08/03/2015
Readers who seek the visceral, swashbuckling adventures of muscular, troubled heroes and gorgeous, headstrong heroines will enjoy this series launch about the wild backwater planets of the Far Stars, but the story lacks wit or charm. After smuggler captain Arkarin Blackhawk rescues the kidnapped daughter of his oldest friend from a dissipated pirate king, Blackhawk and his motley band of highly skilled misfits face danger from a multitude of enemies, including vengeful space pirates, an imperial governor who wants to impose authority on the Far Stars, and rival armies on a planet torn apart by revolution and civil war. Allan (the Crimson Worlds series) deals exclusively in familiar tropes and character types: a charismatic captain and his loyal crew, a gifted pilot, a genius engineer, and a revolutionary leader gone to seed. He repeatedly reminds the reader of these characters’ key traits; no one will forget, for example, that Blackhawk enjoys genetically engineered physical superiority. This old-fashioned tale is a paean to the simple pleasures of exceedingly masculine adventures. Agent: Evan Gregory, Ethan Ellenberg Literary. (Nov.)
Space opera is experiencing a Renaissance, and Jay Allan’s Far Stars trilogy may be the subgenre’s next masterpiece. Between November and January, Harper Voyager will release all three installments of an ambitious new epic from the bestselling author of the Crimson World novels, one that features space pirates, kidnappings, threats of war, and interplanetary intrigue.
For over a decade, Jim Killen has served as the science fiction and fantasy book buyer for Barnes & Noble. Every month on the B&N Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog and Tor.com, Jim shares his curated list of the month’s can’t-miss new SF/F releases.
Science fiction has a proud tradition of space pirates, going back at least as far as Buck Rogers and his reformed-villain sidekick Black Barney. The genre often projects the principles of seafaring adventure into the far future, and with good reason: nautical parallels make sense and make for good stories. That said, the pirate-in-space trope can be […]
Time to stark stockpiling books for Thanksgiving break—we’re highlighting an even dozen new releases this week, enough to keep you busy from now until the leftovers are all gone.
For nearly two decades, Jim Killen has served as the science fiction and fantasy book buyer for Barnes & Noble. Every month on the B&N Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog and Tor.com, Jim shares his curated list of the month’s can’t-miss new SF/F releases.