The Long Way Home

Sequoyah #1

by Sabrina Chase

Webspace pilot Moire Cameron is one of the best--but even she can’t fly her way out of a catastrophic drive failure that triggers a time-dilation bubble. Left suddenly eighty years out of date, she is on the run in a world she no longer knows, caught in the middle of a human-alien war while agents of Toren hunt her for the information only she has--the location of the pristine world of Sequoyah.

The Long Way Home is the first book in the Sequoyah trilogy.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Adventure, Space, Time Travel, Military Fiction, Romance

325 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 3, 2012

Reviews

[Clyde · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Long Way Home is the first book I have read by Sabrina Chase, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It provides a rollicking good story with a nice mix of mystery, action, and suspense. It is a good example of what is being called human-wave science fiction. (Human-wave stories are not like the recently fashionable dystopian tales. They are often more space operatic, and, I would say, are restoring the sense of wonder to SF.)
The book ends on a hopeful note, but with a lot of mysteries unsolved. That is alright, however, because the story continues for two more books in which I expect all will be revealed (Raven's Children and Queen of Chaos, both now available).
Who would like this book? Well, if you liked Elizabeth Moon's Serrano Legacy and Vatta's War books or David Weber's Honor Harrington books, this might be a good book for you.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, a great first novel. Wonderful pacing and characters, good hard sci-fi world building, just enough complexity in plotting to be compelling.

Be warned, this book is really the "first half" of at least two books in the series.

Very good stuff here!

And, WOW, Kudos for self-publishing! WELL DONE!

[Rhode PVD · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 really, rounded up for having a whole bunch of strong female characters, living in a world with zero apparent sexism. Nobody underestimates anyone because they are female, nobody uses sexual wiles to get their way, and all professionals (officers, mercenaries, criminals, pilots, etc) are as likely to be female as male. Bechtel test blown away. And all without any author preaching or even calling-your-attention-to-it. The universe just is not sexist. Happy dance.

If you just switched character sexes, it would have a) worked perfectly well with hardly a blip and b) been a solid, but not overwhelmingly excellent book. So that's 3.5.

Oddly, for me, I feel as though this book is too concise. Too boiled down with extraneous words gone. It's dense. You get an enormous amount of action, plot and characters packed into 271 pages. The author could have turned this book alone into three books.

It was tough at the start especially for me to get used to this speedy pacing. Later I got used to it, but it robbed me of a bit of the immersive experience I enjoy with a good book. Each time I'd settle into one setting or situation, wham bam, it would change. New planet! New fight! New secondary cast!

Lastly I hate the cover. It's a major disappointment. Here I am reading a book with a kick ass heroine and the cover shows her being all rescued victim, with an oddly large bust and what looks like lipstick, in someone's arms. As I read, I thought I'd come to a scene that justified or explained it. I did not. Finally I realized the cover represents action that took place BEFORE the book started. And nowhere in the book are the big bust or lipstick explained. Just weird.

Les Petersen who did the cover art should be chastised.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite like people out-of-their-time stories, and this was an enjoyable one. I read so many super-competent male protagonists (and I love it) but it was so fun to read about a female one. This had good pace, definitely didn't drag at all. Also appreciated that the characters are smart enough to figure things out, rather than wandering around unrealistically clueless until the end of the book. I'm looking forward to the next to see what happens.

[SubterraneanCatalyst · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I finished this book, I screamed- OUT LOUD. This is why I have this shelved under "wtf-ending". My husband looked over and said "books are supposed to be private ok?" because I was apoplectic. This was last night.
So! The thing is, I love this book. The bad thing is- the ending is just a punch in the gut in that while it isn't technically a cliff hangar it just ..ends like having a movie end in the middle! Oh wait, it is like having a book end..before it is supposed to be ending.
I still love this book however.
Moira Cameron is the only survivor from her ship Bon Accord. Being the pilot she was burdened by her commander and lover to return back to Earth with information about their discovery, meanwhile her crew died so that she may do this. Obviously this information is terribly important that her entire crew would sacrifice their lives so she could make it back. Somehow- the usually minor adjustment they call "Einstein's revenge" that gives a 2 hour shift in time when exiting "web space" travel propels her 80 years in the future. Instead of NASA to report to- a huge nefarious corporation, Toren, exists and happens to be THE military contractor du jour.
Moira is essentially a fugitive from a tireless corporation that will do virtually anything to get to her. This is her story, she is sad as you can only imagine being isolated so far in the future and removed from everything she held dear, having so little real reason to live anymore but wanting to tell anyone that would can be responsible for the burden she carries.

