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Skinner Luce
“Skinner was what servs called each other. It was because they were fake, their skins a disguise…”
All around us, under most of humanity’s very noses, lurks a dangerous alien race. The Nafikh inhabit human bodies while visiting Earth, and an underground system designed to disguise and protect them from being discovered allows them to indulge their wildest and often violent urges. The circumstances of these brutal visits require the sacrifice of servs.
Servs are aliens themselves, created by the Nafikh to attend to their every need. Physically indistinguishable from humans, they are destined to live in pain, their very livelihood regulated by the Source, a powerful force of energy inside each of them that burns like a white-hot fire under the stress of their servitude.
Lucy is a serv who arrived a baby, and by chance was adopted by humans. She’s an outcast among outcasts, dwelling in both worlds but belonging to neither. For years she has been walking a tightrope, balancing between the horrors of her serv existence and the ordinary human life she desperately longs to maintain, her family unaware of her darkest secrets.
But when the body of a serv child turns up and Lucy is implicated in the gruesome death, the worlds she’s tried so hard to keep separate collide. Hounded by the police, targeted in the dog-eat-dog world of servs, she'll find herself fighting to protect her family and the life she's made for herself. Skinner Luce is Lucy’s story.
All around us, under most of humanity’s very noses, lurks a dangerous alien race. The Nafikh inhabit human bodies while visiting Earth, and an underground system designed to disguise and protect them from being discovered allows them to indulge their wildest and often violent urges. The circumstances of these brutal visits require the sacrifice of servs.
Servs are aliens themselves, created by the Nafikh to attend to their every need. Physically indistinguishable from humans, they are destined to live in pain, their very livelihood regulated by the Source, a powerful force of energy inside each of them that burns like a white-hot fire under the stress of their servitude.
Lucy is a serv who arrived a baby, and by chance was adopted by humans. She’s an outcast among outcasts, dwelling in both worlds but belonging to neither. For years she has been walking a tightrope, balancing between the horrors of her serv existence and the ordinary human life she desperately longs to maintain, her family unaware of her darkest secrets.
But when the body of a serv child turns up and Lucy is implicated in the gruesome death, the worlds she’s tried so hard to keep separate collide. Hounded by the police, targeted in the dog-eat-dog world of servs, she'll find herself fighting to protect her family and the life she's made for herself. Skinner Luce is Lucy’s story.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published January 5, 2016
36 people are currently reading
753 people want to read
About the author
Patricia Ward
4 books61 followersI am Lebanese-American, born and raised during the civil war in Beirut, Lebanon. I moved to the States when I was 18. Much of my work explores themes of civilian wartime suffering, emigration, and tensions around nationality and identity. Having grown up surrounded by the Armenian side of my family in Beirut, I often use my mother's maiden name of Sarrafian on my works as a way to honor that part of my life story.
I got my MFA from University of Michigan and published many stories, poems, and essays, and then published my first novel, The Bullet Collection (Graywolf Press, 2003). It received the GLCA New Writers Award, Anahid Literary Award, and Hala Maksoud Award for Outstanding Emerging Writer.
I wrote a few more novels that were not placed, and then, after my son was born, I decided to explore the world of book arts. For some years, I made miniature books and dioramas and enjoyed showing my work in a variety of venues both in the U.S. and abroad. Eventually, I published Skinner Luce (Talos Press, 2016), and I slowly turned back to writing full time. My YA supernatural The Cherished came out April 2023 from HarperCollins, and Mercy is forthcoming in October 2025.
I still create paper objects and recently have taken to sewing as well. I love the counterpoint and balance the tactile arts afford my writing life.
I've moved so much over the years, and I remember every place I've lived, the people, the moments, the landscapes. I now live in Vermont, and hopefully will not have to move again.
I got my MFA from University of Michigan and published many stories, poems, and essays, and then published my first novel, The Bullet Collection (Graywolf Press, 2003). It received the GLCA New Writers Award, Anahid Literary Award, and Hala Maksoud Award for Outstanding Emerging Writer.
