| Title | : | Stealthy Steps (Nanostealth #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0986261521 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780986261527 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 298 |
| Publication | : | First published June 1, 2015 |
I should tell you about Dr. Daniel Bickel, world-renowned nanophysicist. We used to work together, but I'll be candid with you: He's supposed to be dead. Well, he's not. (Imagine my surprise.) Instead of the proverbial "six feet under," he's subsisting in an abandoned devolution cavern beneath the old Manzano Weapons Storage Facility on Kirtland Air Force Base here in Albuquerque.
"I need to show you what I'm protecting here, Gemma," he insisted.
I stared into the clear glass case. I could hear . . . humming, clicking, buzzing. A faint haze inside the box shifted. Dissolved. Came back together. Reminded me of how mercury, when released on a plate, will flow and form new shapes. Only this, this thing was "flowing and forming" in midair.
"Do you see them?" Dr. Bickel asked.
"Them?" I was confused. My mouth opened to a stunned "o" as the silver haze resolved into blue letters.
H E L L O
Dr. Bickel hadn't pressed any buttons. Hadn't said anything to them. Hadn't gestured.
He grinned. "Ah. They've noticed you. They know they haven't seen you before."
"Well, I wish they wouldn't notice me!" I choked on the words, my eyes fixed on the glass case.
And I need to warn you about General Cushing. The rank and name likely conjure images of a lean but muscled old soldier, posture rigid, face cemented in unyielding lines, iron-gray hair cut high and tight. Let me disabuse you of that impression: General Imogene Cushing is short and a tiny bit plump. She wears her silvered hair in an elegant braid knotted at the nape of her neck, and she knows how to smile sweetly. With the deadliest of sharks.
You wouldn't suspect a two-star general, an Air Force O-8, of being a traitor, would you?
Nanostealth
Book 1: Stealthy Steps
Book 2: Stealth Power
Book 3: Stealth Retribution
Book 4: Deep State Stealth
"Vikki writes the kind of faith-filled fiction that hooks you within the first few pages, will not let you go until you have finished, and leaves you wishing for more."
-Janis Braun, Seattle, Washington
"Her books are not just for 'chicks'! I was amazed how engrossed I became in the lives of Vikki's characters, and how much I could relate to their situations."
-Ed Dunne, Los Angeles
"Be prepared to put life on hold. That's all I have to say!"
-Rebecca H., New Jersey
"You will laugh, you will cry but, most of all, you will be uplifted."
-LaTisha Holland, St. Augustine, FL
Stealthy Steps (Nanostealth #1) Reviews
-
Characters: Gemma was a well-developed, interesting character. Her reaction to becoming invisible was quite human (and humorous at times).
Language: Clean. Cuss words were represented by *blank*.
Moral/theme: Gemma wasn't a believer in this book, but I can see this changing sometime later in the series :) She had a pastor friend who witnessed to her.
Plot: This novel had plenty of tense moments to keep me reading. I did feel like there were a few too many info dumps during the first half of the book, and sometimes things got a little too technical for me.
Romance: Clean. Only a few hints of romance that I expect will develop over the course of the series.
Writing: This is the first book I've read by Vikki Kestell, and I enjoyed her fast-paced writing style. I also appreciated the character voice she gave Gemma.
Overall: Stealthy Steps was an entertaining, unique read. I'd recommend it to those who enjoy Christian fiction, science fiction, and suspense. -
I'm going to admit I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I picked this book up. And yet, it ended up not being quite what I expected, whatever that was. But I think in most ways, that was a good thing. Let's see if I can sort out some of my mixed-up impressions.
The style was definitely more random and humorous than I expected. I particularly enjoyed Gemma's internal dialogue--and yes, I'm purposely calling it dialogue instead of monologue, especially because of her tendency to argue/discuss things with herself, which I can definitely relate to. :) There were a few times when her confused, distracted perspective got to be a little much or certain bits of emphasis felt a bit over the top, but overall, I thought the style was unique and well-done.
