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Black Fleet Trilogy #2
Call to Arms
From Joshua Dalzelle comes the follow up to the #1 Bestseller “Warship.”
Captain Jackson Wolfe survived the initial incursion of a vicious alien species into human space … barely.
He had assumed the juggernaut that had devastated three Terran systems was the herald for a full invasion, but for the last few years it has been eerily quiet along the Frontier.
Jackson now struggles to convince the Confederate leadership the threat is still imminent and needs to be taken seriously. While powerful factions make backroom deals he is desperate to find irrefutable proof that the invaders are coming and that if humanity expects to survive they must marshal their forces and make a stand. Now.
Captain Jackson Wolfe survived the initial incursion of a vicious alien species into human space … barely.
He had assumed the juggernaut that had devastated three Terran systems was the herald for a full invasion, but for the last few years it has been eerily quiet along the Frontier.
Jackson now struggles to convince the Confederate leadership the threat is still imminent and needs to be taken seriously. While powerful factions make backroom deals he is desperate to find irrefutable proof that the invaders are coming and that if humanity expects to survive they must marshal their forces and make a stand. Now.
332 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 288 reviews
July 26, 2015
Wolfe and the Terran fleet engage in a desperate last stand defense of a frontier system against the horrible Phage. Despite their courage, one by one the human star ships are knocked out. It is only a matter of time before the millions of innocents on the besieged planet are wiped out. And then, suddenly, a host of busty Amazons riding unicorns come bounding in to the stellar system riding across a sparkling rainbow bridge. The fight is fierce, but with Edward and Jacob helping out, the terrible Phage are defeated and the system in saved! Yay!
Not really, but kinda-sorta. I'll be frank. This book kind of pissed me off. I really liked the first book. I was tempted at times to give it five stars. It was original. It held together well. It surprised me. This book was the complete opposite. It was linear. It was predictable until the end, and, at the end, it committed an unpardonable sin. I could almost see the author's hand intervening in the story to save Wolfe and the human system. It was cheap. It was easy. It ruined the story.
I like stories that hand together logically. I like stories that feel internally authentic. Sure, there are gravometric generators and warp drives, but those fit within the story. A last minute save from left field is complete BS and knocked this story down. Two very sad stars out of five. This easily could've been three and a half stars - fun, and enjoyable, worth reading. Now? Not so much.
Not really, but kinda-sorta. I'll be frank. This book kind of pissed me off. I really liked the first book. I was tempted at times to give it five stars. It was original. It held together well. It surprised me. This book was the complete opposite. It was linear. It was predictable until the end, and, at the end, it committed an unpardonable sin. I could almost see the author's hand intervening in the story to save Wolfe and the human system. It was cheap. It was easy. It ruined the story.
I like stories that hand together logically. I like stories that feel internally authentic. Sure, there are gravometric generators and warp drives, but those fit within the story. A last minute save from left field is complete BS and knocked this story down. Two very sad stars out of five. This easily could've been three and a half stars - fun, and enjoyable, worth reading. Now? Not so much.
March 10, 2024
I really liked Warship.
Despite making use of some well-established conventions, it packaged it into a taut page turner. The threat driving the narrative was clearly defined and the story was suspenseful and thrilling.
Call To Arms is a different kind of beast, and it made more sense when I eventually finished it and saw the Afterword, from which I'll nick the following line: "in this second book I had to give a little more detail into the politics at play in this universe for things to make sense."
In other words, in order to turn this into a series we have to establish the bigger picture (or that's how I perceived it). The problem here, though, is that this entry doesn't have the same impetus as its predecessor. There are some battles, but there is a lot of focus on the politics between the human factions, which distracts from the threat (which is not a small one, but is treated as such).
It bogs the book down, which may not have been a problem otherwise (since this kind of thing is usually part and parcel), but if you are reading this on the back of Warship it comes across as a bit of a buzzkill.
Pieces are moved around the board, but nothing is resolved. By the end of the novel it is all moot, since the cliffhanger is such a doozy that the reader can't help but wonder what was the point of it all (other than illustrating the folly of some political systems).
At least it does actually set up the next book quite well. It is clear it will be different from both Warship and Call To Arms, by the very nature of the changes the author makes to the Black Fleet universe, and the new elements introduced.
Plus we do get to learn a little bit more about the Phage, and there is one very thrilling battle early in the novel that hearkens back to the likes of Warship. I am still pretty much invested in the series.
The universe has asked if we are worthy.
How will we answer that question?
Despite making use of some well-established conventions, it packaged it into a taut page turner. The threat driving the narrative was clearly defined and the story was suspenseful and thrilling.
Call To Arms is a different kind of beast, and it made more sense when I eventually finished it and saw the Afterword, from which I'll nick the following line: "in this second book I had to give a little more detail into the politics at play in this universe for things to make sense."
In other words, in order to turn this into a series we have to establish the bigger picture (or that's how I perceived it). The problem here, though, is that this entry doesn't have the same impetus as its predecessor. There are some battles, but there is a lot of focus on the politics between the human factions, which distracts from the threat (which is not a small one, but is treated as such).
It bogs the book down, which may not have been a problem otherwise (since this kind of thing is usually part and parcel), but if you are reading this on the back of Warship it comes across as a bit of a buzzkill.
Pieces are moved around the board, but nothing is resolved. By the end of the novel it is all moot, since the cliffhanger is such a doozy that the reader can't help but wonder what was the point of it all (other than illustrating the folly of some political systems).
At least it does actually set up the next book quite well. It is clear it will be different from both Warship and Call To Arms, by the very nature of the changes the author makes to the Black Fleet universe, and the new elements introduced.
Plus we do get to learn a little bit more about the Phage, and there is one very thrilling battle early in the novel that hearkens back to the likes of Warship. I am still pretty much invested in the series.
The universe has asked if we are worthy.
How will we answer that question?
June 6, 2016
Well...more politics, more maneuvering...people in the background trying to torpedo the efforts of the military to protect the human Confederation.
Again I really don't get people who will still be trying to get political power as the possible doom of the species is closing in. Of course the thing that makes the book really readable is that we all know they exist...and are probably more common that the actual leaders among us.
Still good, still readable, recommended. Enjoy.
Again I really don't get people who will still be trying to get political power as the possible doom of the species is closing in. Of course the thing that makes the book really readable is that we all know they exist...and are probably more common that the actual leaders among us.
Still good, still readable, recommended. Enjoy.
December 9, 2015
2.5 al ajde neka bude 3.
Postavka je jos uvek interesantna ali sve ostalo mi je nekako slabije nego u prethodnoj knjizi. Lokovi se manje vise uopste nisu promenuli, stvari koje rade i sami razgovori su nekako naivni a sam kraj.... ouch. Mislim fina ideja ali nekako slabo realizovano. Iskreno najvise sto mi je na kraju smetalo je to sto sve znacajno sto se desilo je u zadnjih 50tak strana knjige. Ostatak moze i da ne postoji.
Prva kniga mi je bila OK ali posle ove predlazem da zaobidjete ovaj serijal.
Aj na trecu :P
Postavka je jos uvek interesantna ali sve ostalo mi je nekako slabije nego u prethodnoj knjizi. Lokovi se manje vise uopste nisu promenuli, stvari koje rade i sami razgovori su nekako naivni a sam kraj.... ouch. Mislim fina ideja ali nekako slabo realizovano. Iskreno najvise sto mi je na kraju smetalo je to sto sve znacajno sto se desilo je u zadnjih 50tak strana knjige. Ostatak moze i da ne postoji.
Prva kniga mi je bila OK ali posle ove predlazem da zaobidjete ovaj serijal.
Aj na trecu :P
June 22, 2015
Disappointing.
Disappointing sequel. Superficial characters. Illogical plotting. And a cheap plot twist to save them at the end. Not sure if I will continue.
