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Darian Frey is down on his luck. He can barely keep his squabbling crew fed and his rickety aircraft in the sky. Even the simplest robberies seem to go wrong. It’s getting so a man can’t make a dishonest living any more. Enter Captain Grist. He’s heard about a crashed aircraft laden with the treasures of a lost civilisation, and he needs Frey’s help to get it. There’s only one problem. The craft is lying in the trackless heart of a remote island, populated by giant beasts and subhuman monsters. Dangerous, yes. Suicidal, perhaps. Still, Frey’s never let common sense get in the way of a fortune before. But there’s something other than treasure on board that aircraft. Something that a lot of important people would kill for. And it’s going to take all of Frey’s considerable skill at lying, cheating and stealing if he wants to get his hands on it …Strap yourself in for another tale of adventure and debauchery, pilots and pirates, golems and daemons, double-crosses and double-double-crosses. The crew of the Ketty Jay are back!

It is not easy to twinkle like a young boy about to read Treasure Island for the first time at my age but that was how I felt when the parcel with The Black Lung Captain arrived. It has such a beautiful cover made by Stephan Martiniere. I have to admit that it was the cover of Retribution Falls that first got me interested. It was with some concern I started to read since a few early reviewers claimed some of the magic from the first book were gone but I was fast alleviated it was there, more mature and on a different level since I first meet the characters. I feel almost guilty for indulging and enjoying this book as much as I did, almost.

The Black Lung Captain has a theme about facing fears, overcome them and grow beyond them. The Kitty Jay and her charming crew are back and they will face some of their worst fears before it is all over. It is also Captain Frey’s leadership lesson number two. I think the crew would appreciate if the team-building didn’t include treacherous partners, attacks by beast-men, mysterious but dangerous artifacts, persistent ghouls and former girlfriends but luckily for us neither them or Frey have much choice in the matter.

There are many strong character moments this time around too, and you learn more about the characters as they face their fears and grow beyond them. One of the strongest moments is when Jez face one of the Awakener’s high level operatives adding a whole new level of fear to the story. Harkins’ epic and entertaining struggle with the ship-cat takes almost the whole book before it reaches climax.

The plot is not bad either with the treasure hunt, the double-crosses and the underlying sinister plan that is gradually revealed. There is action non-stop and never a dull moment. There is also a romance or three but not in the way you expect. The ending kept me smiling for hours but that’s just me.

As you understand I am a bit euphoric about The Black Lung Captain, the sequel is almost better than original. Here we learn more of their Victorian retro-future world and the characters go places they never expected to, they grow and they overcome but they stay quirky and interesting. Frey matures a bit but I suspect he will never grow up or lose his charm. The ending is wide open for a number of sequels and plot lines to follow. I can’t wait to see where the next lesson, sorry misfortune will take them.

I have good news and bad news. As part of my research I visited chriswooding.com, the good news is that there will be a book number three and four. The bad news is that Chris just threw the quarter he had written on The Iron Jackal in the bin and started over again that probably means the publication will get knocked back by a few months, meaning it’s likely to arrive late next year instead of the planned release date of August.

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The nova war has begun to spread as the Emissaries wage a fierce and reckless campaign, encroaching on the area of space occupied by humanity and forcing the Shoal into a desperate retreat. While Dakota goes in search of the entity responsible for creating the Maker caches, Corso, left in charge of a fleet of human-piloted Magi ships, finds his authority crumbling in the face of assassination attempts and politically-motivated sabotage.

If any hope exists at all, it lies in an abandoned asteroid a thousand light-years beyond the Consortium’s borders, and with Ty Whitecloud, the only man alive with the skill to decipher the messages left behind by an ancient race of star travellers. Unfortunately Whitecloud is locked in a prison cell aboard a dying coreship adrift in space, awaiting execution for war crimes against Corso’s own people. But if humanity has any hope of survival, Corso is going to have to find some way to keep him alive – and that’s only if Dakota doesn’t kill him first …

Information

This book is dedicated to Emma and continues the story from Nova War.

World building

This is where we learn about the entity behind the Maker caches spread through the galaxy and maybe the known universe as traps for emerging interstellar civilizations. It reminds me a bit of Neal Asher’s Jain technology but different. We also learn about their counterpart the slower than light traveling race the Atn. But much remind hidden in mystery.

On the other hand human politics continue to disgust as the Peacekeeper fleet becomes more powerful.

The Author

Gary Gibson is a new acquaintance I have only read Stealing Light and Nova War before. According to Tor UK he is a graphic designer, previously magazine editor, in his home city of Glasgow. He has been writing since the age of fourteen. Gary has become one of my favorite authors with this series.

Plot

With both sides in the war having access to the Nova weapon it threatens life in the galaxy. Something has to be done and Dakota tracks down one of the entities behind the Maker caches and discovers a lead to a possible solution.

The quest bring former enemies together but the mistrust is strong as they put the pieces together for a reckless rush into enemy territory worthy of Star Wars to deal a decisive blow before it is too late.

Characterization

I like the way Gary explores the feelings after a war crime like the massacre the main characters where involved in here. Dakota seems a bit less accessible in this book and I find myself rooting more for Corso.

I also enjoyed reading about Ty Whitecloud’s struggles aboard that dying coreship.

My View

Empire of Light would be a good concluding book minus the epilogue that opens up for a sequel. I like the whole series, it feels fresh and original; it reads easy, I finished all three books in just a few days; it has a good escalation of the scope with each novel and the characters are accessible even if the human interest factor becomes less and less as the characters evolve. It should not be the last book in the Sheol Sequence according to the ‘cliffhanger’ epilogue. It is wide open for sequels.

