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Diving Universe #2
City of Ruins
Boss, a loner, loved to dive derelict spacecraft adrift in the blackness of space.... But one day, she found a ship that would change everything - an ancient Dignity Vessel - and aboard the ship, the mysterious and dangerous Stealth Tech. Now, years after discovering that first ship, Boss has put together a large company that finds Dignity Vessels and "loose" stealth technology.
Following a hunch, Boss and her team come to investigate the city of Vaycehn, where 14 archeologists have died exploring the endless caves below the city. Mysterious "death holes" explode into the city itself for no apparent reason, and Boss believes stealth tech is involved. As Boss searches for the answer to the mystery of the death holes, she will uncover the answer to her Dignity Vessel quest as well - and one more thing, something so important that it will change her life and the universe forever.
Following a hunch, Boss and her team come to investigate the city of Vaycehn, where 14 archeologists have died exploring the endless caves below the city. Mysterious "death holes" explode into the city itself for no apparent reason, and Boss believes stealth tech is involved. As Boss searches for the answer to the mystery of the death holes, she will uncover the answer to her Dignity Vessel quest as well - and one more thing, something so important that it will change her life and the universe forever.
303 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
59 people are currently reading
366 people want to read
About the author
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
1,366 books721 followersKristine Kathryn Rusch is an award-winning mystery, romance, science fiction, and fantasy writer. She has written many novels under various names, including Kristine Grayson for romance, and Kris Nelscott for mystery. Her novels have made the bestseller lists –even in London– and have been published in 14 countries and 13 different languages.
Her awards range from the Ellery Queen Readers Choice Award to the John W. Campbell Award. In the past year, she has been nominated for the Hugo, the Shamus, and the Anthony Award. She is the only person in the history of the science fiction field to have won a Hugo award for editing and a Hugo award for fiction.
In addition, she's written a number of nonfiction articles over the years, with her latest being the book "A Freelancer's Survival Guide".
She has also published as:
Sandy Schofield (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kristine Grayson - romances
Kathryn Wesley (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kris Nelscott - mysteries
Kris Rusch - historical fiction
Kris DeLake - romances
Her awards range from the Ellery Queen Readers Choice Award to the John W. Campbell Award. In the past year, she has been nominated for the Hugo, the Shamus, and the Anthony Award. She is the only person in the history of the science fiction field to have won a Hugo award for editing and a Hugo award for fiction.
In addition, she's written a number of nonfiction articles over the years, with her latest being the book "A Freelancer's Survival Guide".
She has also published as:
Sandy Schofield (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kristine Grayson - romances
Kathryn Wesley (collaborations with husband Dean Wesley Smith)
Kris Nelscott - mysteries
Kris Rusch - historical fiction
Kris DeLake - romances
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
December 17, 2014
This is a satisfying, suspenseful story from a far-future spacefaring human civilization. In this second in a series, our hero, known only as Boss, takes her quest for technology associated with the derelict spaceships of an ancient more advanced human civilization takes her to the caverns and unexplored tunnels beneath a plant’s old city. More than a dozen archeologists have died or disappeared over the years exploring the tunnels, in some cases with rumors of strange mummification of the bodies, which leads her to suspect the influence of the time warping effects of “Stealth Technology” gone awry. She and her core team are motivated to make sure the working version of this technology does not fall into the hands of the dominant empire and contribute to the downfall of an independent coalition of planets she favors. Here she has assembled a large team of about 50 experts in various fields to carefully investigate the hidden ruins under the pretense of an archeology project. This a empire territory, so secrecy of their goal is a top priority.
The team is under the watchful eye of the local minions of the government, eager to make sure the tourist business from the old ruins is not compromised. What the team eventually discovers is what appears to be some sort of service base for the former fleet of what are known as “Dignity Vessels.” The entry into this facility seems to have triggered some automatic responses by the equipment still operational, making the team virtually wet their pants in excitement. At the same time, explosive earthquakes are triggered under the city, a coincidence that points to a connection with the destructive appearance of “death holes” under the city over the centuries. A number of team members get trapped underground for a period of time, adding to the claustrophobic elements of the story.
This is not the usual fare in space opera I like to immerse myself in, as there is no battle scenario or strange aliens. I wish there had been more character development. Still, the methodical approach of Boss had some of the same pleasures I get from police procedural stories. The science questions about the self-repairing qualities of the tunnels were drawn out too much for my taste. More compelling was the slow cat-and-mouse interplay between Boss and another character that turns up whom I can’t speak of due to spoilers. The mystery of what the Dignity Vessels were all about is finally exposed here, much sooner for the reader than for Boss. An expansive door is opened for the next book in the series. I can’t say if Rusch’s popular “Retrieval Artist” series is better, since I haven’t explored them yet, but the elements of suspense in common with crime drama appears to apply to them as well.
The team is under the watchful eye of the local minions of the government, eager to make sure the tourist business from the old ruins is not compromised. What the team eventually discovers is what appears to be some sort of service base for the former fleet of what are known as “Dignity Vessels.” The entry into this facility seems to have triggered some automatic responses by the equipment still operational, making the team virtually wet their pants in excitement. At the same time, explosive earthquakes are triggered under the city, a coincidence that points to a connection with the destructive appearance of “death holes” under the city over the centuries. A number of team members get trapped underground for a period of time, adding to the claustrophobic elements of the story.
This is not the usual fare in space opera I like to immerse myself in, as there is no battle scenario or strange aliens. I wish there had been more character development. Still, the methodical approach of Boss had some of the same pleasures I get from police procedural stories. The science questions about the self-repairing qualities of the tunnels were drawn out too much for my taste. More compelling was the slow cat-and-mouse interplay between Boss and another character that turns up whom I can’t speak of due to spoilers. The mystery of what the Dignity Vessels were all about is finally exposed here, much sooner for the reader than for Boss. An expansive door is opened for the next book in the series. I can’t say if Rusch’s popular “Retrieval Artist” series is better, since I haven’t explored them yet, but the elements of suspense in common with crime drama appears to apply to them as well.
