Customer Reviews

The Cold Wind

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The Cold Wind is truly an incredible book about the meaning of love and family. Abducted from Earth by the demonic-looking, reptilian Vanguard, a dangerously unstable and predatory alien species, Tainui Rauwhero and his new lover, Andrej Hannan are unwittingly thrust into the internal politics and conflicts of a vast Empire on the brink of collapse. Transported to a rebel Vanguard colony world, Tainui becomes a crucial influence in the battle for the very survival of the entire planet, against an enemy considered unbeatable. The Cold Wind is a tale of new love and survival among a species that, for all its strangeness, still understands the necessity of love and loyalty. And, faced with heartache and seemingly insurmountable odds, Tainui comes to discover that, when all is said and done, home is where the hearts are. The Cold Wind is an exceptionally powerful and poignant story of the true meaning of love and family

I know that term - "emotional roller-coaster" - is used a lot when describing books and movies. Normally I try to avoid cliches like that. But here it really fits. Giving a detailed review of the story would just ruin it for anyone who wants to read it, so instead I will allude to three of the key themes of this book that are nowhere else to be found.

This is the first truly gay themed sci-fi book I have ever read - and it's not a soft-focus kind of gay theme either. It's hard, raw and gut wrenching in it's open discussion of real same-sex and gender relationship themes - not all of them pleasant. This is an odd thing to find in what is clearly going to develop into a epic space opera - but for a guy who is gay like me, it's also extremely refreshing and positive to find such a fascinating combination.

I'm also from New Zealand, and one of the key characters in The Cold Wind is a good Kiwi bloke - that's also something you just don't see in sci-fi - and another great twist on the space opera theme. It's not every day you hear the term of acknowledgement "Chur, bro!" in a sci-fi thriller!

Emotional Impact - wow! I can't honestly say that I have ever read a sci-fi story before that has had me in tears not once, but at least three times.

I can't recommend this book highly enough!