I wrote a few more novels that were not placed, and then, after my son was born, I decided to explore the world of book arts. For some years, I made miniature books and dioramas and enjoyed showing my work in a variety of venues both in the U.S. and abroad. Eventually, I published Skinner Luce (Talos Press, 2016), and I slowly turned back to writing full time. My YA supernatural The Cherished came out April 2023 from HarperCollins, and Mercy is forthcoming in October 2025.
I still create paper objects and recently have taken to sewing as well. I love the counterpoint and balance the tactile arts afford my writing life.
I've moved so much over the years, and I remember every place I've lived, the people, the moments, the landscapes. I now live in Vermont, and hopefully will not have to move again.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
July 17, 2016
Brutal and bleak, Lucy's tale is one that doesn't even really need it's SF elements. A lot of people find themselves trapped in a life that they don't deserve, one of few meaningful choices, doing things that they'd rather not be doing. It's just that in Luce's case she's literally been born to do the job she does as an alien servant of even more alien masters.
Luce is a serv, appearing human but with a fiery source in her chest that causes pain when she's around other servs and even more pain when she's around her alien masters. Lots of servs have drug habits in an effort to deal with this inevitable pain. It's not clear why the aliens made the servs that way, but it's typically cruel of them. Luce's story is complex; unique among servs she was raised by a human family so has a foot in both camps, which gives her expectations of a life that most other servs will never have. But she is a serv, and for most servs there's simply no escape.
Great writing with an impressive allegory to modern life, but really dark and bleak and horrible. Not really what I read fiction for really, but understand that my rating is more a reflection of distaste for what I'm reading rather than the level of quality of the work.
Luce is a serv, appearing human but with a fiery source in her chest that causes pain when she's around other servs and even more pain when she's around her alien masters. Lots of servs have drug habits in an effort to deal with this inevitable pain. It's not clear why the aliens made the servs that way, but it's typically cruel of them. Luce's story is complex; unique among servs she was raised by a human family so has a foot in both camps, which gives her expectations of a life that most other servs will never have. But she is a serv, and for most servs there's simply no escape.
Great writing with an impressive allegory to modern life, but really dark and bleak and horrible. Not really what I read fiction for really, but understand that my rating is more a reflection of distaste for what I'm reading rather than the level of quality of the work.
July 13, 2016
4.5 stars
Lucy is serv, or skinner, part of an underground network of beings who look like humans but are not. Their sole purpose is to facilitate visits to this world by the Nafikh, which includes both protecting the Nafikh's true identities as well as preventing human casualties. A serv's life is harsh and unforgiving, as the chances for survival for the long term are not high.
Lucy is different from other servs because she arrived on Earth as an infant and instead of being picked up by an overseer right away, she was adopted by a human family. She grew up having no idea who she really was, or why she suffered from a constant burning pain in her chest. That pain is caused by the Source, the life essence of all servs, and is something that never goes away.
Lucy doesn’t have an ideal childhood, but she doesn't realize how lucky she is until it's far too late. She ultimately ends up as all servs do, working Service jobs keeping the Nafikh happy during their visits by any means necessary, and just trying to live through the experience.
Skinner Luce reads essentially like dark contemporary fiction but with an SF slant. It's the story of a woman trapped by circumstances in a life she hates, wondering if she will survive long enough to just move beyond her day to day existence and live for herself. As much as Lucy may not be human, her feelings of isolation and hoplessness, that desperate desire to feel special, and her vulnerability to the love and affection offered by a man which ultimately leads to self-destructive decisions, are painfully recognizable. But even as she falls low, Lucy is a strong character who is ultimately determined not to give in and shows remarkable resilience.
This is a visceral piece of storytelling that kept me riveted from start to finish. Although it's difficult to describe it as anything other than dark, Lucy's story is ultimately one of survival, in circumstances where giving up seems completely understandable.
Lucy is serv, or skinner, part of an underground network of beings who look like humans but are not. Their sole purpose is to facilitate visits to this world by the Nafikh, which includes both protecting the Nafikh's true identities as well as preventing human casualties. A serv's life is harsh and unforgiving, as the chances for survival for the long term are not high.
Lucy is different from other servs because she arrived on Earth as an infant and instead of being picked up by an overseer right away, she was adopted by a human family. She grew up having no idea who she really was, or why she suffered from a constant burning pain in her chest. That pain is caused by the Source, the life essence of all servs, and is something that never goes away.