June 15, 2011
(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.)
Whenever I read a book like Kristine Kathryn Rusch's City of Ruins, the latest release from our pals at Pyr, I can't help but to think of that endless roster of thirty- and fortysomething nerds who have cranked out livings over the last couple of decades as writers on weekend genre television shows, stuff like "Buffy" and "Farscape" and all those "Stargate" spinoffs; because while these writers are known by name by their most passionate fans, and worshipped as much by them as an NPR nerd might worship Jonathan Franzen, it's hard for me in particular to think of such stories as much more than fodder for teens and stoners on a boring Saturday afternoon, making them certainly a legitimate part of the literary industry but projects that will always and forever have only a limited appeal, and will only ever be fully embraced by those willing to pay for their sci-fi trope delivery with a high tolerance for sometimes mediocre writing. The second title in a situation-based space-opera franchise, this posits a sexy rogue space salvager known simply as Boss and her ragtag crew, who in their quest to track down various pieces of highly developed tech scattered across the universe (remnants of an ancient alien race of whom almost nothing is now known) this time stumble across a far-ranging conspiracy on a planet whose population lives in giant half-open caverns, and where the inner-earth walls seem to almost magically destroy and then reshape themselves on a moment's whim. Competently done but with characters that largely come from Action Thriller Central Casting, and dialogue that will leave a lot of people sighing in frustration, it's the very definition of a novel that only a fanboy could love; and while I wish such authors the best of luck, no matter which genre they work in, such middling titles unfortunately fall beyond my usual purview here at CCLaP, which is why they generally get only middling scores despite being well-loved in certain circles. It should be kept in mind before picking up a copy yourself.
Out of 10: 7.4, or 8.4 for fans of weekend sci-fi television series
Whenever I read a book like Kristine Kathryn Rusch's City of Ruins, the latest release from our pals at Pyr, I can't help but to think of that endless roster of thirty- and fortysomething nerds who have cranked out livings over the last couple of decades as writers on weekend genre television shows, stuff like "Buffy" and "Farscape" and all those "Stargate" spinoffs; because while these writers are known by name by their most passionate fans, and worshipped as much by them as an NPR nerd might worship Jonathan Franzen, it's hard for me in particular to think of such stories as much more than fodder for teens and stoners on a boring Saturday afternoon, making them certainly a legitimate part of the literary industry but projects that will always and forever have only a limited appeal, and will only ever be fully embraced by those willing to pay for their sci-fi trope delivery with a high tolerance for sometimes mediocre writing. The second title in a situation-based space-opera franchise, this posits a sexy rogue space salvager known simply as Boss and her ragtag crew, who in their quest to track down various pieces of highly developed tech scattered across the universe (remnants of an ancient alien race of whom almost nothing is now known) this time stumble across a far-ranging conspiracy on a planet whose population lives in giant half-open caverns, and where the inner-earth walls seem to almost magically destroy and then reshape themselves on a moment's whim. Competently done but with characters that largely come from Action Thriller Central Casting, and dialogue that will leave a lot of people sighing in frustration, it's the very definition of a novel that only a fanboy could love; and while I wish such authors the best of luck, no matter which genre they work in, such middling titles unfortunately fall beyond my usual purview here at CCLaP, which is why they generally get only middling scores despite being well-loved in certain circles. It should be kept in mind before picking up a copy yourself.
Out of 10: 7.4, or 8.4 for fans of weekend sci-fi television series
July 5, 2011
One of 2009’s most pleasant surprises was Diving into the Wreck, a short but excellent SF novel by Kristine Kathryn Rusch about Boss, a specialist in the exploration of derelict spaceships. In this first novel, Boss discovered the wreck of a Dignity ship. This remnant of a legendary Fleet contained remnants of the mysterious and dangerous “stealth technology” that could possibly tip the balance of power between the Enterran Empire and a small alliance of independent planets.
In City of Ruins, the excellent follow-up to Diving into the Wreck, Boss runs a much larger operation and has become more of a manager than an explorer, but when she hears reports of mysterious deaths on a planet in the Enterran Empire — deaths that suggest the presence of stealth tech on or below the surface of that planet — she ventures into the Empire and participates actively in the attempt to track down and recover this potentially game-changing technology. What she finds there is more than she ever hoped for....
City of Ruins has just about everything that made Diving into the Wreck great, and a few extras. Returning again is the fascinating protagonist, who just goes by the name “Boss.” She’s an intensely private control freak with an empathy deficit that borders on the pathological. She’s smart and strong and dedicated, but she lives for her work first and thinks of her employees more as cogs in a machine than as actual people. Or, in her own words:
[...] I’m slowly learning, as I’m managing more and more staff, that people actually care what others think.
Much of City of Ruins is again narrated by Boss in a tight first person perspective and in the present tense, which leads to a staccato, almost choppy style. It’s not pretty or elegant, but it’s how Boss thinks and sees the world, and it immerses you completely into the action because her focus on what she’s doing is never less than laser-like. It also means that many of the book’s side-characters, especially Boss’s team members, tend to be a bit faceless and bland, because Boss mainly thinks of most of them in terms of how they can hinder or help the mission.
One of the most pleasant surprises is that part of City of Ruins is narrated by Coop, a brand new character. Revealing exactly who he is would constitute a spoiler, so I’ll let you discover it for yourself. Coop’s chapters are told in the third person and in the past tense (which makes sense, if you think about it — and that’s about as broad a hint as I’ll drop regarding his identity). He is also much more of a “people person” than Boss, and the contrast between their chapters really emphasizes how subtle Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s narration has been with Boss throughout these first two books.
Some of the most memorable scenes in Diving into the Wreck were the in-depth looks at the dangers of exploring a derelict spacecraft. There’s again plenty of this to be found in the new novel, but now the search takes place underground rather than in space, which creates an even stronger sense of claustrophobia. (It also leads Boss to wish she could turn off gravity, because unlike most people, she’s more comfortable in space than on the ground.) City of Ruins contains some extremely tense scenes and underground adventures, always told in Boss’s characteristically dispassionate tone. These scenes are definitely the most exciting parts of the novel, but they wouldn’t work nearly as well if they weren’t framed in the larger political drama that Rusch set up in the first novel and further expands in this sequel. Reading City of Ruins, you know that you’re only seeing a small part of the puzzle, but at the same time you realize that these events will have a huge effect on the wider universe.
The only real issue I had with City of Ruins is a relatively minor one: Kristine Kathryn Rusch often ends her chapters with very short, overly dramatic paragraphs, often consisting of only one sentence that echoes part of the last one. I suppose this was meant to drive home the point and create a sense of drama, but it happens so frequently that it quickly starts to get annoying. Here’s the end of Chapter 6 as a (randomly chosen) example:
I nod. For the first time, I’m enjoying this project. I’m even looking forward to the work below ground.
Maybe that’s because diving is my element, whether it’s underground or in space. Or maybe it’s because I finally believe we’ll discover something.
Stealth tech or not, there’s something here. Something old. Something interesting.
Something unexplained.
And here’s another one, from Chapter 26:
“I don’t like being underground,” Roderick says softly, speaking to me.
“I’m not fond of it myself,” I say. “But this is where we’ve chosen to work. Let’s just be smarter about it the next time we come down here.”
If there is a next time.
If we get out at all.
City of Ruins consists of over seventy short chapters, and too many of them end with an instance of this technique. It’s almost like the dun-dun-duuuun used to emphasize the Big Revelation in old thrillers, but instead done every five to ten minutes. Once I became aware of this — after the third or fourth time in almost as many chapters — it started to distract me from an otherwise very engaging reading experience.
Aside from this minor point, City of Ruins is an excellent novel that combines adventure and excitement with solid world-building and subtle narration. By the time you turn the final page, you’ll be very eager to find out where Kristine Kathryn Rusch is going to take this series next. Recommended — but make sure to read Diving into the Wreck first.
(This review was originally published on www.tor.com on 6/30/2011, and on www.fantasyliterature.com on 7/5/2011.)
In City of Ruins, the excellent follow-up to Diving into the Wreck, Boss runs a much larger operation and has become more of a manager than an explorer, but when she hears reports of mysterious deaths on a planet in the Enterran Empire — deaths that suggest the presence of stealth tech on or below the surface of that planet — she ventures into the Empire and participates actively in the attempt to track down and recover this potentially game-changing technology. What she finds there is more than she ever hoped for....
City of Ruins has just about everything that made Diving into the Wreck great, and a few extras. Returning again is the fascinating protagonist, who just goes by the name “Boss.” She’s an intensely private control freak with an empathy deficit that borders on the pathological. She’s smart and strong and dedicated, but she lives for her work first and thinks of her employees more as cogs in a machine than as actual people. Or, in her own words:
[...] I’m slowly learning, as I’m managing more and more staff, that people actually care what others think.
Much of City of Ruins is again narrated by Boss in a tight first person perspective and in the present tense, which leads to a staccato, almost choppy style. It’s not pretty or elegant, but it’s how Boss thinks and sees the world, and it immerses you completely into the action because her focus on what she’s doing is never less than laser-like. It also means that many of the book’s side-characters, especially Boss’s team members, tend to be a bit faceless and bland, because Boss mainly thinks of most of them in terms of how they can hinder or help the mission.
One of the most pleasant surprises is that part of City of Ruins is narrated by Coop, a brand new character. Revealing exactly who he is would constitute a spoiler, so I’ll let you discover it for yourself. Coop’s chapters are told in the third person and in the past tense (which makes sense, if you think about it — and that’s about as broad a hint as I’ll drop regarding his identity). He is also much more of a “people person” than Boss, and the contrast between their chapters really emphasizes how subtle Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s narration has been with Boss throughout these first two books.
Some of the most memorable scenes in Diving into the Wreck were the in-depth looks at the dangers of exploring a derelict spacecraft. There’s again plenty of this to be found in the new novel, but now the search takes place underground rather than in space, which creates an even stronger sense of claustrophobia. (It also leads Boss to wish she could turn off gravity, because unlike most people, she’s more comfortable in space than on the ground.) City of Ruins contains some extremely tense scenes and underground adventures, always told in Boss’s characteristically dispassionate tone. These scenes are definitely the most exciting parts of the novel, but they wouldn’t work nearly as well if they weren’t framed in the larger political drama that Rusch set up in the first novel and further expands in this sequel. Reading City of Ruins, you know that you’re only seeing a small part of the puzzle, but at the same time you realize that these events will have a huge effect on the wider universe.
The only real issue I had with City of Ruins is a relatively minor one: Kristine Kathryn Rusch often ends her chapters with very short, overly dramatic paragraphs, often consisting of only one sentence that echoes part of the last one. I suppose this was meant to drive home the point and create a sense of drama, but it happens so frequently that it quickly starts to get annoying. Here’s the end of Chapter 6 as a (randomly chosen) example:
I nod. For the first time, I’m enjoying this project. I’m even looking forward to the work below ground.
Maybe that’s because diving is my element, whether it’s underground or in space. Or maybe it’s because I finally believe we’ll discover something.
Stealth tech or not, there’s something here. Something old. Something interesting.
Something unexplained.
And here’s another one, from Chapter 26:
“I don’t like being underground,” Roderick says softly, speaking to me.
“I’m not fond of it myself,” I say. “But this is where we’ve chosen to work. Let’s just be smarter about it the next time we come down here.”
If there is a next time.
