I received a copy of this book for free and am leaving this review
voluntarily.
Demeter is the beginning of an amazing story following the adventures
of young William Ryder, known to his friends, and others, simply as Ryder. I
loved reading this story that is both fast-paced and entertaining. It is a
young adult science fiction romp that begins on Earth, but then becomes a space
opera that includes some incredible vistas created by the author. He shares his
visions with colorful and detailed descriptions that set a clear picture in the
mind's eye. In addition, there are a number of humanoid aliens included that
add broader dimensions to this story. The most prominent characters include
Ryder's little sister, a girl he crushes on, and a pair of teachers the reader
cannot be completely sure what they are about.
I would estimate this book is appropriate for students beginning at the 6th
grade level. It is about kids, but this tale isn't just for kids. I found Demeter
to be a great, fast read that held my attention very well. If you are a parent
reading this and you have a child you might want to get started on reading
sci-fi, this would be a good one to hand them right off the bat.
There are a few scenes that I would call cringe-worthy. For instance, Ryder
is brutally beaten by a fellow student at a school dance, and his injuries land
him in the hospital.
While this is the first book in a series, the story is complete with a solid
ending that enticed me to read on. I will revisit Ryder's further adventures at
a later date.
Young Ryder contemplates a school dance. He looks forward to perhaps dancing
with Cynthia. After a long week of debating the merits of going to the dance,
he decides the possible benefits will outweigh the risks and goes. While there,
he encounters another student, Barry. After a few caustic exchanges of words,
Barry assails Ryder with a storm of blows, putting him in the hospital. Ryder's
sister, Debbie and Cynthia save Ryder from even more injury.
As a result, Ryder, Debbie, and Cynthia all move on to another school where
they encounter a new teacher and another who was at Ryder's former school. The
new school is a strange place, there are promises of an uncommon experience
there. One such promise is a planned visit to Europe.
When the day arrives for the trip, the students board a vehicle and are
whisked to a place light years from Earthbound Europe! The Europe they arrive
at is inside of a huge asteroid and is itself a sort of school for select
students.
And that is only the beginning of the adventure!
The principle and point-of-view character is Ryder. He is an intelligent,
well-read young man who is identified as one of the school’s
"skaters" at his school. He has a quick wit and has a tendency to say
what is on his mind before thinking about the consequences, which tends to get
him in a little trouble from time to time. Despite that, he is excellent at
gathering data and analyzing it to plan actions and solve problems. I like him.
He seems like a good kid.
Ryder's sister, Debbie, is a rambunctious, fearless girl who is ready to try
anything. She is, perhaps, all too willing to throw caution to the wind and get
involved in some risky behavior. To be honest, she is my favorite character in
this story. She makes me laugh and scares me all at the same time.
Cynthia is Ryder's love-interest. Her thing is helping people.
All the characters in this tale play important parts and contribute in their
own way. And that is my favorite plot point in Demeter. It is the depth
of even the most minor characters. Hansen has created a bullpen of
personalities that are all individual in their likes, dislikes, philosophical
points of view, and how they approach problem solving. They remain consistent
with themselves throughout the entire story. Further, they are all real and
interesting people. Demeter is a heavily character-driven story, and the
world building Hansen does only enhances the activities of the people.
My takeaway from Demeter is to always be open to new learning and new
situations. One never knows what will happen when an old, familiar door is
closed and a new, unknown one is opened, leading one to an amazing, even life-changing,
adventure.
I give my highest recommendations to Demeter Volume 1 for being a
superior story crafted with characters a reader can care about, colorful world
building, and numerous surprises to spark the imagination. I look forward to
the next installment.
There are four more segments to this saga. All are available now.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
My focus in writing science fiction is on adventure and character
development. Demeter was intended as a three-book series, but the story
arc for the series ultimately demanded five books to complete. The five main
characters in the series are derived from observations of my own five children.
The lively character Debbie is by no means an exaggeration of my youngest
daughter.
The journey of editing, publishing to Kindle, then to paperback, and now to
Audiobooks has been fraught with numerous delays ranging from too much
multi-tasking to family tragedies. Still the story is worth it. It is not
dystopian but very optimistic, and clearly illustrates how people can change
and grow. Few if any individuals are without hope of redemption. If you walk
away from Orion’s Spur series without laughing and crying, I have
failed.
After getting the five books of the Orion’s Spur series finally into
audiobooks, I’ll be moving onto two other finished manuscripts. One, a more
serious political thriller set in the near future exploring our solar system
and the resources within Salt of the Earth. The other is yet untitled, but the
working title may signal some elements of the plot, Project Lilliput.
Well, there it is...
Qapla!
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