Princess Grace of Earth, The Zerot Infestation, Book 1

An ancient race derives pleasure by bringing civilisations to their knees and wagering on the time taken to annihilate them.
Their next target is the planet of Preenasette, a warring planet where two nations have long forgotten why they are fighting. The Zerot infiltrate and tip the delicate balance, forcing one country to send its Royals off world to find a safe hiding place.
The youngest royal Princess Tauriar and her Life Team end up on Earth and settle into a peaceful life.
But the evil shadow has found them and Earth becomes a pawn in this game of death, and unlikely heroes must emerge to help the princess battle this deadly foe.

***
Marc Booth
5.0 out of 5 stars - Best sci-fi since Herbert’s first Dune

There are no small parts to play, no minor characters in AK Lambert’s Princess Grace of Earth. Every person and lifeform is richly written within an expertly crafted universe spanning centuries and countless stars - no mean feat and a credit to the author. More than this, you will find yourself caring for and sympathacising with these characters across all sides of each conflict - Lambert has not taken the easy way out of merely painting one or two protagonists in bold and an antagonist with little dimension across from them, but given full thought and form to the panarama of agendas, emotions and confrontations at play; This is the building of worlds, not stories.
The technology and fantastic concepts introduced - hallmarks of most great sci-fi - are described with the perfect balance of giving enough detail to construct credibility but enough art so as not to lose the readers attention. And the description flows at this optimum tempo in the creation of characters, relationships, civilisations and new worlds. At its best it is a rival for Herbert’s stillsuit, melange folded space and interplay between rival houses, and it never faulters in to the over indulgences of Tolkien with his flora or Melville with his overbearing nautical prose aside from the great whale.
A mention of the right tempo and the right pace has to lead to the story itself, which is compelling and ambitious. So much is woven for the reader to unpick, but this is not an overbearing task: questions are never posed without answer and exposition is never clumsily employed. Rather the characters, with natural dialogue, imbue our understanding as we witness the terrific events that unfold around them. But all is not cataclysmic and drama, the major circumstances that face out are strengthened by a bedrock of warmth and genuine sentiment between the characters, especially wrought in their dialogue.
I mention earlier technology and fantastic concepts, and this book is stuffed with them. It’s difficult in this day and age, with so much writing in the genre to follow as precedent, to come up with new and engaging ideas that might interest, if not wow, a modern reader - Lambert has imagination in spades and I look forward to seeing these ideas develop through the next instalments.
If you like good sci-fi then this is a must to read. Moreover if you like a well crafted and earnest story that will take you through great locations, fascinating characters and no shortage of emotion then likewise this is a must. For myself, I’m going to re-read a few chapters while I wait for the next book: there is a lot to get my head around!