Lucy doesn’t have an ideal childhood, but she doesn't realize how lucky she is until it's far too late. She ultimately ends up as all servs do, working Service jobs keeping the Nafikh happy during their visits by any means necessary, and just trying to live through the experience.
Skinner Luce reads essentially like dark contemporary fiction but with an SF slant. It's the story of a woman trapped by circumstances in a life she hates, wondering if she will survive long enough to just move beyond her day to day existence and live for herself. As much as Lucy may not be human, her feelings of isolation and hoplessness, that desperate desire to feel special, and her vulnerability to the love and affection offered by a man which ultimately leads to self-destructive decisions, are painfully recognizable. But even as she falls low, Lucy is a strong character who is ultimately determined not to give in and shows remarkable resilience.
This is a visceral piece of storytelling that kept me riveted from start to finish. Although it's difficult to describe it as anything other than dark, Lucy's story is ultimately one of survival, in circumstances where giving up seems completely understandable.
November 19, 2025
Skinner Luce was so unique. While I was reading, it brought to mind the book Never Let Me Go (but less contemplative and more horrifying) and Mary Doria Russell’s book The Sparrow. It differs in content, but if you’re a fan of scifi and like either of those books, like I do, I feel like this would be worth the read for you.
Lucy is a Serv living in poverty, forced to work for her alien overlords, the Nafikh. She’s trying to earn enough to pay off her “debt” to the Nafikh so she can be free, but it’s nearly impossible to earn enough, and she’s consistently put in life threatening situations. In order to survive, she falls in with an ambitious, sketchy group of Servs, and before long she finds herself wanted in connection with a murder.
Skinner Luce was impossible to put down, especially when it really takes off in the second half. While it’s set in our world, it also has incredibly unique worldbuilding that you gradually acclimate to as you progress through the book. Patricia Ward’s version of aliens (and the hierarchy involved) is like nothing I’ve ever read. I thought the story’s themes of poverty, addiction, and a desire to be free from despair were communicated with refreshingly stark honesty. The parallels carried over meaningfully into our modern human lives, too.
There were some drawbacks that kept it from being a 5 star read. The relentlessly depressing tone throughout is hard to stomach at times, as a reader. The beginning felt especially bleak to me. Also, there’s no handholding when it comes to worldbuilding terms, which may frustrate some readers, but honestly, I kind of loved this aspect. I felt like I was starting to learn a new language with all of the unfamiliar terms, in an enjoyable way. Ultimately, I thought the ending could have been more satisfying. It concludes, but then the story gently fizzles out in the way authors do when they’re not sure whether or not publishers will want a sequel.
These drawbacks don’t detract much from how great this book is. For the right reader, I highly recommend reading Skinner Luce!
Lucy is a Serv living in poverty, forced to work for her alien overlords, the Nafikh. She’s trying to earn enough to pay off her “debt” to the Nafikh so she can be free, but it’s nearly impossible to earn enough, and she’s consistently put in life threatening situations. In order to survive, she falls in with an ambitious, sketchy group of Servs, and before long she finds herself wanted in connection with a murder.
Skinner Luce was impossible to put down, especially when it really takes off in the second half. While it’s set in our world, it also has incredibly unique worldbuilding that you gradually acclimate to as you progress through the book. Patricia Ward’s version of aliens (and the hierarchy involved) is like nothing I’ve ever read. I thought the story’s themes of poverty, addiction, and a desire to be free from despair were communicated with refreshingly stark honesty. The parallels carried over meaningfully into our modern human lives, too.
There were some drawbacks that kept it from being a 5 star read. The relentlessly depressing tone throughout is hard to stomach at times, as a reader. The beginning felt especially bleak to me. Also, there’s no handholding when it comes to worldbuilding terms, which may frustrate some readers, but honestly, I kind of loved this aspect. I felt like I was starting to learn a new language with all of the unfamiliar terms, in an enjoyable way. Ultimately, I thought the ending could have been more satisfying. It concludes, but then the story gently fizzles out in the way authors do when they’re not sure whether or not publishers will want a sequel.
