Song of Scarabaeus

Highly sought-after cypherteck Edie Sha'nim is kidnapped, and mentally leashed to her new bodyguard. To afford the teck's removal, they aboard the Hoi Polloi, whose mission is to collect biocyph from Scarabaeus, a planet that's played a big part in Edie's history. It must say a lot about my personality that characters dying doesn't upset me as much as characters being separated from their stuffed animals. Edie's childhood flashback nearly bloody broke me. Hard sci-fi is not usually my chosen genre, so the ship's set-up and its crew rankings confused my eejit brain. Not to mention all the teck stuff, so I didn't really get sucked in until two-thirds of the way into the novel, when Edie finally gets to Scarabaeus, a planet that's totally effed. After reading, you may have nightmares involving flora and fauna attacking you - seriously, this weird shiz is bloody engrossing. My favourite character by far is navpilot Cat Lancer. She may or may not be evil, but one can't help but be won over when she says, "don't be a dick." I like the way she thinks ;-) Confusing for eejit brains, SONG OF SCARABAEUS is otherwise a fascinating read, with unforgettable, freaky, and frightening moments. Also, I demand more Cat Lancer!