Definitely not for me. I really didn’t like it. Den effed just could not get into it plot, wise, character wise, anything wise

Love Paolini, someone name him the king of sci fi. This topped sleep in a sea of stars for me and that was in my top five all time favourites.

Fractal Noise
Christopher Paolini


Christopher Paolini’s latest novel, Fractal Noise, is a standalone set in the world of his 2020 sci-fi, To Sleep in a Sea or Stars. Fractal Noise is a terrific meld of sci-fi with a psychological thriller as he expertly pushes his characters emotional buttons while they’re stranded on a desolate unforgiving planet and every 10 seconds throughout the entire mission they not only hear but feel the THUD throbbing from the “hole”. The author gifts his audience with a thought provoking and sophisticated narrative and an engaging storyline that will keep them on the edge of their seat as he weaves his ingenious tale, digging deep into human flaws, human endurance, and human curiosity while providing the perfect alien backdrops to augment the story. Fans of literary Sci-Fi’s and of this extraordinary author will find this novel impossible to put down.

NARRATION:
The narration by Jennifer Hale is flawless as she becomes the main characters and recants Paolini’s story putting the perfect amount or lack of feeling exactly where it needs to be. She even has a hand in creating some of the amazing sound effects, including the ever-present THUD making the audio edition the best way to enjoy the novel.

It’s 2234 and the Adamura, a research vessel is sent to explore the seemingly uninhibited planet of Talos VII but before they arrive an anomaly is discovered. They are calling it a hole but they won’t be able to verify what it actually is from the ship they’ll need to land. So Talia, a religious fanatic and leader of the expedition, Chen the chemist, Pushkin a geologist and Alex Crichton, a xenobiologist who is still suffering from the sudden and tragic loss of his wife, are sent to the surface of the planet to explore. What these four will experience while exploring will test the limits of their endurance while risking their lives and at times their humanity.

Dear Fractal Noise,
I feel like I have to pace my letter to you with the THUD that Alex spent the last 4 days being tortured by. Your audiobook was the best way to experience you, because of the sound engineering that kept that THUD prominent and unforgettable throughout your story. Alex experienced just about every form of pain and anguish that is imaginable in your story - physical, mental and emotional. I am still not sure how he found the will to survive all he did. I am curious how Alex fits into the Fractalverse, and if there are characters that we met in To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. Paolini is a fantastic sci-fi author.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan audio for the early listen!
Another great sci-fi book by the author! Character development was spot on.
Highly recommend!
Narrator did a fab job with telling the story!

Fractal Noise is yet another wonderful example of world-exploring and building from Christopher Paolini. The story is solid and sure to please fans, both old and new.

While I thought the first book in the Christopher Paolini's Fractalverse, his foray into adult sci-fi, was too long, Fractal Noise ends up being too short. It's a journey novel, but nothing is resolved at the end or explained.

Things I did like:

The narrator, Jennifer Hale. While I questioned the reasoning behind having a female narrator for a book written entirely from the point of view of a man, I liked the continuity from To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. Hale is an excellent narrator and performs great once again.

The thuds. I know other readers found these unnecessary and repetitive, but I loved the thuds interspersed throughout the story. Just when you forget about it - thump - its insidiousness is back. It makes you really think about how that sound/feeling could drive a person insane with it's constant repetition.

There are a few things that really work for me here, but, ultimately, most of it doesn't.

On an exploration mission in 2234, the crew of the Adamura discover a 50 km-wide circular pit on an uninhabited planet. A four-person crew is sent down to investigate the hole. Along the way, their disparate upbringings and beliefs cause fractures among the team.

To me, this book was quite different from <i>To Sleep in a Sea of Stars</i>, the first book in the Fractalverse series. However, that does not mean it is inferior; this was still an engrossing story. The main character and others on his team contemplated some big issues during their journey to the hole, and this book will resonate with those who like their books to be deep. Jennifer Hale did an excellent job narrating the audiobook.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.