Disappointing sequel. Superficial characters. Illogical plotting. And a cheap plot twist to save them at the end. Not sure if I will continue.
August 12, 2015
And that's ladies and gentlemen is the perfect review
September 12, 2017
So this is the second book of the Black Fleet Trilogy by Joshua Dalzelle and its a lot of fun. Captain Jackson Wolfe survived his battle in the first book. But instead of being a hero he is seen as a political tool by some in the Confederate government. Nonetheless Wolfe makes Senior Captain and gains a brand new ship the Ares. He now makes use of it to go and destroy even more of the Phage.
But as he struggles against the politicians he sees that the Phage will ultimately win.
What has not changed are the exciting battles. They have even gotten better. The intrigue is what has changed as more and more interference against Wolfe and the Fleet instead of allowing the to defend the Confederation.
If you are looking for an entertaining SciFi war book this is a good one that you'll enjoy throughout.
But as he struggles against the politicians he sees that the Phage will ultimately win.
What has not changed are the exciting battles. They have even gotten better. The intrigue is what has changed as more and more interference against Wolfe and the Fleet instead of allowing the to defend the Confederation.
If you are looking for an entertaining SciFi war book this is a good one that you'll enjoy throughout.
April 10, 2016
Every once in a while, I run into a military science fiction series that I just can’t put down. Fortunately for me, the books in the series have already been published and I’m late to the original release. But, that’s oh so great for me in that I can get all the books in the series read one after the other. I love doing that and that’s exactly what I’m doing with this Black Fleet Trilogy. I have never read a Joshua Dalzelle book, but that’s about to change. I’m now aware of his Omega series and I’ll definitely be checking it out and soon.
If you remember the latter part of the first book, Captain Jackson Wolfe (man, why couldn’t I have been given a name like that?) is being his normal disbelieving self as he’s recovering from his last battle with the Phage Alpha. If you remember in the last book, he has just rammed the Blue Jacket into a huge hole blown out of the Alpha ship near Xa’in. Of course that took care of both ships and save the planet, for the time-being.
Believe it or not, he survived that smash-up although he was certain it wasn’t going to be the last thing he ever did. The Command module he was in, was blasted clear to the final explosion and then tracked down by the recovery teams. Captain Wolfe spent two months in the hospital understanding that he lost a good part of one leg and maybe his career. Then, the most satisfying thing happened. The CIS came in and arrested Admiral Alyson Winters during the hearing for both Captain Wolfe and Commander Wright. She was sure she had them and was going to drum both out of the service. Except she now finds herself in prison! Very satisfying.
Captain Wolfe is now a Senior Captain. He was going to be promoted to Admiral, but couldn’t stand the thought of being behind a desk, so he fought vigorously to have that not happen. He then was given a brand new ship with the most advance capabilities ever produced by the Tsuyo Corporation. He also found that he was now in command of five Wolfe-class starship, the Black Fleet, Ninth Squadron!
So, he immediately takes his squadron back into the fight. He’s back a Xi’an where he finds the Phage has completely taken over the planet and is now producing more Alphas. Two Alphas are arising from the surface of Xi’an. He knows that his squadron will be tested to the limit, but they must destroy these two Alphas before they can begin destroying other planets in human space. And, that’s about what happens all during this book. Captain Wolfe and his new ship, the Ares, find themselves constantly going into battle. He also lost his XO, Commander Wright, who is now in command of one of the new starships, the Icarus. Starship officers that have battle experience are few and far between, so she had to go command her own ship and now was the time.
This book also revels a lot of political back-fighting between the politicians on Haven and the rest of the Confederacy. Most of the Alliances that make up the Confederacy have decided they do not want to fight in this war. They haven’t been at war in over 200 years and they are not threatened now, so they’re not willing to give up their respective fleets that have habitually protected their Alliances. And, then Captain Wolfe finds out that he’s been abandoned by his own Chief of Staff and the President of the Confederation.
There is so much going on in this book. But, it is very exciting. I could hardly put the books down. I think you’ll find them just as good. So far, the author hasn’t left anything hanging and what should happen, does eventually happen. Still, Captain Wolfe and his squadron of 5 new starships can hardly defeat the entire Phage armada, ok can they?
If you remember the latter part of the first book, Captain Jackson Wolfe (man, why couldn’t I have been given a name like that?) is being his normal disbelieving self as he’s recovering from his last battle with the Phage Alpha. If you remember in the last book, he has just rammed the Blue Jacket into a huge hole blown out of the Alpha ship near Xa’in. Of course that took care of both ships and save the planet, for the time-being.
Believe it or not, he survived that smash-up although he was certain it wasn’t going to be the last thing he ever did. The Command module he was in, was blasted clear to the final explosion and then tracked down by the recovery teams. Captain Wolfe spent two months in the hospital understanding that he lost a good part of one leg and maybe his career. Then, the most satisfying thing happened. The CIS came in and arrested Admiral Alyson Winters during the hearing for both Captain Wolfe and Commander Wright. She was sure she had them and was going to drum both out of the service. Except she now finds herself in prison! Very satisfying.
Captain Wolfe is now a Senior Captain. He was going to be promoted to Admiral, but couldn’t stand the thought of being behind a desk, so he fought vigorously to have that not happen. He then was given a brand new ship with the most advance capabilities ever produced by the Tsuyo Corporation. He also found that he was now in command of five Wolfe-class starship, the Black Fleet, Ninth Squadron!
So, he immediately takes his squadron back into the fight. He’s back a Xi’an where he finds the Phage has completely taken over the planet and is now producing more Alphas. Two Alphas are arising from the surface of Xi’an. He knows that his squadron will be tested to the limit, but they must destroy these two Alphas before they can begin destroying other planets in human space. And, that’s about what happens all during this book. Captain Wolfe and his new ship, the Ares, find themselves constantly going into battle. He also lost his XO, Commander Wright, who is now in command of one of the new starships, the Icarus. Starship officers that have battle experience are few and far between, so she had to go command her own ship and now was the time.
This book also revels a lot of political back-fighting between the politicians on Haven and the rest of the Confederacy. Most of the Alliances that make up the Confederacy have decided they do not want to fight in this war. They haven’t been at war in over 200 years and they are not threatened now, so they’re not willing to give up their respective fleets that have habitually protected their Alliances. And, then Captain Wolfe finds out that he’s been abandoned by his own Chief of Staff and the President of the Confederation.
There is so much going on in this book. But, it is very exciting. I could hardly put the books down. I think you’ll find them just as good. So far, the author hasn’t left anything hanging and what should happen, does eventually happen. Still, Captain Wolfe and his squadron of 5 new starships can hardly defeat the entire Phage armada, ok can they?
October 11, 2021
The dark side of rating books is that sometimes someone puts a lot of effort into making a piece of art and I look at what was clearly the end result of a lot of work and I shit all over it.
It’s why I think I rate books higher, in general, than I should. I really want to like things. I’d be thrilled if I loved them. So when I read something that is fine, but not great, I’m almost unsure what to think, or say. There are some possibilities
1) it wasn’t for me. Ive used that one before. Like that book I read a couple of years ago that was clearly intended for pre-teen girls. Yes, I hated it (no, was thoroughly bored by it, but I could see it was well crafted), but c’mon, I can’t judge the day for not being the night. It simply is what it is.
2) I was distracted. Used this one before too. I’ve got shit that happens in my life sometimes. It’s part of life when you have family and loved ones in it. Sometimes, someone dies, or has a crisis, or I have a crisis. Things spiral and through it all I’m trying to read a book. Yeah, it can be hard to focus on wizard wars when I’m dealing with a job loss, or lawsuit, or someone’s death, or whatever disaster has befallen me or my loved ones most recently. It’s sucks. Life is pain. You just find the joy in little pockets of it when you can.
3) Maybe the author doesn’t give a rat’s ass. Never know if this is true or not, but I’ve suspected in the past that I’m reading some lazy piece of shit phoning-in something out of spite to fulfill a contract, or whatever, and I’m sweating bullets on my end about how unfair I might be to them, despite paying money and spending many hours of my life pouring over some piss-stained work of drivel.
I mean, I get that maybe they aren’t a lazy piece of shit, maybe their heart is in writing an epic love story of two prairie voles falling in love in 19th century Oklahoma while their home is being destroyed by an oil prospector. It might not be real marketable, and they have kids in college and need to write the 17th book in a series about space vampires in order to pay that semester’s tuition. It sucks for them. It sucks for me.
But for whatever reason, I felt that book two in this series stripped all the good parts of the previous novel and tossed them out an airlock and decided to focus solely on the jargon I mentioned in my last review.
The captain dealing with his demons? Solved all that alcoholism stuff offscreen between books. The racism? Never mind all that, he’s hero now. The ragtag crew of underachievers that is his crew? Nah, now they’re the best. I mean, it’s just the best captain, on the best ship, going around being the best at everything and single handily winning so much that his superiors and yelling at him to stop with all the winning!
Despite my disappointment. It’s still competently done. But it’s just straight up military battles in space with a sorta narrative tacked on so I’m not confused into thinking its a military exercise I stumbled onto instead of a fiction novel.
Weirdly, I’m also giving this three stars, just as I did the last book. But as Patrick mentioned in the comment last time, I rounded down from 3.5. This one is rounded up from 2.5.
Pick from any of the three possible reasons above for the reason why. I won’t be finishing this series.
It’s why I think I rate books higher, in general, than I should. I really want to like things. I’d be thrilled if I loved them. So when I read something that is fine, but not great, I’m almost unsure what to think, or say. There are some possibilities
1) it wasn’t for me. Ive used that one before. Like that book I read a couple of years ago that was clearly intended for pre-teen girls. Yes, I hated it (no, was thoroughly bored by it, but I could see it was well crafted), but c’mon, I can’t judge the day for not being the night. It simply is what it is.
2) I was distracted. Used this one before too. I’ve got shit that happens in my life sometimes. It’s part of life when you have family and loved ones in it. Sometimes, someone dies, or has a crisis, or I have a crisis. Things spiral and through it all I’m trying to read a book. Yeah, it can be hard to focus on wizard wars when I’m dealing with a job loss, or lawsuit, or someone’s death, or whatever disaster has befallen me or my loved ones most recently. It’s sucks. Life is pain. You just find the joy in little pockets of it when you can.
3) Maybe the author doesn’t give a rat’s ass. Never know if this is true or not, but I’ve suspected in the past that I’m reading some lazy piece of shit phoning-in something out of spite to fulfill a contract, or whatever, and I’m sweating bullets on my end about how unfair I might be to them, despite paying money and spending many hours of my life pouring over some piss-stained work of drivel.
I mean, I get that maybe they aren’t a lazy piece of shit, maybe their heart is in writing an epic love story of two prairie voles falling in love in 19th century Oklahoma while their home is being destroyed by an oil prospector. It might not be real marketable, and they have kids in college and need to write the 17th book in a series about space vampires in order to pay that semester’s tuition. It sucks for them. It sucks for me.
But for whatever reason, I felt that book two in this series stripped all the good parts of the previous novel and tossed them out an airlock and decided to focus solely on the jargon I mentioned in my last review.
The captain dealing with his demons? Solved all that alcoholism stuff offscreen between books. The racism? Never mind all that, he’s hero now. The ragtag crew of underachievers that is his crew? Nah, now they’re the best. I mean, it’s just the best captain, on the best ship, going around being the best at everything and single handily winning so much that his superiors and yelling at him to stop with all the winning!
Despite my disappointment. It’s still competently done. But it’s just straight up military battles in space with a sorta narrative tacked on so I’m not confused into thinking its a military exercise I stumbled onto instead of a fiction novel.
Weirdly, I’m also giving this three stars, just as I did the last book. But as Patrick mentioned in the comment last time, I rounded down from 3.5. This one is rounded up from 2.5.
Pick from any of the three possible reasons above for the reason why. I won’t be finishing this series.
August 17, 2015
This book has paper-thin characters that are thrown into contrived situations. The space opera battles are just not satisfying enough. The politics of the book are quite boring. Again, just like the first book, the most interesting parts are the last half of the final chapter or the epilogue. If it hadn't been for those, I had debated about not reading the last book in the trilogy.
June 25, 2018
There is no one quite like Dalzelle for writing space battles. He has a 'edge of your seat' style way of describing a battle, that in real life could be going on for 8 hours. A solid book two that continues what I think is a very solid story with wonderful action. The characters have stagnated, but I guess given the circumstances, ie they are just fighting for survival, they may not have had time to develop much more.
Looking forward to going straight into book 3.
Looking forward to going straight into book 3.
October 26, 2015
I was a bit hesitant when it came to this book due to the book blurb which seemed to incline that Wolfe was going to spend a good chunk of the book with political haggling in order to be able to handle the threat coming the way of the humanity. Luckily this was not the case. There was a good bunch of political stupidity but the majority of the book was devoted to better things.
The familiar characters are back and are as likable as before. Of course there are a bunch of not so likable characters as well. I do still like the space action which is better than in a lot of books that I have read. I honestly do not understand why there seams to be a slouch of bad reviews (on Goodreads) on this particular book since to me it is more or less a logical continuation of the first one.
Yes, the ending did throw in quite a bit of a twist but, come one, it was a wee bit surprising and had an interesting twist to it, but it was not really that unexpected not that outrageous. Actually, I quite liked the ending. I do dislike the reviews that just post a silly picture with now explanation whatsoever as to why the book was bad though. That is not a review so why bother?
Anyway, I quite liked this book. It is good military science fiction as well as space opera. I could be without a lot of the political nonsense but then I have a particular distaste for that so my view on that is probably not aligning with everyone’s. Still I would say that it is a pretty good, not too heavy adventure story.
The familiar characters are back and are as likable as before. Of course there are a bunch of not so likable characters as well. I do still like the space action which is better than in a lot of books that I have read. I honestly do not understand why there seams to be a slouch of bad reviews (on Goodreads) on this particular book since to me it is more or less a logical continuation of the first one.
Yes, the ending did throw in quite a bit of a twist but, come one, it was a wee bit surprising and had an interesting twist to it, but it was not really that unexpected not that outrageous. Actually, I quite liked the ending. I do dislike the reviews that just post a silly picture with now explanation whatsoever as to why the book was bad though. That is not a review so why bother?
Anyway, I quite liked this book. It is good military science fiction as well as space opera. I could be without a lot of the political nonsense but then I have a particular distaste for that so my view on that is probably not aligning with everyone’s. Still I would say that it is a pretty good, not too heavy adventure story.
May 21, 2019
I started this book in the expectation it would pickup where the last one finished, instead it was several years after the events in Warship. Even though it felt like I had missed something, I still enjoyed the start of the story,
The middle of the book, with the abortive raid to recover the Black Fleet ships and the political machinations wasn’t quite as interesting, especially as the ending to this section didn’t seem to make sense.
Towards the end of the book there is a massive space battle, which I hoped would be resolved with some innovative tactics or perhaps a discovery of a weakness in the Phage, but what I actually got was not only unexpected, but actually very annoying. I presume this is how the author intended the story to go right from the start, but it really felt like the sort of desperate measure a author might use having written themselves into a corner.
As I have read two out of the three books in this Trilogy I will finish the final one, but I am a bit disappointed in the way the story is going.
The middle of the book, with the abortive raid to recover the Black Fleet ships and the political machinations wasn’t quite as interesting, especially as the ending to this section didn’t seem to make sense.
Towards the end of the book there is a massive space battle, which I hoped would be resolved with some innovative tactics or perhaps a discovery of a weakness in the Phage, but what I actually got was not only unexpected, but actually very annoying. I presume this is how the author intended the story to go right from the start, but it really felt like the sort of desperate measure a author might use having written themselves into a corner.
As I have read two out of the three books in this Trilogy I will finish the final one, but I am a bit disappointed in the way the story is going.
July 7, 2015
I'd give it 4 stars if it weren't for the finale. Fast paced action and interesting developments all around, so it's a shame it had to end that way.
I'm interested in learning more about the Phage in the third book, but now I couldn't care less about "us".
I'm interested in learning more about the Phage in the third book, but now I couldn't care less about "us".
July 20, 2016
A classic mid trilogy book, both widening the story and losing a degree of focus as this military science fiction spins its wheels to work out how humanity will counter the unthinkably strong opponent the Phage. And the answer, via a side trip through "who is the real monster" territory (hint its the monster) is a pretty big and only vaguely set up deus ex-machina. Which does leave a lot of big questions for the final book (and a few philosophical ones too) but means the experience here isn't all that satisfying. So its just as well the tird one is coming out straight away.
August 23, 2015
3.5 STARS OUT OF 5: INTRIGUING POLITICS AND EXCITING BATTLES
This second book in the Black Fleet Trilogy is even better than the first. Although it is still a bit too centered around Captain Jackson, the plot is more intricate with a lot more politics between different human factions. The book demonstrates once again that humanity can be our worst enemy even when confronting a technologically advanced alien enemy who is implacably focused on killing billions of humans.
This second book in the Black Fleet Trilogy is even better than the first. Although it is still a bit too centered around Captain Jackson, the plot is more intricate with a lot more politics between different human factions. The book demonstrates once again that humanity can be our worst enemy even when confronting a technologically advanced alien enemy who is implacably focused on killing billions of humans.
July 25, 2018
Re-read Juli 2018
Read
August 4, 2023Rating: minus 5
I expect that no one will read this but will soldier on. Writing to this site is distasteful but my fanboys of the NeoNazi, Libertarian and other white nationalist bent can not get enough of my reviews and I bow to popular demand. I am rewriting my original tepid review to reflect my real feelings about this book but need to visit some interesting channels. This revision was made possible by YouTube's Sarah Z, Dangar Marine, Travelling K, IzzzYzzz, iiLuminaughtii, Rebecca Watson,The Narrowboat That James Built, Lily Simpson, Fantasy and World Music by the Fletchers, Lives and Histories, Xiran Jay Zhao, Insider Business, The Sword and the Pen Reflections, Welcome to Ukraine, Dungeons and Discourse, Jake Broe, Wayward Winchester, Cara Nicole, Autumn's Boutique, Call of History, The Dadvocate, Geo Girl, ThePrimeChronus, Casual Lectures, KernowDamo, The Shades of Orange.
Jamie (from the UK) will not be pleased, I expect. He probably should drop the UK from his member name, based on a previous comment on my "Marine" review. In my totally non-official and invented capacity, I hereby declare him an American with all the ill will, arrogance, racism and entitlement of a male, which that title encompasses. Hail, Jamie from the USA. Minor update. Success, as of this rewrite Jamie has removed "from the UK" from his member name.
I just scanned the comments on my Dalzelle "Marine" review in preparation to sending several more appropriate responses to the juvenile or offensive comments. It seems that the Goodreads had temporarily unmasked the commenters on that book and remasked them by this revision. It seems that this reader's forum (?) can not decide what actions to take regarding my pages. This is the seventh or eighth time that I noticed that they had lifted the mask on a book before remasking the commenter names. Since it always happens while I do a review, it almost seems that Bezos' thugs monitor some customers almost as closely as their employee's toilet breaks. At least I do not have to carry a urine container or wear an adult diaper for 8+ hours, so no complaint.
This writer is incredibly racist and his political views are so openly and painfully stated in his fiction that it must certainly be a part of his charm and his popularity. His every book it seems, are centred on the mistreatment of straight white US cis-males of a very limited ethnicity. No women are included in his list of major characters ever. The proof of the inherent superiority of these males to all other humans is the number of glorious, victorious battles. The subtitle for all of his books should be "We will not be replaced". That would certainly have steered me away from his "literary" train wrecks. We less political readers deserve the warning notice, I think. 😊
There is no world building worth thinking about, which to be fair is standard for low end US science fiction. The major characters for this writer's books are the underappreciated angry white US male in caricature and everyone else as cardboard cutout, which are always racist or misogynist. Character work is a little lower quality than that of space battle games. The audience are not teen boys based on the commenters but 35+ year old males whose special members swell with every battle. I do not judge anyone's enjoyment, having myself loved several horrible movies and books but I have not ever praised or defended those to another. These vocal commenters unlike those of us enjoying a guilty pleasure, are committed to the political message. This is not supposition. I have read their comments to other negative reviews with female readers receiving responses that are frightening. World building addressed.
The plot consists of angry US males doing heroic spacey-space battles, while demonstrating their moral/military/cultural superiority to the other story inhabitants. Again to be fair, this seems the standard storyline, based on my experience with hundreds of Amazon titles. This is especially true of the low end military science fiction that I attempted over the last five years. Plot of each of his books described.
The tech base, the weapons, the ships and marine deployment will read as ridiculous, as all these books do. Again this is standard for this type of space adventure. What makes this writer's books especially awful, is the publisher's use of his former rank. I imagine that It is intended to lend a certain authenticity to the ridiculous space and planetary combat, which seem to be the other point of his books. His career based on his writing was not as a line officer, probably staff with no concept of what planetary naval warfare entails. I would not have bothered to offer my judgement if his publisher did not brandish the writer's suspect credentials in every volume.
The writer does not do introspection, pines for his academy days and lacks imagination. He must be fully aware of his own privilege, since he sometimes painfully details the slights and injustices to which his heroes are subjected. These just happen to mirror the life experiences of most American citizens, as reported in their media. I must repeat that his are not the only books at this level of science fiction, which deliver extensive exposition to bring this social horror to the fore.
More could be said but I will not bother. I tried to read several of his books and not under duress. I understand others suggesting these books and I yielded to the standard at least partially. The narrative is universally repeated across the low end of fantasy, LitRPG and science fiction through book after book but I tried to read them. I did not write the reviews that I should have because these were after all the norm. I waited until the weight of this politics became unbearable. I waited until the commenters felt comfortable discussing the benefits even of slavery past and present directly. Those are my sins. At least I will no longer carry theirs.
A reader enjoys what they enjoy. To elevate rubbish to the award worthy category is next level. To attack readers who were disappointed by what is objectively (even to the fan) garbage is mental health treatment worthy. His books are what make my skin crawl. These books are standard for low end US science fiction, which has only three categories. The No Effort, The Insulting, The Abhorrent. This writer is consistent in his "writing", which is of course the category -- Abhorrent. After slogging through more than a thousand of these Amazon titles, I prefer flawed film or TV to print.
YouTube have good Short film channels, DUST and Omeleto are two of them. Together with the streaming services, there are options to cheap print for more entertaining fare and better writing.
When I began searching YouTube, I had hoped but did not expect to find more than cat videos. I found science fiction channels first, was swamped by special interest channels, discovered the educational channels and finally stumbled upon the book tubers. The book channels 😍 are wonderful. They are fun communities of thoughtful readers excited by all things bookish. I think any reader would enjoy a visit to several book channels and have listed some below. Their environments are completely opposite to that of Goodreads. From sponsor spots on educational channels, I became aware of the dedicated educational video sites. Curiosity Stream/Nebula, Skill Share and Brilliant are just a few of them. They all seem moderately priced and are worth a look.
About Goodreads discourse. About 15 months ago, I wrote a short negative review of Powers of the Earth, a poorly written, juvenile salute to the January 6, 2021 hero by Travis Corcoran who is a US veteran, an advocate for the return of chattel slavery, a self-described libertarian -of course, an employee of an unnamed federal agency and supporter of Putin's Russia. For months I received quite a number of attack comments demanding a response. These maniacs included the writer who wrote a comment that "socialists will send black Americans to Jamaican plantations" and another that "rich blacks who protest should be deported to Brazil". He was the neediest of the bunch. Another screeched among other things that white males created history, so the transAtlantic slave trade was a good thing. I leave it to you to decide whether the writer and his half dozen friends are vehement racists. 🤔
A repeat commenter, Claes Rees Jr/cgr710 (a self-described NeoNazi and US patriot) stated in a comment to my revised review of Powers that They had "won" (?). It seems that They have decided They needn't continue the flood of vile sexual and racist comments directed at YouTube channels, which I mention. The pensioner in France, the German particle physicist, the teen boater and her mother and the other many female creators, were not particularly impressed. These nutcases did deliver a stunning portrait of the American man-child to a broad multinational audience and increased the world's overabundance of unpleasantness. I suppose that is Victory to certain male American members. Yay??
My YouTube picks of the moment.
ATP Geopolitics, Alice Cappelle, Tom Nicholas, Crow Caller, The Researcher, Alizee, Book Furnace, Red Plateaus, Sophie From Mars, Prime of Midlife, Ship Happens, Cruising Crafts, Sailing Melody, Exurb1a, Jay Exci, Owen Jones, Times Radio.
About Amazon/Goodreads, please consider treating this site as potentially hostile. 😐
Ominous music begins. 🙂 There are a very disturbed set of members posing as readers and the one review which I mentioned does not begin to tell the entire tale. Their comment clouds alone are childishly annoying, not particularly dangerous. Unfortunately, these are American males and feel constrained by no social norm, courtesy or human feeling. They do however exhibit fear of power, retribution and exposure. Given their behaviour off-site as well as on, I suppose they are justified.
The real danger stems from Goodreads complicity. They have provided what sparse information is available on my profile to these white nationalist nutcases, including my limited message history. I have a fairly well protected internet presence for reasons. They have pursued several dead ends but I did not expect foreign professional involvement in my private life. Someone with an American secret security clearance (in Travis Corcoran, I am disappointed but not surprised and Claes Rees Jr/cgr710 probably should not attempt invasion of another reader's private life, when they, themselves have secrets best not broadcast) managed to extract a favour from Australian intelligence at Pine Gap Intelligence Centre apparently. Imagine a botched attempt to extract information about an anonymous reader through the reader's friend list because American bully boys take exception to an honest opinion of low grade US fiction which is not clearly marked as such.
That was the extreme but other Amazon actions have included masking my commenters' member names across all my reviews to protect (?) them, removing my access to other reviews of my reviewed books (not a huge loss), removing my ability to remove or even directly message lurkers, interrupting kindle services for days at a stretch with no explanation nor answer to queries about same, disabling the automatic end of book transition to the "Rate and Review" page, blocking Goodreads uploads for sometimes several days (these morons are not organized well enough to maintain a blockade, it seems) and other harrsssments. For full details, see my review of "Dark Horse", a good novel by Diener or Powers of the Earth, the unremarkable, juvenile excuse for a book by the racist Travis Corcoran.
I ask a favour. If by chance you discover the name of the agency employing Travis Corcoran, whether Claes Rees, Jr/cgr710 is an Amazon employee or simply a minor police official and whether Dr Susan Hamilton actually exists or is an embedded employment record at University of Tennessee, a note would be appreciated. Either of those two reviews will explain my ask. Note this is the corporation which sell the security footage of their "Ring" service customers to various police forces and I imagine most anyone else. I suggest prudent precautions might include minimizing profile information, removing lurkers (those friends who never post), screenshotting the odd and the ugly and exercising a certain wariness using the messaging function. One should not forget that these would-be dangerous members and Amazon employees are Americans with all that implies. Ominous music ends. 🙂
May we all find Good Reading! 😊
Disclaimer: I do not know very much about social media, even to understanding the Clapping, Slapping, Chad or other terms. I simply find these channels interesting and hope that you find some engaging also. 🙂 Some of my favourite YouTube channels.
Zoe Bee, Operator Starsky, Fantasy and World Music by the Fletchers, Narrowboat Girl, Tom Nicholas, Bobbing Along, Mia Mulder, IzzzYzzz, Dangar Marine, Biz Barclay, Gutsick Gibbon, Mrs Betty Bowers, May, Second Thought, Eileen, Sarah Millican, Violet Orlandi, Munecat, Abby Cox, Mandy, Then & Now, Book Odyssey, Philosophy Tube, Skip Intro, Jessica Kellgren Fozard, Some More News, Yugopnik, Anna from Ukraine, Tara Mooknee, Abbie Emmons, Roomies Digest, Knowing Better, The Juice Media, Brittany Page, Noah Samsen, Sarah Z, Dutchy, The Narrowboat that James Built, TIKHistory, Dark Seas, Beau of the Fifth Column, Northern Narrowboaters, Rebecca Watson, Abney Park, Lily Alexandre, Awful Archaeology, Brandon F, AllShorts, The Cold War, NerdForge, Kidology, Military Aviation History, Nini Music, No Justice MTG, World War Two, Floating our Boat, Emma Thorne, Sabine Hossenfelder, Kathy's Flog in France, Lily Simpson, Malinda, Verilybitchie, Kings and Generals, History with Gilbert, Ryan Chapman, DW News, Spacedock, Hello Future Me, Anton Petrov, Karolina Zebrowska, J. Draper, Cambrian Chronicles, Truth to Power, UATV, Joe Blogs, Digging for Britain, Jake Broe, Dr Becky, What Vivi did next, The Leftist Cooks, Overly Sarcastic Productions, Well Deck Diaries, Historical Fashion, Jill Bearup, Lilly's Expat Life, With Olivia, It's Black Friday, Cruising Crafts, Solent Ships, Star Media, Shaaba, Tiny Wee Boat, The Untold Past, ThePrimeChronus, Ula and Josh, Kate Robson, More Perfect Union, Vlad Vexler, Books and Lala, Patrick is Navajo, Three Arrows, Zoe Baker, Heather Wotherspoon, Weir on the Move, Planarwalker, Quinn's Ideas, Jessie Gender, Autumn's Boutique, Renegade Cut, Just Write, Claudia Boleyn, Alt Shift X.
I wish you a glorious morning, a splendid afternoon, a wonderful evening, a pleasant night and may we all continue to learn.
If you allow Another to speak for you without challenge, you adopt Another's sins.
My Grandmother
I expect that no one will read this but will soldier on. Writing to this site is distasteful but my fanboys of the NeoNazi, Libertarian and other white nationalist bent can not get enough of my reviews and I bow to popular demand. I am rewriting my original tepid review to reflect my real feelings about this book but need to visit some interesting channels. This revision was made possible by YouTube's Sarah Z, Dangar Marine, Travelling K, IzzzYzzz, iiLuminaughtii, Rebecca Watson,The Narrowboat That James Built, Lily Simpson, Fantasy and World Music by the Fletchers, Lives and Histories, Xiran Jay Zhao, Insider Business, The Sword and the Pen Reflections, Welcome to Ukraine, Dungeons and Discourse, Jake Broe, Wayward Winchester, Cara Nicole, Autumn's Boutique, Call of History, The Dadvocate, Geo Girl, ThePrimeChronus, Casual Lectures, KernowDamo, The Shades of Orange.
Jamie (from the UK) will not be pleased, I expect. He probably should drop the UK from his member name, based on a previous comment on my "Marine" review. In my totally non-official and invented capacity, I hereby declare him an American with all the ill will, arrogance, racism and entitlement of a male, which that title encompasses. Hail, Jamie from the USA. Minor update. Success, as of this rewrite Jamie has removed "from the UK" from his member name.
