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danielv64's review against another edition
4.0
Nice space opera, reminds me of the David Drake RCN series with Leary and Mundy
pjonsson's review against another edition
3.0
An okay book that I do not mind having read and I'll probably read at least one more in the series.
I would have liked more spaceship settings and less mud and dirt myself.
However, what brought the book down as all that political bullshit. Fine to have a bit of politics in the background but this was definitely too much for my taste. So much that I though about giving it only two stars.
I would have liked more spaceship settings and less mud and dirt myself.
However, what brought the book down as all that political bullshit. Fine to have a bit of politics in the background but this was definitely too much for my taste. So much that I though about giving it only two stars.
cjdawn236's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first book in a couple months that I've read for my book club and actually enjoyed reading (the next one we're reading is pretty good as well). I really liked Kris, the main character, which made it much easier to read (so many of the titles we've read lately had really awful main characters - awful as in you just could not like them, not that they were written awfully). Until now I haven't really read many space novels, but I have a feeling I'll be reading the rest of this series.
spinnerroweok's review against another edition
3.0
There must be a whole sub-genre of sci fi called "rich girl joins space navy" because this is the third series I've found that would fall into that category. This is fun fast read that consists of a bunch of stuff that happens and which is really not held together by much until the end. Even the title, "Mutineer," doesn't mean anything until the climax of the book. In fact, the title is actually a spoiler. A better title would be "Kris Longknife: Yet Another Rich Girl Joins Yet Another Space Navy." However, I did enjoy it especially after my last heavy read on Alexander Hamilton.
ovidusnaso's review against another edition
2.0
Jeg føler at dette er en bok man enten kan si veldig mye eller veldig lite om, alt ettersom hva man vil se på. Boka er en veldig generisk SF-militærroman, forfatteren "grew up navy", og har åpenbar stor respekt for (amerikanske) soldater, men dette betyr ikke at han skriver godt om det. Noen deler av boken var ganske sjarmerende. De logistiske utfordringene fenrik Longknife møter når hun får i oppdrag å få en forsømt militærbase på bena var artige å følge, men de kunne jeg simulert selv i Sim City. Resten av boka var så som så. Karakterene er ikke særlig troverdige, selv til SF å være, og jeg stussa over mye av dialogen og handlingene til karakterene. Det er ikke et originalt atom i boka, men den var helt ok likevel. Den klarte nesten å være kritisk av det militærindustrielle komplekset, men så huska Shepherd i siste liten på at han jo er storfan av militæret, så da får vi "noen dårlige egg"-forsvaret.
rollickingradness's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
ladymurasaki's review against another edition
3.0
This book was incredibly frustrating. I picked it up expecting a mutiny. It took over 350 pages to get to that mutiny, and it only lasted about 15 pages. The whole novel was build up, and let me tell you, I was ready to throw it across the room if it didn't delivery the mutiny soon.
In addition, there is one point in the novel that clearly shows a failure of research. The character of Tommy Lien has a name that is very Chinese; however, at one point, he refers to family kami - kami is a Japanese concept. So unless this character is mixed both Asian and mixed Asian and European, the author is mixing cultures half haphazardly.
That being said, the book itself was enjoyable (beside the continued and growing frustrating at the clear lack of a mutiny). The main character is likeable enough, and I imagine she will grow on me as she grows up and develops as a character. The story was interesting, if a bit slow from time to time, in that half of the book was spent wallowing in a rainy mudhole, occasionally shooting at people and sailing up dangerous rivers in the near dark. Still, a good enough book that I am going to read the second one.
I just hope the action promised in the book synopsis actually happens in the fist 90% of the book this time, and isn't held off for the last 50 or so pages.
In addition, there is one point in the novel that clearly shows a failure of research. The character of Tommy Lien has a name that is very Chinese; however, at one point, he refers to family kami - kami is a Japanese concept. So unless this character is mixed both Asian and mixed Asian and European, the author is mixing cultures half haphazardly.
That being said, the book itself was enjoyable (beside the continued and growing frustrating at the clear lack of a mutiny). The main character is likeable enough, and I imagine she will grow on me as she grows up and develops as a character. The story was interesting, if a bit slow from time to time, in that half of the book was spent wallowing in a rainy mudhole, occasionally shooting at people and sailing up dangerous rivers in the near dark. Still, a good enough book that I am going to read the second one.
