Audiobook Review – First Contact (Eclipsed Evolution, Book 1) by Kim Harrison, Narrated by Xe Sands (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Science Fiction
Length: 5 hours and 27 minutes
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Release Date: April 02, 2024
ASIN: B0CKWGKRMS
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the Eclipsed Evolution series
Source: Bought Audiobook through Audible.com
Rating: 4/5 stars

“Dr. Renee Caisson knows there are worse things than an attractive man in uniform drafting her into a secret government project—especially when Major Jackson makes it clear that he isn’t bothered by her questionable past. But when her labs come back with decidedly odd results, the Major is forced to come clean over who the government is actually studying. Renee is shocked to learn her subjects are demonic-looking beings who call themselves “Neighbors”—refugees from a dying world, who arrived during the nation-wide solar eclipse.

The Neighbors’ technology is unlike anything Renee’s ever encountered. At first, she dismisses an injury that inexplicably heals as “just one of those things”. And surely August, the most gregarious Neighbor, begins to speak English overnight because of the team linguist’s skills?

Not until August begins evolving in real time to withstand Earth’s brighter, dryer atmosphere does she admit that the Neighbors’ “tech” feels less like science and more like magic—the same magic that brought them here in the first place, and the same they’re trying to rekindle with a mysterious labyrinth in order to return home and save their world.

At least, that’s what August claims they came for…”

Series Info/Source: This is the 1st book in the Eclisped Evolution series. I bought this on audiobook from Audible.

Thoughts: This was an intriguing premise, and I enjoyed it. It’s a weird kind of sci-fi paranormal mash up that I found fascinating. It has interesting science, as well as some government conspiracy aspects to it,

Dr. Renee Caisson studies snakes and their venom because she can’t make a living studying the bio-contamination that she studied in school. Then suddenly, Major Jackson shows up at her remote lab to tell her she is coming to work for the government. They want her to study some blood samples and let them know if there is any contamination that could be harmful to humans. To Renee’s surprise, the samples are very close to human but definitely not human. Renee finds out that the government has captured some beings called “Neighbors” who are fleeing a dying world. The leader seems to be a “Neighbor” named August and when August and Renee make a breakthrough in communication, all hell breaks loose.

This was an intriguing subject, and I really enjoy the concept and the characters. There is a lot of mystery here and some sci-fi/paranormal elements. I really liked Renee as a character and enjoyed the side characters as well.

This is a pretty short read. This book mainly sets things up for some bigger events. As I said, I really thought this was different and interesting, and plan to continue with the series.

I listened to this on audiobook. I struggled to hear the narrator when I was listening to this in the car or on speaker, but the narrator was fine over headphones. The narrator just has a lower kind of raspy voice, which was tough to discern from background noise when I wasn’t listening on headphones. So just be aware of that limitation if you are going to purchase this on audiobook

My Summary (4/5): Overall I liked this. This was an intriguing mash-up of science fiction and paranormal elements. I enjoyed the characters and unraveling the mystery of both Renee’s past and the Neighbors’ origin. If you are looking for a short, well written sci-fi read that is a bit different, I would recommend. I plan to continue the series and have already purchased the next two audiobooks.