Artemis Awakening is a soft SF novel about an archaeologist named Griffin Dane who crash-lands on the legendary, lost planet he was studying. He is rescued by and befriends a woman called Adara who has a mental link with her puma companion. Together they work to find a way to return him to his people. There is one among the Artemisians who might have such knowledge, but disturbing rumors surround him.

There's nothing really wrong with the writing in the book, but I simply didn't find it very compelling. Once Adara takes Griffin back to her people the story slows considerably. Even when "interesting" things start to be revealed later on, I didn't really care that much. I would describe the book as "cozy." You have cozy mysteries, and this is cozy SF. I felt like it was something I would have really enjoyed if I had read it as a teenager, especially with the plot device of the human-animal link. So if you are younger or perhaps newer to the genre, you might get more out of it than I did. It was nearly a three star novel, being generous, but then it ends with no resolution, carrying right into the next book, which I don't plan to read, so two stars it is. ( )

Castaway story on a manufactured planet with some interesting, certainly not the castaway, characters. Sort of a shopworn plot that trails off at the end. It was a struggle to finish. ( )

The Good: If you can get past the first half of the book's slow and pretty boring progress, there is a fairly decent story here. The shift in pace was jarring, but I was so thankful for it, we'll call it a good thing. When dealing with the science fiction angles on genetic modification and breeding, the book was at its best. Had the entire book focused on that, instead of meandering through weird feudal fantasy to get there, it could have been a 5 star read.

The Bad: My big problem with this book was the synopsis is a total bait and switch. Look at that first paragraph. Awesome, right? Except, we never see or talk about any of that in the book. That awesome part is part of the past and it's completely glossed over in the book. The present is so far removed from that past, that there is absolutely no reason we needed to tease that former reality. The book itself pales in comparison to the opening premise of the synopsis and that is really not the impression you want to make to a reader. It completely set me up for disappointment. ( )

Pros: great characters, interesting story

Cons: romantic elements, though minor, feel awkward at times

When Griffin Dane locates the planet he believes to be the ancient pleasure planet Artemis, his intention is to study it and return to his home world and bask in the glory of his historic discovery. So when his ship crashes, stranding him there, he’s eager to find his way back to the stars.

He’s rescued from the wreckage by the Huntress Adara and her demiurge puma companion Sand Shadow, with whom she’s psychically linked. They guide Griffin first to their village and then to a major city with relics left by the Seegnur, the people who made the planet and altered the inhabitants to be the perfect servants. There they meet with the Old One Who Is Young, a man who has studied the technology of the Seegnur for decades.

But Griffin’s arrival has awakened something. And things with the Old One aren’t what they seem.

I loved Adara and Sand Shadow. It’s great to see a self-confidant young woman who gives and accepts help as the situation requires. She knows her skills and when the location changes and her abilities are less in demand, finds something she can do to help that will use her skills. By the same token, it was great to see Griffin fumbling on this ‘primitive’ world, accepting menial tasks as the only ones he’s qualified to do, and not complaining about it. I really liked Terrell as well. It was interesting how the three protagonists strengths and weaknesses complemented each other, and how the characters worked together.

The story begins sort of quest like, but there’s a series of overlapping mysteries when they get to Spirit Bay, which were quite interesting to read. It was also interesting learning more of the Seegnur and how they modified things (via the social rather than scientific changes. You don’t learn the science behind the genetic modifications but you learn about the different social strata and some of the abilities of people who were adapted for specified jobs).

There were minor romantic elements in the book. The opening led me to believe that these would have a stronger impact on the story, so I was pretty happy to discover they didn’t. There were some awkward conversations where the characters were honest about their feelings (or lack thereof), which I appreciated (the honesty, if not necessarily the awkwardness). Some of the elements seemed a tad heavy handed, like Adara noticing Griffin’s eye colour in the middle of a life or death situation, which also struck me as being out of place. But on the whole I found the characters’ openness refreshing and the elements indicate that a romance may form as the series goes on.

The world-building is understated, but interesting. Since the planet was specifically designed it still works on a feudal style system. As with the romance, there are underlying elements but they only pop up from time to time.

It was an interesting read. ( )

This was a fantastic and fascinating read - a wonderful mix of fantasy/magic and science fiction, past and future.

Huntress Adara and her companion, Sand Shadow (a puma she is mind-linked with), experience the find of a lifetime when an astronaut, Griffin, crash-lands near their forest hunting grounds. Intending to study the planet Artemis, once used as a "back-to-basics" vacation planet by his ancestors, Artemis' location had been long-lost to history. Griffin began researching Artemis alone, hoping to return to his home planet with the wonderful discovery. Unfortunately, crash-landing, and losing his shuttle in the ensuing avalanche, was NOT a part of his plans.

Artemis is a curious place - still pretty savage, not major advancements, and yet a small section of the population are "adapted," meaning they have some sort of ability that sets them apart from the rest of the people of Artemis. Adara is one of these adapted, and she and Griffin set off to meet with the leader of this small area of Aretmis, hoping to find some way for Griffin to contact his people.

Highly recommended - lost of action, adventure, some mystery, and seriously compelling characters! ( )