If we get out at all.
City of Ruins consists of over seventy short chapters, and too many of them end with an instance of this technique. It’s almost like the dun-dun-duuuun used to emphasize the Big Revelation in old thrillers, but instead done every five to ten minutes. Once I became aware of this — after the third or fourth time in almost as many chapters — it started to distract me from an otherwise very engaging reading experience.
Aside from this minor point, City of Ruins is an excellent novel that combines adventure and excitement with solid world-building and subtle narration. By the time you turn the final page, you’ll be very eager to find out where Kristine Kathryn Rusch is going to take this series next. Recommended — but make sure to read Diving into the Wreck first.
(This review was originally published on www.tor.com on 6/30/2011, and on www.fantasyliterature.com on 7/5/2011.)
June 24, 2011
So, as you may or may be aware I was rather a large fan of Diving Into the Wreck. I have a bit of a thing for derelict space ships so it is no small surprise that a sci-fi tale about a character whose job is diving abandoned ships would appeal to me. As it turns out, generally speaking any story that in some way involves Exploration of the Unknown is one that will have my rapt attention. This is a good thing when it comes to City of Ruins which, as you might have guessed by the title, trades in the abandoned space ships for something a bit more sedentary.
Like Diving Into the Wreck, City of Ruins is spends much of its time on mystery and exploration. After the events of Diving Into the Wreck the focused and dedicated Boss has started up her own company in order to counter the Empire’s research into dangerous stealth technology. Boss and her employees look for stealth technology, found in the wrecks of the legendary Dignity Fleet, and carefully disseminate their findings to third parties. City of Ruins picks up with Boss reluctantly agreeing to explore the system of caves beneath an ancient city on the strong but incongruous notion that it might be home to a cache of stealth technology. Given the underground nature of the exploration there is a nice fish out of water element as Boss struggles in dealing with the particular intricacies and difficulties of gravity.
However, and perhaps most interesting, is that the novel opens in the past with a desperate crew fleeing an aggressive alien species after “communications failure.” This crew is part of the Dignity Fleet and this is the first living glimpse readers get of the legendary fleet which, as the novel later reveals, was an altruistic group of vessels who would help the just and the downtrodden before continuing on their mission. The prologue closes as the ship activates its mysterious drive and disappears from view. Needless, to say this isn’t the last we see of this enigmatic vessel as the vessel suddenly reappears amidst the ruins being explored by Boss and her team.
What was a novel of exploration quickly becomes a novel about First Contact. Sure both sides are human but they are human long separated by time and technology. The novel drags a bit during this section if only because of the waiting game played by bother parties. However the real interest comes in the ways that Boss and the Captain of the Dignity Vessel interact without interact. The Captain’s observations of Boss and the way she lovingly examines the ship and Boss’s own musings of wonder and barely restrained excitement add an interesting development to the novel. Maybe I’m reading a bit into things, there is a certain hint of romance in the air as the relationship between the enigmatic Boss the time-displaced Captain is further examined.
What I love most of City of Ruins is how carefully and stingily that Rusch deals out answers. That might sound a little strange but Rusch manages to tantalize with some answers that somehow manage to both clarify and deepen the mystery of stealth technology at the same time. It is a strange bit of narrative magic but absolutely makes City of Ruins shine. Boss’s brusk, take charge no-nonsense attitude makes her one of the more interesting female leads in science fiction today (of which there are far too few). Rusch even manages to work in a amusingly dry comedy bit regarding her name. Boss is a driven woman whose dedication to her work sets up this sort of emotional wall around her, that she chooses to call herself by her title rather than a name is a strong indication of just how much she is defined by her work. I’m hoping that we start to see characters introduced in City of Ruins begin to chip away at that stoic facade.
Rusch does her best to make City of Ruins readable for those haven’t yet read Diving in the Wreck and manages to do a passable job at that. However, I think City of Ruins does best having read Diving into the Wreck first as that background knowledge regarding Boss’s previous encounters with stealth technology gives readers a stronger connection to her as a character and a deeper understanding of those emotional walls. City of Ruins is once again some fine adventure science fiction that starts off with a similar tone to Diving into the Wreck but with a clever twist looks to take Rusch’s Diving universe in a new direction. This is another top-notch read from amazingly accomplished and woefully overlooked author. Jump on this series now folks, you won’t regret it.
Lastly: Pyr where are my nook editions!
Like Diving Into the Wreck, City of Ruins is spends much of its time on mystery and exploration. After the events of Diving Into the Wreck the focused and dedicated Boss has started up her own company in order to counter the Empire’s research into dangerous stealth technology. Boss and her employees look for stealth technology, found in the wrecks of the legendary Dignity Fleet, and carefully disseminate their findings to third parties. City of Ruins picks up with Boss reluctantly agreeing to explore the system of caves beneath an ancient city on the strong but incongruous notion that it might be home to a cache of stealth technology. Given the underground nature of the exploration there is a nice fish out of water element as Boss struggles in dealing with the particular intricacies and difficulties of gravity.
However, and perhaps most interesting, is that the novel opens in the past with a desperate crew fleeing an aggressive alien species after “communications failure.” This crew is part of the Dignity Fleet and this is the first living glimpse readers get of the legendary fleet which, as the novel later reveals, was an altruistic group of vessels who would help the just and the downtrodden before continuing on their mission. The prologue closes as the ship activates its mysterious drive and disappears from view. Needless, to say this isn’t the last we see of this enigmatic vessel as the vessel suddenly reappears amidst the ruins being explored by Boss and her team.
What was a novel of exploration quickly becomes a novel about First Contact. Sure both sides are human but they are human long separated by time and technology. The novel drags a bit during this section if only because of the waiting game played by bother parties. However the real interest comes in the ways that Boss and the Captain of the Dignity Vessel interact without interact. The Captain’s observations of Boss and the way she lovingly examines the ship and Boss’s own musings of wonder and barely restrained excitement add an interesting development to the novel. Maybe I’m reading a bit into things, there is a certain hint of romance in the air as the relationship between the enigmatic Boss the time-displaced Captain is further examined.
