#RRSciFiMonth Book Review | #whoaretheclan | “To Guard Against the Dark” (Book No.3 of the Reunification trilogy) by Julie E. Czerneda #FuellYourSciFi with Jorie!

Posted Thursday, 30 November, 2017 by jorielov , , , , , 0 Comments

Book Review badge created by Jorie in Canva using Unsplash.com photography (Creative Commons Zero).

Acquired Book By: I was invited to participate in Julie E. Czerneda’s #againstthedark wherein I am continuing my readings of The Clan Chronicles where I left off last November. I participated in the #timeandstarstour on behalf of the seventh volume of The Clan Chronicles ‘This Gulf of Time and Stars’ and the #futurespasttour on behalf of the eighth volume: ‘The Gate to Futures Past’. I reached out to the author to sort out a way to read her entire series spilt between two trilogies: Stratification (the prequel) and The Trade Pact (inaugural trilogy) which launched the series as a whole. She offered to have DAW Books send me the series in paperback editions which I was blessed to receive. I have spent the past three years reading about the Clan and happily conveying my ruminated thoughts on behalf of the series.

This year, I participated on the third blog tour to conclude the series with a finale tour by featuring a guest feature wherein Ms Czerneda wrote such a wonderful topic for me to share with my readers and the followers of the blog tour itself. In the hours since her Guest Post went live, I’ve been spending time with the Clan one last time – sorting out my feelings and trying to understand how the truth of #whoaretheclan affects us all.

I received a complimentary ARC copy of ‘To Guard Against the Dark’ the final novel of the final trilogy of The Clan Chronicles known as Reunification; in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated for my thoughts shared herein.

On where we left off into The Clan Chronicles:

As I disclosed on my review of Reap the Wild Wind this is my first reading of the works by Julie E. Czerneda. This is my continuing journey deep into the heart of The Clan Chronicles whilst conversing on Twitter via the tag #whoaretheclan. Occasionally alternating with #TheClanChronicles and #againstthedark.

I cannot even fully put into words how difficult it was to finish reading The Gate to Futures Past because there are so many shifting tides erupting out of the flow of the narrative! You’re simply not expecting everything which happens ‘here’ to be the living reality of those characters you’ve left behind in ‘Stratification’. I think that was the hardest pill to swallow at the time; of realising how difficult it is to return back to a ‘beloved space’ of fiction – only to find it completely terraformed into a new ‘entity’ of existence. At least, this is at best, the most I can do to express what my reactions were as I read about the dichotomies of differences between ‘then and now’; to say more would spoilt it for you! If your finding yourself coming through the series – prequel to Trade and onto Reunification, you’ll gleam a bit of what I’m trying to say without really saying anything which would elude to much at all.

One of my favourite bits to The Gate to Futures Past is how alive Sira’s hair remains a vocal representation of her emotional state – the ways in which her locks invade her own murmuring thoughts for a chance to be ‘seen’ and ‘heard’ on their own is something which gives me a jolly jolt of the giggles because her ‘hair’ rarely shows tact in making its ‘points’! I even like how Morgan has grown accustomed to how the ‘hair’ likes to entangle itself around him – nestling close to his skin and re-affirming how much Sira loves him in the gentleness of its touch. I might have mentioned previously but this is also why I love the cover art for GATE because it electrifies the hair as a full embodiment of how Sira is a fusion of thought, power and emotion.

Whilst the intrepid few Clan colonists (as they embarked to travel where no Clan had previously visited) survived their ordeal, it was the waves of uncertainty in trusting their newfound ‘first responders’ who came to their aide after the Oud left them unceremoniously to live or die at their feet which gave them the most pause for thought. It was here where Sira and Morgan started to dissect their options and where the rest of the Clan started to sort out how they would move forward. No one felt entirely ‘settled’ nor ‘safe’ but they were being cared for and it was more than they could hope to expect.

It was the miniature Oud who fascinated me – how Tap Tap came to meet Sira and Morgan but also its demure size which was not to be overshadowed by its insight for Oud were never to be trusted as short-sighted in both knowledge or depth of understanding. There was something different and unique about this one – especially how the Hoveny acted around it and how Sira felt more than slightly unnerved by its presence & understanding of who she really was in the greater ‘scheme’ of things. My skin started to stand on alert as there was something most foreboding about this ‘place’ they had landed – ever since they first disembarked from the ship, I sensed it. Now, as they drew closer to engaging with the Hoveny who lived here – something inside me twitched.

