I'm constantly whacked in the face with it in a story that wasn't even remotely categorized as a romance, I get a little irritated. I got about as far as the characters being forced to shower together to "conserve resources," which resulted in unwanted erections and conversations about them, and then I gave up. This is not the book I wanted or expected to read when I checked this out.
January 24, 2019
Fluency by Jennifer Foehner Wells and narrated by Susanna Burney is absolutely fabulous! A mix of characters on the way to an alien spaceship only to find it not how they expected. The crew member they brought to learn and communicate with the aliens actually succeeds but not in the way anyone expected! So many twists and turns! Is the alien friend or foe? So exciting! I want to follow this series!
The narration really brought this book together! Wonderful job!
The narration really brought this book together! Wonderful job!
October 27, 2014
- Cliché after a cliché.
- Really bad dialogues.
- A story that can be an episode of cheap sci-fi series.
- Characters act like kids.
I got the book for less than a dollar at amazon and I feel that I paid too much. Flipped through 60% of the book. No idea why somebody will read it.
- Really bad dialogues.
- A story that can be an episode of cheap sci-fi series.
- Characters act like kids.
I got the book for less than a dollar at amazon and I feel that I paid too much. Flipped through 60% of the book. No idea why somebody will read it.
May 29, 2015
4.5 Stars
I've seen this one around for a while, but initially dismissed it as hard scifi, so didn't look twice. Then I heard it was more character based, with a romantic aspect and a female protag, so I thought, let's give it a shot. I'm glad I did.
This is definitely half scifi, half romance. Which has surprised some reviewers, I think. Told from two POV's, Alan Bergen and Jane Holloway (who reminds me of Katherine Janeway from Voyager, for some reason). I adore Alan's voice, and really enjoyed reading the chapters from his POV, but I like conflicted male characters, so this was always going to be a winner for me. Jane is a great female lead who struggles in her role, but is inherently brave.
The secondary characters I didn't really care about, and not a great deal of time is spent on fleshing them out, but I didn't have a problem with that.
The ship.
It did end rather abruptly, and I see other reviewers asking for a sequel. This story is wrapped up, with questions left hanging for future books. It's not a cliffhanger, per se.
So, overall, a really good character based read with some romance, action, space bugs, hungry aliens, and cool spaceships. What more could you need in a good space opera?
I've seen this one around for a while, but initially dismissed it as hard scifi, so didn't look twice. Then I heard it was more character based, with a romantic aspect and a female protag, so I thought, let's give it a shot. I'm glad I did.
This is definitely half scifi, half romance. Which has surprised some reviewers, I think. Told from two POV's, Alan Bergen and Jane Holloway (who reminds me of Katherine Janeway from Voyager, for some reason). I adore Alan's voice, and really enjoyed reading the chapters from his POV, but I like conflicted male characters, so this was always going to be a winner for me. Jane is a great female lead who struggles in her role, but is inherently brave.
The secondary characters I didn't really care about, and not a great deal of time is spent on fleshing them out, but I didn't have a problem with that.
The ship.
It did end rather abruptly, and I see other reviewers asking for a sequel. This story is wrapped up, with questions left hanging for future books. It's not a cliffhanger, per se.
So, overall, a really good character based read with some romance, action, space bugs, hungry aliens, and cool spaceships. What more could you need in a good space opera?
December 9, 2014
I picked up Fluency on a recommendation from Rachel Bach's blog. She was raving about and it was only 2$ or something so I figured I'd give it a try. I'm glad I did.
The book was immediately engaging and super creepy. The first chapter starts the story off with lots of suspense. As the main characters approach an alien space ship after travelling for months, they dock to find it empty. When something turns on the lights and gravity for them, things start to get weird.
The main character of the book is a linguist, sent with the exploration crew to try and communicate with any sentient alien life forms they happen to find. I loved this premise. I kinda wished the remainder of the story had more of this, but Jane really catches on quick.
After the initial suspenseful boarding of the ship and the setup of the characters, things get crazy. The story becomes a fast paced thriller with a bit of added romance.
