Dauntless by Jack Campbell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a straight-laced and uncomplicated mil-sf without strong command female characters. It's ALL about leadership, good intelligence, and respect. Earning it, displaying it, reaping the rewards of it.

It's what I imagine most old-school military fictions would be like (without knowing anything) with a patina of space battle to keep it fresh.

It's... pure. If that makes sense. Just trying to keep your men alive, bucking idiots, and overcoming the odds. Very little else.

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William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return by Ian Doescher
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

'Tis a balm to my soul.

Truly, I didn't know I needed this as much as I know I did with the first two books. But Return of the Jedi is a great redemption arc. Funnily done, as Shakespeare style, it's still a great story at its core.

But to hear the rancor sing in couplets?

*chef's kiss*



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The Sixth Nik by Daniel Kraus
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

To be honest, this book dropped me head-first into a depression.

It was the body-horror, the truly despicable aspects of humanity, the child-rape, the forced birthing convincers, the society-condoned child-kidnappers, or endless examples of characters trying to do the right thing when absolutely incapable of following through that did it.

It was all of it.

It may be a pretty good novel. Touching on many, many timely issues and using SF to hit HARD on subjects that would be too horrible for mainstream fiction. It is pretty fearless.

But damn, it IS also extremely depressing. This may have living spaceships, bio-punk elements, colonies, revolutions, etc, but those are nothing compared to the underlying theme. Sixth Nik? The other. The chance.

You know, the hope that was left after Pandora opened the box.

Depressing.

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Ruin by Nicoli Gonnella
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

For a finale, it's a great combination of blistering big action, ginormous stakes, big appetites, and ass-pulls that are enormous ass-pulls even for a series that basically defines itself on ass-pullery.

Don't mind me much. I've actually grown rather fond of this particular ass-pullery. For one, it always keeps the plot moving forward. For another, it gives the reader a sense that it could never really end because the plot armor is infinite.

But then it ends. Satisfyingly so, even. I like the turn it took and I feel no remorse for all those gods. None. It just goes to show, it doesn't pay to be a dick. If you do, expect to have a whale show up to a god-fight.





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Chains by Nicoli Gonnella
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've grown used to less downtime in this series. Hell, I expected chaos all the time and got it all the time. But this is all system, broken system, more broken system, and even more on top of that.

I don't mind it as a plot device as long as it's an actual device, but the series seems to be run on the broken bits.

That's not to say it's not worth it. I'm still enjoying great swaths of the excellent action and massive stakes. But sometimes I just have to laugh.

Let's break the chains of the gods, no? If only to kill them.

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Empire by Nicoli Gonnella
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The progression novel is living up to its type by... progressing. Long quest takes a long time to succeed, but feels speedy because we've got several groups pulling off several large plot pieces at the same time.

Want empire? Get empire. And it's easy, too, just so long as you grab system authority in an area and become supreme leader... and kill a few gods.

Still fun.

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Crown by Nicoli Gonnella
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Can something be badass when it just follows upon he heels of more badass?

Yes.

Sure, it risks a never-ending pattern, but that's part and parcel of most LitRPG. Fortunately, it's still cool. The crown, indeed. I love the progression.

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