A sinister, thousand year-old abandoned spaceship hides a world-shaking secret in Taran Hunt’s action-packed adventure novel The Immortality Thief. Forced into joining a mission he doesn’t want to take part in, small-time thief Sean Wren finds himself part of a rag-tag team of ‘volunteers’ forced to retrieve a mysterious prize from the aforementioned ancient spaceship before it’s destroyed in an imminent supernova. With few useful skills under the circumstances other than a knack for languages, Sean is instantly out of his depth but determined to see the mission through and keep his promise to look out for his friend/fellow survivor Benny. When things quickly go wrong however, and the ship proves to be full of horrifying monsters, Sean finds himself caught between a half-starved Republic soldier and an unstoppable alien warrior, not able to trust either but forced to rely on them simply in order to survive.
In some respects this proves as dark and creepy as it sounds. There are hints of Event Horizon and maybe even Warhammer 40,000 in its description of travelling using faster-than-light travel and some of the nasties inhabiting the nameless, abandoned spaceship, and much of the book takes place in almost pitch darkness. These (literally and figuratively) dark aspects are oddly contrasted though by a generally light, breezy style and voice which give proceedings more of a fun adventure vibe. For all the running, hiding and frantic fighting, Sean’s general air of flippancy – amusing though it often is – constantly lessens the tension and pushes back on the horror elements. He offers an interesting viewpoint on events, caught as he is between the callous Republic and the brutal alien ‘Ministers’, but even so the book has a strange tonal imbalance, not quite a full-on horror story but not quite a light adventure either.
It’s at its best when it leans into two things. Firstly the dark, creepy weirdness of the ship and the secrets it holds: the eerie ghost children, the origins and questionable inhumanity of the creatures that Sean names ‘mannikins’, the strange hallucinations brought on by spending so much time in the dark. When things really focus on the darkness it’s often enjoyably weird. Secondly, and more unexpectedly, Sean’s surprisingly useful aptitude for languages adds depth and interest to his character, as well as proving narratively convenient. Behind all the flippancy, Sean himself hides a painful history that puts him at odds with virtually every other character, but his knowledge of a thousand year-old language gives him value to both the Republic and the Ministers. What he learns about both sides – and himself – provides both a gradual unveiling of world building (even if it’s not entirely clear where the Ministers got their name from) and the story’s emotional weight.
Despite some strong supporting characters (the ‘Indigo’ Minister in particular), and clear themes of learning to not repeat mistakes and to look for shared ground rather than opposition, it’s hard not to wish that this could decide what it wanted to be. There’s just not enough tension for the horror elements to fully work, while the pacing isn’t quite there for it to entirely convince as a thrilling adventure. At about 130k words it’s quite long, and it drags in the middle with lots of running, hiding and fighting without much in the way of stakes, while the flashbacks which reveal Sean’s past and help set up what’s coming next become a bit repetitive after a while. Meanwhile, neither the impending supernova-doom nor Sean’s strained relationship with Benny really figure until right at the end. Thankfully, in spite of everything there’s enough that does work for this to largely remain entertaining, with a setting that deserves further exploration, and if you can look past the inconsistencies it is still quite a fun read.
Review copy provided by the publisher.
The Immortality Thief is out now from Rebellion Publishing – check out the links below to order your copy:
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