Review: Ascension by C. Michelle Jefferies

Okay, let's start with what bothered me. A little too much exposition at the start and my fingers itched to fix formatting but man I was intrigued right off the bat. The author certainly knew how to throw in those words that peaked my interest. A girl carrying a sword bag was certainly the first that made me sit up and say, hey I want to know how a kick butt girl like this is part of this story. Pity there would be no way you'd be able to get a sword onto a plane in this day and age. If anything tells you it is fictional it is that one bit. It certainly adds some excitement to the story right from the start so I won't complain. I love action. We had terrorists, snipers, assassin, psychopaths and a whole lot more.

The characters have the coolest names ever. Lyris and Elite are my favourite.

The story takes its time to roll out. It took me a while to get into it as it reminded me of epic fantasy. Epic Science Fiction? I just googled that, darn someone came up with the name first. But feel proud as that now puts you in the same genre as Dune. Actually, that is pretty accurate. This is a Dune set one Earth instead of on another planet (though I'm going to be cheeky and say I only saw the movies, both versions). We have a touch of spiritualism. Politics that seem the run of the mill on the surface but actually there is a lot more to it. Weird obsessed guy. He doesn't have an equally weird brother but he does have some lackeys that can fill the bill. There are the complicated family dynamics. So if you are a Dune fan you will love this novel.

This is also a book that has so many clues along the way it will appeal to anyone who likes being smug as you read. Like Yeah, I knew he was the bad guy because of A, B and C. I like it when an author invites you to be in on the story telling with them. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge kind of thing. Well written story but a little bit hard to get into. 4 stars.