Hell Divers IV

Excitement, intrigue, and a level of violence punctuate this science fiction story. I have not encountered the previous books by Nicholas Sansbury Smith, but I can recommend this entry as a stand-alone and also suggest that readers might explore the others for adventure and creativity.

A nail-biting example of the genre and one that's just plain fun.

In the final moments of the third Hell Divers novel, Deliverance, Nicholas Sansbury Smith promised to change up the formula a bit and deliver a fourth novel covering some terrain we hadn't seen too much of in this sky- and radioactive wastelands-focused series. Smith immediately delivers on that promise in the opening chapter of Wolves, shifting the focus of his series from the deadly skies to the equally terrifying seas.

As a fan of aquatic horror and survival at sea stories, this is very much a welcome expansion to the Hell Divers canon, but it's not all smooth sailing for the book's characters. Xavier "X" Rodriguez and his partner Magnolia Katib has hit the high seas on a mission of revenge, aiming to track down the Cazadores, a cannibalistic cult of killers, and lead the small remnants of humanity of the Metal Islands, possibly the closest thing left to paradise on Earth.

Although X's adventures by boat are a large part of Wolves's focus, Smith hasn't forgotten about the airships and their crew. The addition of the airship Deliverance has helped make life more comfortable for those aboard the Hive, but they can't get too cozy just yet. After all, it wouldn't be a very exciting story if half the book's characters were able to just lounge about sipping tea. There's still plenty of action left for those characters in the skies, and the fresh squadron of Hell Divers manage to find themselves in way over their heads in short order.

Smith keeps this book running right from the opening pages, with the pace cranked all the way up to frenetic, juggling some big action set pieces between both the A- and B-plots. Wolves is a fast, energetic read, and it's easy to sink into the narrative. The climax is exciting as hell with its Mad Max-at-sea action - a welcome source of post-apocalyptic inspiration, and one I hope Smith elaborates on further in the next book.

However, with a fifth Hell Divers title on the way in the first half of 2019, a lot of Wolves feels like prelude, giving it a middle-child vibe a lot of series suffer from. Wolves cannot resolve all of its plot elements, and much of what's here is set-up for Captives, purportedly the series finale, to resolve. That said, Smith certainly packs Wolves full of new material, expanding on the historical record of his series and introducing some new and highly durable threats that I hope to see more of soon.

Between the change of scenery and a few new enemies for X and his fellow Hell Divers to confront, Smith has injected a welcome bit of freshness into the end-game of his series. Wolves sets the stage for the grand finale, but as the Hell Divers series as a whole has shown, for Smith, the sky isn't the limit - it's just a good place to start.

[Note: I received an advanced reading copy of this title from the author.]

And this book is another example of why I loved Nicholas Sansbury Smith's writing and why this is one of my favorite series, ever.

Xavier and Magnolia are in the boat trying to find the metal islands. Along they way the come across new monsters and face mechanical problems. The citizens of the Hive have been given new hope. With the Deliverance everyone living on the lower decks can move up and no longer face radiation poisoning and starvation. These two airships are hanging off the coast of Florida waiting for word by Xavier before they move on.

This novel was amazing. The plot was exciting, there was a great blend of action, character development and world building. The actual cause of WW3 was finally revealed and it blew me away. I thought it would have been a generic whose ego is bigger but I was wrong and I LOVED the actual reason. New and creative monsters are revealed that Xavier and Magnolia have to fight. My favorite was the creature from the cover, it was a scary and destructive monster.

The characters were great but I didn't like Xavier and Magnolia as much as I thought I would have. Xavier was too rude to Magnolia but that is probably caused by him living on his own for 10 years. Magnolia was too reckless and had to be saved too many times. Michael, Layla, Les, and Erin do appear throughout the novel and they were good. The ending of the novel ended on one crazy cliffhanger. It was sad, suspenseful and intense. I cannot wait for volume five!!!

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC. I was so excited to read it and this novel was everything I was hoping for and so much more.

These books are so intense, every single one of them! It doesn't matter if the characters are in the air, on land, or at sea---the author still writes a gripping, nail-biting story.

This was another great book in the series with the same great things as the others. The world was complex and horrifying, yet believable. The characters were complex and flawed and gruff and realistic but still likeable for their good qualities and their good intentions. The Hell Divers especially deserve some recognition, not just for the way they risked their lives going to the surface but for the way they constantly risked their lives for each other, never willing to leave someone behind if they could help it. The relationships between characters were also imperfect and complex. The scenes that took place on the surface and at sea were full of danger and action and monstrous creatures.

*The next three paragraphs of this review may contain SPOILERS for previous books in the series.*

Much like previous books, this one had multiple POVs and multiple groups of characters doing different things, but it's a format that works because there's always a lot going on, and all of it is important.

X, Magnolia, and Miles (X's dog) were off in a boat trying to find the fabled Metal Islands. Being at sea brought some slightly different dangers, and there was just as much detail and immersion and realism in regards to the sailing as there's been for weapons, airships, and everything else in this series. (At least, I assume so since I don't actually know anything about any of these things.) But the characters were still the most interesting part, especially X. He was still the same person, but he was also a little different then he was before his ten years on the surface, which makes sense. He was even more gruff, he had little patience for other people, and he seemed to have some problems with anger, but he still had a good heart and, more than anything, wanted to keep his friends and loved ones safe. Plus, he’s one badass old man! Ok, he's not actually *old*, but he's not young either, and "badass middle-aged man" doesn't have the same ring to it ;-) Not to mention that life has not exactly been kind to him. I think he manages to pull things off through sheer determination sometimes.

Meanwhile, Katrina and all the old and new Hell Divers undocked the Deliverance and left for a mission. Like the captains before her, Katrina had to make some hard decisions, while Michael, Layla, Les, and Erin ended up back on the surface facing dangers of their own, including some new monsters. The Raptors are a great team though; they really look out for each other, and I love that.

*END SPOILERS*

This book had a few surprises, some good, some bad. And although there were consequences and things are still bleak for many of the characters, there's hope too, and I can't wait to see what's going to happen next!

This starts off pretty much where the last book left off. X and Magnolia, along with his dog, Miles, are braving the dark ocean on board the Sea Wolf, searching for the ever elusive Metal Islands. What used to appear to be a myth is now looking more like the real thing. And Katrina is settling into her role as captain of both the Deliverance and the Hive. Her command comes with tough choices and a learning curve. As X and his motley crew deal with their demons from the deep, so Katrina deals with her own inner doubts and all the complications of making decisions for the good of the last remaining survivors of Earth.

Yes, I was hoping this would start with a bang, and it sure did. X and the gang are soon in over the heads as the author throws the book at them; killer sharks, a mutant kraken, giant vultures and man eating metal-skinned hogs. The action never really lets up. Not for the occupants of the Sea Wolf and not for those floating in the ships above. The author adds more danger with a surprise enemy or two.

As I neared the end of the book my anxiety was through the roof! It was exciting to see the crew from Deliverance finally land on the surface. They’d been there before, seen the horrific conditions, the deadly monsters, but they still weren’t ready for what they encountered. Some perish while others face what seem to me to be insurmountable odds. This is nothing new in the series. With mutant creatures ruling solid ground, death is always looming. What got me was a couple of scenes with Magnolia and Miles. The author had me in tears and that takes some doing with me. And a rescue scene with X had me so tied up in knots I feared to read on. Sure, X is a main characters and the all powerful alpha male, but that doesn’t mean he’ll survive and continue to the end of the series.

I was about to say this series keeps getting better and better, but that’s not necessarily what I want to convey. I can’t choose any book that is better than the other. Each books is awesome. The action is super fast. And the situations are mind blowing. Where it gets better in each book is the character growth and the secrets revealed. I finally learned how the world ended. I should have guessed it, but I didn’t.

Loved Wolves. Hell Divers IV. Love the Hell Divers Series. “They Dive So Humanity Survives.” And the author can’t write more fast enough. I have my fingers and toes crossed that these will be made into movies!

What can I say about an NSS novel that I haven’t already fangirled about in all my other reviews? Just when you though X and his friends were going to find some semblance of piece, you realize another war is just about to begin. I can’t really say anything here without spoiling the story for anyone that hasn’t already read the first 3 books of the series. But, suffice it to say, this has all the action, emotions, and radioactive monsters you would expect from an NSS book. And, just like every other book in one of his series, it ends with me screaming at myself for not just waiting for the whole dang series to be out so I could go right on to the next book.

Received via Netgalley and reviewed of my own accord.

