Nova
Summary
Chuck Black’s first book of the Starlore Legacy series, Nova, is a fighter-pilot space opera for middle-grade to YA students. Crafted in the vein of Dune and Star Wars on the foundation of Biblical retellings, Nova promises great adventure and political intrigue, all wrapped up in a star-spanning, coming-of-age tale.
This initial novel follows the life of Daeson Lockridge, a royal with a passion for piloting. Daeson’s entire worldview is shattered in the wake of a chance encounter, leaving him to navigate an unknown future filled with peril and changing dynamics as the mysterious Immortals oversee his actions.
Assessment
Overall, the story stars off well and carries plenty of action and dialogue to pull the reader into the world and characters without much issue. The characters themselves are likeable and would definitely be appealing to middle-grade and YA boys as a role model for adventure and leadership.
In terms of writing style, the book’s fast pace makes it somewhat difficult to keep up with. There is little time spent on description or scene set up, leaving the reader with few, if any, visuals to go off of. The story flows from one piece of action or dialogue to another rapidly, with little room to take a breath in between scenes. In some ways, this makes the writing feel a bit unfinished.
The writing pace crashes head-on with the narration in the audiobook format. The audiobook does have a lot to recommend it, however, as it has enough sound effects to add to the story, rather than take away from it. It also has a male and female narrator to handle the different gendered characters, both of whom do an excellent job.
However, given the fast, unadorned pace of the book, the narration quickly becomes difficult to keep up with, even if it is your only focus. The story gets lost in a jumble of words, none of which are the sort of filler words and sentences a story needs to give the reader time to reflect.
Light-o-Meter
Writing Style: 1 out of 7 Little Lights
Worldbuilding: 3 out of 7 Little Lights
Characters: 2 out of 7 Little Lights
Narration: 5 out of 7 little Lights
Theological Message: 2 out of 7 Little Lights
Age-Appropriateness: 4 out of 7 Little Lights
Overall: 3 out of 7 Little Lights
Talk
I was sad to have not finished the Starlore Legacy series, as it had a lot that appealed to me as a huge space opera nerd. Overall, the premise of the story is fascinating, and the retelling of Biblical stories is always appealing to me as a Christian (assuming they are done with the intention of honoring the Bible, which this appeared to be). The characters were a little flat, but I was fully willing to give them the benefit of the doubt with the promise of an expansive universe and plenty of action.
The action itself was written in a very clear and understandable manner that made sense in the laws of physics, without getting too bogged down in the nitty gritty details. Young boys are likely to love it (as they should!).
I really loved the use of male and female narrators; it was unique and added a layer of depth to the story that really pulled me in. Even with the fantastic narration, however, the pacing of the book was simply too fast to comfortably keep up with. I even tried to put the playback at 0.75 or 0.5 speed to slow everything down, but without the use of filler words and descriptions to moderate the pace there isn’t a lot slower narration can do.
All in all, this book was not my cup of tea, but it may be exactly the thing a middle-grade boy or YA teen would love. It has plenty of action, a direct and easy to understand plot, and deals with various aspects of family dynamics and friendships.
Wrap-up
In conclusion, Chuck Black’s Nova is a space opera that is sure to intrigue and delight young boys and teenagers with its action, political twists and turns, and dynamic character relationships. Despite pacing issues and some problems with the writing style, the story has plenty to offer its target audience in its characters, interesting plot, and allegorical worldbuilding.
Where to Enjoy
Website: Nova — Chuck Black
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