Alisi Di on Brightfall was such a heroic character to be placed at this crucial timeline of the Clan; how she reminded me of Sira in her own right. She was a leader, bourne of instincts others didn’t have within them – not just to lead but to guide, to understand and to prevail. She saw the fuller picture when others only saw what was in front of them. I had hoped I’d see more of her – I would have loved to known her longer than the time she had to give the Clan.

The hardest revelation for Sira (and myself) was recognising the Clan had been categorically organised like a seed catalogue for a farmer! Their entire understanding of ‘identity’ and ‘ancestry’ were being flipped on their heels for a revelation they were not expecting to be ‘true’. It’s hard to think you’ve spent your entire life believing in a lineage of record only to find out the familial concepts you’ve cherished were invented by someone else for a purpose your still trying to understand. Yet, the most striking realisation came when Sira learnt the truth of who the Clan were and where they actually were from – a truth which held it’s own sacrifices and gutting emotions.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.comNotation on Cover Art: Originally, when I saw the artwork for GUARD I can honestly say I didn’t quite understand it. Not until I reached the section in the novel which ‘explained’ what this was about – then, it seemed rather fitting to be featured! What I had trouble discerning from the image was what exactly was Jason Morgan holding in his hands?! I knew it was Jason – the key issue was what was he doing? This is the pivotal scene in the novel, the one where certain things ‘change’ and alter everything else which could have been going on – I will explain one thing which reveals nothing at the same time! lol He’s holding a giant bone and those hands? Those are Assembler hands – I should have sorted that bit out before I reached the disclosure in the book – mind you, Assembler’s aren’t my favourite aliens in the series,.. so, I suppose you could say I let the obvious pass right by me! I’ll let you chew on what Jason and these Assemblers could be up too!

#RRSciFiMonth Book Review | #whoaretheclan | “To Guard Against the Dark” (Book No.3 of the Reunification trilogy) by Julie E. Czerneda #FuellYourSciFi with Jorie!To Guard Against the Dark
Subtitle: A Novel of The Clan Chronicles : Reunification No.3
by Julie E. Czerneda
Illustrator/Cover Designer: Matt Stawicki
Source: Direct from Publisher

Synopsis on the Back Cover

Jason Morgan is a troubling mystery to friends and enemies alike; once a starship captain and trader, then Joined to the most powerful member of the Clan, his love, Sira di Sarc, following her and her kind out of known space.

Only to return, alone and silent.

But he's returned to a Trade Pact under siege, The Assemblers continue unchecked. Bowman hasn't caught the Facilitator. Worst of all, members of the First, sensing their time has come, conspire to change the balance of power.

And push humanity aside.

To Morgan, these are small concerns, for he knows there's more than this universe. Beyond the M'hir is AllThereIs, the true home of the Clan. Dwelling there are entities of instinct, able to reach into real space and destroy what they view as threat, as they ended the vast empire of the Hoveny Concentrix. Sira sacrificed their love and her life to prevent another wave of destruction, for the entities demanded the return of all Clan and no further intrusion.

But not all the Clan followed Sira home.

And some who live in the M'hir have plans of their own.

Jason Morgan will have to make a stand.

Little does he realise, he won't do it alone.

Genres: Science Fiction



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9780756408787

Also by this author: Reap the Wild Wind, Riders of the Storm, Rift in the Sky, A Thousand Words for Stranger, Ties of Power, To Trade the Stars, This Gulf of Time and Stars, Julie E. Czerneda Interview (#futurespasttour), The Gate to Futures Past, Guest Post (Web Shifters series) by Julie E. Czerneda, Guest Post: Julie E. Czerneda (Clan Chronicles Finale Tour)

Also in this series: This Gulf of Time and Stars, The Gate to Futures Past


Published by DAW Books

on 10th October, 2017

Format: Paperback ARC

Pages: 448

 Published By: DAW Books (@DAWBooks)
an imprint of Penguin Group USA

Cover art by Matt Stawicki | Site | Facebook

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Series Synopsis and Overview:

The Clan Chronicles is set in a far future with interstellar travel where the Trade Pact encourages peaceful commerce among a multitude of alien and Human worlds. The alien Clan, humanoid in appearance, have been living in secrecy and wealth on Human worlds, relying on their innate ability to move through the M’hir and bypass normal space. The Clan bred to increase that power, only to learn its terrible price: females who can’t help but kill prospective mates. Sira di Sarc is the first female of her kind facing that reality. With the help of a Human starship captain, Jason Morgan, Sira must find a morally acceptable solution before it’s too late. But with the Clan exposed, her time is running out. The Stratification trilogy follows Sira’s ancestor, Aryl Sarc, and shows how their power first came to be as well as how the Clan came to live in the Trade Pact. The Trade Pact trilogy is the story of Sira and Morgan, and the trouble facing the Clan.

Reunification will conclude the series and answer, at last, #whoaretheclan.

NEW Stories about Plexis | information via Julie E. Czerneda’s dedicated anthology UPDATE Site.

Available Formats: Hardcover, Paperback and Ebook

About Julie E. Czerneda

Julie E. Czerneda Photo Credit: Roger Czerneda Photography

Since 1997, Canadian author/editor Julie E. Czerneda has shared her love and curiosity about living things through her science fiction, writing about shapechanging semi-immortals, terraformed worlds, salmon researchers, and the perils of power. Her fourteenth novel from DAW Books was her debut fantasy, A Turn of Light, winner of the 2014 Aurora Award for Best English Novel, and now Book One of her Night`s Edge series.

She began her first fantasy series: Night’s Edge with A Turn of Light, winner of the 2014 Aurora Award for Best English Novel. A Play of Shadow followed, winning the 2015 Aurora. While there’ll be more fantasy, Julie’s back in science fiction to complete her Clan Chronicles series. Reunification #1: This Gulf of Time and Stars, came out in 2015. #2: The Gate to Futures Past released September, 2016. Volume #3: To Guard Against the Dark, follows October 2017.

An award-winning editor as well, Julie’s edited/co-edited sixteen anthologies of SF/F, including the Aurora winning Space Inc. and Under Cover of Darkness. Her most recent anthology is the 2017 Nebula Award Showcase, published May 2017, a singular honour.

Next out will be an anthology of original stories set in her Clan Chronicles series: Tales from Plexis, out in 2018. When not jumping between wonderful blogs, Julie’s at work on something very special: her highly anticipated new Esen novel, Search Image (Fall 2018).

Biography updated November 2017
Photo Credit: Roger Czerneda Photography

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My Review of To Guard Against the Dark:

I could not have hoped for a better beginning from an ending my heart was not yet prepared to greet than to find Huido awaiting Jason! They had shared a special bond for so long now, it was hard to discern who missed whom more – as Huido was a welcome sight for the bereaved Jason. I think if Huido hadn’t been there, Jason might not have found the will to live – his heart and his soul were shattered in such a way as to find fault in how the pieces fit back together. His life without Sira now felt awkwardly strange – as if he was less of himself and succumbing to a variant of himself at the same time. Losing your soul-mate can do that to a bloke. . .

Sira was not amused. She realised she did what she had to do to protect the love of her life, of giving Jason a chance to live but the cost of her sacrifice to save him was more than she could bear. Even if her sister, Rael felt she could convince herself by the self-indulgence of solitude was not in her best interests; it’s the unwelcoming feelings surging through Sira which she wished she could quiet the most. Whilst she’s struggling with her resolve, Jason is attempting to work with Bowman on understanding who was behind the Assemblers attack on the Clan. Bowman has surprised me more than once throughout the series – lest of of all, for her undying support for their cause and the acceptance of Jason being entwined with Sira.

Thel’s acceptance of Jason was heart-warming – she reminded me of Bowman, self-assured, loyal and someone you could call on out of the blue without having to explain yourself! Thel and Jason along with Terk (one of Bowman’s trusted colleagues) could do nothing but let the Drapsk cart off the cargo they were attempting to intercept. The irony is how Terk was in position to get the cargo, where the Scat were trying to abscond off with it themselves and here, the Drapsk surprised them all getting it first! I liked the Drapsk the first time I encountered them; such an interesting species, whose entire motivations in life revolve around the M’hir. It is there undying affection for Sira though which first endears you to them!

