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The Serrano Legacy #1
Hunting Party
Grand space adventure by the coauthor of Sassinak and Generation Warriors. Heris, a female officer forced to resign her commission, winds up as captain of an interstellar luxury yacht. Being a rich old lady's hyperlight chauffer seems boring, until Heris finds herself fighting for her life against smugglers.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
46 people are currently reading
2971 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Moon
137 books2,632 followersElizabeth Moon was born March 7, 1945, and grew up in McAllen, Texas, graduating from McAllen High School in 1963. She has a B.A. in History from Rice University (1968) and another in Biology from the University of Texas at Austin (1975) with graduate work in Biology at the University of Texas, San Antonio.
She served in the USMC from 1968 to 1971, first at MCB Quantico and then at HQMC. She married Richard Moon, a Rice classmate and Army officer, in 1969; they moved to the small central Texas town where they still live in 1979. They have one son, born in 1983.
She started writing stories and poems as a small child; attempted first book (an illustrated biography of the family dog) at age six. Started writing science fiction in high school, but considered writing merely a sideline. First got serious about writing (as in, submitting things and actually getting money...) in the 1980s. Made first fiction sale at age forty--"Bargains" to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword & Sorceress III and "ABCs in Zero G" to Analog. Her first novel, Sheepfarmer's Daughter, sold in 1987 and came out in 1988; it won the Compton Crook Award in 1989. Remnant Population was a Hugo nominee in 1997, and The Speed of Dark was a finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and won the Nebula in 2004.
She served in the USMC from 1968 to 1971, first at MCB Quantico and then at HQMC. She married Richard Moon, a Rice classmate and Army officer, in 1969; they moved to the small central Texas town where they still live in 1979. They have one son, born in 1983.
She started writing stories and poems as a small child; attempted first book (an illustrated biography of the family dog) at age six. Started writing science fiction in high school, but considered writing merely a sideline. First got serious about writing (as in, submitting things and actually getting money...) in the 1980s. Made first fiction sale at age forty--"Bargains" to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword & Sorceress III and "ABCs in Zero G" to Analog. Her first novel, Sheepfarmer's Daughter, sold in 1987 and came out in 1988; it won the Compton Crook Award in 1989. Remnant Population was a Hugo nominee in 1997, and The Speed of Dark was a finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and won the Nebula in 2004.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 252 reviews
May 22, 2012
I was re-reading the Esmay Suiza books from this series/setting (which start with Once a Hero), and suddenly I got the urge to read the first trilogy, which starts here. So. First, a cosmetic complaint: Heris is described as dark enough that it's not as obvious when she blushes. On the covers of the US editions, she's depicted as Caucasian; on this UK edition she's depicted as a very very very pale blonde. Paler than me, and when I was born I was so pale the doctor thought I must be anemic. (I'm not. Just really ridiculously pale.)
It amuses me that this series began with some of the author's friends asking her "Why not fox-hunting and spaceships?" Why not, indeed. (And it's not as if there isn't precedent — Brightness Falls From The Air had show jumpers and spaceships, though if there was fox-hunting I don't believe it was mentioned.)
Some general thoughts on the series: old people, especially old women, are not worthless. That's one of the big themes here. Plus the possible variety of women's experiences. There's another one, too — the social consequences of effective immortality - but the first two seem more striking.
I feel bad for saying this, but here Jo Walton talks a little about the appeal of bad books. And ... in a way I think these fall into this category, kind of. Cool ideas and characters, not sufficiently well executed. These aren't guilty pleasure books, but they are kind of ... easy, comforting, reassuring stories of people mostly doing their best and biding their time, punctuated by occasional bouts of heroism and terror.
It amuses me that this series began with some of the author's friends asking her "Why not fox-hunting and spaceships?" Why not, indeed. (And it's not as if there isn't precedent — Brightness Falls From The Air had show jumpers and spaceships, though if there was fox-hunting I don't believe it was mentioned.)
Some general thoughts on the series: old people, especially old women, are not worthless. That's one of the big themes here. Plus the possible variety of women's experiences. There's another one, too — the social consequences of effective immortality - but the first two seem more striking.
I feel bad for saying this, but here Jo Walton talks a little about the appeal of bad books. And ... in a way I think these fall into this category, kind of. Cool ideas and characters, not sufficiently well executed. These aren't guilty pleasure books, but they are kind of ... easy, comforting, reassuring stories of people mostly doing their best and biding their time, punctuated by occasional bouts of heroism and terror.
December 5, 2018
A thoroughly enjoyable space opera romp, with great female lead character, good secondary characters, interesting plot archs and enjoyable writing style. A very promising #1 in a series.
Heris Serrano comes from a long line of officers in the "R. S. S." (I'm afraid I have forgotten what the acronym stands for, but you get the idea), who has resigned her commission in disgrace and is in the process of finding her way in the civilian world.
The story starts as she takes up a post as captain on a rich and influential old woman's luxury yacht and here the author starts with the intriguing literary dance of developing these two main characters for us as they both discover that their pre-conceptions of each other are wrong and as they build a friendship.
The luxury yacht, the Sweet delight is one of Heris' first challengers. It's previous captain has a slack crew with agenda's of its own that Heris must sort out, trying her best to modify her service attitude to a civilian ship. On the yacht are a small clutch of young people accompanying Ronnie, her employer's nephew into an exile of disgrace. Entitled and arrogant, Ronnie needs to be taken down a peg and Heris' methods of civilizing her employer's bratty young nephew are pure delight to read (don't we all know someone who could benefit from a bit of a bit of re-education).
The grand finale of the novel occurs on the destination planet where a grand 'fox hunting' season is in progress. It turns out that other and more sinister hunting is happening on the planet...
Accidentally, I read the #2 in this series before the #1. This in no way prevented me from enjoying it thoroughly, but at the end I was very keen to read this, the first novel in the series. It did not disappoint, setting a fun pace with good storytelling and characterisation. I do, at times, feel as though the story bulked out at bit more than maybe the author expected and I would have been happy to have more of the final hunt. It felt a little as though Moon spent more time than expected on the preliminary setting up of the yacht and the characters and ran out of space to do justice to the major story arch.
