Retribution

Publisher's Summary

*Sequel to Ambush - IndieReader Best of SF&F*

It's 2016. Air Force fighter pilots Jake Giard and Sandra Fitzpatrick saved the world...twice! 

But that was yesterday.

Independence Day meets The X-Files when Air Force fighter pilots Jake Giard and Sandra Fitzpatrick join a decades-old global conspiracy to integrate humanity into a galactic government. But when a galactic civil war spills onto our shores, plunging the planet into an otherworldly post-apocalyptic hell, can Jake and Sandy save humanity from extinction? 

Following the apocalyptic events of Ambush, Jake must board and somehow control the advanced alien fleet of huge ships before they start falling into the Atlantic. 

Yesterday, Captain Sandra Fitzpatrick learned she's pregnant. Then she helped save the world. Now, she must keep her condition a secret (even from Jake, the father to be). The remnants of humanity need Sandy and her cobbled together band of warriors to somehow master the alien technology. 

If Jake and Sandy prevail, and if Earth's ravaged militaries can unite, can they adapt now outdated tactics to the limitless battlefield of space? 

And when dark galactic forces once again amass in our skies, can humanity make a stand? 

©2016 Dean M. Cole (P)2016 Dean M. Cole

an entertaining interstellar science fiction war

Retribution picks up almost immediately after Ambush. Wherein two sets of alien races make themselves know to humans. One is reptilian lizard-like and the other turns out to be our ancestors. They enemy has decimated our planet and is not done yet.

While Ambush was all about the apocalyptic alien invasion and the terror spreading across the planet. Retribution was about the retaliation for the apocalyptic invasion. The entire battle taking place, roughly, in Earth’s orbit. Even though this seems like really tight quarters for an epic space battle. Cole was able to stick with the awesome choreography of the space combat, integrating in light seconds and minutes, I love that. Making it seem so realistic without going overboard with technology. The characters seemed less dynamic than in the first book as well. Maybe that is because Cole figured we would simply remember the struggles they went through to become who they are now.

Something that hit me about half way through was how similar this second book was to the first. Both books having the same thing at stake, the entire human race. Only if you think of the Argonian’s as humans. Then there is the very eerily similar endings, I won’t go in to details because it would be a spoiler.

I do not know if this was just the way the story was written or if it goes to the narration. But, other than the chapter brakes, there didn’t seem to be anything other than a very slight pause between sections where the storyline would switch up. Making it difficult to know exactly what is happening at every moment. Seemed like each time I was up to speed with who I was with, it would switch.

All in all Retribution was an entertaining interstellar science fiction war story. With enough technology to keep the science lovers happy and plenty of other things to keep the fiction lovers happy. If you listened to the first book already, good for you, you are probably going to get this book anyway. While the second book wraps up the story well with no cliffhanger ending, it is not nearly as epic. Mainly because the energy that was in the first, would have been nearly impossible to carry over to the second.

All that being said I would recommend this series to lovers of science fiction or military fiction fans as it does have a lot to offer as an entire series. It has everything that one could wish for from action and tension, a little romance, characters that you will love to hate, and an ending that bring closure.

The shining star of Michael Ortego’s performance was again the his portrayal of the lizard people. Reaching way down inside to produce voices that sounded as alien as they did primal. Doing this and also keeping it understandable. However, many of his other voices were so similar I found it difficult at times to know who was talking or if it was just the story going bye. Ortego was able to change the pacing as needed for the action scenes that helps so much in bringing the heart rate up. The production was clean and smooth with no discernible hiccups or errors.

Audiobook was provided for review by the author.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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12 of 15 people found this review helpful

Good series!

Good series overall, some points left me exasperated with the story, but overall was quite enthralled with the story.

Awesome narration.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

a good audiobook - keeps your attention

listen to this over a couple road trip and finished on airplane, keep attention and wanting to know happens next, highly recommend

Excellent series

I really enjoyed this series because it was Science Fiction but it was believable. I look forward to more from this author.

The super developed aliens sure are inept.

The last scenes of the book to me has humanity falling into the same basic trap that almost got them "genocided". I can suspend disbelief, I can't get behind willful blindness when the author has gone out of his way to point out that folly at the beginning of the series.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful