Orbs (A Post Apocalyptic Science Fiction Survival Thriller)

Don't feel like writing a long and in depth review. Don't know why the store forces a word count on reviewes. However - please read this book if you like well written and credible sci fi. Can't wait to read the next installment

Updated - 10 SEP 2014

I heard this book had been "remastered" so I bought a copy to re-check it out. What a difference a good editor makes! I've upped my rating to 5* and would recommend it to any sci-fi/first contact lover.

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Original review

I was attracted to ORBS because of all the buzz I had seen about the book. My feelings were mixed: did I enjoy the story? Yes. Did it live up to the hype? No.

The sci-fi elements were very interesting and held my attention. For that reason alone, I can see why the book has gained attention. The basic premise is that the Earth has been invaded by aliens (presumably from Mars) and they are literally sucking the planet dry, including people, animals, lakes, etc. A small group of people who happened to be in a biosphere during the invasion manage to survive and collect a few children who evaded the aliens.

On the downside, the book needed some better editing and character development. I've seen some posts from the author and it sounds like he is taking constructive feedback seriously for the sequel.

Best of luck to him in his next work.

I tried but I just couldn’t get into this story. I think it had a bit to do with two things first was the writing style. I read one of his earlier books and he didn’t seem to do it as much there but in this book the author definitely over describes situations. For example he uses "wiping the tears out of his young innocent eyes" to over emphasize his point about a young kid when wiping his “tears” would do. Also calling blood someone’s “life force” just seems a bit cheesy to me. Second is nothing is really resolved in this book which is one of my pet peeves. Stop reading here if you don’t want spoilers.

The aliens come and start kicking our butts, the group tries to get off the planet but when that doesn’t work out they just go back to the biome. I felt as if they whole story didn’t really go anywhere, although it did have a ton of action! The epilogue (which I’m not sure how you can have one when the story doesn’t really end) suggests that they’ll start trying to fight back on a grander scale but it pretty much leaves the whole story unfinished.

I found this book to be well written. The subject matter though pure fiction, leads one to think of what life on other worlds may be like. I would recommend this book to others interested in science fiction.

Man, did I get suckered in on this one. In "Orbs" I found I was buying a collection of chapters, not an entire story. Just put the subsequent "Orbs" in one larger book. I suppose the next publishing trick will be to buy individual chapters for 5 cents per chapter, but tell us that what you're doing.

This sci-fi, ORBS, is brilliantly pieced together. It was due to Grampy Lee Ashford's review on Goodreads that sparked me to download it. I can tell everyone now, that Lee does not call it wrong.
I applaud this writer's work and will be interested in reading more. As a general rule, I don't become intrigued by futuristic happenings, but Smith makes me believe that all this is very possible. This book is also very well written.
Roberta Gibson

Uses some well known SciFi themes, some even going all the way back to the original Twilight Zone TV show. It also has some new ideas, as well. It is a good read all the way through. I definitely want to read the next installment.

Not a bad book, but I would have been much more entertained if it hadn't left me hanging at the end. It was at that time that I found it was the first book of a series. Had I been aware of it I probably would not have read it.

Beforing attempting this book my suggestion to you is to read the short prequel called solar storms to get a feel of the auther's style.
The level of dialogue and type of characters are the main reasons I did not enjoy this work. One other review commented that they disliked every character and after finishing the book I understand why. The dialogue I thought would best suit a 14 year old lacking an adult level. The characters are well qualified but fail to ask insightful questions. The selection of a team for the biosphere is not believable and not a good mix of skills. I do not believe this auther's understands science or engineering and this made the characters sound silly.
Yes there is action here and some mystery though for me the above comment made reading this book too frustrating.

I enjoyed reading orbs. I liked the fact that the story was always evolving and it never bogged down in details that just take up space. The writing was clever and kind of scary at times. I could envision the terrible things that happened in the story with ease. A good book, and I am looking forward to book 2.

If I had been able to finished it I would have given it two stars for the concept. But the dialogue, character motivation and characterizations were unendurable. The novel appears to be attempting to capture the feel of a mid-day bad B-movie on cable, which it does quite well. The problem is, while that is passable in a 90 minute movie on a rainy day or a late night of insomnia when nothing better is on, it's hardly something I find enjoyable to spend many hours with in a book.

ORBS is a fast moving captivating Sc-Fi thriller. The science of the book has obviously been well researched and this adds to the enjoyment of the read. This book makes the Green House effect look like a storm in a tea cup. The characters are well developed and this pulls you into the story even more. I especially love the "blue orbs" they are one of the most bad ass and scariest things around. ORBS delivers yet another enthralling read from this major new talent and has me salivating for more.

I found this book to be depressing with no hope for a good ending. This is supposed to be the first book in a series. I will not be buying the 2nd one. I kept thinking that there was some chance of a good outcome for these people. I don't see how there can be even in book two. There should have been some hook at the end of this book that would want you to follow the characters in the future. There wasn't any. Unfortunately, this book was a waste of my time.

An amazing portrayal of life ending as we know it. Never ending action and thrills keep you riveted to the book. The only bad thing is, it's still months away before I can resume the adventure of the last pockets of humanity that might survive against tremendous odds. I don't usually read books that are in a series but I am drawn in now to Sophie and those innocent children that might possibly be the future of human life on Earth

Just when you think you know what’s going to happen the story throws you for a loop. This book is full of suspense and packed full of action. Set in a Biosphere at the decommissioned NORAD facility, the science team is working on a mission when something goes terribly wrong outside. From the beginning you get a sense of this, but you don’t really know until later in the book, when things start to twist and turn.

I loved the characters in this book. Each one plays such a specific role. The author really captured how humans would react in such a disaster. You get to see their transformation as the book progress. From one man who loses his humanity to another that gains it. This book is beautifully written.

It is an interesting story, decent pacing, OK characters, but at times the writing is amateur especially conversations. I am curious to see where the story goes, but not sure I would buy the next book unless I know the writing has improved.

I think myself very lucky to have discovered this author, and found this story a wonderful tale of a possible version of the end of our world. Very well written and displaying enormous imagination. I am looking forward to reading further works from this young author.

The plot in this book is good. Never know what's going to happen next. What's even better though is the characters. Timothy is such a jerk and can be really funny. Sergeant Overton is a badass Marine that breaks through the stereotypical soldier barriers. And Sophie is such a great leader. She cares about the science of the mission but will do anything for her team. Great story. Can't wait for book II.

never been much into syfy and found this book, bought it, read it in one day. Was exciting and frighting. Have to say I cannot wait until the next one comes out! Thank you for the adventure sir, keep writing you are very talented and I have to say as good as Robert Heinlein if not better.
Linda Overman

I liked the short prequel Solar Storms and so was favorably disposed and looking forward to reading Orbs. But promise turned to disappointment as character development stalled, the writing seeming rushed and amateurish, and the plot becoming less and less believable. I don't consider myself highly critical and I sure don't mind suspending disbelief, but there's got to be a nugget of plausibility.

This was an incredible book! I found it very hard to put this book down and am eagerly anticipating the next book due out in January.

It is 48 years in the future and the earth has been blasted with radiation from solar storms, it is dying. A team has been selected to enter a biosphere for 6 months to simulate life on Mars in preparation for starting a colony there. The team is led by Dr. Sophie Winston, a brilliant particle physicist. She is joined by Emanuel Rodriguez, a biologist, Saafi Yool, an engineer, Holly Brown, the team psychologist, Timothy Roberts, the computer specialist, and Alexia, the facility's AI.

After being sealed in the biosphere for just a short time, things start going wrong and then they lose all contact with the outside world. Deciding that something is seriously wrong, they scrap the mission and head outside to see what has happened. What they find is unimaginable!

Nick has painted a vivid story full of wonder, suspense, fear, and horror. I was really drawn into this story. His attention to detail is excellent and his characters fully realized. I can't recommend this book enough!

I found this book to be depressing with no hope for a good ending. This is supposed to be the first book in a series. I will not be buying the 2nd one. I kept thinking that there was some chance of a good outcome for these people. I don't see how there can be even in book two. There should have been some hook at the end of this book that would want you to follow the characters in the future. There wasn't any. Unfortunately, this book was a waste of my time.