I was not quite prepared for what I saw of Rael and Sira’s nemesis Yihtor – although, what was happening to them made sense to me. If you were not entirely where you were meant to be, there could be affects on your person no one would wish to endure. In this vein, finding out they were in stasis had me thinking of a theory behind what really happens when the Clan went into the M’hir to die – as nothing they felt was real all those years ago was truly the reality of the day now. Everything had changed when Sira learnt the truth of the Clan; of their origins and of their experimental past. Why anyone would want to cause physical obstruction and harm to them now begged a larger question about who wanted to collect the Clan or rightly, control them. There had to be a reason behind this deception – as when the Assemblers were first called into place to go after the Clan, there were passages where I felt I was just out of sequence with the reason behind ‘all of it’. I could sense there was something just outside my peripheral knowledge – something which would feel innately ‘right’ yet remained elusive.

Huido’s nephew Tayno still makes me laugh! Despite the fierce mask he tries to wear to embrace the persona of his Uncle, he never seems to find the confidence he’s trying to brush off on others. He barely understands how to run the business, as he is prone to impulsive reactions! Despite his faults, he truly does want to make a strong impression on Huido which of course, influences what he does on Plexis. What makes him wiggle my funny-bone is how he acts in the moment of a crisis! He’s not the most courageous but he endears you to rally behind him all the same. Even if he lacks principles, there is something to be said for how he’s staid in Huido’s stead! This time round though, even Tayno has a way of surprising me – he not only comes into his own, but his grist is finally reaching a new level of maturity!

There has been unrest amongst the Clan for a long time – factions of different families had broken off from Sira and the Clan Council if only to seek their own way in Trade Pact space. The key issue being most of those factions were high bent on acquisition of power, to assume their role as overseer of other species whilst controlling most of the trade of the Trade Pact. They wanted ‘more’ and were simply not going to settle for ‘less’. They felt anything ‘less’ was inferior to their kind, of their abilities and surely, of what their destiny should have foretold. In these fragmented groupings of Clan, you find power shifts and power struggles amongst their leaders – even going as far back as when Sira was first finding fault with the Clan Council for going against Clan principles – here, you find them still going against the very nature of their species, whilst attempting a Napoleon takeover!

Within this aspect, the Clan has never truly found peace – to live, to love and to be who they were meant to be. Most of this stems back from their hidden origins, of not remembering who they were ‘exactly’ within the wide stretch of things but also, too, it stems back from a disjointed sense of self. The Clan has had their fair share of issues, both within their colonies and families as much as with their interactions with other aliens and humans alike. They have the tendency of taking what they will irregardless of the ethics involved which is why Sira’s mission to re-unite the Clan and to find the Clan’s homeworld was motivated by a deep understanding of finding restitution for everything they never knew they had lost. As honourable as this may seem, there are those who shied away from Sira, either due to her innate powers or reasons of pride; they would not follow her nor agree with her sentiments on what the Clan should be doing. Even on the level of respecting other species without interference of Clan powers of mind, she found discontent; as there are those who felt if you had power over others, you ought to implement it irregardless of the consequences. On that note, Sira grieved the hardest – realising her fellow Clansmen and Clanswomen were missing the point of the argument and blinding themselves further to the truth of who they truly were.

As I was observing Wys di Caraat, I noticed Sira’s quest for reunification was still at a standstill – she had left behind a dangerous nemesis in this Clanswoman, who like her fellow dissident Clanspeople, she believed she was in the right; never in the wrong! Her plan (so keenly similar to Napoleon) to overtake a fringe world due to their hardships and dissemination of resources (prior to their arrival) was only strike one of her plans; she seemed to also be behind the gathering of Clan artifacts – where the Scat fetched everything she requested without little heed towards ‘why’ and where; those who followed her couldn’t question her motives if they wanted to live without pain. For she was one of the Clanswoman who was not the kind to flinch about exacting pain in order to gain what she wanted; when it comes to the Clan, imagine a bolt of immediate pain shooting through your neural network whilst trying to function!

