Outsider

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Hiiro, a self-proclaimed 'house painter' eking out a living amongst the underbelly of humanity, is a man running from the past while chasing an age old question.Why was he still alive?Beyond the veil of reality, an alien entity outside the constraints of space and time, has its unknowable attentions drawn to the chittering minds of humanity and it too covets comprehension.What does it mean to be human?Their paths cross and fates intertwine aboard the Stalking Shadow as the space-faring mercenary vessel hunts down its next paying job. A city-nation on the verge of revolution stands between the answers Hiiro and his opposite are searching for.

The only question left is will they both survive long enough to get the answers they're risking it all for?

Information

Status: Completed
Year: 2025
Author: LoneLeaf

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.7/ 5.0
Followers: 36
Views: 28,084

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(4)

AkasoRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
At time of review I’ve only read up to H4 - Cherry Boy.
To begin with, the prose is great. A tiny handful of rough spots, but it’s really tiny things that aren’t actual issues. From a purely objective standpoint I don’t really have any complaints about the prose, all of my reservations are matters of personal taste.
Personally, the taste of the story and the setting is familiar enough that I just automatically like it but new enough that I can still read it without having it make me think I should be working on my own stuff. Grimy interstellar cyberpunk, presumably high-cyberpunk given psychics and research into the supernatural. I’ve always sucked at reviews, since I tend to dance around the actual specific contents of the story. I don’t like to just start pulling out the narrative’s guts and laying them out on the table when you should be the one rooting around in there.
The setting is exactly as described — you get exactly what is promised in the blurb, which frankly, happens less frequently than I would like. Telekinetic Gigachad in T2 was very enjoyable, even if at the time you read it you don’t really know why he’s relevant yet. Even as an interlude for worldbuilding’s sake it’s good.
Hotline Miami, Ryan Gosling is literally me in 2049, schizo psychic magic, maybe some gnosticism? Also Cyber City Oedo 808.
Nitpicks, nitpicks… Oh, right. I’m not that fond of MC’s name. I’m sure it’s probably a reference to Hiro Protagonist of Snow Crash but I didn’t like it there either. That’s more or less it. Very stream-of-consciousness type review, possibly revise later.
Jack0fheartRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Outsider is a science fiction novel about Hiiro Volshebso, a former terraforming pioneer turned house painter, who embarks on a journey across distant stars and planets in search of the mysterious voice that helped him survive a blizzard on his home planet. He joins a group of spacefaring mercenaries, the Stalking Shadow, and confronts the realities of the wider galaxy while working as a gun for hire.
Overall score 5/5: This book is a unique and intriguing read that explores the boundaries of human morality and survival. The story follows different characters in various situations, each dealing with their struggles.
Style score 5/5: The author's writing style is descriptive and engaging, painting vivid imagery of the world and its characters. The narrative is well-paced, with each chapter leaving the reader eager to learn more about the characters' fates.
Story score 5/5: The story weaves together several different plotlines, all of which come together towards the end in a surprising and satisfying way. The story is a thought-provoking examination of human nature, exploring themes of survival, morality, and identity.
Grammar score 5/5: The grammar in this story is flawless, with any obvious errors.
Character score 5/5: The characters are well-developed and interesting, each with their motivations and struggles. From Hiiro's survival in the wilderness to Treu's search for purpose, the characters are all relatable and sympathetic.
In summary, Outsider is an engrossing and thought-provoking read that will keep you engaged from start to finish. It explores deep themes and moral dilemmas, all while delivering a thrilling and engaging story. I highly recommended for fans of science fiction and survival stories! ♥
M.G DriverRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Holy hell, Chapter 4, or H4 might be one of the best pieces of work I've ever read so far. Everything about it was pure perfection - I could see it play out like a movie in my own head.
Style:
Writing was brilliant - action sequences fluid and keeping you on your toes, character descriptions on point, scenes lush and vivid. Everything just flowed so well within the chapter.
But why 4.5/5 then? Because I want more of Hiiro dammit, I don't want chapter jumping!
With every chapter's POV being swapped continuously between so many, it makes incredibly confusing and hard to keep track at the start.
I cannot emphasis this enough, I really really really don't think that the POV swapping is doing your story any favours. You have a literal gem mine here and your writing style is nothing short of amazing, but RR readers love singular POV focus for the majority of the book.
Story:
Apart from the POV switching, the story is awesome. Great start, logical flow of events, enough mystery to keep the reader hooked into whats happening. It's a crazy mix of science and fantasy that makes me relate this book to Blood Blockade Battlefront the most (that one was pretty crazy too)
If the author really just chose one character to sit down and arrange five-nine chapters in proper sequential order of that same POV, this is a guaranteed hit immediately, at least to me. Definitely top 10 rising stars if you play your cards right.
As of now, the story sequencing is like cloud atlas but three times choppier.
Grammar:
I'm not a native speaker, so 5/5
Character:
Again, Chapter 4 was the best by far. Do you know the kind of feeling you get when you read a chapter and immediately click next chapter to find out what happens next? That's exactly when you know you got hooked by the character, and I definitely did.
Except the next chapter wasn't about him, which immediately put me down.
This of course, doesn't mean the characters are bad. They are AMAZING, realistic individuals. Yes, even the eldritch ho
OnlyBliss :)Royal Road
★★★★★ 4.5
I'm honestly surprised how little exposure this series seems to have. It is set in a dystopian future where human life has little value and freedom is mostly a thing of the past. The story mainly focuses on Hiiro, a man who only exists to fight the wars of his creators. Eventually he starts hearing a certain voice and gets dishonorably discharged. There's also lots of magic and psionic fuckery incoming.
The writing is pretty solid and I haven't noticed any obvious mistakes. I'm not a native english speaker, so that might not mean much.
Only thing is that especially at the start the many perspective shifts are kinda jarring. Like I just started caring about Hiiro, why not continue with him a bit? Probably personal preference though.
Either way, its worth a read and if you somehow got that far into this review you might as well check out the book.