A surprisingly entertaining alternate history book that combines space, aliens, Celtic history, and Hitler occupied Germany. The story line goes allover the place but somehow meshes together and works. You start out with a New York City cab driver getting fired to alien abduction and waking up on a different planet AND THEN you are a pregnant jewish woman working in a beauty shop under a new name that hopes she wont get sent to a concentration camp. There is also mind powers. And a reborn Celtic god. You are a small being with a speech impairment and a drinking problem. Centaurs. Himmler. Alien love triangle because reasons. You feel for the jews and then laugh at something that’s happening on a different planet then get sad again. I might have to read this again.

https://piratetwinkiereadsblog.wordpress.com/2020/12/11/space-taxis-by-ah-frosh/

This was a WILD ride!

I loved every minutes of this book, It's just the sort of sci-fi I really enjoy, good story line, quirk characters and so much humour. If your a fan of Hitchhikers, Chronicles of St Mary's and Red Dwarf this will definitely be right up your alley!

This is a fun scifi read about an earthling kidnapped to another world. I enjoyed all the species of creatures and the development of the main characters. The plot was brisk and kept the reader engaged throughout the book.

Obviously this is a minority opinion, but I just couldn't get past combining aliens with the Holocaust. Not for me.

With a name like Space Taxis and a nicely illustrated cover, how could I not be intrigued? I had been looking for a lighter read recently and this book presented itself as a good match, however its blend of historical fiction and sci-fi did explore one of the darkest events in human history.

The story starts in 1977 with our protagonist, Mike Redolfo, a New York cab driver that through a series of strange events, ends up getting him fired. The cherry on top? Mike gets abducted by aliens via a misunderstanding leaving him stranded on the planet Vost. It's not all bad though, luckily he still has his yellow cab. While you follow Mike Redolfo in his new adventure, you are also transported to 1944 Nazi occupied Prague and a couple's escape from it. How are these stories linked you might ask? Well, seems like Vost has a lot to answer for.

The world-building in Vost really got my attention and I was intrigued to know more about it, between its many species and a world government ruling all of it. You get to see the dynamics of how not all would agree to such ruling. All the characters presented, both human and alien, have their own self of identity and their charisma really comes through the pages. However, I did have an issue with certain descriptions. When it came to female characters, the reader gets a very specific and well-rounded description and it is easy to imagine what they might look like. On the other hand, the male characters were not given as much thought, the only real description we get is if that character has a round face and generally looks grumpy. The only thing I know about Mike Redolfo is that he has a cap... That's it. As a female reader, I appreciate the detail going into describing women, however, if it is just the women being described, it gives the book a sense of biased sexualisation.

Another issue I encountered was the way in which the events and facts of World War II were presented. The details of the Holocaust was mostly described through characters' speeches, but it felt very forced and fake. It read like someone was just reading off of a presentation and delivering textbook facts, but not much emotion or how people would actually speak of such events. I think these dialogues could have been presented better, as every time one appeared it did pull me out of the immersion. Yet all the other dialogue between characters, whether it be casual or Vost story-building, was very believable and charismatic.

All in all, Space Taxis was a very enjoyable read. The 340 pages flew by, and I can see this story of Mike Redolfo and his yellow cab having the potential of being a great series.

Mike Redolfo is very good at his job. He's saved lives, chased down bad guys, and yet.... he still gets fired. Turns out that isn't exactly what a Brooklyn cab driver is supposed to be doing. But even after being fired, the night somehow manages to get worse. Redolfo is abducted by aliens who think he's an intergalactic fugitive, and after realizing their mistake Redolfo is stuck on planet Vost. I absolutely loved Redolfo's story and the weird and interesting characters he meets on Vost, but even more I loved the way the narrative moved back and forth between Redolfo's space adventures and Dominik and Marianna in 1944 Prague. The story is sometimes heartwrenching and sometimes confusing, but sticking with it did not disappoint. The ending was AMAZING!

PS: there's a History Note, Species on Vost list, and character list divided by location and year for easy navigation. What more could you ask for?!

4/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

i always enjoy alternative history stories and with this one I enjoyed that horror element with this book. I loved the characters and the storyline.