Dark Edge of Honor

By: Aleksandr Voinov, Rhianon Etzweiler

Narrated by: Jack LeFleur

Length: 12 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

Sergei Stolkov is a faithful officer, though his deepest desires go against the Doctrine. A captain with the invading Coalition forces, he believes that self-sacrifice is the most heroic act, and his own needs are only valid if they serve the state.

Mike, an operative planted within Cirokko's rebels, has been ordered to seduce Sergei and pry from him the Coalition's military secrets. His mission is a success, but as he captures Sergei's heart, Mike is tempted by his own charade and falls in love.

When the hostile natives of the planet Cirokko make their move, all seems lost. Can Mike and Sergei survive when the Coalition's internal affairs division takes an interest in what happened in the dusty mountains of Zasidka Pass?

©2011 Aleksandr Voinov (P)2011 Harlequin

Romantic Military Sci-Fi Done Right

I did not expect my heart to be ripped from my chest when I first picked up this book. Science fiction, military novels can be a bit cheesy at times, but Dark Edge of Honor blew me away. The romance, the world building, the characters…all of it was truly spectacular. I am in awe of the authors’ ability to infuse so many intricate details into an action-packed, steamy, military romance. Plus, the writing style was wonderful. And yes, there is a happy ever after that fits the story perfectly.

The audiobook narration was extremely well-done. I loved the accents the narrator did and the energy he infused into the performance.

Not compelling

Sorry to say I can’t recommend this audio book. The narration was good and the interpretation of the different characters was skillful. I’m not into flying lizards, science fiction, other worlds, so that’s on me. But I was willing to give it a go. The plot just wasn’t that interesting. I am not a fan of books that focus primarily on the plot and the MC relationship is a distant second or maybe even third. Sergi was a more interesting character than Mike, but there just wasn’t much depth at all to their relationship. I finished it because I really don’t like dropping something after I’ve committed a certain amount of time. Not for me. Moving on.

Loved it in print - even better in audio

Would you listen to Dark Edge of Honor again? Why?

Absolutely. It is an excellent story and the narration brings the characters vivdly to life.

What did you like best about this story?

The complexity and strength of the characters which made it easy to become completely swept away by the story. It also has a lot of the same themes as Special Forces, another, much longer, work by Voinov which is one of my favorite stories.

What does Jack LeFleur bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He brings the characters, especially Sergei, to vivid life.

Wow

Any additional comments?

Series/Standalone: stand alone
Genre/sub-genre: M/M Romance/Sci-Fi/Military
Book Format: audio
HEA/HFN: yes
Relatable characters: yes
Abuse/Rape: yes
Violence: yes
Ratio of sex/plot: equal
Well written/editor needed: well written
Would I re-listen?: YES
Personal thoughts: I LOVED this audio book. The story was dark and gripping, and I loved the two main characters. This is definitely a book I'm going to be re-listening to a million times or more.

One of the best Book I've ever listened to

It was a difficult start. I don't know why but I 've had some difficulty to dive into the story but once in it was pure pleaser.

This book is so amazing!

I haven't read a book this good in a long time. It was tough listening to the scenes where the mc's are captured by their enemies, but it wasn't as bad as the Dex/Wolf in the THIRDS series. I was worried how they were going to end up together, but well done!! Jack LeFleur did amazing with the narration. Such a sexy voice, I could listen to him read the phone book lol.

Exceptional

Few books combine a real sci=for story with real romance and this one does. Not once did I have to grit my teeth and remind myself 'this is a romance author'.

Showing love with actions.

Wow, this novel is such a change from my regular romance reading. I was taken to another world and plunged into political and spy intrigues, made interesting with M/M romance. Sergei and Mike were a wonderful match even though their relationship was sexual initially, and then developed into more.

This romance was gritty at first for several reasons. It dealt with the issues of power imbalance in the workplace – an imbalance that extends beyond the employment and into personal. Usually when I read romance, I prefer that the protagonists are exclusive in their physical relationship. And that is the intention of Mike and Sergei, but the choice is removed from one of them (by a third party) and I found that difficult to read. However, this element was thankfully short lived and served to highlight the beauty of what the main characters shared. I enjoyed the suspenseful tension that built as Mike and Sergei’s external challenges worked to strengthen their growing relationship. I was pleasantly surprised by the detail of the journey they embarked upon and endured. The strength of their love and faith in each other was tested in the extreme - and they came out on top. Their actions evidenced their love.

The narrator is wonderful. Jack LeFleur can read to me any time with his deep voice and sweet accents. His performances as all the characters were perfect in this SciFi M/M romance.

Not what is expected

I hate getting a book that purports itself to be one thing (say Sci-Fi) and turns out to be something (though not entirely) else. Yes the story is set in a science fiction world, but it clearly is a raunchy M/M romance novel. If you are looking for a good Sci-Fi novel with a gay protagonist I’d advise that you look elsewhere.

Waist of a credit!

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

A higher rating would require a cohesive story line and orchestrated plot. This story seems to have words plucked from the air to provide a bridge between poorly written sex scenes. The characters were wholly unremarkable, and I found myself turning the book off simply because I really didn't care to know the fate of the characters. I regret the loss of my time and investment of resources on this work.

Would you ever listen to anything by Aleksandr Voinov and Rhianon Etzweiler again?

I would not listen to another work by this author.

How could the performance have been better?

The narrator was over dramatic, virtually to the point of caricature.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

No.

Any additional comments?

Unfortunate and reckless use of star power from previous reviewers.