I really enjoyed To Sleep In A Sea of Stars and listened to the audiobook of that one as well. I love the narrator, Jennifer Hale. She does a terrific job with the narration and story-telling and character voices in both of these Fractalverse books. For some reason, this aspect of the story didn’t quite live up to the prior book. It may have been because my expections were so high. This is a good story but not at the level of greatness of the previous book in this series.
#FractalNoise #NetGalley #MacMillanAudio

I already loved the Fractalverse, so this inside look at the first contact with new life out in the universe was right up my alley. I think the writing was lyrical and engaging, especially as we learned more about Alex and his emotional state as the crew gets closer and closer to the precipice of the unknown.

My favorite quote from the book:
"...we all exist in the same universe. Convergent evolution suggests there'll be <i>some</i> similarity. . . . I don't have a lot in common with a spider, but I could probably agree with a spider on which one is more attractive, or which of the other spiders is largest and most brightly colored. Assuming we see the same part of the spectrum. There are a lot of places for shared ground, no matter how different we are."

However, I need to give credit to his description of the "inexorable march of entropy" as well because that hit so close to home. If I have one small critique, it's that parts of the story seemed to drag on while others raced by, and while I can appreciate that it may have been by design based on the overall story, I can't help but want moreeeeeee.

I gave <i>Fractal Noise</i> 4 out of 5 stars. :)

The giddy excitement that I had when I saw Fractal Noise by Christopher Paolini was very real. I absolutely loved To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, which was an epic story that was very exciting and exhilarating to read. Fractal Noise could not be further on the opposite end of the spectrum from my giddy excitement and the awesome epic-ness of To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. Fractal Noise was a decent story. Maybe without the expectation of the previous novel, I would have enjoyed it more. Maybe my expectation or comparison to the previous novel is guiding my experience with this story...and it should. The previous novel had compelling characters and an amazing plot with conflicts and climaxes full of energy and emotion. I just could not get behind the cast of characters in Fractal Noise. I didn't find them likable. I never felt I wanted to root for them. I just felt like I was watching this journey play out not really emotionally invested in the story's conclusion. Am I disappointed? Yes! Do I have hope that the next novel will be better? Yes! I think this is a blip in this awesome world that Christopher Paolini has created. I expect that future Fractalverse books will be pretty awesome. As epic as To Sleep in a Sea of Stars? Maybe. I plan on reading them to find out.

Now, about that cover... I feel I should talk about it since it seems the controversy about the cover is taking the attention away from the author's work, which is the story. I think the cover looks cool. I think it fits the story pretty well. I know that the controversy is regarding the use of AI to create it. I think AI as tech is a step in the right direction of technology. Is it perfect? No! There are many things that need to be figured out and worked through to make it "right" or if anything, better. Before Spotify there was Napster. This just goes to show that tech will continue to evolve. It may not be perfect when it comes out but over time, it gets better. I don't think it is fair to rate this book, or any other book solely on the cover art.

I want to thank Christopher Paolini, Macmillan and NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A unique and chilling experience that I wouldn't mind listening to again and again. The narrator brought life and motion to an already great story. I loved how Paolini made each character unique. The audio was crisp and clean, and I enjoyed the additional background noise that took place to enhance the book. There's an increasing tension and drive within the characters that kept me engaged and not wanting the story to end. The author's voice is different from what I've experienced before, but I found that the difference lent itself to this story of grief in a positive way. There's a sense of hopelessness that pervades the story at times, and Alex's grief is wholly understandable.
I received a copy of this audiobook through NetGalley. I was not required to leave a positive review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

From a copyrighted review in The Cullman Times, The Athens News-Courier, St. Clair News-Aegis, Mountain Times

By Tom Mayer
tmayer@cullmantimes.com

In continuing to “pack the beach bag … with books” — June is upon us and the waves are beckoning — are nine new titles, including two crossovers from our May 9 (https://tinyurl.com/24rwb2mr) round up and a couple of freebies you’ll want to find room for.

From the wildly, internationally famous (Justin Cronin, Christopher Paolini) to more than a few who deserve to be in that camp, this list is not only long on story, it includes the one beach book you can’t ignore (“until it swims up and bites you on the …”).

Bon appetit.

'The Ferryman' by Justin Cronin (Ballantine Books, 530 pages)
Few books, and their authors, can earn attention from the likes of Stephen King (“totally satisfying”), Chris Bohjalian (“brilliant hybrid”) or Andy Weir (“mind-bending”), but Justin Cronin is one of the elect. And “The Ferryman” shows us why (or to be more precise, why again: Cronin is the best-selling author of “The Passage” trilogy and a world-building style unique to his oeuvre). But as good as his current canon is, "The Ferryman" is better. Cronin's latest tops the charts in the "post-apocalyptic-science fiction" category, but it's not really that public consensus that shows its worth; it's more than that.

Prospera, founded by the mysterious Designer, is an archipelago hidden from the ravages of time and an outside world. Those who live there enjoy inordinately long lives, and when they retire (as determined by implanted health monitors) they take a ferry ride to the Nursery, where their bodies are rejuvenated, their memories wiped and life begins anew.

You can imagine the story lines that develop from here, but it's unlikely you'll see what Cronin has planned. A long, engaging book, the story moves as fast as the movie it certainly will be from an author who keeps improving, even as he, like us all, inches toward his own ferry ride.

'Below the Line' by Lowell Cauffiel (Arcade Crimewise, 311 pages)
Lowell Cauffiel's "Below the Line" won't be the most intense book you bring to the beach this summer, but it could be the most fun. Part Hollywood noir, part comedy of errors, Cauffiel's Tinsel Town crime caper joins a corrupt Hollywood producer, an ex-cop with regrets and career criminal in a satisfying (well, once you add in the roller derby queen, anyway) romp that's more than part Hollywood hustle.

The story of a former Detroit homicide detective, Edwin Blake, trying to break into the movies could turn out to be the lark of the summer as the author pits the dark side of Hollywood with an everyman-dream of striking gold in California.

‘The Book That Wouldn’t Burn (The Library Trilogy 1)’ by Mark Lawrence (Ace, 571 pages)
Stories spiral, clash and whirl through time in this first offering of a fantasy trilogy poised to enthrall anyone who loves books.

After wolf-men destroy her desert village, Livira comes to Crath City as a refugee. Though young and uneducated, based on her aptitude she earns a position as a trainee in the city’s vast and voluminous library — the same library that serves as prison for Evar and home to the Mechanism, a mysterious structure that can bring any book to life.

Escaping the Mechanism a decade after it had entrapped him and his “siblings,” Evar mounts a quest to track down a mystery woman he can barely remember, one also lost to the Mechanism years before.

When Evar and Livira cross paths, they join forces with the new refugee taking on Evar’s quest as her own. A taut, tightly drawn series of ensuing stories interlock, gradually spooling out thread by thread in this masterfully woven tale.

‘Silent Came the Monster’ by Amy Hill Hearth (Blackstone, 354 pages)
Jaws before “Jaws,” Amy Hill Hearth’s historical thriller is a fictional treatment of a real series of deadly shark attacks that taunted and terrified beachgoers on the sandy shores of New Jersey’s coast in 1916. Replete with sourcing — Hearth is noted for her nonfiction works and those research skills are well adapted here — the real-life reporting and ear for period language is brought brutally to life under the author’s pen.

Though the story is laced with fact, Heath advances a fictional protagonist, Dr. Edwin Halsey, whose secretive past ties him to the current attacks. Besieged with conspiracy theories — German submarines patrolling the coast, for one — Halsey, like his future counterpart, Hooper, has a hard time getting anyone to believe his theory that a shark is responsible for the assaults.

A well-told story, including an addendum of books, newspapers and websites to explore further, not only fills a historical gap, but is perfect for that gap between Tuesday to Tuesday of July 11-18 — aka, Shark Week.

‘Fractal Noise: A Fractalverse Novel,’ by Christopher Paolini (Tor Books, 304 pages; Macmillan Audio, 9 hours 57 minutes)
In this throbbing masterwork, Christopher Paolini returns us to the Fractalverse for a second installment in a sweeping space opera that launched the author’s science fiction foray in 2019.

Building on ship-minds and xenobiology, Paolini takes us aboard the Adamura with Alex Crichton, a scientist whose troubled and recent past includes the death of his wife, Layla, to the maul of a wild animal on the planet where the pair were colonists. Working through his grief isn’t easy, as he’s not the only one aboard the ship with significant baggage. As the crew travels toward the remote Talos VII and an enormous, unworldly crater there that is giving off a continuous series of timed pulses in a mysterious message, Crichton and the others are tasked to evaluate and understand the source.

As with his earlier journey into the Fractalverse (“To Sleep in a Sea of Stars,” review and interview at https://tinyurl.com/4km3j6np) Paolini offers hard science mingled with mystical storytelling, though here some light edits (“0800 at night” should be 2100 hours; and “1,500 kcal” is a really, really lot of calories) would polish the brass. Still, “Fractal Noise” is a worthy successor to “To Sleep in a Sea of Stars,” and it’ll more than fill out your own universal reading list.

And a last note on the audio format reviewed here: a sound suggestion is to get both the hardcover (you’ll want this series on your shelf) and the audio version. As she did with “To Sleep,” Jennifer Hale does a masterful reading of the novel, and — kudos to the sound effects team — the constant, rhythmic thrumming of the pulsating hole will jar you in a way not felt since taking a long shower while reading “The Long Rain” (tip, to avoid soggy pages, try a haunting version of Ray Bradury's short story at https://tinyurl.com/4uxc2yce).

'Love Follows Murder: In the Land of Enchantment,' by Maryrose Carroll (Big Table Books, 112 pages)
Self-described as "transformed into a writer and poet" by following the path of the "love of her life," the poet Paul Carroll who lost his battle with cancer in 1996, Maryrose Carroll is no stranger to nonfiction: "Beats Me: Love, Poetry, Censorship from Chicago to Appalachia," "Tales From Beaver Dam" and "The Secret of Contentment" are among her myriad titles.

In “Love Follows Murder” she shifts her pen, although, as she said, “It took 60 years to turn the memory of murder into my first fictional book.” The wait was worth it.

Carroll’s murder cum love story fictionalizes the real account of a 1962 killing: “Sixty years ago, I saw the victim of a gruesome murder wheeled in Embed Hospital in New Mexico.”

Today, the hospital no longer remains, but the story lingers as the author’s brief rendering of the blossoming love between a white sheriff and American Indian deputy while tracking the path of a killer on horseback in the surroundings of Taos Pueblo, New Mexico, is a twice-told tale — but one presented as fresh as the trail Luke and Ava travel together.

Knowing a bit of Carroll’s own background as offered through her nonfiction certainly informs the narrative, but “Love Follows Murder” is a worthy successor to her earlier works, capturing the imagination of a land, a love and the evil that threatens to separate two heroes.

‘Spider-Man: Fake Red’ by Yusuke Osawa (Viz Media, 328 pages, graphic novel)
And speaking of heroes: Few are the young boys and girls who don’t fantasize about having superpowers — and super adventures — of their own. Yu is no different. His new high school is … troubling … and he’s not making the grade either academically or socially. So, when he finds what appears to be a very realistic Spider-Man costume, he doesn’t hesitate to try it on for size. Predictably, photo ops and social media likes ensue. At that point, it’s all fun and games — until it isn’t.

With the real Spidey no where to be found and trouble lurking down every dark alley, Yu is thrust into the limelight as the city’s super savior — should he chose to take the mission.

Ably and enchantingly written and drawn by Yusuke Osawa — the Japanese artist who has written and illustrated, among others, manga adaptations for “The Mandalorian” and the “The Ninth Jedi” — the author’s take on an age-old hero’s tale is presented fresh for a new generation of graphic readers.

And before I leave ...

How about a pair of freebies to get the summer off to a great literary start?

John Hood, whose new historical fantasy series is as fresh as anything you’ll find today, is offering a wonderful taste of the feast that is "The Folklore Cycle" with two free novelettes: “The Bard: A Mountain Folk Tale” and “The Pixie Light: A Forest Folk Tale.”

Find both at folklorecycle.com and click on the link, Tales in the Series. There, you’ll be transported to a world that makes reading about our nation’s past as much fun as watching the movies these books are destined to be.

If you haven’t read Hood’s magnum opus in process, you’re in for a surprise. Read a review of Book 2 in the series, “Forest Folk,” at https://tinyurl.com/y4dk4wns.

Paolini is a master story crafter. I saw all of his books play like a movie in my head and this one was so no different. He truly paints the scene and then allows us to relish in the feeling. This was such a great read and I loved getting lost in this world again.

I liked this one. It's definitely a different tone from Sleep in a Sea of Stars. We still have a cool world, but this is more character focused and philosophical than epic sci fi. I did find that the beginning seemed to almost be missing. I never connected with the characters because it was hard for me to get to know them. I also didn't love the abrupt, slightly ambiguous ending

Absolutely an amazing follow-up novel. The twists and characters come alive in the audiobook and prove that Paolini knows how to spin a tale

Paolini’s more recent books are pure science fiction and I really am enjoying it. Fractal Noise is just that, a true piece of science fiction, as the crew of the Adamura discovers an anomaly on a planet they must investigate. Fractal Noise takes you on a journey as the crew investigates on foot to discover what is behind the anomaly. You’ll enjoy the cast of characters and seeing how each one responds differently to the discovery. I cannot wait to see what else comes from the fractalverse.

FRACTAL NOISE by Christopher Paolini, narrated by Jennifer Hale

The production value of this audiobook is phenomenal, and I was thrilled to see Jennifer Hale back as narrator. Excellent voice acting and interesting sound effects editing really elevate the audio version over the print version.

As much as I enjoyed To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, I had more trouble engaging with this one. Alex is a suicidally depressed widower who is far too caught up in his own grief to be any good at his high risk job. He consistently makes choices that creates huge risks for his crew mates. His crew mates who all hate each other.

I’m not kidding when I saw this story is desolate, with hopelessness thudding through the narrative like a heart beat, like the ever-present noise emitted by the giant hole that they are all trekking towards.

I think it works as a novella about grief and works less well as a sci-fi adventure. (The amount of useless contamination and litter they leave behind, an ever-growing trash heap scattered to the winds as they move along, *despite* the fact that theoretically Alex is a Xenobiologist who is supposed to care about things like that) it is a story about people who absolutely can’t stand each other while they all keep making increasing terrible decisions until they tumble past the point of no return.

Also - yes, I am disappointed in the AI cover. Even setting aside the fact that there is currently no ethical way to use AI art without inherently relying on art theft —there is the smaller irritation that the hole in the planet is supposed to be perfectly, uncannily, round! Not an amorphous mostly round blob floating on the horizon! A real human artist could have understood that

I wasn't sure what to expect with this. I immensely enjoyed To Sleep in a Sea of Stars and was hopeful this would be in line with that. It wasn't...but that didn't mean it was bad.

I think that Paolini took on a BIG project with this novel - and after reading he authors note I can see how it progressed. There is a lot of strife in this book. A lot of striving toward something and, overall, the reading felt a little like the process the characters took. A monumental task that challenged every bit of you.

I could have done without the religious "conversations" that were thrown in - because it felt more like arguing than propelling the plot forward. I can see how it was meant to further things, and perhaps even to feel futile, but honestly it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Over all, I don't know that it was what I wanted to read when I picked up this book. It felt much more
intellectual than something with an actual plot to it. The author is an incredible author and I did enjoy seeing how the MC dealt with his grief - it was cathartic at the end for sure - but perhaps not enough to justify reading it the book itself.

In all, I know some sci-fi fans will love this and I hope they do! it's probably not one I'd read again.

My rating: 3.5*

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Thanks to NetGalley for an audio review copy. All opinions are my own.

I have never read Eragon. Also, I wasn't aware that this is a prequel to another series of books. Now, I had no expectation towards the story, nor to audiobook as it own, except wanting to see how they edited it. And I must admit, the additional sound effects incorporated into the narration gave a sense of experiencing something different. I liked how the voices from the radio communication were different from the actual conversational voices. Other than this, I think that there were also effects that could be skipped all together because they distracted from the story. If it comes to the essence itself, I had such a hard time getting into the story. I felt for the main character, but he was bland and could easily disappear into ether. If the narration would not be from his perspective, we probably wound not even notice him. His motivations were also very unclear to me. Overall, I enjoyed in until very end when everything became so surrealistic that I did not know where we are actually. There is an idea of verisimilitude and the way the events were depicted I couldn't even imagine them as realistic in any sense.
Overall, I feel like this book was not for me and I would stay with Stanislaw Lem if it comes to intergalactic stories.