Official Review: Skymerge by Deepak Menon

[Kappy]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Skymerge" by Deepak Menon.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Skymerge (2d. ed., Sept. 2014), by Deepak Menon, is a mid-length (about 100,000 words) non-futuristic science fiction novel that intertwines a story of people on present-day Earth with a story of people from planets on other star systems. (This is a review of the e-book, which has the same ISBN numbers as the paperback version with a publication date of February 27, 2014.) Mr. Menon has also written three books of children's fables and two books of poetry.

The aliens are quite humanlike, and the use of new words is minimal, so there is a fair chance you will like this book even if you normally shy away from science fiction. The author's sentences are clear and concise, there is no explicit sex, and there are only a couple of minor uses of foul language. The book's title refers to a merging of the sky and the land, leading to a seven-day flood, as described in the prologue's 39-line poem. Mr. Menon includes plenty of suspenseful and humorous situations in the book.

The action takes place over an 8-year period, beginning in 1999 as archaeologists unearth ancient artifacts that have been made with unexplainably advanced technology. The author then slowly and masterfully unveils the mysteries of the artifacts' origins. One of the main characters (John Kriel) has an incredible can-do attitude; he truly believes that for every problem there is a solution. This is reminiscent of characters from the greatest science fiction writers, such as Heinlein and Asimov. Books with such protagonists are nearly always a pleasure to read. Mr. Menon has a grand, sweeping vision for his fictional universe, but his technical expertise lags somewhat.

The author has done a good job in excising superfluous material, so the story is gripping from beginning to end. However, there are too many grammatical errors; the manuscript needs to be professionally edited. Another problem is that Menon doesn't have sufficient scientific knowhow for all the details in his novel. (However, if your knowledge of astronomy is no better than average, you might not notice the inaccuracies.) In addition to help from a professional editor, the author needs assistance from a science fiction expert.

An especially noteworthy passage in the novel, which appears near the end of the story, describes the feelings of repugnancy felt by the victors of a battle after slaughtering their enemy.

This book has earned 3 out of 4 stars for its rich storyline, easy-to-read writing style, lack of explicit sex, and minimal use of foul language. To earn that fourth star, the author needs to turn the book over to a professional science fiction editor. This story would have earned only one or two stars in the hands of a lesser author; Menon does a great job of keeping the intertwining storylines well organized, interesting, and easy to follow. Unless you despise all science fiction, there is a good chance you will enjoy reading Skymerge.

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Skymerge
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Like Kappy's review? Post a comment saying so!

[pankajvarma1]

Kappy has described all the positives and explained why this book is a great book to read. I personally do not agree with him on the rating he has given. Withholding the 4th star for minor lapses in editing seems too harsh. This is a well written book and is difficult to put down when you start reading it. I suggest the book deserves full 4 or of 4 stars. That will also be in line with the rating on Amazon etc.

[Kappy]

When I review a book I strive to be fair and objective. I don't care about the ratings on Amazon. And the "lapses in editing" are not minor; they are significant.

[LivreAmour217]

Thank you for a well-written and fair review. This sounds like a great story, it's a pity about all of the errors.

[PashaRu]

Nice review. Thanks for being objective. Sounds like the first poster might be a friend of the author, or maybe the author himself.(?) If the book has significant grammatical errors and is not well researched, it certainly doesn't deserve four stars.

[TLGabelman]

Honest and appropriate! It doesnt sound like it deserved 4/4 stars. Sounds intriguing even with the room for improvement!

[Kappy]

Nice review. Thanks for being objective. Sounds like the first poster might be a friend of the author, or maybe the author himself.(?) If the book has significant grammatical errors and is not well researched, it certainly doesn't deserve four stars.

I got a PM from the author, and he didn't appear upset. Nor should he be; three stars is not an insult.

[DeepakMenon]

Interesting Review and interesting comments by people who have not read the book ... well well well ... I'm happy to find that the old adage still applies. In the extant case keeping in view the number of reviews written on Amazon by customers who have bought and read Skymerge as well as the Readers Favorite Official review differ from the review written on this august forum .. and that is nothing to be annoyed about .. about 15 mens food is one mans poison ... and that is the way of the world. Cheers to everyone and hope you enjoy the story someday too ... after all, fiction will always remain fiction, and each reviewer is entitled to his own perspective! I will only maintain that I think Skymerge is a great tale, but to each his own!

[Di Ferren]

I think the " typos" are not typos ...but just the difference between British and American spelling.

[DeepakMenon]

Thanks - the first encouraging comment from the hardliners here ha ha - language is a mysterious thing. Words should be able to convey images so that the reader can visualise a picture. When I write "visualise" this page shows an error while if I write "visualize", it accepts the so called error instantly. People are also like that! Some people don't hesitate in nit-picking and are quick to criticise others styles, probably screaming out to the world for attention and trying to convince every one who reaches their posts, that they think they are better than the rest. But that is the way of the world, and if someone thinks that anyone's style of writing is reprehensible - then so be it. I till can't imagine what the reviewer was so unhappy about ha ha. All the best and keep reading. I'm thinking of writing a really horrendous 'Period' novel soon, and typo's will be surely the order of the day there!

[Kappy]

I think the " typos" are not typos ...but just the difference between British and American spelling.

Following are some of the errors I was talking about:

stirred up this hornets next [hornets' nest]
whose mode pf operation [of]
his scruitiny of the artifacts. [scrutiny]
she had not even bothered to glnce at his face [glance]
with useless paraphrenalia [paraphernalia]
she had fallen into a deep sleep on the armchair.. [extra period]
of the find.”said Saki ... [missing space]
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There were also numerous inappropriate commas, e.g.,

Ruhan the Lute Player, slowly came to consciousness.
The surface of the Bracelet was covered with some kind of what appeared to be, symbolic writing.
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And many non-standard capitalizations, e.g.,

... with a momentary feeling of Deja Vu.
... who had set up the trust to promote Archeology in his Will, was slightly mad.
... spices garnished with Mint leaves
I think that their spy at the Dig must have noticed ...
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It's not a matter of my being "unhappy." When you use non-standard grammar, your readers are distracted.

[DeepakMenon]

Ok OK - your suggestions well taken Kappy. I have removed almost all of them in the 2nd Edition, and this time I ran a spell check too ha ha
You carry on regardless, for that is your role, but the comments on my having done inadequate research is misplaced for sure. I have written fiction with a miniscule amount of plausibility, which to me, makes it a fine Sci Fi story. Thank goodness all the other people who have read Skymerge ignored the grammar altogether and only concentrated on the story ha ha. I'm happy that you liked the story at least, though others who commented chose to instill some form of unnecessary criticism, possibly to ingratiate themselves with you, as none of them actually read the book. One of them even went to the extent of stating that the people from across the world who liked Skymerge were my friends!
And another day will carry another tale.
Keep well and all the best.

[Kappy]

I feel it is my duty as a reviewer to tell potential readers the good points and the bad points of a book, and to be as objective as possible. My review has numerous positive comments about the book. But nobody starts at the top. Robert Heinlein's first novel was rejected for publication, and was not published during his lifetime.

[ALynnPowers]

Hey, thanks for the review, Kappy!
It sounds like something I would enjoy.

[gali]

It does sound like a good book and I love SF/fantasy books.

Thanks for the nice review.

-- February 22nd, 2015, 6:38 am --

I feel it is my duty as a reviewer to tell potential readers the good points and the bad points of a book, and to be as objective as possible. My review has numerous positive comments about the book.

Indeed this is the purpose of a review and when I read one, I like to know the good and the bad points of the books.