These drawbacks don’t detract much from how great this book is. For the right reader, I highly recommend reading Skinner Luce!
January 29, 2016
Strange, bleak, and excellent. Violent, but not in way that ever really felt gratuitous, although getting through the first couple of chapters was rough. I didn't love the ending, but oh, well. This is probably a strange comparison to draw, but I feel like if Edith Wharton wrote SFF, it might be something like this. Maybe.
I'd be remiss if I failed to mention that cover as well. It's gorgeous and the reason this book ended up on my radar in the first place. I do 99% of my reading on a kindle, so it's not even like it makes a big difference, but I just love looking at beautiful book covers.
I'd be remiss if I failed to mention that cover as well. It's gorgeous and the reason this book ended up on my radar in the first place. I do 99% of my reading on a kindle, so it's not even like it makes a big difference, but I just love looking at beautiful book covers.
July 23, 2016
3.5 stars
September 7, 2016
4 1/2 stars. I loved this book!
January 30, 2016
I stumbled upon this book before getting on a long flight and absolutely could not put it down. The story is horrifying in all the right ways, told with perfect pacing. Lucy's predicament feels real and raw. The story drops you at the bottom of a well and dares you to climb out. This is a sci-fi tale of a naive girl getting conned into a life sentence.
However, that bleak feeling you get from the start never really goes away. The ending has our heroine slightly better off, but leaves behind her suffering peers. There's nothing wrong with that kind of ending, I was just expecting something a little more heroic and a little less doom-and-gloom.
It's worth noting that this brand of sci-fi leaves you with as much knowledge as the main character has... And she never gets to the bottom of what's going on/her own existence. Not sure how intentional that was. Maybe a sequel is in the works?
Also, I feel that the title was a bad choice. I kept forgetting the title while reading this, as both words don't actually get used often (almost all characters refer to her as Serv/Lucy.) It feels disconnected from the story.
That being said, I really loved reading this book, and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys soft sci-fi. Just don't expect a YA hero who uses her inner strength to save the world. This is a much darker story.
However, that bleak feeling you get from the start never really goes away. The ending has our heroine slightly better off, but leaves behind her suffering peers. There's nothing wrong with that kind of ending, I was just expecting something a little more heroic and a little less doom-and-gloom.
It's worth noting that this brand of sci-fi leaves you with as much knowledge as the main character has... And she never gets to the bottom of what's going on/her own existence. Not sure how intentional that was. Maybe a sequel is in the works?
Also, I feel that the title was a bad choice. I kept forgetting the title while reading this, as both words don't actually get used often (almost all characters refer to her as Serv/Lucy.) It feels disconnected from the story.
That being said, I really loved reading this book, and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys soft sci-fi. Just don't expect a YA hero who uses her inner strength to save the world. This is a much darker story.
February 24, 2024
Rating- 4.5
👩🏼🦱👽🌟👮🏽♂️🔥❄️👀🚬
Did not expect myself to enjoy it as much as I did.
This novel takes place in a not-so-normal world where aliens known as servs live among humans in disguise. The story follows Lucy Belle Hennessy who arrived on earth as an infant, and with luck, was adopted by a human couple. As an adult, Lucy's seemingly normal life takes a turn for the worst when the police come knocking her door, revealing she's a suspect in the murder of a serv child.
Lucy is a character you can't help but root for as she struggles to balance in-between her two worlds. Struggling to keep her serv and human life separate, Lucy works hard to keep everything in control, making decisions in the process that cost her immensely.
Skinner Luce is raw and unique, keeping you on your toes as you flip through the pages. A perfect book for when you crave a character-driven story set in a science fiction world.
This book is definitely different from the other books I've read and I'm glad I read it.😋💙
(Me trying to write a proper review as a Eng Lit and Creative Writing student)
👩🏼🦱👽🌟👮🏽♂️🔥❄️👀🚬
Did not expect myself to enjoy it as much as I did.
This novel takes place in a not-so-normal world where aliens known as servs live among humans in disguise. The story follows Lucy Belle Hennessy who arrived on earth as an infant, and with luck, was adopted by a human couple. As an adult, Lucy's seemingly normal life takes a turn for the worst when the police come knocking her door, revealing she's a suspect in the murder of a serv child.
