Carole's Monday Review: Skies Over Tomorrow - Constellation - Kelly B Johnson

Author: Kelly B Johnson

Title: Skies Over Tomorrow - Constellation

Genre: Sci-Fi & Short Stories

Pages: 286

Published: July 2004

Where I Got It: My Shelf (Given to me by the author/publisher for my honest and unbiased opinion)

The revised version of the entertaining and astute anthology. Preluding an epic adventure, six short stories highlight the Galactic Federation of Mars as the superpower of the future and showcase life under its rule, and together, reveal an adversity of the imagination with a looming alien invasion.

This is an anthology of six short stories about the future on Mars. For this review, I'll review each short story:

Sailing Home

This one follows Simone. She is ordered to kill this guy and his wife. She has a lot of internal conflicts especially when she finds something out. She is a soldier during the war, but she also is human and taking a life is still not easy for her. However, Burke is right...you gotta do what you are told to do especially during war. I loved the internal conflict tho and it really made me like Simone. This was a good intro into the world. 

5 stars

Alien Femme

This one follows Naomi who is a B human was created by Carmichael in his dead daughters imagine. B humans, at least from my understanding, are pretty much Androids who were created to be human slaves and workers. Naomi is an exception of sorts. I really liked Naomi. At the beginning, I was worried she was going to be weak and be "helpless" when she is separated from her love, but she is actually a badass, so yayy there. Now, I was really confused for the majority of this, but I was intrigued to learn and understand more. I especially want to learn more about B humans. Gah! I hated the ending...I must know what happens next!!!!!!!!

3 stars

Mars Conspiracy

This one mainly follows Felix and Wilkes. Poor Felix and Hoku. I just wanted them to be together. So sad. This was decent at the beginning until the end. The end was so good. I do want to learn more and see what happens next with these characters. I do feel like they are going to play a big role in the future. I do wish this had been a little shorter - it felt too long. 

3 stars.

The Ritual

This story follows Chiera and her gang. I had a hard time following this particular story. I wasn't a huge fan of Chiera...she annoyed me SO much. There was a lot of action going on, which I did enjoy, but the characters and story were meh to me. The ending was intriguing though. 

2 stars (the action-y bits added an extra star).

The Encounters

Now, this one follows Rehana, Vincent, and their crew. I liked Rehana and I am curious to learn more about her. There seemed to be a lot going on externally and in-between the lines. I was confused a lot of the time, but a good confused (if that makes sense). My confusion made me curious to want to know more and see what everything means for the characters. I wish it had been longer so I could get more a better understanding.

3 stars. 

Of Lords and Ladies

This one follows Lady Ayame. This country/society on Mars seems to be different than the other cultures on Mars. It felt more Japanese and more rigid. This society seems to be tougher and more strict on its people. Poor Lady Ayame. It was really sad, but it was really good. I do want to read more about this side of Mars. 

4 stars. 

**Prologue/Epilogue/Art**

First, the prologue was decent. It was a nice way to start. However, I really liked the epilogue and I feel that would've been a good intro to the short stories. Carmichael, I feel, is going to be the main baddie in future stories/books. 

Now..let's look at the art. The author provided some additional drawings at the end of the book. They are pretty good. Better than I can ever do, so I can't be a good judge on this aspect. They are basic and does a good job bringing to life some of the characters and technology of this futuristic world. 

Conclusion

In the end, this was a fun read. I liked the stories and they all showed interesting glimpses of the Mars society. I liked the first and the last stories the best. The rest were okay. I do encourage checking this out if you like Sci-Fi stories. After doing the math, the overall rating I shall give this is....3 stars. 

About Carole the Reviewer

What is there really to say? I am of course a lover of books, poetry, movies, plays, and music. Nothing is better than enjoying a cup of tea and immersing yourself in another world and forgetting about the world for just a little bit. My cat and chinchillas keep me entertained over here in Michigan (the mitten state of the USA). I'm game for any genre of book or movie. You can find me over at Carole Rae's Random Ramblings.