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Catteni #4
Freedom's Ransom
The inhabitants of the penal planet Botany had fought a grim and dangerous war to free themselves from their Eosi overlords. Now the Eosi were gone, and both Botany and Earth were free again - free, but in serious trouble as the theft of all their communications satellites by the Catteni (working for their Eosi masters) had left them isolated and in a desperate situation.
Hoping that everything stolen from them would be returned, they found that Catteni greed had triumphed. The merchants of Barevi refused to give up the stolen goods unless a substantial ransom was paid.
Earth was in a particularly bad way: disease, vandalism, starvation and the breakdown of their mechanical world had left its people fighting for survival. They desperately needed the goods the Barevi were hoarding.
And so Zainal, Kris, and a courageous team from Botany set off to try and outwit the thieving merchants. It was an expedition that led to a horrifying replay of an old nightmare for Kris - and only Zainal could save her and the future of both Earth and Botany.
321 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2002
209 people are currently reading
1812 people want to read
About the author
Anne McCaffrey
481 books7,769 followersAnne Inez McCaffrey was an American writer known for the Dragonriders of Pern science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction (Best Novella, Weyr Search, 1968) and the first to win a Nebula Award (Best Novella, Dragonrider, 1969). Her 1978 novel The White Dragon became one of the first science-fiction books to appear on the New York Times Best Seller list.
In 2005 the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America named McCaffrey its 22nd Grand Master, an annual award to living writers of fantasy and science fiction. She was inducted by the Science Fiction Hall of Fame on 17 June 2006. She also received the Robert A. Heinlein Award for her work in 2007.
In 2005 the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America named McCaffrey its 22nd Grand Master, an annual award to living writers of fantasy and science fiction. She was inducted by the Science Fiction Hall of Fame on 17 June 2006. She also received the Robert A. Heinlein Award for her work in 2007.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews
April 30, 2024
A great conclusion to this series, especially in the content department.
July 19, 2010
Too much coffee!!! Not enough science fiction.
December 9, 2021
Read the first three a long time ago, I thought it was a trilogy, and really enjoy the story. Reading this after nearly 20 years it was quite bland.
Read
December 11, 20213 WORD REVIEW: Robusta vs. Arabica
AWARD: Perhaps the only "SciFi" book showcasing --which apparently has not advanced at all in the future.
Yep, we have Faster-Than-Light (FTL) spaceships, and we have defeated superior aliens and their advanced weaponry ... but you still have to
PROS: The main characters seem like nice people, and they mostly all get along. Even the teenagers only barely misbehave (if eye rolling counts).
NEUTRALS: Certain Earth tech really dates this 2002 book--in sometimes mildly funny ways. The writing style is okay, though the pacing is tedious.
[ The following CONS & other details may contain minor spoilers, but there's not much to spoil here] :
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VERDICT/RATING: None, because I'm not sure what McCaffrey was trying to achieve here. If forced, I couldn't give it more than 2.3 stars, unless I needed a cure for insomnia.
AWARD: Perhaps the only "SciFi" book showcasing --which apparently has not advanced at all in the future.
Yep, we have Faster-Than-Light (FTL) spaceships, and we have defeated superior aliens and their advanced weaponry ... but you still have to
PROS: The main characters seem like nice people, and they mostly all get along. Even the teenagers only barely misbehave (if eye rolling counts).
NEUTRALS: Certain Earth tech really dates this 2002 book--in sometimes mildly funny ways. The writing style is okay, though the pacing is tedious.
[ The following CONS & other details may contain minor spoilers, but there's not much to spoil here] :
~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~
VERDICT/RATING: None, because I'm not sure what McCaffrey was trying to achieve here. If forced, I couldn't give it more than 2.3 stars, unless I needed a cure for insomnia.
