Book Review: Slipspace: Harbinger

Slipspace: Harbinger

By:  P.C. Haring

Publish Date:  May 1, 2017

Format:  ebook

Genre:  Sci fi

Series:  1st in Slipspace series

First Impression:  A space opera with more than war. It's about family and friends and the lives they lead.

Synopsis:
A fringe colony world has gone dark, and Captain Cody Amado and the crew of the ISPA’s newest battle cruiser, Mjöllnir, must respond and investigate.

No one is prepared for the destruction that awaits them.

Agendas collide as the bonds of duty, loyalty, and family are tested, and the major governments position themselves to prepare for what is to come next.

With interstellar tensions rising, the crew of the Mjöllnir race to discover the connection between the colony’s destruction, an alien society so reclusive it has only been rumored about, and an enemy that disappeared a decade prior.

Is this merely an isolated incident, or is this a harbinger of much darker things still to come?

First Sentence:
Between the blaring alarms and the shaking under her feet, Cassandra might have thought the gates of hell had opened, exposing the planet to a demonic swarm.

Purchase At:
Amazon

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I read this book for my own enjoyment and in exchange for an honest review.

Oh! Starting this book, it caught my attention from the first sentence. Nice! There are creatures and outer space in one book. And more! I liked it!

We start with meeting the commanders who have a hefty past and as they all come together on Mjollnir with Captain Cody Amado. As they arrive and the new large vessel is running trials, there is a computer glitch. Something that appears to be fixed, but Captain Cody Amado and Melor fear sabotage. On a low, Melor is investigating to see if it was sabotage of not. This seems to quickly get put to the back burner as the ship soon finds itself in the middle of a mission which then leads to much more, and more time consuming projects... like fixing the ship... and winning battles.

Captain Amado and his crew are sent on their first mission in the large heavy battleship Mjollnir. They are to investigate what happened at Artez and why the colony is not responding. This is interesting. As we investigate Artez, and move to places where we meet other beings, we get a view of the brutal past that's been lived. Humans have fought a costly war with a deadly race. And there are uneasy peace with other beings in space. But, humans can always use more allies especially after the toll on Artez and the possible battles to come.

A great sign of crafted characters is when I have strong feelings about characters. This is hats off to the author for creating each character as their own individual.

A few of the characters to mention as examples:
-Admiral Marr... oh I liked him when we first met him. But when he sent Cody and our crew on a mission that could very well be their death! Oh I didn't like him at all. He seemed to enjoy this moment to much for me, in just the smile he had. But it is his job. He's got his own personal troubles as well, with his daughter.
-Cody's wife, the doctor on ship as well, seems a bit to needy for me (in her personality that's well written). She knows her stuff and has a very good idea what she's getting into, but when she arrives on the ship she's very demanding and upset, over a few things but one was not having a window. Nira grew on me as she grew as a character. She seemed to start to adapt to being on ship more and more.
-Melor is probably one of my favorites of the the crew. She's also the engine mechanic aboard, in simple terms. She's brilliant and knows the process that needs to be done, so takes no crap from anyone. She's a pivotal character here as she's not human, but she's saved the ship in one spot to maybe doom it in another for being who she is. She has her past that haunts her as well.
-Cody seems like a rather level headed man. He's actually perfect for Captain of the ship. Really, I think so. He thinks everything out and goes for the good.
-Cassandra sometimes doesn't see the good to be done, but to defend her, she's lived the battle with the terrible creatures that threatened her and her soldiers lives. She knows what they can do and what to watch for. She just doesn't want to see it happen again.

All of these characters have a past that drives them in their way of thinking and decisions. All their connections and pasts are presented to us and we understand why they take the paths they do. All this comes out as the ship moves forward in it's mission, and brings us to where they need to be.

I found it easy to slip into the world with the characters because they seemed personable. We live in their day. The characters live and think as normal people we feel all their emotions. This story is more than just a space War Story it's a story of family and friends and their lives they lead. That's part of what makes it a Space Opera. I could see people who enjoyed Star Trek enjoying this read. It's not overly science fiction strong with terms and usage of Technology. It's a story of people trying to live their lives and find peace for all in space.



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon. Thank you!