Lucy is a character you can't help but root for as she struggles to balance in-between her two worlds. Struggling to keep her serv and human life separate, Lucy works hard to keep everything in control, making decisions in the process that cost her immensely.
Skinner Luce is raw and unique, keeping you on your toes as you flip through the pages. A perfect book for when you crave a character-driven story set in a science fiction world.
This book is definitely different from the other books I've read and I'm glad I read it.😋💙
(Me trying to write a proper review as a Eng Lit and Creative Writing student)
February 2, 2019
This book did not make a good first impression, but then again that's not due to any fault of its own so much as to the simple fact of being different from what I expected it to be. To start off Lucy came off as really abrasive and rubbed me the wrong way, and was stupid enough to quite literally sell herself into slavery even after an accident of fate had given her a free pass and even though everyone and their pet goat was telling her "No, what are you doing, you're not missing anything, we've told you what it's like, this is incredibly stupid and a terrible idea." And not to be incredibly nitpicky or anything, but there was also this:
Light years are a unit of DISTANCE! Not time, distance!
After a while of reading, though... well, of course Lucy is abrasive, and empathically shut down. She's incredibly messed-up, and considering the kind of life she's been leading, she's just been doing what she has to do in order to survive. I don't know what I was thinking when I was expecting for her to be a cringing woobie, but in hindsight, yeah, it actually was a pretty ridiculous expectation. While selling herself into slavery was still an incredibly stupid move, it is still clearly consistent with her character.
The really good thing about this book, though, was that it made it clear, when one becomes deeply embroiled in a crime ring, just how hard it is to get out. For all Bedrosian's lofty declarations of justice and "doing the right thing", the reality of the situation is far messier, and just because the "good guys" tell you they'll bail you out and keep you safe, there's no guarantee they'll actually be able to keep you safe.
Overall, it's a really grim outlook on life, but that's also why it's so effective. Despite the highly fantastical elements, it feels real, and gritty, and very much relevant to life as we know it.
She'll be thirty-seven if she makes it out, which used to feel like light years away.
Light years are a unit of DISTANCE! Not time, distance!
After a while of reading, though... well, of course Lucy is abrasive, and empathically shut down. She's incredibly messed-up, and considering the kind of life she's been leading, she's just been doing what she has to do in order to survive. I don't know what I was thinking when I was expecting for her to be a cringing woobie, but in hindsight, yeah, it actually was a pretty ridiculous expectation. While selling herself into slavery was still an incredibly stupid move, it is still clearly consistent with her character.
The really good thing about this book, though, was that it made it clear, when one becomes deeply embroiled in a crime ring, just how hard it is to get out. For all Bedrosian's lofty declarations of justice and "doing the right thing", the reality of the situation is far messier, and just because the "good guys" tell you they'll bail you out and keep you safe, there's no guarantee they'll actually be able to keep you safe.
Overall, it's a really grim outlook on life, but that's also why it's so effective. Despite the highly fantastical elements, it feels real, and gritty, and very much relevant to life as we know it.
May 14, 2016
So much about Skinner Luce said leave it on the shelf. It is no space opera with beams glittering in void. This book has no hard science, it is written from a very feminine viewpoint, the protagonist's relation with her mother takes up about a quarter of the plot, the sex is terribly off-putting, and it evokes dread and hopelessness in the intervals between stark terror. But in the first couple pages it grips, and does not let the reader go. The plot blasts along, and in the rubble it defines the contrast between love and indifference. It is magically well crafted. It is high art.
September 16, 2016
The premise is extremely engaging, but reading this book was like building a sand castle during high tide; just when you think you're about to add a great part it gets washed away. What I mean by that is that the author presented an interesting world but shafted the reader in regards to any meaningful resolution to the character arcs laid out. If this is a series I'd definitely give the sequel a chance, but as a solo entry Skinner Luce left me unsatisfied.