March 18, 2010
While I do appreciate the fact that at no point in this book did Kris get herself drunk and knocked up by someone other than her partner, I nevertheless wonder why McCaffrey wrote this book. Freedom's Challenge ended with an openness that certainly made another sequel possible, but it also seemed like a decent place to just stop. Failing that, though, she really ought to have found something interesting to write about if she really wanted to stick with these characters. This book consisted almost entirely of blow-by-blow accounts of the various trading the characters did, which, quite frankly, was incredibly dull. Any setbacks that occurred were fairly minor, and surmounted pretty quickly and easily. The only moment of tension came when Kris and another woman were captured and herded onto a slave ship bound for a mining colony, but even that was dealt with pretty quickly, before any true hardship occurred. So yeah. If you enjoy reading, I don't know, maybe the Wall Street Journal, maybe you'd enjoy this. But I'd rather have a little more action and/or dramatic tension in my books.
One other thing that really irritated me. These books all had various inconsistencies in them, but most were quite minor. But one in this book really stood out for me. Zainal was supposed to become host to an Eosi master, but when he didn't, his brother was chosen for the duty. The Eosi he hosted (and that Zainal was to host) was named Ix. He was Ix for two books. But in this book, when they talk about the Eosi Zainal was supposed to have hosted, he was referred to as Pe. Seriously? I know a few years elapsed between book 3 and this one, but that's really no excuse to not go back and do very basic research as to what you called your characters. Carelessness like that really just drives me nuts.
Anyway, this book also had a fairly open ending, with hints at further shenanigans for the Botanists to get up to, but if a fifth book turns up, I don't think I'll bother with it.
One other thing that really irritated me. These books all had various inconsistencies in them, but most were quite minor. But one in this book really stood out for me. Zainal was supposed to become host to an Eosi master, but when he didn't, his brother was chosen for the duty. The Eosi he hosted (and that Zainal was to host) was named Ix. He was Ix for two books. But in this book, when they talk about the Eosi Zainal was supposed to have hosted, he was referred to as Pe. Seriously? I know a few years elapsed between book 3 and this one, but that's really no excuse to not go back and do very basic research as to what you called your characters. Carelessness like that really just drives me nuts.
Anyway, this book also had a fairly open ending, with hints at further shenanigans for the Botanists to get up to, but if a fifth book turns up, I don't think I'll bother with it.
Read
March 13, 2011Disappointing: I really enjoyed the first the three books of the Catteni sequence and was looking forward to this one, but was disappointed.
For much of the book it seemed that I was reading about a completely different set of characters as everyone seemed to have had their personality sucked out. The pioneering ethic was not necessary any longer I suppose, but that spirit had defined the characters for me and I felt they were pretty thin (and unsympathetic) without it. I also found the shift to multiple inner monologues, especially Zainal's, didn't work; a key element of his character is that he is inscructable and unfathomable, because he's an alien!
The involvement of the Diplomatic Corps from the last book seemed completely bizzare; and the apparent complete success of the 'tough love' approach to giving them a bit of discipline was clunkingly unconvincing.
The depiction of Earth was vaugely diverting, but not particularly engaging - the post-apocolpytic thing has been done hundreds of times before, with a lot more success. And I did wonder if the whole book was sponsored by Starbucks and the International Union of Dentists!
But the farcial crown jewels bit really put the tin lid on the whole thing!
August 17, 2022
Weird end to an odd little series. Basically a big shopping trip to Earth and the setting up of a coffee cartel.
September 7, 2011
Everyone knows how sad it is to realize that your favorite series has jumped the shark. There's always that let-down when you finish a novel, add it to your stack of previous entries, and suddenly feel that you can't remember a single thing you just read. And if it's bad when it happens to a good series, it's even worse when it happens to one that's only 'okay'.
The Freedom trilogy worked fairly well. It appropriately used the science fiction background of isolated planets and wild interspecies mixing to follow a progression from "Surviving" to "Thriving". Over the course of three books, there was an resolution of main conflicts and some basic character plots. It didn't have much to recommend it, but it worked. "Freedom's Ransom" seems to weakly latch on to this self-contained trilogy, borrowing its characters and setting for a fairly uninteresting and unconnected novel. The characters don't advance, the conflicts aren't interesting, and the writing itself doesn't really stand out.
This wouldn't be a problem if Freedom's Ransom was simply a novel that didn't work out. The point is that it's even worse: it's a parasite fiction, that sucks the life out of what might otherwise have been a decent series.
