Book Review: Mine

Media Type: Print Book
Title: Mine
Author: Lin Sten
Publisher: Create Space
Pages: Paperback; 306
Release Date: May 6, 2010
Source: Author
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Intended Reading Group: Adult
Genre: Science Fiction
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HDB Rating: 3 Keys to My Heart
Recommended to: Readers who enjoy hard core science fiction.

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Selena Castillo publicly claims to be an extraterrestrial. Is it a joke, a delusion, a gimmick, or a reality?

Tony Sturgess must believe that Selena’s claim is only a publicity stunt, or that she is insane, as he falls in love with her, because he still struggles with the racism of his white-supremacist childhood; otherwise, he is certainly the right talent agent to exploit the gimmick, despite her radical environmentalism.

Professor Hal Bronson, on the other hand, is desperate to believe Selena’s claim after he is labeled a “crackpot” for hypothesizing that the SETI silence is due to a global technological catastrophe that every advancing civilization must face: she might be a witness.

But if Earth is to be saved, from whom and for whom will it be?

Through humor, romance, and suspense, Mine entertains while its human characters resolve a case of mistaken insanity.

I’ve had Lin Sten’s Mine in my possession for a few months now, but it’s taken this long for me to really sit down and devote my time to it. I’m going to be completely honest and let you know that this isn’t a book for the casual reader. Although Sten has written a fantastic story about human nature and our affect on our world, it is deeply seated in technical science. In other words, this book sometimes reads a lot more like non fiction. Even as an avid reader of science fiction, I still had a difficult time getting started with Mine.

Truth be told, the characters in this book were wonderfully entertaining and were what really drew me in. By far, my favorite was Hal. His professor persona comes through beautifully and his humor, while a little dry sometimes, never fails to entertain the reader. Selena Castillo too is a vivid and intriguing character. While reading I was trying desperately to figure out where she was really from, all the while falling in love with her personality. It’s easy to see why the others in the book were so entranced by her. She has a charisma that is hard to explain.

The messages that Mine delivers also drew me in. Existensial and ethical debates abound in Sten’s writing. This isn’t just a story that you can just passively read. I found myself stopping in the middle of reading a page, just to mull over what I’d just read.  Sten definitely shows his background in physics in this book. There were chapters where most of the scientific talk went straight over my head. If I had a deeper grasp of the science that went into the making of this story, I probably would have grasped the science fiction aspect of it a little more. This isn’t an easy read by any means, but it is absolutely fascinating if you can give it a chance.

I wish I could explain more of how I felt, but I don’t want to spoil anything either. Overall, Mine was a solid and interesting read. I’d like to see a little more accessibility in the writing if there is to be a sequel, but I did enjoy everything else about the book. It would be nice for it to aimed a bit more at the general public. However I can say that if you are a reader who enjoys hard science fiction, you should give this a try.

FTC Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I was not monetarily compensated for my opinion.