What I love most of City of Ruins is how carefully and stingily that Rusch deals out answers. That might sound a little strange but Rusch manages to tantalize with some answers that somehow manage to both clarify and deepen the mystery of stealth technology at the same time. It is a strange bit of narrative magic but absolutely makes City of Ruins shine. Boss’s brusk, take charge no-nonsense attitude makes her one of the more interesting female leads in science fiction today (of which there are far too few). Rusch even manages to work in a amusingly dry comedy bit regarding her name. Boss is a driven woman whose dedication to her work sets up this sort of emotional wall around her, that she chooses to call herself by her title rather than a name is a strong indication of just how much she is defined by her work. I’m hoping that we start to see characters introduced in City of Ruins begin to chip away at that stoic facade.
Rusch does her best to make City of Ruins readable for those haven’t yet read Diving in the Wreck and manages to do a passable job at that. However, I think City of Ruins does best having read Diving into the Wreck first as that background knowledge regarding Boss’s previous encounters with stealth technology gives readers a stronger connection to her as a character and a deeper understanding of those emotional walls. City of Ruins is once again some fine adventure science fiction that starts off with a similar tone to Diving into the Wreck but with a clever twist looks to take Rusch’s Diving universe in a new direction. This is another top-notch read from amazingly accomplished and woefully overlooked author. Jump on this series now folks, you won’t regret it.
Lastly: Pyr where are my nook editions!
December 30, 2021
Rusch's writing style is grounded and extremely engaging. While there is a significant amount of tension and mystery, it revolves mostly around the way the characters feel rather than relying on space battles and random explosions.
I can't get into specifics without going into spoiler territory, but the interaction between the two groups was astoundingly realistic and well written. Looking forward to picking up the third book in the series in a few days!
I can't get into specifics without going into spoiler territory, but the interaction between the two groups was astoundingly realistic and well written. Looking forward to picking up the third book in the series in a few days!
September 22, 2024
A team that 'dives' wrecked alien starships goes to a planet in search of alien tech. What they find is a surprise even for them. Now how to save the tech from being used agaiinst their own people.
I love archaeology in space, so this hits all my happy places.
I love archaeology in space, so this hits all my happy places.
August 25, 2017
Slightly slow start, figuring out who everyone is and what's going on but turned into a real page turner!
July 13, 2013
I went into City of Ruins rather eagerly after finishing the first book of the Diving Universe series. I wanted a bit more mystery, a bit more of Boss's level headedness, a bit more of space and the unknown. What I got left me was a sense of anticipation that burned throughout most of the book and an end that I loved.
Boss and the rest of her crew (new faces and old) are actually planet bound for this book. They're excavating some ruins that one on Boss's team thinks contains stealth technology. Unfortunately the locals are both misogynistic and highly secretive--to the point where they don't want the team exploring at all (or at least not off the beaten trail). Not only that, but there are 'death holes' that appear mysteriously and swallow up entire buildings (and people) on the planet and nobody knows why.
The book, like the previous one, is in Boss's voice, first person POV. As a twist, we also get the POV (third person) of Coop, captain of the ship Ivoire, who makes an interesting alternate viewpoint. For someone who dislikes POV switching (sometimes I think it's just laziness on the author's part, other times I'm just flat out not interested in some of the other POVs...) I actually enjoyed it in this book. The world through Coop's eyes is rather fascinating, if only because we learn a lot more about the stealth technology and where Dignity Vessels come from and do.
The anticipation for that point in the book though...
The thing is? Waiting for that specific point in the book, that you know is going to happen, that is what will probably be the best part of the book because it's leading up to that point--it's almost agonizing. I'm all right with slower paced novels (because that's what this is until close to the end), but once you give me an end goal, one that is made very, very clear to you (even if not so clear to the characters), well, I want to get there. I want to get there soon and enjoy the experience. That little lead up to said experience just serves to ramp up the tension even more (the tension that exists mainly inside my head, ha).
Except City of Ruins is painfully slow to get to that point. I want to reach into the book, shake the characters, and tell them to hurry up already! You're so close! Why don't you just do what I want you too?! Except this isn't that sort of book. Boss isn't that sort of character and the expedition she's on isn't one where you rush. Wreck diving is all about taking your time, being cautious, and mapping out the area. Of course she'll go the same way, even if she's excavating on a planet rather than a wreck in space. I actually really appreciate this, even if I want to tear out my hair. And that's my dilemma. I rather disliked the wait, but liked the reasons behind the wait.
Darn characters making sense. I'd have hated it and yelled out about being out of character if they rushed, but I still yell out about how slow they are when they do what they would regularly be doing. No pleasing me, heh.
Then there's the culmination of the wait. It was basically everything I wanted. Suddenly all that waiting flew out of my mind and I just devoured the rest of the book. With all of the anticipation I was feeling I was almost leery about the climax of the book, but it was fun and interesting and held my attention throughout. It was a little rushed, but I was mostly all right with that. People and events moved. I had a blast reading it.
So feeling a bit mixed up about the book. Loved learning more about the stealth technology and the Dignity Vessels. Could do without such a long wait for certain events to come together. Adored the ending. 3-4 stars, rounding up to 4.
Boss and the rest of her crew (new faces and old) are actually planet bound for this book. They're excavating some ruins that one on Boss's team thinks contains stealth technology. Unfortunately the locals are both misogynistic and highly secretive--to the point where they don't want the team exploring at all (or at least not off the beaten trail). Not only that, but there are 'death holes' that appear mysteriously and swallow up entire buildings (and people) on the planet and nobody knows why.