An amazing portrayal of life ending as we know it. Never ending action and thrills keep you riveted to the book. The only bad thing is, it's still months away before I can resume the adventure of the last pockets of humanity that might survive against tremendous odds. I don't usually read books that are in a series but I am drawn in now to Sophie and those innocent children that might possibly be the future of human life on Earth

I look first of all for a good story idea. This has it. There's so much scifi out there that's just recycled ideas. This one is fairly original (ok alien invasion isn't new, but what they're after is).
I look second if its well written. This is. Good characters and plausible reactions. Well put together. I'm looking forward to the sequel.

Just when you think you know what’s going to happen the story throws you for a loop. This book is full of suspense and packed full of action. Set in a Biosphere at the decommissioned NORAD facility, the science team is working on a mission when something goes terribly wrong outside. From the beginning you get a sense of this, but you don’t really know until later in the book, when things start to twist and turn.

I loved the characters in this book. Each one plays such a specific role. The author really captured how humans would react in such a disaster. You get to see their transformation as the book progress. From one man who loses his humanity to another that gains it. This book is beautifully written.

It is an interesting story, decent pacing, OK characters, but at times the writing is amateur especially conversations. I am curious to see where the story goes, but not sure I would buy the next book unless I know the writing has improved.

I think myself very lucky to have discovered this author, and found this story a wonderful tale of a possible version of the end of our world. Very well written and displaying enormous imagination. I am looking forward to reading further works from this young author.

The plot in this book is good. Never know what's going to happen next. What's even better though is the characters. Timothy is such a jerk and can be really funny. Sergeant Overton is a badass Marine that breaks through the stereotypical soldier barriers. And Sophie is such a great leader. She cares about the science of the mission but will do anything for her team. Great story. Can't wait for book II.

never been much into syfy and found this book, bought it, read it in one day. Was exciting and frighting. Have to say I cannot wait until the next one comes out! Thank you for the adventure sir, keep writing you are very talented and I have to say as good as Robert Heinlein if not better.
Linda Overman

I liked the short prequel Solar Storms and so was favorably disposed and looking forward to reading Orbs. But promise turned to disappointment as character development stalled, the writing seeming rushed and amateurish, and the plot becoming less and less believable. I don't consider myself highly critical and I sure don't mind suspending disbelief, but there's got to be a nugget of plausibility.

I wish I could like this book. I really do. The concept behind it is sort of interesting, the characters are sort of interesting, the writing is at times sort of competent. But in the end, it all comes down to "sort of." The story borrows rather liberally from a half dozen other, better known - and better - books and movies. At various points in the book, it becomes impossible to NOT picture in your head the scenes from which so much of this tale was obviously lifted. It's almost like bad fan fiction.

Also, most of the characters are non-entities and several who actually possess personalities are so trite and annoying that they make Jar Jar Binks look like Abraham Lincoln. Seriously, if I had to hear the author describe Timothy's "eye roll" one more time, I might have jumped in the novel and killed him myself.

Hemingway once said, "Don't say the woman screamed. Bring her out and let her scream." This book, I'm afraid, is one long description of the woman screaming. By the time I finally bludgeoned my rapidly numbing mind through to the book's finale, I was ready to scream myself.

I found this book to be just ok. I didn't like that each character was the specific caricature of the archetype of their role (the scientist, the marine, etc.). Since the characters were so one dimensional, I had a hard time relating to or caring about them. However, the last third of the book does pick up and I found myself up late reading a couple of times.
With that said, I would recommend this book to a friend if I know that they are a sci-fi fan with the disclaimer that it is nothing more than a decent book with some entertaining parts.

How to begin? With the poor writing or terrible science? Aliens are here to get our water? Does the author know how abundant water is in the Universe, let alone how abundance Hydrogen and Oxygen are? With the terrible characters? One character is an unpleasant, this is repeatedly pointed out, the other characters think he's an unpleasant and are unpleasant to him, later he dies. How's that for creating a character that you're emotionally invested in? The limp plot? The fact that this is book 1 of a series, and the contents of this book could have been laid out in a couple of chapters? Forget the weirdos on the store complaining and one starring whenever a book has the slightest hint that climate change might be a real thing. This book is genuinely bad. Glad I only spent 99 cents on it. Won't be reading the follow-ups.

The story itself I found pretty good, but was very disappointed in the "we destroyed the planet with carbon emissions" theme that kept appearing. I get enough of this pseudo-science in the daily news and read to get away from these things. The story would have been more compelling to me minus this "consensus science"

This book has a great premise but does not deliver on it. The characters are drawn pretty one dimensional without much depth. The aliens are essentially faceless motiveless creatures and you never learn anything about the intelligent forces controlling them. This is a much more micro story when you want a macro event. I was disappointed. I will not be purchasing book 2.

Finished out of obligation. Terrible science, inconsistent story and bad writing. Thankfully the book preview will do a good job outlining these issues so please read first. I wish I did.

Rated two stars since it is still a good effort, but definitely feels lazy.

This book is readable but only just. The writing is a little redundant and the plot is ok but has some issues. I'm not sure I like the characters much. I think with a little more editing it could be pretty good.

But failed to fulfill. It would have been better if they hadn't had so many adventures outside of the bio-dome. Also, why were they trying to go to Mars? Why would you leave on dying planet for one that is already dead?

This is full of things that make me crazy:

- a location was "deafly quiet", rather than deathly
- the aliens blood was 80% water, but the rest was "made of ions" - clear lack of understanding of remotely scientific terms
- the plot has people healing from deep wounds in a day or two, various violent scenes that serve little purpose, and appears to have been written for a sci-fi channel movie

It's pretty bad, even at the price I paid.

Reads like a video game script. Poor characterization and no relationship development. I had no sympathy for, or empathy with, any of the characters. Luminous blue aliens in several different forms, really? It reminded me of Halo.
Dreadful and unoriginal!

Alright, ask my wife, it's not everyday I get to say I was right about something. I told you to keep your eyes on Nicholas Sansbury Smith, that he'd be coming back, and that this time he'd be bringing the thunder. Well I was right, and its name is Orbs!
I took note of the amount of detail Nicholas put into this book. It just SCREAMS research, which I truly appreciate. I'm intimidated on merely the thought of trying to scramble a story like this together and having it be even half as believable. Nicholas was not intimidated, in fact he took the challenge head-on! And it really paid off in the end.
This story reminded me instantly of Arthur C. Clarke's 2001 A Space Odyssey, even down to the AI; and then there's this sudden shift when the story takes a more military angle. I love to be kept guessing. That much is an art Nicholas Sansbury Smith is mastering and mastering well.

I really wanted to like this book, a great idea but it was let down by clunky dialogue and a really unlikeable female lead. Parts of the book are very descriptive, but others leave you feeling like you need to know more. I've read a lot of sci-fi recently and this felt below par.

Our civilization is wiped out overnight by aliens, but it generates hardly any emotion at all from these cardboard characters. The small team of survivors bumble through the rest of the story that sets up the premise for a sequel.

I wish I could like this book. I really do. The concept behind it is sort of interesting, the characters are sort of interesting, the writing is at times sort of competent. But in the end, it all comes down to "sort of." The story borrows rather liberally from a half dozen other, better known - and better - books and movies. At various points in the book, it becomes impossible to NOT picture in your head the scenes from which so much of this tale was obviously lifted. It's almost like bad fan fiction.

Also, most of the characters are non-entities and several who actually possess personalities are so trite and annoying that they make Jar Jar Binks look like Abraham Lincoln. Seriously, if I had to hear the author describe Timothy's "eye roll" one more time, I might have jumped in the novel and killed him myself.

Hemingway once said, "Don't say the woman screamed. Bring her out and let her scream." This book, I'm afraid, is one long description of the woman screaming. By the time I finally bludgeoned my rapidly numbing mind through to the book's finale, I was ready to scream myself.

I found this book to be just ok. I didn't like that each character was the specific caricature of the archetype of their role (the scientist, the marine, etc.). Since the characters were so one dimensional, I had a hard time relating to or caring about them. However, the last third of the book does pick up and I found myself up late reading a couple of times.
With that said, I would recommend this book to a friend if I know that they are a sci-fi fan with the disclaimer that it is nothing more than a decent book with some entertaining parts.