The Freedom trilogy worked fairly well. It appropriately used the science fiction background of isolated planets and wild interspecies mixing to follow a progression from "Surviving" to "Thriving". Over the course of three books, there was an resolution of main conflicts and some basic character plots. It didn't have much to recommend it, but it worked. "Freedom's Ransom" seems to weakly latch on to this self-contained trilogy, borrowing its characters and setting for a fairly uninteresting and unconnected novel. The characters don't advance, the conflicts aren't interesting, and the writing itself doesn't really stand out.
This wouldn't be a problem if Freedom's Ransom was simply a novel that didn't work out. The point is that it's even worse: it's a parasite fiction, that sucks the life out of what might otherwise have been a decent series.
July 28, 2009
Read the first 3, then skip this one. It's really weak, the whole plot centers around finding more coffee for the colony. Seriously.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 6, 2023
Actual star score 3.5.
Personally I'm disappointed with this book because, to me it seemed unfinished.
The war against the Eosi is finished but the earth has been left in a devastated condition. While the Catteni were there they basically took everything that wasn't nailed down and even some things that were. Kamilton promised when taking over as the head of the Catten government he would get things straightened out, but he didn’t take into consideration that the Catteni on Baverri who either did the looting or purchased the look wouldn't turn it back over without being compensated.
That was not something that Kris, Zanial or the people who live on Botany would accept after being told of it by Zanial's nephew. Trying to come up with ways to help earth get back what it needs everyone comes up with several different ways of trying to get things returned back to earth and possibly find more of the thousands of people who were shipped to other planets, especially as slaves.
Now a bit more about why my score was low, since I usually love books by Anne McCaffrey. The book spends lots of time digging into handling parts of the problems, sometimes too much. Then at the end of the book, one of the biggest problems, money to do things is solved, and the book ends with all kinds of plans to fix things but nothing happens, it just ends. The book was written several years ago and I have seen many other new books written by both her son and her niece, not a hint of a 5th book in this series that might be coming out. Just my opinion folks.
Personally I'm disappointed with this book because, to me it seemed unfinished.
The war against the Eosi is finished but the earth has been left in a devastated condition. While the Catteni were there they basically took everything that wasn't nailed down and even some things that were. Kamilton promised when taking over as the head of the Catten government he would get things straightened out, but he didn’t take into consideration that the Catteni on Baverri who either did the looting or purchased the look wouldn't turn it back over without being compensated.
That was not something that Kris, Zanial or the people who live on Botany would accept after being told of it by Zanial's nephew. Trying to come up with ways to help earth get back what it needs everyone comes up with several different ways of trying to get things returned back to earth and possibly find more of the thousands of people who were shipped to other planets, especially as slaves.
Now a bit more about why my score was low, since I usually love books by Anne McCaffrey. The book spends lots of time digging into handling parts of the problems, sometimes too much. Then at the end of the book, one of the biggest problems, money to do things is solved, and the book ends with all kinds of plans to fix things but nothing happens, it just ends. The book was written several years ago and I have seen many other new books written by both her son and her niece, not a hint of a 5th book in this series that might be coming out. Just my opinion folks.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 1, 2022
I was actually quite disappointed in this last book. I was hoping to see some clash between the Botanists and the Cattani. It was almost all about setting up trade and finding hidden treasure....I got bored with the story but kept on so that I could at least say I finished the series.
February 3, 2020
Put this one under, "initially rated with nostalgia glasses."
This one was of the many books that I quickly rated when I first joined Goodreads and was trying to track my reading history. I remembered loving this series so, five-star ratings all around.
For the rest of the series, that rating mostly stays. I loved the concept. The first three books had a sense of character and pacing and an overarching plot that went from sci-fi survival story to an alien rebellion against evil overlords.
This one, though, came across as an unnecessary addition to a story that had mostly wrapped up. What loose ends there were, McCaffery didn't explore at all. You end the series and you still don't know anything about the one species she's been piling the mystery around since the first book. Instead, you get a narration of a trade trip and then the series ends.
The use of voice also started to bother me. The first books had enough variety in the diction so that every character developed their own voice. In this one, they all started to sound the same, used the same sentence patterns, were partial to the same wordings and exclamations. etc.
