Hounds of Gaia is a 2023 science fiction novel by Sean Tirman. It is the first book in The Marrower Saga. The novel was released in November 2023. I received an advanced copy from the author.
Foxhound doesn't care about the gaps in her memory. Being a Contractor, a kind of spacefaring mercenary, keeps her occupied enough. Rather than dwelling, she rockets around the farthest reaches of the solar system, earning a steady paycheck hunting down ne'er-do-wells and enjoying a semblance of freedom most folks in the outer colonies can't dream of. So when she receives an urgent prisoner transfer request from a cult starship, she accepts the gig. She figures that transporting a bone marrow-eating serial killer from the cult's colony back to Earth is just another well-paying job that'll keep her mind off things. Upon discovering that the suspect in custody is an orphan girl—one that could pass for her much younger doppelgänger—she decides it's time to get some answers. But before she can piece together who the girl is, how their lives intertwine, and who orchestrated their implausible rendezvous, a group of violent prisoners aboard Foxhound's starship breaks free. As the once-peaceful cultists take up arms in response, Foxhound teams up with her mechanized AI assistant and two of the cult's wayward members to stop the barbaric escapees, elude the grasp of the cult's radicalized leader, and protect and extract the mysterious, potentially dangerous girl.
The plot of the novel focuses very heavily on action. While the narrative introduces numerous questions about the nature of humanity and our place in the cosmos, it is first and foremost an action-packed adventure through space. The action is undercut with a degree of mystery as well, since Foxhound's unknown past is tied in with the unnamed girl and her role within the conflict going on. The story starts out a little slow, mostly due to the book needing to establish a wide cast of characters, and ensure the reader understands their role in the world. The plot unfolds as Foxhound, the girl and a few others, try to get off the starship safely while running into conflict with the cultists and the freed prisoners. Along the way, revelations regarding not only Foxhound's history, but also the cultists' organization are revealed. The plot, while not overly complex, does a great job of establishing the universe and leaving plenty of unanswered questions to be tackled in future installments. It's exciting and engaging, and the resolution feels satisfying as it answers some questions, while introducing more to be explored later.
I found the characters to be uniquely compelling in this novel. The author does an excellent job of building up characters and making both their strengths and their flaws evident very quickly. Changes in point-of-view aren't clearly marked, but it was easy to tell when the narrative switched from Foxhound's POV to that of the girl or Sister Penelope or another character. The internal conflict each character feels is also very easy to pick up on, without it being forced onto the reader. Foxhound at times feels torn between her role and duties as a Contractor and her desire to try and protect others. Her arc as a character shows her opening herself up over the course of the novel and allowing others to get close to her. She was a very engaging character to follow, as was Sister Penelope, who was torn between her intrinsic beliefs and the actions of the church she's a part of. The story focuses on action, but the characters leave the reader asking a lot of good questions about human nature and how society develops. The author also delivered a cast of compelling, interesting and unique antagonists for the characters to face off against. The prisoners mentioned in the blurb were all unique, with varied histories and motivations, as well as the more mundane foes the characters had to tackle. Each had a clear and consistent worldview and posed different challenges as the story unfolded.
The writing in this novel is a bit of a mixed bag. The prose is very good, painting a vivid picture that makes it easy to get immersed in the story. There's a horror element to the novel, mostly surrounding bodies being torn apart. The imagery that's central to this aspect is chilling and it makes the story tense. At the same time, the exposition is clunky. At a few points in the novel, the story stops dead in order for the history of an organization to be explored. Leading up to the prisoners breaking free, a critical plot point, there is a pause as the author, via a character's thought-process, walks the reader through the backstory of each and every prisoner. Some elements of what's told to the reader could've been much more impactful as revelations later. The issue with exposition didn't make the novel as a whole bad, it just slowed things down in a way that wasn't needed.
Hounds of Gaia was a book that I enjoyed overall. It had an action-packed story with plenty of mystery. The characters were fun and engaging. I had some issues with the writing, but the reading experience was still enjoyable. On the whole, it is an entertaining and exciting piece of science fiction, and a good start to a new series.
Rating: 4 Stars
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