mrssoule's review against another edition
5.0
I made the mistake of starting this book last night at 11pm. I read until I fell asleep reading around 2am. I woke up at 7:30 and kept reading - I did nothing of any use until I'd finished it. It's that awesome. It's got the feel of [b:Shards of Honour|61903|Shards of Honour (Vorkosigan Saga, #1)|Lois McMaster Bujold|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1392767899s/61903.jpg|9673658] meets [b:Games of Command|352724|Games of Command|Linnea Sinclair|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347389713s/352724.jpg|342949]. Perfect.
lbrychic's review against another edition
2.0
Can't really give it a rating. I did not finish it. I really just couldnt get into it.
jazi62's review against another edition
5.0
I loved it! It grabbed me kept me and I finished it in one sitting.
nelsonseye's review against another edition
3.0
Great characters and an interesting world. I had some trouble understanding some plot points/details (pacing issues or too complex for me?) which is why it's not 4 stars.
slc333's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this and thought the author shows a lot of promise. In the same vein as Linnea Sinclair (but not quite as good). My major issue with this this the lack of trust Cullin has in Ari. She trusts him and shows him (even though she has less reason to trust than most after what she has been through). I understand why he might not trust her at first but given that he supposedly loves her his failure to trust her at any point was a sour note. I also didn't like the way she stayed at the end as it didn't feel as if she had a choice. Giving her a real choice (in that they would have allowed her to leave) would have made her staying more worthwhile.
sans's review against another edition
3.0
*sigh* I spent a good amount of time this morning working on a coherent review of this book. And lost it when I tried to post after failing to notice the wifi failed. ~_~ I'm not going to spend another half hour trying to recreate it.
I liked this book but didn't love it. It was a compelling story, I read it one sitting and I'm glad I read it, but it didn't wow me. I liked the main characters, Ari and Cullin, but I didn't love them. I liked their romance but didn't love it and wasn't fully convinced of their feelings for each other. I liked the side characters but more could have been done with them than a few off-handed comments about their pasts.
I did NOT like the buggy bad guy (and I know I wasn't supposed to, so that's good). I got a bit squicked by the last couple of chapters and I think the way the good guys handled the situation was a bit crude. It got a bit...tawdry-feeling at the end. And the final chapter read like a film school screenwriter's attempt at showing how clever they were by showing the reader all those little clues they might have missed. Didn't fly for me. I'm not sure the matter of who hacked into the ships computers was explained, though it might have been and I skimmed right over it. It was almost 4am when I finished reading, so it's very possible I missed quite a bit.
Anyway. A good effort, good writing overall and the world building was very well done. I'll read the next book by this author, but I'm not waiting on tenterhooks for it.
I liked this book but didn't love it. It was a compelling story, I read it one sitting and I'm glad I read it, but it didn't wow me. I liked the main characters, Ari and Cullin, but I didn't love them. I liked their romance but didn't love it and wasn't fully convinced of their feelings for each other. I liked the side characters but more could have been done with them than a few off-handed comments about their pasts.
I did NOT like the buggy bad guy (and I know I wasn't supposed to, so that's good). I got a bit squicked by the last couple of chapters and I think the way the good guys handled the situation was a bit crude. It got a bit...tawdry-feeling at the end. And the final chapter read like a film school screenwriter's attempt at showing how clever they were by showing the reader all those little clues they might have missed. Didn't fly for me. I'm not sure the matter of who hacked into the ships computers was explained, though it might have been and I skimmed right over it. It was almost 4am when I finished reading, so it's very possible I missed quite a bit.
Anyway. A good effort, good writing overall and the world building was very well done. I'll read the next book by this author, but I'm not waiting on tenterhooks for it.
schomj's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Look at me, finishing another book that's been languishing on Mt. TBR for a decade.
Look at me, finishing another book that's been languishing on Mt. TBR for a decade.
tee_m's review against another edition
2.0
This book is so confusing.
It feels like only about 40% of it is written in English. The other 60% is a mess of world-building, storytelling and horrible lack of descriptions that amounts to something you need Google translate and some alien expert to decipher.
Despite this, I still wanted to like it. But the plot!
It feels like only about 40% of it is written in English. The other 60% is a mess of world-building, storytelling and horrible lack of descriptions that amounts to something you need Google translate and some alien expert to decipher.
Despite this, I still wanted to like it. But the plot!
chloecaprice's review
5.0
I made the mistake of starting this book last night at 11pm. I read until I fell asleep reading around 2am. I woke up at 7:30 and kept reading - I did nothing of any use until I'd finished it. It's that awesome. It's got the feel of [b:Shards of Honour|61903|Shards of Honour (Vorkosigan Saga, #1)|Lois McMaster Bujold|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1392767899s/61903.jpg|9673658] meets [b:Games of Command|352724|Games of Command|Linnea Sinclair|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347389713s/352724.jpg|342949]. Perfect.
sandywilliams03's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. It had the perfect blend of science fiction and romance. I kept telling myself I'd read just one more chapter, and ended up reading two or three. Then, when I put it down, I always had the urge to rush back and read just a little bit more - always a sign of a good book.
The only reason I didn't give it five stars was because there were about a dozen instances where characters jumped to conclusions and, even after rereading, I couldn't figure out how they reached them. Also, in the end, I didn't quite get the bad guys' Big Plan. The whole time they wanted a code to get through the Clough's defenses? During Ari's 3 month captivity, she didn't know the code. I'm guessing they spent that time infecting her with a disease that would make others sick? Soooo, they released her, knowing the Clough would pick her up, that she would see Sendirick's code, and that they would be forced to exchange her for the disease sequence thingy? Well, boy, aren't they lucky that plan worked out exactly like they wanted it to (until the end). But IMO, that's the worse plan ever. Too many things could/should have gone wrong with it for it to work like it did. And also, why did they try to kill the Clough in the very beginning of the book?
See? I have to be missing some vital link that makes this all make sense. If anyone can explain it, please do!
Still, despite my confusion, I very much enjoyed the writing, the characters, the mix of romance and sci-fi, and the spaceships. :-) Very interested in reading Burnard's next book.
The only reason I didn't give it five stars was because there were about a dozen instances where characters jumped to conclusions and, even after rereading, I couldn't figure out how they reached them. Also, in the end, I didn't quite get the bad guys' Big Plan. The whole time they wanted a code to get through the Clough's defenses? During Ari's 3 month captivity, she didn't know the code. I'm guessing they spent that time infecting her with a disease that would make others sick? Soooo, they released her, knowing the Clough would pick her up, that she would see Sendirick's code, and that they would be forced to exchange her for the disease sequence thingy? Well, boy, aren't they lucky that plan worked out exactly like they wanted it to (until the end). But IMO, that's the worse plan ever. Too many things could/should have gone wrong with it for it to work like it did. And also, why did they try to kill the Clough in the very beginning of the book?
See? I have to be missing some vital link that makes this all make sense. If anyone can explain it, please do!
Still, despite my confusion, I very much enjoyed the writing, the characters, the mix of romance and sci-fi, and the spaceships. :-) Very interested in reading Burnard's next book.