The only saving grace came about 80 per cent of the way in, when the author picked up some of the action that made this series so readable from the start.
I would absolutely recommend these books...right up until Book 3.
This one was of the many books that I quickly rated when I first joined Goodreads and was trying to track my reading history. I remembered loving this series so, five-star ratings all around.
For the rest of the series, that rating mostly stays. I loved the concept. The first three books had a sense of character and pacing and an overarching plot that went from sci-fi survival story to an alien rebellion against evil overlords.
This one, though, came across as an unnecessary addition to a story that had mostly wrapped up. What loose ends there were, McCaffery didn't explore at all. You end the series and you still don't know anything about the one species she's been piling the mystery around since the first book. Instead, you get a narration of a trade trip and then the series ends.
The use of voice also started to bother me. The first books had enough variety in the diction so that every character developed their own voice. In this one, they all started to sound the same, used the same sentence patterns, were partial to the same wordings and exclamations. etc.
The only saving grace came about 80 per cent of the way in, when the author picked up some of the action that made this series so readable from the start.
I would absolutely recommend these books...right up until Book 3.
January 1, 2009
As always, I enjoy Anne Mccaffrey stories. I normally don't do, survivor tales. But she weaves the story well so that when some of the characters get into vicious mode because of the situation, she balances it out with strong and light hearted characters to keep the story from turning into the harshness of survival.
Her stories are always easy reads, but entertaining.
PLus I love the relationship between Zainal and Chris. I just didn't like how she ended up with children. I found that unsettling. But Chris is level-headed and practical, and lets nothing get her down.
I also loved when Zainal told himself if anything had happened to his wife he was going to snap the man's neck. It was good to see Zainal acting primitive instead of the intelligent, subtle and regal man he is.
Don't get me wrong, I love the character Zainal and being part of a colony of humans requires tact and discipline, but there were times when I wanted to see him fight or act like his lower officers.
Her stories are always easy reads, but entertaining.
PLus I love the relationship between Zainal and Chris. I just didn't like how she ended up with children. I found that unsettling. But Chris is level-headed and practical, and lets nothing get her down.
I also loved when Zainal told himself if anything had happened to his wife he was going to snap the man's neck. It was good to see Zainal acting primitive instead of the intelligent, subtle and regal man he is.
Don't get me wrong, I love the character Zainal and being part of a colony of humans requires tact and discipline, but there were times when I wanted to see him fight or act like his lower officers.
May 26, 2020
This is the least successful book in the series. It was not about the characters any longer but rather a manual on how to run a colony or settlement. I only read on to the end because I had thoroughly enjoyed the first 2 books in the series and felt I owed that much to an author whose work I'd always thoroughly enjoyed. I was hoping for the same drama, excitement and character development which I'd been presented with previously. I was sadly disappointed. But I suppose that is the danger ever present with a series. Sometimes we lose our way.
You don't need to read this book to thoroughly enjoy the Catteni series. I would advise reading 1 and 2 and stopping there. They are by far the most satisfying reads of this series.
You don't need to read this book to thoroughly enjoy the Catteni series. I would advise reading 1 and 2 and stopping there. They are by far the most satisfying reads of this series.
July 28, 2011
I am a definite fan of coffee. However, too much of the book is dedicated to coffee. This feels like an extra unnecessary portion of the series. There was good closure after the third book so I was really surprised to see a fourth. Of course i had to read it but I wasn't overly impressed. It wasn't bad per se, not exactly good either. There wasn't much character deveolpment and certainly not much action There seemed to be some forced moments of action but they felt forced and were resolved very quickly. More seemed to be an ode to coffee and how great it would be to have coffee on all planets and of course aliens would love coffee.
January 9, 2011
I thought it was all over in book 3. Zainal comes back into book 4 and it's even more fun. We get to learn how they try to help Earth and what other things they do to make Botany a home. Just thinking about this books brings a smile to my face. Here's why.
1. Never give up attitude
2. Working together towards a positive outcome
3. Everyone can contribute to make their world a better place.
4. Ingenuity and troubleshooting skills
I just loved how they were able to accomplish so much together. Makes me want to be a part of a bigger whole.
