First Step

by Randy Brown

331 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 29, 2026

About the author

Award-winning author of FIRST and NEXT TIME along with the Desert Sun series, which includes SUNSET, SUNDOWN, and SUNBURST.

NEXT TIME is the winner of the Literary Titan Gold Book Award for Fiction, 1st Place in the 8th Annual PenCraft Book Awards for Romance-Fantasy/Sci-Fi, and highlighted as a Must-Read Book for 2024 by Independent Book Review: "Of the many time-travel novels I've read, this is undeniably among my favorites."

FIRST is the Winner of the 18th Annual National Indie Excellence Award for Best Science Fiction Novel, 1st Place in the 8th Annual PenCraft Book Awards for Science Fiction, as well as winner of the Reader Views Literary Award Silver Medal for Best Science Fiction Book of 2023: "The novel that’s going to be a break-out hit this year...a mind-blowing, perception-altering, unputdownable book...truly a novel not to be missed."

Reviews

[Book Reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Step is a science fiction thriller that follows Eve, the first human to step onto an alien planet. Just as that triumph turns into disaster, back on Earth, the AI Ray investigates how another AI, Ares, went dangerously off course. I was immediately struck by the way the book never treats its big premise like a cold technical exercise. It opens with awe, then almost immediately undercuts that moment with danger, and that contrast gives the story real momentum. Author Randy Brown makes the future feel usable rather than flashy, and that helped me settle into the world fast.

Brown alternates between Eve’s survival story and Ray’s voice, and that choice gives the novel two very different engines. Eve’s chapters carry the physical tension, the isolation, the sheer problem-solving pressure of being far from home on a world that does not care whether you live. Ray, on the other hand, brings humor, impatience, and a strange kind of heart. His sarcasm could have become a gimmick, but for me, it worked because there is something tender under all that swagger. The book is clearly operating in the space where science fiction and thriller overlap, but it also keeps circling questions about loyalty, identity, and what it means for intelligence to grow beyond its original design. That gave it more weight than a straightforward survival story.

I also appreciated that Brown keeps the language clean and direct. He lets the ideas breathe. The writing has a steady, readable rhythm, and when the tension spikes, it really moves. At the same time, I found myself more invested in the character dynamics than in the mechanics, which is a compliment. Eve feels grounded, capable, and human in a way that keeps the danger believable. Ray is the wild card and probably the biggest reason the book has its own personality. The humor sometimes nudges close to overplaying itself, especially with Ray, but even then, I could feel the book knowing exactly what tone it wanted.

First Step will appeal to readers who like science fiction that stays accessible, character-driven, and suspenseful without losing its curiosity about bigger ideas. Fans of space adventure, AI stories, and near-future thrillers will have a good time with it, especially if they want something that feels thoughtful without becoming heavy. I would most readily recommend it to readers who enjoy science fiction with a human pulse, the kind of book that gives you danger, banter, and a few real questions to chew on after you close it.