This book is full of harrowing events, an ensemble cast of characters, touching scenes. Moira comes across as incredibly capable, very human and decent. She doesn't seem so much as an angel of Mary Sue so much as an intelligent determined woman that is struggling to survive against the Goliath.

I love, Ennis, poor poor Ennis! I love Alan, dear sweet Alan.

I am glad there is another book already available and I have already snatched it up. I looked online immediately after reading this because of the ending and felt a serious dose of relief that this is a TRILOGY.

This book actually made me cry :(. I love Moira and want to see how it all turns out!

(BTW: I'm writing this really quickly- I'm on vacation..I'll come back and edit if I have to :p )

[Opal · Rating 5 out of 5]

The scope of this book is magnificent. From the frontlines of a war in space to the backwater planets on the Fringe, this book has a little bit of everything.

Mercenaries, Fleet military, pirates, and pioneers. The cast of characters are vast, varied and colorful. The landscape is just as rich. From planetside to ship life, you get a taste of everything. All without missing a beat.

The character development is phenomenal. Moire is vulnerable in her pain at being stranded 80 years from her time. Yet she shows a strength that is admirable. Her resourcefulness causes even more respect.

I really felt her loneliness at being the only survivor from her crew and her determination to complete her mission. I also felt her desperation as she felt the odds weigh against her as she realized how unlikely it would be for her to succeed against the giant corporation Toren with all its resources. You can also feel her desperation as she struggles to survive despite these odds. Her difficulties with adjusting to life in the present age with all its idiosyncrasies also makes it a very realistic story.

Ennis is an intriguing character with his strength and his sensitivity. His intelligence is something I admire, if not his ambition. I really enjoyed reading about him as his story unfolded and intertwined with Moire’s.

There were unexpected plot twists that I appreciated as the book went on. It kept me on my toes and kept me glued to the pages. I look forward to the second book of the series which I’ll be reviewing next.

Sabrina Chase doesn’t disappoint fans with The Long Way Home. It was a very entertaining and satisfying read.

[Debrac2014 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good! I liked Moira! I hope she fulfills her mission!

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes my subscription to Bookbub really, really pays off.

The Long Way Home is a fantastic SF/Space Opera adventure tale. Chase takes the concept of "in medias res" and RUNS with it -- the preview on Amazon dropped me right into the middle of a battle, and dropped just enough hints about protagonist Moire Cameron's mysterious secret to reel me in. By the time I reached the end of the sample chapters, I was thoroughly invested.

It doesn't end there. Chase is completely unafraid to skip big chunks of time and drop you right into something else exciting. It's (almost) never disorienting, and a few shared threads (Toren, Sequoyah, Alan) keep it from feeling too episodic. And the technique allows Chase to cover a lot of time and a lot of space, giving the book a great sense of scale.

It also allows her to introduce lots of great secondary characters - mercenaries, Fleet officers, planet-dwellers, or ship crew. They mostly all feel well fleshed-out, even if they only appear once or twice. (Again, scale). The primary characters are of course also great -- Moire and Ennis (and Alan, I guess) all get viewpoints that feel distinct, and true to their characterization.

The writing is overall pretty strong. I would hazard a guess that the manuscript was edited - and/or Ms. Chase is a stronger writer than most of the indies on Amazon - as my reading experience was very smooth (and free of grammar errors! Or at least none that jarred me from the story).

I do think the book has a couple rough edges that an industry editor would have sanded down, but overall the book is charming, well written, and a LOT of fun.

Fair warning: while the ending isn't exactly a cliffhanger -- it ends at the end of a story beat -- it's not exactly super stand-alone. The overarching plot threads remain (mostly) unresolved. Unless you have more willpower than I do, you're probably going to want the next book right away. Luckily the series is complete at three books.

