Renegade

Spiral Wars, Book 1

By: Joel Shepherd

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 17 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

One thousand years after Earth was destroyed in an unprovoked attack, humanity has emerged victorious from a series of terrible wars to assure its place in the galaxy. But during celebrations on humanity’s new homeworld, the legendary Captain Pantillo of the battle carrier Phoenix is court-martialed then killed, and his deputy, Lieutenant Commander Erik Debogande, the heir to humanity’s most powerful industrial family, is framed for his murder. Assisted by Phoenix’s marine commander Trace Thakur, Erik and Phoenix are forced to go on the run as they seek to unravel the conspiracy behind their captain’s demise, pursued to the death by their own fleet. What they discover about the truth behind the wars and the nature of humanity’s ancient alien allies will shake the sentient galaxy to its core.

©2015 Joel Shepherd (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

Politics?

Ok, there is another review with the tittle of "politics" on top. That other review gave this book 1 star rating. This book is a 5 star easy.
If you are a reader, chances are you read treasure island. Do you remember how boring the introduction to the book was. But then, the journey for the treasure gets on its way, the story grips you and doesn't let go until the end? Ok this book does the same thing with the only difference that it grabs and takes u on a smart, well thought out thrilling, action packed adventure that last all thru the three books in this series. He author introduces the characters and their backgrounds and sets up the background for the galaxy in which they will Interact. So yes, the first third of the book will be slow, but once that rollercoaster gets to its apex, you better hang on because you are in for....
One more thing, if you like starship combat ( who doesn't right?) you will love this book. Its combat scenes are fresh and original with a different take on the combat mechanics. Do yourself a favor and read this book.

Amazing. Far more than I expected.

Given the cover art, I was expecting little more from this book than the usual space opera heavy on space battles, and character development consisting of the usual unbelievable success after success.

This book was so much more than that. The world the author builds is deep and creative, defying just the sort of stereotypes that I had resigned myself to at the outset. An involving, believable and epic political backstory, characters who draw introspective insight from their experiences, and aliens that seem all too "human."

The voice talent is top notch too. If you've listened to any of Peter F. Hamilton's books on audible, this is the same narrator.

This was all so much more than I was expecting from what had been a quick purchase to kill some time. In the end, I believe I have found a new favorite author.

Humans, aliens, and cyber-species

Contents: PG 13. No sex, lots of F-bombs (marines), no religious cussing, several ship-to-ship battles and close-quarters combat. There is obviously death, but nothing too grisly. The violence does not feel gratuitous. The tone of the series (three books so far) is fairly upbeat and heartwarming, but serious, not frivolous.

I've heard all three books in the series and am looking forward to book four. Sequel or bust!

Set in the distant future in the far reaches of the Milky Way, Joel Shepherd serves up a solid space-opera populated with humans, aliens (froggies, humanoids, furballs, bugs) and even some robots and drones (various species of cybernetic super-intelligence). The crew of the military warship Phoenix are likable, and the main characters grow on you across the three books published so far. Bonding occurs credibly as this honorable but renegade crew gradually uncovers a conspiracy at the highest levels of authority, a secret terrible and fearful, hidden away for centuries, and protected at all costs. When Phoenix stumbles on the truth, they are forced to make some tough choices, and to engage in desperate missions, driving them further and further from home, into deep space. For the most part, they stand alone, but gradually they do acquire a few allies. I hope to see some of the current alliances deepen.

Spiral Wars feels a little like Sullivan's Riyira fantasy series, because long-believed lies are slowly uncovered, history revealed to be myth. Some friends prove fickle and some alliances false. There is a sense of suspense and intrigue, of holding one's breath for the next shoe to drop.

I've been reading space opera lately, but I tend to avoid tales told in 1st person "i-me-my perspective" because a singular voice gets old fast. This SPIRAL WARS series, told in 3rd person, is better than most I've read. It compares on a par with THE EXPANSE series by Corey. I loved Bujold's VORKOSIGAN series, too, but it’s quite different in tone. I would rate SPIRAL WARS higher than Ryk Brown's FRONTIER SAGA — which became repetitive and drawn out. I rate SW a little higher than Dalzelle's BLACK FLEET and OMEGA series. I liked SW more than Fox's EMBER WARS series, and far more than the EXPEDITIONARY FORCE series by Alanson (told in 1st person, alas). I also recommend the engaging LINESMAN series by Dunstall, but it is quite lightweight. I also enjoy the LIADEN series by Lee and Miller, but it is a mixed bag and a very slow work in progress. SPIRAL WARS is my current favorite in space opera.