June 9, 2018
This book ranks among the best books I've read this year. I'm honestly surprised that I haven't seen mention of it anywhere--this should have been nominated for awards, something. I first came across this book around the time it came out, on the shelf of a bookstore, and was immediately drawn in by the amazing cover art. The writing is beautiful, visceral, and gripping. The combination of the otherwordly and the setting of contemporary Boston/New England is perfectly executed--normally I'm resistant to contemporary settings, for no particularly good reason, but in this book it doesn't feel jarring or forced. It also manages to deal with the topic of slavery/servitude in a way that doesn't feel heavy-handed or like it's trying to impart some great message. Instead, it highlights the misery of an experience that is completely dehumanizing and utterly inescapable, but which the characters fight to survive nonetheless.
The only thing that bugged me a little is
Anyways, this book is great, I highly recommend it.
The only thing that bugged me a little is
Anyways, this book is great, I highly recommend it.
October 30, 2024
What a disappointment this was. I had been looking forward to reading this for so long, and had been so excited to see my library carried the ebook version that I immediately downloaded and read it. Boy, was I so disappointed by the first page.
The writing style was fine. The story was crap. I felt like I was reading a fantasy-representation of a drug house/world. It would have been fine if I had known that (so that I would have known to avoid it), or better yet, actually write it so then I would have empathized with real drug addicts and understood their lives better (still wouldn't have read it.....), but this fictional, fantasy-mix of.... Aliens?.... And other wordly creatures and their addictions to human emotions, and their created slaves (basically humans but with a "burning" in their chests) doing grunt work and killing each other off to feed on the essences was just sick and boring. Possibly my skimming in the middle to end made me miss some key information, but I never felt like the aliens were explained very well, nor did I entirely understand what the heck was the purpose of what was going on, nor did any of it feel purposeful. The whole drive of the story was to be as miserable and stressed as a character can get without completely short-circuiting. And the end? Well, it was pretty much landing the MC back to the beginning only supposedly in a better position. But in all actuality, nothing changed so the whole book felt pointless.
It was bad. It was just bad. Yes, I am also angry because the cover and title captured my interest so strongly and created such a feeling of original storytelling, a kind of ethereal possibility that stretched beyond my own imagination, that finding it to be such a sick and common story really made this a bigger disappointment than it normally would have. Final conclusion:
THAT TITLE WAS SUCH A LOOSE CONNECTION TO THE STORY! IT FELT LIKE A CONTRIVED WAY TO GET AWAY WITH CALLING IT *SKINNER LUCE"! PULL-LEASE! SHOULD HAVE JUST LABELED IT LUCY AND BEEN DONE WITH IT.
The writing style was fine. The story was crap. I felt like I was reading a fantasy-representation of a drug house/world. It would have been fine if I had known that (so that I would have known to avoid it), or better yet, actually write it so then I would have empathized with real drug addicts and understood their lives better (still wouldn't have read it.....), but this fictional, fantasy-mix of.... Aliens?.... And other wordly creatures and their addictions to human emotions, and their created slaves (basically humans but with a "burning" in their chests) doing grunt work and killing each other off to feed on the essences was just sick and boring. Possibly my skimming in the middle to end made me miss some key information, but I never felt like the aliens were explained very well, nor did I entirely understand what the heck was the purpose of what was going on, nor did any of it feel purposeful. The whole drive of the story was to be as miserable and stressed as a character can get without completely short-circuiting. And the end? Well, it was pretty much landing the MC back to the beginning only supposedly in a better position. But in all actuality, nothing changed so the whole book felt pointless.
It was bad. It was just bad. Yes, I am also angry because the cover and title captured my interest so strongly and created such a feeling of original storytelling, a kind of ethereal possibility that stretched beyond my own imagination, that finding it to be such a sick and common story really made this a bigger disappointment than it normally would have. Final conclusion:
THAT TITLE WAS SUCH A LOOSE CONNECTION TO THE STORY! IT FELT LIKE A CONTRIVED WAY TO GET AWAY WITH CALLING IT *SKINNER LUCE"! PULL-LEASE! SHOULD HAVE JUST LABELED IT LUCY AND BEEN DONE WITH IT.
February 9, 2025
Skinner Luce contains many elements of other fantasy – an enslaved population, an alien race, a helpless/hopeless narrator who continues despite all odds – and yet it felt fresh.