1. Never give up attitude
2. Working together towards a positive outcome
3. Everyone can contribute to make their world a better place.
4. Ingenuity and troubleshooting skills
I just loved how they were able to accomplish so much together. Makes me want to be a part of a bigger whole.
November 2, 2020
Least interesting of the series, but having started it and got 3/4 thru the series, I toughed it out thru the last book.
Zainal's dialog quality seemed way too "earth-like" thru the end, and sort of corny in several spots.
First book was the best, lots of action and new things to learn about.
This one is almost entirely about Zainal and Kris, really nothing about any of the other alien races and the cooperation / interactions among them to survive.
Zainal's dialog quality seemed way too "earth-like" thru the end, and sort of corny in several spots.
First book was the best, lots of action and new things to learn about.
This one is almost entirely about Zainal and Kris, really nothing about any of the other alien races and the cooperation / interactions among them to survive.
August 17, 2016
FREEDOM'S RANSOM focuses on a trading mission to get back the irreplaceable technological equipment and parts stolen by the Catteni in their conquest of Earth. There is some adventure, and the book remains lively, but it focuses on business thinking. That may be the reason this turned out to be the last book of the series that McCaffrey published.
December 18, 2017
Definitely not McCaffrey's best. Not that I was a huge fan of the series as a whole, but the series should have stopped at book 3. This book focused on trading and selling coffee, with very minimal tension except near the end (though all of the issues were resolved easily).
December 15, 2010
This series was never as good as its first book and this volume was a microcosm of the whole series. Okay science fiction. Not sure I read any more MCCaffrey after this work.
September 15, 2010
This was my favorite of the series...I really got into all the post-intergalactic imprerialism trading (that sounds really nerdy, but it was interesting).
February 12, 2023
This was my least favorite of the series. It was more about coffee than a sci-fi book. I did enjoy it overall and will miss the world of Botany.
May 28, 2018
This was the last book in the series and I thought it was well done. It brought all the stories together. I enjoyed the first three more bit glad I read them all
November 1, 2024
The Eosi are vanquished, but things are in disarray. Earth is in a post-apocalyptic state having been devastated and looted by the Catteni. The Catteni empire is without the firm hand of the Eosi, who ruled by fear, so recovering after the revolution is taking time. Botany, however, has a small fleet of space ships and is making headway. A visit from a Catteni spaceship hands Zainal a problem, and he thinks it is his duty to resolve it. Barevi is a trading hub controlled by Catteni merchants, and it has lots of goods looted from Earth, so the Botanists decide to trade and buy needed items back, hence the ransom title.
A big meeting takes place on Botany; most agree to send Zainal and others on a trading mission to earth. They land at Newark, NJ, and deal with coordinator Vitali, handing out some bread and cooked fowl. A trip to Manhattan gets them some needed dental equipment. They perform a trading mission for Vitali to Kenya and get coffee beans in exchange for some pharmaceuticals needed there. A quick return to Newark and then off to St. Lucia to get more coffee beans.
Then it is off to Barevi, and the trading begins at the market. They set up a stall, paying the proper rent, and start offering free coffee to entice merchants. The Catteni have developed an addiction to coffee, so trade is sometimes done in coffee beans. A dental office is set up to do gold caps and does good business. But there are issues with the manager of the market. These are ultimately resolved but at some cost, which is recovered in a tit for tat manner.
Finally Zainal and crew return to Botany and plans are made to become traders and allies/competitors instead of enemies with the Catteni. Thus the story ends on a hopeful note, and the reader is left with the idea that humanity will be a positive force in the galaxy. I enjoyed the series; the characters were interesting and rather believable under the circumstances. This last book was a bit more of a slow mover than the earlier ones, but it sewed up the series in a decent fashion.
A big meeting takes place on Botany; most agree to send Zainal and others on a trading mission to earth. They land at Newark, NJ, and deal with coordinator Vitali, handing out some bread and cooked fowl. A trip to Manhattan gets them some needed dental equipment. They perform a trading mission for Vitali to Kenya and get coffee beans in exchange for some pharmaceuticals needed there. A quick return to Newark and then off to St. Lucia to get more coffee beans.
