LTotS: Skyborn

To recap: in Precipice, Korsin's ship (the Omen) crash landed on a planet. Most of the crew died, as well as the Massassi (something in the planet's atmosphere was poisonous to them). 

We start Skyborn with a new point-of-view, Adari Vaal. I think she may be a part of why I enjoyed book 2 more than 1. She's an interesting character and I appreciate her personality, especially in the face of what she goes through.

Adari is a member of the Keshiri, a race introduced in these novels. I appreciate that the Keshiri, while similar to humans, are biologically different enough that they can't reproduce. I feel as if it occurs too often that species can interbreed and procreate. The Keshiri have purple skin, white hair, and red eyes. Adari is very confused by the red skintone of the Sith she encounters, initially.

The Keshiri are the only sentient race upon the planet Kesh, which also has no metals. This seems to be the reason the race never achieved space travel or had any real knowledge of science. This is what made it so easy for the Sith to insert themselves as the deity of their religion.

I will say I'm mildly confused by the lack of metals, though it is implied that they may be very deep in the planet, but the foolhardy Sith used up all their tools before they could even try to go so deep.

The other interesting thing about the Keshiri are the Uvak: basically large, reptilian birds that they fly. The main group that rides the creatures are the Neshtovar. Before the Sith show up, the Neshtovar are considered the Sons of the Skyborn. An elite group who don't quite rule the Keshiri, but they're still rather important. When the Sith show up, their role falls more into the messenger capacity (as they can traverse the landscape quickly on their uvak). 

In Skyborn, I really began to get a feel for what I had hoped for in this venture. Finding books where the authors were delving into new / less-regulated territory. Often the stories of third and fourth tier characters are much better as the authors don't have dozens of media and snippets that they have to keep in line with. As such, I have far fewer nitpicks right now.

Next I will discuss Paragon, the third book, though I may fold it in with the fourth, Savior. Since we've covered all the new information being put forth, there's really little of interest to discuss without revealing too much by the way of spoilers.

No recommended reading today, beyond the articles I've linked above: Adari Vaal, Keshiri, Kesh, Uvak, and Neshtovar.