Worlds collide in The Venusian Gambit, the thrilling finale to Michael J. Martinez’s Daedalus trilogy. One thing that has always been very clear with these books is that Mike is having fun writing them, and a major key to any novel/story’s success is how well the author can translate that internal fun they are having to the external page he or she shares with the reader. On that mark, Mike abundantly succeeds. Before we proceed, here’s the publisher’s description:
In the year 2135, dangerous alien life forms freed in the destruction of Saturn’s moon Enceladus are making their way towards Earth. A task force spearheaded by Lt. Cmdr. Shaila Jain is scrambling to beat them there while simultaneously trying to save crewmember Stephane Durand, who was infected during the mission to Saturn and is now controlled by a form of life intent on reopening a transdimensional rift and destroying the human race. But Jain doesn’t realize that the possessed Stephane has bigger plans, beaming critical data to other conspirators suspiciously heading not for Earth, but for Venus…
In 1809—a Napoleonic era far different from our own—the French have occupied England with their Corps Eternélle, undead soldiers risen to new life through the darkest Alchemy. Only the actions of Lord Admiral Thomas Weatherby and the Royal Navy have kept the French contained to Earth. But the machinations of old enemies point to a bold and daring gambit: an ancient weapon, presumed lost in the jungles of Venus.
Now, Weatherby must choose whether to stay and fight to retake his homeland or pursue the French to the green planet. And Shaila must decide if it’s possible to save the man she loves, or if he must be sacrificed for the good of two dimensions. In the dark, alien jungles of Venus, humanity’s fate in both dimensions hangs in the balance—forcing past and present to once again join forces against an ancient terror.
Once again, Martinez employs the dual narrative focusing on Lieutenant Commander Shaila Jain in the 22nd Century and Thomas Weatherby the 18th Century of an alternate past, where sailing vessels traverse the solar system. Since The Enceladus Crisis, a number of years has passed for Weatherby, enough that he is married to his old sweetheart. The Martian Warlord Althotas is still scheming in the background to be freed and reign over both universes. Weatherby leads the Royal Navy in their staunch war against Napoleon and his undead army (or as they are referred in the story, alchemically infused revenants). Of course, with the planet Venus in the title, one would expect much action to take place on the second planet from Sol, which is where Weatherby hopes to have his final conflict with Napoleon. Weatherby’s supporting cast consists of his aforementioned wife, as well as the alchemist Dr. Finch and Anne’s son Philip and Thomas’s daughter Elizabeth.
Shaila’s storyline picks up relatively hot on the heels of the previous installment. While factions on earth are still trying to bring worlds together, Shaila’s boyfriend Stephane is possessed, or rather, infected by alien particulates from the waters of Enceladus. She is leading the charge back to Earth in a race to catch a Chinese ship that was hijacked and carries the alien plague which has possessed Stephane. She is fighting through his possession to try to save him and prevent the alien plague from arriving on Earth, no small feat.
At this point, it should be pretty clear that reading the first two volumes in this series is a requirement, not just so readers aren’t lost in this volume, but also because Martinez spins a damned entertaining story. The outlandishness of his alternate past featuring undead soldiers is a wonderful contrast against a fairly plausible future, so seeing those storylines converge provides that extra added layer of gravitas and joy.
The parallel universes intersected in previous volumes, but I appreciated that here in the trilogy’s finale, Mike had that intersection earlier in the narrative. Seeing the characters interact was akin to watching old friends catch up after a long while. Well, in the case of the characters from Weatherby’s timeline, it was a long while, whereas for Shaila’s universe, it was much more immediate. It was really fun to see the contrast of how those two times have progressed at different rates.
Any book that closes out a series has double duty, for the overall series is assessed in addition to the singular novel itself. Here, Martinez rounds out the trilogy with gusto even if the dénouement was wrapped up a bit rapidly considering all that came before, though I really enjoyed one character’s rather poetic conclusion over the last couple pages. Few writers have been able to blend so many different genre ingredients (alternate history, space opera, steampunk, zombies, pulpy SF) in one milieu story as Martinez has. Each element complements the other to the point that the story, both on an individual novel basis and for the trilogy as a whole, wouldn’t have worked without each of the disparate ingredients.
I can only heartily recommend both the novel and series as a whole.
© 2016 Rob H. Bedford
Published by Night Shade Books
Trade Paperback | May 2015 | 320 Pages
http://michaeljmartinez.net/
https://michaeljmartinez.net/writing/the-daedalus-trilogy/gambit/
Review copy courtesy of the publisher, Night Shade Books
