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Empire of Bones Saga #1
Empire of Bones
The Terran Empire is dead. Long live the Empire! Commander Jared Mertz, the bastard son of the Emperor, and his half-sister, Princess Kelsey, barely speak to one another. To their dismay, their father seizes an opportunity to change that and sends them on a dangerous quest to explore the fallen Empire.
Separated from home by an impassable gulf and struggling to redefine their relationship, they find themselves thrust into a vicious war. Unless they work together to stop the Empire’s deadly legacy, billions face a horrific fate.
Separated from home by an impassable gulf and struggling to redefine their relationship, they find themselves thrust into a vicious war. Unless they work together to stop the Empire’s deadly legacy, billions face a horrific fate.
212 pages, Paperback
First published July 25, 2014
668 people are currently reading
851 people want to read
About the author
Terry Mixon
86 books298 followers#1 Bestselling Military Science Fiction author Terry Mixon served as a non-commissioned officer in the United States Army 101st Airborne Division. He later worked alongside the flight controllers in the Mission Control Center at the NASA Johnson Space Center supporting the Space Shuttle, the International Space Station, and other human spaceflight projects.
He now writes full time while living in Texas with his lovely wife and a pounce of cats.
He now writes full time while living in Texas with his lovely wife and a pounce of cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 117 reviews
July 8, 2016
The book started well, but foundered on the incredibly callow MCs and writing. I could deal with it at first, until the author made one of them do something so stupid and contrived I nearly quit the book in disgust. There must have been a better way to advance the plot without having one of the main characters act like a spoiled little entitled tstl twit. I don't even know what to call it - it's like a deux ex machina, only with an improbable series of events and actions leading to something bad happening that is needed to advance the plot and trigger the climax of the book.
I'm tempted to give it 2 stars, but I usually reserve those for books I regret reading or finishing. I will read book 2, but to sum up my feelings:
This particular blunder is known as deus ex machina, which is French for “Are you fucking kidding me?”
- Mittelmark, Howard; Newman, Sandra, "How Not to Write a Novel"
I'm tempted to give it 2 stars, but I usually reserve those for books I regret reading or finishing. I will read book 2, but to sum up my feelings:
This particular blunder is known as deus ex machina, which is French for “Are you fucking kidding me?”
- Mittelmark, Howard; Newman, Sandra, "How Not to Write a Novel"
August 3, 2014
I received a beta version of Empire of Bones a few months ago and have been eagerly awaiting its finalization. A first in series book, it establishes an epic quest that promises to be worthy of digging in for the long haul. Nuanced and highly sympathetic lead characters, a strong supporting cast, as well as true interstellar hard science, make this a must read (and re-read!) for me.
October 16, 2016
As the story went we got to see new things and how some people have evolve with what they have. People at different levels of technology evolution. There are implants that are a curiosity, attacks from what appears to be a salvage race of people, and what of the old empire. So many different avenues that seem to cross and connect, but how? It was great how it was presented through actions and events that kept me interested, invested, and learning more and more. The empire is divided, yet there are pieces of it evolving at different rates in unknown systems.
I'm hooked! I enjoyed the adventure into the unknown. All the new we see and the battles we fight. The events our characters live through, and what they will have to live with is challenging. I WANT to continue with these characters as they learn to adjust to new tech they come across. Along with meeting all out in space, friend and foe.
****FULL REVIEW****
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com, at my request.
Jared is leaving for at least eighteen months to explore outer boundary space. Kelsey is drawn to the ruins and possibilities of finding the Old Terran Empire that was long ago lost. Jared is not happy when the Imperial Princess, second in line to the throne, arrives on his ship as a Diplomatic Representative for this exploration on orders from the Imperial Emperor. Also that she's his half sister who hardly knows him or speaks with him since learning he's an illegitimate child to the Emperor. Now, they are on a ship directed into the unknown. Together for at least a year.
I really enjoy Veronica and her many voices. She makes it so easy to differentiate the characters by voice and personality. She doesn't have as many accents as she's known for, but the personalities are clear. She speaks clear with a distinct feel to the words, there is no way to think they blend together when she speaks. This is one of her earlier works, it's from 2014, which shows she's always tried to differentiate different characters through tone, timber, and personality in voices.
This is the sort of science fiction I really enjoy. It has the feel of a high fantasy setting with adventure and danger, yet set in space. No magic or dwarves in that manner, but in the story telling it resembled high fantasy to me. I really enjoyed the adventure into the dark unknown of space with this crew. There are times I smiled and others I felt the worry. Their are well placed thoughts that make us worry of what could possibly come next on the road ahead of them. Dare I say a sort of space opera in a sense with the characters?
I listened closely to catch as much as I could about the history of the Old Terran. There feels to be so much there and a troubled history with the Rebels. Nice set up and drawing us into it. I had questions and was curious to learn about Old Terran and what happened in the Empire as much as the explorers in the book, hoping to find some clue to the past.
There was mention of Flip Points in space that are used to travel between systems. At first I wasn't sure what these were or how they worked. When I really understood what they were was when we got to use one. I shouldn't have been worried in hoping I understood because Terry made it easy to understand when the time came to know. Thank you Terry.
We get the story from Jared and Kelsey's point of views. Two very different views of each other and the world, which gives us strong feelings for what is happening around them.
Jared is a great captain, in my book. He doesn't live better than his marines and he's not afraid to do the work as well. He earns respect from his crew and well deserves it. He's a genuine guy that you could like but he's stern when it comes to the way things are done on his ship. He cares about his people.
I really like Kelsey. She fits in so well with the rough and tough guys of the Marines. She's strong in her mind and intelligent. Kelsey is of the age that Jared was when he joined the Fleet, learning of his parentage. Kelsey now learns news that could shatter her and her twin brother's world. She's living with something that is very similar to what Jared had to face at the same age, bringing her to have a new view on her half brother. Kelsey also knows, somethings are best left untold, and I think all would agree with this information being one of them. But can it be kept that way? Could this jeopardize who Kelsey is and what Kelsey does?
As the story went we got to see new things and how some people have evolve with what they have. People at different levels of technology evolution. There are implants that are a curiosity, attacks from what appears to be a salvage race of people, and what of the old empire. So many different avenues that seem to cross and connect, but how? It was great how it was presented through actions and events that kept me interested, invested, and learning more and more. The empire is divided, yet there are pieces of it evolving at different rates in unknown systems.
I'm hooked! I enjoyed the adventure into the unknown. All the new we see and the battles we fight. The events our characters live through, and what they will have to live with is challenging. I WANT to continue with these characters as they learn to adjust to new tech they come across. Along with meeting all out in space, friend and foe.
I'm hooked! I enjoyed the adventure into the unknown. All the new we see and the battles we fight. The events our characters live through, and what they will have to live with is challenging. I WANT to continue with these characters as they learn to adjust to new tech they come across. Along with meeting all out in space, friend and foe.
****FULL REVIEW****
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com, at my request.
Jared is leaving for at least eighteen months to explore outer boundary space. Kelsey is drawn to the ruins and possibilities of finding the Old Terran Empire that was long ago lost. Jared is not happy when the Imperial Princess, second in line to the throne, arrives on his ship as a Diplomatic Representative for this exploration on orders from the Imperial Emperor. Also that she's his half sister who hardly knows him or speaks with him since learning he's an illegitimate child to the Emperor. Now, they are on a ship directed into the unknown. Together for at least a year.
I really enjoy Veronica and her many voices. She makes it so easy to differentiate the characters by voice and personality. She doesn't have as many accents as she's known for, but the personalities are clear. She speaks clear with a distinct feel to the words, there is no way to think they blend together when she speaks. This is one of her earlier works, it's from 2014, which shows she's always tried to differentiate different characters through tone, timber, and personality in voices.
This is the sort of science fiction I really enjoy. It has the feel of a high fantasy setting with adventure and danger, yet set in space. No magic or dwarves in that manner, but in the story telling it resembled high fantasy to me. I really enjoyed the adventure into the dark unknown of space with this crew. There are times I smiled and others I felt the worry. Their are well placed thoughts that make us worry of what could possibly come next on the road ahead of them. Dare I say a sort of space opera in a sense with the characters?
I listened closely to catch as much as I could about the history of the Old Terran. There feels to be so much there and a troubled history with the Rebels. Nice set up and drawing us into it. I had questions and was curious to learn about Old Terran and what happened in the Empire as much as the explorers in the book, hoping to find some clue to the past.
There was mention of Flip Points in space that are used to travel between systems. At first I wasn't sure what these were or how they worked. When I really understood what they were was when we got to use one. I shouldn't have been worried in hoping I understood because Terry made it easy to understand when the time came to know. Thank you Terry.
We get the story from Jared and Kelsey's point of views. Two very different views of each other and the world, which gives us strong feelings for what is happening around them.
Jared is a great captain, in my book. He doesn't live better than his marines and he's not afraid to do the work as well. He earns respect from his crew and well deserves it. He's a genuine guy that you could like but he's stern when it comes to the way things are done on his ship. He cares about his people.
I really like Kelsey. She fits in so well with the rough and tough guys of the Marines. She's strong in her mind and intelligent. Kelsey is of the age that Jared was when he joined the Fleet, learning of his parentage. Kelsey now learns news that could shatter her and her twin brother's world. She's living with something that is very similar to what Jared had to face at the same age, bringing her to have a new view on her half brother. Kelsey also knows, somethings are best left untold, and I think all would agree with this information being one of them. But can it be kept that way? Could this jeopardize who Kelsey is and what Kelsey does?
As the story went we got to see new things and how some people have evolve with what they have. People at different levels of technology evolution. There are implants that are a curiosity, attacks from what appears to be a salvage race of people, and what of the old empire. So many different avenues that seem to cross and connect, but how? It was great how it was presented through actions and events that kept me interested, invested, and learning more and more. The empire is divided, yet there are pieces of it evolving at different rates in unknown systems.
I'm hooked! I enjoyed the adventure into the unknown. All the new we see and the battles we fight. The events our characters live through, and what they will have to live with is challenging. I WANT to continue with these characters as they learn to adjust to new tech they come across. Along with meeting all out in space, friend and foe.
July 8, 2016
(2.5)
I hate to be the lone voice of dissent, but this book, though not terrible, is a far cry from good. The characters are wooden, the dialogue clunks, and the author shows generally a tin ear for language in general and names in particular ("Jared Mertz" is not a heroic space captain name, and let us not speak of Princess Kelsey for all love).
The story ambles along, interspersed with some genuinely cool sci-fi stuff, and then some TRULY bone-headed actions on the part of the characters. Seriously, this guy is a space captain? Not just some random dude pulled off the street? Sometimes it was a little hard to swallow. Many of the characters' actions felt dictated from on high for the sake of the plot, rather than natural outgrowths of their personalities (their personalities were pretty surface-y, though, so it's hard to say for sure), and several plot-important conclusions are similarly Hand-of-God-ed rather than being arrived at logically.
Let's give credit, though. I did read the whole thing (though I was skimming pretty hard-core for the last 20% or so), and it was a free download. I can't help but feel that with some guidance, though, this could have gone from an okay read to a really good one.
I hate to be the lone voice of dissent, but this book, though not terrible, is a far cry from good. The characters are wooden, the dialogue clunks, and the author shows generally a tin ear for language in general and names in particular ("Jared Mertz" is not a heroic space captain name, and let us not speak of Princess Kelsey for all love).
The story ambles along, interspersed with some genuinely cool sci-fi stuff, and then some TRULY bone-headed actions on the part of the characters. Seriously, this guy is a space captain? Not just some random dude pulled off the street? Sometimes it was a little hard to swallow. Many of the characters' actions felt dictated from on high for the sake of the plot, rather than natural outgrowths of their personalities (their personalities were pretty surface-y, though, so it's hard to say for sure), and several plot-important conclusions are similarly Hand-of-God-ed rather than being arrived at logically.