The book, like the previous one, is in Boss's voice, first person POV. As a twist, we also get the POV (third person) of Coop, captain of the ship Ivoire, who makes an interesting alternate viewpoint. For someone who dislikes POV switching (sometimes I think it's just laziness on the author's part, other times I'm just flat out not interested in some of the other POVs...) I actually enjoyed it in this book. The world through Coop's eyes is rather fascinating, if only because we learn a lot more about the stealth technology and where Dignity Vessels come from and do.
The anticipation for that point in the book though...
The thing is? Waiting for that specific point in the book, that you know is going to happen, that is what will probably be the best part of the book because it's leading up to that point--it's almost agonizing. I'm all right with slower paced novels (because that's what this is until close to the end), but once you give me an end goal, one that is made very, very clear to you (even if not so clear to the characters), well, I want to get there. I want to get there soon and enjoy the experience. That little lead up to said experience just serves to ramp up the tension even more (the tension that exists mainly inside my head, ha).
Except City of Ruins is painfully slow to get to that point. I want to reach into the book, shake the characters, and tell them to hurry up already! You're so close! Why don't you just do what I want you too?! Except this isn't that sort of book. Boss isn't that sort of character and the expedition she's on isn't one where you rush. Wreck diving is all about taking your time, being cautious, and mapping out the area. Of course she'll go the same way, even if she's excavating on a planet rather than a wreck in space. I actually really appreciate this, even if I want to tear out my hair. And that's my dilemma. I rather disliked the wait, but liked the reasons behind the wait.
Darn characters making sense. I'd have hated it and yelled out about being out of character if they rushed, but I still yell out about how slow they are when they do what they would regularly be doing. No pleasing me, heh.
Then there's the culmination of the wait. It was basically everything I wanted. Suddenly all that waiting flew out of my mind and I just devoured the rest of the book. With all of the anticipation I was feeling I was almost leery about the climax of the book, but it was fun and interesting and held my attention throughout. It was a little rushed, but I was mostly all right with that. People and events moved. I had a blast reading it.
So feeling a bit mixed up about the book. Loved learning more about the stealth technology and the Dignity Vessels. Could do without such a long wait for certain events to come together. Adored the ending. 3-4 stars, rounding up to 4.
September 11, 2012
Having utterly and totally loved Diving Into the Wreck, I was thrilled to discover that it was not, as I had erroneously thought, a standalone novel, but rather part of a series. What I loved so much about DItW was the pitch-perfect sense of isolation, claustrophobia, and foreboding that characterized the sequences in which the characters explore long-derelict spacecraft with pernicious, incomprehensible, often fatal technology on board. Those parts of the book scared the hell out of me and gave me nightmares. However, it turned out that this element was largely absent in this, the second book. That's not to say that this represents a flaw in the book. City of Ruins is a solid continuation of DItW - it's just that it doesn't include much of my favorite part of the preceding book.
My main criticism is that there were numerous occasions when I had to reread certain passages several times because I didn't understand, usually in spatial terms, what was happening. For instance, the first time the characters enter a cave beneath the titular city, I couldn't figure out whether they were dropping into a vertical hole in the ground, entering some sort of mineshaft, or what. I still enjoyed the book a lot, but this was a recurrent issue that frustrated me to a not insignificant degree. Also, there are a lot of minor characters that I found difficult to distinguish from one another (I had to list them on 3x5 cards like when I was reading Kushiel's Dart), but the protagonist feels like a much fuller character, and overall, story is more of a first contact sort of thing anyway, so that's not a big issue.
And speaking of that first contact thing, I'll keep things spoiler-free, but the book handles it very adroitly in terms of pacing and tension. I wanted to go downstairs for a snack during one long reading session, but I kept saying to myself, "Well, one more chapter, then I'll go." I feel like I've talked a lot so far about what I didn't like, but the book really is compelling and vivid. I enjoyed it and recommend it.
P.S. If someone wrote an essay comparing and contrasting the underground/street level elements of this book with the same elements in The Dark Knight Rises, I'd totally read it. The book's prompted a lot of not yet fully formed thoughts about the underground as the subconscious, with a seemingly incomprehensible presence slowly, methodically being understood. I know that's super vague and probably makes no sense if you haven't read the book, but I don't want to spoil anything.
My main criticism is that there were numerous occasions when I had to reread certain passages several times because I didn't understand, usually in spatial terms, what was happening. For instance, the first time the characters enter a cave beneath the titular city, I couldn't figure out whether they were dropping into a vertical hole in the ground, entering some sort of mineshaft, or what. I still enjoyed the book a lot, but this was a recurrent issue that frustrated me to a not insignificant degree. Also, there are a lot of minor characters that I found difficult to distinguish from one another (I had to list them on 3x5 cards like when I was reading Kushiel's Dart), but the protagonist feels like a much fuller character, and overall, story is more of a first contact sort of thing anyway, so that's not a big issue.
And speaking of that first contact thing, I'll keep things spoiler-free, but the book handles it very adroitly in terms of pacing and tension. I wanted to go downstairs for a snack during one long reading session, but I kept saying to myself, "Well, one more chapter, then I'll go." I feel like I've talked a lot so far about what I didn't like, but the book really is compelling and vivid. I enjoyed it and recommend it.
P.S. If someone wrote an essay comparing and contrasting the underground/street level elements of this book with the same elements in The Dark Knight Rises, I'd totally read it. The book's prompted a lot of not yet fully formed thoughts about the underground as the subconscious, with a seemingly incomprehensible presence slowly, methodically being understood. I know that's super vague and probably makes no sense if you haven't read the book, but I don't want to spoil anything.
August 14, 2012
This sequel to Diving Into the Wreck feels very different, and while I wouldn't say it's a better book, I do think it's more suited to an ongoing series. Where Diving Into the Wreck was a thriller, City of Ruins is science-fiction adventure at its finest.