That's largely thanks to a cast of characters who also feel like unique individuals and challenge the stereotypes that could have entrapped them. Luce, caught between two worlds, somehow honors both. Bedrosian is an interesting – and dogged – detective. I even found myself rooting for some of the sentries, Qadir, and Nafikh at some points. They could have been drawn in black and white – and weren't.
Similarly, Patricia Ward's plot was both complicated and believable. Thrillers, which this nominally is, don't generally hit both poles (complicated and believable).
My only complaint is that Skinner Luce feels like the first book in a trilogy. I wanted to know what Lucy and Bedrosian do next. Can they save our world? Can they save the servs – and the sentries, Qadir, and Nafikh? On the other hand, I like that it isn't tied up nicely with a bow.
I'm not sure which GR friend raved about this, but I'm glad he did (I think the reviewer was male). Thank you. Nonetheless, it is definitely bleak in the first third or more of the book, with only some improvement thereafter.
That's largely thanks to a cast of characters who also feel like unique individuals and challenge the stereotypes that could have entrapped them. Luce, caught between two worlds, somehow honors both. Bedrosian is an interesting – and dogged – detective. I even found myself rooting for some of the sentries, Qadir, and Nafikh at some points. They could have been drawn in black and white – and weren't.
Similarly, Patricia Ward's plot was both complicated and believable. Thrillers, which this nominally is, don't generally hit both poles (complicated and believable).
My only complaint is that Skinner Luce feels like the first book in a trilogy. I wanted to know what Lucy and Bedrosian do next. Can they save our world? Can they save the servs – and the sentries, Qadir, and Nafikh? On the other hand, I like that it isn't tied up nicely with a bow.
I'm not sure which GR friend raved about this, but I'm glad he did (I think the reviewer was male). Thank you. Nonetheless, it is definitely bleak in the first third or more of the book, with only some improvement thereafter.
November 30, 2024
This is one of those books where I had to stop and make sure I hadn’t somehow started reading in the middle of a series. Very little is explained or even slightly discussed, to the point where it was impossible to really get a feel for what was going on until later in a book than is preferable.
While the setting was described well when it came to micro things (a room, a building, etc.), the broader setting wasn’t incorporated well. There are apparently alien creatures who mostly appear human running around modern cities but there’s no attempt to explain why this is the case. The world building was also severely lacking – it never really delved into the aliens or why they did what they did, etc. I think this work would have been better if the author had chosen to use a completely fictional setting instead. The characters were just fine enough to not detract much from the work, but they added nothing positive either.
The cover is what drew me in, but it’s the only thing I enjoyed about the work.
While the setting was described well when it came to micro things (a room, a building, etc.), the broader setting wasn’t incorporated well. There are apparently alien creatures who mostly appear human running around modern cities but there’s no attempt to explain why this is the case. The world building was also severely lacking – it never really delved into the aliens or why they did what they did, etc. I think this work would have been better if the author had chosen to use a completely fictional setting instead. The characters were just fine enough to not detract much from the work, but they added nothing positive either.
The cover is what drew me in, but it’s the only thing I enjoyed about the work.
March 19, 2018
Bleak doesn't even describe this book, yet I couldn't put it down. I had to know the fate of Lucy, a servant made exclusively for slavery to an alien race- the Nafikh. The Nafikh make Earth a vacation spot unbeknownst to most humans and rely on an advanced network of the servants to tend to their every whim, no matter how violent or horrific. Lucy was unique as she arrived as a baby and was adopted by human parents and only when she was older did she learn what she was. From there, a life of pain intermingled with drugs, sex, and lies followed her despite her best attempts to hold It together. This is her story as both of her worlds collide in dramatic fashion. It was defintely an emotional rollercoaster with an ending that I couldn't see coming.
On another note, this novel parallels so much of what goes on in the real world with sex trafficking & illegal indentured servitude, that it was often hard to read. Outcasts often falling into worlds of despair after being tricked or lured into a life of false promises.
On another note, this novel parallels so much of what goes on in the real world with sex trafficking & illegal indentured servitude, that it was often hard to read. Outcasts often falling into worlds of despair after being tricked or lured into a life of false promises.
