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Big Sigma #2
Unstable Prototypes
Following his last adventure, Trevor "Lex" Alexander's life has managed to return to normal. He's back to splitting his time between delivering packages and transporting passengers, along with the occasional foray into testing highly experimental equipment. He's even gotten back together with his girlfriend Michella Modane, who has been launched to stardom by her coverage of the Bypass Gemini incident. Yes, things are going quite well for Lex. But in his life, luck like this never lasts long.
Sure enough, while he is preparing for a rare visit from Michella, he receives word that the reclusive inventor Karter Dee has been kidnapped. The eccentric and slightly deranged inventor's checkered past has made getting the authorities involved out of the question. That has left "Ma", the AI in charge of cooking his meals and reining in his insanity, with few options. She has reached out to Lex as one of the few people she can trust, and needs him to help assemble a team of Karter's former allies to take him back before his latest contraptions can be put to work terrorizing the populace at the hands of his captors.
Sure enough, while he is preparing for a rare visit from Michella, he receives word that the reclusive inventor Karter Dee has been kidnapped. The eccentric and slightly deranged inventor's checkered past has made getting the authorities involved out of the question. That has left "Ma", the AI in charge of cooking his meals and reining in his insanity, with few options. She has reached out to Lex as one of the few people she can trust, and needs him to help assemble a team of Karter's former allies to take him back before his latest contraptions can be put to work terrorizing the populace at the hands of his captors.
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First published February 25, 2012
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August 19, 2021
Hi jinx ensue as a retired race car driver rescues a mad scientist wh9 has the cutest fox-skunk hybrid shown on the cover. Eventually I was there only for the cute fluff ball.
April 13, 2025
Despite everything, I would recommend a short break between books 1 and 2. Unlike some authors, Mr Lallo leaves you with no doubt as to who was who from the first book. We do in fact meet several new people, all hidden in isolated places to punish them for their crimes. They are mostly even weirder than the psychopath inventor, but he needs their help for his latest scheme.
Quite frankly, this story is absolutely awesome in its plotting, twisting, unravelling, and approaching everything once more from an angle hitherto unimaginable. There’s a lot of space, weaponry, and inventions that need a huge bang to make them work. The AI is having existential problems of her own. Lex’s girlfriend is a complete wimp until she realises he’s got her into the only front line spot to report on global/galactic news. If you ever wanted to know what it takes to report on a disaster, read this. (I don’t like the cover, though!)
When I’ve recovered enough from this traumatic experience, I’ll go and hunt down book 3.
Hate the cover, though!
Quite frankly, this story is absolutely awesome in its plotting, twisting, unravelling, and approaching everything once more from an angle hitherto unimaginable. There’s a lot of space, weaponry, and inventions that need a huge bang to make them work. The AI is having existential problems of her own. Lex’s girlfriend is a complete wimp until she realises he’s got her into the only front line spot to report on global/galactic news. If you ever wanted to know what it takes to report on a disaster, read this. (I don’t like the cover, though!)
When I’ve recovered enough from this traumatic experience, I’ll go and hunt down book 3.
Hate the cover, though!
September 27, 2012
This is the second book in the series, and again I really enjoyed the book. It's got the flavor of early Heinlein: good slightly campy sci-fi fun. I really like the character of Lex, and I appreciate the fact that the other characters tip their hat to the fact that he is a strange attractor for improbable events. I also like the fact that he's dealing with not only the problem at hand, but also the relationship problems that gallivanting about the galaxy would be sure to introduce. My only minor criticism is I wish I could search and replace all occurrences of the word "complementary" with "complimentary," as it seems that there's a lot of free stuff in Lex's world.
I'm now going to see what other Joseph Lallo stuff I can find.
I'm now going to see what other Joseph Lallo stuff I can find.
May 4, 2017
Loved it! Squee/Ma made the story fun and interesting. Karter is unpredictable and cantankerous. Lex is enjoyable. Great adventure!
June 27, 2012
Lallo's done it again! This books is as good as Bypass Gemini if not better, which is the first book in the series. Lex is back to the courier business and also back together with his girlfriend Michelle, who is an investigative journalist. Lex helped her break the exclusive on the Gemini story in the last book, which made her famous, so now they are like ships in the night, passing only once in a while on the same course.
THE PLOT: While Lex is in his apartment waiting for one of those rare times Michelle sees him, a homeless man rings a chime at his apartment. Lex tells him to go away. The next thing that Lex knows, the door bell rings, he thinks it's Michelle, and so he opens the door, but it's the homeless man and a furry black and white animal called a funk. The funk looks at Lex and tells him to give the homeless man 4000 credits. "Ma" says Lex. He is right, it is Ma the AI that Karter created, from the mad scientist's lab, but in the body for a funk ( half fox/ half skunk, but exceptionally cute}. Lex gives the man the credits and pushes him out the door. Ma explains to Lex that she needs his help, that Karter has been kidnapped by terrorists, who want him to make them weapons of mass destruction, which is Karter's specialty. If they don't find Karter before he completes the weapons, all humanity could be dead. Lex is stunned, but believes Ma, and cancels everything he's doing, Michelle breezes in, and says she can't stay, she has a flight to catch, sees Ma, and says " ooooh! Isn't she cute!" and picks up the funk, petting it behind the ears. " I didn't know you had a dog Lex." "I don't. It belongs to a friend." Michelle leaves the apartment quickly, and the rest of the book revolves are saving Karter and the rest of humanity. It involves: Shopping at SaveMart, freeing war criminals, buying spaceships, contacting criminals, lots of explosions, space battles, torture, huge explosions in cities, a huge amount of gun battles, knife fights, face changing through chemistry that is extremely painful, disguises, alter-egos, military hardware, a berzerk android, lots of prototype hardware, a hell ride through a city being attacked by terrorists, an unnamed benefactor, smashing spaceships, a manifesto, a manufacturing facility, weapons of mass destruction, decompressing rooms so there is no air - just space, transporting things - who knows where, hand to hand combat, blasting people into space, healing peoples wounds, apologies accepted, apologies denied. And there was so much more than this. Joesph Lallo books are like taking a thillride within a thrillride within a thrillride. This isn't an E-ticket ride. This is a Z-ticket ride. I know E-ticket was the most they had at Disneyland. But if they had a ride that was a Z-ticket ride, the warnings alone, would have been so long, only a few teenagers would have been able to go on the darned ride at all, you'd have to be over 18 and sign your life away with blood, before you could go on the ride, not many people would do that, so instead, read this book, it is better then any ride anyway. The plot is so twisty, it is twistier than really tight yarn, twistier than a poodle with a perm, twistier than lava tubes in Hawaii. The plot gets an A+ in my book. It is extraordinary, but typical of Joseph Lallo who makes it look easy, how he does it, I have no idea, but I'm glad he does, and he's left room for a sequel. This makes me very happy, because I love Ma especially, and Lex too. Karter and the rest and a dim second. Though the more of Michelle I see, the more I like her.
