Title: Nyxia

Author: Scott Reintgen

Series: The Nyxia Triad #1

Genre: Teen Sci-fi

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

The Overview: Emmett Atwater isn’t just leaving Detroit; he’s leaving Earth. Why the Babel Corporation recruited him is a mystery, but the number of zeroes on their contract has him boarding their lightship and hoping to return to Earth with enough money to take care of his family. Forever. Before long, Emmett discovers that he is one of ten recruits, all of whom have troubled pasts and are a long way from home. Now each recruit must earn the right to travel down to the planet of Eden–a planet that Babel has kept hidden–where they will mine a substance called Nyxia that has quietly become the most valuable material in the universe. But Babel’s ship is full of secrets. And Emmett will face the ultimate choice: win the fortune at any cost, or find a way to fight that won’t forever compromise what it means to be human. -Goodreads

The Review:

Red Rising Fans: I have a YA recommendation for you.

As someone who has admitted to having trouble with young adult books lately, it should come with some extra weight that I loved Nyxia. It had a fun concept, fantastic competitions, and a page-turning story that promises even more in the books to come. So, personal endorsements aside, I think it’s important to know what you’re signing up for with Nyxia. All the advertising I’ve seen for it describes a gritty Hunger Games in space read that initially gave me the impression teens were being dropped on a planet (much like The 100) and forced to fight for survival/domination. While this might be true in future books, at the moment the story has very little to do with either space or new world discovery (other than on the periphery).

It is, in fact, a story much more similar to Survivor (the show) than Hunger Games, where teens subject themselves to grueling competition for eventual monetary rewards. Aside from the cool technology, this story could have taken place at any old facility on Earth. The “space” element of the whole thing was in concept only and definitely an under-realized aspect of the book.

But you know what? The characters and their competitions were so dang interesting, I didn’t care one whit about the lack of world-building.

I am a huge sucker for a book with a good competition and Nyxia contained a nice variety of challenges that had me page-turning endlessly to see what would happen next! Based on how I normally evaluate books, Nyxia would receive a solid 4 stars. But because it struck a chord with me (for how well it did the things it did well), I’m giving it an extra .5 for that intangible “it” factor. I can’t wait for the next one!

<b>Recommendations:</b> I think the characters, the writing style, and the overall concept would definitely appeal to Red Rising fans, especially if you don’t mind the occasional YA read. It doesn’t have the same grit, but I’m hoping it is shaping up to have the same heart. Don’t go into this one expecting space-exploration and new world discoveries. Go in expecting great competition and loads of fun.

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 by Niki Hawkes