How to begin? With the poor writing or terrible science? Aliens are here to get our water? Does the author know how abundant water is in the Universe, let alone how abundance Hydrogen and Oxygen are? With the terrible characters? One character is an unpleasant, this is repeatedly pointed out, the other characters think he's an unpleasant and are unpleasant to him, later he dies. How's that for creating a character that you're emotionally invested in? The limp plot? The fact that this is book 1 of a series, and the contents of this book could have been laid out in a couple of chapters? Forget the weirdos on the store complaining and one starring whenever a book has the slightest hint that climate change might be a real thing. This book is genuinely bad. Glad I only spent 99 cents on it. Won't be reading the follow-ups.

The story itself I found pretty good, but was very disappointed in the "we destroyed the planet with carbon emissions" theme that kept appearing. I get enough of this pseudo-science in the daily news and read to get away from these things. The story would have been more compelling to me minus this "consensus science"

This book has a great premise but does not deliver on it. The characters are drawn pretty one dimensional without much depth. The aliens are essentially faceless motiveless creatures and you never learn anything about the intelligent forces controlling them. This is a much more micro story when you want a macro event. I was disappointed. I will not be purchasing book 2.

Finished out of obligation. Terrible science, inconsistent story and bad writing. Thankfully the book preview will do a good job outlining these issues so please read first. I wish I did.

Rated two stars since it is still a good effort, but definitely feels lazy.

This book is readable but only just. The writing is a little redundant and the plot is ok but has some issues. I'm not sure I like the characters much. I think with a little more editing it could be pretty good.

But failed to fulfill. It would have been better if they hadn't had so many adventures outside of the bio-dome. Also, why were they trying to go to Mars? Why would you leave on dying planet for one that is already dead?

This is full of things that make me crazy:

- a location was "deafly quiet", rather than deathly
- the aliens blood was 80% water, but the rest was "made of ions" - clear lack of understanding of remotely scientific terms
- the plot has people healing from deep wounds in a day or two, various violent scenes that serve little purpose, and appears to have been written for a sci-fi channel movie

It's pretty bad, even at the price I paid.

Reads like a video game script. Poor characterization and no relationship development. I had no sympathy for, or empathy with, any of the characters. Luminous blue aliens in several different forms, really? It reminded me of Halo.
Dreadful and unoriginal!

Alright, ask my wife, it's not everyday I get to say I was right about something. I told you to keep your eyes on Nicholas Sansbury Smith, that he'd be coming back, and that this time he'd be bringing the thunder. Well I was right, and its name is Orbs!
I took note of the amount of detail Nicholas put into this book. It just SCREAMS research, which I truly appreciate. I'm intimidated on merely the thought of trying to scramble a story like this together and having it be even half as believable. Nicholas was not intimidated, in fact he took the challenge head-on! And it really paid off in the end.
This story reminded me instantly of Arthur C. Clarke's 2001 A Space Odyssey, even down to the AI; and then there's this sudden shift when the story takes a more military angle. I love to be kept guessing. That much is an art Nicholas Sansbury Smith is mastering and mastering well.

I really wanted to like this book, a great idea but it was let down by clunky dialogue and a really unlikeable female lead. Parts of the book are very descriptive, but others leave you feeling like you need to know more. I've read a lot of sci-fi recently and this felt below par.

Our civilization is wiped out overnight by aliens, but it generates hardly any emotion at all from these cardboard characters. The small team of survivors bumble through the rest of the story that sets up the premise for a sequel.

I'm not sure who proofread your book but I would get a second or maybe third before publishing. Aside from the grammatical errors, the book had plenty of action and adventure. However it also had many plot holes and cheesy explanations to attempt to fill them. Too many convenient coincidences make the story a little too far fetched even for science fiction. It's also obvious that you didn't go far beyond physics 101 which was very obvious of your understanding of batteries and power sources. You should also look up the definition of an ion and realize that it isn't the catch all of your unanswered questions.

The author may have done a writing course, but he needs more advice and a good editor. There was incredibly clunky writing - "plump lips" (dropped in as a description for no particular reason); lots of eye colours being thrown around; her ears "perked up" - really?; '"wake up" he screamed' (he screamed??? a second later he is just stroking her shoulder, it was only a nightmare. Several people scream things), everyone seems to have "chills" for various reasons. There are many many examples. Then there are the oddities like "deafly silent" - I don't know if he is trying to coin a new phrase, but it seemed more like an error. On top of that there are many typos.....I did quite like the "titled" head, which should have been "tilted".

The story itself is workmanlike if very derivative, but it did feel a bit like "but wait, there's more!" as the various aliens are explained and then the next level up appears - OMG another worse one!!!!!! And I've seen most of them in other books or movies notwithstanding their blue glow. He tries something different in having a female lead, but for some reason has to keep pointing out over and over that she is a good leader, rather than just letting it happen (and of course she's very good looking, as is the only other female character - strangely, the guys are not extremely handsome).

I finished it, but that's really about me rather than the book. I nearly stopped reading after the first few pages when the descriptions were driving me crazy. I almost gave it one star, but then thought as a story it works, it's just really badly done.

This story is inventive, but there is a constant influx of the author chiming in with climate change drivel, how humans have damaged the planet, blah blah in some sort of a poorly veiled attempt at political commentary.
The characters are not well developed outside of the main scientist (the soldiers are very cliche)

I did finish the book and wanted to see how the story progressed, so not a bad read at all.

I thought the book was poorly paced. Things went fast that could have taken time and vice versa. Overall I like a little more science in my science fiction; I'd guess the author was more of a liberal arts student than a hard science student. The author also appears to have little familarity with weapons and shooting. Properly trained shooters do not "massage" the trigger in anticipation.

All in all I enjoyed reading the book but agree with many of the criticisms posted by others. In particular the lack of science that made any sort of sense really challenges a readers will to believe. In particular the fact that water is so abundant throughout the universe makes it difficult to understand why the aliens are bothering to harvest it from earth. I kept waiting for an explanation but it never came and this was a huge plot issue for me.

On the plus side I thought the pacing was very good, hopefully with more experience the author will rectify some of the issues with characterisation, plot holes, etc in subsequent books.

This is an awful, awful book, if for no other reason nothing anyone does makes any sense. The decide it will be easier to fly to Mars on a ship that is supposedly not ready to go with no one trained to make to make the flight to survive on a dead planet, verse the dying but not yet dead earth. I am pretty die hard on finishing a book once I start it but these characters where so poorly conceived and written with a plot full of holes so big the alien super crafts could fly through I just couldn't finish the book. Don't waist your time or money on this let alone encourage such a bad writer.

The scientist here just like in Prometheus are suppose to be the top of their field but appear to be really bad at their jobs. 1st off they just stand around like idiots as their live stock kills itself. They took no actions to attempt to save the live stock goats as they ram their head into the wall over and over. Goat known for ramming thing, so it would have taken them awhile to kill themselves this way, so why not give the animals sedatives? put a bail of hay between it and the wall? or try holding it down at least? but now even the live stock expert just stood around watching. And earlier the chickens had killed themselves off mysteriously and no one thought to put a watch on the rest of the live stock.

Then after the chicken where all dead, the goat ect....ect... no one thought it would be a good idea to examine the dead animals, store them in the freezer. They didn't even debate if the animal might not be safe to eat or save for a last resort food source and food was a very big issue in the story, even as the animals were killing themselves. This was a minor plot issue but shows how the author didn't think anything out or follow through what even the most common sense actions the characters would have taken. Making them all 2 dimension, horrible at their jobs and often just story plot device to add mean less conflict.

