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Castle Federation #3
Battle Group Avalon
TURNING THE TIDE
The Terran Commonwealth has proved a nigh-unstoppable juggernaut in its war against the smaller Castle Federation and her allies, but an almost accidental victory by Captain Kyle Roberts of the carrier Avalon has opened a chink in its armor.
Desperate to change the course of a war they are rapidly losing; the Federation assembles a new forward fleet with orders to retake the systems that have fallen to the enemy.
Outnumbered but on the offensive at last, Kyle Roberts must take a hastily assembled battle group back to the worlds the Alliance failed to defend. There he will live or die by the skills of his soldiers and the honor of his enemies.
The Terran Commonwealth has proved a nigh-unstoppable juggernaut in its war against the smaller Castle Federation and her allies, but an almost accidental victory by Captain Kyle Roberts of the carrier Avalon has opened a chink in its armor.
Desperate to change the course of a war they are rapidly losing; the Federation assembles a new forward fleet with orders to retake the systems that have fallen to the enemy.
Outnumbered but on the offensive at last, Kyle Roberts must take a hastily assembled battle group back to the worlds the Alliance failed to defend. There he will live or die by the skills of his soldiers and the honor of his enemies.
347 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 29, 2016
808 people are currently reading
256 people want to read
About the author
Glynn Stewart
115 books1,747 followersGlynn Stewart is the author of over 60 books, including Starship’s Mage, a bestselling science fiction and fantasy series where faster-than-light travel is possible–but only because of magic.
Writing managed to liberate Glynn from a bleak future as an accountant. With his personality and hope for a high-tech future intact, he lives in Southern Ontario with his partner, their cats, and an unstoppable writing habit.
Writing managed to liberate Glynn from a bleak future as an accountant. With his personality and hope for a high-tech future intact, he lives in Southern Ontario with his partner, their cats, and an unstoppable writing habit.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
May 1, 2016
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
*** Spoilers ***
This book is different from it’s predecessors. It doesn’t lack in quality but you don’t have an immediate bad guy or conspiracy to focus on. Instead we have our hero Kyle being what he should be - in relation to our world building - a junior captain (per time in the role) working as part of a battle group under the aegis of a senior admiral.
The first third of the book is a military campaign. It encompasses the strategy sessions, the meetings to discuss worst case scenarios and the planning / practice sessions to ensure a win. This part for me dragged a little, but I think that was more due to my sporadic reading of it rather than any fault of the book. I don’t mean to imply it wasn’t interesting reading because it was. I think for a while I was looking around corners, as it were, wondering if there was a hidden enemy yet to be introduced.
The action heats up around half way and I read the second half of the book in one sitting. I didn’t realise the time. I went from 67% to 91% seemingly without blinking. It’s action packed, tense and kept me glued to the story.
Kyle Roberts is given the task of playing a cat and mouse game with the enemy fleet. Of course there are complications that mean that he can’t quite follow orders. This means we witness some stellar battle plays to try and outwit the enemy. And there are some losses. Ones that made me gasp and know I’ll miss the character.
Through out the book we focus not only on Kyle but also characters from the Space Fighters - Michael Stanford from previous books and the Marines - El-Maj Edvard Hansen is already a favourite of mine - and I should correct that to the Castle damned Marines (wolf howl). I liked that each lead character from each group was open to ideas and had someone who was prepared to offer the wild and crazy. Even our captain throws open the door to ideas and is prepared to try them.
The ending left me wanting more. I’m already wondering at how Kyle is going to handle things, the machinations of Walkingstick and how the next book is going to unfold.
Overall, I enjoyed the story greatly.
*** Spoilers ***
This book is different from it’s predecessors. It doesn’t lack in quality but you don’t have an immediate bad guy or conspiracy to focus on. Instead we have our hero Kyle being what he should be - in relation to our world building - a junior captain (per time in the role) working as part of a battle group under the aegis of a senior admiral.