April 15, 2019
It's a cruelty from the universe that Patricia Ward has written only one book so far (Edit: one more now!), but WHAT a book.
Made me feel like I did the first time I read Michael Faber's Under The skin; a complete and alien universe half-seen under the story of someone not-quite-human struggling with all-too-human needs and beset by both worlds, trying to survive and understand who and what they are. The sort of writer who makes you forget the words while you live the story.
It's available on Kindle Unlimited, but as I always do when a book grabs me this hard, I bought it as soon as I'd finished. Reward the authors who share such dreams with us!
Read this damn book, then curse because you need more and there isn't any.
Made me feel like I did the first time I read Michael Faber's Under The skin; a complete and alien universe half-seen under the story of someone not-quite-human struggling with all-too-human needs and beset by both worlds, trying to survive and understand who and what they are. The sort of writer who makes you forget the words while you live the story.
It's available on Kindle Unlimited, but as I always do when a book grabs me this hard, I bought it as soon as I'd finished. Reward the authors who share such dreams with us!
Read this damn book, then curse because you need more and there isn't any.
June 27, 2025
This was a tough book to rate. It had the feel of a love child between horror and dystopian. I liked the idea that drug dealers and sex workers and food servers are most often alien servants. I understand the author's choice to stop where they did--the story had come full circle, confirming Crapsack World trope.
The writing style is almost entirely "I hate it" which leads me to believe I only actually hate it when it's not done well, which this was. At least I had no trouble immersing into the story, which is my usual gripe about this style.
It wasn't a particularly satisfying ending for me as a reader.
I guess I'd characterize it as good in spite of itself.
The writing style is almost entirely "I hate it" which leads me to believe I only actually hate it when it's not done well, which this was. At least I had no trouble immersing into the story, which is my usual gripe about this style.
It wasn't a particularly satisfying ending for me as a reader.
I guess I'd characterize it as good in spite of itself.
February 12, 2024
Terrifying, haunting, fascinating, totally original sci-fi. Definitely bleak and occasionally ultra -violent, but fantastic writing and world building. Couldn't put it down and I'm having a hard time *not* thinking about it. Taking off one star because I really wish there was more of a glimmer of hope in the ending or at any point in the novel, really. Still a great book though, highly recommend if you can handle the bleakness.
December 6, 2023
I thought the world-building in this was pretty cool--it was just so WEIRD, like nothing I'd seen before. It's a very dark book, but you do root for the heroine and want her to be safe. I would read a sequel
December 20, 2023
Not what I expected
When I bought this book I guess I didn't realize it was about aliens. I took a long time to read this and I'm not sure why I finished it. I didn't like it but I understand the talent it takes to dream this stuff up.
When I bought this book I guess I didn't realize it was about aliens. I took a long time to read this and I'm not sure why I finished it. I didn't like it but I understand the talent it takes to dream this stuff up.
January 4, 2024
I enjoyed this well-written novel. The story was refreshingly different from anything I've read before. My only regret about the novel was the ending. I wanted there to be a little more to it. Still, I recommend this book.
November 15, 2016
Fresh and original imagery, so that this one feels like it transcends genre. I am not a sci fi reader much, but I really liked this one
March 26, 2021
DNF at 20%. I could not follow the story line at all in this one. The plot is very poorly connected together.
May 31, 2021
This book was BLEAK, but also oddly beautiful in a way. It created a certain atmosphere being read that I enjoyed.
January 14, 2022
Awesome book, very detailed and really catching.
October 6, 2024
I don't usually care for "sf thrillers," but this sucked me in. It was well written, with good character development, and a good plot. Overall, i enjoyed it.
March 18, 2017
Katie's Kindly Book Reviews: This book built a very interesting world and the beauty of the prose was excellent. The story was a bit too bleak for my tastes (I'm not too keen on bleak media.) I also didn't feel like I connected much with any of the characters. I almost wish the author had written this as a fiction story instead of a sci fi as I felt her strengths were in describing the minutiae of the main character's life and her relationship with her family. My partner loved this book though, so I think my hesitancy to mark it as Really Liked It, is just because I'm a suck and can't handle the bleakness. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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