Let's give credit, though. I did read the whole thing (though I was skimming pretty hard-core for the last 20% or so), and it was a free download. I can't help but feel that with some guidance, though, this could have gone from an okay read to a really good one.
October 22, 2025
Old style space opera is alive and well. The ancient Empire had imploded through internal rebellion, or so it seems. There is a hint the destruction may have been caused by a misuse of A.I., or A.I. deciding it was time to hit back at its human overlords. What is left are isolated civilizations slowly recovering their space travel technologies in separated parts of the long dead empire.
A new self-styled Terran Empire has emerged on the planet Avalon governed by Emperor Karl Bandar and his family. Karl is definitely the father of Ethan, Kelsey and Jared, the mothers are less clearly defined. Meanwhile, light years away, the planet Pentagar has produced its own royal Kingdom and come under attack from a people in thrall to whoever or whatever was behind the fall of the original empire. For no apparent reason they are called the Pale Ones.
As this is volume one of a series a great deal of space is given to explanations of characters and history but stick with it, it gets better. Jared Mertz, captain of the warship Athena and bastard son of Emperor Karl, is sent on an exploratory mission with his crew. Now this is a universe without warp drive, phasers and “beam me up Scotty” technology, so the Athena must flip, basically use wormholes, to jump light years away from its start position. When they do so the Athena emerges in a planetary system that contains the hulk of an ancient Empire starship ripe for exploitation and an ongoing war between Pentagar and the Pale Ones.
Jared chooses to intervene and forms an alliance with his fellow royalists. It is one of the peculiar things about this future universe, democracy seems to have died a long time ago and everyone who matters is happy with lords and ladies, emperors and kings and, although it is never mentioned, probably serfs and peasants. Anyway, the adventure proceeds in good old rip-roaring shoot `em up fashion.
The author served with the US Army and worked at the NASA Johnson Space Center and that informs the text. When he is describing the workings of advanced technology or the ins and outs of military strategy he is clearly in his element, and story zips along. However, when he has to penetrate the personal relationships of his characters the style stutters, particularly when Princess Kelsey is involved. The dialogue sounds suspiciously like a middle-aged man imagining how a young adult speaks.
There are no real surprises or innovations in the story. It is straight forward space opera and one either likes it or leaves it. Personally on its overall strengths I would be happy to carry on to volume two.
A new self-styled Terran Empire has emerged on the planet Avalon governed by Emperor Karl Bandar and his family. Karl is definitely the father of Ethan, Kelsey and Jared, the mothers are less clearly defined. Meanwhile, light years away, the planet Pentagar has produced its own royal Kingdom and come under attack from a people in thrall to whoever or whatever was behind the fall of the original empire. For no apparent reason they are called the Pale Ones.
As this is volume one of a series a great deal of space is given to explanations of characters and history but stick with it, it gets better. Jared Mertz, captain of the warship Athena and bastard son of Emperor Karl, is sent on an exploratory mission with his crew. Now this is a universe without warp drive, phasers and “beam me up Scotty” technology, so the Athena must flip, basically use wormholes, to jump light years away from its start position. When they do so the Athena emerges in a planetary system that contains the hulk of an ancient Empire starship ripe for exploitation and an ongoing war between Pentagar and the Pale Ones.
Jared chooses to intervene and forms an alliance with his fellow royalists. It is one of the peculiar things about this future universe, democracy seems to have died a long time ago and everyone who matters is happy with lords and ladies, emperors and kings and, although it is never mentioned, probably serfs and peasants. Anyway, the adventure proceeds in good old rip-roaring shoot `em up fashion.
The author served with the US Army and worked at the NASA Johnson Space Center and that informs the text. When he is describing the workings of advanced technology or the ins and outs of military strategy he is clearly in his element, and story zips along. However, when he has to penetrate the personal relationships of his characters the style stutters, particularly when Princess Kelsey is involved. The dialogue sounds suspiciously like a middle-aged man imagining how a young adult speaks.
There are no real surprises or innovations in the story. It is straight forward space opera and one either likes it or leaves it. Personally on its overall strengths I would be happy to carry on to volume two.
July 30, 2014
Empire of Bones is a sweet bit of space opera with a little dash of military SF mixed in.
I read a near-finished version of Empire of Bones voluntarily to help the author see if everything was ship-shape (known as a beta read, kind of like a beta for a game or early screening for a movie). I am not the author's neighbor, brother, father, uncle, father's uncle's brother, or a paid for reviewer from Indonesia.
Why I say this is Amazon *will not* flag me as a 'verified purchaser' of Empire of Bones, but I assure you I read this and did so with a *critical eye* -- hell, that was my job as a beta reader!
Empire of Bones was the first space opera type story I had read in a while and it got me excited about the genre again. There is nothing quite like the mysteries of open space and the dangers of what's around the 'corner' at the next, unexplored, jump point.
Exploration, mystery, derelict craft, and some nasty bad-guys make for a tight book, but more importantly, the characters make it sing. I found myself taken in by the plight of Jared Mertz -- being the bastard son of an emperor ain't easy -- and his half-sister Princess Kelsey as they get involved in old mysteries (what happened to the old empire, where the hell are we, why is that ship trying to blow us up) and take what could be a one way trip to a forgotten part of space.
The pace is right on -- meet new people, spend some time with them, and then off they go to see new places. Gets hot'n'heavy by the midpoint and then wraps up with a bang. No wasted passages of meaningless drivel here. Every word advances the people or the plot, and when the space-dookie hits the warp-fan, you will feel like you know the characters. And there is little better than watching characters you like kick some rear when the time for rear-kicking comes!
In the end, if space exploration, the search for an ancient and collapsed empire of man, solid characters, and some good 'splody action bits is your thing, you will do well to give this a read.
I read a near-finished version of Empire of Bones voluntarily to help the author see if everything was ship-shape (known as a beta read, kind of like a beta for a game or early screening for a movie). I am not the author's neighbor, brother, father, uncle, father's uncle's brother, or a paid for reviewer from Indonesia.
Why I say this is Amazon *will not* flag me as a 'verified purchaser' of Empire of Bones, but I assure you I read this and did so with a *critical eye* -- hell, that was my job as a beta reader!
Empire of Bones was the first space opera type story I had read in a while and it got me excited about the genre again. There is nothing quite like the mysteries of open space and the dangers of what's around the 'corner' at the next, unexplored, jump point.
Exploration, mystery, derelict craft, and some nasty bad-guys make for a tight book, but more importantly, the characters make it sing. I found myself taken in by the plight of Jared Mertz -- being the bastard son of an emperor ain't easy -- and his half-sister Princess Kelsey as they get involved in old mysteries (what happened to the old empire, where the hell are we, why is that ship trying to blow us up) and take what could be a one way trip to a forgotten part of space.
The pace is right on -- meet new people, spend some time with them, and then off they go to see new places. Gets hot'n'heavy by the midpoint and then wraps up with a bang. No wasted passages of meaningless drivel here. Every word advances the people or the plot, and when the space-dookie hits the warp-fan, you will feel like you know the characters. And there is little better than watching characters you like kick some rear when the time for rear-kicking comes!
In the end, if space exploration, the search for an ancient and collapsed empire of man, solid characters, and some good 'splody action bits is your thing, you will do well to give this a read.
Read
July 27, 2022Not a home run
Rating: minus 2
I had a couple of years of comparison to awful books from Amazon selections, after writing the original review. When I wrote this, I was leaving notes to myself in order to create a database of good, bad and mediocre storytelling. I am slowly rewriting my 1300+ reviews for more completeness in my overall reaction for various reasons, one of which is to acknowledge that by some fluke a reader might look at my reviews.
Before deciding whether my reaction/three minute analysis will be of benefit, please read my review of "Dark Horse"', a good story by Diener or Powers of the Earth (a ridiculous book) and the comments by Claes Rees, Jr/cgr710 (a self-identified NeoNazi), who is the self-proclaimed speaker for all Goodreads members. If that is too great an ask, you are better served moving to another's review. Thank you.
GLORY TO UKRAINE !!!
The background is a hereditary monarchy expanding its exploration envelope. I have issues with the premise of any stable single person rule being plausible. Look at the rise and fall of the House of Vasa (Swedish branch), the dissolution of Alexander's empire, the European royal and imperial murder/suicide pact that was World War One or the War of the Spanish Succession. Any reading of any kingdom from the Warring States through all European wars from Rome's rise through the Napoleonic Wars would suffice to explain my objection.
That small but important detail, I was able to put aside. The family drama was different. The emperor is an incompetent ruler on the order of an ineffectual sitcom father. The pretense that a bastard will be welcome at the palace by his siblings for whom ascension to the throne is the only life plan, is cruel treatment by the king of his one responsible heir. To be unaware of the danger that he created for his bastard is difficult to accept.
To have the expectation that mid-twenty year olds will accept having a potential rival for the throne is stupid plotting. That rivalry for the throne including assassination might ensue, doesn't occur to the emperor. Worst parent ever. There is a redemption arc for the main character's sister but then the empress is written as a 1980 TV cheating wife. She suffers no consequences and has broken the Imperial Guard's loyalty to the throne. Read the historical stories of intrigue and death that accompanied similar behavior. "Caesar's wife must be beyond reproach."
Again having read the books, if you ignore the emperor and empress, it might be a pleasant read. The main character is fun to follow and cheer on. The other relationships and characters are perfect in this universe and in their roles. It was a pleasant read with very significant stellar discoveries and realistic and plausible fighting enough to keep a fan of science fiction happy. I really liked the writing except for the sections involving the imperial parental twits.
Unfortunately, once you're forced to challenge key plot points it's difficult to not examine all the rest. At this point, I am losing interest in science fiction but if I indulge, I prefer to watch rather than read. Netflix and all the other streaming services have fair to good science fiction available. For good documentaries, I use both Curiosity Stream/Nebula and YouTube. Curiosity Stream/Nebula is a good source of educational video and at $15 USD for a yearly subscription is worth a look. For things bookish, including readers whose comments are neither insane nor inane, I visit YouTube and it carries channels on my other interests also. Some favorites are.
UA Courage, History Line, Some More News, Second Thought, Novara Media, Dr Becky, Event Horizon, Tara Mooknee, Adult Wednesday Addams, Munecat, Lady of the Library, Between the Wars, Epic History, Tom Nicholas, Sarah Z, Philosophy Tube, Jabzy, History of the Earth, Books and Lala, Serena Skybourne, Swell Entertainment, Tibees, Maiorianus, Autumn's Boutique, Jenny Nicholson, France 24, Alize, Alice Cappelle, Jessica Gagnon, Art by Annamarie, Epic History TV, Hello Future Me, A Cup of Nicole, Double Down News, WION, Boat Time, Chugging Along, Second Thought, Dead Good Books, DUST, Natasha's Adventures, With Olivia, Cone of Arc, Chloe Stafler, Lady knight the Brave, The Armchair Historian, The Gravel Institute, Traveling K, Rebecca Watson, Epimetheus, 2Cellos, What Vivi did next, The Budget Museum, Between the Lines, Katie Colson, The Royal Institution, Dr Ben Miller, Dan Davis History, Military History Visualized, Cruising Alba, Camper Vibe, Practical Engineering, Casual Navigation, Books with Emily Fox, Bookslike Whoa, Big Joel, Patrick is a Navajo, Lilly's expat life, Jacobin, All Shorts, Weir on the move, Northern Narrowboaters, Kings and Generals, Tech Space, Physics Girl, Astrum, History with Cy, History of the Universe, Petrik Leo, The Shades of Orange, Digital Engine, Prime of Midlife, Sort of Interesting, The Juice Media, Overly Sarcastic Productions.