The first third of the book is a military campaign. It encompasses the strategy sessions, the meetings to discuss worst case scenarios and the planning / practice sessions to ensure a win. This part for me dragged a little, but I think that was more due to my sporadic reading of it rather than any fault of the book. I don’t mean to imply it wasn’t interesting reading because it was. I think for a while I was looking around corners, as it were, wondering if there was a hidden enemy yet to be introduced.
The action heats up around half way and I read the second half of the book in one sitting. I didn’t realise the time. I went from 67% to 91% seemingly without blinking. It’s action packed, tense and kept me glued to the story.
Kyle Roberts is given the task of playing a cat and mouse game with the enemy fleet. Of course there are complications that mean that he can’t quite follow orders. This means we witness some stellar battle plays to try and outwit the enemy. And there are some losses. Ones that made me gasp and know I’ll miss the character.
Through out the book we focus not only on Kyle but also characters from the Space Fighters - Michael Stanford from previous books and the Marines - El-Maj Edvard Hansen is already a favourite of mine - and I should correct that to the Castle damned Marines (wolf howl). I liked that each lead character from each group was open to ideas and had someone who was prepared to offer the wild and crazy. Even our captain throws open the door to ideas and is prepared to try them.
The ending left me wanting more. I’m already wondering at how Kyle is going to handle things, the machinations of Walkingstick and how the next book is going to unfold.
Overall, I enjoyed the story greatly.
April 10, 2017
I have really enjoyed all the other books in the series but unfortunately , this last one is a bit more of the same.
February 1, 2018
Still shootin'em up!
I have been reading Glynn Stewart's books for the better part of 2 weeks..12 books by now. I can't even say why! They're war stories with all sorts of details that are meaningless to this old 75 year old woman but...there is something about the indomitableness of Stewart's characters and the goodness of his heroes that keeps me reading them. It will be a sad day when I read the last one. Then I'll just have to wait for him to write a new one...and i can read each far faster than he can write then! Rats.
I have been reading Glynn Stewart's books for the better part of 2 weeks..12 books by now. I can't even say why! They're war stories with all sorts of details that are meaningless to this old 75 year old woman but...there is something about the indomitableness of Stewart's characters and the goodness of his heroes that keeps me reading them. It will be a sad day when I read the last one. Then I'll just have to wait for him to write a new one...and i can read each far faster than he can write then! Rats.
July 26, 2025
Writing this review is odd- because Battle Group Avalon is an odd book. It's a shining star of indie science fiction that is placed in the middle of five other books. Can you really rate it without the context it is in? Is it fair to say that random indie book deserves a 5 star review when the whole science fiction genre is filled with monolithic writers who've shaped human imagination?
I don’t know the answer to either question (shocker), but I can tell you why I gave this book the rating you see above. Battle Group Avalon isn't the best science fiction novel- and it isn't trying to be. Battle Group Avalon is trying to pull you into the world of the Castle Federation, and it makes you care about it.
The book feeds the reader more and more information about the bigger picture, keeps up the amazing large scale action sequences, and Stewart paints a wonderful emotional canvas that effects the reader regardless of the cold, militaristic universe the novel is set in. I knew countless people were dying whenever conflict happened in the series, but this was the book in which Glynn Stewart finally managed to make their lives feel more like numbers on a page.
If you've read the last two books, (and for reference, I'd give both a generous 3.5,) you're just doing a disservice by not reading this one. That said, this book casts a long shadow over the rest of the series, and it's one that the following books struggle to live up to.
I don’t know the answer to either question (shocker), but I can tell you why I gave this book the rating you see above. Battle Group Avalon isn't the best science fiction novel- and it isn't trying to be. Battle Group Avalon is trying to pull you into the world of the Castle Federation, and it makes you care about it.
The book feeds the reader more and more information about the bigger picture, keeps up the amazing large scale action sequences, and Stewart paints a wonderful emotional canvas that effects the reader regardless of the cold, militaristic universe the novel is set in. I knew countless people were dying whenever conflict happened in the series, but this was the book in which Glynn Stewart finally managed to make their lives feel more like numbers on a page.
If you've read the last two books, (and for reference, I'd give both a generous 3.5,) you're just doing a disservice by not reading this one. That said, this book casts a long shadow over the rest of the series, and it's one that the following books struggle to live up to.
March 6, 2024
I enjoyed it
I found the plot very interesting. And the story is shaping up to be a very interesting one indeed. I fear, however, that with avalon returning to castle, the next book could focus far too much on the political side of the war. While shedding light on said political side is not necessarily a bad thing, I still have fears it could turn into another honorverse political exposition nightmare.
The only reason I rated this 3 stars was due to a number of simple grammar errors that really shouldn't have slipped through editing, and the few inconsistencies in the numbers provided throughout this book. It didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book, but it was enough to drop a 4 star to a 3.
I found the plot very interesting. And the story is shaping up to be a very interesting one indeed. I fear, however, that with avalon returning to castle, the next book could focus far too much on the political side of the war. While shedding light on said political side is not necessarily a bad thing, I still have fears it could turn into another honorverse political exposition nightmare.
The only reason I rated this 3 stars was due to a number of simple grammar errors that really shouldn't have slipped through editing, and the few inconsistencies in the numbers provided throughout this book. It didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book, but it was enough to drop a 4 star to a 3.
December 16, 2021
Great Storey
I enjoyed this story very much, the continuation of Kyle Roberts and the Alliances’ endeavours. Not sure if it’s the way or think or how I was educated but I did find the syntax in parts of the book were confusing, requiring me to read passages multiple times to get what I thought was the meaning. I will certainly be reading the next book though. Again, a great story and series.
I enjoyed this story very much, the continuation of Kyle Roberts and the Alliances’ endeavours. Not sure if it’s the way or think or how I was educated but I did find the syntax in parts of the book were confusing, requiring me to read passages multiple times to get what I thought was the meaning. I will certainly be reading the next book though. Again, a great story and series.
July 3, 2016
My friends arn't going to agree with me on this, but I really found the first 1/2 of the book to be very bland, then the 2nd half while more enjoyable and probably a 3/5 didn't wow me really, 2.5/5 overall and the weakest in this series so far.
August 19, 2017
❖ ❖ ❖
An ebook/Audiobook Buddy Read w/The Hubster
❖ ❖ ❖
WOW! This book held The Hubster and I spellbound! Battlegroup Avalon is book three in the Castle Federation, an exciting space opera series written by Glenn Stewart. All of the books have been well written and exciting, but this one is by far our favorite!
For three books, we've followed Captain Kyle Roberts and his crew on multiple missions aboard the Avalon. Together they have battled the relentless Torren Federation, a vicious enemy that is slowly gaining ground by invading and/or destroying entire worlds near the Castle system. Many of the victories won under Roberts' command have been part luck, part genius, but always highly creative when it comes to battle strategy. In this story, Roberts faces his biggest challenge yet. The war is not going well and he is placed in charge of a fleet of four carriers (Battlegroup Avalon). Each ship is heavily armed and transporting multiple squadrons of pilots, smaller spaceship fighters, and powerful marines. Together, they are tasked with taking back the worlds previously captured and enslaved by the Torren Federation.
Did I mention how much we loved this book? It was incredible and held us in suspense multiple times. Of course, this is war and war doesn't occur without loss. However, the ending left both of us breathless and eager to dive into book four. Thankfully, my library hold just came through! If you enjoy lots of action and military strategy, you'll love these books. If you decide to give them a try, make sure you read them in order.
I should mention that this book popped up as a random recommendation through Goodreads. We hadn't heard of the author before picking up book one, Space Carrier Avalon, but now that we've found his work, we are happily binging our way through the series. Our plan is to catch up with the Castle Federation and move on to his Starship Mage series. What could be better than Space Opera and Magic?!?!
The Hubster and I highly recommend the Castle Federation series to all Science Fiction Fantasy and/or Space Opera fans!
WOW! This book held The Hubster and I spellbound! Battlegroup Avalon is book three in the Castle Federation, an exciting space opera series written by Glenn Stewart. All of the books have been well written and exciting, but this one is by far our favorite!
For three books, we've followed Captain Kyle Roberts and his crew on multiple missions aboard the Avalon. Together they have battled the relentless Torren Federation, a vicious enemy that is slowly gaining ground by invading and/or destroying entire worlds near the Castle system. Many of the victories won under Roberts' command have been part luck, part genius, but always highly creative when it comes to battle strategy. In this story, Roberts faces his biggest challenge yet. The war is not going well and he is placed in charge of a fleet of four carriers (Battlegroup Avalon). Each ship is heavily armed and transporting multiple squadrons of pilots, smaller spaceship fighters, and powerful marines. Together, they are tasked with taking back the worlds previously captured and enslaved by the Torren Federation.
Did I mention how much we loved this book? It was incredible and held us in suspense multiple times. Of course, this is war and war doesn't occur without loss. However, the ending left both of us breathless and eager to dive into book four. Thankfully, my library hold just came through! If you enjoy lots of action and military strategy, you'll love these books. If you decide to give them a try, make sure you read them in order.
I should mention that this book popped up as a random recommendation through Goodreads. We hadn't heard of the author before picking up book one, Space Carrier Avalon, but now that we've found his work, we are happily binging our way through the series. Our plan is to catch up with the Castle Federation and move on to his Starship Mage series. What could be better than Space Opera and Magic?!?!
The Hubster and I highly recommend the Castle Federation series to all Science Fiction Fantasy and/or Space Opera fans!
December 25, 2019
3.5 Stars.
With where Stellar Fox left us, I was expecting more out of Battle Group Avalon. This isn't a bad book by any means, it just didn't take the turn I was hoping for. We get to see Kyle fight through horrible odds time and time again, and of course he comes up with crazy plans for each circumstance. I'm not opposed to these type of storylines, I was just expecting more out of this series by now.
One of the things that made this series different to me so far was the focus on characters and their relationships with one another. Those had the ability to be interesting and make for good scenes, all that stopped in Battle Group Avalon though. There was a lot of momentum built up in book two, it was all thrown away and some characters were taken away for what was no reason as far as I could tell. We'll see if it actually serves no purpose, but it does seam that way. I was just expecting more out of this book, and I'm a bit disappointed I didn't get it. That doesn't mean it is bad, just that I feel we were shown what would be a wrinkle in the series...then that was taken away.
The space battles are fun, that is the main reason I'm reading this series. However, those can get old and even if they are new and exciting they still start to bleed together. I'm moving on to book four now and hoping something picks up from book two, or there is a change to mix up the combat. This was okay, but it is going away from what I was told to expect and what I wanted.
With where Stellar Fox left us, I was expecting more out of Battle Group Avalon. This isn't a bad book by any means, it just didn't take the turn I was hoping for. We get to see Kyle fight through horrible odds time and time again, and of course he comes up with crazy plans for each circumstance. I'm not opposed to these type of storylines, I was just expecting more out of this series by now.
One of the things that made this series different to me so far was the focus on characters and their relationships with one another. Those had the ability to be interesting and make for good scenes, all that stopped in Battle Group Avalon though. There was a lot of momentum built up in book two, it was all thrown away and some characters were taken away for what was no reason as far as I could tell. We'll see if it actually serves no purpose, but it does seam that way. I was just expecting more out of this book, and I'm a bit disappointed I didn't get it. That doesn't mean it is bad, just that I feel we were shown what would be a wrinkle in the series...then that was taken away.
The space battles are fun, that is the main reason I'm reading this series. However, those can get old and even if they are new and exciting they still start to bleed together. I'm moving on to book four now and hoping something picks up from book two, or there is a change to mix up the combat. This was okay, but it is going away from what I was told to expect and what I wanted.
March 22, 2022
The third in the series and a better book than the first two in my opinion. It may well be that Glynn took on some feedback from the first two, or maybe he found a better story this time around.
This book covers Captain Kyle Roberts and his crew again in a carrier called Avalon, but this time he is promoted to captain one of the battle groups in seventh fleet, while the other battle group is run by an admiral along with Kyle's now girlfriend caption mira. As the war is being taken to the commonwealth there is a lot more going on offensive wise. Plus the choice of the author to promote the ex 'Co' mira to captain on another ship in a different battle group is a good choice as it gives a different view on the story and gives her the chance to stand alone a bit more.
This time around the story is a little more varied too, covering the marine side attacking stations, orbitals and prisons as well as still including the carrier bridge officers and star fighter crews.
I give it a 4 star overall, which is a solid 1 star higher than I gave the first two books.
Still a better than average read for the space opera genre.
This book covers Captain Kyle Roberts and his crew again in a carrier called Avalon, but this time he is promoted to captain one of the battle groups in seventh fleet, while the other battle group is run by an admiral along with Kyle's now girlfriend caption mira. As the war is being taken to the commonwealth there is a lot more going on offensive wise. Plus the choice of the author to promote the ex 'Co' mira to captain on another ship in a different battle group is a good choice as it gives a different view on the story and gives her the chance to stand alone a bit more.
This time around the story is a little more varied too, covering the marine side attacking stations, orbitals and prisons as well as still including the carrier bridge officers and star fighter crews.
I give it a 4 star overall, which is a solid 1 star higher than I gave the first two books.
Still a better than average read for the space opera genre.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 21, 2017
Before you start this book, please note it is book #3 in a series: you need to have read the first book, Space Carrier Avalon (Castle Federation Book 1)), first or this one won’t make much sense to you. This installment continues right after the end of Book #2 with lots of action and a writing style that makes you have a hard time putting it down. The author does a nice job of developing more of the back story to his characters. I’m ready for the next installment of the series.
I picked this up for free under the Kindle Unlimited program vs. its normal price of $4.99: I certainly received more than $4.99 worth of entertainment value out of this one. If you enjoyed the first two books of the series I imagine you will like this one, also.
I picked this up for free under the Kindle Unlimited program vs. its normal price of $4.99: I certainly received more than $4.99 worth of entertainment value out of this one. If you enjoyed the first two books of the series I imagine you will like this one, also.
July 25, 2018
3.5 stars really. Once again the author delivers a solid military scifi book. The Commonwealth took a number of Alliance star systems during the surprise attack that opened the war. Now the Alliance will try to take them back. The battle group charged with this task is headed by the Alliance's newest star carrier, Avalon.
The author does a good job of telling the story of a campaign so the book feels like it has resolution even though the outcome of the war is still in doubt at the end of it. The tactics in the story and the characters are solid and the author does a particularly good job of managing a cast of characters- not all of whom survive.
Bottom line: While not a particularly inspired story, still very solid and I don't regret taking the time to listen to it.
The author does a good job of telling the story of a campaign so the book feels like it has resolution even though the outcome of the war is still in doubt at the end of it. The tactics in the story and the characters are solid and the author does a particularly good job of managing a cast of characters- not all of whom survive.
Bottom line: While not a particularly inspired story, still very solid and I don't regret taking the time to listen to it.
January 27, 2019
A lot of people have liked this book and with good reason, there is a lot of action here. However, I keep hoping for that unique writer who addresses the new future mindsets trying to understand the questions no one has had to answer before. Not here. All the action is space combat with missiles and various kinds of anti missiles which are all of various generations of make. The action picked up in the last half with some good complications, but the dialogue didn't. In the beginning it was straight out of a John Wayne war movie. It eventually improved but there was way too much trite soul-searching, oh-I-hate-being-a-hero, and I'm-going-to-live-to-get-to-know-you. Other than a brush with a couple of interesting space religions and the missile battles, not much new here.
September 12, 2017
a good pulse pounder
at times this was starting to feel like a David Weber retread, with lots of italics to MAKE SURE the reader was properly impressed by the Castle Navy's hardware/software/ammunition strengths. Even some of the battle language was exactly the same. Fortunately it didn't really stay there and by the last campaign, Kyle Roberts and his ships' plight was a complete adrenaline ride. I do wish Stewart would stop describing Roberts as such a constantly cheery fellow. If I had a penny for every time "Roberts said X cheerfully" or "Roberts had a cheerful smile", I could pay for the book. Done on that already, two books back. on to the next one now.
at times this was starting to feel like a David Weber retread, with lots of italics to MAKE SURE the reader was properly impressed by the Castle Navy's hardware/software/ammunition strengths. Even some of the battle language was exactly the same. Fortunately it didn't really stay there and by the last campaign, Kyle Roberts and his ships' plight was a complete adrenaline ride. I do wish Stewart would stop describing Roberts as such a constantly cheery fellow. If I had a penny for every time "Roberts said X cheerfully" or "Roberts had a cheerful smile", I could pay for the book. Done on that already, two books back. on to the next one now.