Related Posts

• Stealing Light (Shaol sequence 1) by Gary Gibson July 22, 2010
• Nova War (Shaol Sequence 2) by Gary Gibson July 24, 2010

Other reviews

• “Empire of Light” by Gary Gibson (Reviewed by Liviu Suciu) @fbc

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Three hundred years in our future, in a world of alien infiltrators, religious hackers, a vast convoying nation of Nomads, city sized orbital elevators, and a cyborg pirate king who believes himself to be a mythological demon Jakob is having a bad day: “Nothing gets in the way of a hangover like being reactivated by your old C.O and told to track down an alien killing machine. The same kind of killing machine that wiped out my entire squad. And now it’s in my hometown. My name is Jakob Douglas, ex-special forces. I fought Them. Just like we’ve all been doing for 60 bloody years. But I thought my part in that was done with. My boss has other ideas. If I didn’t find the infiltrator then he’d let the Grey Lady loose on me. And believe me; even They’ve got nothing on her. So I took the job. It went to shit even faster than normal. And now I’m on the run with this teenage hacker who’s had enough of prostitution. The only people I can rely on want to turn the internet into God. And now it turns out that They aren’t quite what we’d all thought. I’ve been to the bottom of the sea and the top of the sky and beyond trying to get to the truth. And I still can’t get far enough away from the Grey Lady. All things considered I’d rather be back at home deep in a whiskey bottle.”

Veteran is a fast paced, intricately plotted violent SF Thriller set in a dark future against the backdrop of a seemingly never ending war against an unknowable and implacable alien enemy.

Information

Veteran is Gavin Smith’s debut novel and it is dedicated to Ruth & James Nicoll. I believe that they are “The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don’t just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary” – James Nicoll and his wife. I found the quote online and I just had to include it here. English’s actions as described are appropriate to the novel.

The Author

Gavin Smith is new both to me and the world but he writes like a pro. I had to check inside if it was a pseudonym for an established author. Gavin Smith is 35. Born in Dundee he now lives in Leicester. He has a degree in Media Production (specializing in script writing) and a MA in Medieval history. He owns his own marketing company.

World building

Earth is a gritty place with social segregation after a long war with the alien Them and Gavin paints it well even though the story is written in first person. There are flashbacks to the time Jakob Douglas fought in the war that explains a great deal. There is also a lot of discussions that sometimes slows down this otherwise fast paced story but makes it clear to the reader what really is going on.

Plot

The plot is in short that Jakob Douglas is reactivated to hunt down one of Them. Then he discovers that there is more going on than meets the eye and become the hunted himself. He must fight back to stay alive. Which he eventually does after a number of adventures in some spectacular and intriguing places with names like Rigs, Crawling Town and Atlantis.

Characterization

The characters are what I really love with this story. They are gritty and twisted but in a good way. Jakob is no superman he has lots of luggage from the war to carry around but he grows as the story grows. But no one grows more than Morag, first the story play her as an almost insignificant figure which reflects the way Jakob and the others  treat her. This is something she resents but it is also her driving force to grow later in the story where she becomes principal.

There are a great many other notable characters both friends and enemies that easily takes up life in the mind of the reader.

The banter and bickering is excellent and that is a huge plus for me.

My view

Veteran is an excellent read, I had trouble putting it down. This is one of the best books I read so far this year. It got mysterious aliens, conspiracies, realistic battle scenes, fast pace, lots of wow moments and wonderful characters. I would say this is a mixture of Heavy Metal, Cyber Punk and Classic SF. It is Military Science Fiction at its best and I would recommend it to a wider audience. I can’t wait for his next book.

Related Posts

• New Science Fiction Books in July 2010 – Revisited
• Cybermage’s Summer Reading 2010

Title: Blood and Iron
Series: Penrose/Robot wars book 2
Author: Tony Ballantyne
Genre: Science Fiction
Jacket art: Jon Sullivan
Inside Illustrations: Sebastian Winnett
Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: Tor UK
Copy: Bought by me

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Appointed Commander of the Emperor’s Army of Sangrel, Wa-Ka-Mo-Do of Ko tries to establish relations between the existing robot population and the humans who have recently arrived on Yukawa.

On the continent of Shull, Kavan forms the Uncertain Army and is marching to Artemis City. Upon discovery that the city’s generals have made an alliance with the humans, he retreats to Stark where he plans the eventual overthrow of Artemis and the humans.

Meanwhile, Karel is heading South, hoping to be reunited with Susan, his wife. As he walks, he hears more of the stories of the robots, and begins to understand something about his place on the world of Penrose.

But with limited resources and tensions growing between robot and human it’s only a matter of time before problems arise. And it’s becoming more and more apparent that the humans are a lot more powerful than the robots first expected…

Information

This is the second book in the series that started with Twisted Metal (review below). The first book explored the origin of the robots on Penrose as well as the City of Artemis’ war of conquest against Turing City and the North.

This story continues the story of Karel a strange robot that survived the conquest of Turing City on his quest to rescue his wife Susan from Artemis City and it also follows the former commander, Kavan of the Artemis Army on his return to the same city. We don’t know much about the second continent Yukawa but here we get to follow Wa-Ka-Mo-Do a newly appointed commander that has to deal with the newly arrived humans.

• The book is dedicated to Eric, Chris and Simon
• There is a map of the second continent Yukawa in the beginning

The Author

Twisted Metal was the first book I read by Tony Ballantyne and it blew my mind, it was such an original story. He is a British writer that lives in the Manchester area, regularly contributed to magazines such as Interzone and Private Eye before embarking on his first novel/series, Recursion. I haven’t read his first series but I have it on my to-read list.

World Building

This is such an original world populated with humanoid robots and animal robots. The great mystery is how did they come to be? The Book of Robots talk about the Makers and the first robots but it is forbidden in Artemis and Yukawa. Now the humans have arrived, are they really the makers? Filthy animals according to some.

Above their world hangs a metal moon, what is that? And are the humans mining it?

I especially enjoyed the Emperor and the Silent City and their brand of robot society contrasted with Artemis utilitarian world view ‘everything is metal’

Plot

Kavan has succeeded in conquering the north and now he is returning to Artemis City as a hero. But the leaders fear him and they plan treason to stop him, for they have been twisted to love leadership above all. He forms an army and marches against Artemis City picking up knowledge and followers on his way.

Kavan made to follow and believe in one ideology as are all the soldiers of Artemis can be seen as a clever critique of fanaticism as opposed to Karel’s freedom to make up his own mind.

Karel is also on his way to Artemis City to reunite with his wife. He travels in the wake of the Uncertain Army and he explores secrets hidden in the old mountains of the north on his way and he also picks up followers.

Wa-Ka-Mo-Do is in trouble, the humans has been given land and privileges by the emperor but the robots of Yukawa has been made for a society without humans and the tension continues to build. The humans’ motivation is not pure and there are fractions in conflict with each other. He learns more about the mysterious humans and befriends a teenage girl I hope will return next book. There is exploitation and colonialism in the way the humans treat the robots.

I also enjoyed Susan’s exploration of Artemis City while she tries to find her missing friend and escape.

Eventually there is a clash on both continents that will change their world forever.

Characterization

I love the robots, Tony switches point of view and there is no problem understanding or believing their motivation. I am usually not fond of multiple main characters as it dilutes my focus but here it works great for me. The switches back and forth are timely and appropriate to what is happening. You will find that the timelines might not be what you expect but that works well too.

The only one I miss from the first book is Maoco O, the city guard that survived and was about to start a resistance. What happened to him?

My View

Easily one of the best books I read this year if not the best. There is not often you read a truly original story. A world of robots made for how that world is, clashes with new concepts as conflicting human groups lands and starts to take advantage. It is a story about exploitation, colonialism, fanaticism and free will all packed in an epic science fiction saga about robots. I have been fascinated by robots since I read The Caves of Steel. You can read it as a standalone novel but I recommend you read Twisted Metal first. This is one of the books you should read this year.

Related information

• My review of Twisted Metal
• Tony Ballantyne’s homepage tonyballantyne.com
• Blood and Iron was one of my picks for New Science Fiction to Read 2010

Title: Mission of Honor
Series: Honor Harrington book 12
Author: David Weber
Genre: Military Science Fiction | Space Opera
Cover art: David Mattingly
Hardback: 608 pages
Publisher: Baen, July 2010
Copy: bought by me
Excerpts: Snippet 1-60

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The Star Kingdom of Manticore and the Republic of Haven have been enemies for Honor Harrington’s entire life, and she has paid a price for the victories she’s achieved in that conflict. And now the unstoppable juggernaut of the mighty Solarian League is on a collision course with Manticore. The millions who have already died may have been only a foretaste of the billions of casualties just over the horizon, and Honor sees it coming.

She’s prepared to do anything, risk anything, to stop it, and she has a plan that may finally bring an end to the Havenite Wars and give even the Solarian League pause. But there are things not even Honor knows about. There are forces in play, hidden enemies in motion, all converging on the Star Kingdom of Manticore to crush the very life out of it, and Honor’s worst nightmares fall short of the oncoming reality.

But Manticore’s enemies may not have thought of everything after all. Because if everything Honor Harrington loves is going down to destruction, it won’t be going alone.

Information

Mission of Honor starts some time after At All Costs and Storm from the Shadows. Torch of Freedom starts more than a year before but runs parallel with MoH up until a month before it ends. The main focus is on Honor Alexander-Harrington – The Salamander, the war hero that saved Manticore’s home system in a devastating battle at the end of At All Costs, but there are other principal characters like Michelle Henke, Hamish Alexander-Harrington and Eloise Pritchart.

• The book is dedicated to  Sharon and David’s children Megan, Morgan, and Michael Paul.
• Please note that the real cover has Honor using her right hand to salute as she should and she also looks more concerned and distraught (but none of the online stores have the right cover).
• There is an appendix with Character descriptions at the end of the book (16 pages) but I never used it.
• The books comes with a CD containing most of David Weber’s works in different formats.

World Building

The small but rich and growing Star Empire of Manticore is a tool to be used in a century old conspiracy by the genetic supremacist Mesa Alignment. First they provoked a war with Haven and now they are about to do the same with the Solarian League. David is a great world builder and Mission of Honor is riddled with great pieces of information concerning the Solarian League and the Mesa Alignment.

You should read the other books in the Honor Harrington universe to really enjoy and understand what is going on in this book. Even though there is a lot of world building going on here most of it is built on what you already know if you read the previous books.

The Plot

The Star Empire of Manticore has a technological advantage that allows them to ‘win’ against Haven when MoH starts. The Solarian League Navy (SLN) is way behind both Manticore and Haven on missile technology as proven on New Tuscany.

Admiral Michelle Henke, Honors friend and the fifth in line for the throne is in command of the defenses at the Talbot Cluster. Mesa’s machinations behind the scene have set SLN Task Force 496 under the command of Battle Fleet Admiral Crandall bearing down on Henke with 71 ships-of-the-wall. She has only battle cruisers and superior technology to defend against them, but she is outnumbered more than ten to one.

On the other side Honor sets out to make peace with Haven something that might not be so easy after years of fighting, mistrust after what they have done to each other and with short sighted politicians with their own agendas.

Unknown to the others Mesa has launched a sneak attack against Manticore and Grayson called Oyster Bay that is about to go down in a few weeks.

The book also covers the media war especially the fall out from those nukes on Mesa.

In short the action is one battle and one sneak attack. Both battles where on the short side even if the preludes took their time. Michelle’s psych tactics was quite entertaining to read while Oyster Bay was quite chilling.

The ending is emotionally satisfying and leaves a strategic cliffhanger for the next book.