If you're looking for an inexpensive purchase, want to support and indie, and like SF, The Long Way Home is a good bet.

[Laz the Sailor · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very strong 4-stars. This was an interesting variant on the "wise old pilot from the past" scifi story. The characters and the story structure were both very solid. Few data-dumps, so the galaxy-building was learn as you go, which was also well done.

I'll read the next one, and I anticipate that it will be even better.

[Teresa Carrigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent science fiction. Good characterizations for the most part too - I really cared about some of the characters. First in a (trilogy? series?). I'll be looking for the sequels.

[Amy (I'd Rather Be Sleeping)]

DNF - PG 19

Why?

Because I had no business reading it in the first place. I mean, this is the kind of book I'd usually just ignore - but for some reason some time back, I bought it. If I buy the book, I always at least try to read it. I mean, I spent money on it, so I should at least give it a shot. If I hadn't, I'd still have this book sitting on my kindle five years from now always wondering what caused me to buy it. (I really don't know.) Anyway, the book is, quite simply, not for me. (The writing is too something. Wordy, maybe. Distancing is another choice, because I feel nothing but mild frustration towards these main characters.)

[Janine Southard · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great piece of space opera. I finished it and immediately rushed to buy the second book (of three).

It's got a lot of the elements I personally find fun in space opera stories:
1) Our hero is a pilot. In fact, she used to be a crazy test pilot, so she can fly just about anything (because she has no fear and is also TRAINED).
2) There are spaceships.
3) There's a war on with aliens.
4) No one actually cares about the war with the aliens because there's inter-human backbiting/politicking. You all know how much I love politicking.

And it's all done well and super-fun.

But the super-interesting (to me) gimmick here, is the time travel element. See, poor Moire (our heroine) was NASA trained sometime in our near future. (I figure it can't be more than 100 years from now because of cultural drift. For instance, she uses our modern slang sometimes, but she also talks about space tech that doesn't exist for us.)

Anyway, Moire's from let's say 2060 or so. But she flies through some serious stuff and drops back into realtime 80 years later (so, around 2140). The whole book takes place in the 80-years-later time, but we get to read all about Moire's time-traveller-not-at-home (space-fish-out-of-vacuum?) drama.

Now, usually, when you get a Time Traveller's Culture Shock novel, there's a link to our present (or something very near it). People go backwards from today to the 1800s. Romcoms involve earnest Highland lads from the 1500s. People from the future travel to us. (Okay, fine there are some other exceptions like that episode of ST:TNG with The Traveller, but you take my point.)

Speaking of points, I don't really have one with the picture below, but I drew it on the back of an envelope today and thought I'd share.



Anyway, fun with time traveller's issues aside, I quite enjoyed this novel. I think other fans of space opera and epic fiction will too.

[S.J. Higbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve read a couple of science fiction books recently that have started in a fairly leisurely manner – this isn’t one of them. It hits the ground running and feeds information to the reader, who needs to catch up. I love it. It’s the reason why SFF is my go-to genre, no other fiction makes me think out of the box in quite the same way… Moire is scrambling to stay ahead of a ruthless corporation who want the information she has and isn’t fussy about how they’ll get it.

The worldbuilding is solidly convincing with all sorts of nice details that has Moire scratching her head as she struggles to catch up with the technology since she finds herself bounced into the future. I stayed up far later than I should have as this book refused to let me go until I’d finished it. We learn about all sorts of interesting places as she tries to keep a low profile in the less salubrious parts of space – think of an adrenaline-fuelled version of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet. And no… the name of Chase’s book isn’t a rip-off, as it was published in 2012, well before Becky Chambers published her space opera best-seller.

As well as being an exciting chase, there are also some interesting plot twists – a couple I saw coming and one I didn’t – that also helped to keep the pages turning. The writing is accomplished and smooth, while Moire is a thoroughly likeable character who is doing her best to acclimatise herself in hard circumstances.

