One of the hardest things for any writer to do is to write an adequate sequel to an already well-written novel. Too often sequels fall short of the previous novel, and fans are left pleased, angry, or disappointed. But this is not true of Terra Insegura. The sequel to Marseguro, published last year by DAW, Terra Insegura is an action-packed thrill-ride that outshines its predecessor.

Terra Insegura begins where Marseguro left off. The plague released by Dr. Christianson-Wood to fend off the Holy Warriors on the planet Marseguro has been accidentally sent back to Earth by the infected, but immunized, traitor Chris Keating. Richard Hanson, clone of the late Victor Hanson, who created the Selkies and whisked them away to Marseguro to protect them from the fanatical, purity-obsessed Body, heads to Earth on a mercy mission, hoping to stop the plague before it wipes out mankind. But the Body is not so easily weakened, even back home on Marseguro, and Richard will soon find out how well the Body can bounce back, even from a plague designed to kill pure humans.

Terra Insegura is a novel with a few tricks up its sleeve. Plot twists, surprise characters, and well-drawn action make this novel both enjoyable and a prime example of why science fiction is still awesome. I find it difficult to complain about this novel, because I had problems putting it down. Terra Insegura has just enough action to keep me fixed to the page, and plenty of suspense (and even a little romance) to make this more than just another book of explosions and space battles. It’s a novel that knows it is good science fiction and isn’t afraid to show it.

My only criticism is that the ending, while a good one, could have used a few more pages of development. Most of the ending works perfectly, but one tiny part needed a tad more to feel less rushed. But this criticism seems small compared to all that is great about this novel.

If you’re a science fiction nut, you should pick this book up. Terra Insegura is science fiction at its best, and hopefully we’ll be seeing much more from Mr. Willett in the future. ( )

Anyone who likes their science fiction fast and well-written will enjoy Terra Insegura.

http://archthinking.blogspot.com/2009/07/review-terra-insegura.html ( )