Review: Wanderlust by Ann Aguirre

Title: Wanderlust
Author: Ann Aguirre
Series: Sirantha Jax #2
Pages: 312
Genre: Science Fiction, Romance
Publication Date: August 26, 2008
Rating: C+

Here we are with the second book in the Sirantha Jax series, Wanderlust. It takes place just after the events of Grimspace. Jax accepts a diplomatic mission to the planet Ithiss-Tor on behalf of the Conglomerate. The centers on Jax and the crew's journey just trying to get to Ithiss-Tor; they meet a lot of trouble along the way.

What I really liked about Grimspace is the fast-paced and action-packed story filled with really cool characters. I suppose this stays the same in this installment, however, I didn't enjoy it as much as Grimspace. I really think it came down to Jax. In the first book, Jax is tough, strong and hard to like sometimes, but I always enjoyed her point of view. In Wanderlust , I've never been so bored and annoyed by her thoughts and personality. She's suffering physically because of the effects of grimspace, and that's understandable, but I felt like she really brought the story down. Who wants to read a book about the main protagonist being debilitated and in a really bad mood all the time? I even felt this way about her emotional state. She was just really negative all the time and I felt it was hard to connect to her or to even care about her problems because they seemed to go on and on and on.

This issue was echoed in the story as well. It seemed everything always went wrong. So many small plot points were shoved into the story to, in my opinion, lengthen and try to make the story more interesting but I thought it felt like the author throwing everything in but the kitchen sink. When the crew tries to do anything, leave the planet, visit friends on another one, there's always something going wrong. I think this was distracting and tedious. This, coupled with Jax's personal problems, really made the book hard to enjoy to the extent I did Grimspace.

Well, I did finish the book of course and there are a couple reasons why. One of them is Vel, the bounty hunter than can cover his mantis form with a human one. I really was intrigued by him in the last novel but he only showed up at the end and we didn't get to see him much. In Wanderlust he has a bigger part and I really enjoyed seeing him and Jax interact. I kind of wish there was more of that and less of her and March having problems for the sake of having problems (at least that's what it seemed like). Another reason I enjoyed Wanderlust was Jael, a new character. He's a bred human which gives him some special abilities. I really liked seeing this new friendship for Jax especially after the troubles with March.

As you can tell, I wasn't into the romance. I don't think I ever really liked March. I don't entirely see where the relationship is going or why they are so attached to each other. However, I don't think this defines the story for me so it's not a deal breaker.

Overall, the book has some good aspects but compared to Grimspace, it's a lot weaker. I will definitely read the next in the series, Doubleblind, because I heard good things. Apparently Wanderlust is the weakest of the series, so I am excited to continue. I recommend reading Wanderlust if you're interested in reading the whole series and if Grimspace is any indication, it will be great.

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Review: Grimspace by Ann Aguirre

Title: Grimspace
Author: Ann Aguirre
Pages: 312
Genre: Science Fiction, Romance
Publication Date: February 26, 2008
Rating: A

From Goodreads:

By all accounts, Sirantha Jax should have burned out years ago…
As the carrier of a rare gene, Jax has the ability to jump ships through grimspace—a talent which cuts into her life expectancy, but makes her a highly prized navigator for the Corp. But then the ship she’s navigating crash-lands, and she’s accused of killing everyone on board. It’s hard for Jax to defend herself: she has no memory of the crash.

Now imprisoned and the subject of a ruthless interrogation, Jax is on the verge of madness. Then a mysterious man breaks into her cell, offering her freedom—for a price. March needs Jax to help his small band of rogue fighters break the Corp monopoly on interstellar travel—and establish a new breed of jumper.

Jax is only good at one thing—grimspace—and it will eventually kill her. So she may as well have some fun in the meantime…

Grimspace is a great, fast-paced adventure story staring Sirantha Jax. She's fiesty, smart, and has a few issues. After the crash, she finds herself under the protection of Folly's crew, who also, by chance, needs a jumper. She has lost her memory and is on a mission to find out the truth. On the way she meets a great cast of characters including her love interest, March. There's Dina the tough engineer, Loras the savant, Doc the ship's doctor, and March the pilot. I felt like this whole crew was reminiscent of that of Firefly (which is a good thing). I really thought the characters were interesting and different and offered a lot of banter and tension between each other.

This book reads fast and it helps that the first person narrative is provided by Jax. It's not the easiest ride being in her head, but it certainly adds to the experience. She develops a romance with March that I thought was sweet and not too overwhelming. My only problem was I thought that they seemed to fall for each other seriously in the short amount of time that is spent in the book.

I'm still testing the waters with a lot of science fiction, especially space opera because I tend to find it comes off a bit heavy, but for Grimspace, it's the opposite. It's a great adventure with the right amount of everything. There's action on every page, ending in what is obviously an opening for a sequel.

Overall, this is the perfect kind of adventure story for me. There's a great female lead, a good romance that's not too heavy, and tons of action. I recommend this to anyone interested in those things. I've already bought the sequel Wanderlust and can't wait to get to it! A

You can read an excerpt on the author's website or listen to a sample of the audio book.

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