The Frozen Sky: The Novel [NOOK Book]

Not often do you come across a novel that blends action, horror,

Not often do you come across a novel that blends action, horror, science fiction, philosophy and politics but Jeff Carlson's The Frozen Sky does it masterfully. The Frozen Sky was originally released as a novella but has now been expanded into a full novel which adds more characters, more action and more depth to the original story. Set in the distant future the governments of earth have sent several space probes to explore the galaxy and they have found that Europa may have simple life forms and other materials that can be used back home.

A group of archaeologists led by Alexis Vonderach are exploring Jupiter’s moon and the governments of the world are waiting to see what they will uncover. The crew finds more than they bargained for when they find hieroglyphs and other proof of life. Europa is indeed inhabited and the natives don’t like visitors.

The story begins with Alexis running for her life through frozen ravines and canyons of rock while being chased by creatures that resemble starfish. To make matters worse, her spacesuit has an artificial intelligence program that is malfunctioning and it has its own plans for handling the situation. Alexis is left with the decision to destroy the creatures that are pursuing her or communicate with them and hope they understand her. Help is on the way as other Earth ships arrive on Europa, but what are their plans for Europa's inhabitants? Are the starfish type creatures more advanced then they seem and do they want to destroy us for invading their home?

There is a lot going on in The Frozen Sky and the story works on a lot of different levels. Science Fiction fans get a great description of life on Europa including how the creatures survive, how they communicate and how they changed through the years and you learn how humans advanced through the centuries. It works as an action novel as you hear about the battle between Earth and Europa. It works as a horror novel as the creatures have Alexis on the run with nowhere to go and the story gets philosophical as the humans debate whether they are doing the right thing on Europa. The Frozen Sky also works as a political thriller as it gets into how the governments make deals with each other for what they want out of Europa and how the humans on Europa try to talk them out of it.

You could tell Jeff Carlson did his homework on the recent findings about Europa and did a lot of research on what Europa is like. I loved how this alien world was described. I also liked how the aliens were presented in the story. At first you see them as monsters but you start to learn about the conditions that they live in and how it shaped what they are, you also discover that they are much more than they seem.

Another thing I like is how the mecha works to explore Europa and how the AI works to its own advantage. My favorite part was learning how Europa's inhabitants evolved and seeing how they go from monsters to sympathetic creatures. You also see how the humans can become monsters and even in the future they're dealing with a lot of the same issues that we deal with now. The Frozen Sky has something for everyone and is a great read no matter what genre of book that you like.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Extremely Enjoyable, Fast Paced Science Fiction Thriller

Synopsis:

The story is set on beneath the icy surface of Jupiter's moon, Europa, where a small team of scientists have stumbled upon indigenous life forms (that previous expeditions had missed).


At the heart of the story are the struggles of Alexis Vonderach, or Vonnie, against a very hostile planet after her two colleagues have been killed. Her only companion is a computerized ghost she quickly threw together to help her combat her alien alien attackers.

The story is structured to keep the reader on tenterhooks. It starts in media res, but each chapter of current action is separated by a flashback to the events leading up to the discovery of the "amphibians".


Length: novella (about 60 pages)
Publisher: Originally published by Galaxy Press as an anthology in 2007, now being published by the author as of January 2010.
Genre: Science Fiction/Thriller

The Good:

I really enjoyed the pacing and appreciated the non linear setup of the narrative.

While the science and technology in this novella were fascinating, I was struck more with the subtext of the dangers of anthropomorphizing extraterrestrial life and how this may tie into the nature versus nurture debate. In other words, the dangers and problems with faulting a cultural group for how they have evolved to survive in a hostile environment.

The Bad:

I honestly have nothing "bad" really to say about this novella. My only real wish would be for a follow up for this novella because there were some interesting themes present in the story that could be explored further.

If You Like:

...Pitch Black, Plague Year[Image] (also by Carlson), Michael Critchton's Prey[Image].

The Bottom Line:

I really enjoyed this novella and think it is well worth the read for any science fiction fans.

Where I got it: I bought it.

Typographical and Formatting Errors Found: 0 (Yayy)

Cover Grade: D

The cover is overly generic and if I had been browsing ebooks (rather than looking specifically for this one), I probably would have passed it buy. With the marketplace full of throwaway covers, having something that screams "I am not utter dreck!" is very important.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

I have been fascinated with europa since i was a liittle girl as

I have been fascinated with europa since i was a liittle girl as ive gotten older my obsession has grown this bbok was awsome, it made me think about europa in a new way, i never realized there would be 60mile high mountains whose entire tops would reach the ice and get broken off becoming islads in the ice. the sunfish were perfect i loved how alien they were adapted to suit there environment, i loved it cause it could be real. great book i loved it 

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great Science Fiction

I have never read Jeff Carlson before but I really liked this book. It's classic Sci-Fi, taking place on Jupiter's moon, Europa. An alien life form is discovered and the rest of the book is about how humans deal with this discovery. Different Earth cultures are all present on Europa and they all have different agendas and attitudes toward alien life.

The scientists end up disagreeing with the profiteers. Go figure! I would recommend this book to any fan of Sci-Fi.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Very enjoyable sci fi.

Very enjoyable sci fi.

Lionwhisker

Sees a fat juicy rabbit, this little fellow is going to die! He punces and breaks tje rabbits neck

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

AMAZING!!!!! It ended rather abruptly - will there be a sequel?

AMAZING!!!!! It ended rather abruptly - will there be a sequel? A movie starring Charlize Theron? Bates the Footman from Downton Abbey as Metzler? Kate Mara as Ash?
Weeks later, I find myself thinking of these characters often, missing them even, which is unusual, considering the volume of literature I read. Jeff - I need a sequel!

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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