Edward Ashton’s Antimatter Blues is the thrilling follow up to Mickey7 in which an expendable heads out to explore new terrain for human habitation.

Summer has come to Niflheim. The lichens are growing, the six-winged bat-things are chirping, and much to his own surprise, Mickey Barnes is still alive—that last part thanks almost entirely to the fact that Commander Marshall believes that the colony’s creeper neighbors are holding an antimatter bomb, and that Mickey is the only one who’s keeping them from using it. Mickey’s just another colonist now. Instead of cleaning out the reactor core, he spends his time these days cleaning out the rabbit hutches. It’s not a bad life.

It’s not going to last.

It may be sunny now, but winter is coming. The antimatter that fuels the colony is running low, and Marshall wants his bomb back. If Mickey agrees to retrieve it, he’ll be giving up the only thing that’s kept his head off of the chopping block. If he refuses, he might doom the entire colony. Meanwhile, the creepers have their own worries, and they’re not going to surrender the bomb without getting something in return. Once again, Mickey finds the fate of two species resting in his hands. If something goes wrong this time, though, he won’t be coming back. 

I really didn’t expect a sequel to Mickey7, so when the publisher sent me a NetGalley widget for this novel, I was ecstatic.

Mickey is such a likeable guy. He may not be the smartest person in the room, but he’s witty, logical, brave, and kind. Overall, a good guy to have around. A couple years have passed since the colonists arrived at Niflheim. Mickey’s days as an expendable are over, and he now spends his time working with the rabbits and cleaning their hutches. His relationship status with Commander Marshall is still combative, but Mickey never expected them to be BFFs.

The colonists and creepers coexist, but when the antimatter that fuels the colony runs low, Mickey is sent to retrieve the other antimatter bomb Commander Marshall believes the creepers possess. He’s not aware that Mickey kind of lied about the whereabouts of the bomb. Instead, he used it to leverage himself out of the expendable job and actually hid it under a pile of rocks. But there’s a problem – it’s missing. Deals and promises are made, a new species comes into play, and not everyone survives this mission. The survival of the colony depends on MIckey.

This novel immediately engaged me, and I finished it in a couple sittings. I recently read a Mickey7 movie is in the works (Robert Pattinson as Mickey), and it’s on my must see list. If you’re a fan of sci-fi blended with humor, don’t miss this series.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.  Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.