Helpful Score: 2
Wow! 828 pages of absolute kick butt military sci fi. The action scenes are written in a fashion that is both realistic and exciting while actually followable. The main character is trained as one of the "Elite" cadre, a group of soldiers equipped and trained with no expense spared and answerable directly to the emperor of the world spanning empire. When she discovers she has been betrayed in a manner of speaking due to political expediency, Alicia DeVries resigns her commission in disgust and retires with her family to a frontier world. Unfortunately, a group of mercenary pirates attacks the planet and kills almost the entire population of the world, including Alicia's entire family. Alicia takes out the attackers at her homestead and is almost killed in the process. While lying almost dead she finds herself contacted and offered a deal by a being claiming to be one of the Furies of ancient Greek mythology. The creature takes up residence inside Alicia's mind as a second and separate personality. The Fury (Tisiphone) has powers that enhance those of the already augmented and formidable former drop commando. Alicia is bent on revenge/justice and, teamed with the Fury, steals the most advanced starship in the empire - a small ship with a huge drive and armament capacity... The catch is that she must blend with the Aritificial Intelligence that runs the ship and become one with it in order to operate the ship at all. It comes down to a triad ... Alicia DeVries the super soldier with augmented physical enhancements combined with the disembodied spirit of an ancient Greek Goddess joined with the super capacity of an intelligent warship. Together, while fleeing a million dollar bounty on her head from the empire she once served, Alicia and her two "friends" track down a conspiracy that reaches to the very top echelons of the empire and it's military space fleet.
The book is riveting. My only problem is the fact that the firs 400 pages, while telling three fascinating stories in and of themselves, were really lead in to the second half of the book when it actually gets to the story line that the dust cover outlined. It was almost 4 books in one. Still, definitely a great read. Four stars.
The book is riveting. My only problem is the fact that the firs 400 pages, while telling three fascinating stories in and of themselves, were really lead in to the second half of the book when it actually gets to the story line that the dust cover outlined. It was almost 4 books in one. Still, definitely a great read. Four stars.