Then it is off to Barevi, and the trading begins at the market. They set up a stall, paying the proper rent, and start offering free coffee to entice merchants. The Catteni have developed an addiction to coffee, so trade is sometimes done in coffee beans. A dental office is set up to do gold caps and does good business. But there are issues with the manager of the market. These are ultimately resolved but at some cost, which is recovered in a tit for tat manner.
Finally Zainal and crew return to Botany and plans are made to become traders and allies/competitors instead of enemies with the Catteni. Thus the story ends on a hopeful note, and the reader is left with the idea that humanity will be a positive force in the galaxy. I enjoyed the series; the characters were interesting and rather believable under the circumstances. This last book was a bit more of a slow mover than the earlier ones, but it sewed up the series in a decent fashion.
May 24, 2025
This is a very unnecessary fourth book, and does not flow on from the trilogy. Skip it.
These are the three takeaways for me: 1) someone got too enthused about background research and forgot that characters should be more important than, I don’t know, endlessly discussing dentistry 2) the casual misogyny that I kind of wave away because of the era McCaffrey wrote in is somehow morphed into a different, worse kind of misogyny here and wildly out of place for a book published in 2002 and 3) I flat-out don’t believe this was actually written by McCaffrey, the tone is completely off in every possible element, she probably provided the structure but this was actually written by someone else.
I’d say this book bored me to tears, but in fact it made me jaw-clenchingly frustrated. Kris (and most other women) lost all agency. All the characters lost the thin inner lives they had from prior books in the series. Social worldbuilding was exchanged for an increasingly janky explanation of setting up a trading operation, but it’s actually worse than that: it’s only ONE SEGMENT of the trading operation, so it’s all deep-dives into things we’ll never see again. I could not be less invested in the extended discussions about the different qualities of arabica versus robusto coffee beans. They’re a population of coffee addicts who currently have no coffee. Just… sell them coffee. Stop torturing me with a needlessly complicated sales pitch, you had me at “caffeine”.
If you want to read a book about dentistry, coffee, or I guess an imagined apocalyptic New York from 1990 (no, you’re not going to choose the Lincoln effing Tunnel over sailing across the Hudson you loons) - go for it. But if you’re expecting culture, interpersonal relationships, or honestly a plot? Just find something else.
These are the three takeaways for me: 1) someone got too enthused about background research and forgot that characters should be more important than, I don’t know, endlessly discussing dentistry 2) the casual misogyny that I kind of wave away because of the era McCaffrey wrote in is somehow morphed into a different, worse kind of misogyny here and wildly out of place for a book published in 2002 and 3) I flat-out don’t believe this was actually written by McCaffrey, the tone is completely off in every possible element, she probably provided the structure but this was actually written by someone else.
I’d say this book bored me to tears, but in fact it made me jaw-clenchingly frustrated. Kris (and most other women) lost all agency. All the characters lost the thin inner lives they had from prior books in the series. Social worldbuilding was exchanged for an increasingly janky explanation of setting up a trading operation, but it’s actually worse than that: it’s only ONE SEGMENT of the trading operation, so it’s all deep-dives into things we’ll never see again. I could not be less invested in the extended discussions about the different qualities of arabica versus robusto coffee beans. They’re a population of coffee addicts who currently have no coffee. Just… sell them coffee. Stop torturing me with a needlessly complicated sales pitch, you had me at “caffeine”.
If you want to read a book about dentistry, coffee, or I guess an imagined apocalyptic New York from 1990 (no, you’re not going to choose the Lincoln effing Tunnel over sailing across the Hudson you loons) - go for it. But if you’re expecting culture, interpersonal relationships, or honestly a plot? Just find something else.
August 15, 2021
This fourth, and final, book in the Catteni series has a great ending to it, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's such a shame that it finished when it did, as I'm sure there would have been more books in the making, from the way it ended.
Although Botany is a free planet, there is still so much needed to make life better for them all and, on a trip to Earth, to trade for what they needed, Zainal and Kris see that their planet is actually in a better place than Earth - and, on a following trip to Barevi, there, too.
