Customer Reviews

Catch the Lightning (The Saga of the Skolian Empire)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Catch the Lightning came as a suprise to me, since I read it immediately after completing Primary Inversion. I wanted a novel which continued the plot of Primary Inversion, which was written eventually. The novel contains more romance compared to her other novels, and the plot's focus drifts. Although the book gives us a glimpse of the greater Skolian timeline, it stands alone very well. I would recommend Primary Inversion over Catch the Lightning.

Catch The Lightning is one of those books you just can't put down! The characters are so real and the story so compelling that when I got to the end of the book, I was looking for more! How often does an author come along who can enthrall the often deadly-critical science fiction readers with a universe that is most likely not only possible, but makes you want to live there and struggle side by side with its characters? Another thing that makes Catherine's book both unique and enticing is the realistic detail and emotional display of the characters. I would have to say that if -I- met a strange, gorgeous man on the street who 1) saved me from being raped (possibly killed), 2) who could feel my thoughts / emotions AND 3) was SENSITIVE to them...I'd go for him! :) Truely, Asaro is one of the best science fiction authors of this century and I hope to learn more and more about the Skolian Empire and it's people from her. Also, I think that her content and writing style could become a cornerstone to future science fiction...not only interesting those of us intrigued by futuristic societies, space travel, technology, etc...but those interested in adventure, mystery, and good old fashion romance. I give Catherine an ecstatic two thumbs up and on a scale of 1-10, a 10+! p.s. I was just as thrilled by Primary Inversion as well! :)

Must Read! Catch the Lightning flings us to an alternate universe Earth in 1987. The LA scenes are chilling, gang warfare, drug-related murders, the day-to-day hopelessness of growing up in the inner city. Then we flash forward (using inversion theory) to the Skolian Empire, to a time beyond events in Primary Inversion and the Radiant Seas, to a finale sprinkled with grayed characters we knew and loved in their youth. Catch the Lightning works as a powerful love story. You have to love people named Akushtina Santis Pulivok, and Althor Vyan Selei kya Skolia. I understand why Catherine Asaro's books cross genre boundaries to appeal to the romance market with pages like 44-50, 103-105 and (oooh--hot, hot!) 356--but how does the general romance reader deal with quantum mechanics, introns, inversion theory, time paradoxes, imaginary transforms and, for crying out loud, Hilbert space? "'Riemann sheet,' Heather said. 'It's a mathematical representation designed to make multivalued complex quantities into single-valued functions.'" The steep language obviously didn't bother romance readers who awarded this book the coveted Under the Covers Award and the Sapphire Award. Catch the Lightning is a delightfully sexy romp through a grad level physics book.

Ahhh, what a satisfying book. If only everything I read were this good, well, I'd probably never get anything done! This is the second book in Catherine Asaro's Skolian Empire Saga and is also another not-to-be missed read for hard-core scifi fans and romance readers looking for a well-written futuristic love story.

Ms. Asaro has created another extraordinary heroine and hero while maintaining a non-stop action filled read. I now know why these books appeal to so many different types of readers - there's adventure, romance, political intrigue and interesting future societies and theories that boggle the mind.

The best thing about this book for me was the characters. If I can't care about them I just won't be able to get into a book, no matter how interesting others may find it. The author takes as much care developing her characters as she does her plot which makes this book so special. Tina may only be seventeen but she was forced to grow up early and her actions, and responses to the unbelievable situations she's thrust into are very realistic. She's vulnerable and tough, smart and easy to like. Althor is a perfect match for her, he's strong, sensitive and moody and with her strong empathic abilities she's probably the only one who would be able to fully understand and love him.

My only complaint, and it's a minor one really, that can probably be attributed to the fact that I don't read much hard scifi, is that sometimes the book lapsed into long technical explanations that jogged me out of the story and because I read this book immediately after finishing PRIMARY INVERSION some of the explanations didn't seem necessary to me so I skimmed them. Despite that nit I can't recommend this one highly enough. The characterization is flawless - you'll love and route for these people as they face impossible odds.

