The can’t-miss-it sequel to A Sense for Memory Part One, Part Two plunges the reader through a wormhole into a new realm of intrigue, adventure, and action.
Disclosure: I initially read this book as part of my business relationship with Independent Book Review. This review also appears on that website.
A Sense for Memory’s Characters
In A Sense for Memory Part One the reader cheers on the exploits of a tough Rej-Jir soldier/cop, Commander Qwatajawa, as she investigates the theft of a mysterious and powerful artifact. We are also entranced by a Zurxok ninja of sorts, illusionist Xa-Kol, who fights a strange entity deep within a bioengineered planet.
Antagonists or Allies?
A Sense for Memory Part Two doubles down on engaging protagonists. It introduces two rock stars of the joint Rej-Jir—Zurxok governance complex that is the Amalgamation. These soldiers think the story is about them. But Commander Qwatajawa, her loyal squad, and her friend Xa-Kol, must put a stop to their audacious plan, anyway.
In a prologue we meet Supreme Commander Nazatl, a Rej-Jir, and Supreme Commander Soropo-Omb, a Zurxok. They soon show they have the “right stuff” as their undercover mission to steal the spaceship A Sense for Memory and its illegally developed wormhole technology goes off with style. But the reader learns that serious political shenanigans are going on behind the scenes. Have the national heroes gone rogue? Or worse, been subverted by a powerful alien intelligence?
Quatajawa’s Story Continues
Commander Qwatajawa, the head cop of an isolated beach village, experienced unique combat situations and acquires special knowledge in Part One. Her superiors believe this experience might be useful on an apprehension-and-recovery mission. She and her team are dispatched to investigate the spaceship’s theft. They follow Nazatl and Soropo-Omb to somehow convince them to stand down and start following orders again.
The Challenge
It’s a tricky situation, and Qwatajawa’s investigation soon confirms that an old nemesis may be behind it all. And the artifact she thought destroyed has somehow come back into play. When Qwatajawa and company locate A Sense for Memory, it all seems easy. A little too easy. Nasty surprises await.
Meanwhile Illusionist Xa-Kol, the Zurxok protagonist of Part One’s second novella, is summoned to investigate a mystery at the training academy she left fifty years ago. She defeated and killed a monster while she was a cadet. However, this entity is suddenly and inexplicably causing problems and even calling out for her. In solving that mystery, she becomes sucked into a quagmire that leads her to team up with Qwatajawa and her squad against Nazatl, Soropo-Omb, and whatever other beings are behind it all.
Themes and Reflections
The nature of duty, particularly in a military chain of command, is front and center among the issues and themes of the book. Nazatl’s “monster” invites a closer look at relationships among the subjugated and the powerful. This theme reoccurs in the behind-the-scenes political machinations among the governmental entities. With the title of the book the name of a spaceship that is powered by forbidden technology, the reader can’t help but think about the complex interplay between science doing all that it can, but maybe not what it should. And who decides these things?
Amazing Technology
The book features many illustrations, which help the reader imagine the characters, setting, and important items even more clearly than their verbal description. And it is rich in dazzling technology befitting an advanced alien science fiction setting. For example, the armor “…which comprised segmented black plates. Each plate bore an intricate, layered structure, dispersing kinetic energy with ease, while embedded nanofibers ensured that any heat-based attack would dissipate…”
A Sense for Memory Part One and Two
Like the first book, readers learn about the world through scenes, rich in revealing dialogue and exciting action sequences. The novel uses summary passages sparingly and appropriately.
Part Two introduces several new characters, such as the hotshots Nazatl and Soropo-Omb. It also expands upon Qwatajawa’s team members. The book magnificently differentiates and portrays them all as distinct individuals through their opinions, actions, and speech patterns. And the original characters continue to delight. For example, we learn much about the culture of the Illusionists in a simple exchange. “…waiting for them [was] a Zurxok of indeterminate sex wearing a ruffled violet coat, feathered hat and a birdlike mask. ‘The night belongs to you, Illusionist,” Xa-Kol said, bowing low to her fellow magician. ‘As it does to you, for we are servants to the stars and moon,’ the Illusionist replied…”
Interesting Narrative Structure
The two novellas of A Sense for Memory Part One weave together into a more complex story in the current volume: more characters and more character development; bigger, more cinematic settings; and greater challenges as characters struggle to overcome problems. Experiencing these storylines come together and knit into a satisfying whole is to enjoy exciting space opera at its finest.
As a second volume, Part Two brings the reader up to speed on Part One events, both in a summary at the beginning of the book and within the story text. While one could follow the narrative without reading Part One first, the reader will find more enjoyment by taking the series in order.
A Sense for Memory Part Two kicks the action up several notches for Commander Qwatajawa and Xa-Kol, and it was fun to see them interact with such formidable opponents. I sense some mutual respect in the rivalry with the errant Nazatl and Soropo-Omb and look forward to the next installment in this dynamic series.
If you found A Sense for Memory Part Two interesting, you might enjoy reading about A Sense for Memory Part One in my Best Books 2024 blog.
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“The Pixie Job” in Marathonarium: Volume 2 is available from Amazon. The anthology was launched at the Imaginarium Convention in Louisville, Kentucky, USA July 18, 2025. Sean Joye’s first out-of-town paranormal investigator job finds him in a small lead-mining community. The mine owner claims his house is infested with pixies, but Sean has his doubts the problem is that simple.
Check out my short story, “Big Magick,” which appears in the St. Louis Writers Guild anthology, Weird STL. Look for it on Amazon. Find out what really happened to the 1904 World’s Fair Ferris Wheel, direct from one of The Big Cinch baddies, Joseph Arwald. Hint: it involves magic.
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