Shepherd's writing style is generally flowing, vivid, and interesting but he tends to occasionally slow the pace by stopping to describe things too much — including trivial aspects of the setting, and how the technical stuff works. Some people might like the technical explanations, but I zone out a little.

If the author can maintain this quality of storytelling until the conclusion of the series, he will have created a solid hit.

The narrator John Lee delivers a value-added and highly enjoyable rendition of Spiral Wars.

Wow. Really great. Some different approaches

In Renegade, Shepherd starts a new series that should be classic space opera. It's not. Strong characters, both male and female are a welcome highlight here. On top of that, his space battles rock. His descriptions of the movement of the ships, the punishing forces and multiple directions of force, and the way it might be to try to be a human amidst all of that are brilliant and refreshing. This is the second series I've read from Shepherd. His first book, "Breakaway" was a fast and fun but a bit juvenile. That series got better and more mature as the author did and by the end of the series was some of the best science fiction I've read in a really long time. "Renegade" starts off with that maturity of skill and subject matter and combines a really well considered world. I loved it.

Made me fall in love with Sci-Fi all over again!

I took a chance when I got this book as it was brand new and not yet reviewed. Sometimes when you take a chance you come up empty, other times you strike gold. This was one of those golden moments.

This book captivated my imagination and really made me remember why I love Science Fiction.
The characters were excellent, the plot was great, but most of all, the world was immersive and beyond interesting. The universe Joel Shepherd created is intriguing and it has left me wanting more!

Can't wait for the next one!

Eh

I admit I'm overly sensitive to how women are portrayed in stories. And while the main women character is wonderful, all of the references to how women ought to be in the rich family were very annoying. So all these powerful women are heads of corporations, but they are suppose to live by someone's idea of traditional female roles? It was inconsistent and a turn off. The narrator was too stuffy for the genre I think.

Reminded me of "A Mote in God's Eye"

It reminded me of the SF classic "A Mote in God's Eye," not so much for the details of the plot but for the classical sea-novel flavor of starship-naval life, the brisk pace of development and vivid characterization. The opening scene had me concerned it might end up being just a gung-ho space opera shoot 'em up, but it developed in a very unexpected direction that introduced all kinds of fascinating tensions and ambiguities, which the author handles extremely well. I only wish the series were already finished so I could binge-read it to the end.

My one complaint is the same one I always have with John Lee. To wit: there are very few Brits who can do a convincing American accent (and vice versa), and John Lee is not among them. He keeps attempting "southern," too, which resembles nothing spoken by any human being anywhere, ever. Southerners actually *soften* their "R's" guys, not lean on them so hard it practically makes your teeth hurt.

I don't know where they get this idea that the hard "R" is an indispensable requirement to do "American" but if even the magisterial Patrick Tull gets it wrong I guess Lee shouldn't be too harshly singled out. Fortunately there aren't many "American" characters here and none of them in primary roles, so I cringed through those bits and (mostly) enjoyed the rest of the narration.

A great grand military scifi story!

Frankly, I had never heard of the author and only decide to buy and listen when there was nothing else of interest... But, wow!

I was surprised at how interesting the story was and how enjoyable a listen it was. I honestly can say it was in my top 5 of new scifi military books for 2015. John Lee as always is great!

I really look forward to the next one.

Perhaps this Year's Surprise 6 -- but stealthy

Let me begin by saying that John Lee could read a cookbook and give it the subtle impact and nuanced inflection of Richard !!!. So part of my reaction to this book is a result of his performance.

That said, my favorites are Neal Stephenson, Peter F. Hamilton (Void Series), Dan Simmons (Hyperion), Alastair Reynolds (Revelation Space Trilogy, Terminal World), Richard K. Morgan (Altered Carbon) and Charles Stross. (Halting State and Rule 34. -- also Corey's Expanse series.) Although the plot mechanism here is not a complex revelation (no pun intended) the execution is really good.

Military space opera with a pretty standard lead in -- junior command officer has to take over valiant ship and fight his way out of big trouble. A slightly slow start but oddly akin to the beginning of Hamilton's Void. I was totally unprepared for this being so much fun. Don't read it for the new ideas, read it because it is well done. The dialogue, pacing and characters are just that.... a lot of fun. I really hope that this is the first in a series.

(When I read the first book in the "Galbraith" detective series, I almost remarked that it reminded me of another, more sophisticated writer. When I read The Martian I almost stopped because it seemed so simple at first. So this time I'll ask even if it sounds odd....has anyone seen Joel Shepard, Alistair Reynolds and Peter F. Hamilton together in the same place ????)

And by the way, speaking of Richard III -- keep in mind the scene where, left alone with his executioners, the stunned Hastings slowly realizes that Stanley was right all along. Richard is a manipulative, power-hungry traitor, and Hastings has been dangerously overconfident. Always a risk.

Talk about an irritating voice…

This is one of the worst books I have yet encountered on audible. The performance, narrator, is beyond irritating. The story is also like nails on a chalkboard.

Aside from the occasional infodump, a pretty good

A reasonably entertaining story, leans towards military sci fi with fairly sketchy characters but if you like space combat and a pleasing level of detail you'll enjoy this one. The fact that it's John Lee narrating gives this a definite 'Peter F Hamilton' vibe, but it is more of a space shoot up and a bit less subtle than Hamilton's work. But if you want a sci fi romp that has a solidly researched feel to it, this one should be good for you.

Excellent

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

Excellent listen. More volumes please. I need to know what happens next. You can't leave the story unfinished!

The start of something big.

No spoilers:

The sett-up:
The human race has long since joined the other space fairing races in the spiral galaxy. We come into the story as the human race and it's allies celebrate their victory in a massive war. On the surface this should be the start of a long peaceful age...but trouble is brewing.

Very much a book made for an epic scale. Numerous races, thousands of years of history, galaxy spanning politics and massive spaceships.
The downside is that it is very exposition heavy, and it's a lot to keep track of while new information is continuously getting added to the pile. The characters are generally well written and easy to follow along with.

Might be easier to keep track of everything with a text version instead. Not a light read, but a good one. would recommend.

Don't be scared of politics, it's full of action!

Great quality of the story, great narrator and interesting from start to finish. Going to listen to the next book without a pause.

If you're like me and are not sure if to listen to this book because it sounds like it will have a lot of politics involved, put your worries aside. I hate politics, but I loved the book. The author knows how to present a story - to involve you with the characters and to put high action and a lot of surprises in between the setting of the world situation and politics, not letting you even think of falling asleep at too long parts of too deep descriptions. Perfectly balanced which counts for a quality story building.

It seems like the author has saved quite some bunch of secrets for us to discover in the next book, so I expect for it to be as good! We'll see!

OK but somehow hollow

I do not know what it is about this book nut it did not get me hooked at all.
It should have all the ingredients but somehow I couldn't care less about what happens.
Also finished the 2'nd book and it is the same.
Will stop there with the series but there is nothing I can put my finger on and say "This is why it's so lame."

has potential

has some potential but doesn't quite deliver. good narration has made it more bearable.

The world is interesting but the characters are pretty cliche and unidimensional.

Good Story But . . .

Although I enjoyed the story, the narrator sounded like someone from a 1950's Amateur Theatre Company and it almost ruined it for me.

After 2 hours of listening... it's just boring...

Nothing happens.. there's nothing exciting and there are just too many characters introduced, as a result I can recall 1 character name 'Eric', but I feel no connection with the character. I understand the writer is trying to give the readers some background but it's endless information.

A great beginning to a long exciting adventure!

This has the potential to become my favorite sci-fi series. :D I have high expectations for the next one, cause I found nothing I didn't like in it so far. The characters are good, the plot is complicated, and full of surprises, the narration is good.
The only problem is that I have so much piled up to listen, and I so need to concentrate on work... :)

Not what I was hoping for.

I will admit that this book had promise but just missed it's mark for me. Some people will love this book because it does do things differently.

There were some good elements with the world building but also so issues, the stage was too big and for me that lessened the importance of the players. The story progressed and unravelled at a nice pace but for me... i think the characters didn't have enough flaws and didn't have the depth to make the most of the story. Too many stereotypical characteristics.made the people feel bland.

The narrator was tough to listen to, he has a good voice but it's how he uses it. He speaks with the rhythm of someone preaching from the Old Testament. He did a decent enough job with accents but struggled with the female voices. It was that monotonous rhythms and inflections that he used to voice almost every character. This is another book that would have been massively improved by having male and female voice casting.