Zainal, feeling guilty for all the terrible losses to Earth, caused by his own people, at the behest of the Eosi, is determined to do what he can, to help in Earth's recovery.
Unfortunately, most of the goods stolen from Earth, lie in the warehouses of the Merchants of Barevi, and Zainal knows how greedy they can be.
But a mission to deliver urgently needed medicine, to Kenya, shows Zainal and Kris just how they can manage to get some of the most urgently needed equipment for Earth's satellites, from Barevi, in exchange for the goods they bartered for the medicine.
Along the way, Zainal is also planning how he can trace as many of the Humans that were snatched into slavery, too.
Some things they manage, and some things will take time, effort, and the willingness of the people of Botany to plan ahead, and create a willing partnership with their former enemies, the Catteni, in order to make life better for them all - but with Zainal willing to do everything he can to make it happen, they are happy to follow his example.
Although Botany is a free planet, there is still so much needed to make life better for them all and, on a trip to Earth, to trade for what they needed, Zainal and Kris see that their planet is actually in a better place than Earth - and, on a following trip to Barevi, there, too.
Zainal, feeling guilty for all the terrible losses to Earth, caused by his own people, at the behest of the Eosi, is determined to do what he can, to help in Earth's recovery.
Unfortunately, most of the goods stolen from Earth, lie in the warehouses of the Merchants of Barevi, and Zainal knows how greedy they can be.
But a mission to deliver urgently needed medicine, to Kenya, shows Zainal and Kris just how they can manage to get some of the most urgently needed equipment for Earth's satellites, from Barevi, in exchange for the goods they bartered for the medicine.
Along the way, Zainal is also planning how he can trace as many of the Humans that were snatched into slavery, too.
Some things they manage, and some things will take time, effort, and the willingness of the people of Botany to plan ahead, and create a willing partnership with their former enemies, the Catteni, in order to make life better for them all - but with Zainal willing to do everything he can to make it happen, they are happy to follow his example.
July 9, 2017
Freedom's Landing (2002) by Anne McCaffrey tacks onto the more or less completed story of Botany, the forced colony. With book #3 having wrapped up the major plot points, this work doesn't so much as explore life after empire as gently stroll through it while drinking iced coffee.
Like the Cattini books that came before, this book lacks any tension in it whatsoever, so you never have any doubts that our heroes will succeed, while failing to provide any character growth or challenges, while also dwelling on filler where everyone is agreeable but nobody gets any character moments.
While the work reads well, the lack of momentum or tension or anything leaves the book wanting. What SF that there is comes across as rather tepid, which is something of a feat as Earth is rebuilding after their occupation by the Cattini and you would think that would be an interesting and challenging story. Instead, Earth seems to have everything in hand, nobody seems to be fighting anybody else, and instead of riding this terrific setup into a challenging and engaging story, sips coffee and sets up an Irish coffee bar.
While I can't call this McCaffrey's worst book ever (because book #2 in this series already did that), the book does demonstrate a stunning degree of banality in the face of a terrific setup. Most of what's here is wasted, its premise completely unexploited. I'd of given this book only two stars, but it actually contains a basic story arc.
Like the Cattini books that came before, this book lacks any tension in it whatsoever, so you never have any doubts that our heroes will succeed, while failing to provide any character growth or challenges, while also dwelling on filler where everyone is agreeable but nobody gets any character moments.
While the work reads well, the lack of momentum or tension or anything leaves the book wanting. What SF that there is comes across as rather tepid, which is something of a feat as Earth is rebuilding after their occupation by the Cattini and you would think that would be an interesting and challenging story. Instead, Earth seems to have everything in hand, nobody seems to be fighting anybody else, and instead of riding this terrific setup into a challenging and engaging story, sips coffee and sets up an Irish coffee bar.
While I can't call this McCaffrey's worst book ever (because book #2 in this series already did that), the book does demonstrate a stunning degree of banality in the face of a terrific setup. Most of what's here is wasted, its premise completely unexploited. I'd of given this book only two stars, but it actually contains a basic story arc.
