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Into the Dark  By  cover art

Into the Dark

By: J.A. Sutherland
Narrated by: Elizabeth Klett
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Publisher's summary

At 15, Alexis Carew has to face an age old problem - she's a girl, and only a boy can inherit the family's vast holdings. Her options are few. She must marry and watch a stranger run the lands, or become a penniless tenant and see the lands she so dearly loves sold off. Yet there may be another option, one that involves becoming a midshipman on a shorthanded spaceship with no other females.

©2014 J.A. Sutherland (P)2015 J.A. Sutherland

What listeners say about Into the Dark

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Charming, Enjoyable, Solid, FUN

I shall say right out front, that I received a promotional copy of this work in exchange for an honest review.

I will further say, that I plan to spend one of my own credits when the talented Ms. Klett and Mr. Sutherland release the next book in audio.

Perhaps I was a lost cause from the start. I adore a good scifi. I adore a new clever take on faster than light travel. I adore a military scifi (especially naval). I adore sailing and tall ships. I adore a smart, tough female protagonist refusing to let patriarchy define her.

And I adore a well intonated British accent.


"Into the Dark" would have had me from the third page... even if it WEREN'T a darn good story.

Horatio Hornblower, Honor Harrington, Sassinak, Kylara Vatta, Keladry of Mindolin, a bit of Nicholas Seafort...

if Mr. Sutherland isn't familiar with all these series, he damn well ought to be, for it's hardly a ground-breaking genre... but why should it be? Sutherland's story is well-paced, plausible, amusing and somber by turns. Alexis Carew is a fine inheritor of the reluctant, or perhaps humble, hero mantle. Her demeanor is charmingly modern, her disinterest in the trappings of expected behavior admirable, and her interaction with others totally credulous.

I was charmed.

The book is also, in many ways, absurd.

The mental gymnastics required to shoehorn Tall Ships into interstellar space are... daunting. BUT, by God, Sutherland managed it, and I was willing to buy the whole line of nonsense... and smile. It IS absurd, but... I found myself shrugging and saying "well, and why not?" Sails and rigging and cannon and broadsides, and 18th century British naval discipline alongside FTL transit, and colony disputes. I laughed, I shook my head in astonishment that I was OK with it.

And I was. Completely.

Elizabeth Klett is charming, well paced, and clearly in tune with the material. Her cultured British accent at times both at odds with the content, and yet perfectly tuned to set the stage. The production is clean, the audio quality top notch, and I applaud her performance. I look forward to more.

Do treat yourself to this one. If you are a lover of Sci Fi, if you are an admirer of strong female characters who simply (to quote a recent meme) "give absolutely zero ^#$(*&" about what the world expects of them. If you love a good naval romp, or if you just want to have a fun time in a fanciful yet gritty world...

Buy this. Buy this immediately, and enjoy.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A Very Different (But Very Good) Sci-Fi Tale

This is not your average space science-fiction story but is definitely worth the listen. Even though there are space battles, heroes, enemies, and everything else you might expect, this book is so different as to set it apart from other similar stories.
The author manages to combine space science fiction with the old tales of British tall sailing ships, far off colonies, broadsides, boardings, and pirates. The author manages to combine the two in a way that (mostly) works and makes sense without losing the feel of the sailing ship or futuristic space themes. As a fan of both sailing and space science fiction, I feel like this book could have been written just for me.

The main character, Alexis, is a teenage girl on a far off colony planet. Raised by her grandfather after her parent's deaths, she is the heir to vast lands, plantations, and holdings. She has grown up leading, managing, and learning about her families businesses and trading activity throughout the colony. Unfortunately, women cannot inherit and her grandfather is getting old. Unable to stomach the thought of marrying any of the arrogant, stupid, or abusive male nobility left in the colony or to become a destitute worker after her lands are sold off, she enlists as an officer on a visiting naval vessel desperate for crew. Though a woman in the navy isn't unheard of, none of the military ships in the outer colonies have ever had a female on board. A capable and intelligent teenager, she throws herself into the honor of the service. However, she does not lose hope that her grandfather will be able to convince the governing landowners to change the law on her homeworld so that she can someday return and claim what is hers.

The life on board the ship is identical to that the officers and sailors of old sailing ships, but the author still brings all of the aspects of space travel to make a ship that "sails" through space. There were a few places that I (admittedly) was unconvinced with the technology or science behind some of the story, but it was a good enough book that it's easy to overlook the few holes in the science in exchange for the amazing theme and universe the book created.

The British narration was very good. The narrator gets a solid 5 stars.

Most fans of sci-fi will either like this book very much or will at least be able to appreciate it. If you're like me and have an like or experience with sailing, then you will certainly love it. I would recommend to just about anyone.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the author, publisher, or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review. I was NOT required to write a positive review and this reflects my honest opinion of the work.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I LOVED THIS STORY

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would definately recommend this book to a friend and have in fact have already recommended it to several people! I got this book free for a review, but would spend a credit on it in a heartbeat. In fact, I was quite annoyed when I found out that the next book was not yet out!