Characterization

I love to read about Honor and Nimitz but I am also happy there are others that take up the hat for the smaller actions we have come to love. Michelle Henke is a fully well developed protagonist in herself.

Weber uses a lot of small scenes with different characters to present background or explanations. There are evacuation training on the space station, different characters from the Hexpuma reporting for duty at their new jobs, the junior officers’ dining club and many more to make this a vivid and living story. The sheer number of character might be daunting for new readers but the feeling of all those settings coming to life and matter worked for me.

My View

I expected this novel and Mesa’s sneak attack to be the Pearl Harbor of Manticor and I can’s say it disappointed in that respect. But Elizabeth’s talk to the people reminded me of Churchill’s. With Oyster Bay the Treecats realizes the threat they are under. I wonder if Mesa realizes the effects of a race of Treecats going to war?

This is a monumental book in the Honorverse, this ends the original storyline with Haven and starts a new darker one with the Alignment as antagonist.

Now we will probably see one or two more books in the Honorverse before the next main book, which ought to be earliest at the end of 2011 and that’s a long time to wait.

I give it and the series a strong recommendation if you like military space opera.

More information

• David Weber’s Profile Page (with links to quite a few free online books)
• Earlier books in this series: On Basilisk Station | The Honor of the Queen | The Short Victorious War | Field of Dishonor | Flag in Exile | Honor Among Enemies | In Enemy Hands | Echoes of Honor | Ashes of Victory | War of Honor | At All Costs
• Other Honorverse novels: Storm from the Shadows | Torch of Freedom | More Than Honor | Worlds of Honor| Changer of Worlds | The Service of the Sword

Title: The January Dancer
Series: The January Dancer 1 | Firestar Future 1
Author: Michael Flynn
Narated by: Stefan Rudnicki
Publisher: Tor 2008 | Blackstone Audio
Genre: Space Opera
Hardcover: 352 pages
Audiobook: 13h
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“The January Dancer tells the fateful story of an ancient pre-human artifact of great power and the people who pursue it. Starting with Captain Amos January, who quickly loses it, and then the others who fight, scheme, and kill to get it, we travel around the complex, decadent, brawling, mongrelized interstellar human civilization it might save or destroy. Collectors want the Dancer; pirates take it; rulers crave it; and they’ll all kill if necessary to get it.” This is a story of love, revolution, music, and mystery, and it ends, as all great stories do, with shock and a beginning.

Information

I listened to the audio book version and I connected with that voice from the very beginning. It was a good choice with the right accent and dynamic enough for the other voices in the story.

In the best Gaelic tradition a beautiful redhead Harper walks into a bar looking for a man who can tell the tale of the January Dancer so she can make sweet music of it. She finds ‘the Scared man’ and he tells her the Tale of The January Dancer.

I feel that listening to this instead of reading it added extra realism in the storytelling, I could feel myself sitting in that dark alcove listening to the scared mans masterful word weaving as he dealt out piece by piece to keep the suspense high.

I would have gladly brought him all the uisce beatha he could drink to get him to finish his story.

World building

The story of the January Dancer takes place in a future world were humanity is spread among the stars along the highways of space. Known space is divided by a rift that may have been created in a war or a cataclysmic event. Much of history and science is lost in legends. Legend has it that the Rift was created in a cataclysmic war that shattered the Commonwealth of Suns, devastated Terra and plunged everyone into ‘the sundering’ when dark ages ruled and many worlds lost contact with mainstream humanity.

The side of the Rift centered on Terra consists of The Confederation of Central Worlds under the dictatorship of ‘Those of Names’. Flynn has his way with names.

The other side is occupied by the United League of the Periphery a more loose association of worlds under Ardry of High Tara. The ULP is kept together by highly trained agents called ‘hounds’ or ‘pups’.

Technology is not very well understood by most, many legends claim that it was more advanced ‘before’. They can still manage interstellar travel along the high roads where space travels faster than light. The roads have named like ‘Route 66′ and ‘the Silk Road’.

The world just is, I am there. Michael Flynn is a master world weaver I can never do his intricate weave justice with my scribblings.

Plot

One side of the plot is the scared man and the Harper but they tell a story some twenty years before.

A motley crew under Captain January finds an alien artifact (The January Dancer, named after the Captain) on a desert planet when they stop for repairs. This sets off a series of events where different actors across the spiral arm try to gain control over it. An ancient legend of an object of power a Twister is involved. The story focuses on a group that seems to get together by chance; it consists of  the Fudir, an opportunistic criminal from Jehovah, Hugh a guerrilla leader and once planet manager of the first planet where the Dancer changed hands and two kennel agents Greystroke and Bridget ban. They eventually track down the Dancer and confront its power.

Characterization

The Fudir is my favorite character but they are all great. The voices on the audio were superb and the way they are described really makes them come alive. It feels like the scared man has meet each and every one of the characters and he tells their story like you would tell your best friend.

The way it is done is perfect for the story and the way it is told. But I as an outside reader gets so curious about those characters that I want to know more! Some of the characters like the Fudir and Hugh you get to know a little more about.

My View

I am in awe with this book, the combination of wonderful prose and just the right narrator meshed perfectly. Its only drawback is that it is too short. I am not sure the story telling technique will fit everyone but I would recommend that you give the audio version a try. The January Dancer is space opera wrapped in a Gaelic saga served by a Harper and a scarred man. I am already on the sequel Up Jim River.

Title: Gardens of the Sun
Series: Duology with The Quiet War
Author: Paul McAuley
Genre: Science Fiction
Publisher: Gollancz 2009 | Pyr
Paperback: 411 pages
Copy: bought it myself
Order from: Gollancz | Amazon US | UK | B&N | sfbok

The winning Alliance soon fracture with a major war on earth looming on the horizon. Political power struggles back in Greater Brazil have major repercussions on the leadership of the occupation forces. The Outers different way of life, social structure and outlook makes it hard for the occupation to cash in on the victory and the Outers tradition of democracy and freedom starts to infects the masses back on earth.

