The Good Soldier
Nir Yaniv. Shadowpaw, $18.99 trade paper (370p) ISBN 978-1-989398-82-1
In this amiable satire of the gung-ho heroics of military sci-fi, Yaniv (coauthor of The Tel Aviv Dossier) sets a seeming simpleton against an immense empire, and the contest is hardly fair. Joseph Fux, conscript from the recently conquered planet Bohemia IV, is a peddler of dogs and an “idiot, second-class.” Assigned to the frigate UPS Spitz, he makes his way from naval draftee to Mobile Infantry trainee and officer’s orderly, spreading chaos and confusion as he goes, albeit unintentionally, or so his unwavering smile implies. Covering up his contraventions of military discipline leaves the rest of the crew, and even their feared captain, exposed to probable psychological “recycling” by order of the High Command. Yaniv riffs constantly on such sci-fi classics as Robert A. Heinlein’s Starship Troopers, using subversive gentility to deflect the fierce authority of figures named Berserker and Havock. Failing upward, Fux provides readers an amusing alternative to the usual run of martial marvels and battle-tested warriors. Military SF fans will enjoy this gentle roasting. (Jan.) from Wijeyeratne (The Slixes) follows three young humans in a far-future galaxy sliding into war. The Night, a deity of immense power, arrives aboard her enormous juggernaut Sko¯lex to destroy the empire of her sister, the Dawn. Down on the planet Daitya, Indra learns the Dawn empire’s cruelty as his family is tricked into slavery. He is separated from his parents and castrated, only surviving with the help of Kadr¯u, who is also enslaved. Soon the two are parted, however, and sold to different masters. Indra becomes a granthapa¯ lah, a librarian, and befriends the precocious Little Princess, exiled heir to throne of the planet Yama. As Night inches closer, the three mortals are caught up in the war brewing above them and learn that the gods are not what they seem. Dizzyingly loaded with rich galactic history and sophisticated extraterrestrial beings, Wijeyeratne’s world surprises at every turn. Gritty, graphic, and fantastic, this will please those looking for inventive, immersive space opera that makes them think. (Jan.)