In the vast expanse of space, Jason Alexander Xavis emerges from the shadows of time, a lone traveler adrift in the cosmos. Discovered by the intrepid crew of the Orion's Belt, Jason's presence aboard the colony ship stirs whispers of mystery and intrigue.
As the crew extends a welcoming hand, Jason grapples with the enigma of his own existence. He is the sole survivor of a long-forgotten expedition launched from Earth centuries ago, with no memory of what befell his fellow travelers or his own past. But amidst the uncertainty, a beacon of hope emerges as he finds solace and companionship among the crew of the Orion.
Yet, their sanctuary in the stars is soon shattered by the threat of the enigmatic Locorran Empire, a lost human colony wielding technology of unparalleled power. As the galaxy trembles in the wake of their arrival, Jason is thrust into a whirlwind of conspiracy and intrigue, his fate intertwined with the destiny of humanity itself.
With the fate of countless lives hanging in the balance, Jason embarks on a perilous journey across the stars, guided by love, fueled by loss, and driven by the relentless pursuit of truth. Along the way, he will confront the shadows of his own past and grapple with the essence of what it means to be human in a universe teetering on the brink of chaos.
In a galaxy-spanning epic of adventure and discovery, Jason Alexander Xavis will defy the boundaries of time and space, forging a path towards redemption and unlocking the secrets that lie at the heart of the cosmos.
Roberts (author of Last Days of Colbosh) creates a world rich with intergalactic danger and adventure, as the Belt’s crew soon find themselves distracted by a larger threat: the Locorrans, an enigmatic race that look human but somehow aren’t, ruled by a mysterious up-and-coming empress, are quietly taking over the universe, privy to incredibly advanced—and threatening—technology. The action takes off immediately, and Jax is quickly swept into a chaotic conspiracy that finds him separated from his crew and forced to rely on his instincts to survive, joined in his fight by Jules, a young woman with insider knowledge that suggests the Locorrans can control brainwave patterns of the people living in Earth’s colonized systems.
Power Play’s world is both entertaining and absorbing, boosted by a host of high-tech weapons and the downfall of Earth as we know it, thanks to a Great War that left the planet reeling from radiation poisoning and terrorized by animals evolving into monsters. The thrills are sometimes restrained by plot developments that snowball with minimal buildup and empty references to an older Earth that most of the book’s characters no longer remember, but this still reverberates as an electrifying journey of self-discovery—and a reminder of the dangers behind creating sentient beings with superior intelligence.
Takeaway: Absorbing sci-fi riddled with intergalactic intrigue and dangerous, power-hungry AI.
Comparable Titles: Penelope Wright’s The Queen Trials series, T. Ellery Hodges’s The Never Hero.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B
Marketing copy: A