I wish you a gorgeous morning, a wonderful afternoon, a pleasant evening and a restful night.
Courtesy is Empathy made manifest.
Observations, Thirteenth Route Trade Fleet
Rating: minus 2
I had a couple of years of comparison to awful books from Amazon selections, after writing the original review. When I wrote this, I was leaving notes to myself in order to create a database of good, bad and mediocre storytelling. I am slowly rewriting my 1300+ reviews for more completeness in my overall reaction for various reasons, one of which is to acknowledge that by some fluke a reader might look at my reviews.
Before deciding whether my reaction/three minute analysis will be of benefit, please read my review of "Dark Horse"', a good story by Diener or Powers of the Earth (a ridiculous book) and the comments by Claes Rees, Jr/cgr710 (a self-identified NeoNazi), who is the self-proclaimed speaker for all Goodreads members. If that is too great an ask, you are better served moving to another's review. Thank you.
GLORY TO UKRAINE !!!
The background is a hereditary monarchy expanding its exploration envelope. I have issues with the premise of any stable single person rule being plausible. Look at the rise and fall of the House of Vasa (Swedish branch), the dissolution of Alexander's empire, the European royal and imperial murder/suicide pact that was World War One or the War of the Spanish Succession. Any reading of any kingdom from the Warring States through all European wars from Rome's rise through the Napoleonic Wars would suffice to explain my objection.
That small but important detail, I was able to put aside. The family drama was different. The emperor is an incompetent ruler on the order of an ineffectual sitcom father. The pretense that a bastard will be welcome at the palace by his siblings for whom ascension to the throne is the only life plan, is cruel treatment by the king of his one responsible heir. To be unaware of the danger that he created for his bastard is difficult to accept.
To have the expectation that mid-twenty year olds will accept having a potential rival for the throne is stupid plotting. That rivalry for the throne including assassination might ensue, doesn't occur to the emperor. Worst parent ever. There is a redemption arc for the main character's sister but then the empress is written as a 1980 TV cheating wife. She suffers no consequences and has broken the Imperial Guard's loyalty to the throne. Read the historical stories of intrigue and death that accompanied similar behavior. "Caesar's wife must be beyond reproach."
Again having read the books, if you ignore the emperor and empress, it might be a pleasant read. The main character is fun to follow and cheer on. The other relationships and characters are perfect in this universe and in their roles. It was a pleasant read with very significant stellar discoveries and realistic and plausible fighting enough to keep a fan of science fiction happy. I really liked the writing except for the sections involving the imperial parental twits.
Unfortunately, once you're forced to challenge key plot points it's difficult to not examine all the rest. At this point, I am losing interest in science fiction but if I indulge, I prefer to watch rather than read. Netflix and all the other streaming services have fair to good science fiction available. For good documentaries, I use both Curiosity Stream/Nebula and YouTube. Curiosity Stream/Nebula is a good source of educational video and at $15 USD for a yearly subscription is worth a look. For things bookish, including readers whose comments are neither insane nor inane, I visit YouTube and it carries channels on my other interests also. Some favorites are.
UA Courage, History Line, Some More News, Second Thought, Novara Media, Dr Becky, Event Horizon, Tara Mooknee, Adult Wednesday Addams, Munecat, Lady of the Library, Between the Wars, Epic History, Tom Nicholas, Sarah Z, Philosophy Tube, Jabzy, History of the Earth, Books and Lala, Serena Skybourne, Swell Entertainment, Tibees, Maiorianus, Autumn's Boutique, Jenny Nicholson, France 24, Alize, Alice Cappelle, Jessica Gagnon, Art by Annamarie, Epic History TV, Hello Future Me, A Cup of Nicole, Double Down News, WION, Boat Time, Chugging Along, Second Thought, Dead Good Books, DUST, Natasha's Adventures, With Olivia, Cone of Arc, Chloe Stafler, Lady knight the Brave, The Armchair Historian, The Gravel Institute, Traveling K, Rebecca Watson, Epimetheus, 2Cellos, What Vivi did next, The Budget Museum, Between the Lines, Katie Colson, The Royal Institution, Dr Ben Miller, Dan Davis History, Military History Visualized, Cruising Alba, Camper Vibe, Practical Engineering, Casual Navigation, Books with Emily Fox, Bookslike Whoa, Big Joel, Patrick is a Navajo, Lilly's expat life, Jacobin, All Shorts, Weir on the move, Northern Narrowboaters, Kings and Generals, Tech Space, Physics Girl, Astrum, History with Cy, History of the Universe, Petrik Leo, The Shades of Orange, Digital Engine, Prime of Midlife, Sort of Interesting, The Juice Media, Overly Sarcastic Productions.
I wish you a gorgeous morning, a wonderful afternoon, a pleasant evening and a restful night.
Courtesy is Empathy made manifest.
Observations, Thirteenth Route Trade Fleet
March 18, 2018
There isn't much wrong with the book, but it was definitely outside my expectations. I expected this to be the story of a bastard son to the Emperor proving himself as a Fleet Captain. Instead, most of the story reads as a Princess coming of age tale. Kelsey is fine, but she is not the person I was interested in reading about.
Overall, in this first book, the characters a bit one dimensional. Kelsey starts off as a bit of an ignorant Princess but one who has the ability to be introspective and make intelligent decisions. She initially hates her half-brother, but by the start of the book has learned he is not the one she should hate. Then time is spent going over how she wants a role in the Empire and which roles she has tried and which ones she wants to do. In the end, her role in this book is Ambassador and Princess, so it's not a big leap. I'd say her character evolves slightly from ignorant and spoiled princess to one that is less spoiled, only for it to devolve back by the end.
Jared actually has little going for him. He's a competent Captain, praised as brilliant by his commanders, and it seems that his position as a bastard Emperor's son has done more harm to his Fleet career than boost. He and his siblings have a bad relationship but his father tries to make them closer. Other than that, he is loyal, curious, and one of the worst captains I've encountered yet.
Kelsey is undoubtedly the main protagonist. Most the plot revolves around her and her struggles, and her decisions are generally what further the plot along. Jared makes some of those decisions, seeing as he is the Captain of their ship, but Kelsey ultimately drives the story.
This is definitely where my largest disappointments lie. I simply didn't care for Kelsey. I never wanted her as a main character, and if I had known how much attention was given to her, I probably wouldn't have read the book. She isn't unlikable, but I simply didn't like her enough to care. I actually kept waiting (hoping) she would die. I'm used to Princesses, I've never really cared for them, so I wanted the more unique story from Jared. It felt more like Jared and Kelsey could have been one person, but they were split apart for dramatic story reasons.
The plot is interesting and does contain a decent amount of suspense and thrill. Overall the tone of the book is light, but there were some more tense moments. Combat moments tend to be short and vague, limited usually to shooting missiles and evading enemy ships. Moments that required an Ambassador are painfully uneventful, casual, and safe. I can count on one hand and still have fingers left over the number of antagonistic characters/entities. Everyone else is happy, nice, competent, and friendly. What I'm saying is that the story becomes incredibly idealistic on the human relationship front and that was a bummer.
I can't really complain about the military or the science aspect. I've never served and I studied a different engineering, so I can only compare this book to other books. It doesn't stack up as much on the technical side, some explanations are definitely needed, but I was actually able to understand everything instead of taking everything for granted. The military side seemed significantly less formal than I was expecting, but I take fiction like this with only a slight nod to realism.
While I don't know if I'll personally continue reading the series, I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading this book to make their own decisions. I personally dislike reading about Kelsey-type characters and this set-up, so I reiterate that Kelsey is as much a main character, if not a greater protagonist, than Captain Jared Mertz, and not necessarily a good one.
Looking at other reviews, many others disliked Kelsey. I realize I'm not leaving a scathing review because this sadly isn't the worst book I've read in the last 24 hours. I honestly feel quite apathetic about the whole book.
Overall, in this first book, the characters a bit one dimensional. Kelsey starts off as a bit of an ignorant Princess but one who has the ability to be introspective and make intelligent decisions. She initially hates her half-brother, but by the start of the book has learned he is not the one she should hate. Then time is spent going over how she wants a role in the Empire and which roles she has tried and which ones she wants to do. In the end, her role in this book is Ambassador and Princess, so it's not a big leap. I'd say her character evolves slightly from ignorant and spoiled princess to one that is less spoiled, only for it to devolve back by the end.
Jared actually has little going for him. He's a competent Captain, praised as brilliant by his commanders, and it seems that his position as a bastard Emperor's son has done more harm to his Fleet career than boost. He and his siblings have a bad relationship but his father tries to make them closer. Other than that, he is loyal, curious, and one of the worst captains I've encountered yet.
Kelsey is undoubtedly the main protagonist. Most the plot revolves around her and her struggles, and her decisions are generally what further the plot along. Jared makes some of those decisions, seeing as he is the Captain of their ship, but Kelsey ultimately drives the story.
This is definitely where my largest disappointments lie. I simply didn't care for Kelsey. I never wanted her as a main character, and if I had known how much attention was given to her, I probably wouldn't have read the book. She isn't unlikable, but I simply didn't like her enough to care. I actually kept waiting (hoping) she would die. I'm used to Princesses, I've never really cared for them, so I wanted the more unique story from Jared. It felt more like Jared and Kelsey could have been one person, but they were split apart for dramatic story reasons.
The plot is interesting and does contain a decent amount of suspense and thrill. Overall the tone of the book is light, but there were some more tense moments. Combat moments tend to be short and vague, limited usually to shooting missiles and evading enemy ships. Moments that required an Ambassador are painfully uneventful, casual, and safe. I can count on one hand and still have fingers left over the number of antagonistic characters/entities. Everyone else is happy, nice, competent, and friendly. What I'm saying is that the story becomes incredibly idealistic on the human relationship front and that was a bummer.
I can't really complain about the military or the science aspect. I've never served and I studied a different engineering, so I can only compare this book to other books. It doesn't stack up as much on the technical side, some explanations are definitely needed, but I was actually able to understand everything instead of taking everything for granted. The military side seemed significantly less formal than I was expecting, but I take fiction like this with only a slight nod to realism.
While I don't know if I'll personally continue reading the series, I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading this book to make their own decisions. I personally dislike reading about Kelsey-type characters and this set-up, so I reiterate that Kelsey is as much a main character, if not a greater protagonist, than Captain Jared Mertz, and not necessarily a good one.
Looking at other reviews, many others disliked Kelsey. I realize I'm not leaving a scathing review because this sadly isn't the worst book I've read in the last 24 hours. I honestly feel quite apathetic about the whole book.
July 28, 2020
This review actually will cover the entire "Empire of Bones saga".
The stories are entertaining and engaging - they are fun reads and I enjoy them. I'm reading them through Kindle Unlimited and they are worth the monthly cost.
On the 'down' side:
1) A lot of story points are derivative from other stories / books by other authors- sometime blatantly so.
2) Spends too much time with the 'background' at times, taking 5 paragraphs or more to describe something when 1 or 2 would do.
3) Huge difference in dialog - most of the time it's good and tight and then "POOF" - all of a sudden it with be stilted and 6th grade level.
4) Spends too much time covering things that were covered in earlier books. ESPECIALLY things that are covered in EVERY book. If it's book 7 of the series we do not need the full and detailed description on how something happened or how a piece of technology works in EVERY SINGLE BOOK.
5) Trying to make a book more exciting by adding more people and plot points when they are not needed and basically just confuse the reader after awhile.
The stories are entertaining and engaging - they are fun reads and I enjoy them. I'm reading them through Kindle Unlimited and they are worth the monthly cost.
On the 'down' side:
1) A lot of story points are derivative from other stories / books by other authors- sometime blatantly so.
2) Spends too much time with the 'background' at times, taking 5 paragraphs or more to describe something when 1 or 2 would do.