This is the Fourth book in this series, so you will want to read the first three (Hell Divers, Ghosts, Deliverance) in order to understand this world and well not have some major spoilers from this book. Also this series is amazing, one of my favourites that I have been reading the past few years, so yeah you should just go pick it up. Also don’t keep reading as major major spoilers if you haven’t read the previous 3.

Nicholas Sansbury Smith returns to the original premise of the series of trying to find a place for humans to survive on the desolate Earth:

The Sea Wolf helmed by X and Magnolia set out for their search of the mysterious and deadly Cazadores and their metal island. The ocean is a vast place but X has been there before traveling across what was once the United States, he has the time, patience, and skill to match anything that the ocean can throw at him, or does he. Brutal storms, sea monsters, and the cannibalistic Cazadores may be the least of their worries as the discover what really caused the wars and left mankind struggling for survival in the air. One thing is for sure if X can find those in the air a new home he will, no matter what the cost.

Ah how I love this series, it is amazing and I will not stop singing praises for it. This book had action, twist turns, suspense, character development and in true Sansbury Smith fashion you never know who is going to make it out in the end. I liked that Sansbury Smith decided to change things up a bit as the mainland was getting so boring (not really but I liked the new direction) and what better way than to have the Hell Divers end up on the Ocean. Sansbury Smith is known for his imaginative creatures on land, so just think what he can come up with in the Ocean, now think scarier and bigger and you're almost there. I also think many of the readers of this series have questioned, how did we as a species get here, why did the world go to hell and why did people flee to the skies. Well four books in and it was nice to get some answers that were more indepth than the little that the AI Timothy could provide.

This book has a lot of focus on X as he is now. In the previous book we got to see how X changed and became the man he is so it was nice to have this new X be more of a focus in this book. X is the ultimate survivor and fighter and though he may not see his life in the sky anymore as he has spent too many years away plus he prefers his dog Miles to people, he still has those he cares about in the sky that he wants to protect. We also have more focus on Mags in this book and I am happy that she has come more to the forefront as a character.

We are first introduced to the Cazadores in the previous book and X’s previous encounters with them as well as the shock that some humans have been able to survive on Earth. If it's one thing I have noticed in all of the Sansbury Smith books I have read, there are some truths woven in to the story of apocalyptic adventure, so you know that he has well thought out and researched a possibility of the Cazadores and their survival.

One of the most interesting post-apocalyptic series out there and one of my favourite series in general. As long as Sansbury Smith keeps writing this series I will read it. Now on to book 5, Captives.

Enjoy!!!!

5 STARS - BOOK 4... PERFECT AS USUAL!

Oh well... what can I say?

THIS IS THE STUFF TO READ IF YOU LIKE SCIFI PEOPLE!
(Especially if you like dystopian/apocalyptic fiction)

BUT, most importantly...

THIS IS THE STUFF TO READ IF YOU DO NOT LIKE SCIFI PEOPLE!

I've been in the biggest SciFi reading slump in the history of ever. And if there is a SciFi series that would make anyone love SciFi, that's Hell Divers.

So, here I'm reading SciFi again because of my fav series.

I go through these SciFi slumps periodically because, I don't read much SciFi.

And I don't read much of it because I love it.

Yup I love it... TOO MUCH.

I LOVE IT TOO MUCH AND I AM EXTREMELY PICKY ABOUT IT

You know, not because it is science FICTION it means you can get away with anything! Things HAVE to make sense in SciFi, ESPECIALLY the... yup... Science!

None of the science here makes me shake my head in disapproval, AND THAT DOES NOT HAPPEN OFTEN. I disapprove of most if the SciFi I read.

And Nicholas' Hell Diver series is just so, so, so, SO POSSIBLE. Not only possible but I could bet any amount of $ that one day, unfortunately, most of this FABULOUS world will be a reality.

So I really think of this series as a series of prophecies, and I think of Nicholas as some kind of Nostradamus.

So, I'm mostly here because of the world. Seriously I can't think of many books with such great worldbuilding, And I have read MANY.

I'm a world reader. If a book has great worldbuilding I AM IN. Then the plot. Then the characters.

But the beauty of Hell Divers is that has ALL of it!

So happy book 4 of the series is ever I was expected and more!

I continue to be the BIGGEST FAN EVER of this series and this author!