The story came to a suitable climax, though the ending leaves us with a lot more unanswered questions – however, for once I don’t care because I have Raven’s Children on my Kindle ready and waiting. I shan’t be leaving it long before I return to this thrilling world.
9/10

[Cedar Sanderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Long Way Home begins with perhaps one of the best examples of ‘in media res’ that I have read recently. The story which came before is revealed slowly, by the reluctant hero who wanted only to die… and instead saves the day. Moire, our heroine, goes on to think she only lives because she fears pain. But she rediscovers herself when she becomes responsible for others, and must care for them. Her life becomes a thing worth having when it means she protects others.

If you read my reviews, you know I have a thing for creaky trader starships with plucky crews. I have a thing for characters who are human, but have honor, loyalty, and come to life in my head. The Long Way Home provides those. It also gives us vast interstellar conspiracies, with hints of just how low the company which has replaced (or, as it is hinted, overthrown violently) NASA will go. I’m not going to give you all the plot, or reveal some of the twists. I’ll let you go and discover them for yourself.

The writing is smooth and compelling. I wasn’t thrown out of the story, that I recall (1:00 AM!!). I think if I had to compare it to another writer, that might be Elizabeth Moon’s Serrano series. Here you will find the colony worlds, the slow attrition of an alien war, and the disillusioned Fleet struggling to insterpose their thin line of defense between the enemy and humanity.

I highly recommend this book.

[Gallandro_83 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this new space opera and am looking forward to continuing reading about Moire.

This book makes use of the big threads for space-opera and does so pretty well. We have a war pitting humans against alien adversaries. We have large space corporations warring against humanity itself. We have hot-shot pilots that save space battles and humanity desperate to save itself. In fact there really isn't much in the series that is new or unique it just takes the common space-opera themes and weaves for us a new and pretty good tale. Despite all that its the characters and there depth that makes this more than just a formulaic sci-fi book.

I look forward to reading more and hope that the author eventually gives us that one piece that makes the novel truly something unique, but even if it never happens the book still showcases an author that can tell us a good story of appropriate length that is "new enough" that it can be enjoyed be even veteran sci-fi fans.

galandro

[mirba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes I forget how much I like science fiction, It is usually more tiring to read than the ya pnr trash I stumble on the free kindle books, and it does take some attention to read it.

This book is a great epic saga and I loved it and all the rest of the serie. Great characters, great plot, great world building, careful and well planned storyline and it is also really well written. Oh did I mention that it is also a page turner that keeps you up in the middle of the night to go on and on reading it?

[Pancha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so glad I found this book! This is just the kind of space opera I want to read: plenty of action with characters I enjoy spending time with. I highly recommend this to any one who likes sci-fi. In some ways it reminds me of Battlestar Galactica (space opera, depth of characters) and also the Steerwoman's Road (spirit of exploration, temperament of the main character).

[Hmr28 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent sci-fi from Chase. I've gone on a glom for this author and plan to keep reading till I've finished her back list (and since I have 800 unread books on my nook that should tell you how good she is!)

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the other two in the series. I like the characters and the fact that you aren't given too much at once really keeps you reading to find out all the secrets.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth reading!

it took a while for this book to get my full attention but once the story started unfolding, the characters developed into those you want to follow. Very unique storylines. Looking forward to the next book.

[Douglas Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has all the cool things that I like to read. It has suspense. It moves quickly. It has a great plot. Characters are interesting. The plot is based on the good old oddities of space travel. I must read the next book....

[Andi]

The story took a hundred pages or so to get going, but after the main character developed for a while I finished it eagerly.

[Steven Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good first book by this author. I like humanist SciFi and this book certainly fits that description.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book. Excellent pacing and suspense. Engaging characters. Rarely do I read a book all in one go, even more rarely I want to go straight on to the next book. Both are the case this time.

[Barbara Dunbar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sequoya

A mutiny and running and hiding. The heroine kept my interest with her moral compass and ability to inspire loyalty.

[KarenLana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it! Great space adventure.

[Volpot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sooo close...... to being a very good book. As it was, I found it to be merely average to good 3.5 stars

The story and writing is decent enough and you'll be interested throughout. As stated in the author's write-up, the book tells the story of a space pilot who through relativistic effects stemming from the destruction of her exploration ship winds up 80 years in the future. Interesting enough, but what makes it better is that she is the target of a nefarious corporation who wants her secret...the location of a planet ideal for human life.

