The Stygian Conspiracy (Nexus Arcana) [Kindle Edition]

Kodai Okuda (Author)

Book Description

The Galactic Civil war had ended millennia ago, but now...
 
..he sat within the outer solar system keeping his eye on the third planet for nearly half a million years.  Other races had come here to plunder his secrets, to gain the science of the Solahdeen and become living machine-gods.  All had failed, and now one ambitious specimen of the indigenous species, a race of artificially evolved hominids that called itself man, had found him and soon he would be free of his ancient tomb to continue his quest for the ultimate science.  

The Stygian Conspiracy is a unique, action packed, fast paced, military science fiction adventure of epic scale.  It is the first book in the "Methusian Trilogy" of the Nexus Arcana multiverse.

Methusian Trilogy

Book 1: The Stygian Conspiracy
Book 2: The Grand Duke's Ambition
Book 3: The Goddess of Gallandria

For more information on the The Stygian Conspiracy or the Nexus Arcana Universe, go to nexusarcana.com.

Word count: 356,000.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Kirkus Review:

"Okuda does a good job of connecting his story's many layers as they develop across the solar system--tying together the backroom political scheming on both sides of the war with intricate military strategy--leaving readers with a tale that has all the ingredients for a great sci-fi epic..."-June 29th 2011

From the Author

The Stygian Conspiracy is a culmination of over 15 years of research and study into a myriad of different sciences.  The book covers a wide range of subjects from speculative technologies, theoretical physics, and political sciences all intermixed with a compelling tale of intrigue, betrayal, and the mad ambition of one man's power of the will.

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did composing it.

-Kodai Okuda

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 1609 KB
• Print Length: 730 pages
• Publisher: Yesod Publications llc; 2 edition (October 11, 2012)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0058DL2C4
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #367,037 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Well written sci-fi adventure November 12, 2011

By Michael Thomas

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Stygian Conspiracy is one of those books you'll want to read more than one. Just check the free sample to get an idea of the kind of detail the author has put into the story. The development of the factions, the ships and the tech will appeal to fans of Babylon 5 and Star Trek. A well written story and one that shows a good level of editing and proofing. Recommended read.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughly intense and epic adventure! December 27, 2011

By N. S. Thomas

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Stygian Conspiracy is a truly engrossing epic. The political intrigue is fascinating. The mechanics of combat and space are exceptionally detailed and well thought out. This is a well written novel that will keep you turning the pages. I would have perhaps like it divided into two or even three novels as it is a long piece. On the other hand, you get a hell of a lot of material in one purchase. I'd definitely recommend this novel!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An Epic Tale March 11, 2013

By Sheenah Freitas

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I’m going to preface this review by stating that I read the first edition of the novel before Kodai updated it with edited revisions.

I decided to read this novel on a couple of reasons. One: The allure of secret organizations and ancient alien conspiracies intrigued me and two: The author is an anime fan. And yes, I do prioritize my reading with fellow anime fans (sad, I know). And despite me not having read a hard-core military science fiction novel before, I decided to tackle this novel. And I’m pretty sure that the behemoth of a novel (360K words, that is) tackled me back with as much force, if not double the force, I tackled it. But conquer it, I did!

I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting. Perhaps something like Gundam 00 where there was a healthy sprinkling of politics with lots and lots of gundams and fighting and angsty characters to feel sorry and root for. Angsty characters was the one thing I didn’t get, which was a little disappointing considering how long this war was going on. I did, however, get a handful of female soldiers who felt more like high school gossip queens rather than actual soldiers. The more mature females, thankfully, never acted as such and seemed to be independent, strong, capable-minded females (which is always a blessing when the military is involved). There was also a ton of politics, more politics than I had thought. Though anyone who follows politics would probably not have a problem with this, me being someone who doesn’t follow politics and knows nothing beyond the basics was just a little bit lost. I found myself having to backtrack and make sure I had the terms correct, and I still don’t think I have the terms correct.

Being such a behemoth of a novel, I think it would be a good thing for Mr. Okuda to take out the “obvious” and cut down on words. There were a number of instances where he used “obviously” or “clearly” to showcase something when it could’ve been either deleted out entirely or re-worded to actually show the reader something instead of telling the reader something.

Despite some of the problems I had with the novel, I did enjoy the battle between the two secret societies. They were always there in the forefront, and yet no one knew they were there. I think it’s fair to say that’s how the Masons operate, too. The plot is a tour de force that really seems quite realistic with so many characters that blurred the line between good and bad. The plot never strays, despite the amount of subplots and personal missions there were. For that, I applaud Kodai.

There was this line at the end of the novel that really showcased the amount of research put into the book:

“…Our methods of radiocarbon dating and nuclear decay analysis cannot take into account the effects of quantum and subquantum energies, which the scientists of the twentieth century knew nothing about.”

There’s a lot of talk in the scientific world about this, especially in the world of ancient alien theorists, and it really pleased me to see this discussion come up at the end of the book when they were talking about where man originated from. Most people probably would have never even brought it up, but to bring it up showcases how far along in research the people are and how aware the characters are of the ever-evolving world of science. The epilogue brings up quite a bit of things to look for in upcoming books that intrigue me more than the current book.

The vast world in the book is also very detailed. I don’t think there’s any stone left unturned when Kodai Okuda wrote this novel. Everything has a very detailed past and every machine and weapon has a very detailed list of specs to go with it. And if you have any trouble remembering anything, one just needs to visit Kodai’s website to view the encyclopedia he built of his world. Which, by the way, comes in handy.

Overall: the novel is very lengthy and I think some of the narrative could use some tightening. Despite those shortcomings, the plot and characters kept me interested all the way to the very last page.

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.