THE CHARACTERIZATION: This is where Joseph Lallo shines. His characterization is unbelievable. He can take a character from nothing and build them into the most in-depth character you've ever read. For example, in the this book, there is a character they call Garotte, though that is not his name. It turns he has a million names all over the galaxy. Offically he is a war criminal, his specialty is destabilizing societies. He's good at it. Very good at it. He's been doing it for a very long time. Lallo makes all his flaws and his crimes, and all his capabilities, and his disguises, seem so real, that you'd swear that he could be someone's uncle. He's not only fleshed out and fully three dimensional, he seems completely real - as in real like real. That takes a lot of talent, yet again Mr. Lallo makes it look easy, he does it for every single character in the book, with very few exception, like guards. There are just too many guards to give this treatment to, so he doesn't. But what he does do is give their 12 seconds of fame when their time to read is happening. So they get a few emotions, foibles and attributes, even if they die 2 seconds later. Lallo is an artist with characterization. He gets at least one star for just this. Ma is another one who is a breakthrough in characterization that I have to bring up. Now that she is operating in a funk, which she calls "wetware", she is learning all about what it is like to a biological being. At some points, she can't tell if her wants and needs are coming from logic, or are biologically induced. An example is when she gets the feeling that she would like to wrap herself around Lex's shoulders. She could find no logic to that, so she asked him if she could do it, and he said "yes," so she climbed up, and then convinced herself that it for Lex's stress relief. It was rather humorous. An AI, with a need that originated from the funk (which liked to ride on shoulders) was explained away as stess relief for Lex. It merely comforted Ma to be close to Lex by being on his shoulders, the other funk that Karter had used to do it all the time to him and seemed very happy about it. I guess you call that reality postponement, but in an AI? What do you call it then? Anyway, Ma was invaluable to the mission, even though she was small and fuzzy and cute. She still learned a lot about humans and their interactions that she never would have at Big Sigma, Karter's planet, where she lived in the computers. Lallo's imagination of what an AI would go through once it was free to roam around in wetware is simply impressive. The depths of his thinking is amazing. It boogles the mind to think that some day this could all happen just like he writes.
THE PACE: Can you say FTL? Yes, I mean Faster Than Light, because that is the pace of this book, it never stops. It never lets up. It nevers slows down. It only gets faster. At the beginning, Ma leaves Lex rather innocent because she knows that his stress levels will skyrocket if he knows too much of her plan. He goes along with her. And then when the first incident happens, and Lex is now implicated in a major crime. Now we are at FTL, and it never slows down after that. You're really hooked from page one, when Ma shows up and tells Lex that Karter has been kidnapped by terrorists and the galaxy could be destroyed if they don't rescue him. From the first book, we know what Karter is capable of, and that he is a sociopath, so it is a fatally dangerous combination. That gets your attention right away. Karter could cooperate with the terrorists if he wanted to and rid the galaxy of all the people living in it if he was feeling grumpy at the time, or if he wanted to try out some new contraption of his. Either way everybody in the galaxy would be dead. That would be very bad. They had to rescue him not only from the terrorists but from himself as well and take him back to Big Sigmas where he really couldn't hurt anybody, just work om his inventions. Now you know why the book goes by FTL because the risk is so great and Karter's know-how is even greater. That he could pull it off in no time if he had the right parts, is the greatest risk, so the time is counting down. Tick, tick, tick, while they get the right people and weapons to go after him. To say that I was breathless is an understatement.
THE ENDING: The Ending was so amazing, at first you think it's one way, then you think it's another, then finally it's all over! How Lallo does it I don't know, it was the perfect ending to the book. Between the space crashes, people being blown out space hatches, battles in space stations, battles in space, Karter sabotaging things, terrorists are everywhere, and the WMDs are ready to launch. What's a girl to do? Read the book, of course. That's the only thing you can do to get all the excitement that Lallo put together in this adventure/thriller. This will be the fastest read you've ever had. I guarantee. You'll be breathless by the end. And as I said before, there's room for a sequel, and I hope there is one soon, because these characters are fantastic. I want Ma and Lex back, as well as Michelle. She and Lex need some alone time. Garrote and Silo need to find the unnamed benefactor, and Ma needs to take care of Karter and try to make him into a better human then he is right now.
THE UPSHOT: If you like adventure or thriller stories, this is the book for you, even if it is in space. It has the military, war, weapons of mass destruction, terrorists, battles indoors and outdoors, a hellride through a city being attacked by terrorists, stolen weapons, weapons prototypes, war criminals, the new automated "berzerk" soldier, the threat of the destruction of the entire galaxy. What more could you want from an adventure or a thriller. I ask you? This is no James Bond book, this is real excitement, you have every reason to be thrilled down to the tips of your toes with this one. Lallo gives so much in this book that you might even switch genres after reading it. If you do, might I suggest a few authors, Look at my blog for some examples: http://www.mlbiblio.blogspot.com for some alternate reading materials so that you can open your mind to new authors, including more of Lallo's work, along with others. This is a thumping good read of the first order, so buy it now, before Joseph becomes famous, and the price skyrockets beyond your budget and mine. Right now it's just $2.99 - a bargain like no other. Go get it. It's one of the best deals in the universe. It's like finding Tolkein, before everyone else did.
THE PLOT: While Lex is in his apartment waiting for one of those rare times Michelle sees him, a homeless man rings a chime at his apartment. Lex tells him to go away. The next thing that Lex knows, the door bell rings, he thinks it's Michelle, and so he opens the door, but it's the homeless man and a furry black and white animal called a funk. The funk looks at Lex and tells him to give the homeless man 4000 credits. "Ma" says Lex. He is right, it is Ma the AI that Karter created, from the mad scientist's lab, but in the body for a funk ( half fox/ half skunk, but exceptionally cute}. Lex gives the man the credits and pushes him out the door. Ma explains to Lex that she needs his help, that Karter has been kidnapped by terrorists, who want him to make them weapons of mass destruction, which is Karter's specialty. If they don't find Karter before he completes the weapons, all humanity could be dead. Lex is stunned, but believes Ma, and cancels everything he's doing, Michelle breezes in, and says she can't stay, she has a flight to catch, sees Ma, and says " ooooh! Isn't she cute!" and picks up the funk, petting it behind the ears. " I didn't know you had a dog Lex." "I don't. It belongs to a friend." Michelle leaves the apartment quickly, and the rest of the book revolves are saving Karter and the rest of humanity. It involves: Shopping at SaveMart, freeing war criminals, buying spaceships, contacting criminals, lots of explosions, space battles, torture, huge explosions in cities, a huge amount of gun battles, knife fights, face changing through chemistry that is extremely painful, disguises, alter-egos, military hardware, a berzerk android, lots of prototype hardware, a hell ride through a city being attacked by terrorists, an unnamed benefactor, smashing spaceships, a manifesto, a manufacturing facility, weapons of mass destruction, decompressing rooms so there is no air - just space, transporting things - who knows where, hand to hand combat, blasting people into space, healing peoples wounds, apologies accepted, apologies denied. And there was so much more than this. Joesph Lallo books are like taking a thillride within a thrillride within a thrillride. This isn't an E-ticket ride. This is a Z-ticket ride. I know E-ticket was the most they had at Disneyland. But if they had a ride that was a Z-ticket ride, the warnings alone, would have been so long, only a few teenagers would have been able to go on the darned ride at all, you'd have to be over 18 and sign your life away with blood, before you could go on the ride, not many people would do that, so instead, read this book, it is better then any ride anyway. The plot is so twisty, it is twistier than really tight yarn, twistier than a poodle with a perm, twistier than lava tubes in Hawaii. The plot gets an A+ in my book. It is extraordinary, but typical of Joseph Lallo who makes it look easy, how he does it, I have no idea, but I'm glad he does, and he's left room for a sequel. This makes me very happy, because I love Ma especially, and Lex too. Karter and the rest and a dim second. Though the more of Michelle I see, the more I like her.
THE CHARACTERIZATION: This is where Joseph Lallo shines. His characterization is unbelievable. He can take a character from nothing and build them into the most in-depth character you've ever read. For example, in the this book, there is a character they call Garotte, though that is not his name. It turns he has a million names all over the galaxy. Offically he is a war criminal, his specialty is destabilizing societies. He's good at it. Very good at it. He's been doing it for a very long time. Lallo makes all his flaws and his crimes, and all his capabilities, and his disguises, seem so real, that you'd swear that he could be someone's uncle. He's not only fleshed out and fully three dimensional, he seems completely real - as in real like real. That takes a lot of talent, yet again Mr. Lallo makes it look easy, he does it for every single character in the book, with very few exception, like guards. There are just too many guards to give this treatment to, so he doesn't. But what he does do is give their 12 seconds of fame when their time to read is happening. So they get a few emotions, foibles and attributes, even if they die 2 seconds later. Lallo is an artist with characterization. He gets at least one star for just this. Ma is another one who is a breakthrough in characterization that I have to bring up. Now that she is operating in a funk, which she calls "wetware", she is learning all about what it is like to a biological being. At some points, she can't tell if her wants and needs are coming from logic, or are biologically induced. An example is when she gets the feeling that she would like to wrap herself around Lex's shoulders. She could find no logic to that, so she asked him if she could do it, and he said "yes," so she climbed up, and then convinced herself that it for Lex's stress relief. It was rather humorous. An AI, with a need that originated from the funk (which liked to ride on shoulders) was explained away as stess relief for Lex. It merely comforted Ma to be close to Lex by being on his shoulders, the other funk that Karter had used to do it all the time to him and seemed very happy about it. I guess you call that reality postponement, but in an AI? What do you call it then? Anyway, Ma was invaluable to the mission, even though she was small and fuzzy and cute. She still learned a lot about humans and their interactions that she never would have at Big Sigma, Karter's planet, where she lived in the computers. Lallo's imagination of what an AI would go through once it was free to roam around in wetware is simply impressive. The depths of his thinking is amazing. It boogles the mind to think that some day this could all happen just like he writes.
THE PACE: Can you say FTL? Yes, I mean Faster Than Light, because that is the pace of this book, it never stops. It never lets up. It nevers slows down. It only gets faster. At the beginning, Ma leaves Lex rather innocent because she knows that his stress levels will skyrocket if he knows too much of her plan. He goes along with her. And then when the first incident happens, and Lex is now implicated in a major crime. Now we are at FTL, and it never slows down after that. You're really hooked from page one, when Ma shows up and tells Lex that Karter has been kidnapped by terrorists and the galaxy could be destroyed if they don't rescue him. From the first book, we know what Karter is capable of, and that he is a sociopath, so it is a fatally dangerous combination. That gets your attention right away. Karter could cooperate with the terrorists if he wanted to and rid the galaxy of all the people living in it if he was feeling grumpy at the time, or if he wanted to try out some new contraption of his. Either way everybody in the galaxy would be dead. That would be very bad. They had to rescue him not only from the terrorists but from himself as well and take him back to Big Sigmas where he really couldn't hurt anybody, just work om his inventions. Now you know why the book goes by FTL because the risk is so great and Karter's know-how is even greater. That he could pull it off in no time if he had the right parts, is the greatest risk, so the time is counting down. Tick, tick, tick, while they get the right people and weapons to go after him. To say that I was breathless is an understatement.
THE ENDING: The Ending was so amazing, at first you think it's one way, then you think it's another, then finally it's all over! How Lallo does it I don't know, it was the perfect ending to the book. Between the space crashes, people being blown out space hatches, battles in space stations, battles in space, Karter sabotaging things, terrorists are everywhere, and the WMDs are ready to launch. What's a girl to do? Read the book, of course. That's the only thing you can do to get all the excitement that Lallo put together in this adventure/thriller. This will be the fastest read you've ever had. I guarantee. You'll be breathless by the end. And as I said before, there's room for a sequel, and I hope there is one soon, because these characters are fantastic. I want Ma and Lex back, as well as Michelle. She and Lex need some alone time. Garrote and Silo need to find the unnamed benefactor, and Ma needs to take care of Karter and try to make him into a better human then he is right now.
THE UPSHOT: If you like adventure or thriller stories, this is the book for you, even if it is in space. It has the military, war, weapons of mass destruction, terrorists, battles indoors and outdoors, a hellride through a city being attacked by terrorists, stolen weapons, weapons prototypes, war criminals, the new automated "berzerk" soldier, the threat of the destruction of the entire galaxy. What more could you want from an adventure or a thriller. I ask you? This is no James Bond book, this is real excitement, you have every reason to be thrilled down to the tips of your toes with this one. Lallo gives so much in this book that you might even switch genres after reading it. If you do, might I suggest a few authors, Look at my blog for some examples: http://www.mlbiblio.blogspot.com for some alternate reading materials so that you can open your mind to new authors, including more of Lallo's work, along with others. This is a thumping good read of the first order, so buy it now, before Joseph becomes famous, and the price skyrockets beyond your budget and mine. Right now it's just $2.99 - a bargain like no other. Go get it. It's one of the best deals in the universe. It's like finding Tolkein, before everyone else did.
January 14, 2016
Sequels can be risky business no matter the medium. Sequels are inspired by various motivations. The FAST AND FURIOUS franchise continues to live on because people consistently pay to see the ludicrous stunts and zany criminal story lines that the movies provide. The Marvel comic and movie universes are going strong because there are so many wild adventures to be had and so many characters to get to know (not to mention all the money they make from them). Then there are some concepts that are simply planned to go on for a finite amount of time like THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy which is most definitely meant to be a three-book series. Any more than that and the story might be stretched a bit thin and any less would rob readers of some crucial details and moments. In all of these cases, one thing that remains constant is that there is an unspoken expectation that the next installment in a series will be better than it's last. The fact of the matter is though, that sequels can often be a source of disappointment when they fail to outdo their predecessors or at least advance the overarching plot in a meaningful way. Joseph R. Lallo's first installment in the BIG SIGMA trilogy (entitled BYPASS GEMINI) was a delightful throwback to science fiction of old and mixed in a bit of noir for good measure. It ended on a note which was quite satisfying but also left some space for future adventures. Because I enjoyed the first so much (and read it for the low price of free) I decided to purchase the second book in this series.
My sentiments toward this story are going to be a bit of a mix here. I had a generally positive attitude toward this work the entire way through, but there were definitely some things that threw me off about it which kept this from being a full 5/5 for me. While I will obviously be getting into the details of what I mean very soon, my overall opinion of UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES is that it is neither any better or worse than BYPASS GEMINI, it's just a bit different in some ways.
CHARACTERS
Easily one of the highlights from the first book - the cast returns for another mission with some new additions to the crew. Lex, our hero from the first novel takes the lead again. Well, for the most part anyway. Whereas we pretty much exclusively followed Lex around in BYPASS GEMINI, readers will find themselves switching between different characters of the expanded main cast. I'll get to why this is in a later section, but for now it's simply worth noting that Lex is not at the center of this book's events although he is still a major player. It is also good to know that the character development that Lex underwent during the first adventure carries over and continues in this one. Lex is still Lex, but he's a far less selfish and self-destructive version of himself than he was when we first met him. He still struggles with some of his old issues, but is simply far more likable here.
Michella, who was criminally underused in the first book, finally gets a lot more time to shine. Her fame from shooting footage of the Vector Corp. incident has sent her career forward at a blinding pace. While she loves the excitement and renown, her and Lex struggle to hold onto their renewed relationship. She sort of reminded me of SMALLVILLE'S version of Lois Lane in that she's daring, determined, and has a bit of a temper. I think overall, she's a very good character, but there were definitely some parts with her that felt a little forced and it was a little odd to have her be so closely comparable to another fictional character (she's even got her own Jimmy Olsen type of sidekick).
The maniacal Karter Dee makes his return. He's largely unchanged save for his dire circumstances, but honestly, I wouldn't change a thing about him anyway. His AI companion, Ma, also makes a return, but she goes through quite a bit of change throughout the course of the quest to liberate Karter from a cult of anti-government fanatics. I won't say any more on that topic, other than that I can almost guarantee that you will love every second you have with her.
There are also four brand new individuals who are introduced slowly over time so I'm not sure how spoiler-y talking about them is. In the interest of not ruining surprises, I'll try and keep things a bit vague. First up is Commander Purcell who serves as this book's primary antagonist. While Lex and the gang are still facing off against a very large organization, having Purcell be such a featured character gave this terrorist organization a lot more weight. One of my major issues with the first book was that it had no real central villain to connect with. There were certainly some named bad guys, but Purcell offers a way more prominent face to this book's source of conflict. Along with Purcell there is a mysterious figure who is never fully revealed and will likely be featured in the third and final book in the series. Then there are two mercenary types which team up with Lex and Ma both of which are very different in that they are physically lethal, but their vibrant personalities fit right in with the existing cast.
All in all, this is one area where the book really shines.
WORLD/SETTING
As with the first book, the locations visited in UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES are varied and exotically colorful. Previously visited locations like Lex's urban home planet and Karter's high-tech lab return, though only for brief segments. There is the terrorist space station which has a feel that is distinctively reminiscent of the Death Star. Several, more inhospitable locations are explored which offer some arguably grittier sequences than anything readers might have seen in the first book. There is also a lush, affluent world where Michella spends the majority of her time due to a reporting convention which is taking place there. Combine this with some of the spacecraft interiors and there is more than enough to make this feel like a truly epic galactic journey.
The universe itself does have a different feel to it, though. Because of all the character switching, more areas can be explored at once and the story space overall has a much bigger feel to it. In the first novel we were following Lex as he fled from the insidious Vector Corp. until his eventual head-on confrontation with them. The galaxy seems to have accepted that only a small, deviant sect of the organization was actually engaging in anything unseemly so life has mostly gone on without much disturbance. On one hand this is a little disappointing since the events of the first book were so intensely grandiose. On the other, it felt very true to life that the ebb and flow of society continued on without much consequence while individuals (mainly Lex and Michella) still feel the impacts of the event be they positive or negative. This calm really just opens the floor for a brand new crisis, one which has far more reaching consequences. This means that the stakes are even higher this time around.
PLOT/TONE
It is in this area of the work that I felt there were the most differences from the first book. BYPASS GEMINI was a tightly composed novel with noir suspense and corporate corruption. The only real respite from the high octane chase was a pit stop at Karter Dee's mad scientist lair. UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES felt dramatically more relaxed in it's pacing, which in some ways might be good, but in others it was definitely a hindrance. One key area that bugged me was toward the earlier chapters when Lallo feels the need to heavily recap information that was already provided in the first novel. I didn't need a full explanation of who Ma was or a summary of Lex and Michella's tumultuous relationship. The extent to which I as a reader was reminded of some of the basic plot points from the original felt a tad insulting in that I was not trusted to remember that information. This made for a rather slow opening, but even after the endless stream of summaries is finished, Big Sigma Book 2 still takes on a drastically different tone overall.
A lot of this likely stems from the fact that we are no longer following just one character. There are three distinct story-lines which run concurrently with one another. There's Michella's investigative work, Ma's quest to launch a rescue mission, and Karter's explosive interactions with his terrorist captors. All three threads are equally interesting, but it is still worth noting that there is far more content addressed here than what readers will probably expect after having finished Book 1. Ultimately I found that while it was a fine enough story, it was just a lot less focused than the first and it lacks a lot of the urgency that made me want to race toward the end of BYPASS GEMINI. I liked that there was more content, I loved that the stakes were a bit higher, and the expanded main cast really added a lot to the narrative, but the tale definitely meandered along at it's own pace and I felt no great hurry to rip through it's pages.
One other thing of note is that I felt as though there was a bit more tangents to be found in this installment. Sometimes it is Lallo explaining the finer points of a piece of technology, sometimes it is an deep explanation of a location followed up with a series of shorter explanations that restate what I already knew about that place. Examples of this could definitely be found in the fist story as well, but it seemed to me that this issue was far more pronounced this time around, probably because there is a wider swathe of the universe which is covered in this adventure.
FORMATTING/PRESENTATION
By and large, the book as a product itself is mostly the same as the first book in the series. The cover is stunning once again, and the editing is air tight. Scene breaks are still denoted with the single, boring "#," but I noticed far less spacing issues this time around. Most of these elements are so well done that this is barely worth mentioning, I only bring it up because of some of the minor presentation-related gripes I had with the previous installment.
CONCLUSION
In the end, Lallo has managed to deliver another marvelous science fiction space odyssey. The larger scope and expanded main cast, while good in many ways, do slow down the pace that was set during Book 1 and will undoubtedly throw readers off if they came in expecting a similar tone and feel. Even without looking at this book in comparison to its predecessor, it still has some flaws that keep it from reaching the peak of excellence, but it provided a great deal of entertainment value all the same. It is a sequel that certainly does not outdo the original, but it also doesn't get lost in its shadow either. It is no better or worse, only different. I'm certainly interested to see what the third book in the trilogy brings since Books 1 and 2 are so different. It seems to me that there are some much larger ideas presented in this installment that are yet to be fully closed off so I anticipate that Book 3 will continue the trend of telling a story of wider breadth. If you enjoyed the first book in this series, then you should definitely continue since UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES is a very worthy follow up, albeit one that will probably not meet some of your expectations in terms of what kind of adventure you are actually getting yourself into.
My sentiments toward this story are going to be a bit of a mix here. I had a generally positive attitude toward this work the entire way through, but there were definitely some things that threw me off about it which kept this from being a full 5/5 for me. While I will obviously be getting into the details of what I mean very soon, my overall opinion of UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES is that it is neither any better or worse than BYPASS GEMINI, it's just a bit different in some ways.
CHARACTERS
Easily one of the highlights from the first book - the cast returns for another mission with some new additions to the crew. Lex, our hero from the first novel takes the lead again. Well, for the most part anyway. Whereas we pretty much exclusively followed Lex around in BYPASS GEMINI, readers will find themselves switching between different characters of the expanded main cast. I'll get to why this is in a later section, but for now it's simply worth noting that Lex is not at the center of this book's events although he is still a major player. It is also good to know that the character development that Lex underwent during the first adventure carries over and continues in this one. Lex is still Lex, but he's a far less selfish and self-destructive version of himself than he was when we first met him. He still struggles with some of his old issues, but is simply far more likable here.
Michella, who was criminally underused in the first book, finally gets a lot more time to shine. Her fame from shooting footage of the Vector Corp. incident has sent her career forward at a blinding pace. While she loves the excitement and renown, her and Lex struggle to hold onto their renewed relationship. She sort of reminded me of SMALLVILLE'S version of Lois Lane in that she's daring, determined, and has a bit of a temper. I think overall, she's a very good character, but there were definitely some parts with her that felt a little forced and it was a little odd to have her be so closely comparable to another fictional character (she's even got her own Jimmy Olsen type of sidekick).