I thought the romance was fun, but for me it wasn't setup in a way that felt completely genuine. Perhaps because the build up of the romance was told mostly through Alan's point of view. I was surprised when Jane felt the same way. Perhaps it's because I pictured Alan as a creepy engineer. I work as a software engineer and it's rare to find a non-creepy engineer so I might be biased.
I'm super looking forward to the next book though and highly recommend this one!
The book was immediately engaging and super creepy. The first chapter starts the story off with lots of suspense. As the main characters approach an alien space ship after travelling for months, they dock to find it empty. When something turns on the lights and gravity for them, things start to get weird.
The main character of the book is a linguist, sent with the exploration crew to try and communicate with any sentient alien life forms they happen to find. I loved this premise. I kinda wished the remainder of the story had more of this, but Jane really catches on quick.
After the initial suspenseful boarding of the ship and the setup of the characters, things get crazy. The story becomes a fast paced thriller with a bit of added romance.
I thought the romance was fun, but for me it wasn't setup in a way that felt completely genuine. Perhaps because the build up of the romance was told mostly through Alan's point of view. I was surprised when Jane felt the same way. Perhaps it's because I pictured Alan as a creepy engineer. I work as a software engineer and it's rare to find a non-creepy engineer so I might be biased.
I'm super looking forward to the next book though and highly recommend this one!
June 19, 2018
I rarely fail to finish books I start. I made one of my rare exceptions for 'Fluency'. I might have invested more effort in getting past the first 100 pages if I had paid for the book instead of borrowing it, but I doubt it.
Fluency reads as if Wells meticulously designed her characters to irritate me- each is basically a tired high school character trope (the jock, the boy-nerd, the girl-nerd, etc...) who has for some inexplicable reason been recruited for a mission of incredible importance. None of these characters has the depth or intelligence (or perspective, perhaps) that, for instance, Ann Leckie brings to her creations in the 'Ancillary' series. Even Leckie's most (deliberately) annoying character (the junkie Seivarden) is better developed than Wells's protagonists.
So 'Fluency' is a pretty lame book from what I managed to read, and I recommend that no one read it. Unless they read it in the attempt to create a spin-off, comedic fan fiction about a bunch of stupid high school students sent on a mission to save the world and one of them is a stupid telepath. In which case, you have to cite me.
Fluency reads as if Wells meticulously designed her characters to irritate me- each is basically a tired high school character trope (the jock, the boy-nerd, the girl-nerd, etc...) who has for some inexplicable reason been recruited for a mission of incredible importance. None of these characters has the depth or intelligence (or perspective, perhaps) that, for instance, Ann Leckie brings to her creations in the 'Ancillary' series. Even Leckie's most (deliberately) annoying character (the junkie Seivarden) is better developed than Wells's protagonists.
So 'Fluency' is a pretty lame book from what I managed to read, and I recommend that no one read it. Unless they read it in the attempt to create a spin-off, comedic fan fiction about a bunch of stupid high school students sent on a mission to save the world and one of them is a stupid telepath. In which case, you have to cite me.
Shelved as 'dnf'
June 17, 2015DNF 57%
This was boring. I was bored.
This was boring. I was bored.
Shelved as 'never-finished'
March 13, 2018Remember when you were a kid and you mixed all your favorite paint colors together and were disappointed when it turned into a muddy mess? That's Fluency. Too many good things.
Small team of people exploring a mysterious space ship
First Contact
Romance
Crazy team leader who see conspiracies around every corner
Mysterious and deadly alien disease
Telepathy
Unlocking humanity's potential
Humanity is the only possible savior of the galaxy
Inter stellar war against... insects!
Small team of people left on an empty spaceship...
Too much. I finally gave up because the weight of all these themes. Pick one or two and you'd have had a lovely story. Put these all together and you get a heavy, muddy mess. Too bad, the writing was good and the characters reasonably interesting. There's just TOO MUCH.