Gemma herself I liked--most of the time. I appreciated her regular-girl-caught-in-a-sci-fi-nightmare situation. I felt for her with the trouble she'd had in her past. I liked her stubbornness once she'd made up her mind to something. Some of her choices and the way she justified them or didn't think through the consequences concerned me, although I did appreciate the fact that this was addressed near the end. It's also worth noting that Gemma isn't a Christian and doesn't claim to be; however, her Christian friends provide a strong witness, and she seems to be coming to a better understanding of her own need for God by the end of the book. But the fact that she's leaning on generic morality for her justifications did make it a bit harder to decide whether she was in the right in some of her gray-area actions.
The supporting cast was well-drawn and mostly non-stereotyped, and there were several supporting characters that I liked a lot. I really loved Gemma's friendship with Zander, although I was a bit concerned where that was going, considering their unequally-yoked status. And I loved her aunt, who we never met but got to know through Gemma's memories of her. <3
Okay, the science was way over my head, and there was one particular scene where I just wanted a break from it all. It was a little comforting that Gemma felt that way, too, and I think I see the importance of at least having some sort of "okay, we knew they could do something like that" to fall back on. At the very least, I'm thankful that most of the book wasn't that way. :)
Some of the content that was mentioned caught me a bit off-guard, but I was thankful that most of it was handled with a light touch. The whole thing with the nanomites and Gemma got a bit unnerving at times, but at this point, I'm definitely invested in the story and plan to continue the series.
Content--references to various gang activities (drugs, drinking, improper use of women); mention of a boyfriend/girlfriend living together; physical and emotional abuse shown and described; attempted murder and deaths; some description of wounds and illness; ; various law-breaking activities, supposed to be for a good cause; mention of a woman undressing to go to bed; a couple mentions of breasts (in descriptions) -
Wow! This book blew me away! The narrator's voice was so powerful and compelling, that even though the structure was atypical, it definitely worked for this story! The characters, major and minor, are thoughtfully portrayed, and the science is so well-described that it totally believable. The plot was so twisty I could not guess what would happen next, and the ending was completely unexpected. The spiritual aspect was deftly woven into the plot and felt organic to the characters. I am anxious to read the next installment!
-
This was the most unique novel I've read in some time.
Not only was it told both in first person, but also the entire plot was presented as though it were a letter to the reader. Very, VERY interestingly presented.
The plot itself engaged from the beginning and held me to the last word. I didn't skim once during the reading of it. (Unusual for me.)
Rather than summarize the plot, I would rather just recommend this book to ANYONE who is intrigued by sci-fi, and a plot that is not ashamed to present "the name by which me must be saved."
Excellent! Just excellent! -
2/10/2019
Very different book. I wasn't sure what I was getting into when I started it, but I certainly hadn't seen this coming. Nor have I any idea why I purchased the Audible version of it a couple years ago.
First of all, though, I have to say Reba Buhr is an amazing narrator. Simply amazing. Recently I had an opportunity to have a video of me doing "90 Second News", our church's way of doing of announcements. It gave me such an appreciation of good reading in audio versions of books. This young lady makes it sound like she's actually telling the story, not reading. She made me laugh out loud at times with her ability to take that text and put the exact right inflections on hysterical dialog. Comedic timing even.
Okay, enough on the narrator. Book...
2/11/2022…..
This book has been on my mind since I first read it four years ago. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to read the rest of the stories. So I purchased the other audiobooks since I loved this narrator immensely. I re-listened to it again just now so I can go right into the following books in the series.
But, I read this review and realized I gave too many spoilers, so I’ve hidden much of it for those who want a lovely surprise, which is this book.
There's so many more fascinating parts to this story about her invisibility, but there's also a very strong faith message. I fell in love with this book and this author's ability to entertain.
I would have given it five stars, however, unbeknownst to me, this is part one of three books and there was no ending in this one. So down a star. To find out what ever happened to Gemma, the nanomites, the abused little boy across the street I didn't previously mention, and if Zander Cruz ever leads her to the Lord, the other books must be purchased. (My library carries nothing by Vikki Kestell).
But if you want to get three really entertaining books, then I highly recommend them. -
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
That's the sound of me realizing that I don't have enough Amazon gift card money to purchase the sequel to this book.
This must be remedied.
I need it.
