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A review by additionaddiction
The Caledonian Gambit by Dan Moren
4.0
I'd say this is a solid 3.5, but I always round up when I'm between stars.
This book started strong and ended strong but felt a little sluggish to me in the middle. I was never fully invested with Eli Brody (the main character) mostly because he didn't seem to have any convictions with the decisions he made. It seemed like he was just along for the ride with wherever the plot took him. There were a lot of interesting side-details in the story but I felt like they weren't really explored enough to add much substance. Similarly, I think the prologue / opening would have made for an interesting story on it's own (the initial 5 years).
Overall I felt like the story had flavors of Firefly and [b:Consider Phlebas|8935689|Consider Phlebas|Iain M. Banks|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327951890s/8935689.jpg|14366]. There was also something about the interactions between the characters (mostly Tapper and Page) that reminded me a bit of [b:Boneshaker|1137215|Boneshaker (The Clockwork Century, #1)|Cherie Priest|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1433161048s/1137215.jpg|1124460] (even though that's a very different story). And speaking of, I think Tapper and Page were actually my two favorite characters. The story is never told from their point of view, so they were both somewhat mysterious yet still felt very believable as characters. Maybe that's my biggest critique, I think the first-person writing felt a bit lacking, but the third-person/general narration was great.
It sort of felt like there was a slight setup for a sequel. If so, I'll probably be checking it out.
This book started strong and ended strong but felt a little sluggish to me in the middle. I was never fully invested with Eli Brody (the main character) mostly because he didn't seem to have any convictions with the decisions he made. It seemed like he was just along for the ride with wherever the plot took him. There were a lot of interesting side-details in the story but I felt like they weren't really explored enough to add much substance. Similarly, I think the prologue / opening would have made for an interesting story on it's own (the initial 5 years).
Overall I felt like the story had flavors of Firefly and [b:Consider Phlebas|8935689|Consider Phlebas|Iain M. Banks|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327951890s/8935689.jpg|14366]. There was also something about the interactions between the characters (mostly Tapper and Page) that reminded me a bit of [b:Boneshaker|1137215|Boneshaker (The Clockwork Century, #1)|Cherie Priest|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1433161048s/1137215.jpg|1124460] (even though that's a very different story). And speaking of, I think Tapper and Page were actually my two favorite characters. The story is never told from their point of view, so they were both somewhat mysterious yet still felt very believable as characters. Maybe that's my biggest critique, I think the first-person writing felt a bit lacking, but the third-person/general narration was great.
It sort of felt like there was a slight setup for a sequel. If so, I'll probably be checking it out.