One thing which surprised me most is who was abducting the bodies of the Clan’s dead! I was most alarmed as much as Sira was (or wasn’t, as she had reached her personal point of no return) finding out some of the Clan who had supposedly died were actually being housed in stasis – this came back to focus when Jason found Yihtor with Huido. What he hadn’t realised though, is how keenly important it was for him to heed Yihtor’s advice about finding Sira’s sister Rael! As there was a turning of the tides within the M’hir – where Sira needed to ‘live once more’ but not live as she once had – the complication of being Clan.

By Contemporary understanding it would be as if to re-insert yourself into a body not of your own through a telepathic connection and soul-link, thereby disassociating the bodies spirit from within itself in order to re-affirm your spirit into the body for your own personal gain. A switch of souls, wherein only one soul lives within the ‘shell’ of the body at one time leaving the first soul unbound and lost. Except these are Clanswomen and they were attempting to share one ‘husk’ as they call them, together. Even if technically, Rael’s spirit had long since moved into the M’hir permanently, she still had quasi-control of her ‘husk’. I was most anxious to see Jason’s reaction when he re-met Rael who by then would be reincarnated as Sira.

Finding Jason on board the Wayfarer felt like his personal homecoming; not that it would replace his years on the Silver Fox but he was a trader without a ship; he couldn’t hide his joy of being aboard a ship cobbled together by an earnestly passionate Captain. From the moment he first went onboard with Terk and Huido, his pride in the work this female cousin of Thel had impressed him. He noticed the patterns of repair and the instincts of maintaining a ship in the Trade Pact within the confines of a humble budget; in essence, Jason was on a ship he could live on himself. Even musing about how to draw more profit, how best to continue the retrofits and repairs and how to avoid unnecessary angst amongst traders.

The only parts I truly have struggled with in the last trilogy are the moments involving the Assemblers (and the Omacron) – those disembodied piece-mill entities who use spare body parts in order to ‘assemble’ themselves as a new ‘entity’ if you will. The whole act as a collective, as if having the best ‘group’ of living flesh is their goal but not the entire goal either – their a curious lot. They travel in small compartments and can fuse themselves back together by re-attaching each piece to each connecting part; it’s a bit mind-blowing in complexity and simplicity at the same time! Their a fiercely violent species too, they are ruled by their own interests and the interests of their employers who pay for them to carry out their dirty deeds. They’re in part destroyers and collectors at the same time! However, the aspects of their personage is what is most disturbing as they do not have an ethical bone in their reassembled body!

This is why I found it most alarming in one way, the Assembler sent to aide Rael back to functionary health after being pulled out of stasis (such an ill-advised thing to do!) actually seemed to be concerned for her injured body and the current status of her ‘wellness’. She took means to feed and clothe her whilst using rudimentary (er, beyond basic!) emergency medicine practices to forestall the stress on her physical body from the wounds which were not rightly healing. Even having first learnt of the conditions of the bodies in stasis was a bit jarring as it was seriously gruesome to consider what the physical remains had undergone after the spirit of their persons were absent. Or by Contemporary standards it brokered on post-mortem abuse.

The Omacron in deference to the Assemblers were assassins for hire who took joy in their work. Without remorse, they worked for the will of their organiser who was a Clanswoman darkened by the loss of her son and the destiny she had wanted of him. She was Wys di Caraat and the one who unwittingly was causing more ill-will for her kin than she had tried to circumvent! Hers was a power-thirsty mind blinded by her own interests to achieve what she felt no other Clan had attempted but in her haste to carry out her plans, she’d overlooked something quite critical: there were others who were more deceptive than she in their motives.

Even though Sira was inhabiting Rael’s body, she was still Sira – meaning, there are certain traits every soul has within them which can be deduced by how they act, talk and synthesise their environment. In this, Sira-as-Rael was giving Jason mixed signals he was shrugging off as he knew Rael was Sira’s sister; even if the underline truth which was not being spoken by Sira-as-Rael was known to him all the same. It was interesting watching them go through the motions of interacting without connecting; Sira and Morgan had had such an intimate relationship – wherein just being in close space was enough for them to connect on a different plane of existence. Here, what is interesting is how determined Sira is as Rael to right the last of the wrongs her people have carved into the Trade Pact. She might feel defeated and cast out of where she longs to reside, but her will to do what her courage guides her to embrace is what is allowing her to carry forward with this plan for reunification.

As we pull back the layers of what is affecting the Clan, we find more sinister reasons for their demise and their destruction – reasons I saw hinted at in past installments where carnal prejudices and misguided influences were causing the worst chaos for the Clan. They were despised past the point of reason where their right to life was being erased by those who felt they had power over them to choose what became of them. All of which is ontop of the faction of Clan who wished to rise through the ashes of their communities to overtake the Trade Pact. At the root of it all, is how power can bleed a heart black against the greed of which can never be satisfied.

What I had feared would be the end isn’t how Ms Czerneda chose to end The Clan Chronicles – in effect, she ended this beautifully emotional series in the way I dared hoped might be possible! Seeing Sira reunited with Jason was what I was hoping would be in the finale – I was never sure if they were going to be allowed to stay reunited but how they were forced to depart each others’ presence and the bond they shared never sat well with me; even if it made logical sense!

The characters at the heart of the Clan Chronicles are Jason and Sira – the two whose love has not only sustained the hope of both their species but has elevated the heart of where a series like this can take you. It was quite literally a team of entwined souls & minds who took on the universe; the hopeful optimist never wants to consider the gutting reality of how sometimes there are no happy endings – or at least, fitting resolutions.

Even finding Jason a hallowed out version of himself (from loss of weight and the purge of emotional strife) was aligned well with Sira’s self-deprecating isolation and depression. These two were best together, not apart. They quite literally embody the ‘two halves as one soul’ sentiment. Finding they had a newfound mutual love of being shipboard did not surprise me either – those days they were on the Silver Fox were the best of their lives. Each of them finding a part of themselves which did not fit elsewhere but were able to find a niche of purpose whilst in command of a ship. Or in Sira’s case, part of the crew who kept the ship functioning with limited resources but a lot of grit!

I’m a romantic at heart – I love a good romance and Ms Czerneda has at the core of this series written an epic romantic tale spun out of the deepest connection two souls could hope to find within each other. This is a series about Sira and Jason; of Sira’s ancestors and of how two people can effectively cause the great change for everyone in the universe. For this, I truly will never forget the series – of the hours I spent with the Clan and of the more difficult aspects of the story – of where I might have felt pushed out of my comfort zones a few times – because the ending is by far well worth the journey!

On finding the will to conclude my beloved series #TheClanChronicles:

I will readily admit – I have struggled to read the final chapter of this series – to find a will within my own mind and heart to read the conclusion of a 9 novel series where each installment happily eclipsed and carried forward the story-line. This doesn’t read like 9 individual stories to me – it’s an epic love story and multi-generational saga cast against the backdrop of Spacer culture and intrigue. This is a series which will make you feel emotionally gutted – there is a hearty breadth of purpose within this series, of how Ms Czerneda has allowed you to consider and re-consider the grave topics knitted into the backbone of Cersi and Trade Pact space. These are topics of critical concern even within our Contemporary world – not limited to Sira’s ancestry.

I wasn’t sure what to expect truly – of where this final story would take me and if I was fully braced for how it would end, as I suppose I was expecting an entirely different conclusion! What I found instead was of such joyous inspiration, it re-affirmed what I loved most about Cersi, as even in the Trade Pact there can be small miracles where lives can be healed.

Going back to Plexis as a crucial place of interest in this 9th novel delighted me to no end as this is one of my favourite locations within the series (save Cersi!). Plexis is the supermarket like no other, where the multiple floors of its commerce is only half the story behind this uniquely envisioned place of business! As I found myself fascinated by how Plexis is the central axis to the whole story – in the wider sense – made me happy! I knew there was more to Plexis than what was being shared on the surface because this refers back to what I’ve previously disclosed: Ms Czerneda leaves little clues for you to find, little nuances of discovery and delight which help you connect the threads of her narrative in latter installments. This might be why Plexis was always something I took stock and notice of – it felt important even if the ways in which it’s importance was revealled was a happy surprise!

