Firefly: Life Signs

The Firefly Series, Book 5

By: James Lovegrove

Narrated by: James Anderson Foster

The fifth original novel from the much-loved space western Firefly, produced with Joss Whedon as consulting editor, set between the TV series and the movie Serenity.

Deadly disease

Months after Inara leaves Serenity, Mal and the crew finally learn the reason for her sudden departure: She is dying of a terminal illness. It is Kiehl’s Myeloma, a form of cancer that’s supposedly incurable, and Inara has very little time left.

A disreputable scientist

Through their shock and despair, rumors of a cure reach the crew. Expert Esau Weng is said to have developed a means to treat Inara’s condition, but he has been disgraced and incarcerated for life on a notorious Alliance prison planet.

An infamous prison

On Atata planet, inmates are abandoned with no guards and left to survive as best they can. What’s more, terraforming the planet did not take properly, so the world is a frozen wasteland. To save Inara, the Serenity crew must infiltrate the prison....

©2021 James Lovegrove (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing

Not what I hoped for

As a huge Inara fan, I was ecstatic when I saw a book was coming out centered around her and her story. If everyone on board Serenity, she is the most criminally underserved in media and merch.

This led to me being crestfallen to find that this was not an Inara story, but rather a story “about” her. Her condition may be the driving force of the plot, but she is only actually in a small handful of pages within the book. Once again, I feel that she got shafted. In her own story.

That all being said, the book was well-written and entertaining. The narrator was great, and I feel like they have a good grasp on the characters. If you’re just looking for a good Firefly story, this fits the bill. If you want a good Inara story, well, maybe next time.

Another step closer to the BDM

Another amazing reading by James Anderson Foster and story by James Lovegrove! I love firefly with all my heart and these books are like watching a all new season! I kinda hope the do a continuous thing but I know it’s coming to an end soon. But I’m thankful for the story that keep me on the edge of my seat!! Also really MAL!! Ugh lol my only complaint is one many fans will have and the response is just really Mal?!

Anyways keep shiny everyone! I’ll see ya out in the black!

Another great addition to the series!

These Firefly audiobooks are some of the best I’ve ever listened to. I recommend all of them so far. And I’m looking forward to listening to the rest. The writing is great and the narration is amazing. I loved the plot of this one. So interesting! If you’ve listened to the others then I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one. You could listen to them each as a stand-alone but they do reference things from previous stories so it’s better to listen in order, I think. If you’re looking for adventure, sci fi, and friends who would do anything to help each other, then you’ll love this book.

a great listen

loved it, had myself a 8 1/2 hour drive and this book helped pass the time

Love it!

Awww, poor Mal. Love the ending. It makes sense to the storyline going forward to the movie Serenity. Glad to have found these books! Wish the series could have lasted longer.

Am I watching the show or listening to the book?

I can hear the cadence and tones of each character. As I'm driving down the highway the TV show is in my mind.

Poor editing

The story and reading was great. It was badly edited and repeated pretty frequently. Overall pretty fun.

Just meh

Compared to some of the other Firefly books this one is somewhat boring. James Anderson Foster, as ever, is great and makes for an enjoyable listening experience despite the book's shortcomings.

you can't take the sky from me

it wasnt my favorite of the five books but it was still an exciting and gripping tale that kept me on the edge of mt seat. I devoured it in 2 days.

Love this series

Every bit as good as the TV show. the voice actor absolutely nails it and the story is great.