This is what one could only call an intriguing and fascinating story. Ogden writes really interesting stories that have incredibly in-depth backgrounds to them, you find yourself quickly immersed in a Universe that has been really well thought out.
Taylor Ray, Captain of an Earth Recon vessel, is deep in space, with only 2wks left of a 4 year mission. He and his crew, Casey Valera their Pilot, Blake Meade their Tac Specialist and Satomi Rose, their Tech Specialist, have all been cruising through space hunting for signs of Earths greatest enemy, the Hedalt.
The Hedalt were an alien race that came to Earth, initially seeming to come in peace, before, as it seems in most cases, war broke out, and the only way for humanity to win was the total annihilation of the Hedalt homeworld – Humanity nuked it from orbit, ‘just to make sure’.
The crew is intensely close, each crew member having been psychologically picked to be compatible with each other, and this has resulted in the crew forming strong bonds.
At the start of the book, they discover a beacon, and have to go and check it out, to make sure that it is not something that is nefarious.
It is here, that things start to become really interesting, as Captain Taylor Rays world is turned on its head in a way that he would never have believed.
I can’t really go further without giving away huge spoilers, but needless to say, the base that they discover has ramifications not just for the crew, and for Taylor, but for all of humanity (and possibly for the Hedalt as well).
As with all his books, Ogden’s characters are just brilliant.
The Captain is such a complex character, and the way he develops throughout this story is makes for really compelling reading. This is both a really gripping Mil Sci-Fi story, that is about the future of humanity, and it is really interesting, with outstanding tech, brilliant action scenes, and a clever and creative storyline. But one of its really clever and masterful bits of writing, is the psychological aspects of the character work, especially that relating to the Captain, and how he develops and changes as a result of the mission that occurs. I really don’t want to give too much away, but the writing is remarkable, and Ogden has done such a stunning job of capturing the Captain, portraying the gritty realism of his situation, that it seems so real, it is really well done.
The dialogue, and interplay between the other characters was also just brilliant, again, incredibly realistic for the dynamic that they were in, and it is this quality of writing that really makes a story so much better.
Overall, this was a fantastic first part to the story, and I can’t wait for part 2, and to see how this plays out!!
If you love a good mystery, a good Mil Sci-Fi, then grab this, you won’t be disappointed, the writing is exceptional!!
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Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2020
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Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2023
Top reviews from other countries
Jim Clark
Paging Commander Data, please report to Inspriation
Reviewed in Canada on May 18, 2023Dan
Military sci Fi with a difference
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 24, 2023