The few Outer refugees that survived the gauntlet around Saturn flees to Uranus’ moons to rebuild their free society on Miranda the smallest of the large moons, but they are driven out by earth forces sent after them. They opt to flee to Neptunu’s Titan but discover that there is already a settlement there of Ghost, an Outer cult with trans human aspirations with a leader who the members believe talks with himself in the future from an earth like planet outside the solar system, their utopia. On mercy and with restrictions the refugees are allowed to stay. The refugees themselves are now afraid to build any permanent settlement as they expect the earth forces to come after them. So Macy develops a plan …

The book is divided into six parts War Damage, the School of Night, Changing of the Guard, Rebel Rebel, Chimes of Freedom and Everything That Rises Must Converge that works well but sometimes I feel like it’s all one big book, The Quiet War and this one. The chapters jump between the different characters.

Although the characters are the same as in The Quiet war, I feel that they are more distinct here. In this dualogy Paul write about ‘ordinary people’ with more complex motivations and personal failures than what is common in space opera and he doesn’t go for the obvious protagonist types either. In the Quiet war the characters often reacted and were out of the decision loop while here they are acting. That is true especially concerning my favorite Macy Minnot who in my eyes steps forward as something of a hero in the story. It’s not that simple in McAuley’s world of ‘ordinary people’.

Another character to note is Loc Ifrahim, a diplomat from Greater Brazil who was an opportunistic villain in The Quiet War. He finds it hard to cash in on the victory and sees others with blood connections take the plume positions and he is assigned to scrap yard duty taking care of the graveyard circling Saturn. He is the most surprising character in this book, in the end I found to my surprise that I liked the guy even if he is mainly motivated by personal survival.

Cash Baker is the singleship fighter pilot that where shot down by his own forces when his ship threatened to shoot down a ship containing the outer’s gene wizard Avenrus. Instead of being court marshaled he is sent back to earth as a hero for the propaganda machine. He is used to exemplify the cynical machinery of war propaganda and the internal power struggle in Greater Brazil and among the families there. I liked the way he ended up being a bush pilot.

The other characters help drive the world building and plot forward like Dave #8 our tragic genetically engineered spy searching for his lost love for one and Yuli Avernus ‘daughter’ trying to evade capture is another.

Sri Hong-Owen is a scientist obsessed with the outers gene wizard Avernus and we follow her in the first half of the book before she becomes reclusive. She takes a different path than Avernus and there is a strong contrast between the two scientists. The one thing they both have in common is their inability to relate to their own children. Yet in the end they both achieve immortality.

That Paul has a background as a research biologist is evident in the detailed flora and fauna of the different gardens of Avernus, in the different ways he illustrates what humanity can change into and in the construction of the floating gardens of the sun. He also uses hard science to describe the moons and planets of the solar system including latest finding from NASA space probes with obvious delight.

I found I liked Gardens of the Sun better than it’s prequel The Quiet War mainly because I liked the way Paul McAuley treated the characters here, taken as one long book it’s fantastic. It can be one of the best books of this year and you should read it just to sample the ideas. Gardens of the Sun is fast paced, character driven and filled with intriguing science and ideas mixed with thrilling military action at the backdrop of some of the most interesting celestial bodies of the solar system.

This review first appeared on Temple Library Review April 6, 2010.

Title: Line War
Series: Agent Cormac 5
Author: Neal Asher
Paperback: 496 pages
Genre: Space Opera | Military Science Fiction
Publisher: Tor 2008
Order by: Tor | Amazon US | UK | B&N | sfbok | tbd

The Polity is under attack from a ‘melded’ AI entity with control of the lethal Jain technology, yet the attack seems to have no coherence. When one of Erebus’ worm ships kills millions on the world of Klurhammon, a high-tech agricultural world of no real tactical significance, agent Ian Cormac is sent to investigate, though he is secretly struggling to control a new ability no human being should possess…and beginning to question the motives of his AI masters.

Further attacks and seemingly indiscriminate slaughter ensue, but only serve to bring some of the most dangerous individuals in the Polity into the war. Mr Crane, the indefatigable brass killing machine sets out for vengeance, while Orlandine, a vastly-augmented haiman who herself controls Jain technology, seeks a weapon of appalling power and finds allies from an ancient war. Meanwhile Mika, scientist and Dragon expert, is again kidnapped by that unfathomable alien entity and dragged into the heart of things: to wake the makers of Jain technology from their five-million-year slumber.

But Erebus’ attacks are not so indiscriminate, after all, and could very well herald the end of the Polity itself…

Information

This is the final Cormac Novel as far as I know, the ending is open but with good closure so there might be future stories. There are three important points of view in the story Cormac’s, Mika’s and Vulture’s.

Agent Cormac is as usual the main protagonist. Mika is Cormac’s love interest and the one the Dragon choose to communicate with. Vulture is again a ship accompanying Mr Crane.

World building

As usual Neal build a coherent well thought out future world as the setting for his story. The Polity is one of the better ones I have seen and I like that it is not the perfect world, it got flaws and the players human, haimen and ai’s all have their weaknesses.

Plot

Orbus makes his play for the Polity with massive diversion attacks along the Line while he hold his real plan a secret. I thought that part was well thought out and was believable as was the Polity AI’s responses. Here you get mighty space battles with huge loses of life and equipment. It disturbs me a bit the casual way thousands of deaths is treated but then I realize that is exactly the way emotionless machines would see it.

All the players are being played in true spy thriller tradition and each step in the plot reveals deceit after deceit until the true players are revealed in the end.

Cormac tries to understand the randomness of the attacks together with his drone sidekick and Jerusalem. They start to make progress when they get help from an unlikely source.

Mika’s sejour with the Dragon is an amazing thrilling journey to the roots of the Jain technology and the gruesome deceit at its bottom.

