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neilw's review
5.0
I love science fiction that takes human traits and magnifies them through the lens of invention. In the case of Rise, those traits are racial othering and genocide. This story of brutality and personal redemption, slotted with admirable precision in to the armature of a short novel, is a bruising but ultimately worthwhile read. Against the background of the interment camps and the ghastly 'nicks' which keep the prisoners in check, we are privileged to spend time with some of the most engaging characters I've enjoyed for a long time. On one side we have the soldier, Kali, the High Judge's daughter who has been imprisoned for rebelling against his father. On the other we have his wonderfully cantankerous mother, Grizmore, doing what she can to mitigate his excesses. And then we have Groff, the Vary medic, missing his old life and doing his best despite the despicable constraints placed on him, even though we suspect he knows he is not going to survive. And then we have the tragic Shola Ricks. Like Groff, I suspect I will never forget her name. And like Groff I suspect I would die to save her.
Rise is the kind of science fiction that everyone should be reading right now. We need reminders like this, we need to know that good people make a difference. This is Lakin-Smith at her very best.
Rise is the kind of science fiction that everyone should be reading right now. We need reminders like this, we need to know that good people make a difference. This is Lakin-Smith at her very best.
geoffnelder's review
5.0
As a rule I don’t read dystopian novels: reality is grim enough as time accelerates you into old age. In some ways then, I am taken out of my comfort zone in reading RISE. My predilection is for surreal fun, humour even if disguised such as in black, graveside humour. And for science fiction, historical fantasy, space exploration, bizarro and the list of my favoured reading continues, however, this is why I am a member of two book groups. Being forced to read novels I wouldn’t normally choose and often enjoying them—to my surprise!
Does RISE fall into this category? Sort of. I often buy new science fiction books to support authors, small press, and to explore trends and push my mind. To my delight, RISE is a gem. There is exotic exuberance in a dreadful, yet somehow familiar landscape. The main settings of an alien genocidal prison is grim, uncomfortable, and a painful reminder of the Nazi treatment of Jews, gypsies, the mentally-ill and trade unionists complete with its own version of a maniacal Joseph Mengele experimenting on young Vary children. Ugh, yet compelling.
Our protagonist, Kali, is a feisty young woman. Her history is awful – shooting birds for fun – and privileged as the daughter of the High Judge Titian, but the savage treatment of the Vary as subhumans (if anyone on the planet is human as such) got to Kali. She rebelled earning her incarceration in an all-male hard-labour prison, aptly called Abbandon, destined to starvation, sexual abuse and ultimate death. Grim, indeed, yet there was hope. She had intelligence and high-level engineering on her side. Some of the Vary befriended her, and yes she used sex to gain intelligence and survivability – wouldn’t we all?
As an editor I strive to promote sensory show and 3-D characters in my clients and fellow critiquers. Both are in RISE in spades. Plus phrases I wish I’d written: “…You are in danger of putting out the sun with your ill mood.” And one of my favourite words used here: “…golden wings coruscating under sunlight.” Delightful sensory imagery with, “… You can smell the worms in my pocket.”
I expected this to be a strongly feminist book but in true Lakin-Smith style we have a great mix of strong characters. Yes, strong women including the irascible yet likeable granny Grizmore, but also Groff. One letter different to my name and I too have medical training so of course I took to him. A Vary medic in the hell clinic yet his immense humanity pours through the novel as a warming thread. Brilliant.
Handmaiden’s Tale meets the Holocaust. I heartily recommend RISE.
Does RISE fall into this category? Sort of. I often buy new science fiction books to support authors, small press, and to explore trends and push my mind. To my delight, RISE is a gem. There is exotic exuberance in a dreadful, yet somehow familiar landscape. The main settings of an alien genocidal prison is grim, uncomfortable, and a painful reminder of the Nazi treatment of Jews, gypsies, the mentally-ill and trade unionists complete with its own version of a maniacal Joseph Mengele experimenting on young Vary children. Ugh, yet compelling.
Our protagonist, Kali, is a feisty young woman. Her history is awful – shooting birds for fun – and privileged as the daughter of the High Judge Titian, but the savage treatment of the Vary as subhumans (if anyone on the planet is human as such) got to Kali. She rebelled earning her incarceration in an all-male hard-labour prison, aptly called Abbandon, destined to starvation, sexual abuse and ultimate death. Grim, indeed, yet there was hope. She had intelligence and high-level engineering on her side. Some of the Vary befriended her, and yes she used sex to gain intelligence and survivability – wouldn’t we all?
As an editor I strive to promote sensory show and 3-D characters in my clients and fellow critiquers. Both are in RISE in spades. Plus phrases I wish I’d written: “…You are in danger of putting out the sun with your ill mood.” And one of my favourite words used here: “…golden wings coruscating under sunlight.” Delightful sensory imagery with, “… You can smell the worms in my pocket.”
I expected this to be a strongly feminist book but in true Lakin-Smith style we have a great mix of strong characters. Yes, strong women including the irascible yet likeable granny Grizmore, but also Groff. One letter different to my name and I too have medical training so of course I took to him. A Vary medic in the hell clinic yet his immense humanity pours through the novel as a warming thread. Brilliant.
Handmaiden’s Tale meets the Holocaust. I heartily recommend RISE.
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