Great Sci-Fi read! Earths In Space Vol. 1 By Daniel Sherrier

Just wanted to let everyone know about the book Earths In Space Vol. 1: Where Are The Little Green Men? By Daniel Sherrier.
Available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Earths-Space-vol-Little-ebook/dp/B00ASOUT7W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362852279&sr=8-1&keywords=daniel+sherrier

Has anyone else read this book? If so, what'd YOU think about it

See my review below:

Rating: 4 out of 5

Novella/Episode 1: "Liberty or Death"

Wanting to explore an alien planet and discover an alien species, protagonist Amena is faced with a dilemma: The people she meets are human. In this story, written by Daniel Sherrier, we quickly find out they have landed on another Earth, not a planet with little green men.
I found this a particularly interesting take on space travel and exploration-a clever idea of what other planets may be populated with. We first come across a civilization that is painted as a semi-Utopian society. These humans are interesting, they are ruled by "gods," but they are described as fearful of them.
Sherrier describes Amena as a strong, independent character with a moral obligation to help others in need. Knowing that she could not leave her own species to be ruled by false gods, Amena urges her crew to overthrow the gods. At this point we are faced with a conflicting thought: the characters are out in space to just visit other planets they encounter, not interfere.
As a reader, you also feel this conflict because you want what is best for these humans, but you also know that the crew set out to mainly be conscientious observers. As far as the reader and the crew knows Earth's populace is content with thinking their rulers are being truthful, and they are being taken care of. Sherrier does a great job at approaching this situation from both angles-should they interfere or leave well enough alone?
With this dilemma each character is better rounded, and we get to dive deeper into their perspectives. Character development was crucial in this book. We meet each character in sequence and get to know what their duties are without pulling teeth or flipping back a few pages to be reminded of who does what.
However, there were a few parts in this first book that could have benefited from more story development-such as the fight between Jem and Whit-a crewmember and the mission's benefactor. We never find out why the conflict occurred, or what was going on between them. Heck, we never see the actual argument occur. The read is left with a few questions. Are they a couple? Are they really good friends? Is he her father (said in my best Darth Vader voice)? This is just something I wish would have been explained a bit more. It could have added another aspect to the story if we would have found out. That being said, it could be used as an angle for Sherrier to expand upon in a coming book, if he decides to make this into a series.
Throughout the first novella/episode I felt there was no sexual tension whatsoever-and come on, we all enjoy a little sexual tension, right? The second book/episode there is a surprising relationship budding between two characters you may not expect. I say surprising because the first novella doesn't show anything between them. I wanted more of their development in the first novella, but I was glad to see something happen in the second regarding relationships.

Novella/Episode 2: "The End of an Earth"

In the second novella, we are introduced to a new villain: Onella. I loved this part of the novella! Sad to say, she was one of the main things I liked about this episode. Onella's presence could potentially be seen in books to come.
The drawbacks in this episode were more than I anticipated coming from the first novella. I would have liked to learn more about what made Onella tick, and why she became so cold hearted.
One of the main issues in the second episode is the destruction of a newfound Earth. The problem for the reader is the overarching question why was this Earth imploding? We are never given a full answer to this question. However, I did like the notion of this Earth's destruction. It is an interesting idea that this could potentially be our Earth one day.
With all the self-destruction and movement of this book I felt like it was too action packed. You may be asking 'how can anything be too action packed?' However, many of the sci-fi elements were lost on me throughout this episode because we are just thrust into the action with very little build-up, and once we are there it doesn't stop until the end. Sure, we see new gadgets from the new character Onella, but this episode doesn't focus on their special traits as much as the first.
This distracted me from the plot. First we are looking at pyramids, then we are in a jungle, and finally we end up on a beach. I had to go back a few times and say to myself 'how'd we get here again?'
On the other hand, the scenery and creatures we come across reminded me of Jules Verne's The Mysterious Island. These creatures seemed to be more what Amena wanted to see in terms of aliens; they were monsters unlike anything she had seen before-not just another human "alien" but an actual life form she had never encountered.
Overall, I wanted a little less action and a lot more description in this second novella. That being said, I had to base my rating on the overall work (both novellas/episodes). I gave this work 4 out of 5 because it made me want to keep reading, and it left me hoping that Sherrier will continue to write more sequels/episodes with these same characters. It also gave me a new appreciation for the sci-fi genre. So, if you're looking for a FAST read which will get your imagination running wild, pick this book up and read on!