I was expecting a space opera, a bit like Good Morning, Midnight, but to be honest the book I was thinking, the lucky starman, would be similar, is way better… I didn’t enjoy the lucky starman that much, the first 30% of the book, yes I did enjoy, after that I don’t know what I was reading but it wasnt the same, it was a bit like the 100 tv show after the bunker… it got much more like a western, and I don’t really enjoy that kind of book.

Again I don’t think I was the intended reader for this book and for that I am sorry..

Thank you NetGalley and Independently Published, for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

The cover looks describedly creepy and i love it. More over the story is engaging and i enjoy to read it from beginning to the end. This is one of my cup of tea

3.5/5 stars. The post apocalyptic gene isn’t one I typically enjoy but this story was a good read. Thank you to NetGalley and the author for allowing me to read it.

Firstly, I want to mention that I read this as a standalone and didn’t realize it was actually the third novel in the series, “Leif the Lucky.” However, I turned out to be quite lucky myself, because the book was actually written to be read as either a standalone or a continuation. Secondly, I’d like to thank Netgalley for giving me a copy of this book (and for exposing me to authors and books I might not discover otherwise) in exchange for an honest review!

Content Warnings:
- attempted rape (of a child)

Representation :
- several secondary characters are people of color

Leif Grettison has just returned from a successful mission and plans to drop off his crew (or most of his crew) back on Earth so he can journey to the next star with his love, his pilot-in-command, Yang Yong. But Earth has changed since they’ve been gone: an apocalyptic war has killed most of the planet’s population and left the rest to fight over the scraps. After a disaster sends Leif down to the planet alone, he finds himself in the middle of a civil war in what used to be the United States and in a culture that worships astronauts (“starmen”) as fervently as it hates technology. One thing is for certain: his presence will change things, one way or another.

Leif the Lucky is a novel told in three parts, each of which have a very distinct tone and—interestingly enough—genre.
- Part I takes place in space and feels like reading hard science fiction, which is what I expected of this book, to be honest. Leif is among a crew of numerous diverse characters, there are copious amounts of technobabble, and he seems to have a well-established romance carried over from the previous two books.
- Part II is set in a small post-apocalyptic Earth town and feels almost like an alternative Western with its gun-slinging townspeople and Raiders and technology that never advanced past the printing press and pistol.
- Part III segues more effortlessly into military fiction (my least favorite only because of its genre). The amount of action contrasts well with the previous part, and although I'm not that familiar with military fiction, the battles and strategies come across as very intelligently written.

I like the flow of the latter two parts much better than the first, which feels cramped and rushed to fit everything that it has to before Leif goes to Earth (like a very long prologue, almost). For the most part, the writing sounds very natural and the voice distinct. I feel like I've read so many snarky first-person PoV's that I almost consider myself kind of immune to them, but reading from Leif's perspective actually had me chuckling out loud here and there. I'm not even a big fan of his type of characters, and still he won me over (most of the time). His habit of telling jokes that always fall flat might be the thing; it's a very endearing quality.

However, by a truly massive lead, my favorite character is Yong, who I recognize as being autistic (from traits I myself have) with her flat affect and her tendency to say very little. Unfortunately, the rest of the characters feel much less defined and a good number seem to be written solely to further Leif's character development.

I think the biggest problem I have with this novel, though, is the lack of an overarching plot. Each part feels so different from each other; part one could be an entirely separate novella—all three could be novellas in a series, actually. They each have their beginnings, middles, and endings, but nothing ties them together other than their main character, Leif. This could possibly be the author's style, and by skipping the first two books accidentally I'm just not used to it. In any case, I wish it didn't feel like the three parts were of completely different genres, because it was so strange going into this expecting hard sci-fi and getting sci-fi, a romantic Western, and military fiction.

There's more than one way to say that, though. Colin Alexander can obviously write well in multiple genres (even if part two is his weakest; he's at his best when writing battle scenes, scenes discussing battle strategy, spaceship technobabble, and his main character's inner dialogue/voice—character development and romance aren't as solid).

The book's end has hints to another novel, one that made me want to immediately jump into Leif's next adventure. I think I'll start with his first, however. I have spend a little bit more time with Yong before the third installment.

Lief returns to a destroyed Earth. Very few people are left and there is nothing powered with electricity. Lief must survive in a decaying society.

I thoroughly enjoyed this well written novel by author Colin Alexander. Resilient and adaptable, Leif the Lucky returns to a changed Earth from his journeys in the stars to find himself stranded with no support. Finding people who need him changes his life and presents perhaps a new path. Recommended reading and I will be looking for more of Leif's adventures!

This is a well paced, entertaining, page turning action story. Genre wise, the first 30% of the book is Space Opera-ish, the next 30% pseduo-western and the last 40% 20th century military fiction. These last two sections have an "alternate history" or "time traveller from the future" flavor. The cover (a hand holding a skull - "Alas, poor Yorrick" style) is a good representation of the book's reluctant warrior theme. The book is strongest when dealing with action, a bit weaker when dealing with character, and weakest when pontificating. I love that there are none of the fantastical elements that plague a lot of modern science fiction. I like that there is an attempt to tackle a serious theme (war across the ages). Definitely worth a read if you like any one of these genres/flavors.

I enjoyed this character-centered science fiction story, mingled with elements of mystery and suspense. The writer accomplishes much through dialogue, and this was a strength of this imaginative approach.