First Colony (Citadel Book 1)

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Jan 04, Frank rated it it was ok. Nov 20, Aloysius Kling Jr. Kevin Tumlinson starts off the Citadel science fiction series with First Colony. Set in the distant future, the people of earth have reached an uneasy truce with an alien race called the Esool. First Colony tells the story of Citadel, an earth ship that crash lands on the wrong planet. In the aftermath, the marooned crew and passengers struggle to survive while also trying to determine the cause of the crash.

The ranking survivor is Captain Somar, an Esool participating in an officer exchange in Kevin Tumlinson starts off the Citadel science fiction series with First Colony. The ranking survivor is Captain Somar, an Esool participating in an officer exchange in an effort to improve relations between his people and the people of earth.

First Colony features lots of twists and turns, class struggles, and racism. He provided much needed leadership, struggling to keep the colony united and focused on their survival, while dealing with class rivalries and prejudice. Somar is an old school good guy, a cross between John Wayne and Mr. I also liked Thomas and Billy. They were both complex characters, hiding daunting secrets. A criticism I have about many modern books and movies are the trends of making everyone an anti-hero and blurring the lines between good and evil.

Tumlinson does a good job doing that with some characters and not with others. He has some legitimate good guys, like Somar, and he also has the ones that keep you guessing. Just when you figure them out, something changes. Tumlinson expertly balanced sci-fi technobabble with readability in the story. He did such a great job making it sound good that, as a reader, I am content believing it. When I saw that Tumlinson brought it to Audible, I figured this was my chance to spend one of the credits I was holding on to.

So one day last month, I listened to the first three hours from the seat of my riding lawn mower. Bryant Sullivan does an excellent job as the narrator. First Colony a solid five stars. This book rekindled no pun intended my love of science fiction. Jun 01, Robert rated it it was ok. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.

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Citadel: First Colony

First off I have to say I do respect the author for writing a somewhat decent book. However I could only rate this book with two stars myself. The science in this scifi book was just extremely bad. I don't mind extrapolating things but this was bad. The beginning with the light rail ship, which had been going at speeds above the speed of light, decelerating from that velocity and crash landing on an unknown planet were just unforgivable faults in the science part.

The crash scenarios and everyth First off I have to say I do respect the author for writing a somewhat decent book. The crash scenarios and everything leading up to it was heavily flawed as well as the science part of the story throughout. Then what really made the story worse was the extremely one dimensional characterization and social structure. The blues, whites, and rich social structure was hugely simplistic and really would not be that way at all in an advanced society and particularly one that was star faring.

First Colony

The character development was the same way. For the most part a person was either good or evil. The interaction between characters was one dimensional and very dull for the most part. And the ultimate memory wipe and transplant plot seemed just as ridiculous. How did this huge mental push across the miles of ground area that it occurred on not affect everyone and how did it discretely change individuals differently and yet not affect others as well? This type event written that way is simply a plot device that was not thought out logically.

Scifi can extrapolate things we do not understand but it should make sense, this did not. In the end I simply cannot give this book any better than two stars. I'm not sure whether I will read any of the sequels because of this. Tumlinson luck in the future but was unimpressed with this effort unfortunately. Sep 12, Clinton Sites rated it it was amazing. With a name like First Colony you would think that the story would be around the primary colonization effort of the human race - kinda maybe in this instance.

Humankind has developed a highly technical method of travelling between star systems - but ends up relying on steam punk work arounds to get from the interstellar waypoints to the actual planets.

Another old standby cold sleep is a critical factor in enabling star travel. Each of these technical events creates a class structure based on t With a name like First Colony you would think that the story would be around the primary colonization effort of the human race - kinda maybe in this instance.

Each of these technical events creates a class structure based on three axis - the entitled rich , intellectual training white hats and manual labor blue hats. Now - adding in an Interstellar war having just ended between mankind and another race that both have the same environmental requirements for planetary colonization really amps up the plots and sub-plots. Not giving anything away - having a mix of political intrigue that started a century before this story, the current political issues that are the outcomes from the political issues from the century before, the natural suspicions that arise from a prior enemy now being an ally, the fractionating differences in naturally occurring class structures you end up with an extremely engaging novel.

