Customer Reviews

Alysha's Fall

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is mature and intelligent SF, focusing on character relations. It also is one of the best and most honest treatments of the real effects of the prostitutes' life on people that I've ever read. It is not romantic or erotic at all as shown here, but dark and brutal.

Alysha's Fall gives us a likable protagonist who has us rooting in her corner from the very start in Alysha Forrest. Alysha is a member of a genginneered race, the Pelted, and she desires more than anything to get out into space. But she lacks the money or connections to secure her education, and she winds up going down a very dark and almost suicidal road indeed to attain her goals. But even at her worst moments, she refuses to despair or turn aside from thos ewho really need her help. Even if it may cost Alysha her life...

It really is a great story in my opinion, with some incredibly well done characters and beautiful description. I do regret that Micah was unable to include the art that ran with it when it originally ran in some old fanzines, but that's a minor quibble.

If you like character stories or genuinely deep SF, then buy this and read it. You won't regret it.

Poor Alysha! Bright as well as physically gifted, she kicks butt, but in this introduction to her, she has to claw her way out of some truly desperate circumstances before she can really shine. This is not a read for the weak of stomach. The main character gets seriously, rawly, beaten up. More than once. But if you can keep reading past that, she is a heroine whose tale is very compelling. Within pages you are rooting for her, but the cards are more stacked against her than even she realizes. And she has some understanding of some powerful disadvantages, even before she leaves her first home and realizes just how alone she is. In this tale, Alysha suffers no small degree of disregard or physical violence, but she clings to her big dreams with serious tenacity, and triumphs over long odds on several occasions. The end of this book, though satisfying in itself, really left me wondering what was next for Alysha, and whether the inequities in her society that led to some of her tough battles could or would ever be worked out. I think the characterization in these stories is good, and the tales themselves are compelling. The author's more recent work that I've read is more polished, but this is certainly worth a read, too.

[NOTE: this is based off of the electronic version of the story.]

Alysha Forrester wants to reach the stars. More than that, she *must*. Though always brave and resolute in the face of her trials, it seems that the universe is always willing to throw one more thing than any one person can handle, no matter what they're made of. At least, more than they can handle alone.

The main thing to know about Alysha's Fall is the careful balance it strikes, as all stories of this kind must (but few do). When portraying a character struggling against hideous odds, it is always tempting to take it in one of two ways: The first is a bleak, nihilistic tale where the characters exist to be crushed by the cruelty of existence, while the second is a sappy, maudlin tale about the power of self-determination and friendship in the face of "strife" that is not allowed to actually impact the character at all. Each is shallow, portraying a view of the world that either lacks hope or danger, and by extension negates both--and each is *incredibly* popular. Alysha's Fall avoids both of these pitfalls, creating a world where horrible pain exists and difficult choices must be made--but each choice creates its own opportunities, and even your tribulations earn the respect and aid of those near you.

It's amazing at times that Alysha's Fall remains overall as hopeful a story as it is. Horrible things happen. A lot. Rape, torture, humiliation. But where even one of these elements will throw many stories into angst-overload, Alysha's Fall carries it off almost as master-of-fact, with a stength of character and causality that keeps it grounded. Because these things aren't unthinkable. In many cases, they're life. They change a person forever, but . . . in this case, they don't destroy her. Never completely.

Another noteworthy thing here is the interpersonal relationships, particularly between Alysha and her greatest allies. This story follows Alysha over four years, and in this time she makes several close frends--many of whom become absolutely fixed in her overall story. The careful web of relationships is one of the biggest driving forces in this story, and it's a little startling how close everything is to everything else--how Alysha's refusal to fail and nurturing nature earns her admiration and friendship even as it makes her life insanely more difficult, which draws her friends to aid her however they can, which leads to her stopping trying to refuse them, which leads to a wider sphere of influence... and it's chilling to note that without this careful interplay, without growth on both ends of every relationship, Alysha would have failed. She'd be dead, or as hollowed-out as her mother. This interplay matches life in general: our friends and support networks tend to be vitally important, but never established in an organized way.

Anyhow, onto technical notes--there are a few issues I have with the story. A certain plot-point is brought up at the beginning and is utterly key at the end... but in the meantime, isn't mentioned at all in the bulk of the story. I realize Alysha isn't in much of a state of mind to follow the news, but it still seems a little clumsy--the main villain seems to come out of nowhere as a result. (One of Alysha's most important allies is also fairly sudden, but I liked that one by contrast--it reinforces how help can come from anywhere, which fits the theme as I viewed it.) The types of races lack much description, which is probably fine for a serial reader of Hogarth's work, but it made it difficult for me to picture the characters. After the constant tension throughout the story, I found it difficult to settle down for the conclusion and falling action.

I liked the ending, though. It was hopeful, extremely positive. But it didn't fix everything. We're left with an imperfect world, like we started out with, where bad things happen (and often enough, to good people)--but one where people are willing to help each other, and where because of this, a supremely talented cadet might get to extend this experience to other planets. All the other characters will probably spread it, too.

There are still victims, but there are heroes, too.

I like it.

These stories, which read like one long story (no jarring breaks), are earlier works by an author who I really enjoy reading. To me, the characters here are not nearly as complex as in her later works, and there are things that to me, are not as well explained as they could be. For example, why was her mother the way she was? Why does it cost money to go into *every* position in the fleet? Is there enough wealth in the society that even the grunts can afford the tuition? Or is conquest and defense so far from their minds that they don't need grunts? (These questions may also be answered in the future books in the series, which I haven't read yet.)

The story is good and the writing itself is good, but please read one of her later works as well to experience her true storytelling skills.

This is one of the best written books I have read in a long time! The story flows smoothly and leaves you hoping for a sequel sometime in the future! My one piece of advice, if all you can find is a $70.00 copy, don't pay that much. If you go to stardancer dot org and contact the author of the book, you can get a copy for much less (and she'll get paid for her awesome work)! Hogarth is one of the best author's I have read, she even brought me to tears several times during this book! I recommend this to everyone!

Alysha's determination to reach her career goals keeps the reader spellbound and absorbed with the next turn of events as you delve deeply into her story. Regardless of whatever she must do to or the pain she must endure, there is a motive for her actions, a moral lesson ---- she's a warrior, an angel, and a martyr. Alysha and the reader form a powerful bond; she becomes your friend...wanting to know more...

Alysha's Fall is a potent drama. Alysha, desparately poor and determined to graduate from Fleet Academy at Terracentrus, has only one choice of a way to support herself. By day she is a student; by night, she is an exotic dancer and worse. This arc of stories traces how she endures her dual life, and the triumphs and horrors of it. It is not a comfortable book to read, as it explores darknesses of the human and near-human spirit. It is powerful without being preachy; the characters' good and evil, strength and weakness are intrinsic parts of fully-formed personalities. The writing is clean and elegant and often beautiful, and even the minor characters are people with their own quirks and passions and feelings. The setting is an intriguing future universe, where humanity has many genetically-engineered descendant species living among the stars. I highly recommend it, and recommend that you keep an eye out for this author's future works.

Alysha's Fall is the story of a strong woman determined to do what it takes to get the life she wants. We see exactly what Alysha is willing to do - and to sacrifice - to get there.

For those of you who are fans of MCA Hogarth's other work, such as The Aphorisms or Worth of a Shell, this is a more abrasive work. Some of Alysha's choices and some of the people she meets are ugly ones, and there is no gentle first-person narrator to help you over the rough spots.

The stories aren't all pain. She meets kind people, too, but the focus of the collection is on the steely character of Alysha herself. It's a good introduction to an admirable and interesting woman.

It's been a few years since I've read this book, but it is one of my favorites. The short stories flow together seamlessly and I felt like I was reading a single story instead of a collection of shorts. This isn't for the fain-hearted nor for youngsters as much of the plot deals with sexual situations, but it is a great story about a strong woman who is willing to endure (and overcome) some incredible odds to accomplish her dreams.

[This review is for the electronic edition, not the paperback. Not sure how to fix that. The paperback contains interior art that the e-version does not. (Alas!)]

This is, as the book itself says, a collection of short stories that theme together more as sections in a larger work. Despite the name, it is the story of Alysha's rise -- through darkness, desperation, and awful choices.

In some ways, it's obviously one of the author's earlier works; the prose is lush, but occasionally flirts with "lavender" (though never quite reaching "purple prose" status). Some of the plot complications are perhaps simplified or slightly exaggerated. On the other hand, most characters are rock-solid, and carry the plot firmly. The antagonists are not so well-sketched as in later works (especially "Second"), but they're quite good enough to fill their roles.

It does have Disturbing Stuff going on. It includes the topic, the themes, of prostitution and it's not the happy-romanticized-fully consenting kind. I'm *not* criticizing the work for this, but it's worth knowing in case of personal triggers. It's not graphically graphic, but the fades to black are there less to hide, and more to avoid dwelling on ugliness more than is absolutely necessary for character and plot.

There are some minor technical flaws: in the conversion from a prior form, almost all instances of the word "field" have turned into "meld," and a few "fl" combinations (flee, flew) became a "n" (nee, new). I wouldn't mention it if I hadn't spent a few moments puzzling over the use of "meld" in a particular sentence, and wondering why it hadn't been defined as a world-specific usage.

I've mentioned the minor weaknesses -- but I'm giving this one five stars, because even with those weaknesses, the thematic stuff going on is good, there are some unexpected developments (or possibly un-developments), there are expected developments that affirm the narrative we know in our hearts, and it wraps up with a quite satisfying conclusion. As a story arc, it has a good, solid structure, with satisfying emotional tones -- and it's not too long, nor too short. It sketches a world that is both alien and familiar. And, ha, it still contains the underlying themes: humanity, through the furred lens of the Pelted, is still human, with all that means.