Light Tripper

by Jo-Anne Tomlinson

[Quirky Cat]

I received a copy of Light Tripper in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Light Tripper is the first novel I’ve read by Jo-Anne Tomlinson, but if this one is anything to go by; I’m already a huge fan of her work. It’s a science fiction novel, and could be categorized as a space opera (something I’m always on the hunt for).
Light Tripper reminded me of a cross between Firefly, The Starfire Trilogy, and just a touch of Star Wars. Those don’t sound like series/novels that would blend well, but they really do here. It’s based in the big wide open of space, with a few integral ports on different planets and moons. There are mercenaries, bounty hunters, and big governments that nobody seems to like. In short, it’s exactly what I’ve been looking for.



I got so caught up in Light Tripper that I ended up reading the entire thing in two sittings. And if I’m being brutally honest with myself, I was quite cranky when I had to stop reading and be an adult for a while in between.
Sal is an interesting character. She hasn’t had the best of lives, but all things considered she’s not doing too badly. There’s more to her than meets the eye, but the same could also be said of her father. There are so many secrets in Sal’s life that for the longest time she couldn’t even see where they stopped and the truth began. Despite all of this, she’s a happy, chipper, and oddly spunky girl. She seems quite good at getting herself out of fights, which is fortunate because she gets in a lot of them. She also has a drive to get things done, even when she probably should just back off.
I don’t think I would have enjoyed this novel as much without Sal’s character being involved. While she is overall very happy with her life, at least in appearance, there’s just something so tragic about her character. At first I couldn’t quite put my finger on it (I didn’t want to assume it was the more obvious elements of her backstory we were being shown) but soon it became clear what was really happening.
I was enthralled right from the beginning, and every little hint about what was really going on just pulled me in further. I honestly couldn’t read it fast enough – I had to resist the urge to turn the pages (digital pages, but you know what I mean) faster than my eyes could keep up. But it was quite the challenge.
There was one twist I really didn’t see coming, and if I’m being honest I don’t know how I feel about it. The problem is that I don’t normally like seeing that particular element thrown in like that…but Tomlinson did such a good job with it that I really can’t even complain about it. I can see why she wanted to include it in her story, and I really can’t fault her for her choice. Especially since it moved the plot forward at a faster pace, and gave us a nice romantic subplot.
I sincerely hope that this becomes a series. Even if we don’t see more about Sal, I’d love to see more of the world that’s been developed here. It’s fascinating and exactly the sort of novel I’m looking for when I describe a space opera.
There are three other books by Tomlinson that I think I’m going to have to add to my TBR pile. They’re all of the same series, which based on how I’m already itching for more of this novel I’m pretty happy to hear. It’s called the Ardentia series, for anybody that wants to add it to their reading pile alongside me.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks