Brian Trent has spent time in the universe of his new novel Ten Thousand Thunders before, with his “War Hero” series of short stories. It's obvious he’s thought about this setting a lot and packs a ton of detail into it. Set in a post-collapse future where technology and corporate dominance reignite with a vengeance and death is a minor inconvenience for those who can afford to clone a new body to house their consciousness. There’s a little bit of Altered Carbon meets The Expanse in its mix of bloody, hard-boiled action and solar-system spanning political maneuvering.
The plot machinations of Ten Thousand Thunders are so byzantine it’s impossible to encapsulate it in a nutshell, but for better or worse the novel follows InterPlanetary Council investigator Gethin Bryce as he tries to figure out who blew up the shuttle he was riding in, and why. He crosses paths with revolutionary soldier Celeste Segarra, whose organization wants to level the playing field for the haves and have nots, and together they try to keep their heads attached to their necks while uncovering a conspiracy as old as humanity itself.
About two-thirds of the way through I realized the plotting was just going to keep getting denser and denser, and even then, nothing prepared me for how outrageous it was going to get. The action is tough, the pacing perhaps a bit too fiendish, and its final revelations a little hard to swallow.

It has taken me far too long to review this book and for that, I’m really really sorry. I received a copy of this book from Flame Tree Press in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Ten Thousand Thunders is a spectacular science fiction novel that shows a world divided. I was unfamiliar with Brian Trent’s work but his imaginative look at a possible future is fascinating.

Gethin Bryce is our main character who has died early on in the book. He is brought back and is on a mission to find out what happened.

If you’re new into the realm of science fiction then it can be hard to get into as the writing can be dense and can often fall into the trap of “information dumping” with little else going for it. This is not the case here. While there were times I felt a little confused or a little overwhelmed by the information and the jumping, Brian Trent has such a way of writing that you can’t help but keep going.

Brian Trent writes an amazing world and the history that he gives us of Earth, Luna and Mars were really interesting to me.

I was also a fan of the characters, and how Trent wrote them in. Gethin is the main character and Trent writes him really well. Other characters, namely Celeste and Keiko and Jonas, were equally written well. I found myself kind of skipping past the action or info heavy sections so that I could read more about the characters. I was really interested in Jonas in particular who was fully realized.

Trent writes in a quick and structured way. And while it slips into “information dumping” from time to time I’m really impressed with Brian Trent’s writing. He writes in a really crisp and sharp way with strong metaphors that imagined a world that was descriptive.

Ten Thousand Thunders develops like a crime novel and that was really interesting to me. The plot developed at a good pace. Although at times the story was dense and I had to push through or restart a chapter. This probably says more about me than the book though!

Trent develops the characters really well. And I was particularly fond of Celeste and Jonas. Their stories were probably the most realized of the novel.

Overall this is a good book. It was dense and while there wasn’t a huge amount of “info dumping” there were moments where I felt a little overwhelmed. There’s a lot going on and if can feel like there’s a bit too much going on. Also if you’re not a huge fan of violence just be wary. For me, it didn’t really make too much of a difference.

That being said it’s a really good sci-fi space crime. If you’re a fan of Altered Carbon then this is definitely one you should check out and I’ll be keeping my eyes open for Brian Trent’s work and a possible sequel going forward.

Have you read it? What do you think? Sound off below!

Ten Thousand Thunders is an innovative and immersive science fiction novel, that will appeal to those who enjoyed Altered Carbon and those who like reading about complex worlds, unusual cultures and strange beings.


Gethin Bryce is an investigator who just died in a shuttle explosion.  When he is resurrected, he’s tasked with finding the truth behind that and the other mysterious anomalies that have been occuring.  There is a vast differential in the way humanity lives - those in enclaves living a virtually immortal existence with every luxury, and those in the wasteland struggling to survive.  Between terrorists, unbelievably advanced AIs and greedy corporations struggling to supercede government, there is a lot of potential for conflict and for plot development. This is part of the reason why I was a bit disappointed by Brian Trent’s reliance on deus ex machina to resolve the plot.  


Parts of Ten Thousand Thunders are incredibly well done.  Others drag a bit, suffering from the complexity of the plot.  Trent really packs a lot into Ten Thousand Thunders - more than he needs to.  That becomes clear as he struggles to pull all the threads together into a resolution.  Without a doubt, Brian Trent has a lot of potential as a writer. Ten Thousand Thunders is a good book, if a bit flawed.  Disregarding my opinion of the resolution, l rate Ten Thousand Thunders as a 4.


4 / 5


I received a copy of Ten Thousand Thunders from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


-- Crittermom

The author says "Ten Tousand Thunders tells the story of a future directly threatened by its past. It also sets the stage for short fiction he has published that is set along a timeline. This is the start. I found it interesting. Filled with different characters who work together and at cross purposes the story is fast paced and filled with tension. The end left a big question and I wonder if that short fiction will turn into a series. I did think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read some of that short fiction.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

So I don't read a lot of science fiction and at first I found this book somewhat intimidating. However, after the first few chapters, I was immersed the the work of the New Enlightenment and was curious about what was happening.

I found Trent's world building to be spot-on in this book and reading it was much akin to watching an engrossing science fiction film. The book contains quite a bit of action and a fair amount of political intrigue - in a scientific manner. I did form a connection to a few of the characters, especially Jack and Keiko.

"Ten Thousand Thunders" is probably the most science-fiction book I've read to date. Since I liked it, I am sure hardcore fans will be even more caught up in Trent's tale. "Ten Thousand Thunders" is not a quick read, but it is one worth picking up.

Gethin Bryce was killed in a mysterious space shuttle explosion en route from Mars to the moon. Thanks to scientific advancements in the far future, he is brought back to life and returns to his position as an investigator of anomalies with the InterPlanetary Council. During his investigation, he links up with Jack and Keiko who work for Prometheus Industries, a massive corporation that was also rocked by a lab explosion on the moon, and Celeste, a woman from the outlands that are wild, unpredictable, and ruled by savagery. Together, they travel across the Earth of the far future, revealing the history of Earth, from the very beginning to our present and beyond. In doing so, they also learn startling revelations about the history of the planet and that history is about to collide with their present.

Ten Thousand Thunders is a stunning science fiction book that takes place far into the future. The world is divided between those who live in the arcologies and have access to the technology that makes them superhuman and allows them to live forever and those who live in the wastelands where the people do what they can simply to survive. But this book was much more than a mere commentary on the division between the haves and the have nots. It's also an incredible inquiry and investigation into how the past impacts the present and future.

I have to admit that, while I loved this book, it felt like it was far beyond my comprehension level. It seems to be greater than what I can fathom, but, while I sometimes felt overwhelmed, this didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the story. There was so much information, so many revelations, and so many things to sort through to understand the underlying science fiction part of it, but the story was beautiful and terrifying and everything was seamlessly woven together.

Fantasy is my true love, but the problem with the vast majority of fantasy novels is the info dumping and the massive amount of time spent world building, which either draws out the story to be too long or makes the story suffer. While this book is science fiction, it takes place so far in the future that very little of this world is recognizable. Which means the whole world needs to be built. Trent did an amazing job of just throwing the reader in and letting us figure it out on our own. There was always just enough information for the reader to puzzle it out without having to spend too much time on it and I don't feel the story ever suffered because of it. Instead, I very much enjoyed it. The story could just continue to roll out and I felt free to be swept up in it. Actually, I enjoyed it so much and needed to find out what happened next that I probably should have given myself time to digest it, but didn't.

I was most impressed by Trent's writing style. It was crisp and succinct and did everything to keep the story going. The metaphors were always fitting, but never long. They painted the perfect pictures and I loved how they were descriptive while being stingy with the number of words. There was a great deal of information and a great deal of events going on and every word carried importance and weight. The reader is given everything they need and nothing they don't. Most of all, I just really enjoyed his style. Short and sweet while being crisp and packing a punch.

Because I'm not a regular science fiction reader and science is not exactly my specialty, it took me a few chapters to really get into the book. I spent much of the early chapters trying to figure out what everything was and what was going on. But, once I sorted it out, I was swept away by the story. It never felt like it was dragged down by unnecessary scenes and actions. Everything was important and everything told the story of the Earth's past and present colliding. The characters were unique, but tender to be static, though we occasionally learned something new about them as the story progressed. The relationships between Gethin, Jack, Keiko, and Celeste were interesting and intriguing and, while it did progress, there was still the initial atmosphere of distrust. It was kind of amazing how they managed to not kill each other and instead rely on each other. 

My one complaint would be the revelation about the Earth's beginning. It was definitely surprising and kind of knocked me out of the story. While it ended up making perfect sense, it always felt a little off. Though Trent did do an amazing job of incorporating this surprising part into the greater story and weaving it in so it made complete sense. By the end of the book, I was satisfied, but, when it was presented, I was left scratching my head a little.

I am very glad that Ten Thousand Thunders is the start of a series. The last 10-20% of the book made me a little angry because I didn't want it to end. There was so much going on and, by the end of the book, much of it is wrapped up, but not everything. I did not want to leave this future Earth. I was mollified to learn there is going to be a second book and I look forward to it.

Overall, this is an incredible book. A little dense, but the writing, story, and pacing are all wonderful. There was definitely a little more violence in the middle than I could stomach and not everything made complete sense to me, but this was a very enjoyable read. I definitely recommend stopping once in a while to digest the story.


Note: Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy of this book.

Post date on blog: 10/5/18
Blog: https://thelilycafe.wordpress.com
Blog post link: https://thelilycafe.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/book-review-ten-thousand-thunders-by-brian-trent/

I DNF-ed the book at 26%.

While I think the idea is excellent and I find the story exciting, the storytelling lacks in many places. The thing that put me off was inconsistent and unfocused POV (and POV changes in the middle of the chapter).

First, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
This starts with an anomaly investigator with the InterPlanetary Council (IPC) being 'resurrected' after being killed in a shuttle explosion between Mars nad the Moon. From there, it moves on to conspiracies, hidden wars, and 'unknown entities on the Net' who turn out to be... well, you need to read this one to find out! Excellent book!

Review: TEN THOUSAND THUNDERS by Brian Trent

Set in the future, in the era of "New Enlightenment" (NE), Death is basically a thing of the past. Providing one's DNA is on file, anyone can be immediately reconstructed (in a brand-new physique, of course). Gethin Bryce, seasoned and gifted investigator for the InterPlanetary Council, dies on a shuttle flight between Mars and Luna, which occurs moments after a corporate explosion. Once resurrected, Gethin is immediately tasked by IPC to uncover the causes.

TEN THOUSAND THUNDERS brings an intricately detailed world-building and interweaves fantasy elements while providing hard science fiction and intriguing characterization.