Were it not for the quest of a group of power-hungry scientists to create Lucien, an AI with godlike intelligence, maybe the dreadful Dark Planet would never have come into existence. The Dark Planet, controlled by Lucien, moved around the star systems assimilating intelligent lifeforms and scientific advances into a Lucien hierarchy. Having discovered Gaia earth recently, Renae, an earthling, had been captured by the Dark Planet. Captain Jack is briefed about this by his starship’s AI; Stella Lumina. With the help of Stella Lumina, will Captain Jack succeed in his mission to rescue Renae? Back on Tall-ah Earth, Onashi, her family, and other Neolithians witness a strange flash of light from the east. For all they knew, it wasn’t lightning, and they dreaded the thought of the possible cause. Zindeset, Onashi’s husband leading a group of Neolithians, heads out for Caldera Canyon in the wastelands of the eastern side to find out the cause of the light. What do they find out? Get yourself Victoria Lehrer’s Tall-Ah Earth to learn more.

Giving the perfect setting for a science fiction story, Victoria Lehrer commences Tall-ah-Earth with a super intriguing plot that saw me whisked from the world of reality into an awesomely imagined world. The story features very amazing characters, each of them clearly portrayed and their traits strongly but gradually breathing life into the plot. Victoria Lehrer harnesses enough sentiment into her words to make me emotionally vulnerable. I fell in love with some of her characters and could not stand the jeopardy they were exposed to. Captain Jack Merrick’s bravery is admirable. I loved Renae; she was exceptionally adorable, intelligent, selfless, everything good. Victoria Lehrer has a great choice of words. I could not help but notice how awesomely she manifested professionalism in her writing. Albeit Tall-ah Earth is the fourth installment in the New Earth Chronicles, it has a great flow; it is a stand-alone book. Tall-ah Earth is a magnificent piece of work and I loved every bit of it.

Jack is on a mission to save Renae from the Dark Planet. Thanks to his ship, Stella Lumina, he is cloaked to avoid detection by the giant Ant aliens. When Jack enters the Dark Planet, he discovers Nurse and a group of bee children imprisoned with Renae. Managing to escape, Stella Lumina instructs Jack that the rescued beings cannot return to their home but will find sanctuary on Tall-ah Earth. Victoria Lehrer’s Tall-ah Earth then changes focus to the planet. Onashi, the leader of the Neolithia enclave, has begun training psychic light abilities with Torlion. When her son, Joel, undergoes advanced training with his companion Delphi, he decides to leave the enclave to venture into the unknown. Broken-hearted, Delphi rescues a horse, despite the insistence that horses are merely food. Joel discovers a whole new world of beings who teach him several lessons that he vows to bring back to Neolithia. Both Stella Lumina and Tall-ah Earth are facing intense changes in the future.

Tall-ah Earth is the fourth book in Lehrer’s New Earth Chronicles series. I found it easy to follow, and it can be a standalone novel as well. The introduction was helpful in understanding psychic abilities. Also useful, Lehrer includes a list of leaders, terminology, and location descriptions. I connected with Delphi’s character with ease. I was upset with Joel abandoning her when she had more than proven her unwavering devotion to him. Forgiving him would be an unreal task for me, especially when she discovers some of what he has done while gone. Her accomplishments were more valuable than she was given credit for, and I sincerely hope to see Delphi’s character in future books. I had difficulty putting the book down as the amount of suspense built kept me entranced. The opposing forces to Jack and Tall-ah Earth are always in sight. The transitions from characters and scenes were clear, and the details make every scene come alive in this story. While romance and violence are evident, there is enough left to the imagination so this book would be perfect for fantasy readers from high-school age and above. This story has quickly landed on my favorites list, and I recommend it highly.

Tall-ah Earth is the fourth novel in the New Earth Chronicles by Victoria Lehrer. Captain Jack Merrick wasn’t expecting it, but he was asked to rescue a group of bee children and their guardian named Nurse. As their own planet was destroyed, they were meant to join other oids on Tall-ah Earth. Tall-ah Earth houses Neolithia and oids from many different planets. Everything was perfect, everyone lived peacefully with each other until it wasn’t peaceful at all. Chaos came and brought devastation. Mad Janey was ready to destroy any hope of salvation the Neolithians had, but she wasn’t counting on someone who would fight equally hard to restore peace. Jack, Joel, Delphi, and others have their work cut out for them.

Author Victoria Lehrer has a gift for building intricate and complex universes, and she utilizes this talent to the maximum with this novel. The planet of Tall-ah was fascinating, to say the least. It was technologically advanced and was very peaceful, considering it had a mish-mash of different oids (humanoids) from different planets. We meet Mad Janey, Joel, Jack, and more, but the real hero of the story was Torlion. Torlion, the lion man, taught everyone self-defense and so much more to survive the chaos created by Janey. He was the only level-headed person when things were heating up before and during the battle. As expected, the author kept the narrative smooth, the pace fast, and the dialogues crisp. Jack was invested, and responsible until the very end. Each character had the opportunity to shine, form a connection with readers, and make them want to learn more. The ending was very hopeful and interesting. It laid the perfect foundation for the next novel in the series. Entertaining and complex novel!

Victoria Lehrer’s New Earth Chronicles further intensifies in Tall-ah Earth (Book 4). In this installment, Captain Jack Merrick has rescued the beautiful maiden, Renae, and the apisoid children from Lucien’s dark planet. As the rescued maiden and children cannot remain on the ship indefinitely, the next step is for them to join a variety of oids on the terraformed planet, Tall-ah Earth. This is where oids peacefully exist in the verdant hills of the enclave, Neolithia. But syphoners are on the loose: lethal mechanical beasts that look like giant fleas, and their intrusion always threatens the enclave. Under the tutelage of Torion, a master light-wielder, the defenders of the enclave learn to wield an impenetrable wall of light. But a solitary witch in Neolithia has her own plans—a secret and faithful servant of the dark side who has developed psychic powers stride for stride with technical advances.

Victoria Lehrer’s massive cast of characters embodies her passion for creating individual and not just archetypes. It is a tribute to the human heart and psyche, an exploration of both technology and the untapped human potential that may well be capable of accomplishing what Lehrer calls psychic-ology. Her narrative does a good job with exposition through a combination of dialogue, characterization, setting, and those nitty-gritty details that make all of these components come together to make everything appear real. If you love speculative fiction, there will be a definite reason for you to love Tall-ah Earth. This is a world where technocrats and mystics abound. It is a well-crafted dreamwork that will keep you entertained.