March 1, 2025 - ★★★★★
“Relic is a great example of how immersive world-building, captivating characters, and reader engagement can come together to create a wonderful reading experience.
From the very first page, Sean Hall transports the reader into a world that feels incredibly vivid, which makes the reading experience phenomenal.” - Jared P. ‘GoodReads’
March 6, 2025 - ★★★★★
“Relic by Sean Hall is written like hard sci fi future noir meets classic space adventure tale. The story is set against a future noir world that feels alive and lived in. Our tale brings you a criminal underworld, powerful corporations, rainy cityscapes as well as your space ships, blaster fights and alien creature encounters.
Throw in a heist and a treasure hunt and you have all the ingredients to great sci fi adventure in a deftly blended mix of genres striking a balance of hard boiled and heartfelt.
The quality of the writing is well above what you ordinarily expect from a self published novel. The story moves along briskly while filling in the deeper motivations and backstory of our anguished hero giving him depth. I definitely felt shades of Richard K Morgan meets Destiny and Uncharted without feeling overly derivative.
I flew through this story and I am eagerly awaiting the next.” - Brian D.
March 5, 2025 - ★★★★★
I was lucky enough to snag one of the early print copies of Relic and have been blown away by it. For a debut novel, Sean has thrown out twists and turns, intense action sequence, and heavy, detailed world-building that rivals other giants in this genre. Relic is a mix of cyberpunk and space opera—with a heist thrown in the middle.
The emotional weight that the lead character, Owen, brings to the table is palpable on every page and his lighthearted banter with Tex is a welcome addition of comic relief. Relic is a fun, exciting, and high-octane cyberpunk adventure that will keep you turning the page until the very last beat.
If you enjoy video games like Cyberpunk 2077, Mass Effect, Starfield, and even No Man's Sky, you will absolutely adore this book. It's the weight and the sprawling universe of James SA Corey's Leviathan Wakes meets the intense action of John Scalzi's Old Man's War meets the humor and humanity of Andy Weir's The Martian.
Highly recommend to any sci-fi lovers. Get yourself a copy immediately. - Silas D.
In a distant unknown galaxy, an elite renegade pilot with nothing left to lose, Owen Beck and his loyal but cantankerous scouting drone, Tex. Travel the far most reaches of the galaxy in search of a lost ancient myth thought to possess the power of time.
After losing his wife and becoming the main target of an enemy faction called the Novas Guard, a militant team of augmented soldiers led by a malicious tyrant, Ezrek Valleion. Beck and Tex stop at nothing on their path of revenge as they unravel the mysterious legend before Ezrek and his faction get there first. The hunt is on, and the clock is ticking.
— Sean Hall /// RELIC
Behind the Story: The Inspiration for Relic
Relic was born from a lifelong love of science fiction—the kind that blends high-stakes adventure with deep emotional storytelling. Inspired by films like Blade Runner, The Fifth Element, and Interstellar, I wanted to create a world that felt both cinematic and personal.
At its core, Relic is a story about loss, redemption, and the relentless pursuit of something just out of reach. The protagonist, Owen Beck, carries the weight of his past, much like the heroes in noir and space opera classics. He’s a man shaped by grief, but rather than succumbing to it, he fights to reclaim what was stolen from him.
Visually, I wanted Relic to feel immersive—massive world building, brutalist cityscapes, and deep-space mysteries—while keeping the emotional stakes front and center. Every world Owen encounters reflects a different facet of his journey, pushing him closer to the truth he’s unwilling to face.
Ultimately, Relic is my love letter to everything that made me fall in love with sci-fi: big ideas, unforgettable characters, and the tension between hope and despair. If you’re a fan of stories that challenge the boundaries of time, memory, and fate, I think you’ll feel right at home in this universe.
