My Review (4 stars out of 5)
In search of a lost ship, Opal Imbiana hopes to recover a secret in a lonely nebula far from colonised space. But all alone with only an experimental spacesuit and the ship’s computer to aid her quest, she must enter a dangerous and unpredictable environment.
This is the first book in the Lost Solace series. Like many books set in the future, the author constructs his world with the sort of technical language that could easily overwhelm the reader – especially if it’s a bit on the silly side. However, in this case, Mr Drinkwater’s writing is realistic and original, making the story believable and authentic in terms of what may well be possible in years to come. Any book focusing on (mainly) a single character, would be a challenge to pull off successfully, but Opal’s adventures were absorbing and exciting enough to keep me reading. For the most part, the writing is excellent. Unfortunately, there came a point where the third-person narration changed to first person. I can see why the author did this, but it threw me a bit, and made it difficult to get back into the story, which is a shame.
A clever and well-written book that will appeal to lovers of all things sci-fi.
Author Bio
Karl Drinkwater is an author with a silly name and a thousand-mile stare. He writes dystopian space opera, dark suspense and diverse social fiction. If you want compelling stories and characters worth caring about, then you’re in the right place. Welcome!
Karl lives in Scotland and owns two kilts. He has degrees in librarianship, literature and classics, but also studied astronomy and philosophy. Dolly the cat helps him finish books by sleeping on his lap so he can’t leave the desk. When he isn’t writing he loves music, nature, games and vegan cake.
Go to karldrinkwater.uk to view all his books grouped by genre.
As well as crafting his own fictional worlds, Karl has supported other writers for years with his creative writing workshops, editorial services, articles on writing and publishing, and mentoring of new authors. He’s also judged writing competitions such as the international Bram Stoker Awards, which act as a snapshot of quality contemporary fiction.
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Enter your email at karldrinkwater.substack.com to be notified about his new books. Fans mean a lot to him, and replies to the newsletter go straight to his inbox, where every email is read. There is also an option for paid subscribers to support his work: in exchange you receive additional posts and complimentary books.
Purchase Links
https://karldrinkwater.myshopify.com
https://books2read.com/karldrinkwater
Social Media Links
NB This post first appeared as part of the Blog Tour for Lost Solace, via Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources
Colin Garrow 
Thank you for this review Colin, it’s always fascinating to get a fellow author’s take on craft. You’re right that perspective change is something I usually advise against (though I have fewer issues as long as each perspective is in its own chapter to avoid head-hopping). But I also say when teaching that any writing rule can be broken as long as the end result works. Sorry that it didn’t work for you in this case! Totally understandable. But great to have a review where someone can talk about techniques like that. Cheers!
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Hi Karl – absolutely – I break rules all the time. Unfortunately, as I get older, the things that irritate me seem to multiply. Even my favourite authors (Stephen King, Patricia Cornwell etc) do things that annoy me. Best wishes, C
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Congratulations to Karl on this great review. Sharing.
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Cheers, Robbie 😉
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Thank you Robbie!
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