Shattermoon
by Dominic Dulley
(Long Game #1)
science fiction
copyright 2018
read in June 2018
rated 8/10: really quite good
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Okay, the story seems to ramble. Ramble... definitely not amble! There is action from go to whoa. A lot of violence, a lot of fun :-)
By ramble, I mean, the characters fly all over space. Far faster than other spacers... well since Doc Smith days, anyway. Space travel uses scientific terminology but not scientific technology. This is not "hard" science fiction...
This book is an adventure in space. Science is essential but realism is not. This is science fiction *adventure*.
It is also a lot of good fun.
Likable characters despite being largely stereotypes. (With interesting and still developing back-stories.) Evil villains. Government agents who are "bad" only because their job is to enforce the law; they are tough but fair.
The story itself... rambles all over space. Or, rather, jumps rapidly, from here to there and back again. Some of the locations, characters and events have been hinted at, others simply happen.
The plot is tightly scripted, well controlled -- as long as the reader has the necessary willing suspension of critical faculties. Not that it's unbelievable. More that clever thinking, coincidence and quick reactions cut through the reality of time and space...
Which all adds to my enjoyment of this book :-) It's light, it's escapist, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Only the title page mentions "book one"... but at least it is there. Shattermoon is complete in itself, and introduces a cast of characters who I hope to meet again. This is the best sort of "book one" -- a complete story which leaves me satisfied... and thinking, I wonder what will happen next.
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08dec20: I read it again -- and enjoyed it even more :-)
Perhaps enough for a nine out of ten? Not quite... but I did enjoy re-reading. Made even better by comparison with the two rubbish books that I tried to read -- and failed -- in the previous week.
What a pleasure to read a book which is entertaining, with no social message being hammered in between the action. Just good fun, good characters, and a well-crafted plot.
and after an enjoyable re-reading in August 2023: ditto :-)
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25jan24: Here's something interesting:
I started to re-re-read this book. Enjoyed the first few chapters. Except... I know that there is about to be violent disaster. Setting the scene (creating motivation) for the rest of the book. I just do not want to read it.
I do not want to read the chapters of violence that set off the pursuit of the violent villains. Perhaps if I had the complete trilogy -- with the assurance that villains could get their just desserts -- that could make the nastiness more bearable. I'm not sure
I may return. But for now -- I stop reading. Put the book away.
Of this much I am very sure: Current mood -- of the reader -- is a key determinant for my enjoyment of a book. Right now, I want to read something with less stress. So, back to LotR.
Dr Nick Lethbridge / Consulting Dexitroboper
... Agamedes Consulting / Problems ? Solved
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"What a trial it is to submit to the whim of fools." … Captain Trumane, The Waking Fire
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