I just scanned the comments on my Dalzelle "Marine" review in preparation to sending several more appropriate responses to the juvenile or offensive comments. It seems that the Goodreads had temporarily unmasked the commenters on that book and remasked them by this revision. It seems that this reader's forum (?) can not decide what actions to take regarding my pages. This is the seventh or eighth time that I noticed that they had lifted the mask on a book before remasking the commenter names. Since it always happens while I do a review, it almost seems that Bezos' thugs monitor some customers almost as closely as their employee's toilet breaks. At least I do not have to carry a urine container or wear an adult diaper for 8+ hours, so no complaint.
This writer is incredibly racist and his political views are so openly and painfully stated in his fiction that it must certainly be a part of his charm and his popularity. His every book it seems, are centred on the mistreatment of straight white US cis-males of a very limited ethnicity. No women are included in his list of major characters ever. The proof of the inherent superiority of these males to all other humans is the number of glorious, victorious battles. The subtitle for all of his books should be "We will not be replaced". That would certainly have steered me away from his "literary" train wrecks. We less political readers deserve the warning notice, I think. 😊
There is no world building worth thinking about, which to be fair is standard for low end US science fiction. The major characters for this writer's books are the underappreciated angry white US male in caricature and everyone else as cardboard cutout, which are always racist or misogynist. Character work is a little lower quality than that of space battle games. The audience are not teen boys based on the commenters but 35+ year old males whose special members swell with every battle. I do not judge anyone's enjoyment, having myself loved several horrible movies and books but I have not ever praised or defended those to another. These vocal commenters unlike those of us enjoying a guilty pleasure, are committed to the political message. This is not supposition. I have read their comments to other negative reviews with female readers receiving responses that are frightening. World building addressed.
The plot consists of angry US males doing heroic spacey-space battles, while demonstrating their moral/military/cultural superiority to the other story inhabitants. Again to be fair, this seems the standard storyline, based on my experience with hundreds of Amazon titles. This is especially true of the low end military science fiction that I attempted over the last five years. Plot of each of his books described.
The tech base, the weapons, the ships and marine deployment will read as ridiculous, as all these books do. Again this is standard for this type of space adventure. What makes this writer's books especially awful, is the publisher's use of his former rank. I imagine that It is intended to lend a certain authenticity to the ridiculous space and planetary combat, which seem to be the other point of his books. His career based on his writing was not as a line officer, probably staff with no concept of what planetary naval warfare entails. I would not have bothered to offer my judgement if his publisher did not brandish the writer's suspect credentials in every volume.
The writer does not do introspection, pines for his academy days and lacks imagination. He must be fully aware of his own privilege, since he sometimes painfully details the slights and injustices to which his heroes are subjected. These just happen to mirror the life experiences of most American citizens, as reported in their media. I must repeat that his are not the only books at this level of science fiction, which deliver extensive exposition to bring this social horror to the fore.
More could be said but I will not bother. I tried to read several of his books and not under duress. I understand others suggesting these books and I yielded to the standard at least partially. The narrative is universally repeated across the low end of fantasy, LitRPG and science fiction through book after book but I tried to read them. I did not write the reviews that I should have because these were after all the norm. I waited until the weight of this politics became unbearable. I waited until the commenters felt comfortable discussing the benefits even of slavery past and present directly. Those are my sins. At least I will no longer carry theirs.
A reader enjoys what they enjoy. To elevate rubbish to the award worthy category is next level. To attack readers who were disappointed by what is objectively (even to the fan) garbage is mental health treatment worthy. His books are what make my skin crawl. These books are standard for low end US science fiction, which has only three categories. The No Effort, The Insulting, The Abhorrent. This writer is consistent in his "writing", which is of course the category -- Abhorrent. After slogging through more than a thousand of these Amazon titles, I prefer flawed film or TV to print.
YouTube have good Short film channels, DUST and Omeleto are two of them. Together with the streaming services, there are options to cheap print for more entertaining fare and better writing.
When I began searching YouTube, I had hoped but did not expect to find more than cat videos. I found science fiction channels first, was swamped by special interest channels, discovered the educational channels and finally stumbled upon the book tubers. The book channels 😍 are wonderful. They are fun communities of thoughtful readers excited by all things bookish. I think any reader would enjoy a visit to several book channels and have listed some below. Their environments are completely opposite to that of Goodreads. From sponsor spots on educational channels, I became aware of the dedicated educational video sites. Curiosity Stream/Nebula, Skill Share and Brilliant are just a few of them. They all seem moderately priced and are worth a look.
About Goodreads discourse. About 15 months ago, I wrote a short negative review of Powers of the Earth, a poorly written, juvenile salute to the January 6, 2021 hero by Travis Corcoran who is a US veteran, an advocate for the return of chattel slavery, a self-described libertarian -of course, an employee of an unnamed federal agency and supporter of Putin's Russia. For months I received quite a number of attack comments demanding a response. These maniacs included the writer who wrote a comment that "socialists will send black Americans to Jamaican plantations" and another that "rich blacks who protest should be deported to Brazil". He was the neediest of the bunch. Another screeched among other things that white males created history, so the transAtlantic slave trade was a good thing. I leave it to you to decide whether the writer and his half dozen friends are vehement racists. 🤔
A repeat commenter, Claes Rees Jr/cgr710 (a self-described NeoNazi and US patriot) stated in a comment to my revised review of Powers that They had "won" (?). It seems that They have decided They needn't continue the flood of vile sexual and racist comments directed at YouTube channels, which I mention. The pensioner in France, the German particle physicist, the teen boater and her mother and the other many female creators, were not particularly impressed. These nutcases did deliver a stunning portrait of the American man-child to a broad multinational audience and increased the world's overabundance of unpleasantness. I suppose that is Victory to certain male American members. Yay??
My YouTube picks of the moment.
ATP Geopolitics, Alice Cappelle, Tom Nicholas, Crow Caller, The Researcher, Alizee, Book Furnace, Red Plateaus, Sophie From Mars, Prime of Midlife, Ship Happens, Cruising Crafts, Sailing Melody, Exurb1a, Jay Exci, Owen Jones, Times Radio.
About Amazon/Goodreads, please consider treating this site as potentially hostile. 😐
Ominous music begins. 🙂 There are a very disturbed set of members posing as readers and the one review which I mentioned does not begin to tell the entire tale. Their comment clouds alone are childishly annoying, not particularly dangerous. Unfortunately, these are American males and feel constrained by no social norm, courtesy or human feeling. They do however exhibit fear of power, retribution and exposure. Given their behaviour off-site as well as on, I suppose they are justified.
The real danger stems from Goodreads complicity. They have provided what sparse information is available on my profile to these white nationalist nutcases, including my limited message history. I have a fairly well protected internet presence for reasons. They have pursued several dead ends but I did not expect foreign professional involvement in my private life. Someone with an American secret security clearance (in Travis Corcoran, I am disappointed but not surprised and Claes Rees Jr/cgr710 probably should not attempt invasion of another reader's private life, when they, themselves have secrets best not broadcast) managed to extract a favour from Australian intelligence at Pine Gap Intelligence Centre apparently. Imagine a botched attempt to extract information about an anonymous reader through the reader's friend list because American bully boys take exception to an honest opinion of low grade US fiction which is not clearly marked as such.
That was the extreme but other Amazon actions have included masking my commenters' member names across all my reviews to protect (?) them, removing my access to other reviews of my reviewed books (not a huge loss), removing my ability to remove or even directly message lurkers, interrupting kindle services for days at a stretch with no explanation nor answer to queries about same, disabling the automatic end of book transition to the "Rate and Review" page, blocking Goodreads uploads for sometimes several days (these morons are not organized well enough to maintain a blockade, it seems) and other harrsssments. For full details, see my review of "Dark Horse", a good novel by Diener or Powers of the Earth, the unremarkable, juvenile excuse for a book by the racist Travis Corcoran.
