6
FEBRUARY 16�23, 2022
FROM THE SHELF
CHECKING OUT THE
WORLD OF BOOKS
A smashing (and fiery) finish to the Halo trilogy
By Renee Struthers
For Go! Magazine
C
rucial Larsen just can’t catch a
break.
In “Mars Adrift,” the fi nal book of the
Halo trilogy by Kathleen McFall and Clark
Hays, Crucial is set to leave Mars for the
last time after saving the head of one of
the Five Families from a wasting brain
disease, richer than his wildest dreams.
All he wants is to return to Earth and
forget Mars once and for all.
Then the meteor storm hits. And Halo
is crippled.
His ride destroyed, and with Mars
in ruins, Crucial is thrown back into
the resistance’s struggle to introduce
an empathy hack into the AI that runs
everything but tips the scales in favor of
the Five Families. To make things worse,
a sixth Family arrives from exile in the
far reaches of space claiming Mars for
themselves. The situation stinks, quite
literally. Digestive bacteria-powered
ships, anyone?
With his usual brand of apathetic
derring-do, Crucial must rescue his sister
Essential, reboot cybernism Sanders
(whose usefulness without Halo is limited
to his ability to withstand almost anything
thrown at him) and fi nd ex-lover Mel and
the Halo backup servers before the new
overlords do. All while dodging the usual
crowd of people wanting him dead. Will
Crucial’s cynicism mean the end for both
Mars and Earth, or will love for his “family”
save them all?
Told from the point of view of his-
torian Lauren Valentine and Sanders
in flashback form 50 years after the
events unfold on Mars, “Mars Adrift”
discusses whether a historical narra-
tive can ever be considered “true,” or
whether history depends on one’s point
of view. When or how is it appropriate
to change history? To suit new facts?
To suit the will of the masses? Or to suit
the will of the ruling class?
McFall and Hays are masterful in the
use of sarcasm and dry humor to bring
their characters to life, warts and all (I
mean, how can “prokking underbunch”
not be your favorite curse after reading
this book?). Sanders continues as the
straight man to Crucial but learns criti-
cal lessons in humanity in the interplay
between the Larsens and the people they
care about. In the end, it is Sanders who
carries the lesson of love, empathy and
compassion through to a new generation.
———
“Mars Adrift” was released Feb. 14
from Pumpjack Press. It’s available
at various retail outlets and via www.
pumpjackpress.com.
Cover courtesy/Pumpjack Press
t
sco oo u k n s on a ly)
i
d
0% d b ing
b
k clu
1 printe re buy with a boo
(on if you a ticipate
r
to pa
book
Audio & E-Books
Available
HOURS
Tuesday-Saturday 10-6
1813 Main St, Baker City, OR • (541) 523-7551 • https://bettysbooks.indielite.org