Okay, maybe I don't need it but I enjoyed this and I'm anxious about what's going to happen next! Which is good because I felt like this book had a sloooooow start. There were loads of technical explanations combined with a snarky/whiny narrator. There were some annoyed yawns going forth from my mouth for the first quarter of this book, at least. I would have put it down except that my mama recommended this to me and life in general and more specifically
Annabel Lee has taught me that I need to listen to my mama's recommendations, especially when it comes to books.
So I pressed on. I was heartened by the fact that it had to get better because:
1) My mom was laughing out loud (for realsies!) while reading this.
2) Also, she doesn't usually read sci-fi but she enjoyed this! (This is also Christian lit and kind of a spy thriller, two genres that she does read. But I didn't realize all that until after the slow part was over.)
Anyway, once it picked up... OH MY. Hold on for dear life!
Gemma went from annoying to likeable and hilarious and... We meet her devil cat. She and devil cat meet Zander. (*swoons*) Zander is kinda preachy, but that's allowed because he literally is a preacher. She has a change of heart She does some sketchy things. Every bad person is a sociopath. (That was odd and terrifying) She almost gets caught.
AND THEN WHAT???
Idk because I'm apparently broke as far as Amazon money goes.
Which reminds me... I have some urgent business *cough* *cough* to attend to. ;) -
“You think you’re scared I’m the invisible freak!”
I liked it. Well-developed tale with a strong, if emotionally immature protagonist. Self-depreciating humor fits the character and story. Everything breaks her way, even the bad breaks. Too easy. Italics overused. “Giggles” a lot.
“He’s a hardcore Christian. I couldn’t keep seeing [him] anymore.”
Christian literature, but protagonist realistically resists the initial gospel hard sell. Christian characters well drawn. Some antagonists border on caricatures.
“I was where you are twenty years ago. Different town, same drugs. Different corner, same grave just waiting for me to fall into it.”
Quibble: masked from one angle is not masked from all angles. The problems with real time, adaptive omnidirectional masking are enormous.
“Invisible is not a word that belongs in real life."
Not so much concluded as finished the opening.
“Was life even worth the never ending struggle?” -
Very slow, interesting, if one skips several pages of extraneous information. 3.5 stars
-
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Thoughts:
Really enjoyed. At some points (especially towards the beginning) the science aspects were way over my head and my inner science nerd was clocked out for the day, so it was a bit of a struggle to get through it. But I stuck with it and I'm so glad I did!
I loved Gemma's internal dialogue and her sense of humor. I laughed out loud a few times. By far, the invisibility thing was my favorite part. The ramifications of trying to live a normal life while invisible were really well-thought out. I also liked Zander more than I thought I would, and it was really cool to see the growth of Gemma and a certain side character's relationship. And the ending... I partially guessed the plot twist but it still was awesome 👍 Definitely looking forward to book 2.
Content: Mild/Light Medium.
There's some violence including hitting someone repeatedly with a chair and mentions of abuse. We see the inside of a meth lab. A man and his girlfriend live together. Gangs factor into the story. The only thing that bothered me personally were a couple mentions of breasts in a few descriptions... it's not in a sexual way but still :/ Mentions of swearing but no actual words.
If you're interested, Angie Thompson also wrote a great review of this book, it's marked as containing spoilers although besides maybe the romance angle I didn't see anything too spoilery. -
(Hey Pumpkin, thanks for recommending this book. You do know what kind of TV shows I like. And obviously books too. Thank youuuuu)
What a cool book. Star Trek, Wizard of Oz, and Pinterest references - plus great Christian messages. Then you throw in the suspense, technology, awesome characters (I may or may not have found a couple to ship), and crime drama, and what could be better?
I NEED TO READ BOOK TWO. -
This review is going to contain a ton of spoilers (in case you couldn't tell by the fact that it was hidden because it contained spoilers). You've been warned.
SUMMARY
Okay, so the story starts out right smack dab in the middle of some pretty intense goings on. I don't usually appreciate that because I have NO idea what the heck is going on. Gemma is babbling about them and it sounds important, but the reader has zero idea what's happening. But this book reads like my friend wrote it, so I put up with being disoriented.
Gemma works as an administrative assistant/project manager for some super scientificy company. I didn't really process all that stuff at the beginning and she said I didn't need to understand, so we're good. But as a part of this job, she has access to some pretty secret information. This gets her pulled into some intrigue that she'd really rather not be a part of, since she, you know, has lived her life to be invisible.
