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Galactic mercenary Samuel Shrike hates complications and loves a good fight. He's managed to survive a long time by avoiding the first and chasing the second, but when space pirates, mob queens, and complex friendships collide in an underworld conflict of colossal proportions, Shrike may receive more of both than he'd bargained for. In the midst of a brutal crime war,the most complicated relationship in his life could lead to his salvation...or a harrowing fight for his life.
108 pages, Paperback
First published October 30, 2014
2 people want to read
About the author
Dakota Kemp
7 books7 followersDespite his mother’s repeated insistence that he “be normal” so as not to frighten others, Dakota became an author, and that may be the smallest of his eccentricities. After all, he’s saved the galaxy with his sidekick Garrus Vakarian on fifteen occasions, narrowly survived a perilous quest amidst the Fae, and foiled the assassination attempts of various rival wizards. He’s even held open the door for a princess or two.
In conversations, Dakota can be counted upon to deliver a "RWBY" quote that almost no one understands, and his snappy "Red vs. Blue" one-liners are never properly appreciated either. To mitigate this social ineptitude, he spends his days hiding in his batcave or, when the batsignal beckons, shouting at random people on the street about the power of stories.
Seriously. Campfire tales were one of mankind’s earliest activities. Humans need fiction in their lives to survive.
Dakota writes gritty science fiction and epic fantasy for audiences with a taste for bold stories of magic and adventure. These are the best kinds of people in his clearly unbiased opinion.
When he’s not engaging in fantastic tomfoolery, Dakota serves as an officer in the U.S. Army, because protecting his country and serving others is more important to him even than dragons. And dragons are super important.
In conversations, Dakota can be counted upon to deliver a "RWBY" quote that almost no one understands, and his snappy "Red vs. Blue" one-liners are never properly appreciated either. To mitigate this social ineptitude, he spends his days hiding in his batcave or, when the batsignal beckons, shouting at random people on the street about the power of stories.
Seriously. Campfire tales were one of mankind’s earliest activities. Humans need fiction in their lives to survive.
Dakota writes gritty science fiction and epic fantasy for audiences with a taste for bold stories of magic and adventure. These are the best kinds of people in his clearly unbiased opinion.
When he’s not engaging in fantastic tomfoolery, Dakota serves as an officer in the U.S. Army, because protecting his country and serving others is more important to him even than dragons. And dragons are super important.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 14, 2016
I've read another book by Dakota Kemp, The Arrival. And while I didn't love it, I liked it a lot more than this one. This one was too short for me (ironic when I thought her other one dragged). Make up a fantasy world, that's fine. In fact, I encourage it! But make it a memorable one. Let me feel like if I got teleported there, I could find my way around. Well, I have a terrible sense of direction, so I couldn't, but you know what I mean! A book this short doesn't give me a chance to do that. Kemp could have done amazing things with this, but she didn't give it enough time.
She said this was a romance, but it wasn't. Not really. Yeah, okay, he said he loved her. But in reality, they were only friends. It was empty words in my opinion. It was an amazing friendship, don't get me wrong! It broke my heart when he found out he had to kill her. But that doesn't make it romance. Love, yes, just like I love my friends. But they aren't the same thing.
The characters weren't all that memorable either. Notice how I haven't used their names at all? Because I can't remember them. The girl I liked, but didn't love. The guy had so much potential, I feel like it was wasted.
I'll keep this review short, just like the book. If she'd spent more time really making this book a good one, like it could have been, I could be bothered making this review long.
She said this was a romance, but it wasn't. Not really. Yeah, okay, he said he loved her. But in reality, they were only friends. It was empty words in my opinion. It was an amazing friendship, don't get me wrong! It broke my heart when he found out he had to kill her. But that doesn't make it romance. Love, yes, just like I love my friends. But they aren't the same thing.
The characters weren't all that memorable either. Notice how I haven't used their names at all? Because I can't remember them. The girl I liked, but didn't love. The guy had so much potential, I feel like it was wasted.
I'll keep this review short, just like the book. If she'd spent more time really making this book a good one, like it could have been, I could be bothered making this review long.
