would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this fascinating book

a space ship on its way to a colony with some battle weary soldiers but on the way they have a stop to make at a prison colony planet to drop off the worst of the worst prisoners

they travel through worm holes to get to the planets at the furthest reach of the universe..but during this travel someone has planted a bomb and they are ejected out of the worm hole and crashland on a planet...now its a fight for survival...

what a surprisingly brilliant book, i was hooked, from finding out that there are massive dinosaurs like animals to man eating plants plus could there be other primitive life forms out there that could be dare i say it cannibals...

gripping stuff and now i have to go find the other two books in this trilogy to find out what happens next...going to be adding this author to my every increasing list of authors to keep an eye out for

This is a highly entertaining read with entertaining characters and a well developed world drawing you in.
The is certainly very difficult to put down and leaves you wanting more.

"Crash" eBook was published in 2018 and was written by N. S. Shajay (https://www.nsshajay.com). Shajay (a pen name) has published three novels. This is the first book of the "Status Unknown Trilogy". 

I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in the far future. The primary character is Captain Patrick Knox.

A long war is over and humanity is beginning to spread out into the universe again. Knox is taking a ship full of colonists to a new world. He was acclaimed as a Hero during the war, now he just wants to take his passengers to their new home and settle down there himself. They have to make one small detour along the way to deliver a load of convicts to a prison world, but that is supposed to be quick and easy.

A bomb set by a terrorist from a group against further human expansion takes the spaceship off course. It crashes on an uncharted, but a human compatible world. Now Knox must take charge and lead those who lived through the crash in survival. They find that not only are there significant threats indigenous to their new home but the convicts, many of which are convicted murderers, offer there own threat. 

Complicating matters is the fact that the only Doctor to have survived the crash is a convicted serial killer. She is brilliant and beautiful, but no one knows how far she can be trusted. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the nearly 8 hours I spent reading this 272-page science fiction thriller. I like the plot and the mix of characters in this story. It is a mixture of survival and action. The cover art is OK, but I think there are other images that would have been better. I look forward to reading more stories in this universe. I give this novel a 4.4 (rounded down to a 4) out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/. 

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

A thrilling book loaded with mystery and action, Shajay has written a really bad-ass novel any Star Wars or Peter F. Hamilton fan will enjoy.

A colony ship full of colonists and a dozen convicts crash land on a planet. They know nothing about this planet, only that its off the beaten path and no one from Earth knows where they are. Captain Patrick Knox is trying to keep everyone safe. He believes the biggest threat is the loose convicts but the planet quickly shows its true, murderous side.

This novel was great, it surpassed any expectations I had for it. When I first started the novel it was a solid five stars but as the novel progressed it lost one start due to its wackiness. Although I loved the sheer insanity of the planet I felt it went a little overkill by the end.

The action and pacing was great. there wasn't a slow spot or a chapter without action. The characters were good but I'm still on the fence about Willow. I loved the hints the author releases that she has secrets regarding her past. Secrets about why she murdered the men she was found guilty of. But it also became repetitive how Know was trying to psychoanalyze her and therefore classify her.

The world building was intensive and well written. I really felt like I was there with the characters. The planet was especially bad ass, until the end. I could handle dinosaur-like lifeforms, acid spit and bipedal lifeforms with spears but killer vines and soil that turns crops carnivorous was too much.

I plan to finish the trilogy in the near future. I would suggest this novel to anyone who likes action sci-fi.

Thanks for Netgalley for this ARC.

Received this ARC book free from NetGalley in exchange for an impartial review. Let me say this right off, I loved this book from start to finish. It was well written, had great characters and an interesting plot. The main character is Captain Patrick Knox, who had retired from the Navy and is captaining a commercial ship filled with colonists to a distant planet. On the way they are to drop off a group of dangerous criminals on a prison planet. While traveling through a wormhole an act of sabotage causes the ship to exit the wormhole into uncharted space and crash on an unknown planet. It is a bit of one in a million luck that the planet is habitable for human life, but from there their luck runs out. They crash in an area of heavy jungle growth, filled with carnivorous plant life, deadly animals and unfriendly natives. And then there is the group of serial killers and other criminals who survived the crash and are loose on the planet. With most of their engineers and medical crew killed in the crash Capt. Knox has to hold the remaining crew and passengers together to find a way to survive in the harsh environment. They are joined by a few of the prisoners, lead by the beautiful and deadly Dr. Willow Molina. Dr. Molina is one of the most fascinating characters in the book, an outstanding doctor and surgeon who has saved thousands of lives, and a serial killer convicted of the vicious torture and murder of five men. I was disappointed to reach the end of this book, particularly because it is book one of a trilogy and I expected to have to wait a year or more to continue the story. I was thrilled to learn that books two and three are due out this year! I can't wait to continue the story of these survivors and to learn the story behind Dr. Molina. If you loved Lost or books like Mysterious Island you will love this book. Highly recommended.

Crash follows a familiar trope. What happens when a ship with colonists and criminals crashes on an unknown planet. Shajay puts a interesting spin on the plot line. It is the job of Captain Patrick Knox to hold it together with the aid of some interesting characters. He has both colonists and criminals working for him and some criminal at large and working against him. You would think that was the worse but it turns out the main character trying to kill them all is the planet itself. Shajay has gone overboard in creating a planet that no one would ever want to live on. Don't look for a resolution to the problems. This sets the characters, world building and backstory for the next two book in the series.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

I have always been enthralled with ''what if' survival stories. Crash is a good one but is actually very familiar. The story is very reminicent of ' The Survivors' also known as 'Space Prison' by Tom Godwin. Both stories end with the feeling that the colonists have no possibility of survival. Wondering what the next problem to be solved makes this a very enjoyable read.

Shajay's book is non stop action. I could not put the book down. Group of colonists leave Earth for far away world. Meanwhile on the way, they are supposed to drop off a group of killer convicts for life on another planet. Then the story starts. Characters are well developed and I can't wait for the sequel.

Survival is not guaranteed when you crash on an unknown, unexplored planet.  Even if the air is breathable and water is available there are many challenges.  In this case, it isn’t a question of what threatens the survivors of the crashed colony ship, but what doesn’t.  Minimal supplies of food and medicine, an assortment of murderers destined for a prison planet running loose, primeval dinosaurlike creatures and far more put the colony’s longevity in question.  Captain Patrick Knox holds everything and everyone together, even as one tragedy follows the next. Four convicts join forces with the colonists, though there are many uncomfortable with their presence.  Willow, the only doctor who survived the crash, is a gifted surgeon who was convicted of murder. She quickly becomes invaluable. Throughout the novel, Knox struggles with whether to trust Willow and the other convicts who joined them.  The moral ambiguity becomes easier to cope with as he learns more of the individuals and their experiences. Willow is the one who steadfastly refuses to explain her past - which is expected as she is a central character and of major importance to Knox and the colony’s survival.  I am just guessing, but I expect there will be some revelations and major surprises in future installments.


Crash is a gritty science fiction adventure featuring a classic man against the elements scenario.  The characters are compelling, and even those initially unlivable have multiple facets. The situation is a difficult one, which at once brings out the best and the worst in people.  You don’t know whether you will survive long enough to starve, or whether you will fill the belly of a predator or carnivorous plant. N S Sajay’s Crash is a brilliant debut.


5 / 5


I received a copy of Crash from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


— Crittermom

I have never been into sci - fi but my opinion has been changed because of this author. I was hooked from the first chapter. Captain Knox shows that there is true heroics left even amidst total chaos. The not knowing what is out there in the shadows of an alien planet and his company is a mix of marines, convicts, and children. He has to worry about if he will be killed by the serial killers in his group or the ones who escaped the crash. Oh and then there are the killer plants and beasts. Dr. Willow Molina has a secret that no one knows but we were left wondering what it was. This book is addictive and so will be the series I am positive of that.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41123006-crash
https://www.amazon.com/Crash-Status-Trilogy-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07GDQHMW4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1534898727&sr=8-1&keywords=Crash+by+n.+S.+Shajay