A few years after Boss (and now it's established that this isn't her name, but a title) and her team discover stealth tech, she's established an organization dedicated to finding Dignity Vessels and securing them so the Empire (which is trying to recreate stealth tech to help them take over the galaxy mwahahaha) can't get them. One of Boss's researchers has found what she believes is a sign of stealth tech; the problem is, it's on a planet, not in space. Boss investigates reluctantly, but she and her team soon discover that what's under the surface of this planet is worth far more than all the ships they've found to date.
This feels a lot less bleak than the first one, as though there's hope for a better future instead of inevitable pain and death. It's a little annoying that the characters only fall into two categories: people who agree with/are admired by Boss, who are worth admiring; and people who oppose Boss, who are greedy, selfish, arrogant, whiny, or some combination of the above. I like the parallel storyline, with Boss's investigation alternating with (I won't say much about the plot, because I enjoyed working out what was happening as it happened). And unlike the first volume, this ending leaves a lot of room for future adventures and made me look forward to reading more.
A few years after Boss (and now it's established that this isn't her name, but a title) and her team discover stealth tech, she's established an organization dedicated to finding Dignity Vessels and securing them so the Empire (which is trying to recreate stealth tech to help them take over the galaxy mwahahaha) can't get them. One of Boss's researchers has found what she believes is a sign of stealth tech; the problem is, it's on a planet, not in space. Boss investigates reluctantly, but she and her team soon discover that what's under the surface of this planet is worth far more than all the ships they've found to date.
This feels a lot less bleak than the first one, as though there's hope for a better future instead of inevitable pain and death. It's a little annoying that the characters only fall into two categories: people who agree with/are admired by Boss, who are worth admiring; and people who oppose Boss, who are greedy, selfish, arrogant, whiny, or some combination of the above. I like the parallel storyline, with Boss's investigation alternating with (I won't say much about the plot, because I enjoyed working out what was happening as it happened). And unlike the first volume, this ending leaves a lot of room for future adventures and made me look forward to reading more.
June 18, 2012
Again, Rusch proves that she can grab your attention and hold it, spellbound, for the length of a novel. This book feels more unified than Diving Into the Wreck as it all takes place in the same location and features the same people. I liked that and I ended up liking the bifurcated narrative as well.
City of Ruins adds a new perspective and alternates more-or-less evenly between Boss and Captain Cooper of the Dignity Vessel Ivoire. This is pleasantly disconcerting, at first, because it's unclear how Coop relates to Boss and her team and if (let alone when) they'll ever intersect. Rusch doesn't manipulate this unduly, so we establish relative positioning soon enough for the story to flow naturally.
Unlike the previous book where the setting drove most of the action, this book has the interaction between two functionally alien groups take the forefront as they work out a way to communicate with and, hopefully, trust each other. As deeply (and justifiably) paranoid as each group is, this is more gripping than you might think.
If I have a beef with the book, at all, it's that it ends on a... well, not a cliffhanger, precisely. Everything necessary is wrapped up. But I want to know what happens next anyway! Right now! And I don't think that's just the ADD talking...
City of Ruins adds a new perspective and alternates more-or-less evenly between Boss and Captain Cooper of the Dignity Vessel Ivoire. This is pleasantly disconcerting, at first, because it's unclear how Coop relates to Boss and her team and if (let alone when) they'll ever intersect. Rusch doesn't manipulate this unduly, so we establish relative positioning soon enough for the story to flow naturally.
Unlike the previous book where the setting drove most of the action, this book has the interaction between two functionally alien groups take the forefront as they work out a way to communicate with and, hopefully, trust each other. As deeply (and justifiably) paranoid as each group is, this is more gripping than you might think.
If I have a beef with the book, at all, it's that it ends on a... well, not a cliffhanger, precisely. Everything necessary is wrapped up. But I want to know what happens next anyway! Right now! And I don't think that's just the ADD talking...
September 24, 2011
Boss is persuaded to investigate the city of Vaycehn on a planet in her search for stealth technology. She's doubtful she'll find anything but she's about to get the biggest surprise of her life. This novel, unlike the first book in the series Diving into the Wreckis told from the viewpoint of two differing characters.
However, I have to say I'm starting to get annoyed by Boss (she-of-no-real-name) and would probably be reluctant to get a third book in the series despite the interesting ending to this novel.
However, I have to say I'm starting to get annoyed by Boss (she-of-no-real-name) and would probably be reluctant to get a third book in the series despite the interesting ending to this novel.
April 9, 2018
This one grabbed on and didn't let go. I spent the day in between reading sessions smiling every time I remembered I had a good one to go home and finish.
May 6, 2019
this story is paced poorly putting all the action in the final pages of the book. however the premise of this series is so good that it’s worth pushing through to the end.
from my memory about 5 amazing things happened in the first book, but in this book only one adventure happens, so it is stretched five times longer to fill in a full novel... the cost of editors pushing for a series i’d guess.
but this world of discovering ancient space ships with stealth technology that has gone awry and started killing people is very compelling. they have to prevent the empire from discovering its secrets, they have to make the technology safe and unlock the secret to why it has become so destructive
from my memory about 5 amazing things happened in the first book, but in this book only one adventure happens, so it is stretched five times longer to fill in a full novel... the cost of editors pushing for a series i’d guess.
but this world of discovering ancient space ships with stealth technology that has gone awry and started killing people is very compelling. they have to prevent the empire from discovering its secrets, they have to make the technology safe and unlock the secret to why it has become so destructive
April 24, 2020
City of Ruins, A Rollicking Good Time!
I love everything in the Diving Series that I have read so far. If you love Jack McDevitt, you should give this series a read. I was drawn in by the archeology/artifacts aspect...someone out in a rarely visited part of space finding a long lost vessel and exploring to find out more about it from a history perspective in the first book, Diving the Wreck, and then a exploring a land based site from a similar time, culture, and technology in City of Ruins. Both have mysteries to solve, clues to put together, history to find out. City of Ruins adds more of an action, chase aspect. Plus a first contact that kind of is and isn’t at the same time....