And, then, there is the M’hir itself – an entity in its own right I have spent a considerable amount of time contemplating and of which, in the end, is far more dimensionally expansive than any of us could have speculated! I truly love how the mind of the author worked out the details – of how the formation of the M’hir takes on different meaning per each new alien species who interacts with it and by which, has its own set of ‘guardians’. It’s one of the more complex elements of this world because it is a constant presence – always in both the foreground and background of what is happening to everyone everywhere. I truly loved finding out more about this dimensional space – of better understanding how it lives and why it behaves in the ways that it does. There is a beautiful symphony of restitution involving the M’hir – one which I found wicked brilliant as it made all the harder emotions worth going through to find this conclusion.

At the heart of why I felt rooted to this series is how soul-crushing it is to read – you truly leave all of yourself inside these pages – you get so dearly attached to the characters and the worlds in which they inhabit, it’s hard to pull yourself back outside their realms. Equally difficult is finding the will to re-visit them when there are so many uncertainties looming in front of you! Yet, if you push forward – what you will find is an incredible saga where heroism is hard-won and where love truly conquers all evils! What more can you ask for in a multi-trilogy series? Ooh, I know! Sophisticated ships whose designs are so wicked brilliant you wish we had the tech to create them NOW!

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This book review is courtesy of:

Julie E. Czerneda and DAW Books

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#FuellYourSciFi badge created by Jorie in Canva.

As stated on my Twitter Profile in 2016:

Knitty Whovian who left her heart on Cersi.

Re-enters #TheClanChronicles before #RRSciFiMonth.

#FuellYourSciFi by what #JorieReads!

I conceptionalised the term ‘Fuell Your Sci Fi’ as a way to re-integrate more science fiction back into my reading life as it’s the genre of choice when it comes to my personal writings inasmuch as one of the first genres that truly had me awestruck as a child! I heart Science Fiction yet I do not feature enough of it on my blog or take enough time to explore its worlds as much as I truly should! I tend to get smitten by Historical Fiction! Therefore, if you see #FuellYourSciFi winking on Twitter, you know I’m fuelling my own heart’s curiosity and expanding my horizon with wicked good reads within the sci-fi realms!

I am also exploring personally selected topics in Science through non-fiction releases that warm my sci-fi bookish heart as they parlay into topics & subjects explored regularly in Hard Sci-Fi which is where my addiction thrives in science fiction as I love the creativity of where hard SF authors take us visually within their brilliantly crafted worlds! Of this group, Julie E. Czerneda re-set the standard for me!

Read all posts I’ve been threading through #FuellYourSciFi!

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My journey into the heart of The Clan Chronicles began during Sci Fi November 2015.

November is the month we get to shine our sci-fi geekery together to light the way for others to find out why Science Fiction enriches our minds, hearts & imaginations!

Sci-Fi Month 2017 is a month-long event to celebrate science fiction hosted by Imyril @imyril and Lisa @ Over the Effing Rainbow. You can learn more about the event here, follow the event on Twitter via the official @SciFiMonth Twitter account, or the hashtag #RRSciFiMonth. Participants already signed into the event this year can be found here!

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Reader Interactive Question:

What are you seeking out of hard science fiction and what do you love about multi-species narratives that speak to the epic saga of life and living on a world just outside of our own?

If you’ve been reading The Clan Chronicles,

Who are the Clan, to you?

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Previously, during #RRSciFiMonth [2017]

Rimrider (audiobook) by L.A. Kelley | (see also Review)

#WWWeds Introduction | (see also Post)

#RRSciFiMonth Chat, No.1 | Feat. EXO Books as co-host | (see also Post)

#RRSciFiMonth Chat, No.2 | Feat. Kaki Olsen as co-host | (see also Post)

Murder in the Generative Kitchen by Meg P | (see also Post)