I tried to like this book, I really did. It was only 99 cents, so I tried to cut it some slack. The concept intrigued me, and the idea had so much promise. But the execution of the idea left me wanting a better written story. The main character is annoying, the computer (excuse me A.I., artificial intelligence) needs reprogramming to actually be helpful, and the rest of the characters just seem to take up stereotypical space. The science also confounded me. The aliens had no problem depleting the human body of water, but they couldn't seem to process sea water efficiently. People and sea water share a similar level of salinity. I won't even mention typos, but I understand everyone can't afford a good proof reader. That could be forgiven if the story had entranced me. I forced myself to finish the book. It was like reading a textbook for a class I hated. I paid for it, so I was going to finish it doggone it! When I finally finished it and discovered there was going to be a part 2 I simply got mad. I was hoping this dismal little ride was over. But it will be over for me. I can't bring myself to suffer through part 2. I don't understand the rave reviews, unless they are written by people that don't read a lot of science fiction or horror, and don't understand how its supposed to flow. I hated to rate this two stars, but I couldn't allow others to be sucked in by the rave reviews like I was.

One dimensional characters. Linear plot. Unnecessary and unrealistic dialogue. The premise had some promise, but without any real science to back it up, it's just a bit silly.

****Don't be duped by the professional reviewers: http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2008/01/who_is_grady_harp.html

Absolutely horrific! Spend your money elsewhere. I am convinced most of the reviews regarding this book are fake. Its simply impossible considering the quality of this work.

The writing is horrendous using only the most basic vocabulary (does the author even know the word vocabulary?). Generally in the story some things simply doesn't make sense and does not even appear plausible: why is a particle physicist leader of a Mars mission? How is a biologist also an expert in farming? What on is the purpose of a computer programmer on the mission? There are also several basic mistakes regarding time and position of physical things that were previously moved elsewhere. Many clichés and the author misses every possible opportunity he has to build up some tension.

I won't make the mistake of reading a Nicolas Sansbury Smith attempted novel again (because its not a real novel). The good reviews are fake!!!!

The storyline kept me very interested in what was going to happen next. The only problem I had was one characters need to lord it over everyone who was in charge. This made some parts of the book impossible to think people in a catastrophic event willing to be bossed by a child sometimes.

Maybe the Andromeda Strain, Jurassic Park or Sphere. Heck try Timeline or Congo. Similar basic plot idea with isolated scientists trying to figure out a mystery without the parade of bad science. Also these, at least, function as science fiction.

The first half of the book is so filled with scientific inaccuracy and unmotivated character development it's hard to concentrate on the story. Every other paragraph I read something that was so witlessly wrong, I couldn't take the narrative seriously.

No interesting ideas are explored. It's pure survival science fiction without any believable evidence that these people are clever enough or trained enough to survive. We're just told they're clever. They don't do anything clever.

The author is clearly a scientific illiterate. You'll find a diverse team consisting of a "particle physicist," a "biologist," an "engineer," a "compute programmer" and a "psychologist." They are one of the world's top "science teams." These people don't have any specialties in their fields and there's no development of them beyond their labels. They don't do anything interesting inside their fields. The heroine several times brags that she can handle some task or other because of her PhD in particle physics (at one point she mans a helicopter's radar system based on this credential). They could have been anything and done anything. Any scientific sounding ideas are random terms strung together. The alien blood is 80% water and 20% ions! Ah HA!

The principal motive of the antagonist is moronic. The given reason they feel the need to systematically take out humans is ridiculous and could be refuted by a junior high school student comparing two easily accessible estimates. (SPOLIER: The motive of the aliens is to steal the Earth's water. The reason they're taking humans is to get every last drop. Compare the volume of water in the oceans with the amount of water in animal matter.)

Finally, there are a number of plot points that are raised and never explored. EMP pulses used to take out China's industry. Why is this important to the story? I'd list more but I am getting tired.

Don't bother.

Its poorly written. The author fails to follow one of the cardinal rules of fiction writing - show, don't tell. Thus its very difficult to get immersed in the story. This was distracting enough that I didn't finish the book.

This here's a book that will having you counting the writing errors before you get out of the desert. And about half the dialog in this book should have made it into the final draft. You're paying 99 cents, don't complain too much.

The plot was ridiculous, characters were cartoon like, and the writing was painful at times. If I had to guess I'd imagine the author's sole experience with science and technology and literature came from watching episodes of X-Files and The Fringe.

The adult version of the fifth wave ?! Yup, I'm echoing what others have already said. This book is the adult version of the fifth wave. Packed full of suspense and action, you never really know what will happen next. Several times I found myself thinking, no way, which is pretty rare for me when I read a book. This book is also really scary in parts. The author gives you just enough detail about the aliens to frighten the reader. Superb !

Where to begin? Characters? Awful character development - so terrible I was rooting for the worms. Science? An eight-year-old could figure out how much nonsense was embedded in the science. And there is more to the series? Does the author have that many relatives? I would rtaher chew my leg off than attempt to finish this "book."

I don't even have the energy to review this book. The mindlessness of the plot, the paper thin characters, it's a miracle I finished it. I was pulling for the aliens to eliminate them and put an end to the story, an old yarn about aliens coming to earth to steal our water. Apparently, cometary water is just too bothersome.

Storyline Concept was great, the story itself was totally unbelievable. Characters (especially the lead character) are total rejects (scientists specially selected to save humanity!?!) Reads like a teeny bopper novel...

I picked up this gem for 99 cents after reading the free prequel Solar Storms. I was impressed with the concept of the Biomere project and definitely didn't see the twist coming. This book kept me up late...I couldn't put it down! This is hands down one of the best books I've had the pleasure to read. I am definitely looking forward to the sequel. The plot was well thought out and the characters were interesting. The writing was clean and free of glaring errors. I think I owe the store money. This clearly should have cost me more money!

Even from the beginning, a helicopter that can withstand 350 mph winds but not fly over a storm, a women (or anyone) trying to demand pilot gets the through while being buffeted around, its pretty much same stuff throughout.
I finished it, skipping through a lot, but not a fan.
sorry

Definitely skip this. I'm more than a little convinced that any positive reviews are from friends and family of the author and/or paid for. There is potential for this to be a good story, but WOW does it fall flat!

There is nothing resembling character development anywhere in the book. The characters aspire to become stereo types but are never developed past a rough outline of what a poorly written stereotypical scientist/marine/computer nerd/shrink would be like. It's even worse that the author feels the need to repeatedly slap you in the face with how one dimensional the characters are with the constant use of "and then the marine training/analytical scientist side/generic job assigned to character/etc training kicked in."

It's also painfully clear that the author did not feel the need to do any sort of research other than watching some late night B movies. The "science" is so awful it literally jars you out of reading the book to re-read things and try to figure out how the generic scientist character so clearly failed junior high science class. The most glaring example is the discovery that the alien blood is "80% water and 20% isotope". I'm not kidding. I'm not making this up or exaggerating to express how badly written this book is, the scientist characters comment repeatedly on the alien blood being 80% water and %20 isotope. Apparently the author never bothered to look up what isotope means and figured it was so science-y no one else would know what it meant either.

If you can get past the wireframe characters and total lack of anything resembling an understanding of basic science you still have to suffer through the "cutting room floor of a made for 2am TV movie" action sequences. Actually, I should say sequence, seeing as the "military guy runs out of bullets in rifle so he throws it away instead of reloading and pulls out his trusty old pistol TO BLOW GINOURMOUS HOLES IN BADGUYS WITH HIS .45!!!" of the first encounter just gets copied and pasted into each subsequent encounter.

These are just a very small sample of the problems with this book. The only reason I finished it is because I decided to get really stubborn about it and made it a challenge to myself to finish it. As much as I love the concept of authors self publishing, this is a prime example of why professional editors are needed out there to step in and say "yah...about this........you REALLY need to do some basic research on the subjects you're trying to include and rewrite...ummm....all of it."

Feminine, childlike fears and viewpoints, ponderous action with annoying descriptions of the demise of the peripheral inhabitants of Earth witnessed by the protagonist. Underlying themes of big government betrayal and abandonment opposed by a motherhood theme.

If I were to rate this relative to its niche of self-published, ebook-only sci-fi, I would probably give this book 3 stars. But I have rated it relative to the science fiction genre (traditionally published or otherwise), where it only receives one. The lack of competent editing and fact checking appears every few pages: enough to take one's attention away from whatever may be enjoyable in the plot or characterization.

Horrible!! Made myself finish this book just so I could review it. If you need descriptions on how far a chill goes down someone's spine in order to know just how horrified, scared or disgusted a character is then this is the book for you. I already didn't like the protagonist while she was traveling to the scene of the rest of the book. Requires A LOT of editing and for the author to take responsibility for rereading the manuscript at least once and making sure the parts together actually add up.

There is a chill going down 3/4 of the way down my spine at the thought of reading the 2nd book in this series.

I think this book might be better for less hard science fiction fans. My issue early on is that the dialogue was not convincing and the whole issue of psychic animals turned me off. There is no such thing as paranormal and brains are not wired to receive information telepathically.

The premise of solar flares was fine, the idea of going to Mars excited me. But I was hoping for a more credible scientific description of both instead of vague descriptions.

I'm a bit miffed the store recommended this to me.

Good on Nicholas Sansbury for writing something that was bought by a publisher.
Bad for us that the publisher sold and distributed "Orbs".
Generally I like bad sci-fi, but this book is practically unreadable. I got half-way though it before I decided I just could not stomach anymore. The characters are flatter than flat, the dialogue comes with an extra helping of cheese, and the writing style varies so wildly that it's distracting. Mr. Sansbury seems to have a serious problem with keeping a consistent narrative voice/perspective within the novel that makes any sort of logical sense and ultimately allows the flawed storytelling to overwhelm what could have been a good idea.
Just avoid it. You're much better off.

If you like those SYFY channel movies, you know, the ones produced by the SYFY channel, then you will like this book. Me? Not so much. There is definitely an audience for those type of "B" movies, and according to the reviews this book received, there is an audience for this type of book too.

To be honest, I got half way through this and just couldn't finish. The scientist didn't speak or act like scientist. The military guys didn't act like the military (well, one chapter they would, the next, not). Even the AI didn't speak or think like a computer would. I knew I was in trouble when I got to the part where the AI was in first person and it sounded dumbed down and not as smart as a hyper intelligence should be.

I don't understand how some could say this story had good character development. To each his own I guess. But I found the dialogue flat and unbelievable. And, if you read this book, you'll understand this statement: Everyone doesn't squeeze through doors!! It makes it sound like they are rushing through the door before it's fully open. That drove me crazy! Everyone was "squeezing" through the door! And the story itself? Just because something has a different twist to an old story doesn't make it a good (or interesting) idea. I can't really go into detail about the story because, as I said, I didn't even finish it, so I'm not sure if they really were Martians like we are lead to believe. Martians? Really?

I love SF books and end of the world themes are really cool. This book is SF and has an end of the world theme, but it's so not cool. So, I hope that this review will give some balance to all the 5 star reviews. Maybe you'll find that this book is between my "1" and their "5". But I for one couldn't even finish this.

I don't understand all the 5 star reviews. Interesting concept, but the writing is stilted, formal and overly full of data. "He scowled in the darkness. His face was hardly recognizable in the faint light, but Sophie’s vision was near 20/ 20 and she caught the look." "He set the helmet down and reached for the small pack on his back to retrieve one of his canteens and a power bar. It only took a minute for him to devour the chocolate and polish off half of the water." I believe that is at least the 20th power bar we have had the pleasure of reading about.

I don't know how many times I was told that someone didn't know what to do then their training kicked in like it always had in the past when they were in hopeless situations and (sha-zaam) they do something amazing and, thanks to their basic training instructor, survive the no-escape situation. umm.. "Basic" training.. is.. well, basic and not a reasonable crutch for why something happened to an "experienced middle-aged soldier".

I hate to give up on it, but I'm skipping pages at a time, hoping, just hoping that what I learned in basic training and my 20/20 vision will not turn into hindsight because they always say hindsight is 20/20 and this situation appears hopeless so then I was brought back to the moment by the realization that I'm purposefully forcing myself to write a review in the style of the book...

It did just occur to me that this book wold be great for someone with no short-term memory as nearly all of the aspects that drive me bonkers would be new information (over and over and over) presented to the reader.

YMMV

I'm so sorry this book has gotten so many positive reviews because it will only encourage this author to write more. However it shows to what a deplorable extent ignorance and illiteracy have become in our country. The beginning of the book has a lot of small errors that I attributed to poor transcription (typos, missing articles such as a, the, etc.) but reading further along I could see that the errors and atrocious writing belong to the author. Furthermore, MRIs do not use lasers and in at least two instances the "blood rushed to the head upon standing." OMG! He doesn't even know basic human physiology. I won't go into all my criticisms as other reviewers have done a good job of pointing them out. This the first one star review I've given a book. Please Mr. Smith, take more time to grow up and acquire more life experiences before you attempt another book.

I can't fathom how the other reviews are so glowing. Obviously a victim of the the store conspiracy to boost sales through these manifesto-style reviews, which are obviously motivated by getting free product from the store. I used to be a secret shopper, and was booted from the program after a certain percentage of bad reviews. The author means well, but the dialogue is hokey at best, there's a lot of holes in various parts of the story, and frankly, I just couldn't finish this book. Reading it on a plane will keep you from thinking about a firery crash, but that's about all its good for.

I stopped reading after 6% according to my e-reader. During a helicopter flight through a dust storm the pilot says "we're losing hydraulic pressure by the second." A few minutes later with the storm supposedly past, the pilot makes radio contact with the base and says ".... prepare for landing. Over." Never another mention of the loss of hydraulic pressure!

Later the heroine thinks to herself, "Science was a way for her to control her destiny, from an experiment in her lab to and article on quantum physics." I have no idea what that statement means and I have a masters in mechanical engineering!

Then we have the cracks in the helicopter windshield from the storm which had been life threatening now while still 15 minutes from the base, that were suddenly "nothing more than an afterthought." After landing safely at a base, there is an encounter with an entirely unbelievable CEO of a NCT- "one of the most powerful men on Earth-- and on Mars..." -- who comes across as a 12 year old jerk might.

Don't bother buying this book.

I do try to be lenient with self-published authors, but I have to say this book was awful. It has bad, bad science, choppy, weak narration and dialogue, shallow, unlikable characters and typos galore and other editing errors.

It's honestly about the kind of writing you'd expect from a high school student who lacked an Internet connection to easily fact-check vital plot points to ensure some degree of plausibility.

Abandoned it 10% because I just couldn't take it any more.

This book is supposed to be a science fiction novel. It's not. The author only has a marginal understanding of basic scientific principals. Aliens who are after our water, and humans escaping the desert left behind to flee to...Mars? It just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Very little research was put into the book. Regardless of whether you agree with the author's obvious views about global warming, this is a very poorly written book.

This was one of those books that you really want to like but just end up being frustrated and disappointed with. Based on the overall rating I really expected more. First, its full of holes. (Trees have more water than people do...) Characters are unlikeable. (One guy we're supposed to like takes joy and laughs when he breaks another guy's jaw for whining. If he's breaking jaws for whining he should start with the main character. She's completely worthless. And finally the writing isn't that good. I don't know how many times we have to read about how something sent a shiver down or up someone's spine. And Nick, when people talk, they contract their verbs. Oh yeah, you don't get the payoff of the promise in the set up of the book, but you do get to look forward to another book to try and make up for this one.

Admittedly I only managed the first few pages so I can't speak to plot or character development , but I'm fairly sure it won't matter.

Author needs a real editor to reign in the high school essay hyperbole. And he might want to read Orwell or Hemingway and rules of STOP HYPERBOLE

Dang.

I have read some good science fiction written by authors who did not have a science background. Such is not the case here. Orbs has so many issues in the "science" used to frame the story that I won't bother to detail them here, suffice it to say that basis for the story approaches the ludicrous. Good writing or a good story could still have salvaged this, but, alas, these are missing as well. The human characters are shallow stereotypes that engender little empathy, and the aliens are cartoonish monsters that lend no believably to the story.
I won't waste my time on future efforts by this author, and I recommend you not waste yours on this very weak work. There are many good and some excellent writers to be found on the pages of the store, Mr Smith is not one of them.

Title: Orbs - Book 1
Author: Nicholas Sansbury Smith
Publisher: Simon & Schuester
Published: 5-6-2014
Pages: 328
Genre: Science Fiction
Sub-Genre: Colonization; Alien Invasion; Thriller
ISBN: 9781476788951
ASIN: B00K3NEE6K
Reviewed For: NetGalley and Simon & Schuester
Reviewer: DelAnne
Rating: 4.5 Stars

Intense, absorbing science fiction thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat. Set in the near future, in the year 2061, Earth is dying from the abuse mankind has fostered on it. Scientist from around the world have gathered to ready transportation to Mars where they plan to colonize. Shortly after they begin a disturbance interrupts their work. When they venture outside their dome they find all humans have disappeared and with their departure they find the water vanished as well.