Gemma thinks she knows who's good (Dr. P) and who's weird (Dr. B) but actually she's been used. Dr. P and the uber-evil General Cushings have used Gemma to spy on Dr. B to try and steal his work. Luckily, Dr. B is a genius and is two steps ahead of them. So when they try and kill him, Dr. B escapes and hides out in a mountain fortress for three months.
Gemma has been fired because she knows too much and now she can't get a job anywhere in government (thanks to evil General lady). She's in a sort of limbo when she receives an email from Dr. B. Yep! He's alive (I already told you that, but Gemma didn't know yet). He gives her directions to his hideout and thus begins a few weeks (months?) of visits. Gemma becomes Dr. B's connection to the outside world - buying fresh food, picking up orders delivered to his safe house, etc.
(Not sure if the way Dr. B and Gemma communicated is possible, but it's awesome.)
But Cushings also knows that Dr. B is alive and is working super hard to find him. One day, she succeeds. In the process of escaping and all that chaos, Dr. B dies, and Gemma becomes invisible. Not like before when no one noticed her, like NO ONE CAN SEE HER!!!!
She discovers that the work Dr. B was doing, that Cushings wants, those little nanobites, have hidden her. They can do that, as explained in a very long section that was honestly way over my head. (The first half of the book was a little slow, but the second part picked right up). Anyway, Gemma is invisible and now she has to figure out a) how to live like this while not alerting anyone to her condition and b) how to avoid Cushings and not letting her get the nanobites. No problem, right?
Wrong.
Gemma actually does an admirable job, but in the end, she confides in Abe, Zander, and Emilio about her situation. And she was right to be worried about Cushings who does indeed find her.
The ending has you exclaiming "WHAT?!" because Dr. B has more lives than a cat, apparently. Yeppers, he's still alive somewhere and the nanobites are going to find him.
MY THOUGHTS
I know, I've already sprinkled some thoughts above, but it's my review and I'm calling this section "MY THOUGHTS".
LIKED: How it was written; the POV. I wouldn't be surprised if I discovered that the friend who recommended this to me actually wrote it. It totally seems like something she'd write.
DID NOT LIKE: The "prologue". I don't like prologues because they just confuse me.
LIKED: The references. I got most of them (Star Wars, Star Trek) and this line that we say ALL THE TIME in my family - "not your circus, not your monkeys"!
DID NOT LIKE: It was a little slow at the beginning and the when Dr. B is trying to explain his work to Gemma it was to technical for me.
LIKED: This line - "Some smart people in the government (I don't think we have those anymore)"
LIKED: This other part - "I dislike religion, Gemma. Religion does a lot of damage to people. It takes what should be the simplest, purest expression of God's love, something even a child can understand, and replaces it with some kind of formula - a complex and impossible set of rules and behaviors - when it is really about God's give of grace and His power to transform us." Totally true and I totally agree.
I've probably left out something that I wanted to mention, but I think this is good for now. On to book two and then try to figure out how to read book three (because of a stupid rule that says you can only loan a Kindle book once. WHAT?!) -
Character:
Gemma Keyes is an interesting narrator. She projects a pleasant smile or blank expression, intent on blending in with her surroundings. Yet, since the whole book is told from her point of view, you know that she is quite different than her projection. She is snarky, angry, and insistent. At the same time, because of her Aunt’s influence, she strives to do the right thing. She struggles to embrace the faith of her Aunt, her adopted grandfather, and her new friends.
Abe is Gemma’s adopted grandfather. After her Aunt passes away, he becomes her guardian of sorts. He is her neighbor and protector as much as possible. A bit stoic and paranoid, Abe is definitely the word of wisdom in Gemma’s life.
Dr. Bickell is Gemma’s father figure. He is kind and quirky, striving to do the right thing. He may be an odd man, but he is a good man, and that makes him extremely likeable. He is one of the few that see through Gemma to her true self.
Zander is Gemma’s friend. He stops by and gets to know Gemma at the request of Abe. As a pastor at a local church, he is Gemma’s conscience. He doesn’t flinch away from the real problems, yet shows a compassion and kindness that Gemma knows she doesn’t always deserve. His background, once revealed, only makes him more intriguing.
