Thursday, May 8, 2014

Protostar by Braxton A. Cosby

Cover from Goodreads

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

On the brink of civil war, the Torrian Alliance continues with its mission to obliterate Star-children across the universe in order to suppress an intergalactic evil. Following the recommendations of his council, King Gregorio Derry reluctantly agrees to send his only son William on a mission to restore honor to his family name. William seeks to complete his assignment, the elimination of a Star-child named Sydney on planet Earth, but when the assassination is delayed he begins to realize an emotional connection with his target. With conspiracy threatening his home planet, and a hidden menace on Earth seeking to secure a vested interest, William finds himself torn between irrevocable duty and sacrificing everything he stands for to defend Sydney. As William and Sydney struggle to overcome their impossible circumstances, they start to wonder if the connection of two Star-Crossed lovers will be enough to save them from certain doom.

 My Review


There is a disturbance in the universe, and it’s up to a bounty hunter to stop it. During his adventure, he will travel the universe with his favorite artificial intelligence sidekick to find and stop the villain. Does that sound similar to the plot of everyone’s favorite science fiction flick, who also happens to feature the world’s most beloved wookie?
 

Now I’m sure there are plenty of die hard star Wars fans who are in outrage right now. I’ll apologize in advance, I realize that I’m associating the two very loosely. However, I imagine that Braxton A. Cosby will be thrilled to see that I am comparing his novel Protostar to the (original) Star Wars trilogy. In this case, we have Prince William as a bounty hunter who is sent from his planet to capture and destroy the Star-child before she harnesses her full powers and begins her harsh reign over the universe. The biggest difference comes that the “villain”, in this case, is a teenage girl living here on Earth in the present time. The story is very relatable.
 

I think my favorite part of the story was IMPI. Sure, it might be nothing more than an advanced form of artificial intelligence. However, the story wouldn’t be the same without it. I loved the humor and wit it injected into the story. And the way it dealt with William made me often forget it wasn’t a human. But it plays a very key role in the entire book, and likely the entire series. It worries me that this is only the beginning of a series. Mr. Cosby, take this as a plea from a new fan: please don’t kill it off, or put it on the back burner!
 

I can’t say there is much I didn’t like about this story, but if there was one thing that confused me it was the climax of the story. I felt like the “final battle” went by rather quickly, but I can’t complain because I’ve read plenty of other novels that do the same. In fact, this story didn’t end right where you thought it would end. In fact, this story had a cliffhanger of the worst kind that nearly left you with heartache knowing it was over, but not over.
 

This story involved a lot of different genres, and so I can’t give you a specific group that I would recommend this to. I think that there are a lot of different types of readers who would enjoy this book, and so I recommend it to all. It gets five stars for being completely amazing, though I’d rather give it one for leaving me wanting more!

My Rating: 5 stars!