I love everything in the Diving Series that I have read so far. If you love Jack McDevitt, you should give this series a read. I was drawn in by the archeology/artifacts aspect...someone out in a rarely visited part of space finding a long lost vessel and exploring to find out more about it from a history perspective in the first book, Diving the Wreck, and then a exploring a land based site from a similar time, culture, and technology in City of Ruins. Both have mysteries to solve, clues to put together, history to find out. City of Ruins adds more of an action, chase aspect. Plus a first contact that kind of is and isn’t at the same time....
May 31, 2021
Boss runs into a Dignity Vessel by accident and things don't go as planned. I read the short story Becoming One with the Ghosts, which is the early version of this book. Coop wasn't as stupid as he was in this book. He made everything so much worse by thinking he is still living in his time period. You're alone idiot, you don't have backup! I'm hoping he listens to Boss more in the next book in the series.
March 4, 2022
I have just read the Diving Series back to back (the 16 books that exist thus far, including novels and novellas) and have to say that I absolutely love this series.
City of Ruins is an excellent second book. At first it seems as though this book is wholly separate from book 1, but the threads soon join up such that this book not only continues where book 1 left off but also introduces a second set of the characters that feature throughout the series. There are new storylines, and hints of storylines to come.
City of Ruins is an excellent second book. At first it seems as though this book is wholly separate from book 1, but the threads soon join up such that this book not only continues where book 1 left off but also introduces a second set of the characters that feature throughout the series. There are new storylines, and hints of storylines to come.
December 2, 2025
So far this series centers on a group of adventurers and explorers searching for technically advanced wonders in the ruins of ancient starships and, in this case, cities. This particular story opens up an entirely new aspect to the series when the explorers literally stumble on a working 5,000+ year old starship, complete with crew! It sort of plods along in the middle as the explorers and the starship crew struggled through language barriers, but overall, a great story. I can't wait to see what happens next.
July 23, 2021
4.5 stars
Ahhh! This was such a good instalment - started off slow, but gained momentum as the story went on. I could barely put this book down (but I had to make dinner, ugh)!
I liked how Coop's point-of-view was included; felt like seeing both sides heightened the tension for me, as it'd be so difficult to see a potential miscommunication occurring in spite of good intentions.
Can't wait to read the next book!
Ahhh! This was such a good instalment - started off slow, but gained momentum as the story went on. I could barely put this book down (but I had to make dinner, ugh)!
I liked how Coop's point-of-view was included; felt like seeing both sides heightened the tension for me, as it'd be so difficult to see a potential miscommunication occurring in spite of good intentions.
Can't wait to read the next book!
September 19, 2018
This series fascinates me. In the first book, we meet the protagonist who has a company which searches for, and "dives" into spaceships from 5 thousand years in the past. She lives in a universe that has an empire that is also trying to get the dangerous stealth technology.
In this book, her team finds much more.
In this book, her team finds much more.
November 4, 2018
Good things about this series:
- The main characters have a very methodical approach to problem solving, and it's well-detailed
- A lot of the challenges faced stem from environment and feel realistic rather than contrived
Not so good things about this series:
- Characters feel rather flat and are hard to get invested in.
- The main characters have a very methodical approach to problem solving, and it's well-detailed
- A lot of the challenges faced stem from environment and feel realistic rather than contrived
Not so good things about this series:
- Characters feel rather flat and are hard to get invested in.
March 17, 2022
Stealth tech and more
This is a really awesome tale of Boss and her crew investigating possible stealth tech fields on land. They discover something huge that is a major game changer. The characters come to life through their adventures. The story is engaging even though there is not a lot of action. Instead it focuses on the people and what they are discovering.
This is a really awesome tale of Boss and her crew investigating possible stealth tech fields on land. They discover something huge that is a major game changer. The characters come to life through their adventures. The story is engaging even though there is not a lot of action. Instead it focuses on the people and what they are discovering.
August 18, 2025
Science Fiction / Space Opera. Boss investigates strange "death holes" appearing in the city of Vaycehn, which she believes are linked to mysterious "Stealth Tech," leading her to uncover a deeper mystery involving long-lost spacecraft and ancient technology.
If you like far future science fiction feature derelict high technology, then you should check out this series. It's also where Boss first meets Coop, which in itself is an interesting "first contact" scenario.
(Reddit Fantasy 2025 Bingo squares that fit: Hidden Gem (HM); A Book in Parts (HM); Recycle a Bingo Square ('First Contact' from 2021 (HM))).
If you like far future science fiction feature derelict high technology, then you should check out this series. It's also where Boss first meets Coop, which in itself is an interesting "first contact" scenario.
(Reddit Fantasy 2025 Bingo squares that fit: Hidden Gem (HM); A Book in Parts (HM); Recycle a Bingo Square ('First Contact' from 2021 (HM))).
December 27, 2017
It almost feels like cheating, but I don't think people are really following me for my reviews and I know that Rusch writes amazing books so if she comes out with some new sci-fi, I'll be there to read it eventually. Great series.
May 21, 2017
This is an author that is new to me. I liked the book. There were some places where I thought it was too slow. It did keep my attention. There are references to other books that fill in the confusion. I like the premise. A different take on things.
May 10, 2024
This series continues to fascinate me and, although the pace at times is perhaps a little slow, the characters and the developing storyline of "stealth tech" and anacapa drives with their impact on time and dimensions makes me want to keep reading to see where the author takes us next.
December 4, 2017
My goodness what a page turner!
January 29, 2018
Great story, amazing woman for main character, loved it.
June 6, 2019
space action adventure. Continuing "Diving Universal" novel, finding more ancient technology in tunnels under a city and much more.
August 14, 2022
I really liked it.
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