Reviewed by Lex Allen for Readers' Favorite

Son of Osivirius by Cathryn deVries tells the fascinating story of a new world torn between two human factions living on the recently colonized planet, Osivirius: The Colony, ruled by Commander Tun, and the rebels, a smaller group of agrarian-minded people who have hidden themselves among the Masu, giant winged cats native to Osivirius. Tun offers a reward to find the rebels. Jayden, a young pilot, sees a chance of getting his family out of "Wormsville," the ultimate slum section of Osivirius. But Jayden crashes near the rebels' hideout. Nettle, a staunch opponent of the Colony, and her brother Flint discover Jayden. As Flint works hard to nurse Jayden back to health, Nettle struggles with her feelings for Jayden. Jayden, healing and longing for his family, plots to use the Masu to take him home, but his feelings for Nettle and the rebels as a group lead him to a new plan: instead of "escaping" the rebels, he could bring his family to the rebels.

Cathryn deVries has written one of the best, if not THE best dystopian sci-fi fantasy novellas I've read in a very long time. Son of Osivirius is world-building done right, with exceptional characterizations of protagonists, antagonists, and the fantastic Masu flying cats. I can't recall if I've ever read a story in which the leading characters provide first-person accounts in alternating chapters, the effect of which is to give exceptional clarity into the characters' thoughts, emotions, conflicts, and decisions. The slow romantic development between Jayden and Nettle, Jayden's struggle to decide whether to escape the rebel community and return to his family, his feelings for Nettle, the rebel community, and his own amazing Masu partner, Shana, are true to life in their depth of emotion and in the associated real-life, everyday experiences that require hard decisions among competitive choices.