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A review by thefourthvine
Linesman by S.K. Dunstall
4.0
A new space opera with an incredibly classic feel, this story reminds me of the SF I grew up reading. I've seen comparisons to Anne McCaffrey, and I see that, although this is better SF than she ever managed to write, and I've seen comparisons to Bujold, and again, I get that, though this is not as good as her best SF (but way better than her worst).
There are a lot of strengths here, ranging from a truly human main character it's easy to like (despite his passivity and self-deprecation), to a genuinely compelling pace, to politics that are interestingly complex without ever getting to that one-twist-too-many-now-I'm-bored place. There's also some flaws. I found one of the point of view characters dull and chafed whenever we went back to him, and there was a point about 75% of the way through the book where I whispered, "Don't use up ALL the plots, dear authors; you'll need some for later books." But the flaws didn't make me slow down in my reading or enjoy this any less, and I will definitely be buying the sequel when it comes out. (IN FEBRUARY 2016. AUGH.)
Basically, this a really fun, engaging space opera, with sentient ships and possibly psychic abilities and space princesses (who do stuff!) and politics and an underdog trying to make good. If you like this sort of thing, this is precisely the sort of thing you'll like.
There are a lot of strengths here, ranging from a truly human main character it's easy to like (despite his passivity and self-deprecation), to a genuinely compelling pace, to politics that are interestingly complex without ever getting to that one-twist-too-many-now-I'm-bored place. There's also some flaws. I found one of the point of view characters dull and chafed whenever we went back to him, and there was a point about 75% of the way through the book where I whispered, "Don't use up ALL the plots, dear authors; you'll need some for later books." But the flaws didn't make me slow down in my reading or enjoy this any less, and I will definitely be buying the sequel when it comes out. (IN FEBRUARY 2016. AUGH.)
Basically, this a really fun, engaging space opera, with sentient ships and possibly psychic abilities and space princesses (who do stuff!) and politics and an underdog trying to make good. If you like this sort of thing, this is precisely the sort of thing you'll like.