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Afterward:
This marks my final contribution to #RRSciFiMonth which was unfortunately delayed by several unforeseen tech issues; thankfully resolved on the 2nd (of December). However, my ruminative thoughts on behalf of the FINAL chapter of #theclanchronicles: “To Guard Against the Dark” were meant to be shared on the very last day of the event, hence why I’ve dated this post to be featured on the 30th of November. It is the definitive last chapter of my participation for this event this year but also, it closes the door on a series which I’ve been reading for *three!* consecutive Sci Fi Novembers!
It’s hard to believe, but for three years I’ve spent an emotional connection with the Clan,… finding my way into the last chapter of their lives has been difficult – the will to learn of their fate and to understand what became of them guided me onwards but like most readers (including Andrea @ Red Head Reviewer – see her review of GUARD) finding the will to END a beloved series isn’t easy,… nor is composing our thoughts which do broker a bit on spoiling a few insights if only to work through what is happening in our own minds & to share a piece of what gives us the joy of being this close to the Clan’s exodus.
I am humbled and thankful to have taken this journey with Ms Czerneda – for I, entered the Clan’s journey during the publication of the final trilogy. The best blessing I received was being able to start this series from the very beginning – to enter through Cersi (Stratification) and move forward in Clan History in the timeline of the Clan rather than in the order of publication. I whole-heartedly hope others who find my posts will find a reason to seek out the Clan and find themselves wicked engaged with a series which never stops making you think about the ‘layers & dimensions’ of what Ms Czerneda is sharing with us all!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

UPCOMING SOON: [ this December ] more #FuellYourSciFi selections from Jorie

Several of these selections are considered Magical Realism, a sub-genre I especially am drawn to exploring further – as I love how it plays with intermixing #SciFantasy aspects into the narratives whilst giving us that beautiful bridge into a quasi-fantasy world with the beauty of being bent between genres of scope and breadth!

Far Orbit Apogee banner provided by World Weaver Press

  • Far Orbit: Apogee (edited by) Bascomb James (Synopsis)
  • Nebula Awards Showcase 2016 (edited by) Mercedes Lackey (Synopsis)
  • Trans-Continental: Girl in the Gears by E. Chris Garrison (Synopsis)
  • Prophecy by Paul Mark Tag (Synopsis)
  • Hope’s Prelude (novella, prequel) by L.G. O’Connor (Synopsis)
  • Frozen Fairy Tales (anthology) (edited by) Kate Wolford (Synopsis)
  • Heir to the Lamp (Book One: Genie Chronicles) by Michelle Lowery Combs (Synopsis)
  • The Beauty Thief (Book One: Chronicles of the Twelve Realms) by Rachael Ritchey (Synopsis)
  • Solomon’s Bell (Book Two: Genie Chronicles) by Michelle Lowery Combs (Synopsis) | (see also Cover Reveal w/ Notes)
  • Captive Hope (Book Two: Chronicles of the Twelve Realms) by Rachael Ritchey (Synopsis)
  • Almost a Millennium by Jeanbill (Synopsis)
  • White Thaw by Paul Mark Tag (Synopsis)

There will be more to share in January [2018] as well!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

{SOURCES: The book cover for “To Guard Against the Dark” as well as an updated biography and the back cover blurb is being used with permission of DAW Books. The author photograph of Julie E. Czerneda, original author’s biography and series summary of The Clan Chronicles were sent to me by the author and used with permission. Tweets embedded due to the codes provided by Twitter. Far Orbit banner provided by World Weaver Press and is being used with permission. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Blog graphics created by Jorie via Canva: Ruminations and Impressions Banner, #FuellYourSciFi badge and the Comment Box Banner.}

Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2017.

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About jorielov

I am self-educated through local libraries and alternative education opportunities. I am a writer by trade and I cured a ten-year writer’s block by the discovery of Nanowrimo in November 2008. The event changed my life by re-establishing my muse and solidifying my path. Five years later whilst exploring the bookish blogosphere I decided to become a book blogger. I am a champion of wordsmiths who evoke a visceral experience in narrative. I write comprehensive book showcases electing to get into the heart of my reading observations. I dance through genres seeking literary enlightenment and enchantment. Starting in Autumn 2013 I became a blog book tour hostess featuring books and authors. I joined The Classics Club in January 2014 to seek out appreciators of the timeless works of literature whose breadth of scope and voice resonate with us all.

"I write my heart out and own my writing after it has spilt out of the pen." - self quote (Jorie of Jorie Loves A Story)

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Posted Thursday, 30 November, 2017 by jorielov in #FuellYourSciFi, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Cover | Original Illustration & Design, Book Review (non-blog tour), Canadian Literature, Compassion & Acceptance of Differences, Equality In Literature, Hard Science Fiction, Science Fantasy, Science Fiction, Space Opera




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