tweetybugshouse
Written on Aug 5, 2020
Emmett Atwater isn't just leaving Detroit; he's leaving Earth. Why Babel recruited him is a mystery, but the number of zeroes on his contract has him boarding their lightship and hoping to return to Earth with enough money to take care of his family, forever.
As he and nine other teenagers wormhole their way through space, Emmett discovers that each recruit must earn the right to travel down to Eden. There, Babel will use them to mine a substance that's quietly become the most valuable one in the world. For the chosen 10, every training session is measured, every point matters, and Emmett will do anything to win.
But Babel's ship is full of secrets. And as Emmett uncovers the truth, he realizes he's not fighting for wealth or glory. He's fighting for his life.
- ISBN10 0718188829
- ISBN13 9780718188825
- Publish Date 21 September 2017 (first published 12 September 2017)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 7 April 2021
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
- Imprint Michael Joseph Ltd
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 384
- Language English
Reviews
leahrosereads
Written on May 22, 2020
adamfortuna
Written on Mar 4, 2019
lisbethwhite
Written on Jan 21, 2019
cornerfolds
Written on Oct 2, 2018
Science fiction isn't a genre I usually gravitate toward, with the exception of dystopia. So many friends raved about Nyxia (and the cover was so pretty) that I finally decided to grab it on audiobook from my library. I went in blind so I had no idea what to expect and Nyxia definitely kept me interested!
Emmett is the protagonist of this story and he has been chosen by the Babel Corporation to go to another planet, along with a group of other recruits with similar backgrounds, to mine Nyxia. He and his family will be well paid, but he soon learns that his spot is not guaranteed. Instead, he has to fight the others onboard the ship to earn his place. Emmett was a great main character. I sympathized with him and his situation. I wanted him to win because I wanted his family taken care of!
One of my favorite things about Nyxia was the friendships. Yes, there's a bit of a romantic subplot, but the friendships really take the spotlight in this book. The other kids, while all from similarly troubled backgrounds, were equally sympathetic. Some were much easier to like than others, of course, and some were downright villainous. But overall the chast of characters was diverse and well developed and I really enjoyed them!
I will say, Nyxia was a bit Hunger Games-esque. (I've also seen it compared to Ender's Game more than once.) Kids placed in an environment where they're forced to fight to the death (not always intentionally) to earn a chance at a better life. There are twists and turns and mysteries and the plot is all very interesting. Still, as I get older I'm having a harder time suspending my disbelief about corporations/governments/adults pitting teenagers against each other in such brutal ways.
The world of Nyxia is certainly interesting, but it's confined to a spaceship in this book. I anticipate getting to know more of the world in book two. I thought the Nyxia itself was a really unique concept, though I wish there had been a bit more explanation about how it worked. I definitely think this world is off to a great start and has a ton of potential to be amazing!
Overall, I enjoyed Nyxia and I'm interested to see where the story goes in book two. I enjoyed Emmett and I'm a sucker for books with surprising twists! I just hope that Nyxia Unleashed presents more answers to the questions set up in this one.
writehollydavis
Written on Dec 20, 2017
jesstheaudiobookworm
Written on Nov 5, 2017
I had this nagging feeling the entire time I was listening to Nyxia that I had heard it before. Or, at least, something very similar to it. Nyxia felt a lot like two or three different existing stories patch worked together. The literary déjà vu sometimes stemmed from memories of The Hunger Games and at other times Nyxia was reminiscent of The Maze Runner. The good news is that I love both of those series. The not-so-good news is that they made the plot and some of the characters of Nyxia feel stale by comparison.
That’s not to say Nyxia didn’t have its own original elements. The protagonist, for example, felt very original. When reading the author’s bio, it’s easy to understand why Emmett seemed so real. Apart from the narration, it was the best thing about Nyxia. Honestly, I think the story would have fared a lot better if more of a focus had been on Emmett and his background. He was a wonderfully developed character, but we seem to have only seen the tip of his iceberg. Everything about his background is told in retrospect. I would have loved it if more of the story had taken place into Detroit prior to Emmett’s journey.
Speaking of Detroit, I know that Nyxia takes place at some point in the future (I’m still unclear on exactly when, which says a lot), but future Detroit seems a lot like present-day Detroit. At one point, Emmett and his father even discussed the current NFL draft. This raised questions about Reintgen’s world building. Again, actually seeing Reintgen’s future (but not futuristic?) Detroit would have probably filled in a lot of the gaps. This seemed like a missed opportunity on the part of the author.
The other point that was really original to Nyxia was the Nyxia itself. This powerful and rare substance was unlike anything I’ve heard of before. I don’t want to spoil anything, but let’s just say that the mystery and originality of the Nyxia substance opens a lot of plot avenues for Reintgen. I like what he’s done with it so far.
