REVIEW: Apostles of Mercy

By Denise @ Life With No Plot on February 10, 2025 • ( 1 )

About the Book

Title: Apostles of Mercy

Author: Lindsay Ellis

Series: Noumena #3

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 464

Edition Read: Hardcover

Dates Read: January 25 – 29, 2025

Blurb: First Contact has not been going well. The nations of Earth are rapidly militarizing against the arrival of the Superorganism, an alien civilization that promises to destroy humanity before it can develop into a real threat. The Superorganism has done it before–to their distant transient relatives–and they could easily do it again. But the alien Ampersand and his human interpreter Cora Sabino are done with trying to save humanity from both the Superorganism and itself; to them, this is a civilization that does not deserve to be saved.When a strange new form of communication between the two of them reveals to Cora how alien Ampersand truly is, she begins to question her blind devotion. But she soon learns of a danger that may force them to leave Earth before either of them are a group of superorganism enemies that have been wreaking havoc on Earth for decades. Existence on the margins has made them desperate and bent on revenge against any of Ampersand’s race whose path they cross. Before Cora and Ampersand can make their final escape, these hostile aliens stage an attack, and take that which is most dear to both of them.Ampersand’s enemies will not consider any form of truce; the greatest threat to them is not from the Superorganism, but from an increasingly fearful and violent human civilization newly aware of their existence. Cora and Ampersand must go to extreme measures to take back what was stolen and prevent wholesale human extermination–but in doing so they may be no better than the civilizations they are trying to escape.

Review

I really like this series. Each book adds something new and exciting to the already exciting tale, and I’m so here for it.

Cora has started to heal and move on from the tragic loses of Truth of the Divine (although it did bother me a bit how fast she has done so – she was pretty messed up in the previous book). Her relationship with Ampersand is also evolving in a way that seems as realistic and organic as it can be with a person who is not human. This is what I like best about these books – it’s science fiction, but still very real. The humans are having trouble relating to these new folks on their planet, and most of them are making a lot of mistakes. These mistakes are based mostly in fear of the unknown, but also a head dose of bigotry. Quite a few power players in the world do not want to try and understand our new visitors. They just want to beef up the Earth’s defenses.

Which is also understandable, since the looming threat of the Superorganism has not gone away. We also get an insight into why the Superorganism might be so concerned when we meet their “sister race” that has also found its way on Earth. These aliens are quite terrifying and, when we first meet them, violent as hell. A very bad first impression, to be sure, but they also have their own issues and fears dealing with humans, as well as a lack of ways to communicate.

Watching Cora and Ampersand, and Nikola and Paris, trying to weave their way through these conflicting groups of people (along with Sol, the CIA agent who is really starting to wish he had gone into another field) is part of what makes this series so good. I truly believe that if (or when) First Contact ever happens on Earth, we will screw it up just like this (or worse). There are no easy answers, no easy way to make everyone comfortable and happy. It’s that discomfort that makes this story feel so realistic to me, that tension that keeps the story moving at a neck breaking pace, that keeps me reading. I really need the fourth book now!

GoodReads rating: 5 stars