Dark Matter

Star Carrier, Book Five

By: Ian Douglas

Narrated by: Nick Sullivan

Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

An enemy might just have to become an ally…in order to save humankind.

The United States of North America is now engaged in a civil war with the Earth Confederation, which wants to yield to the demands of the alien Sh'daar, limit human technology, and become a part of the Sh'daar Galactic Collective. USNA President Koenig believes that surrendering to the Sh'daar will ultimately doom humankind.

But when highly advanced, seemingly godlike aliens appear through an artificial wormhole in the Omega Centauri Cluster 16,000 light years from Earth, President Koenig is faced with a tremendous choice: Continue fighting the Sh'daar…or ally with them against the newcomers in a final war that will settle the fate of more than one universe.

©2014 William H. Keith, Jr. (P)2014 HarperCollins Publishers

a very dark matter

I am a very empathetic person, and I love this one. the big enemy, a species so evil, that it will likely only give humanity the 3 on thinkable options

submit the shadar(sp),
genocide
or face a fate worse than extinction.

Great story up until chater 12, BUT what a shame

What made the experience of listening to Dark Matter the most enjoyable?

Unfortunatly After listenening to this recording, I think that the author has a problem with THE BIBLE and ChristianityI know that sounds strange. From chapter 12 onward the author has incorporated anti-bible and anti-religion sections that rearly has nothing to do with the story as a whole????I found it very distracting and offensive it is such a SHAME, My message to Ian Douglas would be, " Ian use some other way, some other medium to push your opinion concerning The Bible, Evolution and Christianity. I have read 4 1/2 of your books in this series. I was your fan, I enjoyed the flow of your story. You stuffed it up mate.What a SHAME

If you’ve listened to books by Ian Douglas before, how does this one compare?

Lowest of 5

What about Nick Sullivan’s performance did you like?

Outstanding as always, well done Nick.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

No

Another hit out of the galaxy

I cant stop listening to the series, science is good and believable, cast and crew all have their own voices and make for ear bending of the great story taller

Very Good Listen!

Lots of action, space battles, wierd aliens. and very good narration! I hope this to be a long saga!

Good Read, not disappointed.

Very good book, I was not too disappointed, I found I wanted more and felt it was too short.

Another Victory May Spell Doom

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

Yes, especially if the person is familiar with the series. I dig this saga for its entertainment and its well thought out doses of intelligent surmise about various technical and social matters. It also doesn't hurt that there are some pretty lively human v human and human v multi pieholed live bait eaters with quirky reproductive cycle space duels.

What did you like best about this story?

The author comes up with different alien races in every book. This book's version had me smiling as I envisioned what these hermaphroditic, motile, heterotrophs would look like sitting across from me at a table in a restaurant. Also, the nasally, squeamish in a fair fight, backstab Euro Confederation gets a healthy dose of beat down for their craven nano attack on Columbus (see previous book). Revenge is always best served cold. Or, in this case, the chill is from the USNA through subconscious memetic subversion through the systematic corruption of the Confederation's AI network. Either way, it left a mark that may not get out in the wash. Operation Luther - nice use of the famously flatulent and chronically constipated old monk's name Mr. Douglas!

Which scene was your favorite?

The above described beings were in a fur ball of a battle off of one of those god forsaken hellhole planets that seem to fester in every quadrant of our local arm of the Milky Way. As his / her ship was being vaporized around him / her, he / she cursed his / her blood thirsty gods as he / she started to feel the need to start popping out kids from various oral openings. Stress will do strange things, I suppose. The author offered a few choice observations on this noble race's views on reproduction and the not all that comprehensive role of the family unit in bringing up baby. Real "food for thought".

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes. When a holographic facsimile of one of our current scientific A list thinkers is dusted off and carted out at some cerebro-rama get together finished his schpeel about something or other that I must admit got a bit twitchy towards the end, President Koenig has his 12 seconds of "My god, the ramifications of this new reality has such profound........." and then seamlessly slipped into facing a new challenge as old as the forest from which we crawled out of at the dawn of humanity, "How can I get that perky ex-senator Hardbody, or something like that back into my life, back in the sack, back at my shack?" The transition was deftly played and kind of gave me hope for the future of my species.

Any additional comments?

Solid addition to a solid series narrated by a pro. Dark Matter is not the end, but a link in the continuing saga of the USNA America - battered, broken but still pissing venom and cracking foreign and domestic enemies with malice aforethought, and executed with extreme prejudice.

Another good installment

Any additional comments?

I've enjoyed every installment of this series. I am more interested in the roset aliens than the grodoche (or however you spell either of those).

Best "Hard Sci-fi" I've read to date!!

This series is a really interesting look into a possible future of where our technology could take us...then throw in some really cool space battles!!

Not as great as previous novels, but still good

Some story elements seemed contrived so that the author could talk about philosophical ideas he was ruminating on.
He also kept repeating older ideas established in previous novels ad nauseum.

5x Same Formula

Once I start a series I usually stick through to the end. Worse than a long, drawn out series is wondering and not knowing whether things will get better. Generally I'll go along with a weak but promising first or second book in a series in hopes of the author and the story developing further.

Unfortunately Star Carrier series never developed. Each book was basically the same formula. Very light on the development of characters, very details on the individual shots of a battle but weak on the overall strategy and progress. Terribly detailed and repetitive in technical descriptions of planets, atmospheres and right or left hand sugars - most of which made zero difference to the story but was repeated often enough to believe something was coming up.

Unfortunately nothing ever came up.

I love sci-fi. I love a good space story especially. If another book comes out in this series I will buy it but my expectations will be quite low.

In the same category of military sci-fi give The Lost Fleet by John G. Henry a try. It's still not the drama of Orson Scott Card or the willd rides of Larry Niven but it is good listening. Something on the fantasy side (I do not believe fantasy and sci-fi are one in the same) you need to give Jim Butcher's Dresden Files a shot. An excellent series!