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johnbreeden's review
5.0
This novel was a hard look at war and combat from both sides. I haven't read many books that can make you sympathize with the antagonist so fully. It was a good, if jarring, look at the costs and sacrifices of war. A chess game set in space.
manzabar's review
3.0
The first half of the book is slow and meanders a bit clumsily through several POVs, but the second half really works.
millymoo's review
5.0
Really good read!
What a flipping good book. I really enjoyed it. It was good and easy to read after a long day. Top marks.
What a flipping good book. I really enjoyed it. It was good and easy to read after a long day. Top marks.
pjonsson's review
4.0
Duel in the Dark is a good start of a new series, Blood on the Stars, from Jay Allan. It is an action filled story which essentially is a prelude to an all out war. It has good world building, enjoyable characters and plenty of action.
The underlying premise of the story is the all too common one, in fiction as well as in real life. The Confederation has beaten the enemy once, actually three times, and once the threat seemed to be gone dumbass politicians have let their defense forces slip. Why spend money on defending the nation when you can be shortsighted and use the money to buy votes for the next election. Of course the threat was not gone, at least not forever, and now the bad guys are knocking on the door once again. Invasion is imminent.
In this first book we focus on Captain Tyler Barron and his battleship the Dauntless. After 10 months on the front lines Dauntless is sent on a mission intended to be somewhat of a vacation for the crew. Well, there would not be a story worth reading if that was true would there? Political machinations and backstabbing abound and Barron finds himself face to face with a unexpected and ruthless enemy in the flagship of the enemies fleet. It’s clobbertime!
For the large part of the book we get to follow the Dauntless and her crew as they go head to head with the enemy. Battleship against battleship. We get to know Captain Barron and the enemy captain in pretty much equal parts. There is plenty of action, both on the surface of the planet that resides in the playing field of the duel and, of course, in space. It is a ruthless battle and both ships have more holes in them than a Swiss cheese towards the end.
Barron and his crew are quite likable and, surprisingly enough, the enemy captain becomes almost likable towards the end. There is a second book out already so it is really not much of a spoiler when I say that Dauntless survives if only just barely.
It is a well written military science fiction story. It is quite tense, moving forward at a brisk pace and the action as well as the parts of the story that glues the action together is definitely well done.
I have no hesitation about jumping on the next book in the series.
The underlying premise of the story is the all too common one, in fiction as well as in real life. The Confederation has beaten the enemy once, actually three times, and once the threat seemed to be gone dumbass politicians have let their defense forces slip. Why spend money on defending the nation when you can be shortsighted and use the money to buy votes for the next election. Of course the threat was not gone, at least not forever, and now the bad guys are knocking on the door once again. Invasion is imminent.
In this first book we focus on Captain Tyler Barron and his battleship the Dauntless. After 10 months on the front lines Dauntless is sent on a mission intended to be somewhat of a vacation for the crew. Well, there would not be a story worth reading if that was true would there? Political machinations and backstabbing abound and Barron finds himself face to face with a unexpected and ruthless enemy in the flagship of the enemies fleet. It’s clobbertime!
For the large part of the book we get to follow the Dauntless and her crew as they go head to head with the enemy. Battleship against battleship. We get to know Captain Barron and the enemy captain in pretty much equal parts. There is plenty of action, both on the surface of the planet that resides in the playing field of the duel and, of course, in space. It is a ruthless battle and both ships have more holes in them than a Swiss cheese towards the end.
Barron and his crew are quite likable and, surprisingly enough, the enemy captain becomes almost likable towards the end. There is a second book out already so it is really not much of a spoiler when I say that Dauntless survives if only just barely.
It is a well written military science fiction story. It is quite tense, moving forward at a brisk pace and the action as well as the parts of the story that glues the action together is definitely well done.
I have no hesitation about jumping on the next book in the series.
zelaxi's review
1.0
DNF at 50%. The writing was not at fault, but rather the lack of any depth development of these three factions at war by the halfway point of the novel left me without any reason to finish.
peter_xxx's review
3.0
Even though I'm almost 40 now, the 14 year old boy inside me never really got away. And this book is really aimed at that target.
This is clearly a military SF book which means that this is actually a naval battle with a space trapping on it. Other things very important are skill and honor. This book has a lot of emphasis on warriors honor and duty. Of doing the right thing, no matter what the cost. And that is stuff I really like.
There were some small annoyances in this book as well, but I have to admit that they did not prevent me from enjoying this book. They prevented me from giving this book 4 stars though. The story is a tad predictable at times, although the way it gets to the conclusions you see coming from miles away are always very interesting.
This is a very nice book if you like entertaining, slightly macho military SF.
This is clearly a military SF book which means that this is actually a naval battle with a space trapping on it. Other things very important are skill and honor. This book has a lot of emphasis on warriors honor and duty. Of doing the right thing, no matter what the cost. And that is stuff I really like.
There were some small annoyances in this book as well, but I have to admit that they did not prevent me from enjoying this book. They prevented me from giving this book 4 stars though. The story is a tad predictable at times, although the way it gets to the conclusions you see coming from miles away are always very interesting.
This is a very nice book if you like entertaining, slightly macho military SF.
marcelozanca's review
adventurous
challenging
fast-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
3.5
thinde's review
4.0
Set in a galaxy with two super-powers at loggerheads; think USA Vs. USSR in space. Wait, hasn't that been done to death? Ah but what if a small but aggressive Roman/Spartan type culture was introduced as the cat's paw of the big, bad Union. Now we're talking.
Aside from a strange idea that slowing a fighter in space would make for more effective dog-fights, (Note: absolute vector changes are a factor of acceleration, not velocity - at least until you approach light speed). The space duel between two ships-of-the-line is top-notch. The ground battle, not so much.
I wondered why the protagonist's opponent, (I can't say "antagonist"), was so well developed as a character. Were they somehow going to develop a long-term relationship? Close. The author seems to be setting up a relationship between the Confed and the Alliance. The two captains were simply used as exemplars.
I did think of a different ending that kept Katrine alive, but it is not for those who haven't read the book.
Aside from a strange idea that slowing a fighter in space would make for more effective dog-fights, (Note: absolute vector changes are a factor of acceleration, not velocity - at least until you approach light speed). The space duel between two ships-of-the-line is top-notch. The ground battle, not so much.
Spoiler
The Alliance's top ground-pounder fails to set a guard over the refinery; the only strategic asset on the planet.I wondered why the protagonist's opponent, (I can't say "antagonist"), was so well developed as a character. Were they somehow going to develop a long-term relationship? Close. The author seems to be setting up a relationship between the Confed and the Alliance. The two captains were simply used as exemplars.
I did think of a different ending that kept Katrine alive, but it is not for those who haven't read the book.
Spoiler
After disabling the Invictus and realizing that Katrine couldn't surrender, Jake himself could have surrendered, pending a discussion of terms. With a disabled ship, Katrine couldn't harm the Dauntless, so it would open up some possibilities. It could have allowed a political negotiation that would preserve Invictus and her crew while laying the groundwork for a mutual war against the Union.orphan_of_you's review
5.0
Next big thing
This has laid the beginning of something great. Captain Tyler is amazing and his crew on the ship are all great spacers. I can’t wait to see this play on tv sometime in the future.
This has laid the beginning of something great. Captain Tyler is amazing and his crew on the ship are all great spacers. I can’t wait to see this play on tv sometime in the future.
jasonabbott's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0