Still despite that, really enjoyed the story and look forward to reading more of the series.
Heris Serrano comes from a long line of officers in the "R. S. S." (I'm afraid I have forgotten what the acronym stands for, but you get the idea), who has resigned her commission in disgrace and is in the process of finding her way in the civilian world.
The story starts as she takes up a post as captain on a rich and influential old woman's luxury yacht and here the author starts with the intriguing literary dance of developing these two main characters for us as they both discover that their pre-conceptions of each other are wrong and as they build a friendship.
The luxury yacht, the Sweet delight is one of Heris' first challengers. It's previous captain has a slack crew with agenda's of its own that Heris must sort out, trying her best to modify her service attitude to a civilian ship. On the yacht are a small clutch of young people accompanying Ronnie, her employer's nephew into an exile of disgrace. Entitled and arrogant, Ronnie needs to be taken down a peg and Heris' methods of civilizing her employer's bratty young nephew are pure delight to read (don't we all know someone who could benefit from a bit of a bit of re-education).
The grand finale of the novel occurs on the destination planet where a grand 'fox hunting' season is in progress. It turns out that other and more sinister hunting is happening on the planet...
Accidentally, I read the #2 in this series before the #1. This in no way prevented me from enjoying it thoroughly, but at the end I was very keen to read this, the first novel in the series. It did not disappoint, setting a fun pace with good storytelling and characterisation. I do, at times, feel as though the story bulked out at bit more than maybe the author expected and I would have been happy to have more of the final hunt. It felt a little as though Moon spent more time than expected on the preliminary setting up of the yacht and the characters and ran out of space to do justice to the major story arch.
Still despite that, really enjoyed the story and look forward to reading more of the series.
December 22, 2016
This was so good! And it had rich pickings of fabulous female characters. There were four that ended up being totally awesome.
I had a hard time seeing in this one how the three storylines were going to come together in one cohesive story. I was pleasantly surprised at how that worked out.
And really - Historical fox hunting on bioengineered "foxes" on a planet that is a castle built like an M.C. Esher drawing... What's not to love?
I had a hard time seeing in this one how the three storylines were going to come together in one cohesive story. I was pleasantly surprised at how that worked out.
And really - Historical fox hunting on bioengineered "foxes" on a planet that is a castle built like an M.C. Esher drawing... What's not to love?
February 27, 2025
When I finished Vatta’s war, which I liked a lot, I completely missed this series, bad mistake! I think it was the lurid covers that put me off, it shouted old-school to my addled brain. Far from it, this is modern space-opera with Elizabeth Moon’s ladylike touch (well it’s about ladies, at least).
I thought for a while it was about fox hunting, which I detest, but luckily that passed. No fancy writing, just straightforward good writing, and the right people died at the end. Thanks Alexandra for tipping me off about this series. I loved it.
I thought for a while it was about fox hunting, which I detest, but luckily that passed. No fancy writing, just straightforward good writing, and the right people died at the end. Thanks Alexandra for tipping me off about this series. I loved it.
August 16, 2022
The Good: Elizabeth Moon paints a vivid picture of her sci-fi universe. The story kept me involved enough to finish it in two days, despite various other responsibilities.
The Bad: The profanity was a bit excessive, and there were references to sex.
The Bad: The profanity was a bit excessive, and there were references to sex.
April 30, 2018
Read from the omnibus. Really liked the strong women, learning about horses and fox-hunting, the survival on the island. Fun. Not so much SF as in 'what if' and 'sense of wonder' but more of an 'adventure in space,' like Star Wars.
I especially liked certain bits. For example, Heris's skin (despite the cover) is described in passing a few times as dark... so dark that a blush doesn't show. And semi-educated people still get 'I' and 'me' mixed up, as they try to speak as if above their class.
However, dnf'ing the second book for focus on political intrigue. Moon's work is hit&miss for me. I did manage to get through the entire Vatta's War series, and I want to reread Remnant Population; "Speed of Dark" was def. interesting... but I didn't care for her latest, and this Serrano is very early and a bit clumsy, not to mention not quite my cup'o'tea.
I especially liked certain bits. For example, Heris's skin (despite the cover) is described in passing a few times as dark... so dark that a blush doesn't show. And semi-educated people still get 'I' and 'me' mixed up, as they try to speak as if above their class.
However, dnf'ing the second book for focus on political intrigue. Moon's work is hit&miss for me. I did manage to get through the entire Vatta's War series, and I want to reread Remnant Population; "Speed of Dark" was def. interesting... but I didn't care for her latest, and this Serrano is very early and a bit clumsy, not to mention not quite my cup'o'tea.
November 28, 2011
I feel like I'm walking backwards through Elizabeth Moon's universe. I started with the Vatta series, then read Suiza. I finally got my hands on the Serrano books and was left more than a little underwhelmed.
I think if it was an author other than Moon I may have given less stars.
Hunting Party starts rather raggedly. I kept looking to see if I missed a book about Serrano. The way she is dumped into the book felt like there was already a book about her past with the R.S.S.. But, alas there isn't.
The book starts with Herris Serrano hired by Lady Cecilia to captain her ship. The ship's first voyage is taking Lady Cecilia and her nephew and his friends to a planet for... fox hunting.
Despite the holes, the book begins with some promise. Serrano finds a rag tag bunch of crew, and starts whipping them into shape. In fact, the book is quite enjoyable, right up until we get to Lord Thornbuckle's and the fox hunting. OK, I can take the whole horse simulator on a ship. But the fox hunting went a little long for my "Science Fiction / Space Opera" likes.
Spoiler free, the book wraps up a lot of questions from the start towards the end, but there's a ghastly middle with way too much zzzzz.
I think I'm going to take a break from this series before trying Sporting Chance.
I think if it was an author other than Moon I may have given less stars.
Hunting Party starts rather raggedly. I kept looking to see if I missed a book about Serrano. The way she is dumped into the book felt like there was already a book about her past with the R.S.S.. But, alas there isn't.
The book starts with Herris Serrano hired by Lady Cecilia to captain her ship. The ship's first voyage is taking Lady Cecilia and her nephew and his friends to a planet for... fox hunting.
Despite the holes, the book begins with some promise. Serrano finds a rag tag bunch of crew, and starts whipping them into shape. In fact, the book is quite enjoyable, right up until we get to Lord Thornbuckle's and the fox hunting. OK, I can take the whole horse simulator on a ship. But the fox hunting went a little long for my "Science Fiction / Space Opera" likes.
Spoiler free, the book wraps up a lot of questions from the start towards the end, but there's a ghastly middle with way too much zzzzz.
I think I'm going to take a break from this series before trying Sporting Chance.
January 2, 2016
Reread, good series!
July 12, 2025
Having admittedly little experience with sci-fi, I jumped into this book without any expectations other than hearing about Elizabeth Moon's brilliance with her Deeds of Paksenarrion trilogy. More space opera than hard sci-fi, this book leans heavily on its characters to lead the reader through the twists and turns of the plot.
The beginning of this book feels slow-burn despite the relatively short length overall. But around the 2/3 mark, there is a strong tone shift that takes the slice-of-life vibes and turns them into something far more sinister.
I love the development of the relationship between Captain Serrano and Lady Cecilia. The differences between them due to their past experiences and stations in life present a mildly humorous backdrop to their current situation and need for amiable codependency.
The plotline didn't keep me reading this book. To be honest, there were parts that felt a little too slow and unengaging. But it was the characters that kept me reading, kept me asking "what are they going to do next?"
I'm definitely planning on continuing the series, and I think that Moon's obvious strength as a character writer promises more fun and surprising experiences with her work.
The beginning of this book feels slow-burn despite the relatively short length overall. But around the 2/3 mark, there is a strong tone shift that takes the slice-of-life vibes and turns them into something far more sinister.
I love the development of the relationship between Captain Serrano and Lady Cecilia. The differences between them due to their past experiences and stations in life present a mildly humorous backdrop to their current situation and need for amiable codependency.
The plotline didn't keep me reading this book. To be honest, there were parts that felt a little too slow and unengaging. But it was the characters that kept me reading, kept me asking "what are they going to do next?"
I'm definitely planning on continuing the series, and I think that Moon's obvious strength as a character writer promises more fun and surprising experiences with her work.
December 27, 2019
I expected more action, the first part was ship life a la Quarter Share, the middle part contemporary fox hunting with 18th and 19th century England social touches, the last part very unlikely coincidences heading to a man hunt on an island with an even unlikelier chanced mix of participants on either side.
What I liked: the characters talked and conflicts were not born out of lack of communication. They accepted their own limits and acted accordingly.
Not a boring read, even though I could imagine non-horse people hated the fox hunts ...
I rated it a wobbly 3.5 stars, and Elizabeth Moon sure rides on my expectations for more because her (original) book covers are as ugly as the ones of Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan saga, a series I inhaled! ;)
What I liked: the characters talked and conflicts were not born out of lack of communication. They accepted their own limits and acted accordingly.
Not a boring read, even though I could imagine non-horse people hated the fox hunts ...
I rated it a wobbly 3.5 stars, and Elizabeth Moon sure rides on my expectations for more because her (original) book covers are as ugly as the ones of Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan saga, a series I inhaled! ;)
September 28, 2025
Having truly enjoyed Trading in Danger and having finished that series of 5, I wanted to give this earlier sci-fi series a go. I found a cheap volume with the first three books so I dove in this summer...and nearly broke my head on the bottom of the pool. I felt there was a lot of stuff that was recycled in the Vatta backstory (but done better in that later series) and the characters were rather one-dimensional with rather predictable plotting. I am not a horsey person (my daugher is) but obviously moon is because there is quite a bit here about horse racing. Which is fine and original, but distracts from the mil sci-fi I was expecting. Maybe the next book will be better?
October 12, 2022
I read this previously but it doesn't show in the series.
I loved this book. This is about the Serrano family and having just resigned from the armed forces she finds a job on a rich woman's space yacht. Here she tries to get everybody up to speed on the way to a fox hunt, where the poop hits the fan and she found out the people she saved weren't saved at all. Great book! I'm planning on reading the rest of the series.
I loved this book. This is about the Serrano family and having just resigned from the armed forces she finds a job on a rich woman's space yacht. Here she tries to get everybody up to speed on the way to a fox hunt, where the poop hits the fan and she found out the people she saved weren't saved at all. Great book! I'm planning on reading the rest of the series.
July 7, 2017
'So now we've provided the villain a machina for his deus to come out of.'
So much fun! Definitely a very engaging and at times humorous start to a series with quite a lot of POVs and tons of nonstop action. It's great that the blurb doesn't really give anything away so I had no idea what to expect or where the story was going up until the halfway point when a sickening plot twist was revealed and then things just kept escalating.
The main takeaway of the book is really that old people especially women are not insubstantial and then the main character herself being 40 is just the best. On top of that, I appreciate the fuck out of the fact that all the female characters are so great in this and the males are just not so it's quite amusing to see the males being stupid and surviving through sheer luck whereas the females are smart af and have surviving skills despite some being mostly untrained.
Heris is such an amazing main character and I just love her bossy yet soft personality. Cecelia, on the other hand, is equally as amazing and I love how she's single and just travels everywhere in space on her yacht like that sounds epic. It's also quite interesting to see Cecelia and Heris shed their preconceptions of each other and end up becoming friends. My favorite lines:
Bubbles and Raffa are my other favorite female duo. I like that they got so much page time away from the useless male characters and wouldn't have minded them ending up together even. Related, there's barely any romance so I liked the subtlety in the amount there is as it's more of realization of feelings than being made into a whole thing. Though, I would have preferred it not happen at all.
The hints of Heris's past crew in the military almost made me wish there was a prequel series about her adventures in the military. As it was, half a book of setup did feel quite a lot but I don't think it affected the major arc of the story all that much in the end. So even though there's a lot going at all times, it's still hard to believe that the book went from having electrical virtual horse riding toa prince being revealed as the most stupid character LOL promises of piracy in the next book, whee.
