Crossing the Line

The second novel of a series can be a tricky thing, especially when the author involved is fairly new to the book industry. Often unsure of later releases, they write the first novel in a series so that it can be enjoyed as a whole, and has a conclusion that is satisfying in its own right. The problem with this, howeve,r can be that when the later volumes in the series do come out, there has to be a re-establishment of the status quo before the author can continue with the series in a satisfying way. This is very much the case with the first half of Crossing The Line, the second novel in Karen Traviss' Wess'Har series.

Luckily, Traviss gets as much of that out of the way as quickly as she can. Shan Frankland, star of the last novel, adjusts to her new life as a warrior living with the c'naatat symbiont, and begins her somewhat inevitable romantic relationship with Aras, the only other c'naatat infectee on the planet that is her new home. As part of this, howwever, we learn more about the wess'har, including insights into their biology, their culture, and how the two intersect. [return]At the same time, however, the governments of Earth cntinue their uneaasy alliance with the isenj, and the two species together try to break the quarantine placed on the planet Bezer'ej, resulting in the unthinkable happening. Well, to be more accurate, several ‘unthinkable' things that all happen in quick succession.[return]That remains the greatest strength of Traviss' writing, I think: she does an excellent job of creating characters that are well-developed, and that it's easy to care about, and she then proceeds to torture them in ways that are both inventive and long-lasting. You go through the wringer with these characters, but you end up feeling stronger for it at the end.[return]One of the other strengths of Traviss' work is in her characterization of her alien species - each of the three nonhuman species in the book are well-developed, with a unique cultural outlook and philosophy, and yet each also has room for variation betwteen thee individual members of the society. NOt many authors take the effort to add that individuality to their aliens, and it's greatly appreciated that Traviss has made an effort to.