Guardian (The Lost Fleet) by Jack Campbell

Science Fiction/Space Opera

From Goodreads:

"Admiral Geary’s First Fleet of the Alliance has survived the journey deep into unexplored interstellar space, a voyage that led to the discovery of new alien species, including a new enemy and a possible ally. Now Geary’s mission is to ensure the safety of the Midway Star System, which has revolted against the Syndicate Worlds empire—an empire that is on the brink of collapse.

To complicate matters further, Geary also needs to return safely to Alliance space not only with representatives of the Dancers, an alien species, but also with Invincible, a captured warship that could possibly be the most valuable object in human history. Despite the peace treaty that Geary must adhere to at all costs, the Syndicate Worlds regime threatens to make the fleet’s journey back grueling and perilous.

And even if Geary escortsInvincibleand the Dancers’ representatives safely unharmed, the Syndics’ attempts to spread dissent and political unrest may have already sown the seeds of the Alliance’s destruction."

This is short and sweet this time.  I have followed this series from the beginning.  Guardian has the same cast of characters and is a continuation of the previous Lost Fleet Beyond the Frontier books.  Guardian is a good story but for me it lacked the tension that was part of the previous books in the series.  I could not tell from the ending if this was the last book in the series or if there will be more.  If there are more I will continue to read.  

I think reading this series from the start is the best way to know what is going on.

Ace published Guardian by Jack Campbell in 2013.   

The Lost Stars: Tarnished Knight by Jack Campbell

Science Fiction/Space Opera

The Lost Stars are a spin off to the Lost Fleet and Beyond the Frontier series.  Unlike both of these series, which follow Black Jack Geary, this series follows characters that were on the other side of the war.  Here is what Goodreads says about The Lost Stars - Tarnished Knight: 

The authority of the Syndicate Worlds’ government is crumbling. Civil war and rebellion are breaking out in many star systems despite the Syndic government’s brutal attempts to suppress disorder. Midway is one of those star systems, and leaders there must decide whether to remain loyal to the old order or fight for something new.

CEO Artur Drakon has been betrayed. The Syndic government failed to protect its citizens from both the Alliance and the alien enigmas. With a cadre of loyal soldiers under his command, Drakon launches a battle for control of the Midway Star System—assisted by an ally he’s unsure he can trust…

CEO Gwen Iceni was exiled to Midway because she wasn’t ruthless enough in the eyes of her superiors. She’s made them regret their assessment by commandeering some of the warships at Midway and attacking the remaining ships still loyal to the Syndicate empire. Iceni declares independence for the Midway Star System on behalf of the people while staying in charge as “President.” But while she controls the mobile fleet, she has no choice but to rely on “General” Drakon’s ground forces to keep the peace planet-side…

If their coup is to succeed, Drakon and Iceni must put their differences aside to prevent the population of Midway from rising up in rebellion against them, to defend Midway against the alien threat of the enigma race—and to ferret out saboteurs determined to reestablish Syndic rule.

I really wondered if I would even like Tarnished Knight. Some spin-off books don’t work and I had no previous investment in the characters or in the Syndicate Worlds.  What I found was a book that I enjoyed.  Jack Campbell (John Hemry) writes are good tight story and Tarnished Knight is no exception. 

Neither Artur Drakon nor Gwen Iceni are a role model for heroes.  While they did not measure up to the ruthlessness the Syndic government wanted they were ruthless enough become CEO’s (very high ranks) in the government.  Watching them try to change and leave behind many of the behaviors they had learned to survive was interesting.  I kept pulling for both of them to survive and change.  While they were the two main characters there were several side characters that added to the tension and action in the book.  There is one in particular that needs to be watched very closely.  Even those that did not come across as untrustworthy could not be totally trusted. The title fit the characters.  While any might be a Knight all are tarnished.

Like all the books in all three series the ending was a cliffhanger so I will be looking for the next book in The Lost Stars series.

Ace published The Lost Stars: Tarnished Knight by Jack Campbell in 2012.

Waiting on Wednesday September 26, 2012

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I have several books on pre-order from Amazon.  The Lost Stars: Tarnished Knight by Jack Campbell is due to be released October 2, 2012.  This is a spin off of the Lost Fleet Series and I am eager to see how it holds up story wise. 


Here is a preview of the book as listed on Amazon:

Jack Campbell’s The Lost Fleet series delivers “military science fiction at its best”* in every action-packed adventure. Now the New York Times bestselling author puts the Alliance fleet’s enemy in the spotlight as the people of the Syndicate Worlds attempt to rebuild their lives after Admiral John “Black Jack” Geary defeated them…

The authority of the Syndicate Worlds’ government is crumbling. Civil war and rebellion are breaking out in many star systems despite the Syndic government’s brutal attempts to suppress disorder. Midway is one of those star systems, and leaders there must decide whether to remain loyal to the old order or fight for something new.

CEO Artur Drakon has been betrayed. The Syndic government failed to protect its citizens from both the Alliance and the alien enigmas. With a cadre of loyal soldiers under his command, Drakon launches a battle for control of the Midway Star System—assisted by an ally he’s unsure he can trust…

CEO Gwen Iceni was exiled to Midway because she wasn’t ruthless enough in the eyes of her superiors. She’s made them regret their assessment by commandeering some of the warships at Midway and attacking the remaining ships still loyal to the Syndicate empire. Iceni declares independence for the Midway Star System on behalf of the people while staying in charge as “President.” But while she controls the mobile fleet, she has no choice but to rely on “General” Drakon’s ground forces to keep the peace planet-side…

If their coup is to succeed, Drakon and Iceni must put their differences aside to prevent the population of Midway from rising up in rebellion against them, to defend Midway against the alien threat of the enigma race—and to ferret out saboteurs determined to reestablish Syndic rule…

 

Teaser Tuesday May 8, 2012

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: 

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers.

My teaser today is on page 156 of The Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier: Invincible by Jack Campbell.  This is as far as I have read and as soon as I finish this post I will go back to reading.  I have wondered with both books in this new series if Jack Campbell could keep up the interest and tension he produced in the first series.  All I have to say is He Can.

"I'll be planning to use every warship necessary to take down the alien defense before the Marines go in.  It's going to be a dirty job but I know you can do it."