What other book might you compare Into the Dark to and why?

I would say this book is a cross between the TV series Firefly and the book The Martian, as far as the Science Fiction aspect of the story goes. That is the way I would describe it to others. However, I would have to add that it is one of those tales, like the Harry Potter books, that could be enjoyed by any age range. There is a heroine who is the underdog, the people in her corner, and the ones working against her. The writer is excellent. I don't know if this is his (or her) first book, but if it is, I think they have a long and successful career ahead of them.When this book is discovered by others, as I know it will be, it will be a bestseller.

Which character – as performed by Elizabeth Klett – was your favorite?

She did a wonderful job with everyone, and there were alot of characters. It would have been a tough job as a narrator (and I know since I am one) to differentiate all the people in the story in a way the listener can keep them straight.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It was a bit too long for that. I listened every chance I got though.

Any additional comments?

I loved it and am looking forward to the next book.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Much better than expected!

I TRULY enjoyed the Story of the young Alexis Carew and her innocent tough kid willing to take on the unknown to attempt to save her family properties while not just falling inline to the unfair status quo laws.
The Story gives you more of a European or British style of how young people are a bit more grown up a little earlier in life, at least where it counts.

Elizabeth Klett does a wonderful job reading this first book in the Story of Young Miss Carew.
I did not expect to enjoy this book nd thought it may be a good listen for my daughter but I couldn't put it down.
I hope my daughter grows up to be as tough, sharp, responsible and respectable as the young lady in this book.
Good Show Lass!

I am a single 40 something guy with a daughter who's Audible library is pushing 400 books and hope to write something worth publishing one day. Audible needs a single section or chat room because I read so much I don't have time to date.
"Reading can take you anywhere you want to go without leaving your home"
Kawika

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fun and Well Performed

I was asked to recommend a sci-fi space adventure book for a mid-teen niece. I considered Kris Longknife, both of Jack McDevitt's series, Honor Harrington and others -- but then decided to see if there was anything new. Enter a kinder version of "Master and Commander". It stars Alexis Carew. Mix equal parts of 15-year old young lady and VERY English delivery and you have "Into the Dark." I intended to listen to just a little to give it a test, but stayed until the end. Nothing 'high concept' just a "lad goes to the stars" genre but with a clever female lead. Fun.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Very strange book

It's supposed to be set in the future, but the people all act like they are from around 1850. There are no women in the navy? Women aren't allowed to own land? The protagonist has no option but to join the navy since she can't inherit her grandfather's land. What, no universities in the future either? The attitudes are archaic and they are all running around wearing Victorian costumes. I hate to think any future could be so backward.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Why the heck did I love this book?

I have no idea. This is Buck Rogers does Horatio Hornblower -- in drag -- sailing tall ships in hyperspace. But for some unfathomable reason it all works, and works well.

In part, it works because Sutherland has taken more from CS Forester's than cultural background. He/she has also been wise enough to adopt Forester's careful plot development. Some of the scenes and conflicts are taken directly from the Hornblower novels, in literary homage. But, more than that, Sutherland (mostly) also sticks with the Stoic, understated characters and characterizations that make Forester so convincing. Relatively little of the whiney, pouting angst that corrodes most current SF.

It's still all so absurd that I hate to admit it, but I really liked this book -- and the (so far) two sequels. Hornblower went on for about ten volumes before it got stale. Here's hoping...

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Enjoyable

This book takes on a typical topic of the books about sail from the 1700s and 1800s. Only in those stories the hero is a male, most often the second son or a bastard son who was unable to inherit the family estate. Sutherland has a female from a planet that believes in male primogenitary. Our protagonist Alexis Carew has few options; she can marry and watch a stranger run the estate, or become a penniless tenant and see the lands sold. Or like our heroes of old, she can join the navy becoming a midshipman. The catch is instead of a sailing ship on the seas it is a spaceship.

The story is a good one following Alexis Carew through her introduction to the Royal Navy and following her adventures. Is it enjoyable to read a military sci-fi that is not bogged down in the technology but I do have a bit of a problem with spaceship with sails, sailing the solar wind. I do remember a Star Trek story about using sails and sailing the solar wind.

The book is well written and fast paced. It grabbed my attention from the beginning and held it to the end. I look forward to reading book two. Elizabeth Klett narrated the story.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Sailing Spaceships - super cool!

Any additional comments?

I really enjoyed this book. Its fast moving, interesting and not what I was expecting. But it’s definitely a fantasy so don't expect everything to make sense. You have to use your imagination and let the writer take you to those very unlikely places that as a kid you truly believed existed and could not wait to go there. Its fun and easy listening. I'm looking forward to the next book. The narrator, Elizabeth Klett, is one of my favorites and never disappoints with her outstanding performance.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Space Opera that invokes Aubrey-Maturin series.

I received an Audible copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

The quaint English setting of this space adventure immediately invoked the setting of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series for me, which was a good start. The science side of the book is perhaps too much in the background and some of the characters feel like stereotypes. Having said that, I enjoyed listening to the book (narrator did a good job of voicing the protagonist) and I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

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