The author has developed many characters that interact believably given the situations that they find themselves in. I will state that there is a twist that is revealed at the end of the story that looks to really amp it up! This is a gotta read novel - and the follow-ons in the series too make sure they live up to the promise of this one. There was something so fascinating about this story and the cast of characters he put together. It started out with a bang well, more of a crash and kept up a very satisfying pace. Kevin didn't skimp on the science without lapsing into physics-class mode.

There was even a hint of steampunk in this one which was a really neat twist. I loved the main characters, especially the Esool captain, with his unexpected abilities and the two who ended up being the main characters of the big reveal at the There was something so fascinating about this story and the cast of characters he put together. I loved the main characters, especially the Esool captain, with his unexpected abilities and the two who ended up being the main characters of the big reveal at the end.

There was such a compelling vulnerability and mystery around them. The author in me couldn't help but notice--and comment on now--some weaknesses in the writing, but I got caught up enough in the story that I didn't care. And when I came to consider them more in depth once the story was finished, I realized that it's the sort of things that most readers won't notice or care about if set within a good story, thus I'm not going to enumerate them here. So there's me being petty, I suppose, for even bringing it up. But I'd rather be honest and mention it than not. Thoroughly readable, enjoyable, and super-cool book.

I recommend it highly. Oct 31, Brian Switzer added it. The Citadel Omnibus is a science fiction trilogy that starts out with a bang. The ending of the first two book leaves you in a hurry to read the next, and the ending of the third has a twist that will make you say 'Wow!

Rather than being an obstacle, though, Tumlinson presents and explains the science in such an understandable way that I found it very enjoyable. The characters are wel The Citadel Omnibus is a science fiction trilogy that starts out with a bang. The characters are well presented, compelling and very likable, it was well-paced, and the narrative never intruded over the story. The best thing about Citadel is the way Tumlinson skillfully weaved in plot points and dialogue issues that are important today, but did so in a way that the social commentary combines with the science to make it a better story rather than distract the reader.

If more science fiction were like The Citadel I would probably read more of it. Mitch Garrison had now experienced that flash enough times in his life that despite the fog of deep, vapor-induced sleep, his brain instantly put the pieces together. He was awake now. The long nap between shifts was over.

He tried to stretch but found himself confined. Pod , his gunk-filled brain reminded him. He blinked, which amounted to nothing but an instant of darkness punctuating the blurred light, and he managed to slide his hands up along the tight space to rub his underused eyes. Finally, slowly, things came into focus. He had another six months before his shift was to start. The lid of the pod hissed, popped, and slid open.

Mitch reached up and grabbed the lip of the opening, pulling himself up to a swooning but otherwise steady sitting position. The momentary grogginess of stasis was quickly replaced by sheer confusion as he looked around the Blue Collar pod bay. The rest of his shift was awake and scrambling. It was great to be thrown off the trail and not feel as if the new direction came out of nowhere.

Every twist makes sense and kept me wanting more. Well written, but concentrates solely on personal relationships with a lot of introspection. Wouldn't one of the primary concerns of people trapped on an unknown planet be their environment, and how they are going to survive?

There are trees, a few birds, and a stream, but that's all of the environment that is noted. Maybe the next book will deal with that a little more realistically. Citadel-First-Colony is a complex mystery novel, and serves as the first book in a series. That means that not all mysteries will be solved in this book. The author did, however, bring enough closure to make me feel satisfied with the book - I don't feel like the story cut off in mid sentence.

Paperback Editions

The book is well written, but I don't expect to read the rest of the series, because I am interest in sci-fi that focuses on the military, rather than colonization. The first of three books explored the future of the earth with overcrowding and space explorat manion. The thought that many habitable planets exist has fascinated for at least decades if not centuries.

The addition of an alien species and cryogenic use adds to the story. Setting up a colony on anther planet is thought provoking for the extreme difficulties inherent in setting up a system tot everything from bringing water to building a government. This is a series that is well written and makes it hard to put down. This is a very good story, the words are so vivid that you can picture the story the author has woven.

Being thrown right into the action, kind of took me by surprise, I was not sure what was going on. It needs a prologue, so that you can ease into the story, our at least know what you're coming into. Once you get pass that and realize where you are, you're good. It is a very good story. See all 89 reviews.

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Crashing is the easy part.

First Colony Citadel Book 1. Set up a giveaway. What other items do customers buy after viewing this item? A Dan Kotler Story. Customers who viewed this item also viewed. The Complete Citadel Trilogy. Feedback If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us. Would you like to report poor quality or formatting in this book?

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