Engaging the Enemy: Vatta's War, Book 3

The Vatta's War quintet continues with volume three in the series. The reader, Cynthia Holloway is never a pleasure to listen to, and the reading is less than inspired. But the real problem is that this space opera just hasn't stood the test of time as well as one might have hoped. It's not _bad_, just not as good as it could be. WAY too much angst and anguish and just plain stupidity, and too little decisiveness from the main characters. The one good story arc, that of Grace and Mac Roberts, is too peripheral to carry the weakness of Stella and even Ky. Overall, I'll finish the books, since I bought them. But I can't imagine re-reading them, ever.

I really enjoy Elizabeth Moon's books but the narrator makes it very difficult to appreciate this one. The narration is flat, poorly paced, and the little variation in tone that exists makes every character (as well as the rest of the text) sound arrogant, angry, or snide. I hope that I can get past the narration to finish the book. This is one of the few audiobooks that I regret having bought.

I have downloaded approx 130 audible books, I have seldom felt compelled to write a review. However, this narrator is so hard to listen to, this is the first book I cannot get past 1/2 hour. Just the way every word is given the same inflection, the 'he said', 'she said' becomes irritating. If audible gave refunds this would be my first request. Sorry if this is overly harsh, but it is.. that bad.

I enjoyed the first two books in this series and I thought this book would be the battles but that only happened at the end of the book. The book goes back and forth between Kylara, Sara and Grace. Lots of suspense, legal trial, Ky had to prove she is Ky and the communication to her home planet is still out. Some one is trying to Kill Grace. This book sets up for the next book that looks like it will have the battles. The narrator is poor.

While I enjoyed part one and two in the series, in this book I was extremely annoyed with the repeating description of Stella's stubborness and her hurt feelings. Instead of creating a more intense listening experience, the author got me more and more annoyed and I fast forwarded the rest of the book.
I am not sure if I will read the other books, for now I am a bit tired of this. Pity. It felt to me as if the author was pushed to do this, it doesn't fit the book.

I enjoy Elizabeth Moon's books, but this reader's rendition is stilted with poor phrasing and emphasis.

Another Elizabeth Moon page turner. It has elements of identity theft, bureaucratic wrangling mixed with cultural differences, inept leadership, family relationships, ever present pirates and space combat. That humans haven't changed in the time it took to develop interstellar travel is a testament to the author's imagination. In the end, our heroine, Ky Vada, lives to see another adventure in the next book.

Of all the many books I have listened too over the years (I started listening when they were just on tape), Cynthia, for this book, has the worst voice I have ever endured. She sounds like she is trying to portray a hard military female (very cliped, flat and emotionless). She has no noticeable voice change between characters. I agree with the one reviewer who said the series is now ruined for her. I need to start checking the reviews before I buy. I would try to return the book it it was allowed. Wonder if she was approved by the author?

I would give this audible book a 5 star if not for the narrator. I've read up to book 4 of this series on paperback and now after listening to this narrator I can't bring myself to read the rest of the series due to me hearing the narrator voice in my head whenever I read the series. Be worn if you have read this book and want an audible copy, don't buy it or ruins your enjoyment of the series too.

“Engaging the Enemy” indeed, the third installment of the series finally gives readers a genuine space battle. But it also introduces an odd assortment of cultural eccentricities which seem in line with some of the more unbalanced societies given passing treatment on one-off episodes of Star Trek. There’s humor in it though and that is sufficient.
Somewhat necessary nowadays is the need to impart the difficulty of light lag in space combat which is achieved here to good effect by the now obsolete tactics demonstrated at the end of the book. Very well done also is the showing of a need of a certain kind of officer to adapt to the demands of changing technology to both innovate where needed while respecting the principles of tradition and discipline.
The one blemish is one seems a tired, but still amusing, convention of a planet in the far future which has resurrected the veneration of honor expressed in duels at the slightest insult. An amusing sideshow is a legal proceeding in a system that seems to have taken love of nature, particularly the forest, and absolute adherence to decorum and politeness to a ludicrous extreme.