The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
23rd August 2023
TITLE: Minimum Safe Distance
AUTHOR: X HoYen
Star Rating: 5

‘A stylishly written ‘first contact’ novel with a strong cast of ‘very different’ characters. Highly recommended!’ The Wishing Shelf

REVIEW
I must say, I very much enjoyed this first contact novel from the pen of the rather intriguingly named X HoYen. Being a bit of a nerd, I love technology-based books; I recently enjoyed The Martian which is written by a software engineer. I see the author of this novel has a background in aerospace engineering – trust me, you can tell! Complicated, yes; in fact, I had to work hard to keep up in the opening chapters – but I still loved every word of it. X HoYen is not only a talented author, but he also has a lot to say. The result is a thought-provoking, techno-novel that’s so highly unpredictable, it’ll keep you awake at night!
In many ways, although I loved the plot – the ‘SelfMade’ being particularly original – it was the writing style that grabbed me. I just got the feeling that X HoYen really wanted his readers to ‘get it’. So, for example, when there’s a character with a difficult to pronounce name, the author’s determined that the reader will pronounce it right: Laurence’s mother, Geneviève Levesque (pronounced the Quebecois way, zhuhn-ev-YEHV lev-AH-eek). This author is not a lazy writer, and I loved that.
So, who’s this novel for? Well, if you in any way enjoyed the film, Independence Day, Resurgence, which is possibly the worst sci-fi film ever made, this novel is NOT for you. But if you enjoy thought-provoking sci-fi, i.e. you’re a Star Trek fan and not Star Wars, then you’ll find this book a blast. And if you enjoy books written by authors who go the extra mile to get it right, then you’ll find this novel utterly engrossing.
All in all, it’s a bit of a gem.

A ‘Wishing Shelf’ Book Review
www.thewsa.co.uk
1 1 comment Sasha Lukyanets1 review1 follower

On the surface, this is a fresh take on an alien invasion story, filled with postapocalyptic setpieces, exciting technologies, and creative new lifeforms. At it's core, though, it's a careful examination of human behaviors that gently asks the reader to rethink who the true monsters really are. A thoughtful, well-written book that doesn't get bogged down with an unmanageable cast of characters, confusing details, or shoehorned romances, but instead whisks the reader off into a future Earth where disaster presents humanity with the opportunity to become either its worst or best self.

I thorougly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to more works by this exciting new author. X. YenAuthor 2 books5 Read

See the lovely 8.75/10 editorial review by The BookLife Prize (of Publisher's Weekly) here:

https://booklife.com/project/minimum-... Ioana52 19

Interesting take on a first contact, with some innovative ideas and a global focus. (As a non-American, reading books where Americans do *everything* kind get boring.)

I particularly enjoyed the insight into Laurence's mind and I wish we had more of her (and her AI "son"). I kind of lost interest toward the end, when the action focused more on the alien characters. X. YenAuthor 2 books5 Read

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