“The Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship (SFINCS, pronounced “sphinx”) is a yearly competition to recognize, honor, and celebrate the talent and creativity present in the indie community. We are a sister competition to both SPFBO and SPSFC, and we highlight greatness in the novella format in all areas of speculative fiction (fantasy, science fiction, horror, etc.).” – From the official SFINCS website.
Note: The following review contains only my personal thoughts as a judge and does not reflect the views of the team as a whole. No cuts or semi-finalists will be announced until Team Bookend Elves has read all of our books!
REVIEW
The Ghost in the Heart of Tarven is a tightly paced and plotted corporate sci-fi thriller with a dash of the fantastic to its denouement. This last act introduces themes of how personal agency operates in a religious context, specifically as that agency relates to dogma and belief, as well as the nature of godhood and what religion and technology have to say about one another. Here, powerful deities are contrasted against corporate CEOs, with the result that both are ultimately found to be lacking.
From the get go, I was impressed by the strong authorial and character voices. Our main character, a corporate nepo-baby named Birik Lev, leaps off the page–sometimes to his detriment, as he’s a bit of a Harry Dresden-style cad at times. When Birik is tasked by his (eternally 
For me, Adiri truly was, ahem, the heart of Tarven. Her humour and goofiness, combined with her heartfelt religious conviction were a welcome combination that you don’t often see in these kinds of stories. Although Birik has the potential to rub the wrong way due to his over-emphasis on women’s appearance and bodies, Adiri did a lot to humanize him as the narrative progressed. Regardless of whether you like the characters, however, their voices come through very strongly, and Parker must be applauded for his attention to character. There was a tendency for baddies to be notably less attractive, older, or otherwise “marked” by the text in a way that may rankle some, though it’s certainly in keeping with the traditions of the spy and thriller genres.
There were a fair number of twists and reveals throughout Tarven, and for the most part I felt these were handled deftly. Without spoiling anything, I will say that I wish some of the final revelations and concepts were given slightly more room to breathe, but it’s a small quibble and overall the novella’s pacing and structure were very tight. Often, when I find a novella lacking it’s typically because I felt on some level that the story would have been better served as a short story or as a longer work, but Tarven feels perfect as a novella, with a self-contained story that resolves satisfyingly, yet hints at a wider universe to explore should Parker wish to expand on what we see here. The worldbuilding was intriguing and felt well-thought-out, but didn’t get in the way of either character or plot.
Alongside the corporate thrills and sci-fi set pieces, Tarven ultimately relies on its humour to keep the narrative lively and the reader invested. While not a slapstick comedy, the novella uses the lighthearted and quippy sides of both Adiri and Birik to keep the story engaging and create additional layers to Tarven that help it stand out. The will-they-won’t-they dynamic between the two characters reminded me of the kind of relationship you find at work in shows like Castle–full of banter, anticipation, and a little silliness to balance out the dire stakes afflicting the protagonists.
The writing is also, by and large, very strong and makes for a smooth reading experience.
I’d recommend The Ghost in the Heart of Tarven to fans of light science-fiction (the science is in no way hard, and the focus of the story is moreso on the characters), buddy cop dyanmics that include a good deal of flirtation and banter, as well as those simply eager for a fast-paced, self-contained story. I enjoyed my time with the story and will be looking out for more from Zach Parker!
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