August 1, 2021
It is an ok book, but this is my least favorite series from Glynn Stewart. The Honor Harrington vibe is very strong and welcome, but the series lacks the cool factor of others from the same author. Even the naming of characters and planets seems trite, whereas other series had a much more epic vibe to the names. Even the occasional badass boasts fall flat. My go-to example for how to do it right is Starship Mage which really oozed epicness that made it transcend its status as a rote, by the numbers work from the extremely prolific Glynn Stewart.
I hope Q Ship Chameleon can reignite my interest, or this might be one series I am not finishing.
I hope Q Ship Chameleon can reignite my interest, or this might be one series I am not finishing.
May 18, 2017
More of the same
More space opera Age of Sail-style space battles (not a criticism). Detailed space battles fascinating for the tactician but some people may find the jargon a bit bewildering; however, if you just roll with it and don't think too hard about the physics it's a good fun read. The quantum comms are a nice touch that bring some interesting future battle tactics into play. A few typos have snuck into this edition here and there but nothing that causes problems with following the plot.
More space opera Age of Sail-style space battles (not a criticism). Detailed space battles fascinating for the tactician but some people may find the jargon a bit bewildering; however, if you just roll with it and don't think too hard about the physics it's a good fun read. The quantum comms are a nice touch that bring some interesting future battle tactics into play. A few typos have snuck into this edition here and there but nothing that causes problems with following the plot.
April 2, 2024
Very good story, path very rocky
This story represented struggle, some victories, heart breaking losses … and a rocky outlook for Captain Kyle Roberts. It was refreshing to not know if our intrepid Captain would succeed. In one sense he did, but from other viewpoints he tasted the bitterness of loss. Given the immense resources of the Commonwealth, perhaps there is no way for the Alliance to succeed without taking aggressive risks. And that is just what Captain Roberts represents! Look forward to the next book!
This story represented struggle, some victories, heart breaking losses … and a rocky outlook for Captain Kyle Roberts. It was refreshing to not know if our intrepid Captain would succeed. In one sense he did, but from other viewpoints he tasted the bitterness of loss. Given the immense resources of the Commonwealth, perhaps there is no way for the Alliance to succeed without taking aggressive risks. And that is just what Captain Roberts represents! Look forward to the next book!
October 8, 2024
I feel like books by this author sometimes miss for me. This one was a big miss.
I had been truly enjoying this series, reading each book in a day…and this one took over a month. I felt like it stalled out. The entire story was of the battle, and I’m still not entirely sure why they are battling.
It was really slow for me. I put it aside for weeks before coming back to finish it.
As much as I love the starship mage series, this one does not have the driving storyline that keeps me interested…and they kill off so many.
I had been truly enjoying this series, reading each book in a day…and this one took over a month. I felt like it stalled out. The entire story was of the battle, and I’m still not entirely sure why they are battling.
It was really slow for me. I put it aside for weeks before coming back to finish it.
As much as I love the starship mage series, this one does not have the driving storyline that keeps me interested…and they kill off so many.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 11, 2025
I don't usually write reviews, but this book disappointed me. It has enough for 3 stars, but the book is just one boring battle after another. Why do I say "boring?" The battles frequently include a salvo of 200 missiles, followed by another 200. Then, the good guys send 100 missiles in a different pattern. Then, another 200 missiles because, why not? Missiles, more missiles, even more missiles, and if I have to read the words "positron lances,' "mass manipulators," or "Alcubierre drives" again, I'm going to scream. Never mind. 2 stars.
March 9, 2018
Just bought the audio book so read the book for the second time with the audio running as well and I just admit I enjoyed it again. The only criticism of the book is the leader of the troubles in Avalon was identified early on but left to carry on with the mischief which made everyone concerned look like they were incompetent. Never mind just bought the audio for the next book and will be reading that one again
Read
July 23, 2024A great installment of the series with strong character development arcs. I really liked the continuity of the characters from the previous books. There are some interesting overlaps between other series by Glynn Stewart. You don't need to understand those series to understand this one.
There was plenty of action with innovative space battles/solutions to problems.
This book can be read as a stand alone.
There was plenty of action with innovative space battles/solutions to problems.
This book can be read as a stand alone.
December 14, 2025
If you want a low effort aeries that you don't really have to pay attention to then this'd be a good pick.
Character development is not strong, and everyone kinda acts like NPCs. it's readable. The battles are entertaining and remind me a lot of Honor Harrington.
All the same there's this inescapable hollowness in the story. I was really hoping the series would get better as I went along but it really hasn't.
Character development is not strong, and everyone kinda acts like NPCs. it's readable. The battles are entertaining and remind me a lot of Honor Harrington.
All the same there's this inescapable hollowness in the story. I was really hoping the series would get better as I went along but it really hasn't.
August 11, 2017
Too much repetition
I still enjoyed the book but was forced to skim large chunks of repetitive description. I get it already, stop repeating content from other books. If the author cut the crap this book would lose 30% of its length that could be used for the story and characters.
Still a good book, but it's got a lot of fluff.
I still enjoyed the book but was forced to skim large chunks of repetitive description. I get it already, stop repeating content from other books. If the author cut the crap this book would lose 30% of its length that could be used for the story and characters.
Still a good book, but it's got a lot of fluff.
August 15, 2017
While it was full of action, it was a lot easier to put down the book than with the previous books. It did carry a lot less momentum. And lacked the "multiple stories" feeling.
Some of the expressions get repeated a lot, which is "new", compared to the first two books. Also, the number of missiles just gets exponentially bigger. (Are we compensating for something?)
Some of the expressions get repeated a lot, which is "new", compared to the first two books. Also, the number of missiles just gets exponentially bigger. (Are we compensating for something?)
February 21, 2019
Capt Kyle Roberts continues with Avalon.
As I have stated before, I really enjoy reading Glynn Stewart's books! They're exciting and grab my attention and shake the hell out of it. He is mainly futuristic science fiction with everything in the story. Love, intrigue, space battles and death. Exciting writer!
As I have stated before, I really enjoy reading Glynn Stewart's books! They're exciting and grab my attention and shake the hell out of it. He is mainly futuristic science fiction with everything in the story. Love, intrigue, space battles and death. Exciting writer!
July 6, 2024
Still an excellent series
Castle Federation Book 3, Battle Group Avalon, has plenty of action, but including the Marines POV slows it down overall. Lots of names, ship names, and places too. So, good, but complicated. ( and, yes, you need boots on the ground to hold territories you liberate!)
Castle Federation Book 3, Battle Group Avalon, has plenty of action, but including the Marines POV slows it down overall. Lots of names, ship names, and places too. So, good, but complicated. ( and, yes, you need boots on the ground to hold territories you liberate!)
June 18, 2017
Really enjoying this series
The more I read of these books the more I like them. There is a good mix of action and character development and the author isn't afraid to mix things up.
The more I read of these books the more I like them. There is a good mix of action and character development and the author isn't afraid to mix things up.
November 23, 2017
A Good Author Gets Better
This author continues to impress me with his military science fiction. Both previous books were good, and this one is even better with superior characterizations and even bigger, better space battles.
This author continues to impress me with his military science fiction. Both previous books were good, and this one is even better with superior characterizations and even bigger, better space battles.
January 8, 2018
Still another truly wonderful book in this series that make the reader want to continue long after it is time to stop for the night. The books progress and it is advisable to read them in order for the best experience BUT each one stands on it's own as a good book.
January 30, 2018
Continues the trend
Continues the trend. Great continuation looking forward to the next sequel in this series. Would highly recommend if you have even just read book 1 continues gripping story
Continues the trend. Great continuation looking forward to the next sequel in this series. Would highly recommend if you have even just read book 1 continues gripping story
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