I ask a favour. If by chance you discover the name of the agency employing Travis Corcoran, whether Claes Rees, Jr/cgr710 is an Amazon employee or simply a minor police official and whether Dr Susan Hamilton actually exists or is an embedded employment record at University of Tennessee, a note would be appreciated. Either of those two reviews will explain my ask. Note this is the corporation which sell the security footage of their "Ring" service customers to various police forces and I imagine most anyone else. I suggest prudent precautions might include minimizing profile information, removing lurkers (those friends who never post), screenshotting the odd and the ugly and exercising a certain wariness using the messaging function. One should not forget that these would-be dangerous members and Amazon employees are Americans with all that implies. Ominous music ends. 🙂
May we all find Good Reading! 😊
Disclaimer: I do not know very much about social media, even to understanding the Clapping, Slapping, Chad or other terms. I simply find these channels interesting and hope that you find some engaging also. 🙂 Some of my favourite YouTube channels.
Zoe Bee, Operator Starsky, Fantasy and World Music by the Fletchers, Narrowboat Girl, Tom Nicholas, Bobbing Along, Mia Mulder, IzzzYzzz, Dangar Marine, Biz Barclay, Gutsick Gibbon, Mrs Betty Bowers, May, Second Thought, Eileen, Sarah Millican, Violet Orlandi, Munecat, Abby Cox, Mandy, Then & Now, Book Odyssey, Philosophy Tube, Skip Intro, Jessica Kellgren Fozard, Some More News, Yugopnik, Anna from Ukraine, Tara Mooknee, Abbie Emmons, Roomies Digest, Knowing Better, The Juice Media, Brittany Page, Noah Samsen, Sarah Z, Dutchy, The Narrowboat that James Built, TIKHistory, Dark Seas, Beau of the Fifth Column, Northern Narrowboaters, Rebecca Watson, Abney Park, Lily Alexandre, Awful Archaeology, Brandon F, AllShorts, The Cold War, NerdForge, Kidology, Military Aviation History, Nini Music, No Justice MTG, World War Two, Floating our Boat, Emma Thorne, Sabine Hossenfelder, Kathy's Flog in France, Lily Simpson, Malinda, Verilybitchie, Kings and Generals, History with Gilbert, Ryan Chapman, DW News, Spacedock, Hello Future Me, Anton Petrov, Karolina Zebrowska, J. Draper, Cambrian Chronicles, Truth to Power, UATV, Joe Blogs, Digging for Britain, Jake Broe, Dr Becky, What Vivi did next, The Leftist Cooks, Overly Sarcastic Productions, Well Deck Diaries, Historical Fashion, Jill Bearup, Lilly's Expat Life, With Olivia, It's Black Friday, Cruising Crafts, Solent Ships, Star Media, Shaaba, Tiny Wee Boat, The Untold Past, ThePrimeChronus, Ula and Josh, Kate Robson, More Perfect Union, Vlad Vexler, Books and Lala, Patrick is Navajo, Three Arrows, Zoe Baker, Heather Wotherspoon, Weir on the Move, Planarwalker, Quinn's Ideas, Jessie Gender, Autumn's Boutique, Renegade Cut, Just Write, Claudia Boleyn, Alt Shift X.
I wish you a glorious morning, a splendid afternoon, a wonderful evening, a pleasant night and may we all continue to learn.
If you allow Another to speak for you without challenge, you adopt Another's sins.
My Grandmother
April 19, 2023
An Unforced Error at the Finish Line
Call to Arms is difficult to review without calling into question its ending. Given that this isn't the author's first novel, I'm not willing to forgive and forget. It's really a shame, since the rest of the novel had been hitting the right beats. Fresh on the heels of Warship, we march recycled Age of Sail plotlines out the airlock and warp forward into a story that naturally arises from the events of the previous novel. The exceptional worldbuilding bears fruit as plots and subplots tear through the universe.
I love the politics of the Terran Confederacy. It's equal parts corrupt and magnificent, and is portrayed as a complicated set of machinations that are never seen, but its results are felt. Games of brinksmanship have real consequences and the author is willing upset the status quo. I can offer many criticisms, but I would never say this story is episodic.
The pacing of Call to Arms is frenetic and the book is stripped bare of non-essential scenes. It gives you very little time to breathe as stakes are ratcheted sky-high. The ride is thrilling from scene to scene, but on reflection, I think the author could have slowed down a bit to build up the tension: a warning here, a missed signal there, and then unleash the harbinger of death. Not everything needs to be a surprise! That said, I prefer fast-paced novels and the author delivers.
Which leads me to the elephant in the room... my spoiler policy makes this exceptionally difficult to discuss. The ending mimics a trope that many dislike, which is an incredible shame, since the trope added nothing to actual consequences of the novel! Odds are that you'll feel let down as you finish the story, and that's not the way you want to end a novel.
Recommended with reservations.
Call to Arms is difficult to review without calling into question its ending. Given that this isn't the author's first novel, I'm not willing to forgive and forget. It's really a shame, since the rest of the novel had been hitting the right beats. Fresh on the heels of Warship, we march recycled Age of Sail plotlines out the airlock and warp forward into a story that naturally arises from the events of the previous novel. The exceptional worldbuilding bears fruit as plots and subplots tear through the universe.
I love the politics of the Terran Confederacy. It's equal parts corrupt and magnificent, and is portrayed as a complicated set of machinations that are never seen, but its results are felt. Games of brinksmanship have real consequences and the author is willing upset the status quo. I can offer many criticisms, but I would never say this story is episodic.
The pacing of Call to Arms is frenetic and the book is stripped bare of non-essential scenes. It gives you very little time to breathe as stakes are ratcheted sky-high. The ride is thrilling from scene to scene, but on reflection, I think the author could have slowed down a bit to build up the tension: a warning here, a missed signal there, and then unleash the harbinger of death. Not everything needs to be a surprise! That said, I prefer fast-paced novels and the author delivers.
Which leads me to the elephant in the room... my spoiler policy makes this exceptionally difficult to discuss. The ending mimics a trope that many dislike, which is an incredible shame, since the trope added nothing to actual consequences of the novel! Odds are that you'll feel let down as you finish the story, and that's not the way you want to end a novel.
Recommended with reservations.
December 26, 2023
A decent follow up marred by some very back-of-the-envelope worldbuilding/civil warring.
The second novel in the Black Fleet Trilogy, 2015's "Call to Arms" fast forwards 4 years where the aliens, now christened "The Phage" are an accepted fact -- even if some of the political powers think Captain Jackson Wolf may have started the war through negligence or incompetence.
Wolf gets a better ship this time and still finds himself chasing the Phage around a bit engaging in some naval space battles and somehow being the ONLY one to make groundbreaking discoveries about their capabilities and intentions and darn it, nobody will believe him. It's a little too cute by half.
On top of this is a brewing civil war amongst the various human political powers. Unfortunately, there's not enough world building in this or the previous novel to give these events any significance other than as plot devices. But plot devices they are so Wolf spends the latter half of the novel reluctantly going against fellow humans.
There are some not insignificant revelations/twists at the end regarding humanity's plan to survive, the origins of the Phage, and humanity's first warp flight that seems promising but even though these books are quick reads, there's not quite enough there to draw me into the third volume.
Overall, fine for what it is.
The second novel in the Black Fleet Trilogy, 2015's "Call to Arms" fast forwards 4 years where the aliens, now christened "The Phage" are an accepted fact -- even if some of the political powers think Captain Jackson Wolf may have started the war through negligence or incompetence.
