cover image The Price of Survival

The Price of Survival

Lance Conrad. Dawn Star, $13.99 (240p) ISBN 978-0-9910230-8-0

In Conrad’s fourth entry in the world-hopping Historian Tales series (after 2015’s The Price of Loyalty), the flippant narrator, an unkillable being called the Historian, watches as a military mastermind, Colonel Daws, confronts an incursion of refugees from a parallel world enslaved by gods. The outraged deities follow their former slaves and target their new home for destruction. Daws and other stereotypical characters—a plucky rebel leader, an emotionally repressed genius, a ruthless and competent henchman—try to stop them, using only biochemical weapons, as Daws’s version of Earth has no metal-based technology. Unable to affect the course of events, the Historian instead provides a steady stream of irritating comments. Conrad’s worldbuilding is thoughtful, highlighting an interesting contrast between the humans’ technology and the gods’ seeming magic. But the plot has more loose threads (such as an unresolved coup triggered by the colonel) than tightly woven ones. If the characters were not so flat, the whole would better stand the strain. (Sept.)