Characterization

This is a story about revelations and Cormac has fears that he might be an avatar of some distant AI like Horace Blegg especially with his newfound powers. That question keeps us in suspense up until the end.

I love the characters even the ones on the ‘evil’ side. I would have liked a bit more on Cormac and Mika but then I am a sucker for love.

My View

Line War is a good ending to the Cormac Saga. The onion is pealed, the truths revealed and the guilty punished what more is there? Well, there is an opening for future Cormac stories but I haven’t scryed any such intensions from Mr Asher. I have been taken in by the Polity universe so I have The Skinner and The Voyage of the Sable Keech marked down for summer reading.

Title: Brass Man
Series: Agent Cormac 3
Author: Neal Asher
Cover Art: Brice Jensen
Genre: Space Opera | Military Science Fiction
Publisher: Tor 2005
Paperback: 496 pages
Order by: Tor | Amazon US | UK | B&N | sfbok

From the Philip K. Dick Award nominee author of Cowl, an adrenaline-powered new SF adventure: Brass Man. Neal Asher returns to his trademark Polity future setting, in a sequel to Gridlinked, which SFRevu.com called “brilliant and audacious work, chock-full of cutting-edge ideas.”

Ian Cormac, a legendary Earth Central Security agent, the James Bond of a wealthy future, is hunting an interstellar dragon, little knowing that, far away, his competition has resurrected an horrific killing machine named “Mr. Crane” to assist in a similar hunt, ecompassing whole star systems. Mr. Crane, the insane indestructible artificial man now in a new metal body, seeks to escape a bloody past he can neither forget nor truly remember. And he is on a collision course with Ian Cormac.

Information

The story takes off where Line of the Polity ended. Agent Cormac momentary believe he has vanquished Skellor and his alien infestation when he destroyed his ship.

The story is told on two time lines, one is retroacts of Golem Twenty-five who later becomes Mr Crane’s origin and the other is the now.

Cormac is the protagonist with his own point of view, Skellor our antagonist is another and a third and new character is the knight and dragon killer Anderson Endrik on the primitive world of Cull. A world that just happens to host the Dragon.

The storyline is as usual intelligent and complex, maybe a little too much divided into subplots as it made it easier to put it down than the previous books.

World building

The Polity continues to chisel out and the world of Cull intrigues me. There is more of the inner workings of the Polity and the AI’s version of politics in this novel. The technologies and ideas in Neal’s universe start to feel familiar here in the third book, I have included them in my mindset but there are more surprises around the corner.

Plot

Skellor isn’t dead, instead he hides and search for new allies. Cormac partner up with a rather amusing warship AI named Jack Ketch and Aphran, the spirit of a Separatist rebel ghost tortured to death by Skellor.

Skellor is like an addict with the alien Jain nano technology and he resurrect Mr Crane thinking of using him against Cormac but there might be more motivating him that he is not conscious of. Then he goes off to see the Dragon on Cull subverting the minds of the local community at the same time really friendly like. But he doesn’t have as much control over the Jain as he thinks.

Meanwhile the Polity is trying to figure the Jain technology out. Mika and the quirky AI slash science vessel Jerusalem first have to deal with the infected and then continue with some rather risky experiments before joining the action on Cull.

The Golem twenty-five back story and the eventual desert march of Mr Crane is the theme of the book. He was made crazy and he now tries to find sanity again in his divided minds. Bloody and gory at times it is still a thought-worthy tale about the mechanics of the mind.

Characterization

The characters are rational and make sense inside their perceived reality and I as a reader understands where they are at. Cormac is still suffering from being hooked up to the AIs for thirty years but he is getting more and more human. I like that with the characters; they have more than the usual space opera or secret agent persona while still being fun and attractive to read.

Beside Anderson I think I liked Vulture best of the new characters. Vulture is the surviving AI from Occam Razor given a vulture body by the Dragon.

My View

I must admit I stumbled a bit at times with the multi faceted split vision story telling the first time I read it, give it time, it is worth it. Every Cormac novel adds a level to the mystery of the Dragon and the ancient Jain technology and in Brass Man you start to glimpse the bigger picture.  It also gives a good closure to an important but now minor part of the sinister mysteries ahead. You should read at least Gridlinked and The Line of the Polity before this one; I would not recommend it as a standalone novel. Great homage to the man of Brass Mr Crane himself and another fast paced Nano thriller about Polity trouble shooter Cormac.

Title: Victorious
Series: The Lost Fleet 6
Author: Jack Campbell (John G. Hemry)
Cover Art: Peter Bollinger
Genre: Military Science Fiction | Space Opera
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: ACE April 2010
Order: ACE | Amazon US | UK | B&N | sfbok

As war continues to rage between the Alliance and Syndicate Worlds, Captain “Black Jack” Geary is promoted to admiral-even though the ruling council fears he may stage a military coup. His new rank gives him the authority to negotiate with the Syndics, who have suffered tremendous losses and may finally be willing to end the war. But an even greater alien threat lurks on the far side of the Syndic occupied space.

Information

The book is dedicated to Paul Parsons and S.

As usual the book starts with a six pages long list of the ships in the fleet. It also says where ships have been lost in battle.

The protagonist of this series is Captain John “Black Jack” Geary.

The Alliance has been fighting the Syndics for a century – and losing badly. Now its fleet that was crippled and stranded in enemy territory back home again. They were saved by a man who’s emerged from a century-long hibernation to find he had been heroically idealized beyond belief . Captain John ‘Black Jack’ Geary’s legendary exploits are known to every schoolchild. Appalled by the hero-worship around him, Geary is nevertheless a man who will do his duty. And he knows that bringing the stolen Syndic hypernet key safely home is the Alliance’s one chance to win the war. But to do that, Geary will have to live up to the impossibly heroic ‘Black Jack’ legend.