3) Huge difference in dialog - most of the time it's good and tight and then "POOF" - all of a sudden it with be stilted and 6th grade level.
4) Spends too much time covering things that were covered in earlier books. ESPECIALLY things that are covered in EVERY book. If it's book 7 of the series we do not need the full and detailed description on how something happened or how a piece of technology works in EVERY SINGLE BOOK.
5) Trying to make a book more exciting by adding more people and plot points when they are not needed and basically just confuse the reader after awhile.
July 2, 2019
I was provided a review copy courtesy of the author.
Empire of Bones is a future history space opera with a military scifi feel. I think all of those things are important descriptors, because it sets the stage for what kind of book this is trying to be. If you are interested in that, this book will be a lot of fun.
So what kind of book is this? Primarily, it is an adventure story, the kind of thing J. D. Cowan usefully described as “exploring new lands, peoples, and possibilities”. The primary fun is seeing what is around the next corner. But there are a lot of different ways to approach this kind of story, so let’s look further.
We, and the protagonists, find ourselves in our own far future, which is why I call it a future history. A future history, and its close cousin alternative history, look at how the world might be if you assume a certain pivotal event occurs. The primary difference is whether that event is in the past, or the future. The preeminent example of this in my mind is Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven’s CoDominium, and the greatest book set in that universe is the Mote in God’s Eye, which which this book shares common themes. The Terran Empire, a galaxy-spanning civilization, came to a terrible end nearly five hundred years prior to this novel, except the Imperial heir escaped to a remote world to refound the dynasty. Now, that world is reaching out to the stars again.
In addition to the second foundation of the Empire of Man, another element that Empire of Bones shares with Mote is a naval emphasis. There is a grand old tradition of naval adventure novels, with Master and Commander being an example, which military scifi novels of this type tends to draw upon. The convention has become that space navies follow the tradition of oceanic navies, with different authors picking different national traditions to draw upon in order to flesh out shipboard routine.
An interesting difference here is that Niven and Pournelle based their navy on the age of sail. In the CoDominium, it takes weeks to traverse between Alderson points within a system, making travel times long for a journey of any distance. For Empire of Bones, the drive technology is far more powerful, resulting in travel times over similar distances of mere days. In addition to altering the political dynamic by making it possible for the universe to effectively be smaller, it makes ship combat very different, like battleships that move like fighter aircraft. Well, fighter craft with a hell of a lot of momentum.
It is also a space opera, which means that our hero and heroine are legendary figures in the making. We can expect them to get into trouble and then barely escape, using pluck, wits, and any sweet Old Empire technology they manage to scrounge up. I also think space opera is dominant in the mix, which means that we are not primarily going to be getting a careful look at how history might unfold if you follow Toynbee’s model of history, which is the back story of Mote. You also aren’t going to get detailed logistics or the kind of fussy battle planning which means the Captain never leads the away party.
We do get pitched battles, unknown enemies of unusual viciousness, melodrama, and romance. Space Opera. For example, our female protagonist, Kelsey Bandar, spare heir to the Terran Empire, is ostensibly on board the ship as the understudy to a more experienced diplomat.
As it turns out due to an unfortunate series of events, Kelsey ends up with approximately the same negotiating skills as Korben Dallas.
If you want scifi that is more on the speculative end, or military scifi that strongly focuses on realism [you send middies to die on away missions], then you may not find what you are looking for here. If you like seeing bad guys blown up and exploring and reconquering worlds that humanity lost, then this is probably for you.
Empire of Bones is a future history space opera with a military scifi feel. I think all of those things are important descriptors, because it sets the stage for what kind of book this is trying to be. If you are interested in that, this book will be a lot of fun.
So what kind of book is this? Primarily, it is an adventure story, the kind of thing J. D. Cowan usefully described as “exploring new lands, peoples, and possibilities”. The primary fun is seeing what is around the next corner. But there are a lot of different ways to approach this kind of story, so let’s look further.
We, and the protagonists, find ourselves in our own far future, which is why I call it a future history. A future history, and its close cousin alternative history, look at how the world might be if you assume a certain pivotal event occurs. The primary difference is whether that event is in the past, or the future. The preeminent example of this in my mind is Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven’s CoDominium, and the greatest book set in that universe is the Mote in God’s Eye, which which this book shares common themes. The Terran Empire, a galaxy-spanning civilization, came to a terrible end nearly five hundred years prior to this novel, except the Imperial heir escaped to a remote world to refound the dynasty. Now, that world is reaching out to the stars again.
In addition to the second foundation of the Empire of Man, another element that Empire of Bones shares with Mote is a naval emphasis. There is a grand old tradition of naval adventure novels, with Master and Commander being an example, which military scifi novels of this type tends to draw upon. The convention has become that space navies follow the tradition of oceanic navies, with different authors picking different national traditions to draw upon in order to flesh out shipboard routine.
An interesting difference here is that Niven and Pournelle based their navy on the age of sail. In the CoDominium, it takes weeks to traverse between Alderson points within a system, making travel times long for a journey of any distance. For Empire of Bones, the drive technology is far more powerful, resulting in travel times over similar distances of mere days. In addition to altering the political dynamic by making it possible for the universe to effectively be smaller, it makes ship combat very different, like battleships that move like fighter aircraft. Well, fighter craft with a hell of a lot of momentum.
It is also a space opera, which means that our hero and heroine are legendary figures in the making. We can expect them to get into trouble and then barely escape, using pluck, wits, and any sweet Old Empire technology they manage to scrounge up. I also think space opera is dominant in the mix, which means that we are not primarily going to be getting a careful look at how history might unfold if you follow Toynbee’s model of history, which is the back story of Mote. You also aren’t going to get detailed logistics or the kind of fussy battle planning which means the Captain never leads the away party.
We do get pitched battles, unknown enemies of unusual viciousness, melodrama, and romance. Space Opera. For example, our female protagonist, Kelsey Bandar, spare heir to the Terran Empire, is ostensibly on board the ship as the understudy to a more experienced diplomat.
As it turns out due to an unfortunate series of events, Kelsey ends up with approximately the same negotiating skills as Korben Dallas.
If you want scifi that is more on the speculative end, or military scifi that strongly focuses on realism [you send middies to die on away missions], then you may not find what you are looking for here. If you like seeing bad guys blown up and exploring and reconquering worlds that humanity lost, then this is probably for you.
March 18, 2021
First, this is the fifth time I've listened to this series and I still love every second of it. I'll list my overall thoughts and then link to the full review on my website!
My full review:
https://jrhandley.com/2018/11/02/book...
Characters:
In this novel, there are two main characters who we follow; Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey Bandar. Keeping the focus on two characters made you feel closer to them, which is how I like things. All of the secondary characters were a lot of fun as well! They were all fully realized, none of them felt flat or fake.
Commander Jared Mertz: He’s a senior naval officer of the largely peaceful New Terran Empire, but he felt real and not one of those stereotypical military pencil pushers from the Pax New Terra. He was a consummate professional who genuinely cared for the sailors and Marines under his command. He was a good officer, who knew his craft and was tactically creative during combat training simulations. He’s the kind of guy you’d want on your side if war ever did break out in the New Terran Empire. He’s the illegitimate son of the emperor, whose royal pedigree was discovered on his entrance physical for the Imperial Navy. This knowledge came with dark undertones, the Fleet tried to hold him back to prove they weren’t giving him special treatment. He was my favorite character in this novel, I enjoyed following him from the first word until the last! Overall, I really liked him and felt like there was so much more to come from him!
Princess Kelsey Bandar: When we first meet her, she’s the spoiled daughter of the New Terran Empire, a petite bombshell of sassy entitlement. Picture a princess in your mind, and you can envision Kelsey. She’s the “spare apparent,” a term I first heard from Terry Mixon and summed her role as the second in line to the imperial throne. When she decided she wants to find a mission for her life, to become more than her status as an imperial princess, her father turns her life upside down. I can’t say how without spoilers, so you’ll have to read the novel to find out. Overall, I was thrilled at her growth in this novel. Her character came alive on the page, giving Jared fits as he tried to corral her.
Overall, I really loved the two main characters and the entire supporting class of this book. I give these characters 5 out of 5 Grenades and can’t wait to see where the author takes them in the books to come!
Plot:
The premise for this series was not that different from other space opera stories out there, humanity post-earth trying to reclaim the spacefaring society that they’d left behind. However, the execution is where the author excels. His stories are pure escapism and enjoyment, under the banner of intergalactic science fiction. This book, like the rest of the novels in this series, fit squarely within the scope of space opera that I love to read. I loved that there were never any lulls that bored me, this novel was action-packed with a defined plot. The story is set as the New Terran Empire is finally revitalizing their exploration of the empire that they lost during the rebellion hundreds of years before the story began. It was never boring, and the characters and universe behaved in a way that made sense for the worlds the author created. It was a good set-up and well-executed premise that held my interest. Since I’ve read the rest of this series, I can assure you that there are bigger things to come from the Empire of Bones universe. I think that this is partly because I’ve become conditioned to these large expansive worlds because of the copious amounts of space opera that I read. This plot fits nicely into that framework, and Terry is raising the bar on this one. As you can tell by the gushing, I really got into this book. I couldn’t put it down; the plot was that compelling. Heck, this is my fourth or fifth re-reading of this series. I really loved the premise, and more importantly, I enjoyed how the execution. The pacing was excellent, and there was never a slow moment. There was never a point where the plot was confusing, or that I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I couldn’t ask for anything more; a unique premise, perfect execution, and incredible pacing! I again give Terry Mixon 5 out of 5 Grenades!
World Building:
This is the first book in the Empire of Bones Saga, and I absolutely loved it. The world was flushed out, and everything was explained in a way that made sense. The universe was consistent, with just enough of the mundane facets of life thrown in the fall grounded in this reality. Everything made sense and sucked you into the story. Some of the details seemed inconsequential, but those hooks just make me think that the larger universe will continue to grow and expand. I loved reading about the culture of the New Terran Empire, and Terry spoon fed us those details in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump. There was never anything he described that I couldn’t envision, or that felt like it wasn’t “real.” We get to see the weaponry and technology has evolved (or devolved) since the fall of the Terran Empire and feel inspired by what the characters have we gained access to. I could picture every setting described, easily envisioning myself living there. Heck, I’ve even entertained myself on long road trips telling side story set in this larger universe. When describing the world, Terry was light on the details… but not so much that I was lost or experienced the floating head syndrome. I could always picture the scene in my head, watching it in the movie theater of my mind. Despite being a bubblegum space opera, Terry has upped the bar of excellence, adding more sensory input to the mix; sights, sounds, smells, and feelings. He didn’t reinvent the wheel and built on the existing tropes of space opera. Instead, he made brought it into the 21st Century! Overall, the world building was well done, and I was sold on the way it happened. It felt believable, and the characters fit within the universe Terry Mixon created. Like most of the stories I read, this one didn’t take itself too seriously, which allowed you to focus on the fun which is why I read in the first place. I give the world building 5 out of 5 Grenades.
Description:
I have to give it to this author, this novel was chock-full of visualization, and you could definitely imagine yourself in this world. He described things across the sensory spectrum; sights, sounds, smells and even how the world felt. While I could visualize all of the characters, I would still love it if Terry could describe the characters physical traits in more details. He kept it light on the details, with just enough specifics to allow you to visualize it for yourself. I loved that Terry kept his language simple, reminding me of what I liked about Tom Clancy’s style of writing. Their genres aren’t the same, but their style of language is similar, and I like that. He balanced the explanation of this new world with the need to move a story along. This book didn’t have a single place where I couldn’t picture the scenery and the equipment, which added to the world that felt tangible and I enjoyed it. The author’s description of his universe was evocative, and enough to please your average readers. Again, I always prefer more descriptions over less, but Terry did enough to get the job done. In summary, I didn’t find any issues with the descriptions and was impressed by the literary skills of Terry. I wish he were more descriptive, but he gave you enough to form your own visual image. If you want a pulp era space opera, then this is the book for you! I give him 4 out of 5 grenades in this category.
Narration:
After becoming a fan of audiobooks, I’ve listened to over a hundred hours of stories read to me by awesome narrators like RC Bray, Luke Daniels and now Veronica Giguere. I’m confident in what I enjoy and what I dislike. I know that I hate accents that seem too cheesy and despise narrators that sound like robots. With those pesky caveats, I will review the narration quality of this novel. The audiobook was well done, and the accents were consistent. The narrator, Veronica Giguere, did a fantastic job narrating this book. I would definitely listen to more books by her, and with Amazon’s recent audiobook price increase, that is saying something. Heck, I’ve already bought all of the books by Terry Mixon that she’s produced. I’ve even bought books outside my preferred genre because I enjoy the quality of what she puts out there. She didn’t bore you, or make you zone out because of her monotone or vocal fry. Did that make me sound smart? Because I have no clue about vocal fry, but I do know that Veronica puts together a fine narration. Her performance didn’t feel robotic like a machine was reading the novel to me. You’ll often see that from me because it’ll drag me out of a book so fast that I can’t listen to it anymore. With Veronica Giguere, it felt like a friend was sitting with me reading an amazing story that she couldn’t put down. Only she made kind of cool voices, with believable accents that didn’t yank you out of the story. Overall, I give her 5 out of 5 grenades for her performance.
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. I’m honestly not a fan, they are all branded in the same universe, and the first one fit the market when it was released, but I don’t think they’ve aged well. In the current crowded market, these just blend into the background. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary, but I’m not a fan of the covers from this series. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments if you disagree.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. I didn’t like how they handled the trouble that happened when the crew jumps through the weak flip point. It seemed like they should’ve been more concerned about being trapped so far from home, but it was a necessary plot element for the rest of the story, so I went with it. It wasn’t badly told, it just seemed like a normal person would’ve reacted a little differently. Once we move past that, I believe that the characters responded as expected in the situation they found themselves in. When the crew finally engages in combat for the first time, however, I do believe that their understated reaction to the loss of life strains the bounds of incredulity. I didn’t need wailing were gnashing of teeth, but at least some indication that the losses were felt. The combat felt a little too sterile for my liking but fell well within the bounds of normal for the space opera subgenre. Again, I won’t downgrade for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. One of the things that I did enjoy about Terry’s novel was that they did seem to run out of supplies. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. He also showed the New Terran Empire’s newfound allies re-suppling them, which cemented that little attention to detail.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. He kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The brief example of ground combat was primal, though not fully immersive. He kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jerad Mertz, is a career naval officer, allowing the reader to tamp down their expectations about his prowess on the battlefield. Rather than letting this created a hang-up, Terry leans into it. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created two believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarians. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author. Another aspect of these two societies that was believable was how Terry handled their first contact situation. It went as you’d expect from two peoples who’d just met, with the usual distrust and wariness.
Other than a few typos, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. Even with the occasional misspelled words and other inconsequential flaws of this novel, it was still leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, they had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel, I give this novel a 5 stars!
My full review:
https://jrhandley.com/2018/11/02/book...
Characters:
In this novel, there are two main characters who we follow; Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey Bandar. Keeping the focus on two characters made you feel closer to them, which is how I like things. All of the secondary characters were a lot of fun as well! They were all fully realized, none of them felt flat or fake.
Commander Jared Mertz: He’s a senior naval officer of the largely peaceful New Terran Empire, but he felt real and not one of those stereotypical military pencil pushers from the Pax New Terra. He was a consummate professional who genuinely cared for the sailors and Marines under his command. He was a good officer, who knew his craft and was tactically creative during combat training simulations. He’s the kind of guy you’d want on your side if war ever did break out in the New Terran Empire. He’s the illegitimate son of the emperor, whose royal pedigree was discovered on his entrance physical for the Imperial Navy. This knowledge came with dark undertones, the Fleet tried to hold him back to prove they weren’t giving him special treatment. He was my favorite character in this novel, I enjoyed following him from the first word until the last! Overall, I really liked him and felt like there was so much more to come from him!
Princess Kelsey Bandar: When we first meet her, she’s the spoiled daughter of the New Terran Empire, a petite bombshell of sassy entitlement. Picture a princess in your mind, and you can envision Kelsey. She’s the “spare apparent,” a term I first heard from Terry Mixon and summed her role as the second in line to the imperial throne. When she decided she wants to find a mission for her life, to become more than her status as an imperial princess, her father turns her life upside down. I can’t say how without spoilers, so you’ll have to read the novel to find out. Overall, I was thrilled at her growth in this novel. Her character came alive on the page, giving Jared fits as he tried to corral her.
Overall, I really loved the two main characters and the entire supporting class of this book. I give these characters 5 out of 5 Grenades and can’t wait to see where the author takes them in the books to come!
Plot:
The premise for this series was not that different from other space opera stories out there, humanity post-earth trying to reclaim the spacefaring society that they’d left behind. However, the execution is where the author excels. His stories are pure escapism and enjoyment, under the banner of intergalactic science fiction. This book, like the rest of the novels in this series, fit squarely within the scope of space opera that I love to read. I loved that there were never any lulls that bored me, this novel was action-packed with a defined plot. The story is set as the New Terran Empire is finally revitalizing their exploration of the empire that they lost during the rebellion hundreds of years before the story began. It was never boring, and the characters and universe behaved in a way that made sense for the worlds the author created. It was a good set-up and well-executed premise that held my interest. Since I’ve read the rest of this series, I can assure you that there are bigger things to come from the Empire of Bones universe. I think that this is partly because I’ve become conditioned to these large expansive worlds because of the copious amounts of space opera that I read. This plot fits nicely into that framework, and Terry is raising the bar on this one. As you can tell by the gushing, I really got into this book. I couldn’t put it down; the plot was that compelling. Heck, this is my fourth or fifth re-reading of this series. I really loved the premise, and more importantly, I enjoyed how the execution. The pacing was excellent, and there was never a slow moment. There was never a point where the plot was confusing, or that I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I couldn’t ask for anything more; a unique premise, perfect execution, and incredible pacing! I again give Terry Mixon 5 out of 5 Grenades!
World Building:
This is the first book in the Empire of Bones Saga, and I absolutely loved it. The world was flushed out, and everything was explained in a way that made sense. The universe was consistent, with just enough of the mundane facets of life thrown in the fall grounded in this reality. Everything made sense and sucked you into the story. Some of the details seemed inconsequential, but those hooks just make me think that the larger universe will continue to grow and expand. I loved reading about the culture of the New Terran Empire, and Terry spoon fed us those details in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump. There was never anything he described that I couldn’t envision, or that felt like it wasn’t “real.” We get to see the weaponry and technology has evolved (or devolved) since the fall of the Terran Empire and feel inspired by what the characters have we gained access to. I could picture every setting described, easily envisioning myself living there. Heck, I’ve even entertained myself on long road trips telling side story set in this larger universe. When describing the world, Terry was light on the details… but not so much that I was lost or experienced the floating head syndrome. I could always picture the scene in my head, watching it in the movie theater of my mind. Despite being a bubblegum space opera, Terry has upped the bar of excellence, adding more sensory input to the mix; sights, sounds, smells, and feelings. He didn’t reinvent the wheel and built on the existing tropes of space opera. Instead, he made brought it into the 21st Century! Overall, the world building was well done, and I was sold on the way it happened. It felt believable, and the characters fit within the universe Terry Mixon created. Like most of the stories I read, this one didn’t take itself too seriously, which allowed you to focus on the fun which is why I read in the first place. I give the world building 5 out of 5 Grenades.
Description:
I have to give it to this author, this novel was chock-full of visualization, and you could definitely imagine yourself in this world. He described things across the sensory spectrum; sights, sounds, smells and even how the world felt. While I could visualize all of the characters, I would still love it if Terry could describe the characters physical traits in more details. He kept it light on the details, with just enough specifics to allow you to visualize it for yourself. I loved that Terry kept his language simple, reminding me of what I liked about Tom Clancy’s style of writing. Their genres aren’t the same, but their style of language is similar, and I like that. He balanced the explanation of this new world with the need to move a story along. This book didn’t have a single place where I couldn’t picture the scenery and the equipment, which added to the world that felt tangible and I enjoyed it. The author’s description of his universe was evocative, and enough to please your average readers. Again, I always prefer more descriptions over less, but Terry did enough to get the job done. In summary, I didn’t find any issues with the descriptions and was impressed by the literary skills of Terry. I wish he were more descriptive, but he gave you enough to form your own visual image. If you want a pulp era space opera, then this is the book for you! I give him 4 out of 5 grenades in this category.
Narration:
After becoming a fan of audiobooks, I’ve listened to over a hundred hours of stories read to me by awesome narrators like RC Bray, Luke Daniels and now Veronica Giguere. I’m confident in what I enjoy and what I dislike. I know that I hate accents that seem too cheesy and despise narrators that sound like robots. With those pesky caveats, I will review the narration quality of this novel. The audiobook was well done, and the accents were consistent. The narrator, Veronica Giguere, did a fantastic job narrating this book. I would definitely listen to more books by her, and with Amazon’s recent audiobook price increase, that is saying something. Heck, I’ve already bought all of the books by Terry Mixon that she’s produced. I’ve even bought books outside my preferred genre because I enjoy the quality of what she puts out there. She didn’t bore you, or make you zone out because of her monotone or vocal fry. Did that make me sound smart? Because I have no clue about vocal fry, but I do know that Veronica puts together a fine narration. Her performance didn’t feel robotic like a machine was reading the novel to me. You’ll often see that from me because it’ll drag me out of a book so fast that I can’t listen to it anymore. With Veronica Giguere, it felt like a friend was sitting with me reading an amazing story that she couldn’t put down. Only she made kind of cool voices, with believable accents that didn’t yank you out of the story. Overall, I give her 5 out of 5 grenades for her performance.
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. I’m honestly not a fan, they are all branded in the same universe, and the first one fit the market when it was released, but I don’t think they’ve aged well. In the current crowded market, these just blend into the background. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary, but I’m not a fan of the covers from this series. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments if you disagree.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. I didn’t like how they handled the trouble that happened when the crew jumps through the weak flip point. It seemed like they should’ve been more concerned about being trapped so far from home, but it was a necessary plot element for the rest of the story, so I went with it. It wasn’t badly told, it just seemed like a normal person would’ve reacted a little differently. Once we move past that, I believe that the characters responded as expected in the situation they found themselves in. When the crew finally engages in combat for the first time, however, I do believe that their understated reaction to the loss of life strains the bounds of incredulity. I didn’t need wailing were gnashing of teeth, but at least some indication that the losses were felt. The combat felt a little too sterile for my liking but fell well within the bounds of normal for the space opera subgenre. Again, I won’t downgrade for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. One of the things that I did enjoy about Terry’s novel was that they did seem to run out of supplies. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. He also showed the New Terran Empire’s newfound allies re-suppling them, which cemented that little attention to detail.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. He kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The brief example of ground combat was primal, though not fully immersive. He kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jerad Mertz, is a career naval officer, allowing the reader to tamp down their expectations about his prowess on the battlefield. Rather than letting this created a hang-up, Terry leans into it. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created two believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarians. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author. Another aspect of these two societies that was believable was how Terry handled their first contact situation. It went as you’d expect from two peoples who’d just met, with the usual distrust and wariness.
Other than a few typos, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. Even with the occasional misspelled words and other inconsequential flaws of this novel, it was still leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, they had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel, I give this novel a 5 stars!
March 11, 2022
"Empire of Bones" starts slowly and builds pace until, by the end, we are in full interstellar Space Opera mode.