General Cushing. The villianess behind this story doesn’t get that much screen time. She may be the antagonist, but she acts more like a catalyst than a true opponent of Gemma. Cruel and calculated, I want to read the next book to find out if she gets her comeuppance.
Emilio is Gemma’s neighbor. A young kid who is considered a delinquent by Gemma most of the story, he grows over time. Eventually, details are revealed that make him a little more likeable than Gemma initially believes. And the ending….oh it’s so good!
Other minor characters: Mateo, Genie, Mrs. Calderon, and Corazon. Their involvement with the plot is important for what they bring out of Gemma. Sometimes it is compassion, but other times it is hatred. You’ll have to read the book to find out exactly who does what.
Plot:
The events of this story are hard to describe. The first half of the book is flashback, detailing what has happened prior to the inciting event. Most books are unable to do this well, making flashback simply an info dump. This is not the case for Stealthy Steps. The author does a wonderful job of making the events that happened before the inciting event fascinating and gripping. I read through the first half significantly faster than the second half. This is because I felt like the second half was a lot of inward reflection without that much action. Don’t get me wrong, there is action, but it isn’t the same as the first half. It doesn’t feel like it has as much weight as the first half. That being said, her psychological reflection is interesting to read, and I wanted to know if the problem would ever be solved, so I kept reading to the end. And the ending definitely made me want to read the next book, so she did a great job with that.
Setting:
The majority of the book takes place in Albuquerque, New Mexico. What is fascinating to me is that even though the setting is plausibly realistic, it also has enough science fiction to make it so that most readers won’t be exploring the abandoned facility there. Also, because the author told us the location of the book, I was able to picture it in mind. I imagined what I saw in Arizona as the setting: a red desert with cactus and panoramic views. Whether this is the actual case or not is another question, but it certainly made the action come alive as I read. Her descriptiveness definitely helped her when it came to reading.
Overall, I really enjoyed this YA Christian Science Fiction. The plot, characters and setting combined were enough to enthrall me, and I hope to read the rest of the series in the future. -
Title: Stealthy Steps (Nanostealth #1)
Author: Vikki Kestell
Pages: 298
Year: 2015
Publisher: Faith-Filled Fiction
My rating is 5 stars.
What a brilliant and well-crafted story that will definitely keep you enraptured and turning pages until you either have to take a break or finish the book! I simply sat down and over a couple of days lost myself in the multilayered, suspense-filled thriller written by Vikki Kestell, who is a new author to me. She has written other books if you look her up on Amazon. Coming soon will be book one, Tabitha, from another new series called Girls from the Mountain. In 2016, book two in the Nanostealth series will be released titled, Stealth Power.
In this story, there are two parties who are vying for the scientifically created Nanomites. One group is the military of the facility housing the science experiments run by a woman, General Cushing, who is nicknamed Shark Face. The other side is the creator of the Nanomites, Dr. Bickel.
Gemma is working in one part as an assistant for a specific scientist. The facility is huge so she hides herself well though she is attentive to what is occurring. Gemma’s twin sister Gina is a mean spiteful lawyer who thinks her sister is an idiot. The story has many threads going on including drug cartels, murder, mystery, intrigue, faith, military, and so much more.
It will be so hard to wait for the second installment to be released, but until then I plan on reading Tabitha and then Vikki’s other novels. Her writing aims to bring honor to God by using fiction filled with faith. In my opinion, Vikki has done this well. It would be a shame if you pass up her books, especially if you enjoy suspense that keeps you on the edge of your chair! Kudos to you Vikki!
Also available on Amazon Audible, iTunes and other formats on Amazon.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255. “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” -
Gemma Keyes tells readers her story in first person, as she writes an account of what happened one fateful day in her physicist friend’s secret lab. She’s funny, direct, and sometimes speaks directly to the reader.
She’ll tell you why she’s in hiding and who’s chasing her. She’ll explain enough of the nanotechnology (microscopic bits like computer chips, if I understand) but she’ll reassure you it’s okay if you don’t get it. She doesn’t get it, herself. She was simply the scientist’s assistant in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or in the right place at the right time, to keep his creation from being stolen by a corrupt general.
As well as being a fast-paced techno-thriller, delivered with strong, fresh description and the aforementioned humour, this is a story with heart and with a thread of faith. There’s more going on with the 10-year-old neighbour boy than Gemma wants to see and there’s a friendly pastor with a criminal past who could be more than a friend… if he wasn’t a Christian, and if Gemma’s life wasn’t in danger.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the rest of the series. The mix of heart, faith, and action made the characters real to me. And since the story’s set in present-day Albuquerque, it’s only the science that’s a stretch from the real world. Otherwise, it’s just a corrupt-military-official-out-to-destroy-innocent-civilian-with-a-secret story.
Vikki Kestell writes faith-filled fiction—the 4-book Nanostealth series and a number of historical novels. Stealthy Steps is free in ebook format from most online stores, and if this is your type of story, I heartily recommend it. For more about the author and her work, visit vikkikestell.com.
[Review copy from my personal library.] -
I am very impressed with this Christian sci-fi suspense novel. The characters are complex and engaging. The plot is both compelling and unique. The heroine is someone to root for and I've laughed aloud several times at the hunor written into the story. Be forewarned that although this book stops at a natural point in the story, it is without question a cliffhanger ending. I have given it 4 instead of 5 stars only because there is a fair amount of repetition and places where I think the author gets too wordy. I think some cutting down of certain sections would have improved the pace of the novel in places. However, if you can look past that, this read is completely worth the patience. Whenever I put the book down, I found my mind frequently returning to its world and looking forward to learning what would happen next.
I recommend this novel to readers who enjoy technology based suspense with a good dash of humor, a smidge of romance, and a strong spiritual element. Potential readers should also enjoy reading series novels and be prepared to go along for the four-book journey.
For those who enjoy audiobooks, the audible version of this novel is very well done. -
This is exceptional urban sci-fi
The world built shows great inventiveness. The story grows taut, tighter and tighter, very believable. The characters grow on you, both good and bad—very complex. It's a wonderful tale... -
My comments on “Stealthy Steps” are offered up with mixed emotions, because this is actually a really good book! Vickki Kestell writes very well; the story is interesting and streetwise. It’s a gritty saga with international conspiracies and drug busts and meth labs and gangs threatening each other, but the violence and ghetto talk aren’t gratuitous. The Christian element just comes along every now and then – it’s no more than a 5% thing overall – but I do like her tone. It’s muscular and not preachy or pious at all, which I admire.
The two challenges I face are these – and maybe it’s only me. The sci-fi element is interesting, but way over-the-top for my taste. The “nanomites” are an intriguing concept, but when the Professor explains it to her, yikes, the tutorial does go on for what feels like forty pages. I couldn’t wait to get out of that cave. But when the main character gets back to civilization and, spoiler alert, has to spend the rest of the book being invisible, well, she has a lot of fun playing Bilbo the Hobbit in downtown Albuquerque.
The second reality is that this is absolutely a continuing gotta-buy-all-four-books story. Vol. 1 ends with a tight cliffhanger, and readers will have to make a snap decision whether or not to get out their credit card and purchase the entire set.
I’m not sure I will; I mean, I do have calculus papers to grade. But I will say this: in the realm of Christian fiction, you could do a whole lot worse. -
(3.5 / 5)
I didn't fully understand the premise of this book going into it, because the synopsis is more like a boiled-down excerpt from part of the book, with a little extra character introduction. Most of the information is there, but it's cryptic. Here's my synopsis though: Gemma Keyes is a young woman fresh out of college, and takes a job as a project manager at a top secret lab. She mostly organizes things and takes meeting notes, but this makes her privy to some classified information. When she hears the wrong information (not her fault), she is fired. Months later, after an accident in the same lab claimed the lives of the 2 top scientists she was working for, she's contacted covertly by one of those scientists, Dr. Bickel (obviously not dead). She ends up being asked to help him continue his work, which he's keeping secret from everyone at this point. This work is in nanotechnology. When the government, and in particular, a nasty military general who has no scruples about how she gets information & technology for her military, closes in on Gemma and the man she's helping, an unexpected incident leaves her invisible. Literally. (Some people see the invisibility aspect as a spoiler, but it's how the prologue ends, so I see it as part of the set up.)