The Author

John G. Hemry (LCDR, USN ret.) is an American author of military science fiction novels. Drawing on his experience as a retired United States Navy officer, he has written the Stark’s War and Paul Sinclair series. Under the name Jack Campbell, he has written six volumes of the Lost Fleet series. He has also written over a dozen short stories, many published in Analog magazine, and a number of non-fiction works. The only thing I read by John is the Lost Fleet series, but that is going to change.

World building

The world building is good enough for the story. We learn the bigger world as seen by John Geary, back from a century long hibernation. Much have changed and not for the better. Knowledge and finesse have been lost. The world is much cruder but also more built on the brutal necessities of a century long war.

The tension between the civilian leadership and the military is obvious when John Geary returns to the Alliance. The changes for the worse, the degradation of civil rights and freedom have gone far. John doesn’t solve the problems but he shows them there is another way with his ironclad integrity. It is a bit stereotypical but not more than one would expect.

The same is true for the Syndics but they didn’t have that much cohesion to begin with so there the results are worse. The Syndic Empire starts to crumble under their failed leadership. But the Alliance don’t want the Syndic to go under, they need every human they can get to fight the aliens responsible for this war.

Plot

John first has to deal with the political leadership of the Alliance to get the clout to negotiate a peace with the Syndic hopefully saving them from themselves at the same time. But they won’t give up without a fight.

Then there are those aliens to deal with.

Characterization

Captain John Geary have to deal with the love of his second life. She is untouchable as his flag captain, the way he deals with that is enjoyable and emotionally satisfying. He continues to be human and to doubt himself while doing his duty. That gives him a more real feeling and it is also a good contrast to the Legend of Black Jack.

The characterization is what makes Lost Fleet great, there is both strength and weaknesses in the characters that makes them come alive.

My View

Victorious is a satisfying conclusion to The Lost Fleet, a fast paced Long March kind of military science fiction series about a man having to live up to the impossible historical legend of himself. It is not Great Literature but it is a fun read. I am lucky the author got a contract for two new series in the same universe, I am sure to get those too. If you like military space opera like Honor Harrington you should take a look at Lost Fleet.

The New Series

Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier is a new series that follows Black Jack and his companions after the events in Victorious. It will deal with the mysterious aliens.

The Phoenix Stars is a new series set in formerly Syndic star system as the people there cope with the ongoing collapse of the Syndic Worlds

Title: The Orphaned Worlds
Series: Humanity’s Fire 2
Author: Michael Cobley
Genre: Space Opera
Cover art : Steve Stone
Design: Peter Cotton
Publisher: Orbit 2010
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Darien is no longer a lost outpost of humanity, but the prize in an intergalactic power struggle. Hegemony forces have a stranglehold over the planet and crack troops patrol its hotspots while Earth watches, passive, rendered impotent by galactic politics. But its Darien ambassador will soon become a player in a greater conflict. There is more at stake than a turf war on a newly discovered world.

An ancient Uvovo temple hides access to a hyperspace prison, housing the greatest threat sentient life has ever known. Millennia ago, malignant intelligences were caged there following an apocalyptic war. And their servants work on their release.

However, Darien’s guardians have not been idle, gathering resistance on the planet’s forest moon. Knowledge has been lost since great races battled in eons past, and now time is short. The galaxy will depend on the Uvovo reclaiming their past – and humanity must look to its future. For a new war is coming.

The Author

Michael Cobley is a new author for me; the first thing I read was Seeds of Earth in September last year but it impressed the hell out of me.

Information

The cover is of burning space ships that are leaving a planet’s night side. They leave paths of burning gas and dirt-brown clouds behind them. They are appropriate to the content. The first part had a cover of a blue planet with spaceships in front of it; this planet is shaded by night and looks brown and lifeless wonder what book three will hold?

The book is dedicated to David Wingrove author of Chung Ho and co-author of the three Myst novels. He is a friend of the author.

In the beginning there is a list of the Main Characters that is an important list good to have to handle the many characters in this book. It is followed by a list of the Main Sentient Species in Humanity’s Fire, there are 18 different main races in this story.

Background

Way back in ancient times there was a cataclysmic war with a race from another universe. That race was imprisoned in the Warp Well on Darien but they left allies behind.
In this universe three colony ships where sent out from Earth, one of them ended up in the Hegemony where they become the commando soldiers and body guards of that techno-dictatorship, but their loyalty is built on a lie. The second ship ended up on a mining planet where they are kept as indentured laborer. The third ship landed on Darien, the final battle ground of that ancient war. Darien used to be a living world, a sentient world but it was deeply wounded in the war and has slowly been growing back. It became a new battleground when the legendary Warp Well was discovered there.

Worldbuilding

The worldbuilding is extensive in this series, Michael Cobley have created believable alien cultures, each are not described in detail but instead they are exemplified by the characters that represent them. There are 18 major races and numerous minor ones. Sometimes I wish the list at the beginning was a bit more extensive.

Plot

The human and Uvovo underground fight the Hegemon occupation of Darien, but other players involve themselves too. Especially Legion a technology construct that fight to free the prisoners of the Well and the Construct that strive behind the scene to gather allies to fight back. One novel and entertaining part of the story takes place inside hyperspace where ancient races live on in tiers.

Humanity fights its own fight to unite again, to free the indentured and liberate the minds of the other colony. Not much is known about the fate of Earth but it is believed lost to the Hegemony.

There are some ‘improbable’ plot twists but what do you expect from Space Opera?

Characterization

This is very much a character driven novel with an important plot. Michael’s Characters be they friend or foe are complex full entities with understandable motivation. Many of the characters makes an inner journey of self discovery as they discover the realities behind the façade of the world they live in.
Each chapter is named after the character whose point of view it presents. There are many different main characters here but to my relief their stories start to converge and merge. The first book was worse in that respect. But it works great

My View

The Orphaned Worlds is a well written, fast paced and coherent multi character novel that I enjoyed to read and had trouble to put down. The pace picks up and the novel ends in a cliffhanger. The players have been presented and the board is laid out for The Ascendant Stars in 2011. You should read Seeds of Earth before this one.

