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Lost Colonies Trilogy #2
Dreadnought
Captain William Sparhawk flies Earth’s single starship on a voyage of exploration. His crew of veteran spacers begins the mission with high hopes and the best of intentions, but the universe has other plans. Instead of space merchants and potential allies, they discover Earth’s impending doom. Sparhawk must decide whether to hunt down enemy scouts to keep Earth’s new starship a secret, or to head home to warn Star Guard of the danger. Either way, he’s ignited an interstellar war.
Dreadnought, the second book of the Lost Colonies Trilogy, is a novel of military science fiction by bestselling author B. V. Larson.
Dreadnought, the second book of the Lost Colonies Trilogy, is a novel of military science fiction by bestselling author B. V. Larson.
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First published November 11, 2015
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About the author
B.V. Larson
134 books1,529 followersBrian Larson is an American science fiction and fantasy author
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
August 31, 2016
This follow up was harder to push thru than #1.
I'm guessing B.V doesn't want another star-force clone so wrote down some rules to follow. The ones that annoy me most are;
1. The captain of a star ship is now just a figure head without typical authority. He has to pander to the whims, feelings of the crew and civilians. Decisions seem more communal than captain like. Crew are free to answer back and question their captain’s decisions at all times, even in combat, they do so every other page.
2. EVERY SINGLE THING had to be explained in detail, SO ANNOYING. The reader was not considered to have basic IQ level and treated like a primary school kid the entire book.
3. The ambassador did not ring true at all, she had command of the star ship out of combat of all things ridiculous. Was made out to be a complete nincompoop then lauded at the end of the book for the only good decision she made on the journey. She didn’t ring true once. The whole book didn’t ring true as far as a fictional world goes.
Two hangovers from previous series’ are the captain is a slut everyone desires to bed and his superiors hate and blame him for all disasters obviously not of his making even though he saved the planet. Seems there is not a world B.V makes where there are competent leaders.
As to the story, It is OK so sticking with 2 stars. I’ll read the next one but suspect this series won’t go on a long time. Actually I will audio the next one as this is more a travelling/working in the garden kind of book.
I'm guessing B.V doesn't want another star-force clone so wrote down some rules to follow. The ones that annoy me most are;
1. The captain of a star ship is now just a figure head without typical authority. He has to pander to the whims, feelings of the crew and civilians. Decisions seem more communal than captain like. Crew are free to answer back and question their captain’s decisions at all times, even in combat, they do so every other page.
2. EVERY SINGLE THING had to be explained in detail, SO ANNOYING. The reader was not considered to have basic IQ level and treated like a primary school kid the entire book.
3. The ambassador did not ring true at all, she had command of the star ship out of combat of all things ridiculous. Was made out to be a complete nincompoop then lauded at the end of the book for the only good decision she made on the journey. She didn’t ring true once. The whole book didn’t ring true as far as a fictional world goes.
Two hangovers from previous series’ are the captain is a slut everyone desires to bed and his superiors hate and blame him for all disasters obviously not of his making even though he saved the planet. Seems there is not a world B.V makes where there are competent leaders.
As to the story, It is OK so sticking with 2 stars. I’ll read the next one but suspect this series won’t go on a long time. Actually I will audio the next one as this is more a travelling/working in the garden kind of book.
April 22, 2017
What a fantastic series this is. I think I liked this book better than book one Battle Cruiser. If you like space operas than read this series. You won't be disappointed.
April 6, 2016
What a ride!
I thought the 1st book in this series was good. Nope this 2d book was an order of magnitude better! I can't begin to describe how many twists and turns there is to this story line. Plot - sub plot - sub sub plot! And when you think it can't get any crazier - it gets much more thrilling! I read it until 0500 ( that's 5 am for you civilians). I simply can't wait for the third volume!
I thought the 1st book in this series was good. Nope this 2d book was an order of magnitude better! I can't begin to describe how many twists and turns there is to this story line. Plot - sub plot - sub sub plot! And when you think it can't get any crazier - it gets much more thrilling! I read it until 0500 ( that's 5 am for you civilians). I simply can't wait for the third volume!
March 18, 2018
Review
Well written. I found the story interesting and the main plot was good. However, some of the content I did not like and felt it took away from the story. I wouldn’t recommend it for this reason.
Well written. I found the story interesting and the main plot was good. However, some of the content I did not like and felt it took away from the story. I wouldn’t recommend it for this reason.
March 23, 2019
I really enjoy William Sparhawk’s first person narration of his amazing adventures – his rather stiff-necked approach in the first book has significantly loosened up during this book. He continues his command of Defiant and after his escapades in the first book, I did wonder if Larson could sustain the level of risk, along with the skin-of-his-teeth vibe and the bounciness and regular shafts of humour that run through the book. And the answer is – he can.
On this crucial mission, William is taking the Defiant on a historic voyage of discovery to colonies that were cut off over one hundred and fifty years ago. In the face of a lethal threat discovered out among the stars, Earth now desperately needs powerful allies to help from being invaded. Can William’s mission find those allies?
The catch is that William’s mission is also being overseen by political forces on Earth as they are unwilling to allow him free rein – and to his utter dismay, the person they have nominated to act as ambassador, outranking him on the diplomatic side of his mission, is his very elderly aunt, the Lady Grantholm.
This twist in the story meant that throughout this demanding voyage, William continually finds himself not only having to deal with a range of dangerous columnists, none of whom have any fond feelings towards Earth, but also his aunt, who regularly appears on the bridge at the most inconvenient moments. This nicely ups the stakes as well as providing some humour.
And the other source of amusement are William’s occasional romantic attachments. I thought they were hilarious, especially when he becomes entangled with crew members. Larson provides a nicely nuanced hero, playing on the typical lantern-jawed version we are all familiar with, yet also giving our brave protagonist, one or two wrinkles that the likes of Captain Picard doesn’t possess. That said, I’ve become very fond of William Sparhawk and I’m delighted to note that this is part of a trilogy – so there is more Sparhawk goodness to enjoy with Star Carrier. Recommended for fans of character-led military science fiction.
9/10
On this crucial mission, William is taking the Defiant on a historic voyage of discovery to colonies that were cut off over one hundred and fifty years ago. In the face of a lethal threat discovered out among the stars, Earth now desperately needs powerful allies to help from being invaded. Can William’s mission find those allies?
The catch is that William’s mission is also being overseen by political forces on Earth as they are unwilling to allow him free rein – and to his utter dismay, the person they have nominated to act as ambassador, outranking him on the diplomatic side of his mission, is his very elderly aunt, the Lady Grantholm.
This twist in the story meant that throughout this demanding voyage, William continually finds himself not only having to deal with a range of dangerous columnists, none of whom have any fond feelings towards Earth, but also his aunt, who regularly appears on the bridge at the most inconvenient moments. This nicely ups the stakes as well as providing some humour.
And the other source of amusement are William’s occasional romantic attachments. I thought they were hilarious, especially when he becomes entangled with crew members. Larson provides a nicely nuanced hero, playing on the typical lantern-jawed version we are all familiar with, yet also giving our brave protagonist, one or two wrinkles that the likes of Captain Picard doesn’t possess. That said, I’ve become very fond of William Sparhawk and I’m delighted to note that this is part of a trilogy – so there is more Sparhawk goodness to enjoy with Star Carrier. Recommended for fans of character-led military science fiction.
9/10
September 21, 2017
Before you begin, please note this is the second book in a series. If you haven’t read the first book yet, Battle Cruiser (Lost Colonies Trilogy Book 1), this one may not make much sense to you.
Parts of this book were really good, and other parts took quite a step back. The main premise of Earth reconnecting with their lost colonies after a 150 year break is a good one, and I like the idea of seeing how mankind has developed in different pockets of the universe after an absence. What made my opinion of the book go down a notch or two is the theory of the wormholes needed more explanation as you can’t wrap your arms around it.
The over-abundance of sex in this installment, however, made me feel as if this title is being catered to a bunch of junior high boys: sex with the crew, girlfriend, and the now-found remnants of mankind. If the Star Guard is supposed to be the last bastions of the military tradition, getting it on with your subordinates doesn’t fit that model. I picked this up for free using my borrow under the Kindle Unlimited program vs. its regular price of $4.95; I’m not sure I will be around for the next
Parts of this book were really good, and other parts took quite a step back. The main premise of Earth reconnecting with their lost colonies after a 150 year break is a good one, and I like the idea of seeing how mankind has developed in different pockets of the universe after an absence. What made my opinion of the book go down a notch or two is the theory of the wormholes needed more explanation as you can’t wrap your arms around it.
The over-abundance of sex in this installment, however, made me feel as if this title is being catered to a bunch of junior high boys: sex with the crew, girlfriend, and the now-found remnants of mankind. If the Star Guard is supposed to be the last bastions of the military tradition, getting it on with your subordinates doesn’t fit that model. I picked this up for free using my borrow under the Kindle Unlimited program vs. its regular price of $4.95; I’m not sure I will be around for the next
June 30, 2017
Best so far in the series
I have spent the last five decades reading,mostly Sci-fi . I have found the best authors have created entire new civilizations for the back ground of their books. Mr.Larson has done this and kept the basic feel of humanity as we know it. Yet at the same time changed everything, our colonies have changed to the point that they are alien to us. The story grabs a hold of your mind and sends it on a wonderful trail that refuses to release it until the eye sees the last word on the page. So far the books lead seamlessly into the next. Can't wait to read final book in the series.
I have spent the last five decades reading,mostly Sci-fi . I have found the best authors have created entire new civilizations for the back ground of their books. Mr.Larson has done this and kept the basic feel of humanity as we know it. Yet at the same time changed everything, our colonies have changed to the point that they are alien to us. The story grabs a hold of your mind and sends it on a wonderful trail that refuses to release it until the eye sees the last word on the page. So far the books lead seamlessly into the next. Can't wait to read final book in the series.
May 29, 2018
Book two of this series was much better than the first book.
I like the development of Zai and her interaction with the regular humans. I loved meeting the other colonies and finding out how they had fared sine the cataclysm. I laughed at how Sparhawk seemed to nail anything that walked. Lady Grantham was quiet possibly my favorite character so far.
The little adventures were great, and left you wanting to know what the next step was. The final climax and resolution were surprising. There were a few things that just didn't match up with common sense. Overall, a good read, I was left excited for the next book.
I like the development of Zai and her interaction with the regular humans. I loved meeting the other colonies and finding out how they had fared sine the cataclysm. I laughed at how Sparhawk seemed to nail anything that walked. Lady Grantham was quiet possibly my favorite character so far.
The little adventures were great, and left you wanting to know what the next step was. The final climax and resolution were surprising. There were a few things that just didn't match up with common sense. Overall, a good read, I was left excited for the next book.
July 1, 2017
Great follow up to book one and setup for book 3. Sometimes in trilogy book two is just a holding point to get to book 3. This was not that's why 5 stars as good enough to stand by itself. But I suspect if it did I would only give it 4 stars.
Please see above. Put body of comments in subject line. Maybe that shows how well I can follow directions. Enjoy
Please see above. Put body of comments in subject line. Maybe that shows how well I can follow directions. Enjoy
November 13, 2020
Better than the sequel, still not precisely "good".
The world building is still the best thing about the series. The premise is interesting (if a bit generic) and the story itself is good an competently told.
The characters are still flat, but not nearly as badly as in the prequel. At least not everyone in charge (apart from the protagonist) is a blithering idiot anymore (...or an impostor...), quite the opposite - the people in power are mostly portrayed as having reasonable motivations and acting rationally, or at least understandably, according to them.
The sexism is still rampant, though, even if it is called out in-story. It doesn't help that this is both played straight and subverted at several points in the story.
I still enjoyed it and will continue reading the series.
And it doesn't help that the main villain "species", the Stroj, has been retconned in very obvious ways in some places.
The world building is still the best thing about the series. The premise is interesting (if a bit generic) and the story itself is good an competently told.
The characters are still flat, but not nearly as badly as in the prequel. At least not everyone in charge (apart from the protagonist) is a blithering idiot anymore (...or an impostor...), quite the opposite - the people in power are mostly portrayed as having reasonable motivations and acting rationally, or at least understandably, according to them.
The sexism is still rampant, though, even if it is called out in-story. It doesn't help that this is both played straight and subverted at several points in the story.
I still enjoyed it and will continue reading the series.
And it doesn't help that the main villain "species", the Stroj, has been retconned in very obvious ways in some places.
September 17, 2022
I absolutely could not stop reading Mr Larson's different series
I love these stories. This author has a way of turning a phrase that seems born of wisdom and old southern tongue in cheek charm with generous portion of snide wit.
I found myself completely drawn in and eager to read the next series. I had Alexa read several of the stories to me. Alexa will read them if you have Kindle unlimited, and you borrow the book, start it and bookmark it then synchronize it with Kindle. She will move forward and backward by chapter or you can say Alexa go back one hour etc. YOU must state the name of the book and author to get started. . This was my experience with having Alexa read to me and not have to buy audible books
Very nice reads certainly the Undying Mercenaries set of books by BV Larson
You just have to learn what commands Alexa will understand. I can't afford the audible books but I did get a couple and the narration was absolutely the best.
I love these stories. This author has a way of turning a phrase that seems born of wisdom and old southern tongue in cheek charm with generous portion of snide wit.
I found myself completely drawn in and eager to read the next series. I had Alexa read several of the stories to me. Alexa will read them if you have Kindle unlimited, and you borrow the book, start it and bookmark it then synchronize it with Kindle. She will move forward and backward by chapter or you can say Alexa go back one hour etc. YOU must state the name of the book and author to get started. . This was my experience with having Alexa read to me and not have to buy audible books
Very nice reads certainly the Undying Mercenaries set of books by BV Larson
You just have to learn what commands Alexa will understand. I can't afford the audible books but I did get a couple and the narration was absolutely the best.
July 6, 2023
I find Larson's books entertaining with tongue in check and switching off the critical eye as the writing quality is limited. The story line itself is fairly interesting, it's the characters themselves that make me smile and the way the book has been written. Fundamental points such as not having clarity as to who is in charge of the ship is highly unlikely as its such a poor leadership decision from earth - but then given some of the international leaders that we have today, it is possible to have such awful decision makers. The ambassador is completely unbelievable - her attitude is poor, plus the hero is a conceited, annoying, egocentric person that really could do with being knocked down a peg or to. I laugh every time there is mention of another sexual encounter - it really is a boys dream to have women falling over themselves to get the attentions of the "masterful" captain. YUCK! In fact, some of this is so sickly and poor, it makes me laugh so much, I keep on listening, usually at bedtime when I want to go to sleep.
February 16, 2017
Sex with aliens! This captain puts James Tiberius Kirk and Zapp Brannigan to shame! Despite such lewd and lascivious behaviour of the talented and well spoken spartan, it was an enjoyable book that takes this newly found ship into its first hyperspace jump with adventures as they explore new galaxies yada yada yada.
March 28, 2018
Captain William Sparhawk and his crew are off to explore and they find many surprises. I keep listening to this for the fun. There are more interesting descriptions that inspire me to answer back while having a very good chuckle. Start with book one and be prepared to enjoy what is a fun book full of cliches and some very different characters.
October 2, 2021
Woah. While the first book of the trilogy was a pleasant surprise, this one was a bit disappointing:
The story one-sided, with only one plot to follow, the plot itself a bit predictable.
What I can tell you after having read (respectively "listened to") the last book in the trilogy is: It's a nice build-up. Stay tuned.
The story one-sided, with only one plot to follow, the plot itself a bit predictable.
What I can tell you after having read (respectively "listened to") the last book in the trilogy is: It's a nice build-up. Stay tuned.
February 2, 2018
Captain Sparhawk has done it again! He has handled a large space ship, rediscovered human space colonies lost for 150 years and managed to acquire a new enemy for earth's humans while romancing many of the women in his life. What a space opera series!
October 7, 2018
Dreadnought
I found this sequel to be full of action and suspense. Delving deeper into the characters and plot development make me appreciate the author's skill. Looking forward to his next book!
I found this sequel to be full of action and suspense. Delving deeper into the characters and plot development make me appreciate the author's skill. Looking forward to his next book!
April 30, 2020
Nothing sophisticated, just an interesting, imaginative space adventure with intriguing characters. Escapist Sci-fi that doesn't strain the brain but also doesn't insult your intelligence. I'm reading all of his series of books. A little more juvenile than his other stuff but still good
October 12, 2025
In some aspects, this book was every bit as good as the previous one in this series. My biggest complaint is that every time the space battles end, there is a sex scene with less comprehension than a James Bond film.
September 12, 2016
In Dreadnought, B.V. Larson’s second book in the Lost Colonies Trilogy, the Battle Cruiser “Defiant” has been retrofitted with the best of both Earth and Beta technology. Its acknowledged mission is to re-open channels to the old Colonies. On board is Captain William Sparhawk's great aunt, Ambassador Lady Granthome who, of course, is constantly meddling in his affairs. Indeed, she has a sweet little document he knows nothing about until they are underway giving her complete control of the mission, with the exception of military necessities, after which point Sparhawk is to surrender control of the ship to her once again. It’s enough to drive a man to drink!
Seriously, I enjoyed the first book in this series so much, I gave it a decent review and ordered the next two editions. But I wasn’t totally sold on everything in the first book and one of the strengths of the first books turns into one of its greatest weaknesses here, a character named Zye. Zye is a huge Beta, a clone-type, human-derivative former colonist found on board the Defiant, the ship Sparhawk and his crew have captured from human space, as it drifted along, mostly deserted in the first volume of the series. Zye feels tremendous loyalty to the captain, which is great, considering he has no ability to sense danger or to feel for traps of any sort. Indeed, he invites them. She’s also huge and strong as an ox, so nobody messes with her. But we learn fairly soon that she’s also attracted to William, even though she dwarfs him, and even though he tries to dissuade her. She’s not easy to dissuade.
In the first book, it was kind of cute. Look, she’s his bodyguard. Oh, good, he needs one. Oh, she’s saved his life again. Damn glad she was there, even if she was sneaking into his rooms again uninvited for the 25th straight time.
This time it’s worse. Much worse. Zye is everywhere and she has a serious attitude problem. She still follows William everywhere he goes at all times. I know he really needs a bodyguard, but couldn’t he hire a real one? Also, she’s always, always following him, walking into his quarters, his bedroom, for God’s sake! WTF? And she seduces him – successfully!!! WTF was he thinking? Some seven foot tall, monster breasted Amazon isn’t going to be noticed coming into and out of your bedroom, captain? Well, she does, he falls for it, he realizes that he LIKES it, and then next thing you know, the whole fucking ship knows, because she has told everyone because he is her property. That’s a great way to run a ship. And she starts challenging him on the bridge. It gets worse, but enough.
Meanwhile, they keep encountering former colonies, almost all of whom are doing very poorly or just plain attack them outright. They also have to deal with this Stroj pirate the whole time who leads them through system after system until it seems they’ve been trapped. The battles are great the whole time and ultimately Sparhawk uses this beautiful little tactical ploy to capture the Stroj and escape the system.
It’s imperative to return to Earth to warn them of what they’ve found outside of the system, of what awaits them, of the need to build up a viable navy. But most important for me is, it’s crucial I don’t read the third and last book so I can have Zye drive me insane with fury as she commits more and more slutty atrocities. For instance, when William tells her he thinks it best that they not continue anything serious, as he is the captain and she is a crew member, she simply says something to the effect that she has a date with another crew member for sex that night anyway. And she’s been sleeping around and getting dating tips from the other female crew members while on the trip. Uh, okay. She wasn’t quite such a whore in the first book. This personality change took me by surprise. I thought she was dedicated to William. To find that in her mind, William’s interchangeable with any other male crew member, as long as they have working penises, was not what I expected from her. I somehow expected more from her. But maybe I misread her and maybe I misread Larson in how he created her. My bad.
I liked this book okay. Not as much as the first one, which I gave four stars to. Not quite as much action, I don’t think. Could have used a bit more. And Zye’s annoying presence and overwhelming dominance were so overpowering that they nearly ruined an otherwise decent book for me. That alone would have knocked the book down to two stars for me. I’m going to compromise and jump it up one star for a three star overall rating. If I can bring myself to open the final book, which I have right beside me, and if I don’t want to kill Zye on sight, I might read it. That book would be the deciding book on whether or not this is a successful series in my eyes. Does the author want to write a decent military sci fi series or does he want to write about a giant, semi-alien horny Amazon who dominates the pages of the books he writes to the exclusion of almost everything else? It’s his choice. As a standalone, not recommended. As part of the series, cautiously recommended.
Seriously, I enjoyed the first book in this series so much, I gave it a decent review and ordered the next two editions. But I wasn’t totally sold on everything in the first book and one of the strengths of the first books turns into one of its greatest weaknesses here, a character named Zye. Zye is a huge Beta, a clone-type, human-derivative former colonist found on board the Defiant, the ship Sparhawk and his crew have captured from human space, as it drifted along, mostly deserted in the first volume of the series. Zye feels tremendous loyalty to the captain, which is great, considering he has no ability to sense danger or to feel for traps of any sort. Indeed, he invites them. She’s also huge and strong as an ox, so nobody messes with her. But we learn fairly soon that she’s also attracted to William, even though she dwarfs him, and even though he tries to dissuade her. She’s not easy to dissuade.
In the first book, it was kind of cute. Look, she’s his bodyguard. Oh, good, he needs one. Oh, she’s saved his life again. Damn glad she was there, even if she was sneaking into his rooms again uninvited for the 25th straight time.
This time it’s worse. Much worse. Zye is everywhere and she has a serious attitude problem. She still follows William everywhere he goes at all times. I know he really needs a bodyguard, but couldn’t he hire a real one? Also, she’s always, always following him, walking into his quarters, his bedroom, for God’s sake! WTF? And she seduces him – successfully!!! WTF was he thinking? Some seven foot tall, monster breasted Amazon isn’t going to be noticed coming into and out of your bedroom, captain? Well, she does, he falls for it, he realizes that he LIKES it, and then next thing you know, the whole fucking ship knows, because she has told everyone because he is her property. That’s a great way to run a ship. And she starts challenging him on the bridge. It gets worse, but enough.
Meanwhile, they keep encountering former colonies, almost all of whom are doing very poorly or just plain attack them outright. They also have to deal with this Stroj pirate the whole time who leads them through system after system until it seems they’ve been trapped. The battles are great the whole time and ultimately Sparhawk uses this beautiful little tactical ploy to capture the Stroj and escape the system.
It’s imperative to return to Earth to warn them of what they’ve found outside of the system, of what awaits them, of the need to build up a viable navy. But most important for me is, it’s crucial I don’t read the third and last book so I can have Zye drive me insane with fury as she commits more and more slutty atrocities. For instance, when William tells her he thinks it best that they not continue anything serious, as he is the captain and she is a crew member, she simply says something to the effect that she has a date with another crew member for sex that night anyway. And she’s been sleeping around and getting dating tips from the other female crew members while on the trip. Uh, okay. She wasn’t quite such a whore in the first book. This personality change took me by surprise. I thought she was dedicated to William. To find that in her mind, William’s interchangeable with any other male crew member, as long as they have working penises, was not what I expected from her. I somehow expected more from her. But maybe I misread her and maybe I misread Larson in how he created her. My bad.
I liked this book okay. Not as much as the first one, which I gave four stars to. Not quite as much action, I don’t think. Could have used a bit more. And Zye’s annoying presence and overwhelming dominance were so overpowering that they nearly ruined an otherwise decent book for me. That alone would have knocked the book down to two stars for me. I’m going to compromise and jump it up one star for a three star overall rating. If I can bring myself to open the final book, which I have right beside me, and if I don’t want to kill Zye on sight, I might read it. That book would be the deciding book on whether or not this is a successful series in my eyes. Does the author want to write a decent military sci fi series or does he want to write about a giant, semi-alien horny Amazon who dominates the pages of the books he writes to the exclusion of almost everything else? It’s his choice. As a standalone, not recommended. As part of the series, cautiously recommended.
July 15, 2017
Another entertaining story with good characters. A little too much political intrigue for my tastes.
September 6, 2017
Space opera!
May 9, 2018
Great story, very creative and easy to follow. It had been a year since I read the first and it was easy to get back into. I highly recommend starting with the first book
June 12, 2019
Not bad for the second book in a trilogy.
August 12, 2020
Sehr spannend und auch nicht vorhersehbare Handlungen, bin begeistert wie vom ersten Teil und springe sofort zum dritten Teil weiter
January 27, 2021
The story and characters are progressing nicely, but I just don't feel invested in any of them.
March 5, 2022
Pace is little bit slower than in previous book, but variance of adventure compensates it nicely.
November 18, 2020
This isn't a bad series, just kinda mediocre.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews