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The Questrison Saga #4
Luminiferous
The stunning conclusion to The Questrison Saga(R). Devastation, annihilation and fear. Leaders sundered and scattered. Decades of control by Paosh Tohon and its Valemog minions have brought the galaxy to the brink of collapse.
Love and war. Spaceships and exotic worlds. Aliens, androids, ecosystems. Mages and presidents. Long cons. Family feuds that led to galactic destruction. Family ties that could save the galaxy.
With heroes destroyed, captured, or missing, Paosh Tohon's campaign seems unstoppable. Yet one world remains immune: a hidden planet, with defenses both natural and unnatural. The secrets and legacies harbored there protect the last bastions of hope, if they can escape the world and withstand the evils beyond...
Love and war. Spaceships and exotic worlds. Aliens, androids, ecosystems. Mages and presidents. Long cons. Family feuds that led to galactic destruction. Family ties that could save the galaxy.
With heroes destroyed, captured, or missing, Paosh Tohon's campaign seems unstoppable. Yet one world remains immune: a hidden planet, with defenses both natural and unnatural. The secrets and legacies harbored there protect the last bastions of hope, if they can escape the world and withstand the evils beyond...
442 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2021
About the author
J. Dianne Dotson
7 books99 followersJ. Dianne Dotson is the science fiction, fantasy, and horror author of The Shadow Galaxy: A Collection of Short Stories and Poetry (Trepidatio Publishing), the four-book space opera series The Questrison Saga© (Heliopause; Ephemeris; Accretion; and Luminiferous), and The Inn at the Amethyst Lantern (October 24, 2023; Android Press). She is also a science writer and artist. Dianne is represented by Laura Bennett of Liverpool Literary Agency.
Dianne’s short fiction is featured in anthologies and magazines, including upcoming publications in INTERZONE Magazine and Solarpunk Magazine. Dianne is known for writing characters people fall in love with, in extraordinary settings with intricate world-building.
As a convention guest, Dianne provides insight into science fiction writing and characters (featured at San Diego Comic-Con, WonderCon, Cymera Festival in Scotland, and BristolCon in England), the science of science fiction films, and offers lectures on world-building and workshops at conventions about social media for writers.
Dianne is a member of the Science Fiction Writers Association, the Horror Writers Association, the British Fantasy Society, the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and the British Science Fiction Association. She lives with her family in Los Angeles, California, and in Bristol, England, and is married to British science fiction author Gareth L. Powell.
Visit her website at www.jdiannedotson.com.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/jdiannedotson
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jdiannedotson
Dianne’s short fiction is featured in anthologies and magazines, including upcoming publications in INTERZONE Magazine and Solarpunk Magazine. Dianne is known for writing characters people fall in love with, in extraordinary settings with intricate world-building.
As a convention guest, Dianne provides insight into science fiction writing and characters (featured at San Diego Comic-Con, WonderCon, Cymera Festival in Scotland, and BristolCon in England), the science of science fiction films, and offers lectures on world-building and workshops at conventions about social media for writers.
Dianne is a member of the Science Fiction Writers Association, the Horror Writers Association, the British Fantasy Society, the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and the British Science Fiction Association. She lives with her family in Los Angeles, California, and in Bristol, England, and is married to British science fiction author Gareth L. Powell.
Visit her website at www.jdiannedotson.com.
Instagram: www.instagram.com/jdiannedotson
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jdiannedotson
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 11, 2021
I am fortunate to be an early reader of this book. I’d love to share all the space adventures that come to life, but I don’t dare give any of it away. Savor it. Be ready for characters, new and old, to fill the pages. Know that it is longer than the first three books, but the suspense in each chapter leaves you wanting more. A satisfying read from book one to book four.
April 11, 2023
Something that really stood out to me with Luminiferous which exemplifies and sets it apart from the first three books in the series is the pacing. It really is a standout feature. Where with the others I mentioned I felt they stuffed a lot of ideas into their shorter length and moved through each very quickly without giving enough time for them to settle for my taste, Luminiferous absolutely nails it. It has all the emotional weight of Accretion and more, plus gave me as a reader time to absorb everything. I felt drawn in by and totally invested in Galla-Deia’s struggles and inner turmoil.
Speaking of characters - a brilliant bunch once again! I loved Paul especially, dripping with charisma. Deming was also very interesting, and as a love interest, a great direct contrast to Aeriod in particular, but also for Rob. Gindoo was a lot of fun as well, reminding me of a cross between Yoda, and Aughra from The Dark Crystal. Well, really an amalgam of a lot of wizard mentors from 80s sword and sorcery movies, and I’m here for it. The characters are all well written, distinct, and memorable, and I enjoyed the interplay and tension between the new and returning cast. Oh, and the Seltra. I love me a good ship, and the Seltra was great - definitely a fitting hero ship, and a great replacement for the Fithich.
Plot-wise, I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Luminiferous, and it brought all the threads of the series to a close in a satisfying and emotional way. I do feel like the first half of the book is a bit stronger than the second half, however. The ending, though. I did not see that coming. Now that I’ve read it, the concept of the arrangement at the end seems vaguely familiar to me - tucked away in the deepest recesses of my mind, possibly something classical - but I definitely haven’t read anything recently where that happens. In short, it was really, really good.
Now, I don’t often talk about tropes, and this might be me completely talking out of my backside, but on reflection I feel like the author did something with the traditional fantasy chosen one trope which I haven’t seen before. That being, it’s unusual to have the “chosen one who lives on a farm, hears the call and goes off to adventure” type of thing happen in the last book of a series with already established characters. There’s a good reason for us to reset to this kind of archetype, and it’s only just occurred to me that that’s what happened as I write this review. And you know what? I appreciate it. I like it. I don’t dislike the chosen one trope normally either, but here it’s especially done in an interesting way.
Additionally, I want to take a moment to talk about (our Lord and Saviour) Invisible Tendrils. It’s well established already in the series that the antagonist has these invisible tendrils which only Galla is properly able to see, and… Is this a trope? I feel like I’ve read a few separate books now where this is a thing, like The Eye of the World. I don’t ever see it discussed, but just from my personal perspective and reading habits, it’s weird that it’s happened to me at least three times now. They’re always handled with differing levels of success, with The Eye of the World as the worst version - seriously the end of that book is almost total nonsense. Luminiferous is one of the better examples by far for sure.
In terms of prose, there’s a lot of really beautiful and evocative writing in Luminiferous, especially in the first half of the book, where we get to experience life on the planet Quopeia through Galla’s eyes. I found myself drinking it all in. And it made for smooth reading. I couldn’t put the book down for very long, and was quite disgruntled when the real world came a-knocking and I had to lay it aside. For this reason, I was very thankful for the short bite-sized chapters which are a staple of the series.
Overall, I have enjoyed my journey through the Questrison Saga, and I will absolutely be looking out for future works from J. Dianne Dotson - who has a lot of very interesting looking books on the horizon. I’ve got my eye on The Shadow Galaxy already…
I highly recommend the Questrison Saga for fans of epic fantasy, space opera, first contact style scenarios, epic space battles, and so much more. It’s a real fun time.
Speaking of characters - a brilliant bunch once again! I loved Paul especially, dripping with charisma. Deming was also very interesting, and as a love interest, a great direct contrast to Aeriod in particular, but also for Rob. Gindoo was a lot of fun as well, reminding me of a cross between Yoda, and Aughra from The Dark Crystal. Well, really an amalgam of a lot of wizard mentors from 80s sword and sorcery movies, and I’m here for it. The characters are all well written, distinct, and memorable, and I enjoyed the interplay and tension between the new and returning cast. Oh, and the Seltra. I love me a good ship, and the Seltra was great - definitely a fitting hero ship, and a great replacement for the Fithich.
Plot-wise, I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Luminiferous, and it brought all the threads of the series to a close in a satisfying and emotional way. I do feel like the first half of the book is a bit stronger than the second half, however. The ending, though. I did not see that coming. Now that I’ve read it, the concept of the arrangement at the end seems vaguely familiar to me - tucked away in the deepest recesses of my mind, possibly something classical - but I definitely haven’t read anything recently where that happens. In short, it was really, really good.
Now, I don’t often talk about tropes, and this might be me completely talking out of my backside, but on reflection I feel like the author did something with the traditional fantasy chosen one trope which I haven’t seen before. That being, it’s unusual to have the “chosen one who lives on a farm, hears the call and goes off to adventure” type of thing happen in the last book of a series with already established characters. There’s a good reason for us to reset to this kind of archetype, and it’s only just occurred to me that that’s what happened as I write this review. And you know what? I appreciate it. I like it. I don’t dislike the chosen one trope normally either, but here it’s especially done in an interesting way.
Additionally, I want to take a moment to talk about (our Lord and Saviour) Invisible Tendrils. It’s well established already in the series that the antagonist has these invisible tendrils which only Galla is properly able to see, and… Is this a trope? I feel like I’ve read a few separate books now where this is a thing, like The Eye of the World. I don’t ever see it discussed, but just from my personal perspective and reading habits, it’s weird that it’s happened to me at least three times now. They’re always handled with differing levels of success, with The Eye of the World as the worst version - seriously the end of that book is almost total nonsense. Luminiferous is one of the better examples by far for sure.
In terms of prose, there’s a lot of really beautiful and evocative writing in Luminiferous, especially in the first half of the book, where we get to experience life on the planet Quopeia through Galla’s eyes. I found myself drinking it all in. And it made for smooth reading. I couldn’t put the book down for very long, and was quite disgruntled when the real world came a-knocking and I had to lay it aside. For this reason, I was very thankful for the short bite-sized chapters which are a staple of the series.
Overall, I have enjoyed my journey through the Questrison Saga, and I will absolutely be looking out for future works from J. Dianne Dotson - who has a lot of very interesting looking books on the horizon. I’ve got my eye on The Shadow Galaxy already…
I highly recommend the Questrison Saga for fans of epic fantasy, space opera, first contact style scenarios, epic space battles, and so much more. It’s a real fun time.
February 1, 2023
Luminificent!
A wonderful story unfolded through four books comes to a climactic end in Luminiferous. What a journey it’s been! The series has a feel of other great epics, like Babylon 5, Farscape, and Battlestar Galactica. And everything ties in at the end, to make a perfect circle of events. An enigmatic robot race, evil aliens hellbent on ruling the galaxy, sentient bugs, technomages in sky cities, you name it! J. Dianne Dotson is somewhat of a wizard herself, weaving such an amazing tale and making it all come together like a four-dimensional puzzle cube!
A wonderful story unfolded through four books comes to a climactic end in Luminiferous. What a journey it’s been! The series has a feel of other great epics, like Babylon 5, Farscape, and Battlestar Galactica. And everything ties in at the end, to make a perfect circle of events. An enigmatic robot race, evil aliens hellbent on ruling the galaxy, sentient bugs, technomages in sky cities, you name it! J. Dianne Dotson is somewhat of a wizard herself, weaving such an amazing tale and making it all come together like a four-dimensional puzzle cube!
July 13, 2021
Great Finale
Luminiferous doesn't disappoint. The story starts off fresh in a new location and weaves a story that could be considered a standalone then it began to whip up names and memories of the other three books. I was getting more and more excited as it lead to conclusion/showdown. Excellent ending. I won't give away spoilers but Dianne tied it all up. Great job!! Can't wait to see what else this talented artist/storyteller puts out next.
Luminiferous doesn't disappoint. The story starts off fresh in a new location and weaves a story that could be considered a standalone then it began to whip up names and memories of the other three books. I was getting more and more excited as it lead to conclusion/showdown. Excellent ending. I won't give away spoilers but Dianne tied it all up. Great job!! Can't wait to see what else this talented artist/storyteller puts out next.
June 29, 2021
Unbelievably good
And I thought things were getting intense in Accretion...
I enjoyed this book immensely from start to finish. Like Accretion, it builds in intensity steadily, especially picking up in the final third.
The characters are dynamic and fun. And the plot is addictively engaging. I literally was getting goosebumps as the climax approached.
And I thought things were getting intense in Accretion...
I enjoyed this book immensely from start to finish. Like Accretion, it builds in intensity steadily, especially picking up in the final third.
The characters are dynamic and fun. And the plot is addictively engaging. I literally was getting goosebumps as the climax approached.
July 15, 2021
This is a very enjoyable, clever, and well-written conclusion to a very innovative and original series.
There is something about having a woman protagonist who is sort of super powered and yet also vulnerable, empathic, and emotional that is very refreshing and uncommon in scifi. There also are some other very original characters.
There is something about having a woman protagonist who is sort of super powered and yet also vulnerable, empathic, and emotional that is very refreshing and uncommon in scifi. There also are some other very original characters.
September 10, 2021
J Dianne Dotson remains an author to watch. She elegantly wrapped up her series with a thrill ride of book that still managed to maintain character development as its biggest strength. There are subtle moments added to the story which melt into the story as a whole without the jarring feeling some tales give (insert Palpatine's cackle here). Special props must be given to the hero of the story, Galla. She is a treasure of a character. From humble beginnings to a source of inspiration for those around her, Galla never lets her abilities go to her head, nor let them rob her of her most essential characteristic: empathy. And it's not just her. Long time characters grow, change, and develop as the story changes and develops. It all leads to a barnstorming finale that is epic in scale, but can be just as effective with the simplest of sentences. I cannot wait to read more from her.
August 25, 2021
The final book in this series did not dissapoint. I thought I had things figured out at the beginning, but it went in a different direction that ended up working really well. I thought the world building in the previous books was great, but this one really took it up a notch. This is a story of epic proportions played out on a massive stage, and it had all the elements that make a satifyingly solid sci-fi. The characters suprised me, and the ending is worthy of some MCU level cinematic awesomeness. The ending felt resolved, but it also left things open for more stories, and I can't wait to get my hands on those. More please!
September 10, 2022
This was a wonderful 4th book and ending to a series. Book 3 tore my hearts to pieces and the story bled for more than a year as I waited for this to be released. This book did it's best to paste all those pieces back together.
I'm excited to see what the future holds for this author. I look forward to the new stories and adventures she has yet to tell.
I'm excited to see what the future holds for this author. I look forward to the new stories and adventures she has yet to tell.
December 3, 2022
When I started reading the Questrison Saga, I once mistakenly referred to it as a trilogy. Because everything is a trilogy in sci fi and fantasy, right? Well, not in this case! Being a four-book series is not the only difference between this series and other works in its respective genres; without spoiling too much, I’ll say that each book of this series ends with a significant change to the status quo. The following installment often feels like a completely different story, and this final entry feels perhaps the most different from its predecessor of all. This is not a bad thing at all. In fact, this pattern helps make the sheer scope of the story that Dotson is telling possible in many ways. This is an epic that covers generations and spans a galaxy (or at least several star systems), after all. All that being said, this story is heavily character-driven, so you don’t end up lost in a swirl of “great big ideas” with no one to hold onto. However, this is the one book in the series where this becomes a possibility, as it almost feels like this should have been two books instead of one. The plot is definitely divided into two parts, and I especially felt that the second part could have used more room to breathe. That minor nitpick aside, this was a very satisfying finish to a series that pulled me through its four volumes in what must be record time for me, and made me a fan of the author, to boot!
September 29, 2021
Each book in the Questrison Saga has been better than the last, and Luminiferous is no exception!
After the cliffhanger ending of Accretion, this one starts slow, but then builds to the final showdown between the Questri and Paosh Tohon. Along the way, Galla meets some new colorful characters, and reunites with old friends.
A fitting end to the series, filled with love and family. Ad Astra!
After the cliffhanger ending of Accretion, this one starts slow, but then builds to the final showdown between the Questri and Paosh Tohon. Along the way, Galla meets some new colorful characters, and reunites with old friends.
A fitting end to the series, filled with love and family. Ad Astra!
October 15, 2021
I've been a science fiction enthusiast since I was a young teen. I was a huge fan of Arthur C. Clarke, Frank Herbert, Issac Asimov, and Robert Heinlein. I still love the genre. In recent years, I've enjoyed Neal Stephenson's "Snow Crash," Scott Lynch's "Gentleman Bastard" series, Adrian Tchaikovsky's "Children of Time," and Chuck Grossart's recent dystopian science fiction work. Most of it pales in comparison to every book in The Questrison Saga. I enjoyed every story.
"Luminiferous" is no exception, and it is a splendiferous finale to the four-book series. The author has created a fascinating universe with a wide array of characters that you cannot help but feel an intimate connection to—all of them. Every single character jumps to life in this series, and you want to know what happens next.
This final book begins with an unfamiliar setting that is playfully disorienting. Wait! What is going on? Where are the characters that left us on the edge of our seats at the end of Accretion? But it picks up the pace before long and takes you on a roller coaster ride at breathtaking speeds until the last few chapters that wrap up the entire storyline. In the end, much like when I finished the Gentleman Bastard series, I was upset. I wanted to know more. And I still do! What are the characters going to do next? Where are they going? What adventures am I missing?! I hope to find out one day.
"Luminiferous" is no exception, and it is a splendiferous finale to the four-book series. The author has created a fascinating universe with a wide array of characters that you cannot help but feel an intimate connection to—all of them. Every single character jumps to life in this series, and you want to know what happens next.
This final book begins with an unfamiliar setting that is playfully disorienting. Wait! What is going on? Where are the characters that left us on the edge of our seats at the end of Accretion? But it picks up the pace before long and takes you on a roller coaster ride at breathtaking speeds until the last few chapters that wrap up the entire storyline. In the end, much like when I finished the Gentleman Bastard series, I was upset. I wanted to know more. And I still do! What are the characters going to do next? Where are they going? What adventures am I missing?! I hope to find out one day.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews