Tyson S Sukeforth

More like WTF.

Revisado: 08-17-23

Textbook rushed ending. The writing was already on the wall when they had to split it into 2 books to make it work for scheduling and it still wasn't enough to give a satisfying ending. Characters and plot threads that were giving whole volumes of building get tossed in haphazardly, while too many others just die on the vine altogether. Hell, I there are plot elements in KTF vol 1 that didn't even get touched on here.

After all that build up, it leaves a sour taste in my mouth to see this be the culmination. And I can't help but feel like the vision this story set out in the very beginning that I was very excited to see, winds up a bit of a failure in the end.

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Uncharacteristically terrible political driven BS.

Revisado: 10-21-22

Was really hoping that the other negative reviews were simply overstating how bad this was. It's worse. It really is.

I was weary of this title because amongst the favorite reviews there was some very pointed negative ones in the bunch all complaining about the same things, but I decided that just this once I'd try not to let one or two dissenting opinions ruin what could be a completely enjoyable book. And besides, I've read and enjoyed the rest of the GE series up to this point, how could it possibly be singularly bad?

Boy I wish I hadn't. This is awful. Not only is it bad, it erodes the enjoyment of every other book they've written, past and future. The curtain of escapism got ripped to shreds so they could sneak in some badly written and obviously politically motivated drivel. Now I have to look at all their world building through a lens of "Wait, is this just how they honestly think the real world really is?". Those made-to-be villains they've created to be pure fiction and in no way have a real world counterpart? Yeah, they totally do. There's no getting that toothpaste back in the tube. It's so ham fisted and forced it contradicts itself and its own continuity just to cram all the suck in. Ten minutes with an editor worth half his salt would have had this book thrown back in their faces.

And before I get pigeon holed into some easily ignored stereotype, my brother, my wife, my father in law and mother in law are all combat veterans. They know what real military life is. Jason and Nick here should go back to writing fiction because the thinly veiled social commentary is just awful.

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3/5 Stars for three-fifths of a Book

Revisado: 06-28-22

One thing I hate with any series is when there is an book that exists only to set up the next book.

This series already has had a multi year wait since the last time we had a real look at the plot. (And the last book was more of an interlude.) I want to see a payoff for that time. A climax. A big reveal. Something to keep us going for the next book. And it does seem like we get really close to something like that, only to have the book just end on us. We finally get a taste of meaningful action, a spoonful of plot development. And then poof, book ends. Not even a lame cliffhanger. You want answers? A climax? Any sort of high note? Well, you're going to have to wait again for that in the next book. Maybe.

And it's not the first time Kloos has pulled this. He did the exact same thing with the other project he started that put Frontlines on hold, Palladium Wars. First book got some momentum, had an interesting setup started, and then just stopped randomly before any of those setups turned into anything. Killed my interest in the next books. And he's done it again here, which tells me this isn't a fluke as much as it's a flaw in Kloos's writing style. Either that or he's arbitrarily chopping up his books short to increase the number of releases, which would be worse.

Also, elephant in the room, Luke Daniels is not the narrator anymore. Which sucks, but it's understandable with how busy Luke is and how... irregular Frontlines has been as of late. That being said, I've seen several audiobook series be ruined by a sudden change of narrator by Dove does as good a job filling in as can reasonably be expected. For the book's faults, Dove is not chief among them.

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A Hollywood ending, for better or for worse

Revisado: 11-13-19

The best thing I can say about Titan's Fury (besides RC Bray's always stellar narration) is that it definitely is an end. It wraps the series conclusively, which is more than I can say for many. My one knock on it is that it simplifies (a cynic may even say "dumbs down") many of the plot threads that were built in the first three books to get there. The characters become less multi-dimensional and the plot more predictable. Maybe even cliche in parts. In its place, action and pivotal moments fill in to smooth over the imperfections.

It's still a worthy read, and if you've come this far, for Earth's sake don't stop now! If the writing for the other books were a 10, this is a 7.5. And it is done so to help keep things moving towards the big grand finale. But jaded Game of Thrones fans may detect the faintest whiff of Season 8 here.

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Ok, but not as satisfying as I'd hoped.

Revisado: 11-06-19

The sorry starts as a sci-fi mystery much like Planetside, but the mystery soon evaporates and the plot has no firm hand on the wheel. It's still enjoyable, but I can't help but feel a bit disappointed that it's not the story it billed itself too be. It'd feel better as the first half of a larger book.

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Great setup for a series, but a bit short

Revisado: 07-09-19

I typically prefer to wait until the 2nd or 3rd installment of a series before I start one. It gives me a chance to really dive into a story while getting an idea of how committed the author is to continuing the series. I broke that convention when picking up Aftershocks because I wanted to see what exactly was holding up for so long the next installment of my beloved Frontlines series.

Well it turns out Kloos does it again. In Frontlines he's very good at taking a large scale story but driving it through the main character. But unlike Frontlines, The Palladium Wars introduces you to multiple main characters, each with very unique backgrounds and personalities. Through them the book does a fine job of world building a relatable but still fresh feeling setting that is a fertile ground for storytelling. I love smart and inventive science fiction that still feels grounded and Kloos is the best at it.

For all this I give the overall book 5 stars, but I still have one serious gripe. Throughout the world building you see hints of the greater story ready to unfold, building the mystery to be revealed. And then the book just ends. No big reveal, no climax, just a few moments of minor excitement and "Audible hopes you've enjoyed this program". I literally yelled "What? That's it?" at my car speakers it was so sudden. I know the saying is "leave them wanting more" but you've got to give us more to work with. Without it this is more a prologue to the main story than it is a stand alone book.

Yes, the setup is so good I can't even dock it a single star because of the abrupt ending (edit: changed my mind, knocked story to 4). But I'm really wishing I stuck to my convention and waited for more to be released before starting this because it's going to be a long, long wait before I get to see what the real story is about.

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Greater than the sum of its parts

Revisado: 07-02-19

At its core it's a heist story, but leaving it at that does the book a great disservice.

It has wonderful world-building, distinct and engaging characters, and smart but not unapproachable sci-fi. It's dark and vibrant, gritty and beautiful, disturbing and awe-inspiring. It's got a little bit of everything, but not only that, the RIGHT AMOUNT of everything. Consciously or not, Kunsken really captured the notion of "a candle burns brightest in the dark". I could go on but you should discover the rest for yourself.

T. Ryder Smith is not a narrator I've listened to before but he's perfect for the range this book demands.

Probably the best praise I can give it is that it's going to be painful waiting on the next installments in the series.

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Citing Shakespeare doth not make you sophisticated

Revisado: 06-04-19

I know there's a lot of very positive reviews here, which is why I gave the series a shot. But in truth I only made it 4 hours into the first book before I gave up on it. The writing just isn't believable or cohesive. The writer doesn't really know what the story or the characters should really be. Instead it reads like a bunch of moderately disjointed story elements held together with spackle and duct tape. While it's not the worst I've seen, it still had me wincing a couple too many times for me to keep going.

Now if you're not looking for an intense read there are still some interesting ideas lurking just under the surface so maybe your experience fairs better. But for me, this story really needed some more time to bake before being written because it's too raw for my tastes.

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Not my favorite of the universe, but not bad

Revisado: 03-22-19

It's a credit to the authors and the Ember War universe to compare it to pizza. Even when it's cold, it's still good.

I will say I wasn't quite as gripped with this pack as have been elsewhere in the post-Ember War continuations, but that's a small notch below a high set bar so it's hard to be too critical. My main complaint is that it goes to the well just a few too many times with its main characters, like they're becoming stereotypes of themselves. The characters express their personality through their banter more than anything else but they always banter about the same things over and over. A little more development to fill out their otherwise single-dimension personalities would serve it well in the future. Maybe even throw them a bone and give them a solid win here and there to offset the constant grind.

What doesn't stay static is the universe in which they're a part of. It's always moving, always tying into other plot lines from other concurrently running series, and pulling in those from the original series. Even the second book, which was kinda a little filler-ish if we're going to be honest, still had important tie-ins that made the story feel impactful in the grander scheme of things.

So yeah, while I have a few areas I think could be done better, it's kind of like complaining that I ordered my steak medium and got back something closer to medium-well.

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Solid Continuation

Revisado: 02-01-19

One of the good qualities of this series is that the arriving to a (in this case literal) world of endless possibilities isn't the end the story, but merely the staging point. Too many times I've seen sci-fi stories journey endlessly to their destination, often Earth, and upon finally reaching it roll the credits. Wait, where are you going? This was the part I wanted to see! Get back here and world build the rest of it you lazy @#$%!

But the Renegade Star series will actually take those events of 'what comes after' and weave it into its ongoing narrative in stride. We've reached Earth, congratulations! Now lets explore what exactly comes next and start the next journey.

Luke Daniels is one of my top narrators so I'd be hard pressed to give him anything less than 5 stars, but I do have to make one specific complaint. He does an excellent job of crafting a whole library of voices and accents for all the characters he reads for. Sometimes those accents turn out just a bit outlandish, but that's understandable when you're stretching yourself to create more than a dozen unique voices. That being said, a couple of the newly introduced side characters sound like Looney Tunes caricatures. One in particular is supposed to be a fairly important character but she sounds like she should be serving beers at Octoberfest wearing lederhosen 2 sizes too small for her soundingly mannish proportions. If you're reading this Luke, bad Luke, bad! I'll give you a pass this time because you're otherwise excellent. But unless you need to read a character named Bertha I suggest never using that voice again!

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