I originally gave Nyxia 4 stars, but after a few days of reflection, I’m dropping it down to 3.75. The rush of action at the end really had my blood pumping and temporarily blinded me to the story’s weaknesses, which are now more prominent in my memory. Only time will tell if I wind up continuing with this series. I don’t foresee myself spending an Audible credit on the next installment, but I won’t rule out borrowing it from the library, if the mood strikes me.
Narration review: Sullivan Jones was my favorite part of the Nyxia audiobook. At one point, my mom overheard part of it and even commented on Jones’ voice. His voice is deep and rich. It’s the kind of voice you can sink into, like a waterbed. He provided subtle characterization for the majority of the characters and excellent characterization for a few. For the most part, it wasn’t the best characterization I’ve heard, but it was enough to get me through the story. He excelled at providing vocal distinction for the younger characters, especially those with well-defined personalities and backgrounds, but the distinction waned slightly when more than one adult character was involved in a conversation. Luckily, the majority of the characters were younger and several were from locations with distinct accents. Overall, there were a lot of characters in this story and Jones handled them all with aplomb. I will be actively seeking out his work in the future. ♣︎
llamareads
Written on Sep 13, 2017
In terms of comparison to other books, I'd say this reminds me more of Divergent or Ender's Game than Illuminae. Honestly, there's very little that screams "space" and there's very little about the aliens. My other issue is with the romance. It came out of complete left field and felt completely unnecessary to me.
The book does end with a lot of questions left unanswered. I'll definitely be picking up the next in the series.
I received an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.
Quirky Cat
Written on Aug 3, 2017
I was really excited when I heard about Nyxia – the cover art is absolutely stunning, and the description made it sound interesting. While reading I found it reminiscent of a couple of other books, such as Ender’s Game and Hunger Game, just to give you an idea of the tone of the book (though the plot itself is what made me think of Ender’s Game).
I’ll confess that I felt slightly let down by this book – I was just so excited when I got my copy I couldn’t wait to read through it. Yet the first thirty percent or so I found myself struggling to stay attached to the characters and plot. Once I got past that point I found myself a bit more hooked, but that disappointed lingered and sort of set the tone for my reading experience.
The novel ended up being more of an introspective look at humanity and what it’s capable of more than a space/alien novel; how far each person is will to go or not go in order to obtain their personal goals. Who they’re willing to cross, hurt, or betray in the process.
Ironically, the namesake of the book is not the planet everyone is headed towards – but instead is the material they wish to harvest from it. Nyxia is pretty much a magical substance; it can create better tech, fuel, weapons, you name it. Oh, and the user can form and reform it with their minds. Not even kidding. So you can see why a corporation would want their hands on this stuff. I actually would have loved to see more about this substance (though admittedly I suspect that’s being saved for later in the series).
Basically, this big corporation (Babel – yes the religions implication is intentional) is sending a bunch of kids to Babel (the planet, not the corporation) because of reasons, where these kids are then to mine as much Nyxia as possible. To add to the tension though, they’re going to pit them all against each other – only eight out of the ten will be allowed to go planetside (did I mention the buttloads of money they’d be getting if they go?). More and more twists and turns are thrown at them as time goes on, just to further complicate things and make everyone more desperate.
Side note: It’s really hard to take a book seriously when the head of their corporation is named Dafou. I kept hearing Marshall (from How I Met Your Mother) saying “Willem. DaFAU!” in my head. Every. Single. Time. So needless to say that broke the fourth wall a little bit for me, though it’s really not the fault of the author in this case. I’m just weird.
One of the positive things worth commenting on was the way Emmett worked his way through puzzles and problems. Seeing his unique perspective and thought process, particularly when up against all odds, was pretty interesting to see. I think if more of this had been highlighted I would have enjoyed it so much more. Emmett is a really well designed character, all things considered.
As I mentioned above – Nyxia really reminded me of a few other books, as well as a movie or two. Ender’s Game is an obvious one – it’s about a bunch of youths fighting it out between each other in order to get the best scores (and good scores equate to reaching their goals), while simultaneously being in space. Unfortunately Nyxia didn’t have that many zero gravity scenes (really, it just had the one), so that’s where the comparison ends. The Hunger Games reference is probably also self-explanatory, though in this case I felt that the writing style was also similar.
I also felt slightly reminded of Avatar – the big bad corporations are coming in to mine everything good (read: Nyxia) off an inhabited planet. In this case they haven’t actually landed on the planet yet, but based on the Adamite being held prisoner, I think we have a pretty good idea of the intended treatment for these aliens.
I guess what I’m trying to say with all my comparisons is that while Nyxia did ultimately hold my attention; I never felt that anything groundbreaking was being written. I know that sounds really harsh, but I simply mean that the book kept reminding me of other things, rather than standing on its own. Since the book improved more as time went on, I’ll probably give book two a try when it comes out, though I can’t say I’ll be as excited as I was previously.
For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks