THE VENCELLO by S. Amaranthine is a marvelous book, evocative in style and subject matter of sci-fi greats like Margaret Atwood or Octavia Butler. The book tells three main stories, centered on a human cetacean researcher, an Orca matriarch, and a curious sperm whale. By the end, the stories all conjoin during a momentous event that both satisfies readers and leaves them with burning questions.
Using omniscient narration, author S. Amaranthine is able to take us–not just inside the heads of her human characters, but the heads of the whale characters as well. Her well-researched insight into what the world of whales looks like—or, more importantly, sounds like—helps seemingly abstract scenes make sense of how the story unfolds. It’s the whale characters readers can turn to in order to find definitive answers about the larger story, because they perceive things so differently than the human characters.
The drawback to this story is that since Amaranthine deals in very strange concepts, it can be a challenge for readers to follow along with what precisely is happening. But even in these places, what’s lost in the details doesn’t leave the reader lost in the narrative. For example, readers may never quite understand how exactly Brough and Param, the two oldest sperm whales in the world, share their knowledge with each other. Yet why they do this and what conclusions they draw from this exchange are as plain as a whale breaching the surface of the ocean.
The human and cetacean characters have parallel motivations and their ultimate goals mirror each other. Delora, a human, and Akenehi, an Orca matriarch, both suffer great losses and are eager to change their circumstance. Delora wants to go backwards, to “time travel” to fix her problems, but Akenehi wants to jump-start her species further evolution to protect her clan in the future. Similarly, Liam, a human, and Brough, the younger of the two ancient sperm whales, are trying to understand what is happening between Delora and Akenehi. Whereas Brough fears what an alliance between the two greatest predators to his species—Orca and human, in that order—Liam wants to gain his understanding by being a part of whatever is happening.
At its core, this story is a lyrical exploration of love and loss, hope and despair, and the ultimate connection we share to our universe. The messages present in Amaranthine’s story are not preachy, but carefully ingrained into the arc of the characters’ stories, so that readers are able to draw their own conclusions about what those messages might be. While this is the first book of a trilogy, it’s excellent as a stand-alone story that will send readers back to the front page for another read-through.
-4.7 stars (reviewed by Joshua M. Patton for Indie Reader)

CETAPIENS by S. Amaranthine is the second novel of a trilogy dealing with large-scale science fiction and fantasy concepts in a non-linear narrative that encompasses multiple planes of existence. Unlike THE VENCELLO, the first book in this series, this narrative follows multiple characters, some of whom are amalgams of other characters, as well as characters existing in multiple universes at the same time. One of those universes is called “Cetapiens,” because it is a universe combined with cetaceans and homo sapiens.
To draw a comparison, not to other prose but to television, THE VENCELLO is to CETAPIENS what the original run of Twin Peaks is to the recent revival of the series airing on Showtime. One is a straightforward narrative with fantastical elements hinting at a deeper mythos. The sequels, however, are more a collection of images and concepts from which a dedicated audience can glean details about both the narrative and the wider mythology. The two works share a similarity of theme, at least when it comes to doppelgangers, different dimensions, and the ability of people in one dimension to perceive the other.
CETAPIENS may be a challenge for readers, especially since Amaranthine creates an entire vocabulary to help tell the story. She includes a glossary of fictional terms, though the concepts are defined much more clearly in the context of the story. For example, in the glossary Amaranthine defines a “gemini” (or the twin) of a being alive in one universe existing in another. A confusing concept, no doubt, but one best described, not in the glossary, but rather in a scene that that revisits the climax of the first book.
The concept of time-travel–introduced in the first book, as well, but only in the abstract–also plays a big role here and we revisit a number of scenes, including the deaths of a human character and an Orca character multiple times. It’s actually a fun twist Amaranthine employs on the common time-travel trope of revisiting key moments in time, but seen from multiple angles. It’s reminiscent of the finale of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, but the fairy-story about a wizard school’s version of time travel is far less complex than what we find in CETAPIENS.
Still, despite all of the confusing concepts throughout, Amaranthine does a wonderful job of keeping a clear narrative lifeline throughout the story. Whereas in THE VENCELLO our narrator was omniscient, Amaranthine ties the point-of-view to specific characters. This helps readers keep the storylines straight. While it’s tough to envision what a person who is also an entire universe might look and sound like, we are never lost about what they want or the purpose they serve in our characters’ journeys.
- 4.3 stars (reviewed by Joshua M. Patton for Indie Reader)

ORCASEKAI (Memoirs of a Lost Universe) is the third book of the trilogy. The story continues, as told through perspectives of many, some introduced in The Vencello or Cetapiens, others are new friends to the final volume. As they struggle to save a dying universe, the multiverse also heals.

First and second books in the trilogy:

4.7 star review by INDIE READER
THE VENCELLO by S. Amaranthine is a marvelous book, evocative in style and subject matter of sci-fi greats like Margaret Atwood or Octavia Butler…
Using omniscient narration, author S. Amaranthine is able to take us–not just inside the heads of her human characters, but the heads of the whale characters as well. Her well-researched insight into what the world of whales looks like—or, more importantly, sounds like—helps seemingly abstract scenes make sense of how the story unfolds. It’s the whale characters readers can turn to in order to find definitive answers about the larger story, because they perceive things so differently than the human characters…

At its core, this story is a lyrical exploration of love and loss, hope and despair, and the ultimate connection we share to our universe. The messages present in Amaranthine’s story are not preachy, but carefully ingrained into the arc of the characters’ stories, so that readers are able to draw their own conclusions about what those messages might be. While this is the first book of a trilogy, it’s excellent as a stand-alone story that will send readers back to the front page for another read-through.

IR VERDICT: A surreal-but-linear story that blends science-fiction, fantasy, and myth in a lyrical, literary style, THE VENCELLO both rewards readers with a great story and challenges their preconceived notions about life.

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4.5 star review by SERIOUS READING
CETAPIENS by S. Amaranthine. ...(book 2) picks up from where the first book in the trilogy, Vencello left off. S. Amaranthine teases readers about time travel in the first book. In Cetapiens, time travel actually takes place. The book takes you on an epic journey—you’ll travel through time into ancient times and universes yet to be discovered.
The book will keep you hooked on till the end and when it does finally end, you’ll be craving for more. When you read the book, you’ll often feel as if a haunting and compelling music is playing in the background. An unforgettable experience that transcends all boundaries of time, love, and species is what this book offers you. Cetapiens is a thought provoking and entertaining book.