For those looking for a new author and series check out Nicholas Sansbury Smith's series Orbs. This is the first of his books that I have read and was surprised to find it intriguing. It will draw your in as Nicholas Sansbury Smith uses words to draw you pictures of the scenes of desolation and the fight for survival. The farther you get into the book the better it becomes.

My rating of Orbs is 4.5 out of 5 stars.

I had read Trackers series by author and thought I would give this a try, I really liked the Tracker series so I figured I would enjoy this series. I just finished book 1 and Wow, Wow, great, could not put it down. Non-Stop action and great characters. I am now on to book two and I highly recommend this if you liked Independence day and other similar stories. Loved this one. I live in colorado so I love all the local settings.

Orbs is a fun book that I read through quickly and enjoyed. As with all of the other books I read by this author, this is a book with great characters that leap out from the page and always feel real. The pace and the action were great as well. The book moved along at a fast pace and overall this was a very enjoyable read. This author always writes quality books and this is no exception. I highly recommend this book and everything the author writes.

Orbs by Nicholas Sansbury Smith – Orbs is a alien invasion story with a different twist. The aliens send down their worker bees but we never see the brains behind the invasion. What we do see is a small group of people who get much more than they signed up for. They are working very hard to survive and everything seems to be going against them. Don’t look for a solution to the invasion. This is book one in the series and while there is a small hope they can destroy the invaders it is very small. This is a tension filled story where the action drives the characters. Most things are still up in the air at the end of the book. I hope that book two comes out soon as I want to see how they destroy the invaders and retrieve what has been stolen.

“If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans.”
― Stephen Hawking

I stole that quote for a reason. Read the book. This story rather freaked me out, on several levels. One we have the solar storm issue. Which folks is a very real issue for us down here on Earth. The other would be Aliens. Yes with a capital A. I find that as I get older, zombies, vampires,ghouls,ghosts,werewolves etc all aren't terribly mind numbing, soul reaching scary. We got them critters and know what to do.But Aliens on the other hand....all we have is speculation...our own imagination....we know nothing. (to quote a character from another series)And that folks is mind numbing soul reaching terrifying. We know nothing. That is scary. And there are some good Alien moments in this book.

One of the scariest movies for me ever is War of the Worlds. Both versions. They scare me to this day. I watch with the pillow over my face. That is how I wanted to read this book....

And I look very forward to the follow up book...I hope I need to read it with a pillow over my face!!

First, I'd like to mention that I received a free printed version without any mention from the author for a review, but how could I not write one?

I'm a fan of alien stories, no matter if they come in peace or not, so when I stumble upon this one, I was eager to read it. It didn't disappoint. I loved the book, the story, the idea behind the story. This science fiction left me wondering about such a possibility of alien invasion. I don't think I'll ever look at the sky, at the lakes, or at the sea, the same way ever again.

The first few chapters were a bit hard for me to get into, although never once did I feel like stop reading the book. I'd say maybe it was more of a case of me not being patient enough and wanted to know what the orbs were, what the picture on the cover really meant. In other word, it was a case of not being able to read fast enough.

I love the characters with Overton being my favorite. The nickname he has for all kids, ankle biters, also made me smile. Overall a great read, with lots of action, lots of dangerous situations, unexpected deaths. I've caught myself thinking more than once that this would make a great movie. I'd recommend this book to any fan of science-fiction, or apocalypse.

Wow, I've never read a book where I've disliked ALL of the characters and hated the protagonist. This story begins with the main character acting like a self centered, egotistical, nasty beyotch and from that point on I rooted against her. Besides that I just couldn't get into the story. Drags in places, boring in others. Sorry, I usually never give a bad review, but this one aggravated me and I'd like to save others from the same experience. Good premise, which is why I bought the book, but not worth the money.

I found this series to be a very imaginative and fresh telling of the invasion of the Earth by extraterrestrial forces bent on taking Earths resources for themselves. Nicholas Sansbury Smith has the ability through his writing to create vibrant images of the world as aliens literally suck the planet dry... fields of blue glowing orbs where humans are "farmed" to sustain the alien menace, biospheres that contain the last remnants of human civilization, and the desolation left behind when forests, lakes, rivers, and oceans are gone. A few groups of desperate survivors endeavor to find ways to fight back while searching for a way off the Earth. If you enjoy escaping into an adventure that will keep you coming back to see what happens next, you should read this series.

Quite amateurish writing. As mentioned by others, there were several typos and overall wordiness and bland writing. But what bothered me most was the shifting point of view--the author jumped from one POV to another at will without any logical transition. I suspended my disbelief, trying to see why the author chose such a jumpy omniscient POV, but then he went into first person and that's when he lost me--how can you go from third to first person? Half-way through, I still wasn't sure who the main character was nor who I should care about.

Recycled characters (big bad woman trying to prove herself in a male dominated world), recycled plot (aliens coming to consume our natural resources), with poor writing. Don't bother.

AMAZING STORY! BUT let me say, that I am not an alien fan, sorry, normally it just is not my thing. I read this, because I have read other books by this Author, and they were so good, I figured I would give it a try. I started reading, and I was skeptical at best, and that did not last long at all. The story starts off, and I was instantly drawn in. Everything is so well written, characters, plot, action scenes, that I finished this book in two days, and then bought, and started book two right away, because, I need to know what happens! Great book, and even if aliens are not your thing, or perhaps they are, don't miss this series!

I'm a sucker for anything in the science fiction genre that includes aliens. Especially if those aliens are blue, bioluminescent monsters with unique designs and an even more unique method of harvesting the water from our little blue planet. I've seen many sci-fi movies where extraterrestrial beings come down seeking to steal humanity's most important resource, but the way these "Organics" go about it is much more terrifying and gut-wrenching than anything I've seen, or rather read, before.

ORBS, while it does have a few faults here and there as many books do, is a wonderfully written piece of fiction that provides a reasonably fast-paced, easy read that will grip you from the very start. There was even a few changes in point-of-view and tense during one characters time in the spotlight -- from third-person past-tense to first-person present-tense -- and it did not yank me out of the story even a little bit. It fit surprisingly well considering the change, and I give props to Nicholas for being able to pull that off flawlessly.

Speaking of characters, Nicholas' cast are enjoyable and well-developed bunch, though perhaps not as diverse as I would have liked. However, I was glad to see their individuality starting to show much more near the end of the book. And if I had to pick a favourite, it would have to be Sophie. She reminds me very much of one of my own characters -- Headstrong, doesn't take s*** from anybody, and is very confident in her talents. Coming close in second would be Ash Overton. Admittedly, when he first appeared I was worried he would become one of these stereo-typical soldiers you see often encounter in science fiction, but he quickly erased all of my worries.

To round off my review, I would absolutely love to see this book turned into a movie -- even more so after being given the chance by Nicholas to create some illustrations related to it. I really do hope to see it on the big screen some day, because I'm confident it would be a massive hit!

I live NSS' books. This one was a great book and great story. Like all of his books, there are moments of joy, fear, horror, anger, relief, and elation. It is an emotional roller coaster. The AI is the stand out character in this series.

Tedious. Predictable. 2D characters that are hardly skin deep. Read several chapters and gave up and downloaded 2312 which is superb and Wool which is interesting and different and crafted carefully. Everything that Orbs is not which is great. If I was 13 again I'd probably finish it.

This was a really good read. The characters were developed well without the use of lengthy, explanatory narration. The action was non-stop, and the story sucked me in. The story was mostly unpredictable for me which kept me wanting to read more. There were a few typographical errors in the Kindle version, but they were true typographical errors, not misspellings or poor grammar. I am hooked on this series, and looking forward to reading the next book.

Update August 9, 2014: I also read the Simon and Schuster version of this book, and I think it is better than the indie version. It incorporates some of the background from the prequel and eliminated a couple of hard to believe scenes. There were also some additional scenes which I think helped the story (but I don't want to spoil the story, so no details!). I highly recommend this book, and am waiting for book 2.

