Invisible Sun

By David Macinnis Gill

About Invisible Sun (from Goodreads):
Obsessed with MUSE, the clandestine project that created the AI in his brain, mercenary chief Durango draws the ire of the government when he steals part of the secret project data and hightails it with his lieutenant, Vienne, to an ancient monastery. There, he meets the monks who raised Vienne from an orphan and also encounters soldiers working for his old nemesis, the crime lord Mr. Lyme. Lyme controls the territory surrounding the monastery, as well as the datacenters housing the rest of MUSE. 

Undeterred, Durango and Vienne pull off an ill-advised raid on Lyme’s complex. During the ensuing battle, however, Vienne is captured, and Durango is beaten and left for dead. Now, wounded and shaken, Durango must overcome bounty hunters, treacherous terrain, a full scale civil war, and a warrior monk with an eye for vengeance (not to mention his own guilt, self-doubt, and broken arm) to find Vienne and free her from Archibald, a brain-washing pyromaniac with a Napoleon complex who wants to rule Mars--and kill Durango in the process.

Review:
Invisible Sun is the sequel to David Macinnis Gill's Black Hole Sun.  Although Black Hole Sun was an enjoyable story, (you can read my original review here) I enjoyed Invisible Sun even more.

The story picks up shortly after Black Hole Sun left off.  Durango and Vienne are on the run from everyone because there's a bounty on their heads.  To hide, the duo goes to Vienne's childhood home  at an ancient monastery.  There Gill introduces us to the monks who raised Vienne who was orphaned.  But where these two go, trouble is never far behind. Soldiers who work for Durango’s old foe, Mr. Lyme, attack and the duo fight them off. Then they try to raid Lyme’s outpost to steal information, but Vienne gets captured, tortured and brainwashed to be a killing machine. Meanwhile Durango is beaten and left for dead. This sets the rest of the story up for Durango, along with the help of some of Vienne's monk family, to rescue her. The result is a fast-paced, edge of your seat thrill ride that mixed action, humor, sorrow, and a hint of romance.

As in Gill's previous book, Invisible Sun also incorporates a mix of foreign jargon and phrases. However, it seemed as if there were fewer phrases, and some of the meanings were more self-evident. Gill also translates the meaning of at least one phrase for readers--thank goodness for supporting characters asking!

This story is a must read for both girls and guys, and will have readers wanting another installment of Durango's story. Gill has definitely wins readers over with his writing style that grips readers and makes the book difficult to put down. If you are interested in trying the sci-fi genre for the first time, I highly recommend Gill's books to help whet your appetite. I generally don't read books set in space--or in this case, Mars--but Gill has made me a fan!

About author David Macinnis Gill:

David Macinnis Gill is the author of the award-winning novels Black Hole Sun and Soul Enchilada, both from Greenwillow/Harper Collins. His short stories have appeared in several magazines, including The Crescent Review and Writer’s Forum. His critical biography of young adult author Graham Salisbury, Graham Salisbury: Island Boy, was published by Scarecrow Press. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English/creative writing and a doctorate in education, both from the University of Tennessee.

He is the Past-President of ALAN (The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) and an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. His non-fiction, book reviews, essays, and academic work have appeared in a variety of publications, including The English Journal, Teacher-Librarian, and many others.

David’s teaching career began in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he was a high school teacher at Brainerd High School and briefly at the Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. He later joined the English Department at Ohio University as an assistant professor. Currently, he is an associate professor of English education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

David has been a house painter, cafeteria manager, bookstore schleper, high school teacher, and college professor. He now lives on the Carolina coast with his family, plus fourteen fish, two rescued dogs--an airebeagle and a border setter--and a nocturnal marsupial.