After reading the snippets since January my most anticipated book of the year arrived. I am a long time fan of David Weber and the Safehold series. Genocidal aliens, a Humanity that hides on the planet Safehold ruled by the Corrupt Church of God Awakening and an android with the mind of a long dead starship captain with a mission to restore civilization.

Title: A Mighty Fortress
Author: David Weber
Series: Safehold 4
Hardback: 720 pages
Publisher: Tor, April 13, 2010
Maps: Ellisa Mitchell
Jacket Art: Stephen Youll
Order: Tor | Amazon US | UK | B&N | Sfbok

Background

This is the fourth book in a series that started with Off Armagedon Reef where Niume Alban wakes up, asses the situation decide to back the kingdom of Charis for their enlightened royal family and general inventiveness. After a sex changing morph she dons the identity of Merlin a Sejin warrior, save prince Cayleb from assassins, becomes his bodyguard and start to change the way they think.

The Church lead by the greedy and power blind Group of Four conspire to send a fleet to destroy Charis. They are defeated by the new and improved fleet of Charis Off Armagedon Reef.

In By Schism Rent Asunder the church retaliate and massacre Charis’ unarmed civilian traders and their families. Cayleb now king, retaliates by sending a fleet half way around the planet. He also makes peace with Chrisholm, falls in love with their queen Sharleyan and in their Marriage create the New Empire of Charis, united against the rest of the world.

In By Hersies Distressed it is Charis turn to go on the offensive, invading the island princedom of Corisade. Charis get to show up their new and improved army and artillery before they defeat prince Hektor’s army. Hektor is killed by church assassins. His son and daugther flees to exile with thoughts of revenge on Cayleb who they believe killed their father.

We have also learned that there is an Order inside the church that knows the truth about Safehold, that their religion is a fake and that suppression of scientific methods and innovation have been built into their society by the former colony founders. Now Cayleb, his wife and a few others know the truth. The brothers have an elaborate procedure before approving any new member and they are frankly scared of the rapid changes.

There is yet another group, the Circle, inside the Church that doesn’t know the truth, but they oppose greed and corruption inside the church. But they have been betrayed by one of their own when A Mighty Fortress starts. The only question is when the Inquisition will strike

World building

This is the kind of story David Weber does well, take a backward planet and introduce modern science and technology. You notice his extensive knowledge in the details. You get the world by short narratives with local points of views that makes the world come alive with people you care for and understand.

The Church of God Awakening didn’t exist at first on Safehold, it came after a schism where part of the crew of the colony ships decided to create a technological enclave only to be exterminated by orbital strikes, in retaliation they set off a nuke at a meeting of the colony leadership, that had set up themselves as God’s Angles. The Church was created in the following years and it took it’s seat in the city of Zion and it’s mysterious Church complex made out of battle steel. It gives off mysterious energy readings so Merlin keeps his spying remotes out of it. Thats about the only place of power on the planet he keeps them out of.

Plot

The church is building an armada using the lessons learned from previous failures. This time they have almost the same technological level as Charis, at least until Charis new explosive projectiles enter production. The Charisian’s are hard pressed but their experience and training still gives them a significant advantage, that might not help if they are outnumbered three to one.

Charis also have to deal with attempted insurrection in Corisade, the princedom they defeated in book three. One of the leaders of the underground is the silversmith Paitryk Hainree (Patrick Henry, Give me Liberty, or give me Death).

There are also people inside Chrisholm that are not happy about the New Church of Charis some of them might even betray them.

The group of four tightens their grip on the church and a wave of arrest sweeps through Zion, while Merlin attempts to save as many family members and sympathizers as he can.

In an attempt to avoid fighting the combined fleet of the church, Cayleb sends off one of his best commanders on a mission to intercept one of the fleets before it can unite with the others.

The Navy really have to show their color here, they are the wooden walls of the fortress defending Charis, and A Mighty Fortress it is. But the big clash still lays ahead.

Characters

This is very much a character driven story. At the back of the book there is a 22 pages list of characters you might find useful if you are new to Safehold or need to catch up, My first thoughts at that was wow, this is like one of those old Russian classics, but don’t worry the main characters are not that hard to keep track on.

This is a space opera, so the characters are competent, they are not invincible and they are all easy to love. For example Queen Sharleyan is pregnant so Merlin brings her up in space on their way to a medical exam in his base in The Mountains of Light. She is the first human in space for centuries and her marvel is a delight to read. Another highlight is when they tell their Spy master and his wife the truth.

Weber has a thing for good persons doing evils bidding out of duty like Thirsk, the enemy fleet commander or Hektor’s daughter who believe she has to revenge her father.

Merlin gets to shift around a bit more in this book, he takes on the identity of other ‘friends’ of his to help with the evacuation in Zion and to visit other rulers in their bedrooms and chat a bit. It is all done with a great deal of humor. I also like that Merlin doesn’t solve all the problems himself, he can’t. In fact it can kill.

Extras

• One big map and four one page maps
• 22 pages of Characters
• A Glossary with 5 pages
• A Note on Safeholdian Timekeeping

My View

A Mighty Fortress is a magnificent military science fiction saga and I like it a lot. But there is much back story, meetings and character development is this book, that might not be for anyone, I like it quite well though. If you are looking for an action packed military action kind of novel this is not it. We are still waiting for the big fight here, that will probably be in the next book, expected 2011.

If you are new to Safehold you should start with the other books, the back story is quite extensive so you should read it first. Otherwise I would recommend it to any lover of Weber or Space Opera, as long as you don’t expect fast and action packed.