The Scuu Paradox

Information

Status

Ongoing

Year

2019

Author

Lise Eclaire

• Available on Amazon and Kindle
  Apr 22, 2024
• Bonus: Fractal Contact
  Oct 5, 2023
• Bonus: The Cassandrian Theory
  Jan 2, 2021
• 4. Need-To-Know Basis
  Apr 1, 2019
• 3. Splintered Impressions
  Mar 26, 2019
• 2. Quarantine Combat
  Mar 18, 2019
• 1. Irregular Reasignment
  Mar 13, 2019
• Prologue
  Mar 5, 2019

Reviews

Community Reviews(10)

• FortySixtyFourRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  As a direct sequel to Lise Eclaire's other brilliant work, I'll urge you to read that before starting in on The Scuu Paradox. This story is just beginning to delve into Elcy's new adventures, but be sure to bookmark the page for later reading or follow along with her weekly posts, you won't regret doing so.
  More thorough review pending on more released story content.
• figgis11Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  A promising continuation of Quod Olim Erat, a fantastic story with intriguing characters, stunningly deep world building and clever twists.
  The originals only flaw was it barely scratched the surface of the universe and lacked the high stakes of a thriller, resulting in the plot (though well structured) feeling like it had little weight or impact behind it.
  I'm pleasantly optimistic about the direction the author is taking with this sequel. It looks as if he's taken to heart the constructive critique and is diving into the heart of the action.
  A more satisfying narative backed by the existing solid and intelligent writing style, I'm hopeful that this story will grow into a stronger novel than its already good prequel.
  If intregue, action and contemplating the definition of what is privacy is your thing, this story is for you.
• Jeffrey WattsRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I enjoyed the story, characters kept my interest and the scifi science bits did the job. That's really the whole basis of me enjoying it. Side note, if you liked this one, first go read the third one, second go read the Ancillary series because I read that recently and it has similar vibes.
• M41Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Well written Sci Fi.
  I enjoyed all of the books. The sequence is very well written and had a good pace.
  Try read them in the right sequence  and do not skip the last part. maybe there qill be a follw up book to continue the journey.
  Upfront warning / informaiotn would be helpful so that i know to look out for it
• MadrugaRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  A hidden jewel. I am speechless as to why It doesn't have more reviews and more recognition. The characters are incredibly well written. The dialogue is wonderful. The plot is well thought. Just give it a shot.
• librarysmilesRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  Elcy used to be the battleship Light Seeker, but now she is actively using a human body and has returned to the military. In addition, she is slowly peeping behind the curtain of secrets.
  Elcy encountered [redacted] in the first book and is now facing the Scuu front. She needs her experience, her few friends, and her missing memories in order to come back with her body intact.
  This is another slow crawl into uncertainty within a fragmented mind and without, now on the Scuu frontier.
• MyrrnRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  [This is a review for both the first entry and the sequel.]
  I’ve read the whole story twice, and I’m still not sure I like it. It isn’t average – that would imply mediocrity. It does some things very well. Others rather badly.
  The main character makes the entire journey a joy. She’s curious, smart, outwardly serene but with the soul of a rebel. She straddles the line of human but doesn’t quite step over it, and watching her interact with others who don’t quite know how to deal with that is fun.
  If you like mystery? There is a great deal of it, and unveiled masterfully. Hints are given out in bite-sized pieces, and just when you think you know what’s going on you find out you don’t. I really DO want to know what this is all about.
  And the world building. Oh boy. It has alien races that feel alien, a pragmatic and rather horrifying vision of humanity, secret organizations, conspiracies, everything. It’s superb.
  But there are problems.
  For one, about 90% of characters are completely unlikeable. Most spend the story treating the main character like garbage, including much of her family. Outside of her mentee (another ship), her old captain (probably dead), and a few select characters, I’m actually rooting for the aliens to vaporize them all.
  And the biggest problem is that the things the main character goes through ultimately end up being relatively meaningless.
  You finally find out the villain behind the curtain whose been pulling the strings. Now we’re going to stop the villain right?
  Uh, no, actually. They’re fine right where they are. We’ll just… move on to the next mystery.
  The whole story is like that.
  Beautiful, delicious appetizers with great flavor, but at that end of the nigh you’re still hungry and end up picking up McDonalds. The author has shown us a world filled with injustice and moral bankruptcy, but none of that has been changed through the main character’s actions and doesn’t look like it will.
  I’m sure some people could find a lot to enjoy in this sto
• davidhoytRoyal Road

  ★★★ 3.0

  So far I've liked the story and concept.
  Timeline shifts are needlessly confusing. Simple formatting clues could help keep the current timeline distinct from the flashbacks. There are also elements of memories being redacted or suppressed. The looping can be multiperiod. There aren't enough markers to make it clear. I needed to reread some chapters to understand the structure of the story. The narrative isn't a problem. There isn't enough context to help identify and recognize the shifts. I think it's mostly a formatting or presentation problem. It makes it difficult to track the story line.
  I like the story, I'm interested in how it develops, the characters, the mysteries. Unfortunately, it's a bit like walking through mud. I'm taking a break. I might come back or it might be a DNF. Sad, because it wouldn't be that difficult to clear up the narrative.
• ShyBoyRoyal Road

  ★★★ 3.0

  built on moving sand.
  Lise Eclaire tells a story where its all cloak, even when the dagger is supposed to happen. Action sequences serve to highlight that it's all [CENSORED].
  It's a very frustrating story-telling device. It robs me of the climax, of the reveal. It keeps me guessing. The moment a new weapon is to be unveiled, we read [censored]. When MC talks to people it's
  Quarantine imposed.
  Quarantine bypassed.
  not really something you can fully follow, for
  Quarantine imposed.
  Quarantine bypassed.
  apparently there seems to be some sort of filter, that can affect speech, hearing, neural synapses or perhaps all of the above. It definitely can affect memory. Which is a problem, for our MC also is our narrator (unreliable as that makes her).
  And it doesn't stop there. Waters are further muddled, by employing various cloaking devices - this author LIKES her secrets very much, I can tell!
  Chapter endings are all about transitioninig you someplace else, changing your reference frame. You were on deck, now it's a battle, it was a simulation, no, a past flashback. Similarly with the dialogues. You are always left guessing. Was this person deliberate? Did they operate on partial knowledge? If so, what's their goal? How much they know? Heck, sometimes our MC even has to translate what they say, so we know it's some sort of fleet lingo, or an idiom that actually means something else. And you may not even be certain, that the translation is in place because Elcy is being sarcastic, because her prior experience tells her so or because otherwise we would be lost.
  It's all giving us scraps, grains of sand. And we're supposed to build ourselves a picture with that. Perhaps even a big one. However we have no reliable frames of reference.
  Apparently there's a war but with whom, even the navy doesn't know. Sic. They know the name. But... not even the shape. It's all [CENSORED]. Feeds are censored. There's a powerful scene, where Elcy orbits a planet and gets a priority transmistion
• Felix lieRoyal Road

  ★★★ 3.0

  The main carekter has now sway in the storys prgresion and is dragd along it. It fels like you cold swich aut the main carekter tottaly and the stoyr woldent change. It feals like evrything bult arund the mc.
  Ther is no cler end or gole wher the story is progresing to. she is treated like schit in evry chapter and dos not rebels or qestions it.