Read All About It: The Lives of Tao

Wesley Chu is known for his quirky science fiction, hilarious tweets, and a commercial he did once with Michael Jordan. I've followed Chu on Twitter for a while now, but this is the first time I've read one of his books, and all I can say is that I'm sad I didn't do so earlier!

The Lives of Tao is a unique story of how aliens might have influenced humanity, and why that's both a good thing, and a terrible thing. With plenty of nerdy references, some ancient aliens, and a relatable main character, it's a wonderfully fun and quick novel.

Roen Tan is an out-of-shape IT technician who doesn't really expect to do anything with his life. But one morning, he wakes up to a voice in his head, and his life gets exponentially more dangerous.

His new companion is an ancient alien named Tao, whose species has been influencing Earth since the first Ice Age. Tao and his people have trained human leaders and heroes since their inception, and advanced technology in their own efforts to return to their home planet. However, Tao's people have split into two factions--the Prophus and the Genjix, who have been fighting their own civil war for centuries.

Roen has been chosen to be a hero through some unfortunate circumstances, and if he wants to stay alive and maybe find a girlfriend, he's going to have to get himself in shape, and that means giving up potatoes and pizza. This may be harder than it looks.

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I definitely enjoyed this one, readers! It has very realistic dialogue, a protagonist who is definitely not the best in his field, and a generally unique concept that just goes to show that humans are in no way prepared to deal with aliens. And while it may not be the most polished novel, but that doesn't detract from the clever premise and engaging characters. It's hilarious and quirky, and with consistent action and enough romance to make it fun.

The aliens of this novel are interesting in that they are locked in their own form of civil war, acting through humanity in order to establish their dominance. They are limited in their abilities, but powerful in their influence, and are overall just plain interesting. These aliens occupy the minds of some of the greatest thinkers across history, including Shakespeare, Genghis Khan, and Galileo just to name a few. In this alternative history, humans were able to achieve such great advancements because of the influence of these aliens, and that means that humans are not as special in this universe as they think they are. However, the aliens are still vulnerable because of their inability to adapt to Earth, and limited by their inability to live outside of a host for very long. By showing that these aliens are powerful but not all-powerful, Chu creates an interesting codependent dynamic, where humanity needs these aliens, and the aliens also need humanity.

I do want to make a special note of Chu's wonderful characterization. Roen is just your average guy, and he's learning a lot in a very short year. Where other authors would make their characters natural adepts, Chu makes sure that Tao struggles and doubts himself. He's a realistic example of someone thrust into a position he isn't even sure he wants, and it made me really like him.

Even better: Roen has a female mentor named Sonya, and she is consistently better than him. She's a minor love interest, but a major character, and is kind of a legit bad-ass. Sonya is a better fighter, better commander, and better adapted to her own alien companion, all of which make her a key part of the narrative without making her a throw-away romantic subplot.

The Lives of Tao continues with several more novels. This was a fun beginning to what is sure to be an entertaining series, and it will be a pleasure to laugh out loud at the rest of Roen and Tao's adventures in saving the world. Until then, we should definitely keep an eye out for those aliens.