P.S. It's sad that the book describes the main character as dark but she's...totally the opposite on most of the covers of the series.
So much fun! Definitely a very engaging and at times humorous start to a series with quite a lot of POVs and tons of nonstop action. It's great that the blurb doesn't really give anything away so I had no idea what to expect or where the story was going up until the halfway point when a sickening plot twist was revealed and then things just kept escalating.
The main takeaway of the book is really that old people especially women are not insubstantial and then the main character herself being 40 is just the best. On top of that, I appreciate the fuck out of the fact that all the female characters are so great in this and the males are just not so it's quite amusing to see the males being stupid and surviving through sheer luck whereas the females are smart af and have surviving skills despite some being mostly untrained.
Heris is such an amazing main character and I just love her bossy yet soft personality. Cecelia, on the other hand, is equally as amazing and I love how she's single and just travels everywhere in space on her yacht like that sounds epic. It's also quite interesting to see Cecelia and Heris shed their preconceptions of each other and end up becoming friends. My favorite lines:
'It's amazing,' Cecelia went on, 'how young men like this think we old people are frail, emotional, likely to fall apart at any emergency.' When her eyes met Heris's, it gave Heris a chill; they were the cold gray of frozen oysters. 'Because of course," Cecelia continued, 'we've done everything they imagine they might do. One time or another.'
Bubbles and Raffa are my other favorite female duo. I like that they got so much page time away from the useless male characters and wouldn't have minded them ending up together even. Related, there's barely any romance so I liked the subtlety in the amount there is as it's more of realization of feelings than being made into a whole thing. Though, I would have preferred it not happen at all.
The hints of Heris's past crew in the military almost made me wish there was a prequel series about her adventures in the military. As it was, half a book of setup did feel quite a lot but I don't think it affected the major arc of the story all that much in the end. So even though there's a lot going at all times, it's still hard to believe that the book went from having electrical virtual horse riding to
P.S. It's sad that the book describes the main character as dark but she's...totally the opposite on most of the covers of the series.
August 28, 2017
On the plus side, it's easy enough to read, and I like that it's an SF novel about two older women and their friendship. The relationship between Serrano and Lady Cecelia is nicely drawn.
On the minus side, it feels like three completely different novels haphazardly stitched together: a space opera/military SF about a disgraced space marine, a Wodehouse-esque country-house comedy about rich young twits and fox-hunting, and a survival thriller about a human hunt. The book lurches between these different things without much warning (the transition to the human hunt is especially jarring) the point-of-view abruptly switches, and new plot elements (like a last-minute love interest)get suddenly chucked in. The plot also feels very contrived - how convenient that the protagonist's space-navy nemesis just happens to be hunting on the same planet where she washes up with her new employer!
A final annoyance (not the author's fault) the cover is a blatant case of whitewashing.
On the minus side, it feels like three completely different novels haphazardly stitched together: a space opera/military SF about a disgraced space marine, a Wodehouse-esque country-house comedy about rich young twits and fox-hunting, and a survival thriller about a human hunt. The book lurches between these different things without much warning (the transition to the human hunt is especially jarring) the point-of-view abruptly switches, and new plot elements (like a last-minute love interest)get suddenly chucked in. The plot also feels very contrived - how convenient that the protagonist's space-navy nemesis just happens to be hunting on the same planet where she washes up with her new employer!
A final annoyance (not the author's fault) the cover is a blatant case of whitewashing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 8, 2018
In "Hunting Party", Heris Serrano, cashiered from the RSS on trumped-up charges, starts a new career as captain of a rich old lady's space yacht. The old gal turns out to be a fox-hunter - red coat, tally-ho, what? - & shortly has Capt. Serrano riding to post (albeit reluctantly).
Add in pranks by odious adolescents, young love in the afternoon, a vast country estate, LOL dialog & you have -- Wodehouse In Space!
Well, Wodehouse with a feminist, military edge -- the story turns darker as a deranged admiral takes to hunting human game, including our young aristos. Graphic violence; not for the squeamish. Highly recommended overall: clearly the strongest of the first three Serrano books.
Add in pranks by odious adolescents, young love in the afternoon, a vast country estate, LOL dialog & you have -- Wodehouse In Space!
Well, Wodehouse with a feminist, military edge -- the story turns darker as a deranged admiral takes to hunting human game, including our young aristos. Graphic violence; not for the squeamish. Highly recommended overall: clearly the strongest of the first three Serrano books.
November 26, 2007
Elizabeth Moon writes such fun books. Tightly plotted, exciting, excellent characters - I loved Heris Serrano, the middle-aged heroine of Shooting Party (fox hunting in space! No examination of the ethics behind fox hunting, which I found disappointing). Heris has a lot of history, and we're gradually introduced to it as we get to know her. Resigned from the military, she takes a position as captain of a rich woman's "yacht" (spaceship), and we go from there, covering smuggling, horse riding, hunting, military corruption - it's all quite thrilling. I am looking forward to reading the rest of the Serrano books.
May 11, 2013
It just seems as if the author was trying to write two books at the same time here--one a space opera along the lines of David Weber's On Basilisk Station, the other a book about [I]grand dames[/I] and high-class amusements. As a consequence, neither succeeded very well. Elizabeth Moon needed to pick a single plot type and stick with it. Jane Austen and David Weber just don't blend all that well, in my opinion.
January 18, 2019
It's an interesting mash up between a space opera and regency romance. The majority of the book take place on a planet and not in space. The characters live in an era with a monarchy and very strong sense of class, quite like either a regency romance or a historical fiction set in Napoleonic Britain. Captain Serrano is quite like Honor Harrington by David Weber. I truly enjoyed the strong female characters and watching one of the younger women evolve. However, there was just way less space in this space opera than I tend to prefer.
January 4, 2017
I loved this book. This is about the Serrano family and having just resigned from the armed forces she finds a job on a rich woman's space yacht. Here she tries to get everybody up to speed on the way to a fox hunt, where the poop hits the fan and she found out the people she saved weren't saved at all. Great book! I'm planning on reading the rest of the series.
April 20, 2022
As i said in an update this starts off like Will Save the Galaxy for Food, as they both feature awesome space captains who are forced to take a job running a rich persons private space yacht and have to deal with the owner and some annoying younger passengers etc.
However thats where the comparison ends... mostly due to this books (and its characters) obsession with 19th century fiction.
I mean if you thought ‘boy a sci-fi novel, I hope there’s lots of about horse-riding and foxhunting!’ , then first seek professional help.. a psychiatrist or horsetrainer either will do ;) and secondly this might be the book for you!
There’s so much upstairs/downstairs english classism here too, the whole first half feels like Downton Abbey in space (and not that much space either).
Suddenly the second half takes a wild left turn and turns into a sort of teen adventure tale. It does reference, although doesn't actually name the short story as an influence on these sections too.
However its still so heavily influenced by the 19th century that it feels like the Coral Island or some other very early adventure tale.
With the ‘main’ character, and i use that word lightly.. due to the amount of time she gets sidelined, becoming the focus again only for the denouement.
Its not.... terrible. The second half in particular is moderately compelling despite how little time we actually get with each character and the constant clash of timeperiods but i’d probably have given it 2 -stars if i wasn’t grading on a curve against some others things i’ve read recently like STEN.
However thats where the comparison ends... mostly due to this books (and its characters) obsession with 19th century fiction.
I mean if you thought ‘boy a sci-fi novel, I hope there’s lots of about horse-riding and foxhunting!’ , then first seek professional help.. a psychiatrist or horsetrainer either will do ;) and secondly this might be the book for you!
There’s so much upstairs/downstairs english classism here too, the whole first half feels like Downton Abbey in space (and not that much space either).
Suddenly the second half takes a wild left turn and turns into a sort of teen adventure tale. It does reference, although doesn't actually name the short story as an influence on these sections too.
However its still so heavily influenced by the 19th century that it feels like the Coral Island or some other very early adventure tale.
With the ‘main’ character, and i use that word lightly.. due to the amount of time she gets sidelined, becoming the focus again only for the denouement.
Its not.... terrible. The second half in particular is moderately compelling despite how little time we actually get with each character and the constant clash of timeperiods but i’d probably have given it 2 -stars if i wasn’t grading on a curve against some others things i’ve read recently like STEN.
January 22, 2020
Over all a good space opera! I skimmed over the fox hunting and the horse riding simulation, just not for me.
August 21, 2015
I really enjoyed this book. I'm not sure if everyone would (for reasons I'll explain below), but for me it was a great read, and I'm looking forward to the other books in the series.
Things to bear in mind
Characters: 1) The two primary characters are a 40-something ex-military captain named Heris, and an extremely wealthy "old maiden aunt" called Cecelia, in her early eighties. (But in this time period, Cecelia is still extremely in shape, athletic, and rides in foxhunts.)
* If you love these two characters, you'll enjoy the book. My favorite parts of it was watching them interact, and they could have been doing anything - reading the phone book - and I'd have been happy.
2) There is a second set of primary characters, who only become primary/relevant late in the book. These are a group of selfish/self-absorbed/hedonistic young people, who originally get foisted on Cecelia to get them out of the capital because of a spat with a royal. They do undergo some development thanks to the arrival of Plot in the last third of the book.
* It's hard to tell this group apart on first reading, I'll grant you. Their sudden relevance is both kind of weird and faintly disappointing, if you love Heris and Cecelia and want to read about them, not these random kids. Still, stick with them and it does work out in the end.
Plot:
The first two-thirds of the book revolve around Heris taking the job as Cecelia's captain, accustoming herself to her new ship & employer, and expanding into her new responsibilities and relationships. There is little plot in this section, really; there are some threads woven for future events, but in general the driving impetus is slender. If you don't like Heris or Cecelia, and/or need a driving plot to sustain your interest, these 200 or so pages might seem very boring. Be warned. (I loved them.)
When the Plot does arrive, it appears out of nowhere, involves the secondary group of characters, and is not that compelling to me. Spoiler: Personally, I felt that this was the weakest section of the book; taking us away from the established heart of the book to a sudden side-quest with weaker characters weakened the book. But, on the other hand, if you found Heris/Cecelia boring, the advent of Plot might be just what you'd been waiting for.
Romance:
There is side-character romance, although I didn't care one way or the other about it. The main romance, however, (spoiler)
Overall thoughts:
I enjoyed the first two-thirds of this novel very much. I loved Heris & Cecelia, and the process of them getting to know each other, along with worldbuilding, was very interesting to me. The 'action-packed' Plot of the final third was less satisfying, due in part to the swing away to a secondary group of flatter characters and the advent of a hefty amount of Strange Circumstances.
I look forward to reading the other books in this series; I hope that they are more like the first two-thirds, and not like the last third. Fingers crossed.
Things to bear in mind
Characters: 1) The two primary characters are a 40-something ex-military captain named Heris, and an extremely wealthy "old maiden aunt" called Cecelia, in her early eighties. (But in this time period, Cecelia is still extremely in shape, athletic, and rides in foxhunts.)
* If you love these two characters, you'll enjoy the book. My favorite parts of it was watching them interact, and they could have been doing anything - reading the phone book - and I'd have been happy.
2) There is a second set of primary characters, who only become primary/relevant late in the book. These are a group of selfish/self-absorbed/hedonistic young people, who originally get foisted on Cecelia to get them out of the capital because of a spat with a royal. They do undergo some development thanks to the arrival of Plot in the last third of the book.
* It's hard to tell this group apart on first reading, I'll grant you. Their sudden relevance is both kind of weird and faintly disappointing, if you love Heris and Cecelia and want to read about them, not these random kids. Still, stick with them and it does work out in the end.
Plot:
The first two-thirds of the book revolve around Heris taking the job as Cecelia's captain, accustoming herself to her new ship & employer, and expanding into her new responsibilities and relationships. There is little plot in this section, really; there are some threads woven for future events, but in general the driving impetus is slender. If you don't like Heris or Cecelia, and/or need a driving plot to sustain your interest, these 200 or so pages might seem very boring. Be warned. (I loved them.)
When the Plot does arrive, it appears out of nowhere, involves the secondary group of characters, and is not that compelling to me. Spoiler: Personally, I felt that this was the weakest section of the book; taking us away from the established heart of the book to a sudden side-quest with weaker characters weakened the book. But, on the other hand, if you found Heris/Cecelia boring, the advent of Plot might be just what you'd been waiting for.
Romance:
There is side-character romance, although I didn't care one way or the other about it. The main romance, however, (spoiler)
Overall thoughts:
I enjoyed the first two-thirds of this novel very much. I loved Heris & Cecelia, and the process of them getting to know each other, along with worldbuilding, was very interesting to me. The 'action-packed' Plot of the final third was less satisfying, due in part to the swing away to a secondary group of flatter characters and the advent of a hefty amount of Strange Circumstances.
I look forward to reading the other books in this series; I hope that they are more like the first two-thirds, and not like the last third. Fingers crossed.
June 18, 2020
4/5
https://delivreenlivres.home.blog/202...
De la science-fiction que je qualifierais de « tranquille ». (et oui, la couverture est immonde)
Malgré mon semi échec sur la fin de sa série Vatta’s War qui devenait peu intéressante, j’ai quand même voulu tenter d’autres œuvres de l’autrice. Pour l’instant ce tome ci m’a convaincu, donc j’ai espoir que ça puisse fonctionner.
On suit Heris Serrano qui, après un problème dans l’armée, a du abandonner son ancien poste de commandant de vaisseau. Elle retrouve un emploi dans le Yacht d’une riche héritière. Celle ci, vieille fille d’une 60ène d’années, ne vit que pour l’équitation et prévoit de se rendre au printemps de chasse à la courre prévu chez un de ses amis et qui commence bientôt.
Cet événement a lieu sur la planète privée de ce riche milliardaire qui est devenu l’une des références dans le domaine de l’équitation et de l’élevage de chevaux pour cette activité. Toute la noblesse et la haute bourgeoisie s’y retrouve tout les ans, dans ce qui est devenu limite plus une parade qu’une chasse.
Malheureusement, sur le chemin les deux femmes et l’équipages du Yacht vont se retrouver dans les problèmes jusqu’au cou quand Heris se rend compte que l’ancien commandant de bord qu’elle a remplacé utilisait le vaisseau pour faire de la contrebande. Malgré tout il n’est pas question pour l’héritière de louper son événement mondain de la saison …
En dehors du fait que j’ai trouvé que ce livre manquait un peu de background au niveau politique – apparemment il y a une noblesse mais on ne sait pas vraiment comment le tout fonctionne vraiment, surtout que c’est un peu le contexte de l’intrigue – je n’ai pas vraiment de défaut à donner à ce premier tome.
Le coté équitation fait un peu anachronique mais est expliqué dans le contexte d’une activité de la haute bourgeoisie/noblesse. On aime ou on n’aime pas, mais Heris n’est pas la pour juger, elle est la pour son métier ce qui laisse au lecteur le choix de ses convictions sur le sujet.
Je retrouve le ton de l’autre série de l’autrice que j’ai lu l’an passé (Vatta’s War), Surtout que le pitch de départ (une jeune femme exclue de l’armée qui se retrouve commandante de son propre vaisseaux civil et va au delà des ennuis) est très similaire. Les deux séries sont heureusement très différentes pour l’instant.
En dehors du final qui réveille un peu le coté aventure ou thriller, tout le reste est plutôt consacré au quotidien du personnage principal et aux différents liens qu’elle développe avec d’autres personnages. Du coup on est très loin d’un livre nerveux.
En fait pendant ma lecture j’ai trouvé que ce rythme de lecture me rappelait un peu les tomes de la série Pern de Anne McCaffrey. On est rarement dans l’action, plus dans l’évolution des personnages dans leur quotidien. On retrouve vraiment ça ici, c’est un genre de SF similaire.
Je pense que sur Vatta’s War ce qui ne me convenait pas était justement le fait que l’autrice essaye d’aller dans un genre de SF différent, plus basé sur l’action. Et ça n’allait pas avec le ton qui restait trop tranquille et qui rendait l’ensemble ennuyeux.
Ici on n’a pas l’air d’aller dans cette direction, mais plus du coté politique avec un peu d’aventure. Donc j’ai quand même espoir de mieux apprécier cette série sur le long terme que les Vatta’s War. L’avenir me dira si j’ai raison, j’ai déjà le second tome dans ma PAL.
PARTAGER :
https://delivreenlivres.home.blog/202...
De la science-fiction que je qualifierais de « tranquille ». (et oui, la couverture est immonde)
Malgré mon semi échec sur la fin de sa série Vatta’s War qui devenait peu intéressante, j’ai quand même voulu tenter d’autres œuvres de l’autrice. Pour l’instant ce tome ci m’a convaincu, donc j’ai espoir que ça puisse fonctionner.
On suit Heris Serrano qui, après un problème dans l’armée, a du abandonner son ancien poste de commandant de vaisseau. Elle retrouve un emploi dans le Yacht d’une riche héritière. Celle ci, vieille fille d’une 60ène d’années, ne vit que pour l’équitation et prévoit de se rendre au printemps de chasse à la courre prévu chez un de ses amis et qui commence bientôt.
Cet événement a lieu sur la planète privée de ce riche milliardaire qui est devenu l’une des références dans le domaine de l’équitation et de l’élevage de chevaux pour cette activité. Toute la noblesse et la haute bourgeoisie s’y retrouve tout les ans, dans ce qui est devenu limite plus une parade qu’une chasse.
Malheureusement, sur le chemin les deux femmes et l’équipages du Yacht vont se retrouver dans les problèmes jusqu’au cou quand Heris se rend compte que l’ancien commandant de bord qu’elle a remplacé utilisait le vaisseau pour faire de la contrebande. Malgré tout il n’est pas question pour l’héritière de louper son événement mondain de la saison …
En dehors du fait que j’ai trouvé que ce livre manquait un peu de background au niveau politique – apparemment il y a une noblesse mais on ne sait pas vraiment comment le tout fonctionne vraiment, surtout que c’est un peu le contexte de l’intrigue – je n’ai pas vraiment de défaut à donner à ce premier tome.