January 20, 2021
Hmmm - have to say that this is a weird way to end a series and makes me wonder whether the author had plans for more stories. The last novel, with the defeat of the Eosi and the freeing of Earth, was a much better climax - this one is basically about bartering with the survivors on both sides and accidentally finding the crown jewels!
To be fair, it wasn't as boring as it sounds. There's a lot of humour running through it (I was reminder of the Trotter's market stall in Only Fools and Horses on more than one occassion!) and McCaffrey's usual good story telling is hugely evident. But I just didn't feel that it went anywhere - more plans are made and a large amount of cargo is 'liberated' from the Catteni, but the situation at the end of the book wasn't that far different from the beginning - except now they have bananas!
I enjoyed the trip back to Earth and how the survivors there are remaking the world, but the whole trade in coffee and dentistry just seemed a bit on the random side to me.
Overall, an ok read, but not a series I would rush back to read - I'll stick to McCaffrey's Dragons.
To be fair, it wasn't as boring as it sounds. There's a lot of humour running through it (I was reminder of the Trotter's market stall in Only Fools and Horses on more than one occassion!) and McCaffrey's usual good story telling is hugely evident. But I just didn't feel that it went anywhere - more plans are made and a large amount of cargo is 'liberated' from the Catteni, but the situation at the end of the book wasn't that far different from the beginning - except now they have bananas!
I enjoyed the trip back to Earth and how the survivors there are remaking the world, but the whole trade in coffee and dentistry just seemed a bit on the random side to me.
Overall, an ok read, but not a series I would rush back to read - I'll stick to McCaffrey's Dragons.
December 17, 2018
I’m so happy to be done. As a reader who MUST read all books in a series (no matter what), I am glad that I did.
I will agree with most of the previous reviews that the first book was the best and the bar was not reached with the books that followed.
I was disappointed with how Kris ended up as just ordinary. When you think about it, if she were to put in an application to live on the new Botany.....she would probably be denied.
Her only claim to fame was being “Zainal’s mate” which was mentioned way too many times than it needed to be.
It’s almost like all the strong female characters became a backstory. It’s as if it was written by someone else. Even Chuck Mitford’s character became a shell of the man he once was!
I could go on and on, but I gave it 4 stars for the possibility of what this last book could have done for the series as a whole. It wasn’t bad, but it sure could have been better! Coffee anyone?
I will agree with most of the previous reviews that the first book was the best and the bar was not reached with the books that followed.
I was disappointed with how Kris ended up as just ordinary. When you think about it, if she were to put in an application to live on the new Botany.....she would probably be denied.
Her only claim to fame was being “Zainal’s mate” which was mentioned way too many times than it needed to be.
It’s almost like all the strong female characters became a backstory. It’s as if it was written by someone else. Even Chuck Mitford’s character became a shell of the man he once was!
I could go on and on, but I gave it 4 stars for the possibility of what this last book could have done for the series as a whole. It wasn’t bad, but it sure could have been better! Coffee anyone?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 20, 2020
Zainal has a plan to contact the Farmers, but first, he goes shopping. Kris, Zainal, his sons, and a few other colonists travel to Earth, pick up supplies and then head off to Baveri.
Lots of Cattani need dental work, and they like coffee. So our heroes need dental equipment and coffee to bargain with the Cattinai on Baveri. They already have a dentist.
This is the last book in the series, which is unfortunate because we never get to meet the farmers. That would have been a much more interesting story. Since this book starts out talking about plans to find the farmers, then goes on a shopping spree, it is a little disappointing, I kept waiting to find the farmers
Even so, it is a good read. The worldbuilding is excellent, and the plot keeps moving right along.
Reviewed by Romana Drew August 9, 2019
Lots of Cattani need dental work, and they like coffee. So our heroes need dental equipment and coffee to bargain with the Cattinai on Baveri. They already have a dentist.
This is the last book in the series, which is unfortunate because we never get to meet the farmers. That would have been a much more interesting story. Since this book starts out talking about plans to find the farmers, then goes on a shopping spree, it is a little disappointing, I kept waiting to find the farmers
Even so, it is a good read. The worldbuilding is excellent, and the plot keeps moving right along.
Reviewed by Romana Drew August 9, 2019
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