A review by trish204
Warrior King by Evan Currie

5.0

As one of the most famous pilots of any starship once said: Oh myyy!

It has been a relatively long time since I've been reading about this universe and I had almost forgotten or at least underestimated just HOW MUCH I love it and, thus, missed it!

Evan Currie's writing style is full of well-researched / believable tech information while never boring. The space battles are amongst the best I can possibly imagine and even if you can already deduce who will live and who will die, you still find yourself at the edge of your seat! THAT takes serious skill.

The story, simply put, starts shortly after we (Earth) survived the Drasin attack. In the spin-off novel, the Autolycus has been sent on a recon mission that is basically parallel to the first part of this book. Cpt. Eric Weston gets a new ship and a new mission but much as before, he can't take 3 steps without the proverbial shit hitting the fan again. Not that any fan will mind, I'm sure. But this time it's more than just reaction to an assault - it's also about information. And although there are only hints (hopefully because there are many wonderful books to come), it is enough to wet the reader's appetite profoundly.

The characters, again, were very vivid. The only weird thing is that up until now, I was always very much touched by every single fate. It was personal. This time
Spoilerwhile thousands died, or at least hundreds if we only count Terran lives
it didn't affect me that much. Maybe because, much like Weston himself, I will need some time to adjust to the new crew and ship since I'm still hung up on the Odyssey and the reader doesn't get to know that many crew members personally.
Also, I still need to get a better mental image of what the Heroics look like. I never had that problem with the Rogues or the Odyssey but the sheer scale of these new ships ...
What I did like tremendously was
Spoilerthe Odysseus apparently developing a conscious mind. It was very subtle, but definitely there, and I was THRILLED
! That and the fact that the Archangel pilots can now steer the much larger battle cruisers with the NICS. Really cool and almost making up for there not being a fighter squadron any more.

So, overall, definitely one of the best books in the series so far and the universe that was just opened up to us as well as all the historical and mythological hints were fantastic! The action was breathtaking and fun! Full recommendation.

P.S.: I received this ARC from netgalley ahead of publication in exchange for an honest review.