I haven't read many post apocalyptic thrillers, at least ones that didn't include some sort of zombie. This story took a bit getting into but about half of the way through it got interesting for me. I like it when a story keeps me guessing.

Truth be told the characters took a bit of getting used to. And there were also times when I thought the AI was going to go homicidal on the crew. Apart from perhaps one or two people there wasn't much character development. There was even a point where the author tried giving the AI a voice of its own for the sake of calling it evolution. This was a part in which the story felt lacking. With the length of the story it would have helped to have more fleshed out characters than our protagonist.

Nothing extraordinary happened and I suppose this book was going for a more realistic approach to an invasion but because the story takes a while to pick up your patience will be tested to finish it.

The entire book revolves around the destruction of the planet happened because a conservative administration covered up a coming solar storm due to their "global warming denial". I will demand a refund, even though it was on $2.....don't waste your money unless you like left wing politics sprinkled throughout a Sci-Fi story.

Iowa author Nicholas Sansbury Smith, a movie star handsome young man whose extracurricular activities include a passion for racing in midwestern triathlons, has been gradually entering the world of literary art while working for the State of Iowa. His genre is science fiction with an emphasis on post-apocalyptic tales. His short story SOLAR STORMS was written in 2013 and to say that it is prescient would be an understatement: just last week we were put on alert for a large solar explosion (fortunately it didn't affect our power grid) so the public is attuned to the title. The good news is that this is a prequel for his ORBS series and now that the new, improved revised edition of ORBS is available, be aware that Nicholas Sansbury Smith will soon have the market on the post-apocalyptic genre. This young bright hunk has talent to burn and likely someone will pick up this and the subsequent books and touch it with CGI and voila! - the next blockbuster film series!

Thanks to the prelude provided in SOLAR STORMS we have more of an appreciation for the cast of characters and the chills they face. Smith opens this novel in the year 2061 (less than a half-century from now and with the way the environment is headed we may just be looking into a crystal ball. The aforementioned solar storms have just about killed the planet and the only chance for survival is to move to Mars. A project called Biosphere to test how human beings might be able to leave the planet for Mars is in place and the emphasis is on speeding the process before life as we know it on Earth is depleted. Or as Smith's fine synopsis states, `Dr. Sophie Winston is hired by New Tech Corporation to test a biosphere deep within the heart of Cheyenne Mountain; a mission she believes will help prepare NTC for the three-year flight to the red planet. But, just days into the assignment, things start to go wrong. When the blast doors hiss open, Winton's team finds a changed world outside. Humans are gone, vanished without a trace, and they aren't the only thing missing. The planet's water is gone, too. As the team explores their surroundings, they find thousands of luminous blue orbs lining the streets. It isn't until they uncover what's inside that they realize the nightmare that lies ahead.'

The cover of the book is very well chosen and once you begin reading this horrifying tale of science mixed with fantasy stirred with plausibility you'll likely begin to save electricity (by keeping the lights on after reading this novel at bedtime) and join the movements for environmental protection. Nicholas Sansbury Smith has this jargon and admixture of science and speculation down well - he has the talent to keep this series moving along for a long series. Grady Harp, September 14

the store Verified Purchase on the store UK

The dynamics between Sophie (eminent scientist) and the pilot assigned to transport her to a biosphere facility hooked me into this story. Sadly, the pilot moved on and new characters moved in, and I was unimpressed by Sophie's "boss" as his introduction of the Biosphere facility left much to be desired, but there were reasons for this that were divulged later.

What kept me hooked (and compels me to give five stars) is that ORBS proved scary. This story plays on the fragility of Earth's ecosystem and mankind's resilience to alien invasion. The alien monsters are described with bloodcurdling realism.

There was interesting character development, even for the AI on the biosphere team. I went from liking Sophie to being unsure about her before warming to her again. I enjoyed the military characters. Overton's perception of kids as ankle biters fitted him well. Timothy? I wanted to understand him, but the value he should have offered the team eluded me. Each character responded differently to the stresses they were under and by the end a new team dynamic was emerging.

The inclusion of material from Solar Storms (the prequel) could have been a little smoother, but overall the story developed at a fast pace to reach a satisfying end with plenty of nail-biting moments that left me ready to devour the next story. This promises to develop into an exciting series.

If anyone were to endeavor to write a book they might perhaps also endeavor to take the time to do some research about the premise of that book. This author could obviously not have been bothered.

As a geologist it's just one of my pet peeves when someone predicates an entire book on environmental calamity without any actual information about the subject. In this book 'solar storms' are destroying the surface of the planet. This is plausible, if the sun were to overwhelm the magnetic sphere surrounding the planet it is theoretically possible. What's not possible is that the solar storms would leave parts of the planet 'radio active'. Also, the problems of the planet are somehow sped up 'carbon emissions' and the usage of 'precious metals'. This combination of generic and misunderstood environmental tropes seriously makes me want to vomit.

I can't be bothered to complete or recommend a book written by someone who cannot be bothered to spend a few hours doing some basic research for the entire foundation of said book.

Loved it! Well written action packed sci-fi with a lot of mystery. There are also a few parts a bit on the scary side. Lots of blood and gore and the deaths are described in detail, definitely saw them in my head, not a bad thing, just warning you in case you are squeamish.
There is a love story in here, it's not too over the top or anything, just a little bit on the side and I loved that the author added the little bit of romance (if you can call it that) to the story. I know not a lot of women read sci-fi but this story is definitely too good to pass and with the bit of romance in there I think many will love it.
Cannot wait to read book 2! Definitely need to know what happens to the characters.

Even though there are things that I do not like about the plot or some characters I realize that in no world is anybody perfect and there is no such thing as a perfect world, especially at the end of it. I really enjoy the elements that I did not like at first because it is a different perspective on mine and takes away from always knowing what is going to happen. No one is safe, and you never know what is going to happen. It's the edge of your seat reading that immerses you into the book and makes you not want to put it down. Although it is not my all-time favorite book, it is right up there and I would highly recommend this book and author to anybody..

Orbs is the first in a sci fi apocalyptic series that begins with a bang. This book does a great job of letting you know what is going on without spoiling anything in the next two books in the series. I loved the characters in this book. They are wonderfully written.

If you enjoy sci fi thriller/apocalyptic books, pick this one up. You will not be disappointed!

Like all the other books by Mr. Smith i have read this one grabs you from the start and never slows down. Took me a couple of days to read only because I had to keep charging my kindle. Orbs took off in a direction that I was not prepared for. Looking forward to the next one in the series, which is already loaded and waiting.

I loved this story- the characters you either love or love to hate, the science fictional gadgets and the horror- it's all there. From the scientific biosphere to humanity dying out due to extinction events that are brought to our front door!! The visitors didn't come to just knock and say 'Hi'. They kick the door down and take what they want while killing whatever gets in their way. And what they have in store for us? One word. Chilling! I read a lot and have to say this is one heck of a ride and a book I'll read again. To me THAT says a whole
lot about the book if I'll go back and read the series again!!! Read, you won't be disappointed.

I try not to judge the self-publishing authors too harshly - especially when I'm only paying a buck or two - but in this case I feel compelled to leave a negative review. This story is mostly unreadable. I tried to get through it but couldn't get much beyond a third of the book - the writing is extremely amateurish, the characters are completely one-dimensional, their behavior is utterly implausible, and the "science" is nonexistent. The set-up and the hook are so silly and unbelievable, I couldn't be bothered to stick around for the reveal or the inevitable "twist." Don't bother with this book at all - there's plenty of other good post-apoc out there for similar prices.

I put off reading this series for a while after reading Extinction Cycle,
now I’m not sure why I waited.

I admit I was a bit confused in the beginning due to the nature of the story and the importance of dreams but once I got onto it I powered through all four books.

I really enjoyed it and there are interestingly environmental overtones.

It's not great literature but it is mindless fun and I was entertained. If you're a hard sci-fi fan, it's pretty apparent that the science isn't on point so this might not be the book for you.