Small team of people exploring a mysterious space ship
First Contact
Romance
Crazy team leader who see conspiracies around every corner
Mysterious and deadly alien disease
Telepathy
Unlocking humanity's potential
Humanity is the only possible savior of the galaxy
Inter stellar war against... insects!
Small team of people left on an empty spaceship...
Too much. I finally gave up because the weight of all these themes. Pick one or two and you'd have had a lovely story. Put these all together and you get a heavy, muddy mess. Too bad, the writing was good and the characters reasonably interesting. There's just TOO MUCH.
August 15, 2014
This - this book, this author - is why I started reading science fiction 45 years ago. Jennifer Foehner Wells has gifted the reading public with a work that has everything good science fiction should. There's adventure, exploration of alien technology, and new science. But in "Fluency," as in the best science fiction, the reader is given context for all of the SFX stage dressings with social interactions and well-developed three-dimensional characters.
December 1, 2016
Free/over-priced for Prime members. DNF @ 68%. I can't get past the bad writing far enough to comment on the story.
September 15, 2014
Fluency by Jennifer Foehner Wells is what 2001: A Space Odyssey would’ve been if the monolith had actually talked to the crew.
NASA has known about an alien spaceship parked in the Asteroid Belt since the 1960s but has kept the information from the public. All efforts to establish radio contact have been met with silence. In the early 21st century, NASA finally develops the technology required to send six astronauts to the ship to discover its secrets.
Dr. Jane Holloway is a linguist and a reluctant astronaut recruited by NASA to communicate with any possible aliens. As soon as their capsule docks with the mysterious ship, she begins to hear voices. She not only has a hard time convincing herself they are real, but most of her crew as well.
When the mission takes a disturbing turn that not even the highly trained astronauts are prepared for, it’s Jane’s connection to the ship that becomes their only hope for survival.
Fluency was a finely written derelict spaceship story. Wells’ style and language are beautiful and descriptive without relying on cliché. Wells does not overly explain the science behind the ship's gadgets, but gives us just enough to make them all seem plausible without bogging the story down.
I liked how the alien cultures that the ship reveals to Jane Holloway sounded very different from one another, even among individuals within a species. Too many sci-fi stories depict aliens as one monolithic culture where all individuals share the same values. I prefer my aliens to be, well, more human and unique between individuals. Besides drone-like insectoid aliens, that just seems more realistic to me and Wells does a fine job of it in this book.
I only had some minor nit-picks. The main characters ruminated too much for my taste, making me skip pages at a time to get back to the action. I also thought the ending was too abrupt; I got the feeling I had just read the opening chapter of a longer work rather than a complete work in itself. Fluency's sub-title is "Confluence Book 1," so this was obviously by design, but I'm not a fan of the style.
Fluency is Wells' debut novel and an impressive effort that I enjoyed. It hit all the right notes that a derelict spaceship story should hit. The novel only hints at the strange galaxy awaiting humanity, so I look forward to the alien wonders that Wells introduces us to in the sequel.
NASA has known about an alien spaceship parked in the Asteroid Belt since the 1960s but has kept the information from the public. All efforts to establish radio contact have been met with silence. In the early 21st century, NASA finally develops the technology required to send six astronauts to the ship to discover its secrets.
Dr. Jane Holloway is a linguist and a reluctant astronaut recruited by NASA to communicate with any possible aliens. As soon as their capsule docks with the mysterious ship, she begins to hear voices. She not only has a hard time convincing herself they are real, but most of her crew as well.
When the mission takes a disturbing turn that not even the highly trained astronauts are prepared for, it’s Jane’s connection to the ship that becomes their only hope for survival.
Fluency was a finely written derelict spaceship story. Wells’ style and language are beautiful and descriptive without relying on cliché. Wells does not overly explain the science behind the ship's gadgets, but gives us just enough to make them all seem plausible without bogging the story down.
