Aethereal's Pride

As Spyder, one of the top science officer in the Guardian service, lies in a coma from damage inflicted by the Grays in the last pitched battle to defend one of the Usarian worlds, life goes on for the rest of the Guardians. His wife is pregnant and the others gather around her to offer her solace in this difficult time.

But perhaps she’s not as alone as she seems, since she swears that Spyder is still able to communicate with her telepathically, though none of the Aethereal or the Usars can detect this communication. They’re not sure if it’s her imagination, or if something beyond their experience is going on.

In the meantime, they stumble onto another Guardian planet, this one devastated by an attack by the evil Grays, leaving the whole world devoid of life but for a single family of the feline sentients that once resided there. Nursed back to health, the father of this family proves a valuable addition to the service, as does his mate.

So far this book is this reviewer’s favorite of the whole series. It was bright with humor and hope, and touched on some more of our historical myths and legends. Dragons are real, and perhaps we have some racial memories of the so-called Ancients that exist to this day in our legends of elves and the like.

The Usar, giant purple bears, are still this reviewer’s favorite creature in the series, though the Pride, the new feline additions, are definitely worthy of notice. The gender issues that divide the race is an eerie echo of our own history and brings up some important points about how some of our darker myths have perpetuated gender discrimination.

This reviewer cannot recommend this series enough. So far it is one of the most enjoyable reads he has encountered and hopes that the author will see fit to revisit and expand this remarkable universe many more times in the future.

January 2007