The maniacal Karter Dee makes his return. He's largely unchanged save for his dire circumstances, but honestly, I wouldn't change a thing about him anyway. His AI companion, Ma, also makes a return, but she goes through quite a bit of change throughout the course of the quest to liberate Karter from a cult of anti-government fanatics. I won't say any more on that topic, other than that I can almost guarantee that you will love every second you have with her.
There are also four brand new individuals who are introduced slowly over time so I'm not sure how spoiler-y talking about them is. In the interest of not ruining surprises, I'll try and keep things a bit vague. First up is Commander Purcell who serves as this book's primary antagonist. While Lex and the gang are still facing off against a very large organization, having Purcell be such a featured character gave this terrorist organization a lot more weight. One of my major issues with the first book was that it had no real central villain to connect with. There were certainly some named bad guys, but Purcell offers a way more prominent face to this book's source of conflict. Along with Purcell there is a mysterious figure who is never fully revealed and will likely be featured in the third and final book in the series. Then there are two mercenary types which team up with Lex and Ma both of which are very different in that they are physically lethal, but their vibrant personalities fit right in with the existing cast.
All in all, this is one area where the book really shines.
WORLD/SETTING
As with the first book, the locations visited in UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES are varied and exotically colorful. Previously visited locations like Lex's urban home planet and Karter's high-tech lab return, though only for brief segments. There is the terrorist space station which has a feel that is distinctively reminiscent of the Death Star. Several, more inhospitable locations are explored which offer some arguably grittier sequences than anything readers might have seen in the first book. There is also a lush, affluent world where Michella spends the majority of her time due to a reporting convention which is taking place there. Combine this with some of the spacecraft interiors and there is more than enough to make this feel like a truly epic galactic journey.
The universe itself does have a different feel to it, though. Because of all the character switching, more areas can be explored at once and the story space overall has a much bigger feel to it. In the first novel we were following Lex as he fled from the insidious Vector Corp. until his eventual head-on confrontation with them. The galaxy seems to have accepted that only a small, deviant sect of the organization was actually engaging in anything unseemly so life has mostly gone on without much disturbance. On one hand this is a little disappointing since the events of the first book were so intensely grandiose. On the other, it felt very true to life that the ebb and flow of society continued on without much consequence while individuals (mainly Lex and Michella) still feel the impacts of the event be they positive or negative. This calm really just opens the floor for a brand new crisis, one which has far more reaching consequences. This means that the stakes are even higher this time around.
PLOT/TONE
It is in this area of the work that I felt there were the most differences from the first book. BYPASS GEMINI was a tightly composed novel with noir suspense and corporate corruption. The only real respite from the high octane chase was a pit stop at Karter Dee's mad scientist lair. UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES felt dramatically more relaxed in it's pacing, which in some ways might be good, but in others it was definitely a hindrance. One key area that bugged me was toward the earlier chapters when Lallo feels the need to heavily recap information that was already provided in the first novel. I didn't need a full explanation of who Ma was or a summary of Lex and Michella's tumultuous relationship. The extent to which I as a reader was reminded of some of the basic plot points from the original felt a tad insulting in that I was not trusted to remember that information. This made for a rather slow opening, but even after the endless stream of summaries is finished, Big Sigma Book 2 still takes on a drastically different tone overall.
A lot of this likely stems from the fact that we are no longer following just one character. There are three distinct story-lines which run concurrently with one another. There's Michella's investigative work, Ma's quest to launch a rescue mission, and Karter's explosive interactions with his terrorist captors. All three threads are equally interesting, but it is still worth noting that there is far more content addressed here than what readers will probably expect after having finished Book 1. Ultimately I found that while it was a fine enough story, it was just a lot less focused than the first and it lacks a lot of the urgency that made me want to race toward the end of BYPASS GEMINI. I liked that there was more content, I loved that the stakes were a bit higher, and the expanded main cast really added a lot to the narrative, but the tale definitely meandered along at it's own pace and I felt no great hurry to rip through it's pages.
One other thing of note is that I felt as though there was a bit more tangents to be found in this installment. Sometimes it is Lallo explaining the finer points of a piece of technology, sometimes it is an deep explanation of a location followed up with a series of shorter explanations that restate what I already knew about that place. Examples of this could definitely be found in the fist story as well, but it seemed to me that this issue was far more pronounced this time around, probably because there is a wider swathe of the universe which is covered in this adventure.
FORMATTING/PRESENTATION
By and large, the book as a product itself is mostly the same as the first book in the series. The cover is stunning once again, and the editing is air tight. Scene breaks are still denoted with the single, boring "#," but I noticed far less spacing issues this time around. Most of these elements are so well done that this is barely worth mentioning, I only bring it up because of some of the minor presentation-related gripes I had with the previous installment.
CONCLUSION
In the end, Lallo has managed to deliver another marvelous science fiction space odyssey. The larger scope and expanded main cast, while good in many ways, do slow down the pace that was set during Book 1 and will undoubtedly throw readers off if they came in expecting a similar tone and feel. Even without looking at this book in comparison to its predecessor, it still has some flaws that keep it from reaching the peak of excellence, but it provided a great deal of entertainment value all the same. It is a sequel that certainly does not outdo the original, but it also doesn't get lost in its shadow either. It is no better or worse, only different. I'm certainly interested to see what the third book in the trilogy brings since Books 1 and 2 are so different. It seems to me that there are some much larger ideas presented in this installment that are yet to be fully closed off so I anticipate that Book 3 will continue the trend of telling a story of wider breadth. If you enjoyed the first book in this series, then you should definitely continue since UNSTABLE PROTOTYPES is a very worthy follow up, albeit one that will probably not meet some of your expectations in terms of what kind of adventure you are actually getting yourself into.
May 27, 2020
My Newest Sci-Fi Heroine!
Well, when we first choose someone as a hero, we can sometimes overlook some seemingly minor details and may become somewhat ... over-enthusiastic. After reading Bypass Gemini, the first volume in Joseph R. Lallo's "Big Gemini" series, I was so taken by the scientific and engineering genius of Lallo's Karter Dee character that I declared him as my newest sci-fi character hero in my review of that volume. On reflection, true heroism requires something more than genius, physical ability, or technical skill, it usually involves highly ethical behavior. I may need to reconsider my initial opinion. Karter, shall we say, "does not always consider the ethics of his actions." While the day may get saved by something he did, it may not have been on purpose.
But, in Unstable Prototypes, the second volume in the series, I found my newest sci-fi heroine, the character called "Ma." To explain why would be a plot spoiler, so I cannot reveal my reasons here. I will simply say that I agree with the character Lex that Ma is a worthy person. To understand what I mean, you will have to read this fine novel for yourself.
Highly recommended!
Well, when we first choose someone as a hero, we can sometimes overlook some seemingly minor details and may become somewhat ... over-enthusiastic. After reading Bypass Gemini, the first volume in Joseph R. Lallo's "Big Gemini" series, I was so taken by the scientific and engineering genius of Lallo's Karter Dee character that I declared him as my newest sci-fi character hero in my review of that volume. On reflection, true heroism requires something more than genius, physical ability, or technical skill, it usually involves highly ethical behavior. I may need to reconsider my initial opinion. Karter, shall we say, "does not always consider the ethics of his actions." While the day may get saved by something he did, it may not have been on purpose.
But, in Unstable Prototypes, the second volume in the series, I found my newest sci-fi heroine, the character called "Ma." To explain why would be a plot spoiler, so I cannot reveal my reasons here. I will simply say that I agree with the character Lex that Ma is a worthy person. To understand what I mean, you will have to read this fine novel for yourself.
Highly recommended!
April 7, 2019
As a now retired software engineer, and survivor of a career surfing the bleeding edge of computers, it is refreshing to escape into the science fiction creations of JRL.
The value of testers is usually underestimated. If you want to know what a product can actually do, or how to coax it to do what the developer thought was obvious, ask a tester. That Karter would understand and appreciate the value Lex offers speaks loudly to me about JRL's perception of people and society.
Unstable Prototypes was spell binding for me, paralyzingly so. I love the detail in the characters, the events, the society, and the technology. This is not a short story that rushes from introduction, through some lightly coated spaghetti, moving quickly to dessert and then shoving you out the door. This is a complete reality, elaborated from various viewpoints, that is woven with care. In spite of the care taken to provide background and insight into the characters and events, the book maintains the feeling of urgency appropriate to a planned business advance that will only cost a few planets of human lives.
This book has it all - humor, believable tech, characters I can respect and learn from, dynamic relationships, a feeling that the author understands something about life that bears optimism.
A very satisfying hard-science fiction entry.
The value of testers is usually underestimated. If you want to know what a product can actually do, or how to coax it to do what the developer thought was obvious, ask a tester. That Karter would understand and appreciate the value Lex offers speaks loudly to me about JRL's perception of people and society.
Unstable Prototypes was spell binding for me, paralyzingly so. I love the detail in the characters, the events, the society, and the technology. This is not a short story that rushes from introduction, through some lightly coated spaghetti, moving quickly to dessert and then shoving you out the door. This is a complete reality, elaborated from various viewpoints, that is woven with care. In spite of the care taken to provide background and insight into the characters and events, the book maintains the feeling of urgency appropriate to a planned business advance that will only cost a few planets of human lives.
This book has it all - humor, believable tech, characters I can respect and learn from, dynamic relationships, a feeling that the author understands something about life that bears optimism.
A very satisfying hard-science fiction entry.
September 14, 2018
This book was a lot of fun. I should probably mention that I listened to it rather than actually reading it. I disliked the voice reading the book. The main character is referred to as Lex sometimes, and that name made me remember this one not very good scifi show called Lexx. That show had a horribly annoying main character named Stanley Tweedle, and his voice was a horrid thing to hear. It made me nausceous watching the show just from hearing that guy talk. Anyway, the guy reading this book sounds like Stanley Tweedle if he were trying to sound a degree more toward normal. That still can be annoying to listen to after a while. If I were factoring the voice into my rating, I would drop it down to three stars, but I am rating this book only as a book. This book deserves four stars. It was a really fun story with interesting characters. I would recommend this book, although I would suggest actually reading it rather than listening to the audiobook.
June 14, 2021
Fun romp in follow up book
This is book 2 in this series and is fully self contained ( but you do need to read the first book to fully appreciate thus one) look 3 a pleasure so you finish the book with the major plot points resolved and only enough loose ends to make anticipating book 3 a pleasure not a necessity. The action is fast and engrossing and there is enough humor to add to the fun.the characters are cartoonish and shallow but this is pure escapism fare so it does not matter. The series is original and inventive. There is a little romance and sex is barely hinted at but there is a lot of violence. Perfect for a 12 year old boy in my opinion or any Star Wars or Marvel fan
This is book 2 in this series and is fully self contained ( but you do need to read the first book to fully appreciate thus one) look 3 a pleasure so you finish the book with the major plot points resolved and only enough loose ends to make anticipating book 3 a pleasure not a necessity. The action is fast and engrossing and there is enough humor to add to the fun.the characters are cartoonish and shallow but this is pure escapism fare so it does not matter. The series is original and inventive. There is a little romance and sex is barely hinted at but there is a lot of violence. Perfect for a 12 year old boy in my opinion or any Star Wars or Marvel fan
June 20, 2018
The second Big Sigma book is a lot of fun, not least because of the decision to expand the role of formerly minor cast members. There are also some new characters who are pretty fun, too. Squee/Ma is an obvious favourite. The schemes are suitably wacky, the stakes are suitably high, and all in all it's a very pleasant romp. By no means a deep book, but if you want light SF action, you should enjoy the ride.
November 7, 2019
Disappointing after book 1
Honestly, I was disappointed. Paolo had such an innovative, clever, and fun 1st book that I was excited to read book two. It's an okay story but not nearly as inventive bad book 1. Instead of rising above others Lallo just joins the pack of sci-fi writers.
Honestly, I was disappointed. Paolo had such an innovative, clever, and fun 1st book that I was excited to read book two. It's an okay story but not nearly as inventive bad book 1. Instead of rising above others Lallo just joins the pack of sci-fi writers.
January 18, 2021
Love the big sigma series! I should mention I listened to book and it was funny exciting and I love all the characters the narrator brought to life lex and ma and the rest of the gang !! In my opinion He is lex it was hard to listen to more recent books with different narrator just couldn’t get into it like I enjoyed others!
April 25, 2021
Another fun adventure
Good characters continue to be the central feature of this series. I like the way that the main character continues to get more fully described through his actions, and other people's observations about him. As with the first book there's plenty of very interesting action.
Good characters continue to be the central feature of this series. I like the way that the main character continues to get more fully described through his actions, and other people's observations about him. As with the first book there's plenty of very interesting action.
August 13, 2024
I seems the less interesting material was short, but really, I just can't remember how long since the rest of the story was non-stop action. With a combination of investigative reporting, prison breaks, infiltration, weapons supply runs and terrorist attacks, the AI driving a rescue somehow created a small force that had all the advantages, except for the prototypes. Very entertaining.
June 5, 2025
4 stars. Fast-paced and enjoyable read. The MC is an exceptional space pilot whose good heart and "talent" for stumbling into dangerous situations leads, in this book, to fighting against a terrorist organization that is planning an attack that would kill billions. Together with a group of quirky compatriots, he somehow manages to practically "save the galaxy".
January 13, 2019
Fun original sci-fi storyline with a happy ending
The entire book is a fun nonstop action packed ride. Nice job for a fantasy author. I’m looking forward to more from this author.
The entire book is a fun nonstop action packed ride. Nice job for a fantasy author. I’m looking forward to more from this author.
May 10, 2021
Joseph R. Lallo has done it again. His characters are wonderfully unique. His story lines are page-turners. And, of course I love a happy ending, especially when a touch of love story is included. I LOVED THIS BOOK!
June 6, 2017
I really like this book, and the series in general.
December 13, 2017
Great book
Loved everything about this series so far looking forward to the rest of them. Keep up the good work. Thanks
Loved everything about this series so far looking forward to the rest of them. Keep up the good work. Thanks
April 19, 2018
Great Read
Once again, Lallo didn’t disappoint! Humor at just the right times while continuing the relationship between Lex and Michelle! Highly recommended!
Once again, Lallo didn’t disappoint! Humor at just the right times while continuing the relationship between Lex and Michelle! Highly recommended!
September 29, 2018
Just as good as book 1, the character of Lex is developing more. Looking forward to seeing what happens in the next book.
April 3, 2020
I'm addicted!
July 9, 2021
It started out as a simple space chase adventure story. That is, until Ma and Silo started to get to know each other. Then things got interesting.
January 12, 2022
exceptionally entertaining
I enjoyed reading this book. Fine characters,a highly entertaining plot,and just a fine read.
Put it on your to do list, you will not regret it.
I enjoyed reading this book. Fine characters,a highly entertaining plot,and just a fine read.
Put it on your to do list, you will not regret it.
December 21, 2022
This book is great, even better than the first with the addition of a couple new characters (especially Squee).
October 9, 2023
A fun read, not read thrilling as the first book. I must confess that I stopped reading book like 2 or 3 times.
June 2, 2025
I enjoyed this sequel! Lallo writes fun, pulpy books with good characters and dialog. I have some criticisms, but all in all I've yet to have a bad time with any of his books.
At a certain point, Ma, the supercomputer, (in the form of squee) has her transmitter broken. This has the unfortunate effect of rendering her mute. Later she gets a tablet and uses her paws to tap tap some preset responses. But this just doesn't jive with me. She continues to immediately talk and address changing scenarios like its no big deal. Why take away her transmitter if it isn't going to maim or even really affect her abilities at all? Ultimately it has no consequence to the story- there's a sequence where her transmitter is repaired. Maybe Lallo realized she was too OP with her transmitter, but you can figure out a better way to nerf her.
The book is a tad overlong. There are a few things that could be trimmed without much loss. I'd start with the whole Zerk storyline, that added very little. The whole section where Lex temporarily leaves the party could also have been cut, though there was no other way to get him to have face time with his girlfriend. That being said, neither of these sections were bad, they just made what could've been a tight novel pretty loose.
All that being said, the novel is fun and I'll likely continue reading the series.
At a certain point, Ma, the supercomputer, (in the form of squee) has her transmitter broken. This has the unfortunate effect of rendering her mute. Later she gets a tablet and uses her paws to tap tap some preset responses. But this just doesn't jive with me. She continues to immediately talk and address changing scenarios like its no big deal. Why take away her transmitter if it isn't going to maim or even really affect her abilities at all? Ultimately it has no consequence to the story- there's a sequence where her transmitter is repaired. Maybe Lallo realized she was too OP with her transmitter, but you can figure out a better way to nerf her.
The book is a tad overlong. There are a few things that could be trimmed without much loss. I'd start with the whole Zerk storyline, that added very little. The whole section where Lex temporarily leaves the party could also have been cut, though there was no other way to get him to have face time with his girlfriend. That being said, neither of these sections were bad, they just made what could've been a tight novel pretty loose.
All that being said, the novel is fun and I'll likely continue reading the series.
August 17, 2019
A pretty one of a kind caper adventure. left me rooting for the team to stay together in some permanent way.
March 10, 2017
I absolutely loved this book. Slightly spoilery after the next sentence. It only got four stars as opposed to five because of my own silly wish for Ma to go with Lex. Well, the Squee part of Ma.
End of spoilers.
The book started a little slow, but ended very well. I really liked the new characters. And I really enjoyed the interactions between all of the characters.
Zerk however, bothered be in a few ways that have nothing to do with the book.
Overall, the book deserves 4 1/2 stars with the 1/2 star deduction due to the slowish start.
End of spoilers.
The book started a little slow, but ended very well. I really liked the new characters. And I really enjoyed the interactions between all of the characters.
Zerk however, bothered be in a few ways that have nothing to do with the book.
Overall, the book deserves 4 1/2 stars with the 1/2 star deduction due to the slowish start.
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