So...now Gemma has to figure out how to live life completely invisible, which presents all sorts of problems, especially since she practically lives in a fish bowl. Half of the book is about this, as well as her concern about being discovered by the general who went after Dr. Bickel. This half of the book is entertaining and interesting. I liked the relationships Gemma developed both before and after her invisibility. My favorite thing was the ways she tried to communicate with the nanotechnology that is responsible for her uncontrollable invisibility.
The first half of the book had some interesting parts as well--especially the relationship that began and/or developed between Gemma and Dr. Bickel, Gemma and the associate pastor of her old church (more on that below), and an established relationship between Gemma and an older neighbor. However, the first half of the book was bogged down heavily by a lot of exposition and repetition.
First, there is a long and tedious description of how Gemma first got into the secret, abandoned military based where Dr. Bickel directed her to meet him. It might not have been so bad, had we not already given given those steps (most of them), but backward. Then there are the 37-8 pages of Dr. Bickel talking and explaining. Explaining how he avoided dying in the lab explosion, explaining how he got himself set up in this mountain base, and longest of all, explaining how the nanotechnology works. In detail. That most of us reading aren't going to really follow. Some of it did prove to be important to the rest of the story, but honestly, much of it wasn't. (At one point, after about 33 pages of explanation, Bickel says, "'Would you like to hear more about the nanomites before you go, Gemma?'" And I literally thought, "I wish I could say no.") Since the book is told in 1st person, and Gemma didn't understand a lot of what he said, I have a very difficult time believing that when she wrote this account some weeks or months later, she could remember all of the science that he spouted. It could have definitely been boiled down for us, and even more so, would have then fit in with the style of narration that the rest of the book has.
Much of the information in the first half of the book would have been okay on its own, but since it was all told together in the first half, it made it difficult to keep reading. I totally understand why the prologue is a long description of the point when Dr. Bickel is discovered in his secret lab by the general, ending with Gemma finding herself invisible. It needed that action and intrigue to get people hooked. Still, if I hadn't been recommended this book series by my mom who has recently been very anxious for me to read it so she could hear what I thought, I might have at least set it down and come back to it later. As such, once you're past that half of the book, it does get more interesting. It's the first book in a short series, so some of the expositiony first part can be explained as set-up to an entire series, and it does have an ending that left me wanting to know more. Still, I think setting up an entire series isn't an excuse for so much info-dump all at once.
The associate pastor I mentioned above, named Zander, is where the Christian aspect of the book comes in, for the most part. He's invited to visit Gemma by her older neighbor, and he is a good example of a Christian in fiction. He is generous, compassionate, flawed, and complicated. Gemma sees a lot of sides of him, some of which draw her to him, but others of which push her away. His very Christianity is the biggest obstacle to their developing relationship, though, because Gemma is quite against Christianity. He speaks the truth in love, and shows Christ's love through his action, while still being a believable human being. I look forward to seeing how this develops in the rest of the series.
I was particularly bothered by some of Gemma's actions in this book, and the way she excused them, but I think that was intentional. She also got angry, or at least upset, at weird things, which made her seem like sort of a petulant child to me sometimes. I don't know if that part of her personality was intentional or not. There were a few inconsistencies that stuck out to me (like why Dr. Bickel let Gemma take pictures in his secret lab, after the intense precautions he'd asked her to take in getting there, and in their communications). Also, I feel the need to give some trigger warnings: domestic abuse, child neglect and endangerment, descriptions of or allusions to gang violence.
So to sum up, yes, the first half of the book was slow, but the rest was good enough, and I have faith that the following books will pick up the pace, that I felt the book was worthy of 3.5 stars. I would recommend the book to fans of Christian mysteries & thrillers and lovers of this type of sci-fi. -
This was a very unusual book which I discovered in a boxed set of eight authors. It wasn't what I expected to find in a Christian boxset, but it was a very interesting and intriguing find. The story is mostly about a character, Gemma, who was born as a twin with her sister, Genie. The twins parents die when they are both very young and the girls are brought up by an aunt. Because Genie is very dominant, Gemma makes a conscious decision to be as much the opposite of her sister as possible, demonstrating a very passive attitude. When Gemma gets a job with a scientist, Dr. Prochanski and is asked to spy on another scientist, Dr. Bickel - a nanophysicist, the story takes on a very surprising life of its own. I found a lot of the conversation re the scientific inventions too detailed for my liking, hence the 3 rating, however, i persisted and found the overall story very intriguing indeed. This author can write and has an amazing imagination. The story is a clean, moral story with a lot of unusual twists and turns.