April 7, 2015
This book is way outside of my typical reading sphere. In that respect, I did enjoy this book. For that reason alone I give it a higher rating than I would if it had been one of my typical reads.
One problem that I saw off the bat is a lack of dimension in the characters. Each of the characters are introduced but lack depth. They fell flat and just didn't seem real enough to get a grasp of personality. I couldn't relate to any of the characters which is one reason it was hard for me to read.
Also, the book seemed rather rushed. Things happened one event right after another with lines that weren't definitive. Almost as if this were a movie that is only supposed to last thirty minutes of the day. That was off putting to me as the reader. I didn't really get to enjoy any one event because it moved so quickly.
At the beginning of the book the author said that this was his take on romance.... Um. Well, I guess there is a slight feel that there could have been a spark between the two it was more like the one-sided relationships you have in your head with a celebrity. Strike was infatuated with the female lead (yikes, I can't remember her name!), but he wasn't even a bleep on her radar. This disapointed me a lot. However, with as quickly as the book moved along there wouldn't have been time to fully develop that relationship. I do think it would have made some of the ending scenes more powerful and profound.
Overall, I did like this book. I would purchase the sequel just to see if the author takes the time to fully develop the characters and gives time for things to develop rather than have the rush of the events. I would like advise the author to read some romance novels before attempting to write a romance again or have a young woman give him some advice.
One problem that I saw off the bat is a lack of dimension in the characters. Each of the characters are introduced but lack depth. They fell flat and just didn't seem real enough to get a grasp of personality. I couldn't relate to any of the characters which is one reason it was hard for me to read.
Also, the book seemed rather rushed. Things happened one event right after another with lines that weren't definitive. Almost as if this were a movie that is only supposed to last thirty minutes of the day. That was off putting to me as the reader. I didn't really get to enjoy any one event because it moved so quickly.
At the beginning of the book the author said that this was his take on romance.... Um. Well, I guess there is a slight feel that there could have been a spark between the two it was more like the one-sided relationships you have in your head with a celebrity. Strike was infatuated with the female lead (yikes, I can't remember her name!), but he wasn't even a bleep on her radar. This disapointed me a lot. However, with as quickly as the book moved along there wouldn't have been time to fully develop that relationship. I do think it would have made some of the ending scenes more powerful and profound.
Overall, I did like this book. I would purchase the sequel just to see if the author takes the time to fully develop the characters and gives time for things to develop rather than have the rush of the events. I would like advise the author to read some romance novels before attempting to write a romance again or have a young woman give him some advice.
February 11, 2015
Kemp had some really interesting ideas in this book. The main character is one of the last humans alive in the universe, a survivor of a species dangerously close to extinction. The universe itself is full of interesting aliens with different abilities and outlooks. The various settings are exotic and exciting.
Unfortunately, the book suffers from very flat characters. The main character, Shrike, is a big bundle of bravado, guns, and that "tough guy exterior with a wounded heart" motif but is nothing more and is ultimately unlikable. The love interest is the cookie cutter sexy assassin type. Their attempts at flirtation are painful to read. The central conflict is implausible and forced. About a third of the book is a long fight scene that, even though it was ably written, lost my interest half way through.
I very much enjoyed the universe Kemp created. I want to know more about what happened to the humans at the battle Kemp keeps mentioning. But this book- the plot, the characters- failed to ring true to me. Will I read the sequel? Maybe, if it's just as short. But I'm not going to rush out to buy it right away.
Unfortunately, the book suffers from very flat characters. The main character, Shrike, is a big bundle of bravado, guns, and that "tough guy exterior with a wounded heart" motif but is nothing more and is ultimately unlikable. The love interest is the cookie cutter sexy assassin type. Their attempts at flirtation are painful to read. The central conflict is implausible and forced. About a third of the book is a long fight scene that, even though it was ably written, lost my interest half way through.
I very much enjoyed the universe Kemp created. I want to know more about what happened to the humans at the battle Kemp keeps mentioning. But this book- the plot, the characters- failed to ring true to me. Will I read the sequel? Maybe, if it's just as short. But I'm not going to rush out to buy it right away.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews