Customer Reviews

Recycled

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

 

 

With Selena Rosen's first book in this series, Queen of Denial, she brought out a fresh and yet trashy new heroine named Drewcila Qwah, a salvager who turns out to be the Queen of Barious with part of her brain removed. While Queen of Denial was an adventurous romp under the tactless and crude guidance of the best garbage scow pilot in the galaxy, the formula fails with Qwah being bound to one planet.

Drew's stock in Qwah-Co is plummeting, so she heads pell-mell off for her home planet of Barious to stop her husband-in-name-only from starting a war with the Lockhedes, the people that the Barions share their planet with. Zarco, Drew's husband, is determined to control her this time at any cost, and thwart her efforts to obtain peace between the people of Barious through a trade agreement. Zarco is tired of being a figurehead, and re-establishes the nobles to positions of authority within the castle and starts a war. He imprisons Drew, and its up to her friends Arcadia and Dylan to try and rescue her. In the meantime, Van Gar, her furry sometime-mate has run off to join a religious cult of his fellow Chitzsky people only to find out he has been duped. He must get the ship back from Pard-Jar, the cult leader, and return to Drew where he knows he belongs.
Drew and Zarco butt heads as we know they will, and it is a battle of the wills between taking the country to war or leading it into peace.

I'm not exactly sure where the formula failed; there is a plot of sorts and the saucy dialogue, but what worked in space travel becomes tedious in this second effort. I loved Drew in the first book, but in this sequel she becomes rather...tedious; perhaps a little too forced. Even on the cover art she looks less mischievous and more skanky, rather a "rode hard and put out wet" countenance that reflects what happened to her in this book. The story went from Kitschy to Klutzy; and while the prose was jumpy in QofD (as I mentioned in my review of it) the prose in Recycled is stuttering and erratic. Pieces of the plot vital to the story are tossed around like...well...garbage, added in at the last minute in an effort to explain something already occurring out of context.

While I still liked Drew's story, I found this sequel to be more of a chore to plow through than a delight like the first book. My recommendation? Read Queen of Denial, and if you are really enchanted then give Recycled a try. If not, don't bother with this one, but don't ever give up on Selina Rosen as an author! She is fresh and interesting and envigorating and unique, and a delight to sit back with and read her work. This particular item just did not catch my fancy or my attention as well as her other stories.

Drewcila Qwah is a woman whose dreams have come true. She's now filthy rich and the owner of a salvaging empire that spans the galaxy. She's got more sex and alcohol on a regular basis than even she can handle. To top it off she's bought peace and prosperity to Barious, her very own kingdom - now the centre of her recycling empire.

However, its all about to explode on her. Her lover Van Gar is tired of being Drew's lackey and when he finds her sleeping with 3 men, 2 women a midget and a goat he decides he's had enough and leaves her for a new life as a farmer. In the meantime, her husband the King of Barious decides that he doesn't like the fact that his previously regal kingdom is now the happy and wealthy universal hub of "filth" and plots to start a war with the neighbouring Lockheeds to regain what he sees as his kingdoms lost glory.

For Drew this is not good news and most importantly its going to cost her a lot of money in lost profits and under no circumstances is that to be allowed! Drew is a foul mouthed over-sexed larger than life character. Her quest to stop the profit drain and get back to the things that really matter in life like sex, beer and a peaceful garbage scow in space make this a fun book that's as enjoyable as its predecessor "Queen of Denial". This is a funny book to read, so in the words of wisdom from Queen Drew......"So kick back, pop a brew and wait for the fireworks" and enjoy a well thought out and plotted book that could come from no other author, but don't buy this book if you intend to take it too seriously - this is a book written for laughs - so sit back and enjoy it.

I have been waiting for this sequel to Queen of Denial to come out for over a year. Thank God it's finally in print, for I dearly need the laugh. Selina Rosen's work will shake you up, ruffle your hair, surprise you, make you laugh, make you think and probably depants you in process. Queen Drew is smart, sassy, bawdy, competent and surprisingly ethical. So pop open a cold one, or mix up a pitcher of hurling monkeys and enjoy yourself.

After reading Queen of Denial in just one day and really enjoying it I was anxious to read it's sequel Recycled. I enjoyed it more than than the first. It was crude in the language but if you could get by it the story was very enjoyable. I will not go into detail of the book but I will say that I really enjoyed Drewcila Quah, Van, her sister Stasha and the other minor characters and really felt for them. I want another book with Drew and gang. Please Selina write a third novel. I highly recommend this book.

There's this old story about how humor doesn't work in science fiction. I don't know how many times I've heard it. The trouble is, there just aren't enough examples around to prove the story wrong. But this is good place to start.

Rosen has written a character and put her in a situation that is bust-a-gut hilarious. It's broad comedy (no pun intended) and it works! I haven't laughed out loud at a book since I read Mark Twain. Wait...there's some Hunter S. Thompson I've laughed out loud at. Gonzo would indeed be a good adjective with which to describe Ms. Rosen. Among others.

This is the follow-up to "Queen of Denial" which will also cause stomach pains. It's a cure to what ails you, if what ails you is a deep desire to read something funny that's also speculative that's also well-imagined that's also science fiction that's also funny--wait, I'm repeating myself I'm repeating myself...

Buy this. Have some fun.

Simply put the title of this author's books should be "Living Vicariously through your puppets, An Author's Howto." For the characters never develop, they are simply how would a character react to this situation, next situation same character, as the saying goes "lather rinse repeat". Heros that fail only when the author needs them to or when the editor told the author to make changes is like watching bad prime time sitcoms, an eternity of pain. I would have prefered to pay for this book and have it end 17 chapters early than have submitted myself to this visual tripe. When you've run out of degrading this the main character puts others through, rape is not a choice. There is a reason why rape carries a penalty from 20-years to Life in prison term, as a plot device is not one of them.

I have come to expect one thing from Selina and that is a book that is a good read. Recycled is another one that i will say is a must read for any one that wants a fun time. you must read this book and see for your self on why I say she has out did her self. You can't truely discribe the book in 1000 words......

I met Selina at a convention several months ago, decided that she was such a hoot that her books had to be a laugh, and somehow picked this one up instead of Queen of Denial (must have been the excellent cover art). After reading about 5 pages of this, I kept hurting myself with laughter or annoying my wife with cries of "You MUST read this book!" Who would have thought of Redneck Space Opera -- and made it funny? After 3+decades of reading SF, at last, something really different ! I expect to get Queen of Denial soon and, if it is half as good as this one, I WILL be getting the rest of Selina's books. Highly recommended, in case you could not tell (grins).