Gods and The City

by Steve Statham

For a thousand years, the new gods of mankind have protected the remnants of humanity. Reduced to a handful of survivors after a devastating alien invasion, a desperate human race accepted these gods as defenders against the terrors of a hostile universe. These mighty deities opened hidden pathways through space to remote outposts where human civilization could be rebuilt. The greatest of these redoubts is The City, a domed jewel on a small moon that circles a stormy gas giant planet. The god Tower is its protector. But when The City is assaulted by a power rivaling even that of the guardian god, the burden of protecting mankind's future will fall to others. And what can mere men and women do against forces that can reshape and manipulate the universe itself? Talia is a Radiant Acolyte in the temple of the gods. She knows the secrets and history of mankind's protectors better than anyone. Mik the Fixer is a skilled technician who can see through the dazzling magic that powers The City to the truth that lies beneath it. Upon these two will fall the burden of protecting mankind's future. But the cost may be the very things that make them human.

216 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2014

About the author

Steve Statham is the author of the Connor Rix series of SF thrillers (Rules of Force, Levers of Power, Monsters and Angels), along with the space opera novel Gods and The City. He began his writing career in the automotive journalism field, reporting on custom cars, classics and race cars. He was on the staff of Super Ford magazine, and later served as editor of Musclecar Enthusiast magazine. Steve has had 12 non-fiction books on automotive subjects published by Motorbooks and Publications International.

Reviews

[dave cornell]

Outstanding tale of humans gods and Power and War

This was a wonderful tale about Humanities battle with ruthless enemies, the diaspora of only 4000 humans left, help from beneficent aliens, the gods they created from us, and the creation of new worlds, new societies, and ever greater threats. Very well written, excited to read the next in the series.

[Nathan Schmidt]

I received this book through Goodreads First Reads and am grateful for the opportunity.

Gods and the City provides a very interesting, action-packed sci-fi adventure in which both Mik and Talia must grow as characters. I found both of their characters, along with their interactions, to be very compelling, along with the glimpses we got of the dying god Tower. Tower's death was one of the best scenes in the book.

Overall, I have few issues with the book. The plot is well-structured and keeps the reader on the move from the very beginning toward a satisfying ending. Still, I felt that the end left a few things hanging. I was curious to learn more about the Otrid. Also, I felt that I was still trying to understand Maelstrom's character. On the other hand, this works very well as the first installment of a series, one that I hope very much that you will continue.

One last note I have is about the short story at the end. While this helped give an extra bonus to readers, I found the story to be a little disappointing in comparison to the previous adventure. There were no problems with the story as a whole. However, it was somewhat difficult to understand the setting at first. In addition, I found the ending, in which t characters are assimilated into the larger intelligence, to be unsettling. Still, the short story is very interesting.

In any case, Gods and the City was a very satisfying read, and I hope to learn what becomes of Talia now.