Le coté équitation fait un peu anachronique mais est expliqué dans le contexte d’une activité de la haute bourgeoisie/noblesse. On aime ou on n’aime pas, mais Heris n’est pas la pour juger, elle est la pour son métier ce qui laisse au lecteur le choix de ses convictions sur le sujet.
Je retrouve le ton de l’autre série de l’autrice que j’ai lu l’an passé (Vatta’s War), Surtout que le pitch de départ (une jeune femme exclue de l’armée qui se retrouve commandante de son propre vaisseaux civil et va au delà des ennuis) est très similaire. Les deux séries sont heureusement très différentes pour l’instant.
En dehors du final qui réveille un peu le coté aventure ou thriller, tout le reste est plutôt consacré au quotidien du personnage principal et aux différents liens qu’elle développe avec d’autres personnages. Du coup on est très loin d’un livre nerveux.
En fait pendant ma lecture j’ai trouvé que ce rythme de lecture me rappelait un peu les tomes de la série Pern de Anne McCaffrey. On est rarement dans l’action, plus dans l’évolution des personnages dans leur quotidien. On retrouve vraiment ça ici, c’est un genre de SF similaire.
Je pense que sur Vatta’s War ce qui ne me convenait pas était justement le fait que l’autrice essaye d’aller dans un genre de SF différent, plus basé sur l’action. Et ça n’allait pas avec le ton qui restait trop tranquille et qui rendait l’ensemble ennuyeux.
Ici on n’a pas l’air d’aller dans cette direction, mais plus du coté politique avec un peu d’aventure. Donc j’ai quand même espoir de mieux apprécier cette série sur le long terme que les Vatta’s War. L’avenir me dira si j’ai raison, j’ai déjà le second tome dans ma PAL.
PARTAGER :
July 29, 2018
If you check this book outside of the author fanclub, on online bookstores for instance, you will see as many 1 star as 5 stars reviews. How intriguing.
So I purchased the book to see for myself, with some trepidation, which group it was to be for me.
Note that the book is relatively well written in good English. (That to explain the 2 stars).
First disappointment: the book’s cover. The main character is a black woman. Why is the cover showing a blond white woman?! Stupid Whitewashing.
Second disappointment: the book cover. It shows a badass woman in full armor. So you think you will see action, fights, and… not much.
Third disappointment: Even if the story is supposed to be science fiction and happen in space, the author did no anticipation at all: So in my mind’s eye, it was all on Earth, during 21th century. Come on. When humans will discover faster than light speed to travel the stars, there will be no Intra-veinous bags of fluids, and people will be seriously augmented. They will not compute jump trajectories by hand and spaceships will be almost entirely automated and not manually piloted by humans. (And so on and so on)
Once I could stop sighing and rolling my eyes from the lack of sci-fi content, the 40 first percent of the story were nice.
The relationship between the rich lady and the captain was nicely developing and I thought “Hey, maybe the author will create a romantic relationship between these two. How nice.”
------Mild spoiler------
But no. The main character was horrified when somebody suggested that these two ladies where lovers!
-----------End of spoiler--------
And suddenly, at 41%, everything spiraled out of control.
I will not describe how boring it was and why I read diagonally.
The worst was to come at 90%. And sorry, it’s a spoiler:
------ Mild spoiler--------
The author parachuted a love story between the main character and a guy who just reappears at the end of the book. So tedious!
-----------End of spoiler--------
So I did a horrible deed: I threw the sponge (French expression) and did not finish this book.
So I purchased the book to see for myself, with some trepidation, which group it was to be for me.
Note that the book is relatively well written in good English. (That to explain the 2 stars).
First disappointment: the book’s cover. The main character is a black woman. Why is the cover showing a blond white woman?! Stupid Whitewashing.
Second disappointment: the book cover. It shows a badass woman in full armor. So you think you will see action, fights, and… not much.
Third disappointment: Even if the story is supposed to be science fiction and happen in space, the author did no anticipation at all: So in my mind’s eye, it was all on Earth, during 21th century. Come on. When humans will discover faster than light speed to travel the stars, there will be no Intra-veinous bags of fluids, and people will be seriously augmented. They will not compute jump trajectories by hand and spaceships will be almost entirely automated and not manually piloted by humans. (And so on and so on)
Once I could stop sighing and rolling my eyes from the lack of sci-fi content, the 40 first percent of the story were nice.
The relationship between the rich lady and the captain was nicely developing and I thought “Hey, maybe the author will create a romantic relationship between these two. How nice.”
------Mild spoiler------
But no. The main character was horrified when somebody suggested that these two ladies where lovers!
-----------End of spoiler--------
And suddenly, at 41%, everything spiraled out of control.
I will not describe how boring it was and why I read diagonally.
The worst was to come at 90%. And sorry, it’s a spoiler:
------ Mild spoiler--------
The author parachuted a love story between the main character and a guy who just reappears at the end of the book. So tedious!
-----------End of spoiler--------
So I did a horrible deed: I threw the sponge (French expression) and did not finish this book.
December 17, 2017
I picked this up because it looked like a fun and probably trashy weekend read. I didn't read the blurb properly first and it wasn't until I got it home that I realised it was a sci-fi about fox hunting!
Luckily there wasn't a massive amount in it about fox hunting (which I don't agree with). There was rather a lot about horses though - the whole middle section is about Captain Serrano learning to ride horses. I'm really not interested in horse riding so I got a bit fed up with it but the story moved on eventually, before I gave up completely.
What I didn't like was that it's set in the future but it's a very old school English class system with lords and ladies, and an actual king! The characters are all very classist and the sexist society is still present and correct. Lady Cecilia was almost ostracised by her family because she wanted to compete as a horse rider instead of getting married.
I do like though that the female characters are all smart and competent. Heris doesn't have much personality but she's a Captain that commands respect. Bubbles and Raffe are brilliant! When they first appear they seem to be the standard daft girlfriends but later on we see that they are just playing parts expected of them and are actually super smart and more than capable of rescuing themselves. Lady Cecilia too is intelligent and well respected.