In a remote galaxy the last remnant of the Terran Empire has clawed its way back into space. The location of Earth is lost, as is any understanding of the rebellion that toppled the Terran Empire.
Now the new Empire is beginning to explore the star systems around them, hoping to find artefacts, information and, hopefully, other lost colonies.
The expedition is led by Commander Jared Mertz, the bastard son of the Emperor, and his half-sister, Princess Kelsey.
They discover another human civilisation just as it comes under attack and Jared offers his help. It turns out to be a good idea as he's not in a position to return home any time soon.
Space Opera has a reputation for being juvenile and overly simplistic - that's a valid view - but in the hands of a decent writer it makes for fast, fun reading.
Author Terry Mixon is firmly in control at the helm of "Empire of Bones" and knows just which buttons to press and when.
I enjoyed it tremendously.
3.5 Stars
In a remote galaxy the last remnant of the Terran Empire has clawed its way back into space. The location of Earth is lost, as is any understanding of the rebellion that toppled the Terran Empire.
Now the new Empire is beginning to explore the star systems around them, hoping to find artefacts, information and, hopefully, other lost colonies.
The expedition is led by Commander Jared Mertz, the bastard son of the Emperor, and his half-sister, Princess Kelsey.
They discover another human civilisation just as it comes under attack and Jared offers his help. It turns out to be a good idea as he's not in a position to return home any time soon.
Space Opera has a reputation for being juvenile and overly simplistic - that's a valid view - but in the hands of a decent writer it makes for fast, fun reading.
Author Terry Mixon is firmly in control at the helm of "Empire of Bones" and knows just which buttons to press and when.
I enjoyed it tremendously.
3.5 Stars
March 16, 2019
Excellent start to a series
I picked this up after listening to Terry on Dead Robots Society, more to just see what he wrote. Now I’m hooked and so far behind in the series. Wait for me, Terry!
I picked this up after listening to Terry on Dead Robots Society, more to just see what he wrote. Now I’m hooked and so far behind in the series. Wait for me, Terry!
October 26, 2016
This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com.
The novel started off fast paced and caught my interest. I like space operas and sci fi in general, and this is no exception. On the downside, the story reminds me of a lot of TV shows where characters do stupid things to advance the plot. I think the author could have done better with the characters and the transitions through the plot.
The narrator was fantastic and I'm looking forward to read more from her.
The novel started off fast paced and caught my interest. I like space operas and sci fi in general, and this is no exception. On the downside, the story reminds me of a lot of TV shows where characters do stupid things to advance the plot. I think the author could have done better with the characters and the transitions through the plot.
The narrator was fantastic and I'm looking forward to read more from her.
January 1, 2024
Did not finish. The dialogue was so bad. How does something like this get 4.19 rating?
October 12, 2016
This was fun
Very reminiscent of The Lost Fleet series in tone. Well defined characters and world make it easy to get into the story. I'm going to jump right into the second book.
Very reminiscent of The Lost Fleet series in tone. Well defined characters and world make it easy to get into the story. I'm going to jump right into the second book.
November 2, 2018
Summary:
First, let me say that none of what I’ll say in this section couldn’t be found on the back copy of the novel. Heck, I cribbed this summary from the back, and then I added my own twist! And not even much of one, since most of the books I read have kick butt descriptions (aka blurbs). If the blurb doesn’t catch my eye, then I tend to skip the book unless a friend recommends it. Generally speaking, my goal is to provide a spoiler-free review, so here goes nothing!
After a terrible war almost extinguished humanity, the New Terran Empire rises from its own ashes. Desperate to regain what was lost, an exploratory mission was sent off to the dead worlds of the Old Empire. Given command of the endeavor is Commander Jared Mertz, the illegitimate offspring of the Emperor. Together with his crew, he sets off into the unknown. Except the Old Empire isn’t quite dead after all. Evil lurks in the dark. With everything he holds dear at stake, Jared must fight like never before. Victory means life. Defeat means death. Or worse.
If you like epic space opera with plenty of action, then you should read this series. Plenty of adventure and intrigue to keep you glued to your seat in this page-turning novel! If this sounds like your flavor of badassery, then you’ve come to the right place! This novel is the brilliant beginning of the Empire of Bones Saga, where the author harkens back to the heyday of pulp science fiction!
Characters:
In this novel, there are two main characters who we follow; Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey Bandar. Keeping the focus on two characters made you feel closer to them, which is how I like things. All of the secondary characters were a lot of fun as well! They were all fully realized, none of them felt flat or fake.
Commander Jared Mertz: He’s a senior naval officer of the largely peaceful New Terran Empire, but he felt real and not one of those stereotypical military pencil pushers from the Pax New Terra. He was a consummate professional who genuinely cared for the sailors and Marines under his command. He was a good officer, who knew his craft and was tactically creative during combat training simulations. He’s the kind of guy you’d want on your side if war ever did break out in the New Terran Empire. He’s the illegitimate son of the emperor, whose royal pedigree was discovered on his entrance physical for the Imperial Navy. This knowledge came with dark undertones, the Fleet tried to hold him back to prove they weren’t giving him special treatment. He was my favorite character in this novel, I enjoyed following him from the first word until the last! Overall, I really liked him and felt like there was so much more to come from him!
Princess Kelsey Bandar: When we first meet her, she’s the spoiled daughter of the New Terran Empire, a petite bombshell of sassy entitlement. Picture a princess in your mind, and you can envision Kelsey. She’s the “spare apparent,” a term I first heard from Terry Mixon and summed her role as the second in line to the imperial throne. When she decided she wants to find a mission for her life, to become more than her status as an imperial princess, her father turns her life upside down. I can’t say how without spoilers, so you’ll have to read the novel to find out. Overall, I was thrilled at her growth in this novel. Her character came alive on the page, giving Jared fits as he tried to corral her.
Overall, I really loved the two main characters and the entire supporting class of this book. I give these characters 5 out of 5 Grenades and can’t wait to see where the author takes them in the books to come!
Plot:
The premise for this series was not that different from other space opera stories out there, humanity post-earth trying to reclaim the spacefaring society that they’d left behind. However, the execution is where the author excels. His stories are pure escapism and enjoyment, under the banner of intergalactic science fiction. This book, like the rest of the novels in this series, fit squarely within the scope of space opera that I love to read. I loved that there were never any lulls that bored me, this novel was action-packed with a defined plot. The story is set as the New Terran Empire is finally revitalizing their exploration of the empire that they lost during the rebellion hundreds of years before the story began. It was never boring, and the characters and universe behaved in a way that made sense for the worlds the author created. It was a good set-up and well-executed premise that held my interest. Since I’ve read the rest of this series, I can assure you that there are bigger things to come from the Empire of Bones universe. I think that this is partly because I’ve become conditioned to these large expansive worlds because of the copious amounts of space opera that I read. This plot fits nicely into that framework, and Terry is raising the bar on this one. As you can tell by the gushing, I really got into this book. I couldn’t put it down; the plot was that compelling. Heck, this is my fourth or fifth re-reading of this series. I really loved the premise, and more importantly, I enjoyed how the execution. The pacing was excellent, and there was never a slow moment. There was never a point where the plot was confusing, or that I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I couldn’t ask for anything more; a unique premise, perfect execution, and incredible pacing! I again give Terry Mixon 5 out of 5 Grenades!
World Building:
This is the first book in the Empire of Bones Saga, and I absolutely loved it. The world was flushed out, and everything was explained in a way that made sense. The universe was consistent, with just enough of the mundane facets of life thrown in the fall grounded in this reality. Everything made sense and sucked you into the story. Some of the details seemed inconsequential, but those hooks just make me think that the larger universe will continue to grow and expand. I loved reading about the culture of the New Terran Empire, and Terry spoon fed us those details in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump. There was never anything he described that I couldn’t envision, or that felt like it wasn’t “real.” We get to see the weaponry and technology has evolved (or devolved) since the fall of the Terran Empire and feel inspired by what the characters have we gained access to. I could picture every setting described, easily envisioning myself living there. Heck, I’ve even entertained myself on long road trips telling side story set in this larger universe. When describing the world, Terry was light on the details… but not so much that I was lost or experienced the floating head syndrome. I could always picture the scene in my head, watching it in the movie theater of my mind. Despite being a bubblegum space opera, Terry has upped the bar of excellence, adding more sensory input to the mix; sights, sounds, smells, and feelings. He didn’t reinvent the wheel and built on the existing tropes of space opera. Instead, he made brought it into the 21st Century! Overall, the world building was well done, and I was sold on the way it happened. It felt believable, and the characters fit within the universe Terry Mixon created. Like most of the stories I read, this one didn’t take itself too seriously, which allowed you to focus on the fun which is why I read in the first place. I give the world building 5 out of 5 Grenades.
Description:
I have to give it to this author, this novel was chock-full of visualization, and you could definitely imagine yourself in this world. He described things across the sensory spectrum; sights, sounds, smells and even how the world felt. While I could visualize all of the characters, I would still love it if Terry could describe the characters physical traits in more details. He kept it light on the details, with just enough specifics to allow you to visualize it for yourself. I loved that Terry kept his language simple, reminding me of what I liked about Tom Clancy’s style of writing. Their genres aren’t the same, but their style of language is similar, and I like that. He balanced the explanation of this new world with the need to move a story along. This book didn’t have a single place where I couldn’t picture the scenery and the equipment, which added to the world that felt tangible and I enjoyed it. The author’s description of his universe was evocative, and enough to please your average readers. Again, I always prefer more descriptions over less, but Terry did enough to get the job done. In summary, I didn’t find any issues with the descriptions and was impressed by the literary skills of Terry. I wish he were more descriptive, but he gave you enough to form your own visual image. If you want a pulp era space opera, then this is the book for you! I give him 4 out of 5 grenades in this category.
Narration:
After becoming a fan of audiobooks, I’ve listened to over a hundred hours of stories read to me by awesome narrators like RC Bray, Luke Daniels and now Veronica Giguere. I’m confident in what I enjoy and what I dislike. I know that I hate accents that seem too cheesy and despise narrators that sound like robots. With those pesky caveats, I will review the narration quality of this novel. The audiobook was well done, and the accents were consistent. The narrator, Veronica Giguere, did a fantastic job narrating this book. I would definitely listen to more books by her, and with Amazon’s recent audiobook price increase, that is saying something. Heck, I’ve already bought all of the books by Terry Mixon that she’s produced. I’ve even bought books outside my preferred genre because I enjoy the quality of what she puts out there. She didn’t bore you, or make you zone out because of her monotone or vocal fry. Did that make me sound smart? Because I have no clue about vocal fry, but I do know that Veronica puts together a fine narration. Her performance didn’t feel robotic like a machine was reading the novel to me. You’ll often see that from me because it’ll drag me out of a book so fast that I can’t listen to it anymore. With Veronica Giguere, it felt like a friend was sitting with me reading an amazing story that she couldn’t put down. Only she made kind of cool voices, with believable accents that didn’t yank you out of the story. Overall, I give her 5 out of 5 grenades for her performance.