I liked how the alien cultures that the ship reveals to Jane Holloway sounded very different from one another, even among individuals within a species. Too many sci-fi stories depict aliens as one monolithic culture where all individuals share the same values. I prefer my aliens to be, well, more human and unique between individuals. Besides drone-like insectoid aliens, that just seems more realistic to me and Wells does a fine job of it in this book.
I only had some minor nit-picks. The main characters ruminated too much for my taste, making me skip pages at a time to get back to the action. I also thought the ending was too abrupt; I got the feeling I had just read the opening chapter of a longer work rather than a complete work in itself. Fluency's sub-title is "Confluence Book 1," so this was obviously by design, but I'm not a fan of the style.
Fluency is Wells' debut novel and an impressive effort that I enjoyed. It hit all the right notes that a derelict spaceship story should hit. The novel only hints at the strange galaxy awaiting humanity, so I look forward to the alien wonders that Wells introduces us to in the sequel.
October 21, 2017
True rating 3.5
Read for the Frisco Dead and Unread book club
This book very much feels and reads like a YA novel despite most characters being 30+. In particular the male characters in this book are moody, irrational, and very childish. These are supposed to be NASA trained astronauts who have spent years planning and training and they act like they are on a playground fighting over the teeter-totter.
I found the beginning of the book extremely unbelievable. First contact plot line. No military involvement or knowledge of the ship in question that we are approaching. Also you are gonna send an engineer who is 1 out of 108 candidates to possibly go on this space mission to try to recruit your #1 choice linguist because all the big wigs are out wining and dining other candidates. Seriously? (The author just wanted the characters to meet and it makes no sense) I really really had to suspend reality for a while. Again everyone is supposed to be extremely intelligent, but their thought processes and speech are so crass.
I will say once they board the derelict space ship they have been sent to explore it gets a bit interesting. There is an alien navigator aboard who reminds me greatly of Pilot from Farscape. He communicates with our main character, Jane, (special snowflake) through telepathy. She is the only one with the right mind for communication. I found it interesting to watch the way she was manipulated as well as the perceived threats from her crew. Both threats to her well being and threats to themselves.
There isn’t much action in the book sadly. I would have liked to have seen a bit more. The book spent more time mooning over Alan and Jane’s fantasies about each other than anything else. I typically go for a bit of romance in novels but I’m not sure what to make of their relationship. We get to see their relationship through both main character’s thoughts and they want the same things they just can’t seem to get it together.
The ending doesn’t really leave you on a cliff hanger, but it doesn’t seem to finish the story per-say. So many things are left unresolved. I guess we can assume they get taken care of? But it feels like we are waiting on some major decisions at the end that don’t get made.
While I’m not a fan of the writing style, the story reads fast and I’m curious to know what will happen in the next book. It just feels so unfinished that I have to read on.
Read for the Frisco Dead and Unread book club
This book very much feels and reads like a YA novel despite most characters being 30+. In particular the male characters in this book are moody, irrational, and very childish. These are supposed to be NASA trained astronauts who have spent years planning and training and they act like they are on a playground fighting over the teeter-totter.
I found the beginning of the book extremely unbelievable. First contact plot line. No military involvement or knowledge of the ship in question that we are approaching. Also you are gonna send an engineer who is 1 out of 108 candidates to possibly go on this space mission to try to recruit your #1 choice linguist because all the big wigs are out wining and dining other candidates. Seriously? (The author just wanted the characters to meet and it makes no sense) I really really had to suspend reality for a while. Again everyone is supposed to be extremely intelligent, but their thought processes and speech are so crass.
I will say once they board the derelict space ship they have been sent to explore it gets a bit interesting. There is an alien navigator aboard who reminds me greatly of Pilot from Farscape. He communicates with our main character, Jane, (special snowflake) through telepathy. She is the only one with the right mind for communication. I found it interesting to watch the way she was manipulated as well as the perceived threats from her crew. Both threats to her well being and threats to themselves.
There isn’t much action in the book sadly. I would have liked to have seen a bit more. The book spent more time mooning over Alan and Jane’s fantasies about each other than anything else. I typically go for a bit of romance in novels but I’m not sure what to make of their relationship. We get to see their relationship through both main character’s thoughts and they want the same things they just can’t seem to get it together.
The ending doesn’t really leave you on a cliff hanger, but it doesn’t seem to finish the story per-say. So many things are left unresolved. I guess we can assume they get taken care of? But it feels like we are waiting on some major decisions at the end that don’t get made.
While I’m not a fan of the writing style, the story reads fast and I’m curious to know what will happen in the next book. It just feels so unfinished that I have to read on.
January 14, 2019
Jane gets asked to go on a mission to space because she has a talent for languages and they are going to a spaceship that NASA has been looking at for awhile that is going to soon be obliterated by an asteroid. They think it has no inhabitants but either way she will be useful because if they are wrong, well she can help them communicate and if they are right there will still be stuff to decipher on it. She initially is hesitant to go but ends up going. Alan is the one they send to ask her to go. There is one alien aboard when they get there. They being Jane, Alan, Mark, Varma and Tom. They make the long trip in a tiny capsule.
I loved the characters. I immediately fell in love with Jane and over time the rest of them too. I loved Jane's character arc! The writing was very accessible and I found it to flow well. It is not hard sci-fi, so if that's what you are looking for i'm sorry to say this isn't it. But if that's cool with you and the blurb sounds interesting i'd give it a shot!
I didn't know going in that there was a romance, it's not just a romance, there are sci-fi elements and a plot with the alien and dangers on the ship as well. The romance felt to me like a rom-com, it was freaking hilarious at times! Stuff got more serious (I mean with the plot and stuff in general) as the book went on and there were several OMG moments.
It kept my interest. Had me laughing at times and biting my nails so to speak other times. Made me fall in love with characters. Had some interesting little tidbits and food for thought. I thoroughly fell in love with it and I can't wait to continue the series!
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I loved the characters. I immediately fell in love with Jane and over time the rest of them too. I loved Jane's character arc! The writing was very accessible and I found it to flow well. It is not hard sci-fi, so if that's what you are looking for i'm sorry to say this isn't it. But if that's cool with you and the blurb sounds interesting i'd give it a shot!
I didn't know going in that there was a romance, it's not just a romance, there are sci-fi elements and a plot with the alien and dangers on the ship as well. The romance felt to me like a rom-com, it was freaking hilarious at times! Stuff got more serious (I mean with the plot and stuff in general) as the book went on and there were several OMG moments.
It kept my interest. Had me laughing at times and biting my nails so to speak other times. Made me fall in love with characters. Had some interesting little tidbits and food for thought. I thoroughly fell in love with it and I can't wait to continue the series!
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January 9, 2024
I have a lot of mixed feelings on this one, so buckle up and listen well.
I LOVE 💜 romance in my sci-fi. That's why I picked this book up; I heard it was sci-fromance. After reading it, I would say that this book is about 70% scifi, 30% romance.
There are lots of negative reviews complaining about the existence of romance here. Partly, that's fair, because the blurb and marketing categories do not advertise the romance, and so it could come as a shock. However, that's also deeply unfair, because romance belongs in the sci-fi genre, and to say that it doesn't is an argument with roots in sexism. It doesn't need to be in every book, but the existence of romance doesn't make a sci-fi book inherently broken.
And yet, a lot of my review is going to be complaining about the romance. Because it was not executed well. That's what I came into this book looking for, and I was disappointed.
I loved the first half of this book!!! We had high stakes first contact, intriguing exploration of a spaceship, and flirting! It was when the romance started to progress past flirting that I stopped loving it. We jump from coworkers-that-flirt to a sex scene way too quickly, with the couple not stopping to discuss their blossoming relationship. What's more, the sex scene is twisted in a way that makes the consent dubious at best, and not actually moving the romance forward at all.
In an interview, the author defended the existence of romance in this book. She said, "I think a better question is this: why does most SF deny the existence of this natural aspect of human interaction? Or: Why is sex used in some SF as a commodity instead of as a connection? Or: Why is rape trivialized so much in fiction? Or: Why does a romantic subplot make a book “girly” and unworthy?"
I agree with all of those points! I want to shout them from the rooftops! But this book did not support those points. The sex here was a commodity and a manipulation, not a source of romantic connection. It was a type of rape, and it was swept under the rug and trivialized.
The romance in this book utterly failed, and I'm so sad about that. It wasn't romantic, and didn't get any good progress or resolution.
What's more, is that the scifi plot is not strong enough to carry the book. It has a really strong beginning, but bungles the end. Very little is wrapped up or truly addressed, and it feels like it's just leaving everything dangling for a sequel that I don't think I'll read.
I LOVE 💜 romance in my sci-fi. That's why I picked this book up; I heard it was sci-fromance. After reading it, I would say that this book is about 70% scifi, 30% romance.
There are lots of negative reviews complaining about the existence of romance here. Partly, that's fair, because the blurb and marketing categories do not advertise the romance, and so it could come as a shock. However, that's also deeply unfair, because romance belongs in the sci-fi genre, and to say that it doesn't is an argument with roots in sexism. It doesn't need to be in every book, but the existence of romance doesn't make a sci-fi book inherently broken.
And yet, a lot of my review is going to be complaining about the romance. Because it was not executed well. That's what I came into this book looking for, and I was disappointed.
I loved the first half of this book!!! We had high stakes first contact, intriguing exploration of a spaceship, and flirting! It was when the romance started to progress past flirting that I stopped loving it. We jump from coworkers-that-flirt to a sex scene way too quickly, with the couple not stopping to discuss their blossoming relationship. What's more, the sex scene is twisted in a way that makes the consent dubious at best, and not actually moving the romance forward at all.
In an interview, the author defended the existence of romance in this book. She said, "I think a better question is this: why does most SF deny the existence of this natural aspect of human interaction? Or: Why is sex used in some SF as a commodity instead of as a connection? Or: Why is rape trivialized so much in fiction? Or: Why does a romantic subplot make a book “girly” and unworthy?"
I agree with all of those points! I want to shout them from the rooftops! But this book did not support those points. The sex here was a commodity and a manipulation, not a source of romantic connection. It was a type of rape, and it was swept under the rug and trivialized.
The romance in this book utterly failed, and I'm so sad about that. It wasn't romantic, and didn't get any good progress or resolution.
What's more, is that the scifi plot is not strong enough to carry the book. It has a really strong beginning, but bungles the end. Very little is wrapped up or truly addressed, and it feels like it's just leaving everything dangling for a sequel that I don't think I'll read.
April 30, 2022
Laba sci fi grāmata, manuprāt Marsietis un Hail Mary līmenī, jo pilns ar humoriņu. Taču kaut kur grāmatas otrā pusē sāka noplakt tas foršums, sāka rasties lēta action piegarša. Bet vienalga ar lielu interesi lasīju līdz galam, tāpat arī turpināšu nākamo daļu. Visvairāk man patika tā ķīmija starp abiem galvenajiem varoņiem, uhhhhh... tā situācija dušā, karsti un smieklīgi 😄
August 26, 2014
This was ok. But not great.
It needs an editor to fix some of the sloppy language. People simply speak in a way that's unbelievable in their circumstances. Or the author intrudes with a pop culture reference we didn't need.
We start by having the story fed to us as present-day interspersed with backstory. Then this style gets dropped.
There's a lot that happens in these pages, but nothing really grabbed my attention or made me care too much about the characters. Out of the 6 or 7 characters (see, I forget) only two are realised, the rest are wallpaper, which is a shame. And the author spends a lot of time making other people remind us of how brave and good the main character is (or was) without actually showing it in anything she does.
The middle section is a little muddled with action too. The ship is huge (aren't they all?) but aside from descriptions of rooms being a bit big I didn't really feel it. The fight scene feels a bit like it takes place in a cupboard, and I had a hard time following who was supposed to be in danger. I never felt any concern for the characters.
What lets it down most is the lack of originality. Everything here is something I've read before. Especially the final act.
I'm pretty sure there's going to be a sequel, and I'll probably pick it up, because I'm a big fan of the people-find-an-abandonned-spaceship genre, which is what lead me here to this book in the first place. But I won't expect it to blow me away: I'll expect it to help me pass a day by the pool.
It needs an editor to fix some of the sloppy language. People simply speak in a way that's unbelievable in their circumstances. Or the author intrudes with a pop culture reference we didn't need.
We start by having the story fed to us as present-day interspersed with backstory. Then this style gets dropped.
There's a lot that happens in these pages, but nothing really grabbed my attention or made me care too much about the characters. Out of the 6 or 7 characters (see, I forget) only two are realised, the rest are wallpaper, which is a shame. And the author spends a lot of time making other people remind us of how brave and good the main character is (or was) without actually showing it in anything she does.
The middle section is a little muddled with action too. The ship is huge (aren't they all?) but aside from descriptions of rooms being a bit big I didn't really feel it. The fight scene feels a bit like it takes place in a cupboard, and I had a hard time following who was supposed to be in danger. I never felt any concern for the characters.
What lets it down most is the lack of originality. Everything here is something I've read before. Especially the final act.
I'm pretty sure there's going to be a sequel, and I'll probably pick it up, because I'm a big fan of the people-find-an-abandonned-spaceship genre, which is what lead me here to this book in the first place. But I won't expect it to blow me away: I'll expect it to help me pass a day by the pool.
May 21, 2016
Gee. I'll try to not get swept away with my negative feelings here. Anyways, the main thing you need to know is that this book is not hard science fiction about first contact with aliens, it's a romance. The scifi part is mostly a thin frosting upon a story of a very general hero and heroine wanting to get together.
I have nothing against romance, if it's well written and believable I might even like it. This is not the fact here. It's basically every worst cliche you can find in bad fanfiction piled upon each other for 300+ pages. (Complete with sex dreams, untimely boners, ogling each other's bodies in the shower and people in their midthirties acting like ten year olds).
And it's badly written. Oh so badly written. Why did I bother reading this if I hate it so much? BECAUSE I STUPIDLY BOUGHT THIS BOOK WITHOUT READING ANY REVIEWS. I thought there was no way you could ruin a plot about the discovery of a derelict alien spaceship. I was wrong. I'll never ever buy a book again without reading some reviews, I've learned my lesson.
As for the book I bought? It's in the trash can. It's the second book in my 34 years of life that has ended up this way. I don't want to sell it or give it away because I don't want to expose anyone else to this abomination.
I have nothing against romance, if it's well written and believable I might even like it. This is not the fact here. It's basically every worst cliche you can find in bad fanfiction piled upon each other for 300+ pages. (Complete with sex dreams, untimely boners, ogling each other's bodies in the shower and people in their midthirties acting like ten year olds).
And it's badly written. Oh so badly written. Why did I bother reading this if I hate it so much? BECAUSE I STUPIDLY BOUGHT THIS BOOK WITHOUT READING ANY REVIEWS. I thought there was no way you could ruin a plot about the discovery of a derelict alien spaceship. I was wrong. I'll never ever buy a book again without reading some reviews, I've learned my lesson.
As for the book I bought? It's in the trash can. It's the second book in my 34 years of life that has ended up this way. I don't want to sell it or give it away because I don't want to expose anyone else to this abomination.
February 4, 2016
Ah. Might have rated a little bit higher if I didn't personally cringe so much at longwinded descriptions of kisses, or the occurrence of the phrase "her slippery wetness". The linguist-in-space stuff was neat, but not quite sufficient.
July 15, 2017
I'm not the kind of person who will rate a book badly if I hate a character, find it too gory, or didn't like the ending. Those reflect personal taste, and I understand not every book is for every person. However, I do rate books badly when they don't work. Fluency does not work, for a number of reasons.
Do you remember the Hyperion series? I appreciated, but didn't love, Hyperion, because when it comes to sci-fi adventure novels, I'm in the "don’t tell me, show me" camp. Long, drawn out histories of peoples or characters I've never met and have no investment in? No. Just no. Give me space exploration, with some real-time and compelling action, maybe with some solid science as a foundation, and I'm good. Spend chapters spinning millennia of tragedy for random civilizations, and you've lost me.
Thus was the case in Fluency. The writing was off, the intensity fell flat, and the character development was charicaturish. There were back stories, but they were unbelievable and seemed to come from a 14-year-old's hero fantasies. And the telepathy-as-a-tool-for-telling-half-the-novel thing was BORING. It's hard to craft a compelling story when it's mostly one lonesome and whiny being revealing everything in one woman's mind. There were so many devices used in this book that didn't work, I can't and won't list them all.
Fair warning to those looking at the description: this is not hard science fiction. I live for good hard sci-fi, and this in NO WAY resembles it. I kept having to talk myself into returning to the book, and finally at halfway I remembered I have 200 books with actual potential waiting. Abandoning this meh of a novel was then a no brainer.
Do you remember the Hyperion series? I appreciated, but didn't love, Hyperion, because when it comes to sci-fi adventure novels, I'm in the "don’t tell me, show me" camp. Long, drawn out histories of peoples or characters I've never met and have no investment in? No. Just no. Give me space exploration, with some real-time and compelling action, maybe with some solid science as a foundation, and I'm good. Spend chapters spinning millennia of tragedy for random civilizations, and you've lost me.
Thus was the case in Fluency. The writing was off, the intensity fell flat, and the character development was charicaturish. There were back stories, but they were unbelievable and seemed to come from a 14-year-old's hero fantasies. And the telepathy-as-a-tool-for-telling-half-the-novel thing was BORING. It's hard to craft a compelling story when it's mostly one lonesome and whiny being revealing everything in one woman's mind. There were so many devices used in this book that didn't work, I can't and won't list them all.
Fair warning to those looking at the description: this is not hard science fiction. I live for good hard sci-fi, and this in NO WAY resembles it. I kept having to talk myself into returning to the book, and finally at halfway I remembered I have 200 books with actual potential waiting. Abandoning this meh of a novel was then a no brainer.
March 6, 2016
"Die Frequenz" ist ein Science Fiction Roman, um den ersten Kontakt mit einem außerirdischen Raumschiff. Vorweg: Der Plot an sich ist stimmig und gut aufgebaut. Mit der Hauptperson, Dr. Jane Holloway konnte ich mich gut identifizieren. Über das außerirdische Wesen erfährt man im Laufe des Romans immer mehr. Allerdings müssen die Menschen auf dem Raumschiff einige unvorherige Schwierigkeiten, meistern, die ich hier, ohne zu spoilern, nicht näher beschreiben kann. Gerade diese Widrigkeiten verleihen der Geschichte ihre Spannung. Leider gibt es in der Mitte des Buches ein paar Längen. Außerdem bleiben die übrigen menschlichen Besucher etwas blass. Deshalb nur vier Sterne. Trotzdem gibt es von mir eine Leseempfehlung und ich würde mir auch eine etwaige Fortsetzung kaufen.
March 22, 2015
I absolutely love Jenn Wells' debut SF, Fluency. It had everything I love in a good speculative fiction tale: great science, intriguing and realistic characters, action, drama, even some heartfelt romance. It's a First Contact story, but it's so much more than that. SF that focuses on the humans amidst the technology while intriguing us about what exists beyond the stars and our place in them? Count me among the many who are eagerly awaiting the next installment of this series!
December 7, 2018
I was absolutely amazed and floored in the best way possible by the amount of knowledge, research, time, geek love and heart that went into this book. It's impressive how vivid and realistic all the characters are. You will bite your nails off for them and their adventures :) The locations and places are painstakingly thought out to the finest detail. I have a huge admiration and adoration for Jennifer, her beautiful imagination and fabulous writing skills.
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