It's ok for a trashy weekend read and I love the smart female characters but I found the story dragged towards the end. I probably will read the sequel but only because I already own it.
Luckily there wasn't a massive amount in it about fox hunting (which I don't agree with). There was rather a lot about horses though - the whole middle section is about Captain Serrano learning to ride horses. I'm really not interested in horse riding so I got a bit fed up with it but the story moved on eventually, before I gave up completely.
What I didn't like was that it's set in the future but it's a very old school English class system with lords and ladies, and an actual king! The characters are all very classist and the sexist society is still present and correct. Lady Cecilia was almost ostracised by her family because she wanted to compete as a horse rider instead of getting married.
I do like though that the female characters are all smart and competent. Heris doesn't have much personality but she's a Captain that commands respect. Bubbles and Raffe are brilliant! When they first appear they seem to be the standard daft girlfriends but later on we see that they are just playing parts expected of them and are actually super smart and more than capable of rescuing themselves. Lady Cecilia too is intelligent and well respected.
It's ok for a trashy weekend read and I love the smart female characters but I found the story dragged towards the end. I probably will read the sequel but only because I already own it.
July 23, 2011
I picked this book up as it sounded like it could be an interesting read, but I found it rather boring.
The actual action only starts in the second half of the book and is over much too soon, after which there's still a lot of the book left where there's lots of non-action again. There's also a sudden love interest thrown in after everything is solved to give the book a happy end, while so easily this love interest could have been mentioned earlier in the book. As for lead character Heris: there's too little emotion in her thinking and in her actions to make me feel for her. I will confess I was more emotionally invested in minor characters than in her or other main characters. The book is classified as Science Fiction, but this setting is just fluff and isn't used to its full potential.
That I finished this book at all is because Moon's writingstyle is pleasant and because there were some interesting plotpoints and I really hoped the story would redeem itself, but it was not to be. Which is sad in my opinion as with a few modifications and with a faster pace this story could have been an awesome read.
The actual action only starts in the second half of the book and is over much too soon, after which there's still a lot of the book left where there's lots of non-action again. There's also a sudden love interest thrown in after everything is solved to give the book a happy end, while so easily this love interest could have been mentioned earlier in the book. As for lead character Heris: there's too little emotion in her thinking and in her actions to make me feel for her. I will confess I was more emotionally invested in minor characters than in her or other main characters. The book is classified as Science Fiction, but this setting is just fluff and isn't used to its full potential.
That I finished this book at all is because Moon's writingstyle is pleasant and because there were some interesting plotpoints and I really hoped the story would redeem itself, but it was not to be. Which is sad in my opinion as with a few modifications and with a faster pace this story could have been an awesome read.
January 11, 2019
I really enjoyed her series Vatta's War, so was looking forward to reading this. She's really good at depicting women in the military, and does a great job of getting the types of thinking that is required of anyone in charge of other people and their health and well being.
Hunting Party didn't disappoint in this regard. This is an older woman in this series, where the heroine in Vatta's War was young and new to the experiences. This time, this woman is seasoned and unhappy about having resigned her commission and missing all that went with it.
I enjoyed the characters and the different settings, although I confess I learned more about fox hunting that I really ever expected to, but as there was quite a bit of character development going on with it, I didn't mind all that much.
The younger characters were annoying at first but definitely grew through the adventures they endured.
If you like military sci fi, give this a try. It's quite different from most of the genre but all the better for that.
August 11, 2013
Elizabeth Moon has to be one of my all time favourite science fiction writers. The Serrano books are epic military sci-fi stories but Moon throws in unexpected characters in lead roles. For example having a stubborn old lady who's passion in life is show jumping horses as a lead is strange for the genre but it works. The Serrano books deal with a government ruled by a bunch of uber rich families who are utilising life extending drug treatments. The stories delve into the politics of the Familiars Regent and the surrounding systems. There is intrigue and betrayal aplenty in the books. The cast of characters is large and the mains are rounded and complex. Moon makes you feel for the characters and keeps the reader drawn into the stories.
I own ever one of her books and have read most more than once. I can't praise them higher.
I own ever one of her books and have read most more than once. I can't praise them higher.
August 12, 2014
Contents of this book:
2% OMG rich people
3% She's really though because Spacy Navy
5% Boring plot
10% Fancy food
80% Horses!
Summary (with minor spoilers)
Ex Space Navy captain bonds with eccentric woman who has her own space yacht for no good reason. They end up transporting 4 spoiled rich kids that have no character development making them hard to tell apart. There is much talk about horses and fox hunting. Then the rich kids end up being hunted themselves together with some of the captain's old Space Navy crew.
Eventually most people are saved and the captain hooks up with one of the dudes that used to be in her crew. They couldn't before because Space Navy.
My scores:
Plot: 1/10
Characters: 1/10
Setting: 2/10
Writing: 4/10
This book is terrible and you shouldn't read it.
2% OMG rich people
3% She's really though because Spacy Navy
5% Boring plot
10% Fancy food
80% Horses!
Summary (with minor spoilers)
Ex Space Navy captain bonds with eccentric woman who has her own space yacht for no good reason. They end up transporting 4 spoiled rich kids that have no character development making them hard to tell apart. There is much talk about horses and fox hunting. Then the rich kids end up being hunted themselves together with some of the captain's old Space Navy crew.
Eventually most people are saved and the captain hooks up with one of the dudes that used to be in her crew. They couldn't before because Space Navy.
My scores:
Plot: 1/10
Characters: 1/10
Setting: 2/10
Writing: 4/10
This book is terrible and you shouldn't read it.
January 24, 2022
I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this. I really liked Captain Serrano, and I'm glad this is a series because I want to spend more time with her. The blend of old-timey aristocracy complete with fox hunting and the space opera setting worked surprisingly well. I have at least two of Elizabeth Moon's book on my to read list already without realizing it, so I might end up giving everything by her a try
Displaying 1 - 30 of 252 reviews