As interesting as all that is, it's also part of the problem I had with the book:

1) Everyone seems to completely overlook the possibility of her being 80 years out of time while they puzzle over who she is. Yet the author's own description of how faster than light travel works would make such relativistic "time displacement" not uncommon

2) It's never explained why having the secret to this pristine world is so important. It's this secret that drives the entire story: The main character is chased by the evil corporation for the secret. The secret is so important that the main character can't tell anyone. So she runs around space fleeing pursuit, trying to avoid recognition, while she possesses this astounding secret that she can't reveal to anyone. The entire setup is bizarre:

-- Throughout the book, the characters space around the "Fringe" which is different than the "Inner Worlds". With all of these current worlds and the billions of star systems in our galaxy alone, why is one planet so dang important. (And if the answer is most planets can't support life like "Sequoyah", then just how are all of these current systems possible economically?)

-- If the bad corporation is trying to kill the main character to possess the secret of "Sequoyah", and the main character wants to get the location into the hands of someone who won't suppress or steal it, then why can't the main character just post the dang location on the 22nd century equivalent of Facebook or YouTube for god's sake and everyone would leave her alone and the bad guys couldn't steal the secret.

3) The character development is pretty thin. We never really understand what makes the main character act as she does. Bear in mind the logical inconsistency of her actions described above may be causing the thin character development. Go too deep and the author just might force us to go Huh??

Now having said all of that, the book wasn't bad. I was entertained. The author is really close to writing a really good book if he would just close the plot holes and add some depth to the characters. If she does that, I'd definitely buy a sequel.

[Wyrdness · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strangely this book gave me the impression of being much longer than it really was, and I think for the most part that's down to the surprisingly slow pace for a story with so much being established. It usually felt like that was a deliberate choice to heighten the constant paranoia Moire was experiencing, not knowing who to trust, how the world worked, and always looking over one shoulder in fear of being caught. Yet there were a few times where I wished it'd just move along to something else a little faster.

I do wish we'd received a little more explanation about the key plot point though. We get enough to know something huge and seriously shady is going on with Toren, but we're never told why they want the information about Sequoyah badly enough to kidnap and kill for it when the setting is already full of "inner" and "fringe" colony worlds and stations that appear to be economically thriving.

Just mysterious and entertaining enough that I want to continue reading to know the answers, but also highly reliant on subsequent books sticking the landing to make it feel worth that investment.

[astaliegurec · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are three major flaws with Sabrina Chase's 2012 novel "Sequoyah, Book 1: Long Way Home, The:" motivation, behavior and choices. But, before I get to those, I'll say that the story is pretty darn interesting and, technically, the writing is mostly fine. But, as for those issues, not knowing WHY the protagonist is doing what she's doing is the most frustrating. We have nothing but a vague idea of her primary motivation through 99% of the book. Following closely on the heels of motivation is my issue with the majority of the characters (including the protagonist) just behaving in the "wrong" way. Again, it's frustrating to constantly ask yourself why all these characters are doing certain things when they could just do other obvious and more reasonable things instead. This especially applies to the protagonist and is perfectly on display in the last couple of pages in the book. And, finally, an awful lot of the book moves along by a series of extremely unlikely events happening. So, while I found the book interesting, the best I can rate it is an OK 3 stars out of 5.

[Renata Riva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moire Cameron is a talented pilot with an unusual story. Displaced in time after her ship was destroyed, she is now pursued by the members of a corporation, Toren, who wants to capture her. She’s on the run, and she can’t trust anyone because Toren is too powerful and her story too unbelievable.

I really enjoyed this book. It has great characters and believable technology. Moire is initially involved with a military fleet fighting a mysterious alien species, but she then runs away to more remote places, where colonization is still taking place and the pioneers make their own law.

She is a strong, resourceful woman, but she is also very vulnerable. She finds her match in Ennis, a military man intrigued by her story and determined to find and help her. But he will have to gain her trust first.