Book Review: “Reaching Angelica” by Peter Riva

This is the second book of Peter’s Tag Series.  I really enjoyed the first book, especially the Metaverse like world inside the computers where the book’s slightly awkward hero Simon Bank broke things, to make sure they were fixed properly.

Whereas the first book started with a bang, literally, the second took a while to get going.  A good chunk of the first section was a catch up of the previous book, but I didn’t get the sense that the story had yet started.  We find out Simon is on a ship headed to colonize a new planet, along with a few of the characters from the first book such as the friendly nemesis Cramer and of course the new digital life form Ra, now transformed and calling herself Aten.

It was only about half way into the book that the pace of the story starting getting exciting.

Without going into the deep concepts the book brings out, it does bring about some interesting commentary about life as we know it.  Some cultures believe in Yin and Yang, and balance is a big part of the core philosophy of this book.  Concepts such as religion, intelligent design and purpose for human existence are discussed, through a discovery process similar to the first book, but with a more grandiose theory.  How connected are we to each other?  How do our actions affect those around us?  What purpose does death have in the grand scheme of things?

I can’t discuss any of the book’s concepts without spoilers, so I will leave that to late night discussions in coffee shops.  Needless to say, these are important questions that are served up in an entertaining way, but necessary nonetheless.

While I have my own beliefs and ideas on the meaning of life and what our purpose is, it’s clear that Simon is up to his devious schemes to save the world again from a threat greater than anyone can fathom.

Warning:  This book should be read with an Aspirin to help alleviate the brain pressure caused by the concepts related to the existence of human life and the universe as we don’t know it. 

Do Simon and the crew make it to Angelica?  Will Simon stay on the Path?  Will he ever outgrow his kid pyjamas?  Find out in the Reaching Angelica.

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Peter Riva has worked for more than thirty years with the leaders in aerospace and space exploration. His daytime job for more than forty years has been as a literary agent. He resides in New York City.

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