I just hope the action promised in the book synopsis actually happens in the fist 90% of the book this time, and isn't held off for the last 50 or so pages.
birchflower's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
ncrabb's review against another edition
4.0
This book got kicked around a lot by the Goodreads community, and that fills me with a certain level of consternation and disquiet. I'll give you the reality that this guy isn't David Weber or Elizabeth Moon. But he doesn't have to be for me to like him. Others objected because the main character, Kris, apparently comes off merely as a man with boobs rather than as a complex female military person. Well, maybe; but I have to tell you I liked her a lot! Let me try to explain:
First, a bit of background: Audible offered this as a daily deal a few months ago, and since it was the first book in a series, and since it was cheap, I bought it. I don't mind admitting I'm glad I did; I have no regrets.
Kris Longknife's dad is the prime minister of her planet; her mom takes drugs sufficient to enable her to carry out the tedious social requirements of the politician's wife. Kris was brought up to be the ultimate girly-girl who, poised and frilly, would marry well, breed sufficiently to carry on the family line, and do little else. The problem is, those old family stories about the military prowess of her grandfathers had a far greater influence over her than anyone realized. It was those stories combined with her discontentment about constantly being the family trophy girl expected to perform on demand like a wind-up mechanical thing that caused her to join the navy and be assigned as an ensign to a group of marines. Her first assignment is to rescue a little girl who had been captured by terrorists. ,ironically, Kris ultimately takes the lead in the rescue, and she barely avoids death in the process. ,as the rescue continues, you are given a clue into the life of a youthful Kris. ,her little brother was murdered when they were both small, and Kris constantly felt responsibility for his death. Can this rescue of the little girl assuage some of Kris's inner demons that resulted from her brother's death?
There are some wonderfully supporting characters here. Her sidekick is a young man of mix race--Chinese and Irish--and he's wonderfully funny. An elderly woman who is both a computer expert and a nonconformist serves as both friend and role model.
So here's the thing: This is a candy and popcorn read. It's military space opera stuff that's low on science and high on plot--some aspects of which are more believable than others. I promise you, if you're facing 80 minutes on a treadmill, this book is a great antidote to that kind of drudgery. There is plenty to enjoy about this book. I liked Kris, and I don't find her as silly and unbelievable as apparently most who have read this. I liked her take-charge organizational traits. I cheered for her when it looked like her world was headed for unavoidable revolution and war, and I felt compelled to keep reading when it became apparent that someone desperately wants her dead.
If you need an additional reason to like Kris Longknife, it is that she isn't dropping her high-tech clothes in an effort to sleep her way to a promotion. In addition to a lack of unoriginal or tiring sexual descriptions, the book is relatively free of profanity. It's just fun brain candy space opera, and you know what? It's just good enough for me to want to find book two in the series and read it.
First, a bit of background: Audible offered this as a daily deal a few months ago, and since it was the first book in a series, and since it was cheap, I bought it. I don't mind admitting I'm glad I did; I have no regrets.
Kris Longknife's dad is the prime minister of her planet; her mom takes drugs sufficient to enable her to carry out the tedious social requirements of the politician's wife. Kris was brought up to be the ultimate girly-girl who, poised and frilly, would marry well, breed sufficiently to carry on the family line, and do little else. The problem is, those old family stories about the military prowess of her grandfathers had a far greater influence over her than anyone realized. It was those stories combined with her discontentment about constantly being the family trophy girl expected to perform on demand like a wind-up mechanical thing that caused her to join the navy and be assigned as an ensign to a group of marines. Her first assignment is to rescue a little girl who had been captured by terrorists. ,ironically, Kris ultimately takes the lead in the rescue, and she barely avoids death in the process. ,as the rescue continues, you are given a clue into the life of a youthful Kris. ,her little brother was murdered when they were both small, and Kris constantly felt responsibility for his death. Can this rescue of the little girl assuage some of Kris's inner demons that resulted from her brother's death?
There are some wonderfully supporting characters here. Her sidekick is a young man of mix race--Chinese and Irish--and he's wonderfully funny. An elderly woman who is both a computer expert and a nonconformist serves as both friend and role model.
So here's the thing: This is a candy and popcorn read. It's military space opera stuff that's low on science and high on plot--some aspects of which are more believable than others. I promise you, if you're facing 80 minutes on a treadmill, this book is a great antidote to that kind of drudgery. There is plenty to enjoy about this book. I liked Kris, and I don't find her as silly and unbelievable as apparently most who have read this. I liked her take-charge organizational traits. I cheered for her when it looked like her world was headed for unavoidable revolution and war, and I felt compelled to keep reading when it became apparent that someone desperately wants her dead.
If you need an additional reason to like Kris Longknife, it is that she isn't dropping her high-tech clothes in an effort to sleep her way to a promotion. In addition to a lack of unoriginal or tiring sexual descriptions, the book is relatively free of profanity. It's just fun brain candy space opera, and you know what? It's just good enough for me to want to find book two in the series and read it.
sceadugenga's review against another edition
3.0
I don't read as much SciFi as I should but I enjoyed this.