I almost didn't buy this one. I read primary inversion which was GREAT and then looked at the reviews on this one and thought....maybe Asaro had a spark when she started and just lost it. Not so. Catch the lightning in my humble opinion was just as good as primary inversion.
I'm actually surprised at a lot of the things that other readers found unbelievable and/or predictable. Sure, a tough teenage teen should CERTAINLY, CERTAINLY, know better than to take a huge (6'4 all muscle) dangerous looking man home with her. However I thought that was all explained away nicely by their (Rhons) genetic makeup, the pheremone thing and the fact that well...if all teens did what they knew to be best we parents would have a much easier job! I also found it interesting that other readers thought our heroines reactions too blase'. I found her rapid acceptance of her wildly changing circumstances very realistic considering her background. Growing up as a poor illegal mestizo girl on the streets of gang-infested and crack ridden LA would leave one a tad jaded and quite....adaptable.
I did find the age gap between the leads a little disturbing but it's fiction. I assume no actual minors were seduced in the making of this novel (smile). The sex was NOT even close to porn! I was nervous about that too after reading the reviews here! I'll read pretty racy stuff (ex. Kushiels Dart ---highly reccomended) but I need a reason for it and a plot. I'm not into gratuitous sex. When you get to the condom bit it will all make sense. One would have to teach an alien how to use a condom.
Perhaps other's found the science behind the novel annoying or a bit daunting. As a scientist myself I really enjoved the explaination of the Rhon genetics and was totally lost by the physics explanations but I was still quite impressed by the concepts.
Also I am surprised at the readers who did not care about any of the characters! I really loved the protaganist (Maya). The way she saw things was fresh and interesting. She had an interesting mix of vulnerability, street savvy and endurance that endeared her to me. I also liked her Cal tech friends. And who says a couple brilliant Cal tech students couldn't crack security at a military base!? Stranger things have been known to happen.
So in summary...read primary inversion first as everyone seems to agree on its literary merit....if you like that give this one a shot it's really quite good!

This book is a gem. Exciting and imaginative. I couldn't put it down. It was at first a surprise to be reading a story told first person by a woman, but the character, Tina, compelled my interest. She is a far cry from the plastic dolls that fill in as love objects in some fiction. Her husband, Althor, is believable too, a hero in the real sense of the word, a man who faces problems in his life and overcomes them. Although this is a hard science fiction book, the style of the writing sometimes feels like that of Latin American writers who do magic realism.

I wasn't surprised to read in the cover blurbs that Asaro is a scientist; that comes through, most of all in the physics and genetics. Some chapters take place in space habitats, which are done with realism. The scenes describing the approach to the habitats make you want to go there. The world building also piqued my interest. The detail is enormous and if anything Asaro tries to do too much. She has enough to fill many books.

Another reason to read this book is the love story. Asaro isn't afraid to show genuine love between her characters. The scenes are tasteful, but also sensual, a refreshingly mature treatment. The combination of hard science and love story caught me by surprise, but it works. I hope Asaro continues in this vein, as there is no one else who seems to do it, except Ursula Le Guin.

Catch The Lightening takes place about 50 years after Primary Inversion in the same universe and the same family.
Althor the 2nd being the nephew-not brother of Soz. Althor through some kind of damage to his Jag ends up on an alternate historical Earth-1987-where he meets Tina- a 17 year old empathic direct descendant of the Mayan Native Americans. Tina lives in a scary, gang-infested alternate 1987 Los Angeles. One night on her way home from her waitressing job she meets a strange gold man holding a box and mumbling to himself. He is looking for the White House where his mother is being presented with an award and his english is very poor. Against her better judgement she speaks to him, he saves her-predictably-from mean gang bangers and eventually she invites him into her home, heart and body. What follows is Althor malfunctioning-though a very interesting mix of computer and man as seen through the eyes of someone like myself. The powers that be in 1987 Los Angeles discovering Althors ship and responding predictably by trying to capture and study both Althor and the ship. Althor ulitmately escaping with the help of some brilliant students from CalTech. Returning, with Tina, to his own time and universe where he must unravel if his ship malfunctioned or was sabotaged. The story line was pretty weak from begining to end with this story. The fact that Tina lives in a gang-infested area on her own at 17 should make her far to savvy to take home a huge stray man-no matter what empathic connection they share. The idea that a bunch of kids from CalTech-however brilliant-are able to break security on a military base to even get back to Jag is shaky at best. The story was just highly implausible to begin with.
I like Tina and Althor but this was a weak book to have second in the series. It is almost jarring having read first Primary Inversion and then jumping to this. Although, having read the entire series, I can say that this book certainly has its place and even makes sense about 6 books after this one. I hope Asaro eventually returns to this time period in the Saga of the Skolian Empire-many unfinished business needs to be worked out just about 50 years after Primary Inversion.

CATCH THE LIGHTNING is the second book in the Saga of the Skolian Empire. Over half a century has gone by in their world since the debut novel PRIMARY INVERSION. Much is alluded to that will be filled in by subsequent books including the upcoming release SPERICAL HARMONIC (Tor; Nov. 2001). The hero, Althor Vyan Selei kya Skolia is the son of Soz's oldest brother Eldrin and Dyhianna Selei, her aunt and a Key of the Skolian Triad.

The story is written in the first person, as a memoir of sorts, by the story's heroine 'Akushtina (Tina) Pulivok. The tale begins in the year 1987 on an alternative earth.

Tina, seventeen, had been born in a simple Mayan Village in Southern Mexico. Her mother had been a healer, her father a stranger who had briefly bonded with her mother before leaving, never to return. When Tina had been nine her mother had taken her and her orphaned cousin Manuel to search for him. They never found him but finally relocated to gang torn Los Angeles. To Tina it was like living in another universe. Now both her mother and Manuel are gone. Tina is alone and doing the best she can to survive.

Returning home one night from her job as a waitress, Tina meets an intriguing stranger. She is wary, for his appearance is rough. His purple hair, black clothing, etc. suggest gang affiliations. Yet she is inexplicably drawn to him.

He is Althor Valdoria, a Jagernaut of the Imperial Space Command who had been on his way to attend a diplomatic reception held by the President in honor of his mother. His crippled ship had come out of inversion here, not in the 24th century as anticipated, nor even in the same universe. He needs help and recognizes Tina as a kindred spirit. "Like knows like". Tina has had abilities from birth that she has kept hidden. She is an empath, able to taste, smell, see the emotions of others.

Her common sense tells her not to trust him; her instincts tell her otherwise. When he saves her from attack by a gang leader, she allows him to walk her home. The next morning she finds him asleep outside her door. For the first time in a long time, she feels protected and cherished. As Althor reveals his plight, Tina decides to aid him in any way she can. The deep connection they feel for each other rapidly blooms into a physical and emotional relationship.

Althor's Jag has been confiscated by the military, he needs it in order to go home. While researching the possibilities, Tina is attacked again. Althor runs afoul of the law trying to protect her, and soon the two are on the lam. With help from their friends they evade the law and breach security at the Air Force Base. Will Althor evade capture and recover his ship? Does Tina care for him enough to once again adapt to a completely foreign world? Who is responsible for sabotaging his ship, sending him four thousand years into the past?

This story is rife with complex emotions. Althor the warrior is both very strong and very vulnerable. He must come to terms with his past and reconcile his relationships with the reality of what has since occurred. He must learn to cope with a gross betrayal of trust, and mend fences with those who love him most. Tina is mature beyond her years. She is courageous, loyal, and extremely loving. She must learn not only to cope with yet another lifestyle change, but also to the realities of becoming a member of the ruling family of Skolia.

Even though this is a personal story, the Eubians also have a hand in testing their mettle. The reader will get an up close and personal look at the Raylicans, the descendants of the pure original Earth seed, and through Tina learn of their ancestry for the first time. She just might be the only thing standing between the Rhon and certain extinction. So much for the reader to discover about these fascinating people, yet so much still to be filled in by successive novels. Ms. Asaro has created a fascinating world that makes the reader yearn for more. -- Reviewed for PNR Reviews

This was the first book I read from Catherine Asaro. It is set in the Skolian Empire but not as invested in its epic history. I would put it in the same group as Asaro's other standalone books like The Phoenix Code and The Veiled Web. I actually prefer those to the "To Be Continued" world building trilogies.

There is enough science to qualify these books for the science fiction section but it is the characters' interaction that keeps me interested. As another reviewer said, the huge difference in ages is disconcerting. It is mentioned as a fact but does not seem to influence the relationship as much as you would think.

I liked the story very much and went immediately to see what else she had written.

"Catch The Lightning" is a stand-alone novel. The main characters are T, a poor young lady with integrity who has lost everyone she holds dear. T has unique mental powers that perceive her surroundings in unusual ways. She lives in a city much like yours, in approximately current day, when she meets A., an alien & cybernetic warrior who is mentally joined with his star ship. A is lost and injured and desperately needs her help.

Personally, I greatly prefer stand-alone novels like this one to thousand page sagas split into multiple books (i.e., series). This novel has an excellent SciFi plot, poses an interesting future, contains well developped characters, and focuses on a single point of view. The romance between A and T is pretty light weight stuff, which doesn't get bogged down in the arguments and misunderstandings and mellodrama of Romance novels. There are multiple sex scenes, which some readers may find offensive.