Review: S. Andrew Swann – [Apotheosis 1] Prophets

Space Opera; that buzzword which has launched a thousand ships warping their way through the known & unknown space-time continuum rediscovers the spirit of the Big Dumb Object in this new series from Andrew Swann. Alex Benedict fans may note that there is definitely a new game in town and it’s kicking butt.

Overall, the premise of the story is pretty straightforward. There is an unknown anomaly in space around a distant star which needs investigating. And then someone does exactly that. And there are complications. And inevitably, the situation on hand is that science fictional special…all f*cked up.

Written with the right touch, that is all that a SO novel really needs. L.E.Modesitt Jr. specializes in those types. As a bonus for us, S. Andrew Swann does exactly that. And he also pulls a trick of the Malazan on us. Multiple POV characters. Yes, multiple POV. On a non-GRRM/Erikson novel. Whowuddathunk, right?

But before I get ahead of myself, lemme just construct a bit of a straw man of the Swann’s universe. Okie, so the setting is a far distant future when FTL has already made possible the first wave of humanity’s conquest of the galaxy and the subsequent breakdown of this pax imperium. The eventual wars following the meltdown of junta have also quieted down and now there is a loose alliance-based polity at work. So, yes the setting is of peace. Of the people, the confusion couldn’t be more pronounced. Prior to the war & meltdown, there were three main areas in which human endeavor has been put – nanotech, AI and genetic evolution of other sentient species. And religions have sprouted in and around these genetic missteps.

In the backdrop of this, there is a somewhat disreputable scrap trader who brings together a bunch of mercenaries (who are all obviously the eminently quotable POV characters) and scientists to investigate a possible anomaly in a distant star system. On their heels is the establishment (or all the separate interest groups in the story) and some jack-in-the-box mysterious character who is pulling everyone together. The story is about what happens when all of these players are made to meet in a spot far away from their respective strongholds.

The strength of the novel lies in the unique species that the author has managed to create and manipulate. The underlying emotions although are all too human though. But these characters make for a very interesting reading and the POV shifts are not abrupt enough to shake away your attention from the story. It is a fair bit difficult to start off as the back-story is spread across info-dumps in the first quarter of the novel which makes for a fair bit of plodding before you catch on to whatever is happening. However, persistence at this stage would be paid off handsomely later in the book when you do get sucked into the story.

Personally for me, the book tipped the balance into interesting enough that I’d care to read the sequel. Although the current Amazon listing shows only one review of that indefatigable (wo)man-machine Klausener with 4 stars, I expect to see a bit more traction as the novel hits the reading circuit.

I’d suggest 8/10