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I really enjoyed this. I’m not sure what I was expecting when I first started reading but I must say, it is not what I received. That’s a good things though. It exceeded all my expectations.
Sometimes I found it hard to follow along with all the “sciencey” stuff but otherwise, I had a really good time with this. I loved the characters and how some of the options I had of them in the beginning changed by the end. I was also surprised about the religious aspect of this book - it was unexpected but I can’t say I didn’t like it.
I did have one problem that I realised near the end of the book and that was how Gemma never really thought about the consequences her actions might result in. However, I think this concept will be looked at in the next books as Gemma’s character was questioned at the end of this one.
Altogether, I had a really fun time with this book. I loved the characters, I loved the concept and I just loved the whole book in general.
As a side note, I’d like to say that I’m Emilio’s No.1 fan. -
There is a lot of technical scientific information in the book that is probably necessary for an understanding of what is going on. I liked the main character Gemma and I especially liked the fact that she is unable to see that her sins are as great as anyone's. She's a nice person, a caring person that has experienced harm from others, so she can't see what God sees. I had a similar experience at one time and know the reality of it.
Kestell put her character in a situation that required a lot of imagination and I appreciated the way she used common things in life to show how untenable Gemma's dilemma is. I'm looking forward to reading the next one...the rest of the story. -
STICK WITH IT - the writing actually DOES become a story!
I really had to work at staying with this book, but I'm glad I did. The style of writing at the beginning seemed juvenile at best, boring at times, even. However, Kestell's ability to draw the reader in with great characters and an interesting storyline finally reveals itself...but WAAAY into the book. It isn't until nearly the end that the reader finally can appreciate all the details laid out in the seemingly boring beginning. I have purchased STEALTH POWER, book 2, and hope to be able to continue the more interesting part of the story now that the groundwork has been laid. -
Oh my goodness!
I got well and truly hooked when I read the final book in 'Winter Deceptions: A collection of Christian Suspense Novellas ( It takes place before this book). I was looking to find authors new to me. I hit the jackpot. Honestly, I have neglected housework to do but can't wait to start the next book. I have charged my headphones and will listen (via text to speech) as I catch up on my chores. It's good you guys.... Really good. I have read thousands of books over the years and have over 7,000 books in my kindle library (sign up for those free book emails!). If the rest of the series is this good, I'm in for an exciting brain-cation. -
I won't dock this one points for horrible science, or overbearing "stop the storyline for a few pages" preaching, or for a few unrealistic characters. It's a decent enough story.
It's odd the way most everyone is like monotone voice "oh, hey, invisible, wow, so now what?" - seriously?
I'm not convinced that this totally unskilled newbie can defeat the US Gov by any description of her skillz or motives.
But still, fun story. Next books? Probably not. I'm glad she ended as she did. Good enough. -
I really enjoyed the storyline. I liked the characters. I felt the dialogue of the heroine was sometimes pretty juvenile. I felt the comparison of Gemma's past with her sister to Emilio's struggles were an imbalanced comparison. Some the events were redundant but I won't go into detail because it would be a spoiler. I would recommend to others. I don't know if I would read this again, though, which is kind of a test for me on how good a book is. Oh, and I found a small error that while in a phone conversation, Zander winked at Gemma. So how did she see that?
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If you can somehow move past the corny title, and you enjoy sci-fi or speculative fiction you will definitely be rewarded. This was an engaging read that appealed simultaneously to my inner geek and interest in nanotechnology. The protagonist, Gemma, at times behaves more like an adolescent than an adult but overall, the characters and plot development are believable. Vikki Kestell manages to weave Christian principles into the narrative without beating you over the head or sounding preachy. I’m looking forward to reading the next installment in this series.
