WL's Mainstream Gay Book Reviews - 62. Expeditions, Estimation, and Other Dangerous Pastimes by Lyn Gala (Sci-Fi) Book 4 + Short stories

Expeditions, Estimation, and Other Dangerous Pastimes by Lyn Gala (Sci-Fi) Book 4

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36602760-expeditions-estimation-and-other-dangerous-pastimes

+ Bonus Kensho by Lyn Gala

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/56058560

For the fourth book, Lyn Gala tries to add in some bigger concepts, while resolving major plot threads from the prior books. There’s no human conflict or high stakes involved in this book, which will lead to readers feeling a little let down from the heights of book 3, where intergalactic conflict was on the table along with all the other diplomatic issues. It’s not a bad science fiction story set in this universe and it does create a wonderful conclusion for Liam and Ondry. I’ve also read the epilogue short stories from Kensho, a collection of short stories set in this universe that Lyn Gala wrote as a bookend to this novel series. I’ll review both as I feel this novel and the short stories are needed for a good conclusion.

Length: Book 4 is 184 pages and 6 hours 7 minutes on audible, which is a short read for most readers. The short story collection, Kensho, is 179 pages long with no audible access, I had to read this book the old fashion way, but it’s not bad if you are interested in lore.

Plot:

(Book 4)

Liam and Ondry are traveling onboard the Rownt city ship, which is making a detour to Earth for a final visit before heading to Imshee space, where hopefully the Rownt can trade technology to Imshee for their advanced genetic modification technology. After book 3, the human government had assigned a new human officer to the Rownt ship, Zach Mora, who like Liam is also a human submissive, but unlike Liam, he had not experienced the negative sides of human society and had far more sympathies towards Earth in general. Zach was assigned to be the Palteia of the ship’s leading grandmother, which grants him superior rank to even Liam, but due to Zach’s lack of linguistic and cultural experience, Liam became his sole guide to the peculiar nature of the Palteia bond. The ship makes a trip directly to Earth to visit Zach’s family before their long journey to Imshee space in a different galaxy, which surprises human authorities, who witness firsthand the technological superiority of Rownt ships and their faster-than-light ability based on folded space technology. As Liam helps Zach acclimate to the Rownt ship and their surroundings, new interpersonal and individual issues develop between Ondry and Liam over their desires and fears about the future. Ondry is debating on whether to undergo a special hibernation procedure to add height to reflect his new Tuk-rank status, but the drawback of going through such a procedure would be a shortened lifespan by centuries. On the other hand, Liam is wary of the Imshee and their ability to extend his lifespan as something too good to be true. These mutual fears of age and transition created friction for both characters, which is resolved through a dramatic encounter with the Imshee.

The Imshee as it turns out is a race of insectoid aliens, who operate on a hive mind with a non-binary set of genders. They are a highly advanced civilization, older than the Rownt and provided the Rownt with their industrial and early spacefaring technologies initially many thousands of years ago. In that time, the Rownt have equaled or surpassed the Imshee in their ability to produce industrial and technical materials, which the Imshee consume for their vessels and facilities. For the most part, the Imshee appear to be non-threatening, but they are quite worried about aiding any humans in extending their lifespans. There’s a piece of the story that was left unresolved in this story and remains unresolved about the Imshee, Rownt, Humans, and the mysterious Cy, who had traveled this part of the universe before and had indicated in their notes to avoid uplifting humanity. However, the Imshee due to both the trade prospects and the innocuous nature of two human Palteia being offered this genetic modification were granted extended lifespans. Both Zach Mora and Lian Munson would live for upwards of a thousand years.

(Kensho)

We are treated to a series of short stories regarding the history of the Rownt. We had the Rownt encounters with aliens from their first meeting with humans, who they thought appeared angry due to human complexions, to earlier encounters with the Imshee and Cy. We learn what drove the relatively passive Rownt civilization to become a major spacefaring civilization in the past. The Cy was a species without any moral or ethical basis that had kidnapped several Rownt children and experimented on them. The Rownt having made contact with the Imshee asked for the technologies and ability to reach their lost children. The Imshee knowing of the tenacity of the Rownt ability to adapt and improve their technology granted them access. The Rownt and Imshee formed a simple alliance against the CY. The era of Rownt spacefaring was less about curiosity or exploitation as it was for humans, but rather a crusade to rescue or avenge their offspring. We are then treated to short stories regarding the current story ranging from the return journey to Earth, where Liam must confront the family he had thought abandoned him to prostitution and abuse, to the average humans who are trying to reconcile their hatred of aliens after the Anla encounter, and a story regarding a ship full of child refugees from the rebelling colonies. The last story serves as an epilogue to the entire series, set centuries after the current tale when Liam and Ondry have their son find his partner among humans.