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. I’m honestly not a fan, they are all branded in the same universe, and the first one fit the market when it was released, but I don’t think they’ve aged well. In the current crowded market, these just blend into the background. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary, but I’m not a fan of the covers from this series. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments if you disagree.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. I didn’t like how they handled the trouble that happened when the crew jumps through the weak flip point. It seemed like they should’ve been more concerned about being trapped so far from home, but it was a necessary plot element for the rest of the story, so I went with it. It wasn’t badly told, it just seemed like a normal person would’ve reacted a little differently. Once we move past that, I believe that the characters responded as expected in the situation they found themselves in. When the crew finally engages in combat for the first time, however, I do believe that their understated reaction to the loss of life strains the bounds of incredulity. I didn’t need wailing were gnashing of teeth, but at least some indication that the losses were felt. The combat felt a little too sterile for my liking but fell well within the bounds of normal for the space opera subgenre. Again, I won’t downgrade for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. One of the things that I did enjoy about Terry’s novel was that they did seem to run out of supplies. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. He also showed the New Terran Empire’s newfound allies re-suppling them, which cemented that little attention to detail.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. He kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The brief example of ground combat was primal, though not fully immersive. He kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jerry Mertz, is a career naval officer, allowing the reader to tamp down their expectations about his prowess on the battlefield. Rather than letting this created a hang-up, Terry leans into it. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created two believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarians. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author. Another aspect of these two societies that was believable was how Terry handled their first contact situation. It went as you’d expect from two peoples who’d just met, with the usual distrust and wariness.
Other than a few typos, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. Even with the occasional misspelled words and other inconsequential flaws of this novel, it was still leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, they had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give this novel a 5 out of 5 grenades!
If this book sounds like it’s right up your alley, check it out, you won’t regret it! Well, unless you decide to join Commander Jared Mertz as he jumps through the flip points into the unknown. And you after you enlist or take a commission, get kitted up, you realize that the god of your world is a dick. He likes to torture you with evil, sending men with guns after you. In a rush to stand a fighting chance, you decide to try some old empire implants. But you clicked the wrong button and add a computer virus inside your brain. What could possibly go wrong? Well yeah, I guess this could be bad for you. Or maybe you’ll be okay? I mean, you could be the first sailor to make it out of Terry’s insane world alive? On second thought, be warned, fanboy/fangirl syndrome just MIGHT kill you. Be wary, you were warned and if you have to go out like that at least enjoy the view from the end times!
First, let me say that none of what I’ll say in this section couldn’t be found on the back copy of the novel. Heck, I cribbed this summary from the back, and then I added my own twist! And not even much of one, since most of the books I read have kick butt descriptions (aka blurbs). If the blurb doesn’t catch my eye, then I tend to skip the book unless a friend recommends it. Generally speaking, my goal is to provide a spoiler-free review, so here goes nothing!
After a terrible war almost extinguished humanity, the New Terran Empire rises from its own ashes. Desperate to regain what was lost, an exploratory mission was sent off to the dead worlds of the Old Empire. Given command of the endeavor is Commander Jared Mertz, the illegitimate offspring of the Emperor. Together with his crew, he sets off into the unknown. Except the Old Empire isn’t quite dead after all. Evil lurks in the dark. With everything he holds dear at stake, Jared must fight like never before. Victory means life. Defeat means death. Or worse.
If you like epic space opera with plenty of action, then you should read this series. Plenty of adventure and intrigue to keep you glued to your seat in this page-turning novel! If this sounds like your flavor of badassery, then you’ve come to the right place! This novel is the brilliant beginning of the Empire of Bones Saga, where the author harkens back to the heyday of pulp science fiction!
Characters:
In this novel, there are two main characters who we follow; Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey Bandar. Keeping the focus on two characters made you feel closer to them, which is how I like things. All of the secondary characters were a lot of fun as well! They were all fully realized, none of them felt flat or fake.
Commander Jared Mertz: He’s a senior naval officer of the largely peaceful New Terran Empire, but he felt real and not one of those stereotypical military pencil pushers from the Pax New Terra. He was a consummate professional who genuinely cared for the sailors and Marines under his command. He was a good officer, who knew his craft and was tactically creative during combat training simulations. He’s the kind of guy you’d want on your side if war ever did break out in the New Terran Empire. He’s the illegitimate son of the emperor, whose royal pedigree was discovered on his entrance physical for the Imperial Navy. This knowledge came with dark undertones, the Fleet tried to hold him back to prove they weren’t giving him special treatment. He was my favorite character in this novel, I enjoyed following him from the first word until the last! Overall, I really liked him and felt like there was so much more to come from him!
Princess Kelsey Bandar: When we first meet her, she’s the spoiled daughter of the New Terran Empire, a petite bombshell of sassy entitlement. Picture a princess in your mind, and you can envision Kelsey. She’s the “spare apparent,” a term I first heard from Terry Mixon and summed her role as the second in line to the imperial throne. When she decided she wants to find a mission for her life, to become more than her status as an imperial princess, her father turns her life upside down. I can’t say how without spoilers, so you’ll have to read the novel to find out. Overall, I was thrilled at her growth in this novel. Her character came alive on the page, giving Jared fits as he tried to corral her.
Overall, I really loved the two main characters and the entire supporting class of this book. I give these characters 5 out of 5 Grenades and can’t wait to see where the author takes them in the books to come!
Plot:
The premise for this series was not that different from other space opera stories out there, humanity post-earth trying to reclaim the spacefaring society that they’d left behind. However, the execution is where the author excels. His stories are pure escapism and enjoyment, under the banner of intergalactic science fiction. This book, like the rest of the novels in this series, fit squarely within the scope of space opera that I love to read. I loved that there were never any lulls that bored me, this novel was action-packed with a defined plot. The story is set as the New Terran Empire is finally revitalizing their exploration of the empire that they lost during the rebellion hundreds of years before the story began. It was never boring, and the characters and universe behaved in a way that made sense for the worlds the author created. It was a good set-up and well-executed premise that held my interest. Since I’ve read the rest of this series, I can assure you that there are bigger things to come from the Empire of Bones universe. I think that this is partly because I’ve become conditioned to these large expansive worlds because of the copious amounts of space opera that I read. This plot fits nicely into that framework, and Terry is raising the bar on this one. As you can tell by the gushing, I really got into this book. I couldn’t put it down; the plot was that compelling. Heck, this is my fourth or fifth re-reading of this series. I really loved the premise, and more importantly, I enjoyed how the execution. The pacing was excellent, and there was never a slow moment. There was never a point where the plot was confusing, or that I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I couldn’t ask for anything more; a unique premise, perfect execution, and incredible pacing! I again give Terry Mixon 5 out of 5 Grenades!
World Building:
This is the first book in the Empire of Bones Saga, and I absolutely loved it. The world was flushed out, and everything was explained in a way that made sense. The universe was consistent, with just enough of the mundane facets of life thrown in the fall grounded in this reality. Everything made sense and sucked you into the story. Some of the details seemed inconsequential, but those hooks just make me think that the larger universe will continue to grow and expand. I loved reading about the culture of the New Terran Empire, and Terry spoon fed us those details in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump. There was never anything he described that I couldn’t envision, or that felt like it wasn’t “real.” We get to see the weaponry and technology has evolved (or devolved) since the fall of the Terran Empire and feel inspired by what the characters have we gained access to. I could picture every setting described, easily envisioning myself living there. Heck, I’ve even entertained myself on long road trips telling side story set in this larger universe. When describing the world, Terry was light on the details… but not so much that I was lost or experienced the floating head syndrome. I could always picture the scene in my head, watching it in the movie theater of my mind. Despite being a bubblegum space opera, Terry has upped the bar of excellence, adding more sensory input to the mix; sights, sounds, smells, and feelings. He didn’t reinvent the wheel and built on the existing tropes of space opera. Instead, he made brought it into the 21st Century! Overall, the world building was well done, and I was sold on the way it happened. It felt believable, and the characters fit within the universe Terry Mixon created. Like most of the stories I read, this one didn’t take itself too seriously, which allowed you to focus on the fun which is why I read in the first place. I give the world building 5 out of 5 Grenades.
Description:
I have to give it to this author, this novel was chock-full of visualization, and you could definitely imagine yourself in this world. He described things across the sensory spectrum; sights, sounds, smells and even how the world felt. While I could visualize all of the characters, I would still love it if Terry could describe the characters physical traits in more details. He kept it light on the details, with just enough specifics to allow you to visualize it for yourself. I loved that Terry kept his language simple, reminding me of what I liked about Tom Clancy’s style of writing. Their genres aren’t the same, but their style of language is similar, and I like that. He balanced the explanation of this new world with the need to move a story along. This book didn’t have a single place where I couldn’t picture the scenery and the equipment, which added to the world that felt tangible and I enjoyed it. The author’s description of his universe was evocative, and enough to please your average readers. Again, I always prefer more descriptions over less, but Terry did enough to get the job done. In summary, I didn’t find any issues with the descriptions and was impressed by the literary skills of Terry. I wish he were more descriptive, but he gave you enough to form your own visual image. If you want a pulp era space opera, then this is the book for you! I give him 4 out of 5 grenades in this category.
Narration:
After becoming a fan of audiobooks, I’ve listened to over a hundred hours of stories read to me by awesome narrators like RC Bray, Luke Daniels and now Veronica Giguere. I’m confident in what I enjoy and what I dislike. I know that I hate accents that seem too cheesy and despise narrators that sound like robots. With those pesky caveats, I will review the narration quality of this novel. The audiobook was well done, and the accents were consistent. The narrator, Veronica Giguere, did a fantastic job narrating this book. I would definitely listen to more books by her, and with Amazon’s recent audiobook price increase, that is saying something. Heck, I’ve already bought all of the books by Terry Mixon that she’s produced. I’ve even bought books outside my preferred genre because I enjoy the quality of what she puts out there. She didn’t bore you, or make you zone out because of her monotone or vocal fry. Did that make me sound smart? Because I have no clue about vocal fry, but I do know that Veronica puts together a fine narration. Her performance didn’t feel robotic like a machine was reading the novel to me. You’ll often see that from me because it’ll drag me out of a book so fast that I can’t listen to it anymore. With Veronica Giguere, it felt like a friend was sitting with me reading an amazing story that she couldn’t put down. Only she made kind of cool voices, with believable accents that didn’t yank you out of the story. Overall, I give her 5 out of 5 grenades for her performance.
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. I’m honestly not a fan, they are all branded in the same universe, and the first one fit the market when it was released, but I don’t think they’ve aged well. In the current crowded market, these just blend into the background. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary, but I’m not a fan of the covers from this series. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments if you disagree.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. I didn’t like how they handled the trouble that happened when the crew jumps through the weak flip point. It seemed like they should’ve been more concerned about being trapped so far from home, but it was a necessary plot element for the rest of the story, so I went with it. It wasn’t badly told, it just seemed like a normal person would’ve reacted a little differently. Once we move past that, I believe that the characters responded as expected in the situation they found themselves in. When the crew finally engages in combat for the first time, however, I do believe that their understated reaction to the loss of life strains the bounds of incredulity. I didn’t need wailing were gnashing of teeth, but at least some indication that the losses were felt. The combat felt a little too sterile for my liking but fell well within the bounds of normal for the space opera subgenre. Again, I won’t downgrade for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. One of the things that I did enjoy about Terry’s novel was that they did seem to run out of supplies. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. He also showed the New Terran Empire’s newfound allies re-suppling them, which cemented that little attention to detail.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. He kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The brief example of ground combat was primal, though not fully immersive. He kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jerry Mertz, is a career naval officer, allowing the reader to tamp down their expectations about his prowess on the battlefield. Rather than letting this created a hang-up, Terry leans into it. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created two believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarians. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author. Another aspect of these two societies that was believable was how Terry handled their first contact situation. It went as you’d expect from two peoples who’d just met, with the usual distrust and wariness.
Other than a few typos, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. Even with the occasional misspelled words and other inconsequential flaws of this novel, it was still leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, they had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give this novel a 5 out of 5 grenades!
If this book sounds like it’s right up your alley, check it out, you won’t regret it! Well, unless you decide to join Commander Jared Mertz as he jumps through the flip points into the unknown. And you after you enlist or take a commission, get kitted up, you realize that the god of your world is a dick. He likes to torture you with evil, sending men with guns after you. In a rush to stand a fighting chance, you decide to try some old empire implants. But you clicked the wrong button and add a computer virus inside your brain. What could possibly go wrong? Well yeah, I guess this could be bad for you. Or maybe you’ll be okay? I mean, you could be the first sailor to make it out of Terry’s insane world alive? On second thought, be warned, fanboy/fangirl syndrome just MIGHT kill you. Be wary, you were warned and if you have to go out like that at least enjoy the view from the end times!
