For those who don't know, CassaFire is the sequel to CassaStar, which was published by Dancing Lemur Press, LLC, in 2010. The sequel is set to be released Feb. 28, 2012, by the same publisher. Visit Cavanaugh's blog at alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com for more information.
1. One of my concerns for the first book was the lack of a strong female presence, and I hoped that a female plays a lead role in a possible sequel. I'm elated to read that there is a lead female character named Athee in CassaFire. According to the book's blurb, Athee is a pilot "whose skills rival Byron’s unique abilities." I also like how Byron no longer has the best mental abilities. Not every hero has to be the best at everything, so hopefully, Byron's personality will shine more.
2. I also didn't think the universe in CassaStar was fleshed out as much as I hoped. I wrote, "You only get the closed-in view of the military, which may have been done so the reader feels isolated like Byron." In the sequel, Byron is an explorer, like he said he was going to be at the end of CassaStar. I'm glad Byron kept his promise to his mentor. Having Byron leave piloting to explore the universe does two things, in my opinion:
a. It keeps the sequel fresh without sounding like just-the-same-story-with-a-new-enemy plot.
b. It gives Cavanaugh a chance to do some world-building and give the reader insight into the universe.
As for the trailer for CassaFire, although some people may say the graphics are 15 years old (I, myself, am reminded of the intro to Tekken 2 for the PlayStation in 1996), please be aware that Dancing Lemur Press, LLC, is a small book publisher, so they probably had only one person working on the trailer. It's also hard to do facial expressions in CGI (computer-generated imagery). Overall, I loved the voice of Byron, the music that comes in at the right time and the pacing of the trailer. Well, here's the trailer for CassaFire:
I look forward to reading the sequel and congratulate Cavanaugh for having his second book set for print.