crimes of passion

One quick thing before I go.  Gary of Concept Sci-fi has given me my second review of The Grand Conjunction, and it's as exciting as the first.  Not just for lines like "epic space scenes spanning portions of time that the mind can barely comprehend" and "the words just seem to flow so easily that you're halfway through the book before you even realise it" and "an absolute winner and a joy to read", although they are of course wonderful on every level.  I'm excited for two other reasons.

One: Gary liked the ending.  "All of the loose ends are tied up nicely, and you're left with a nice warm 'cosy' feeling rather than a 'is that it?' feeling."  That concurs with Liviu Suciu's "the ending is pitch perfect", and suggests that I nailed at least one of my objectives (perhaps two, counting the humungous space battles).  After being criticised for leaving readers unsatisfied in previous series, I was determined to do it differently this time. I listen to feedback, and I know there's always room to improve. Looks like I did something right here.

Two: Gary again echoes Liviu, who said about the beginning, "I had to close the book and look at the cover to make sure I am reading the right book and then flip some pages to make sure pages from another book were not inserted inside by mistake - so great was the cognitive dissonance I suffered".  Gary's response was similar: "My initial reaction on pages one and two was 'what the hell has this got to do with Astropolis?' But the truth is that this bit of the book was actually the best bit for me."  He concludes: "Sean really has proved that he's an exceptionally talented writer who doesn't just do sci-fi and fantasy - Sean, if you're listening, you REALLY should write a detective novel!"

I'm listening, and I'm very pleased indeed.