A review by abagoflobsters
Columbus Day by Craig Alanson

4.0

This book is a 4 on a good day and a 3 on most days.

Earth gets attacked by a whole bunch of hamster people, but then saved by some lizards. Then our main pal gets shipped off to war in space. Turns out, space war is a lot less chill than you might expect when you are in a technologically inept society.

This novel is fun but felt a little clunky. The main character was fun and a fine character to hang around, if not a bit plain. Other characters seemed to have been forgotten about and the plot seemed to unfold at a strange pace. The philosophical elements never felt totally realized, but perhaps that will be improved as the series goes on.

About halfway through, a character is introduced that becomes a proper sidekick and gives a little life to the book. Up until that point, dialogue felt a bit flat and the main character didn't properly "play off" anyone. The second half of the book seems to mostly fly by.

R.C. Bray's narration was excellent as always, although the main character sounded like he was from Boston and not Maine. Would recommend.