Review: I found Book 4 to be the weakest of the 4 original books in the series and I was tempted to give Lyn Gala, who has so much ability as a writer, a less than stellar review. I think the problem is that the major human conflicts in books 1 and 2 were settled in Book 3, so what’s left for Liam and Ondry in Book 4 felt small in comparison. I understand what she was going after in Book 4 with themes that carried over to Kensho’s short stories. We had great conceptual themes of aging and fears of transformation between the two lovers, but I think by this point Liam and Ondry were already established well enough to balance these issues without adding unnecessary drama.

Book 4’s other weakness was Zach Mora, I didn’t understand the character until Kensho, he was supposed to be a younger and more naïve version of Liam, but I didn’t get the same feeling off of him as I did Liam. He might be sexually submissive, but he’s not someone who latches onto another being for emotional balance or exchanges his feelings in the same regard as what I believe a Palteia as described in books 1 through 3 would with their Chilta. Throughout book 4, Zach’s character was used as comic relief from fears of being crushed by the much larger Rownt body in bed to being sexually stimulated by a grandmother, which he is averse to due to connotations in human customs. At first, I thought maybe it was due to him being gay, so he was not interested in females, but it didn’t add up as the story progressed with his fears. I only understood later on by reading the short stories that Zach was asexual with an interest in sexual submission rather than being gay, bi, or heterosexual. That point made book 4’s storyline far more understandable, but it was a roundabout way to fix a problematic characterization.

I think Lyn Gala addressed a lot of issues properly in Kensho, where for example, we see the ramifications of the extended lifespans on both Liam and Zach. Liam lived an extremely rewarding life with his partner and family, freely offering love and affection. Zach in contrast lived a very sad life among the Rownt after the passing of his Chilta grandmother. He appears to lack the Palteia instinct despite being submissive, which is clearly shown to be what I had thought initially, a strong sense of empathy. He acclimates to life, but he is saddened as he watches his family members, starting from his faithful dog to his immediate family die over time. After several centuries, he could no longer connect with any of his family members or feel ties with his humanity, having lived so long. In a sense, Zach became alienated by his long lifespan as Lyn Gala depicted under the mistaken understanding that a Palteia and submissive were the same. She explicitly made that point clear in the final chapter regarding Liam and Ondry’s son seeking out his partner, who is not a Palteia.

Then, there are the unresolved plotlines of the Imshee and Cy, two alien races that are explored in context with their relationships to the Rownt and lesser extent humanity in these books. While I loved the mystery surrounding Cy’s fear of human beings and Imshee reluctance to aid humanity, I do want to know more. It felt like Lyn Gala was attempting to open up something that she just didn’t feel like continuing. I hate unresolved plot threads, especially with ancient aliens with interesting backstories that connect with the main characters of a story. I loved the concept of the CY being what caused the Rownt to become spacefaring civilization, along with the epic crusade that was unleashed by the actions of the CY. However, it made me want to know more about that period in history along with how the Imshee/Rownt alliance formed back then still functions.

There are good things about book 4 and Kensho, but I think you need to read both to appreciate them. As a writer, I know there are times when you can’t add enough to a book or you have to fix flaws in your earlier work, so I feel like Lyn Gala should be granted that understanding. On its own, book 4 was a very weak outing into this science fiction universe, but it was remedied by the author. That takes a lot of skill and commitment.

Rating:

Book 4- 3 out of 5, it was the weakest of all 4 books with many flaws in characters

Kensho- 4 out of 5, it addressed a lot of the weaknesses in book 4 and established a great conclusion for individual characters. Liam and Ondry have their happy ending. Zach was given a fleshed-out story and he was a very sympathetic character in the end.

Overall, I think a 3.5 out of 5 ratings would be suitable for the conclusion to this series. It did not end on the strongest notes, but Lyn Gala did a lot to fix flaws in book 4 with her short stories.