Full Disclosure: A review copy of this book was provided to me by Simon & Schuster / Simon451 via NetGalley. I would like to thank the publisher and the author for providing me this opportunity. All opinions expressed herein are my own.

Amazing book! Nicholas Sansbury Smith is an amazing talent in this genre. This is his first series and kicked of his incredible writing talent. I highly recommend all of his books. If you want to start at the beginning of his career as a writer, start here!! Highly recommended!!

I do really like Nicholas Sansbury's writing style and will read anything that he writes. While I did like the book overall I didn't find myself drawn to get back to it until I was over half way through the book. I like a book that kicks off and keeps going from beginning to end like his Extinction Cycle does. I did enjoy this book enough that I will continue on with the series. Based on the ending of the book, things are really going to start picking up going from here on out.

Doctors Sophie Winston and Emanuel Rodriguez have been assigned to a small team (five people) testing out a Biodome for the NTC. The draw card: if they survive the full six months, then they will be on the first ship out to Mars, since the world leaders have decided to evacuate planet Earth before humanity completely destroys it. Their task is to live within the dome for six months, preferably with no contact between them and the outside world.

Within two days of the task commencing, however, the playing field changes and the team find themselves fighting for their lives. They spend much of the rest of the book trying to understand what has happened and why. From water-sucking alien insects to corporations developing survival technologies, Nick leads us on a thrill- and horror-ride like few others I've come across.

A few months ago I reviewed The Biomass Revolution for Nick. While that story was good, it had quite a few loose ends - mostly due to the omniscient view utilised in telling the story - and at times was a difficult story to follow. ORBS is a complete contrast. It is a privilege to watch Nick develop as a writer. And somewhere between TBR and ORBS he has honed his writing skill considerably. There are very few rough edges in ORBS. There are some loose ends here, but they are perfectly acceptable provided there's a sequel - else I'll be quizzing Nick for the answers!

Nick's world-building is very good. I have absolutely no problems envisioning the scenes and environs of the characters. Nick doesn't describe the characters in very much detail, which suits me perfectly; the reader needs some leeway to create their own image of the people they are getting to know. The plot of the story is also excellent, as are each of the subplots. A very well-woven tapestry... with a couple of loose threads to entice us with.

Sophie as the main character is well rounded and multifaceted. Initially her career drive felt a little off-key, as though she was a cardboard figure with no other goals, but this perspective begins to change when things fall apart around her. She is an instinctive leader, and her initiative in taking action is a major factor through the book.

In some stories I come across, there is a character I'd like to slap. In this book, Timothy fits those shoes. A computer nerd and member of Sophie's team , he totally freaks out when the nasties arrive. Um. He was already freaking out well before that. That said, he has a clever streak in him that comes in useful from time to time.

I was going to say that one doesn't really see the characters develop through the book. But that would be completely inaccurate. Though there are no major changes, each of the characters does develop subtly. Considering the circumstances, I'm actually surprised that a few more of them didn't freak out. A very unique group of individuals indeed. Perhaps that's why they were assigned the task they received...

The only real criticism I have of Nick's work is that he has yet to pull me, as the reader, into the story. Don't get me wrong. Everything is there, the tension, the horror, the thrill-ride... but as yet I have not felt any visceral reaction to what the characters are experiencing; I still feel like more an observer than a participant in the events taking place.

This book's a page turner. I was gripped, managing to read it within a couple of days which is impressive considering its length (I don't get much time for reading). It is not an 'enjoyable' read, but it is an excellent story and one I can highly recommend to people who love scifi and are not squeemish.

Be warned: this book does not end in a happy place. That said, there are aspects to the ending that are more positive and hopeful than other sections of the book would lead one to believe is possible.

We received a copy of this book direct from the author in exchange for an honest review.
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I’ve read just about everything NSS has to offer and if I’m being honest at first I thought.... “ehhh big blue balls (no joke intended) that eat people? Kinda lame.” Then I really started to get deeper into the book and woah was I hooked. As always NSS creates worlds and characters that you feel part of and attached to. Read it, you’ll love it.

Ever fantasize about being one of the first people to colonize Mars? To have your name be eternalized within the annals of history as a founder of a whole new society on another planet?
Me, neither.
But the main character from Nicholas Sansbury-Smith’s ORBS has hopes and dreams that surpass our limited ambitions. Dr. Sophie Wilson is a world-renowned physicist (i.e. only a handful of science geeks know who she is) who has been recruited with her team to beta-test a biosphere in the mountains of Colorado. Used to being the top person on the totem pole, Sophie has to curb her alpha-dog instincts and let the project director make the calls. Her leadership skills are further challenged when she’s informed that a sophisticated artificial intelligence named Alexia will be part of her team.
I quite enjoyed this science fiction story. There are a couple of unexpected twists that made this more than your average world apocalypse story. The various characters are familiar archetypes without being cliché. The flow is steady and well-paced, and the author provides the right amount of detail to build a vivid setting environment in the reader’s mind.
SPOILER ALERT from this point forward. One of the very few issues I had with the novel was the chapters with first-person narratives by Alexis, the artificial intelligence of the Biosphere. The other chapters are third-person from the point of view of one of the human characters, usually Sophie or the brash soldier, Sergeant Ash Overton. The shift to first person is somewhat jarring, but I guess it highlights the fact that the A.I. is gradually developing sentience and a personality; actually coming to life, ala Hal from the movie 2001.
I like the fact that the invading aliens are after earth’s water. It’s a unique motive for belligerent visitors to attack our planet, and leads to even more dire repercussions as our band of protagonists strive for survival. The extraterrestrials are interesting and varied, and I appreciate that there is a hierarchy of species that are working for their masters, rather than just one “type” of creature that does all the work.
All in all, a very enjoyable and interesting story. There are so many questions that beg to be answered; I definitely look forward to reading the next book in the series, and to find out what happens to Dr. Wilson and the rest of the survivors.

Is this a 5 star literary masterpiece? Well, no - but it is a really enjoyable book in this genre. Initially, the dreams concerned me. I thought it might get a little hoky but it didn't and there was a viable explanation. I liked the characters, their interactions, and they all felt believable. My only negative comment pertains to some of the acronyms never being explained. But after awhile, I figured it out or it just wasn't that important to know. What I do know is that I am eagerly awaiting the next book.

Something different than the normal EMP Books lots of excitement interesting characters. From the first page your interest will be peaked. You will enjoy this book. It has it all science fiction, post apocalyptic and survival.

I borrowed this through my the store Prime membership and wasn't expecting much. My expectations were, thankfully, far exceeded. I have to admit that the Grammar Nazi in me was driven nuts by some of the editing errors and the use of "anyways" instead of "anyway", but that is as far as my criticisms go. I liked the pacing of the story and it works as a great cautionary tale without resorting to semantics. As far as being good sci-fi, this pulls it off. As I said in my title, I am looking forward to the next book in the current story and this author has my attention. I know that I don't mention the story itself, but I was attempting to avoid spoiling anything. Give this book a shot. At the very least, you'll be entertained for a couple of days.

I've waited a while to read this book. I wish I'd read it sooner. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the characters in it,the chase and action sequences were exciting and the overall storytelling was first rate as usual. I expect nothing less from the author. I can't wait to read the second book. Give it a read if your into end of the world books.

Note: I read my copy from my library's e-book collection at no cost and have previously written a review on Goodreads.

This was a great sci-fi read with lots of action. I get less hung up on there being perfect science in a book of this nature, keeping in mind this was a self-published book. What I look for is does the story flow well, does it hold my interest, and can I picture the settings in my head as I read. This book succeed at those aspects for the most part. A criticism is that the characters are very stereotypical: the perfectly heroic marine, the sociopathic IT guy, etc. It would have been an improvement to mix this up a bit.

The author is fond of interacting with his readers, which I find to be a lot of fun and is a major reason why I think we are living in a "golden age" of self-publishing. I have never heard from Stephen King after writing a review!

The story builds up to a huge, "Oh No!" And the story so far has suggested the human race is fighting a terrible foe where it really seems like there is no hope. The only choice is to read the next book to see what happens.

This is the book that introduced me to Nicholas Sansbury Smith. Nick has a way to write stories that make you feel like you are part of the scene. His characters are so believable you want more and can't wait for the next book.