The Rise of Io

Executive Summary: After a bit of a slow start, this is another solid entry in Mr. Chu's Quasing series.Full ReviewI really enjoyed Mr. Chu's Tao series. I still think [b:The Rebirths of Tao 20765775 The Rebirths of Tao (Tao, #3) Wesley Chu https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1425062273s/20765775.jpg 40099648] is his best book to date. This one is a good addition to the Quasing world and helps to build on the story established by the original trilogy.Ella is a very different protagonist from Roen in [b:The Lives of Tao 15981711 The Lives of Tao (Tao, #1) Wesley Chu https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1361886088s/15981711.jpg 19932371]. And Io is very different from Tao. The relationship between the two is also very different. That said, I found some of the initial plotting very similar to that book. I was enjoying the story, but it was a bit on the slower side and I was concerned it was simply a remake with a female protagonist in a different setting.Thankfully that wasn't the case. I forget at what point in the book the story picked up, but once it did the fast paced action/thriller aspect of the original series was once again there, and instead of a reboot, the book felt like a natural progression of the original series.While this is book 1 of a new series, it picks after the event's in Mr. Chu's original series. The author and the publisher would likely say you can start here having never read the original series, and they aren't entirely wrong. You get enough background to not be lost, but there are details from the original series that are important here. Personally I'll always do publish order, even if the author suggests otherwise.If you're looking for a fun sci-fi thriller, I highly recommend checking out [b:The Lives of Tao 15981711 The Lives of Tao (Tao, #1) Wesley Chu https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1361886088s/15981711.jpg 19932371] and the rest of that series before picking this one up. If you already read and enjoyed that series, I think you'll be happy with this new book.

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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“Stick with me, kid ,” he said. “We'll introduce you to a bigger world with all sorts of new people who will want to kill you.”

The Rebirths

As the minutes ticked by, Io clarified some of the dreams of her glorious career inhabiting humans. If anything, it comforted Ella that the Quasing weren't all-knowing and powerful, that they were just as culpable and mistake-prone as any human.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Angry Robot via NetGalley in exchange for this post – thanks to both for this.
N.B.: As this was an ARC, any quotations above may be changed in the published work – I will endeavor to verify them as soon as possible.

Wesley Chu does it again. Having previously devoured The Lives of Tao, this was another page-turner I literally could not put down. Now I'm on a mission to hunt down all of his other books.

The Lives of Tao had a fascinating premise. The Rise of Io completely sprang it in a different direction and had a compelling character in Ella. She rocks!