This is a simple review of a flawed book in a very, very ambitious series.First, I noticed what others have as well — the first half of the book is much more engaging than the remainder. This appears to be related to the vast scope of the series.The first book is set in a world far away from our Earth, and involves species that bear a strong resemblance to humans, but are quite distinct, with very different histories leading back to a long-disappeared ancient race.The second book starts off, quite startlingly, right here on our Earth, in more or less the present day. Somehow a character from that other universe appeared here, and seems to be stranded.Honestly, the boldness of that maneuver, plus the scope of the series — just check out the diagram required to explain the chronology of the stories — wins Asaro a star or so. Such chutzpah should be encouraged, especially if the author doesn't take decades to slowly spool out the epic (G.R.R. Martin, take note).The strong sense of dislocation on starting this book is probably explained by the diagram. Note that this book — Catch the Lightning — isn't anywhere near the nominal first in the series, Primary Inversion. But the second half of the book loses a star, but devolving into an extended chase sequence with too much smoke and very little fire. Asaro seems to be too fond of the products of her fevered world-building, and doesn't that describing the most baroque civilization isn't the same thing as story-telling.She also suffers from an annoying over emphasis on science wizardry. I was recently defending science fiction in front of a reading group, assuring them that there is plenty of scifi that doesn't lean too heavily on robots, spaceships, etc. Well, I definitely won't be recommending Asaro to that bunch (they'll be reading China Miéville's The City and the City, instead!) Anytime technobabble gets so extreme that I — a pretty technical guy — just glaze over and start skimming, it's way beyond too much. Yeah, Asaro's resume is pretty damn impressive, but I'm pretty sure the reading audience that wants that kind of technical depth is quite small.Upon putting down this book, I didn't intend to read anymore of the series. After seeing the scope of her saga, I have to admit to being curious what she did with all those words.Dedicated fans of epic science fiction will probably bear with it, but I'm ambivalent.
Catch the Lightning, one of the older novels of the Skolian Empire saga, is Catherine Asaro in her true form. Slight spoilers ahead, but only if you haven't read any of the other Skolian novels.First off let me say I am a huge fan of this series. It's hard sci fi for non-hard sci fi readers. She makes the physics and the genetics relatively easy to understand while weaving a story that is able to touch people emotionally. Since Asaro has worked on the last three novels, she seems to have been more caught up in the musical aspect of her work, which is tied into the story as a whole but most closely with Diamond Star. Admittedly, part of why Asaro is an idol of mine is because of her multiple talents, and I think that adding music to the story of one of the Skolian family is something to be proud of. But whether because of that or because of what's happening in the latest novels, her work has not quite been mind blowing stuff like the beginning of the series. I've saved this one for last almost last because it is chronologically the latest story in the series. But like those first novels she wrote, I really learned and interacted with the universe she has created. She revisits the physics without making it boring- I love her for that. She also explains the Rhon genetic project from the views of a woman from an alternate 1987, something which had become a bit muddied for me since I started reading the series with Primary Inversion. But not only that, there's space combat again! This time she adds time travel too; classic space opera stuff here, ladies and gentlemen. Also, I hate to admit that the capture of a Rhon psion makes for the best anticipation, but it's true. The torture of a psion is upsetting for us readers with a high Kyle rating, but the lack of empathy present in the Traders is fascinating to see firsthand, as it were, through the eyes of the main characters. And then we also find out where the Raylicans originated (although I imagine that the secrets of the star-faring people who brought them there and inadvertently gave them the inversion drive may be forever hidden from us.) The future of the Rhon may depend on this knowledge and I want to see it explored more in the future by the author.This is a great addition to the saga that is an easy, quick read. Recommended.
What do You think about Catch The Lightning (1997)?
I decided to go ahead and give the second book in this series a try, and I would say, overall, it is better than the first...maybe 3.5 stars...although the series hasn't won me over yet. This was an easier book to get into, probably because it was told from the POV of a waitress from 1987 who meets future pilot Althor when he accidentally finds himself in her time. As a result, information and explanations came far more gradually and naturally than in the first book. I also found the overall story arc to be smoother and more tightly focused.Having said that, I struggled with an almost 50-year-old man in a romantic relationship with a 17-year-old girl. Empathic or not, it was uncomfortable to read about. I also found myself not quite understanding the supposedly matriarchal expectations Althor had, which put women in the dominant role in the relationship. Basically, he gave the idea lip service, but in practice, and largely because he was so much older than she was, I didn't feel it. Once they got back to his time, it turns out that this book takes place far after the events of the first one and I had trouble linking the characters. I ended up going to Wikipedia for help, which is never a good thing to have to do to keep characters and dynasties straight. Turns out, this takes place after all the other books in the series, which is weird, and leaves me somewhat uncertain, again, whether or not to keep reading the series.
—Christine
Catch the Lightning is the second Skolian Empire book written by Catherine Asaro, but not the second chronologically. I listened to this by audio book, which is probably a good thing as there was a lot of technical talk in the book which I would have skipped over when reading. I am amazed at just how complex this world is, and can now understand why Asaro wrote the books with her background. Her more recent books have been less about techo-babble and more simply about political intrigue, so these earlier books are extra-ordinarily interesting!This is the story of Althor, a Jag pilot who ends up in an alternative universe in 1981, and meets a young girl who claims to be Mayan. She turns out to be Rhon, and Althor rushes the 17 yo orphan into marriage on a space station in the future. Amazingly, Tina takes the jump in time and alternate universe well, and isn't too thrown by the space station, her suddenly enhanced telepathic abilities, or even her kidnapping. For anyone thinking of reading this book, this is actually the last book chronologically, and for your own understanding and peace of mind it is better to read some of the others first to understand the genealogy presented here. Also, be prepared for hindsight comments such as "if I had known then" and other explanations of things that Tina, our heroine, learnt later.
—Bron
SF-romance, part of a large 'Saga' in which every possible member of the family is eventually paired off. Way too much "I didn't know it at the time, but" and "I was later to discover", as well as an awful lot of science-y exposition. Most frustrating for me is that she sets up an essentially matriarchal culture, and then re-invents the status quo for the main characters. Good points: if you like the science-y stuff, I understand the author actually does know what she's talking about; it's more than I did. Certainly it all seems to hang together pretty well. The bad guys are terrifying, but not in it very much. The good guys aren't that good, the politics are complicated, if not much focused on in this volume, and I liked the spaceship. Plus I have read it twice, though mostly because I couldn't remember much of it.So: not anti-recommended, but I'd start the series with the first book, "Primary Inversion", and if you like it, there you go.
—Meg