July 28, 2023
When I originally grabbed this from my kindle library I had confused it for An Empire Asunder. I haven't even read the first book in that series.
Either way. I really enjoyed Empire of Bones. I am totally wrapped up in the fantasy of a space-faring empire. In this series the empire is effectively dead after a rebellion chased the remaining royal to a far off planet. The rebels were dealt with by the surviving military but an EMP attack took out most of their technology leaving them planet-bound for, I believe, five hundred years.
We come into the story after they have rebuilt their world and have started venturing out into space and meeting worlds previously a part of the old empire. The main story is born from a decision to finally man an expedition out beyond their established space and gain knowledge of the old empire and find out if there are surviving rebels.
I found the world building and technology to be interesting. I want to know more about the old empire, their survivor worlds, and eventually see Terra. The flip points are an interesting choice for travel. They are described as space-time bridges that allow instantaneous travel between predefined points. These points where the main form of travel in the old empire and were inherited by the new empire. I can't wait to see where these points lead.
Either way. I really enjoyed Empire of Bones. I am totally wrapped up in the fantasy of a space-faring empire. In this series the empire is effectively dead after a rebellion chased the remaining royal to a far off planet. The rebels were dealt with by the surviving military but an EMP attack took out most of their technology leaving them planet-bound for, I believe, five hundred years.
We come into the story after they have rebuilt their world and have started venturing out into space and meeting worlds previously a part of the old empire. The main story is born from a decision to finally man an expedition out beyond their established space and gain knowledge of the old empire and find out if there are surviving rebels.
I found the world building and technology to be interesting. I want to know more about the old empire, their survivor worlds, and eventually see Terra. The flip points are an interesting choice for travel. They are described as space-time bridges that allow instantaneous travel between predefined points. These points where the main form of travel in the old empire and were inherited by the new empire. I can't wait to see where these points lead.
August 2, 2017
On their own
The old Empire is dead. In a far distant corner of the galaxy, a small remnant remains. They're doing okay, slowly building up, but they are only a shadow of their former selves.
Jared joined the navy to make something to himself. He had no idea that he was the illegitimate son of the Emperor, but the required genetic test proved that was the case. Now, instead of concentrating on being a good officer, he has to deal with palace politics. It has also slowed his career, because no one wants to show him favoritism.
Kelsey, Princess of the Empire, has been shut in the palace all of her life. Anxious to do something useful, she signs on to be a diplomatic aid on an exploration mission. The mission leader is her half-brother Jared. Awkward, doesn't begin to cover it.
The royal bastard and royal scion will have to learn to work together, because their mission is about to get complicated. An unstable wormhole will strand them many light years from home, and new enemies will be found. They will have to rely on each other if they are to have any chance at survival.
Terry Mixon weaves a tale of interstellar drama and danger. Engaging characters and complex relationships make this a story worth reading. A must for any sci fi enthusiast.
The old Empire is dead. In a far distant corner of the galaxy, a small remnant remains. They're doing okay, slowly building up, but they are only a shadow of their former selves.
Jared joined the navy to make something to himself. He had no idea that he was the illegitimate son of the Emperor, but the required genetic test proved that was the case. Now, instead of concentrating on being a good officer, he has to deal with palace politics. It has also slowed his career, because no one wants to show him favoritism.
Kelsey, Princess of the Empire, has been shut in the palace all of her life. Anxious to do something useful, she signs on to be a diplomatic aid on an exploration mission. The mission leader is her half-brother Jared. Awkward, doesn't begin to cover it.
The royal bastard and royal scion will have to learn to work together, because their mission is about to get complicated. An unstable wormhole will strand them many light years from home, and new enemies will be found. They will have to rely on each other if they are to have any chance at survival.
Terry Mixon weaves a tale of interstellar drama and danger. Engaging characters and complex relationships make this a story worth reading. A must for any sci fi enthusiast.
January 1, 2022
DNF 56%
I had the feeling I'd read this before, not because that was true but because it was so unoriginal. I kept waiting for some trace of the new. It didn't help that the audio narrator voiced the princess with a piercing high tone more suitable to a toddler than a woman.
My breaking point came when the group's chief scientist started examining and explaining the highly advanced relics discovered on a dead ship. Science and engineering were almost totally lacking. He simply had to look at a gun to know that the projectile would travel at Mach five and then goes on to explain that its rounds had fins for stabilization (at supersonic speeds?). He then finds a plasma rifle and claims it could probably fire through suit armor, simply because it is plasma... no idea of the plasma's containment, density, or energy level but straight to assumptions. There was much more but you get the idea. I get annoyed when science fiction ignores "science" almost entirely.
I had the feeling I'd read this before, not because that was true but because it was so unoriginal. I kept waiting for some trace of the new. It didn't help that the audio narrator voiced the princess with a piercing high tone more suitable to a toddler than a woman.
My breaking point came when the group's chief scientist started examining and explaining the highly advanced relics discovered on a dead ship. Science and engineering were almost totally lacking. He simply had to look at a gun to know that the projectile would travel at Mach five and then goes on to explain that its rounds had fins for stabilization (at supersonic speeds?). He then finds a plasma rifle and claims it could probably fire through suit armor, simply because it is plasma... no idea of the plasma's containment, density, or energy level but straight to assumptions. There was much more but you get the idea. I get annoyed when science fiction ignores "science" almost entirely.
November 24, 2017
Started slow, improved after the first half The characters, especially the main characters remained quite pale and unimpressive during the first half of the book. Very wooden and stereotypical.
Especially Princess Kelsey.
Actually characters and also relationships between those remain the weak point of this stories.
The strengths lie in the story lines and the world building.
It kept me reading.
The universe is interesting, though not completely novel; I think that is mostly impossible at this point, but the history and background story for this one are original enough to keep me reading.
After the very slow start it picked up quite a fast pace and improved with action, space battles, intrigues and coups.
Especially Princess Kelsey.
Actually characters and also relationships between those remain the weak point of this stories.
The strengths lie in the story lines and the world building.
It kept me reading.
The universe is interesting, though not completely novel; I think that is mostly impossible at this point, but the history and background story for this one are original enough to keep me reading.
After the very slow start it picked up quite a fast pace and improved with action, space battles, intrigues and coups.
April 25, 2021
I’ve read some really not-so-nice reviews about this series, and although reviews are not really my thing it feels a little unfair, so I’d like to correct that.
As an avid SF reader for 50 years, I’ve read a good chunk of everything that’s been written in space-op, all the way back from the great pulp masters of the 40s and 60s up to today, and Terry Mixon’s work stands up to the comparison pretty well. All the ingredients are there: likeable heroes backed by plenty of secondary characters, interstellar action, breakthrough discoveries, romance, despicable villains and unexpected plot twists, you name it.
I’m about halfway into the series, and thoroughly enjoy it. So if hard-core space opera is your thing, I think you’ll want to give it a try - you’re definitely going to like it too.
As an avid SF reader for 50 years, I’ve read a good chunk of everything that’s been written in space-op, all the way back from the great pulp masters of the 40s and 60s up to today, and Terry Mixon’s work stands up to the comparison pretty well. All the ingredients are there: likeable heroes backed by plenty of secondary characters, interstellar action, breakthrough discoveries, romance, despicable villains and unexpected plot twists, you name it.
I’m about halfway into the series, and thoroughly enjoy it. So if hard-core space opera is your thing, I think you’ll want to give it a try - you’re definitely going to like it too.
January 6, 2022
I started the Empire of Bones because of a recommendation.
The first book started well enough, and I was interested enough to buy the 7 first books in anticipation.
By the time I reached half, the plot had become not only increasingly predictable, but also ludicrous, and fraught with clichés.
Then it became childish.
I really tried to at least finish the first volume but I completely lost interest around 3/4 of the story.
(And that's after having made a tremendous effort of will to end the book).
I simply couldn't continue and abandoned it in disgust.
This is the last time I buy sequels before finishing the first.
The first book started well enough, and I was interested enough to buy the 7 first books in anticipation.
By the time I reached half, the plot had become not only increasingly predictable, but also ludicrous, and fraught with clichés.
Then it became childish.
I really tried to at least finish the first volume but I completely lost interest around 3/4 of the story.
(And that's after having made a tremendous effort of will to end the book).
I simply couldn't continue and abandoned it in disgust.
This is the last time I buy sequels before finishing the first.
July 16, 2018
This book is a good start to a new science fiction series – it hits all of the main points for me with future tech that isn’t too far-fetched for me to conceptualize, nice character development, and the author weaves a good tale that puts you in the middle of the action. Something, however, makes me think I have read this plot line in the past. I picked this up for just 99 cents during a Kindle promotion and I certainly received more than 99 cents worth of entertainment value out of it. I am looking forward to trying out the next book in the series.
August 11, 2018
I enjoyed this story!
While the story line theme is fairly routine for this genre, it's one that I like. Moved fast, got quickly to the ancient derelict spaceship. The space battles were fairly short and decisive. No endless, tedious missile firings and fleet placements. I didn't notice any spelling errors. I am moving on to the next book in this series. This one actually could have been forgiven for a little extraneous word filler.
While the story line theme is fairly routine for this genre, it's one that I like. Moved fast, got quickly to the ancient derelict spaceship. The space battles were fairly short and decisive. No endless, tedious missile firings and fleet placements. I didn't notice any spelling errors. I am moving on to the next book in this series. This one actually could have been forgiven for a little extraneous word filler.
February 1, 2020
We have seen all the tropes in the book elsewhere, so if it's not your first military s-f the there's nothing to surprise you in it. It isn't masterfully written either. BUT it's a solid good military s-f. I had good time reading it even if it isn't up to Webber, Drake or Hemry/Campbell standards. So if you have spare time like long haul flight or need to tek off your mind read this book it's good.
April 5, 2020
Empire of Bones is a brilliant opener to a series that has it all. It an enthralling read that keeps you wanting more. As each problem is overcome more are presented and the way the author deals with the broken relationship of Jared and Kelsey is amazing.
The final part of the book is action packed and genuinely gripping and the ending leaves you wanting more. I cannot wait to read more in the saga.
Highly recommended.
The final part of the book is action packed and genuinely gripping and the ending leaves you wanting more. I cannot wait to read more in the saga.
Highly recommended.
August 30, 2020
I Enjoyed this series I think you would also.
I came back after reading twelve of the published books To tell you how much I enjoyed the series. I am patiently waiting on the sequel. For an author the keep your interest through 12 books he has to have a good story. His character development is great with consistency throughout the series. I highly recommend this book and the series. I believe this story will sell the rest.
I came back after reading twelve of the published books To tell you how much I enjoyed the series. I am patiently waiting on the sequel. For an author the keep your interest through 12 books he has to have a good story. His character development is great with consistency throughout the series. I highly recommend this book and the series. I believe this story will sell the rest.
September 20, 2020
Enjoyable!
A good beginning and a much better storyline than others I have read by this author. Good character development and supporting cast. Interesting combination of hard science and “magic technology” supporting the action. Good resolution for this book with no hanging ending.
A good beginning and a much better storyline than others I have read by this author. Good character development and supporting cast. Interesting combination of hard science and “magic technology” supporting the action. Good resolution for this book with no hanging ending.
April 11, 2021
Really solid novel. The nature of rise and fall of empires is always fascinating, from Chine to Rome, the art imitates history. The knowledge lost at the end of epochs and renewed renaissance afterward. Looking forward to more space exploration, resolution of the mystery of the fall of the old Terran Empire, and much more.
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