Book 3: Openland

Openland is the second book by Australian author Michael Liddy.

I read this book in only a few sittings. The story goes that Jeremy, an archaeologist carries an alien relic around that was found by his father decades ago. He enlists the help of a talented geologist friend, Marc to investigate the relics origins. After a while they eventually find some of the Aliens and set off on an adventure.



The story took a good 100 or so pages to actually pull me in. The first part of the book is mainly filled with irreverent banter between the two protagonists as they follow a few linked clues across the country. After the first part is over what held my interest were the questions raised rather than the main characters themselves.

The science behind the book was believable enough to suspend disbelief. A lot of science jargon is thrown around between the characters trying to explain their situations and find solutions. The prose offers vivid descriptions of the alien surroundings. Most of it I found is bogged down in too much dialogue. After finishing it I still can't distinguish personality differences between the two main characters. There were chapters that urged you to read on. All of them had a decent length.

What Openland offers is a journey of discovery about ancient alien races and questions the origins of Earth itself. As you read on, everything just keeps building from the small dig in outback NSW to the books climax. From where they began to where they end up its hard to believe they were born on Earth at all.