The Diabolic

The Diabolic weaves a dark tale of love, betrayal, and space-age drama to keeps you guessing with every turn of the page! I picked up a chapter sampler from the Barnes & Nobel Teen Fest in June and loved it! I don’t think the description of Red Queen meets The Hunger Games gives this book justice because The Diabolic was neither of those stories. There may have been small similarities, but nothing that would make me jump to the conclusion the novel was derived from these popular series. If you were worried that The Diabolic was going to be just another dystopian it not in the slightest! This YA science fiction hooked me from the very beginning.

I cant believe this novel is a stand alone! This galactic court S. J. Kincaid has created is a whole world just waiting to be unearthed. The elites live on decaying starships, while the remaining humans live on planets scattered throughout space. I really enjoyed reading about Nemesis as she struggled to keep her abilities hidden while forging new relationships. She is a humanoid and was created to serve a purpose. While doing what she thinks is best for Sidonias survival, Nemesis learns that there is more to her life than she could have imagined.

Romance is a prevalent theme as the story progresses. Nemesis meets Tyrus, the deranged nephew of the current Emperor. As Nemesis spends time with him, she begins to have feelings and emotions that she cant understand. She wasnt created to have the capacity to love others. I thought S. J. Kincaid did a wonderful job writing the romance. As the reader, you understand the struggle Nemesis is going through. It is because of who she is, we get more reserved yet passionate moments between her and Tyrus. I also liked that we didnt quite get the full image of who Tyrus really was. He was unpredictable in so many ways. He could be kind and merciful one moment or cunning the next. In my humble opinion, their personalities made Nemesis and Tyrus an amazing couple.

The action, suspense, and serious Twists made The Diabolic one of my favorite books this year! Could it be turned into a series? Absolutely! However, I was beyond happy with the ending. I could read this over and over again with that ending! I totally had some major feels! Maybe a novella of Tyrus and Nemesis in the future?! I wouldnt mind that! I highly recommend The Diabolic for a thrilling science fiction romance that won’t disappoint!

4.5 stars rounded up to 5

There are a lot of YA SFF reads out there. This is definitely one of those that’s worth picking up. It’s set far in the future where people mostly live in space, aboard intergalactic spaceships. Those who live on planets are called Excess, because well, in the future, planet dwellers aren’t important. Humans and animals alike are engineered and tailored to suit the needs of the wealthy and powerful.

Bring in Nemesis. She’s a Diabolic. Diabolics are basically superhuman assassins who will protect their one bonded human at any cost, even their own life. They’ll do it happily, because, well, that’s all they know how to do. Nemesis’s bonded human is Sidonia Impryean, a Senator’s daughter. Nemesis isn’t treated like a human by anyone but Sidonia, and even Nemesis herself does not think of herself as a human.

I won’t spoil any of the plot because it’s filled with dramatic twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the end. I will say that if you look at the basic structure of the plot, it’s pretty typical YA. Nothing incredibly new here.

But what makes this story great are the characters. Nemesis’s perspective is fresh and interesting, because like I stated above, she doesn’t think of herself as human. She has one sole purpose in this world, and that is to protect Sidonia at all costs. Anything else is above her status in life. She has super strength, super speed, super reflexes. She’s sort of like a superhero without emotion. She’s not evil, but not necessarily good, morally gray. Indifferent to anyone except Sidonia.

The writing was excellent, poetic in places but all relatable and easy to digest. There is a romance in the book, which to be honest, I’ve grown a little sick of lately, but this one is incredibly well done. It isn’t filled with needless angst. The characters don’t behave like idiots. It’s not a case of instalove. And it creates a very interesting dynamic for this cast of characters. The setting was also beautiful and it often reminded me of the movie Passengers. Sprawling spaceships with all sorts of luxuries, anti gravity chambers, salt baths, viewing windows to the stars, indoor rivers and trees, etc.

All in all- don’t dismiss this as just another YA novel. It was an awesome read that I’d recommend to anyone who enjoys the genre.

Easy read, this was a hardback, not normally what id get as I carry books about and hardbacks take up more space and weight. This was light though so I might be converted. It was also comfortable to hold. Story good, it started out a bit predictable but was entertaining and held my attention. The end was a little disappointing after the final events given how the charicter is set up you would expect more reaction. Feels a bit like the author lost interest. The story was not so compelling that I couldn’t put it down but that makes it a much easier book to pick up and read when you have some time and then put down when you have to stop reading say to sleep or to go back to work after lunch. As I said at the start its an easy read (i’m dyslexic, it was an easy read) and entertaining so I found it was a realy usefull carry around book and quite relaxing often this is not the case with books I read. I tend to use murder mystery for my easy read and fantasy when I have more time as I find them harded to put down and often more work to read. There is some violance in it so may not be suitable for all ages its not described in massive detail but the theme is heavier I would say than other book, I for example say its not harry potter which I found was very much writen with children in mind.

Kincaid masterfully creates a multi-layered narrative that focuses on the core argument of faith vs science, in a futuristic period where faith reigns superior. You follow Nemesis, a Diabolic who believes that she cannot be human; and throughout the novel this struggle is presented through her dialogue with other characters namely Sidonia and her internal monologue.

I found I could relate to Nemesis struggle in many ways, which engaged me within the narrative as you build this desire to witness Nemesis success. This book brought me to tears multiple times, with scenes that displayed such raw emotions between certain characters. Kincaid thoroughly develops each character within the narrative, ensuring that they are all believable.

The story takes place in space, within a vastly more advanced civilisation. However, many of the themes explored mimic issues and conversational matters of todays society. Kincaid considers class divides, rape culture, political incompetence, and the rights of those seen as lesser. Despite the stories context, the themes discussed are a commentary on today, and the possible future ideals that may occur if the problem is not corrected.

Very good book set in the future, when humans have migrated to space and the rich nobles (called the Grandiloquy) live in space stations. They face the problem of malignant space, as their faith has led them to reject all human knowledge, and as a result they could not fix their stations. We follow the story of a Diabolic – a bodyguard bred to kill – who only protects her owner, who she loves. Her owners father does not share the religious fanatics opinion of knowledge, and has fallen foul the emperor, who controls all machines and reigns supreme. The emperor invites the Diabolics owner to his station for a party. Her father is scared, so he sends the Diabolic…

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