Wolf gets a better ship this time and still finds himself chasing the Phage around a bit engaging in some naval space battles and somehow being the ONLY one to make groundbreaking discoveries about their capabilities and intentions and darn it, nobody will believe him. It's a little too cute by half.
On top of this is a brewing civil war amongst the various human political powers. Unfortunately, there's not enough world building in this or the previous novel to give these events any significance other than as plot devices. But plot devices they are so Wolf spends the latter half of the novel reluctantly going against fellow humans.
There are some not insignificant revelations/twists at the end regarding humanity's plan to survive, the origins of the Phage, and humanity's first warp flight that seems promising but even though these books are quick reads, there's not quite enough there to draw me into the third volume.
Overall, fine for what it is.
January 4, 2023
Call to Arms offers little new from book one in the Black Fleet Trilogy. The reader instead gets about 4 hours of reading descriptions of quite repetitve space battles. That is OK, but mostly for blood fans of military science fiction.
January 24, 2020
3,5 to 4 stars
It is kinda of difficult to say if it is better or worse than the original, it is a little different, but still a lot of fun and tension, read it in 2 days
There are some little problems with foreshadowing, that could have been done better. Also although the pacing is hard and tense, somethings could have been better divided, so it didn´t give the impresion that Jackson was always winning in the first attempt.
Recommended fun reading
It is kinda of difficult to say if it is better or worse than the original, it is a little different, but still a lot of fun and tension, read it in 2 days
There are some little problems with foreshadowing, that could have been done better. Also although the pacing is hard and tense, somethings could have been better divided, so it didn´t give the impresion that Jackson was always winning in the first attempt.
Recommended fun reading
February 3, 2024
Great character development and just an easy to enjoy story.
September 25, 2019
I really enjoy the challenge concerning the coming alien attack. I could have lived without the espionage concerning the humans.
November 14, 2022
Great follow-up to the first book. Not quite as entertaining, I think - this series is really good but I have to be in the mood for it. It tends to be a bit dry in the telling. It's very Star Trek.
Mark Boyett is amazing. He's a new favorite narrator for me.
Mark Boyett is amazing. He's a new favorite narrator for me.
August 28, 2024
Nice light read. Wish it was slightly more detailed, but otherwise a good sci-fi novel. Had a great cliff hanger so will need to read the 3rd part.
August 12, 2021
I liked the story in the book perhaps a little better than the first one, but looking at the book as a whole, I'm sure I liked it a little less this time around.
Contrary to the first book, the story doesn't take too long to get going and it follows a mostly logical path, albeit slowly - more on that later. In the end I felt there wasn't much meat to it, and mostly just more of the same, which I guess can be good or bad, depending on how much you liked it previously.
There are battles and skirmishes, some small, some big. These were mostly engaging and decently written. I generally like how the author deals with tactical situations. From a strategic point of view however, our captain makes some rather inane decisions, all the while he is supposedly some kind of genius in that regard. I get the impression this is not intended, but rather the result of the author's lack of knowledge and insight regarding the subject.
There's a variation of ground-combat about half-way through the book. I actually enjoyed this part, even when I generally don't like the addition of "space marines" in a book that's not about space marines. For some reason however, this part gets resolved and wrapped up abruptly and in a way that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. It felt as if the author was all of a sudden in a hurry.
The book could do with a more engaging writing style at times. More cinematic perhaps, for the lack of a better description. Several big plot elements that could be used to really draw a reader in, are wrapped up so fast -sometimes even within a single page-, that it makes you wonder if the author was indeed in a hurry. He is doing himself a disservice here by rushing.
I liked the politics more than I thought I would, and while it plays a big role in the story, I'm glad it's not a huge part of the book in the sense that I have to plod through page after page of it.
For some reason there is no character development anymore. Regular bridge crew are turned into cardboard cut-outs (for as much as they weren't just that already) and if they wouldn't be addressed by their names, it'd be impossible to tell who is who; everyone is identical. There's the cliché grumpy Chief thrown into the mix for some variety in this regard, but he's just mostly standing around on the bridge with his arms crossed (what's he doing there anyway?), being that grumpy Chief. This is really minimal effort.
Big spoiler about the ending ahead.
The story ends with a
All in all, a light and decently entertaining read for fans of the genre. I do have to admit, it's gotten to the point where it's more about the destination than the trip itself, which is unfortunate. If this had been more than "just" a trilogy, I'm not sure if I would have continued reading.
2,5/5, rounding up to a 3.
Contrary to the first book, the story doesn't take too long to get going and it follows a mostly logical path, albeit slowly - more on that later. In the end I felt there wasn't much meat to it, and mostly just more of the same, which I guess can be good or bad, depending on how much you liked it previously.
There are battles and skirmishes, some small, some big. These were mostly engaging and decently written. I generally like how the author deals with tactical situations. From a strategic point of view however, our captain makes some rather inane decisions, all the while he is supposedly some kind of genius in that regard. I get the impression this is not intended, but rather the result of the author's lack of knowledge and insight regarding the subject.
There's a variation of ground-combat about half-way through the book. I actually enjoyed this part, even when I generally don't like the addition of "space marines" in a book that's not about space marines. For some reason however, this part gets resolved and wrapped up abruptly and in a way that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. It felt as if the author was all of a sudden in a hurry.
The book could do with a more engaging writing style at times. More cinematic perhaps, for the lack of a better description. Several big plot elements that could be used to really draw a reader in, are wrapped up so fast -sometimes even within a single page-, that it makes you wonder if the author was indeed in a hurry. He is doing himself a disservice here by rushing.
I liked the politics more than I thought I would, and while it plays a big role in the story, I'm glad it's not a huge part of the book in the sense that I have to plod through page after page of it.
For some reason there is no character development anymore. Regular bridge crew are turned into cardboard cut-outs (for as much as they weren't just that already) and if they wouldn't be addressed by their names, it'd be impossible to tell who is who; everyone is identical. There's the cliché grumpy Chief thrown into the mix for some variety in this regard, but he's just mostly standing around on the bridge with his arms crossed (what's he doing there anyway?), being that grumpy Chief. This is really minimal effort.
Big spoiler about the ending ahead.
The story ends with a
All in all, a light and decently entertaining read for fans of the genre. I do have to admit, it's gotten to the point where it's more about the destination than the trip itself, which is unfortunate. If this had been more than "just" a trilogy, I'm not sure if I would have continued reading.
2,5/5, rounding up to a 3.
February 6, 2022
(17/7/16) Really enjoyed this sequel, finished it this morning. The ending wasn't that good, but it didn't spoil the over all feel, oh and lots of typos in this book too. that would be my only complaint though, great story and very much looking forward to the final book, book 3.
(6/2/22) So I’m updating this review It’s the third time i’ve read this book. And still it has me on the edge of my seat. I particularly love how the author ties the last chapter into the prologue. Anyway about to start book 3, also for the third time lol.
(6/2/22) So I’m updating this review It’s the third time i’ve read this book. And still it has me on the edge of my seat. I particularly love how the author ties the last chapter into the prologue. Anyway about to start book 3, also for the third time lol.
September 28, 2016
As the second book of the Trilogy that I picked up, I went through this one rather quickly. It was not really inspiring, but it made me want to keep reading and finish the entire Trilogy, some of the twists presented here are extremely obvious, but it doesn't make it much worse then the first book.
What is apparent is that the author had issues in making the characters stand out, and the attempts to give them depth are very tiring and noticeable.
What is apparent is that the author had issues in making the characters stand out, and the attempts to give them depth are very tiring and noticeable.
August 6, 2017
A somewhat disappointing sequel to what was a pretty good first book. I simply lost interest. I think younger readers will like it---the repetitiveness of life aboard a star warship (not much different I suppose from what you might hear on a naval vessel), and the heroics of a captain and crew facing a terrible enemy in a future world may captivate them. I also kept running into grammatical problems that should have been smoothed out had this been copy read better.
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