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alternate cover edition for ASIN B06XGNPP8G

They tried to destroy our planets. Or way of life. They tried to send us into extinction. But we, the Coalition, fought them and won. That was a decade ago. We had assumed they were beaten for good.

We were wrong.

They’re known as the Host: a cabal of aliens seeking to dominate our sector of space. And they’re back—with help from a powerful new enemy.

Against their wrath, we must stand. We’re outnumbered and unprepared. If we lose, we lose everything.

But there is hope. An ancient race of long-dead but technologically advanced aliens called the Navigators have a ship called the Blackstar that could potentially turn the tide. That is if I, Kai Locke, a humble ship racer, can find it and learn how to harness its power in time.

If I fail, the Coalition will fall, and the Host will consign us to a distant memory. I refuse to let that happen. I will fight to my last breath for the Coalition’s survival.

423 pages, ebook

Published March 7, 2017

237 people are currently reading
146 people want to read

About the author

A.C. Hadfield

16 books51 followers
A.C. Hadfield is long-time Star Trek and Star Wars fan and dreamed of writing space adventures as a young child. As an adult, he's now living that dream and writing exciting space operas in distant galaxies as well as our own solar system.

Author of the Carson Mach Series, Blackstar Command, and Vanguard Rising.

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Community Reviews

5 stars
124 (29%)
4 stars
131 (31%)
3 stars
101 (24%)
2 stars
43 (10%)
1 star
17 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
Profile Image for Scott.
1,108 reviews10 followers
August 15, 2017
These days, anyone can self-publish anything. This is a perfect example. Strictly paint by numbers amateur hour. I gave it 100 pages, and that was more than enough. The story wasn't getting anywhere special, and the writing is so weak. Life is too short . . .
Profile Image for Jānis.
462 reviews37 followers
October 4, 2019
Ļoti laba speisopera izklaidei

Kais ir puisis, kas grib irauties no savas smirdīgās planētas, lai atrastu savu pazudušo tēvu, kurš pazudis, meklējot sen izmirušas rases artefaktu - Melno zvaigzi.
Forši atpūtos.
Profile Image for Chris Bryant.
87 reviews
April 9, 2019
Action packed and boring as hell. One heck of a combination.

There are no moments here. No moments of surprise. No moments of enjoyable banter. No moments of great triumph. Just blah, boring, blah. You can almost sense the moments out there.

Potentially interesting characters are introduced and then we move on before they can become interesting. "You have an interesting back story, let's skip it and move onto the plot that nobody really cares about."

You don't care about the characters. You don't care about the big drama. Nothing feels earned.
500 reviews8 followers
October 26, 2017
Another Excellent Space Opera from A. C. Hadfield

This is the fourth time I have read a Hadfield novel, and the fourth time I give one five stars! Young Kai searches for his father, who disappeared while on a black ops/intelligence mission. He has not seen much of his mother, as she too, is an intelligence operator. Actually, he has been stuck on a poor planet, trying to get the money to get off world. (Without much success).
He meets a notorious brigand, who might be able to help...for a price.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Profile Image for Jeff Willis.
355 reviews5 followers
April 21, 2019
There were parts of this book that I really enjoyed. The world-building was great, the technology contained in the ship was really intriguing, the Veil was a wonderful concept... but ultimately, the characters and the storytelling were fairly predictable and didn't get me excited to read on in the series. For me, the "cool factor" elements of a story are always appreciated, but I want them to be in addition to great characters and a compelling story. In the case of this book, it felt like the cool elements were trying to cover up for lack of originality in character and story development. It was an okay read, but I don't think I'll be continuing in the series.
Profile Image for Ernest Perez.
25 reviews5 followers
April 5, 2019
I barely got an hour into this book. Maybe I didn't give it enough time, but man, it was so boring, I just couldn't keep going.

It was hard to tell who the MC was, as perspectives kept shifting. But even when it was on a single person, the author gave me no reason to like these characters. It was as if the characters were just there to explain the world and what was happening in the story. The characters themselves were unimportant. Great premise ruined by a terrible story.
Profile Image for Zachary.
700 reviews14 followers
April 7, 2019
This was a pretty intriguing read. I enjoyed it, though I also wasn't "addicted" to reading it, as I am some books (looking at you, Sanderson). Neat premise, pretty solid world-building, and the sci-fi tech was not overwhelming, though some aspects of it were at the center of the plot (which is the key mark of good sci-fi). It was an enjoyable read and I'll probably pick up the sequel at some point to see what happened to the characters.
82 reviews
June 27, 2018
One of the better space rides

Kai and all his friends take you on a galactic adventure with the hopes of recovering not only an Ancient vessel but also his family. Well written and the story compels you to ride on with a twist at the end. Enjoy.
Profile Image for Richard Prendergast.
47 reviews
April 22, 2019
This was a good book, it could have been great. The idea was superb! I would have liked the mystery to have lasted a little longer. I believe this could have been 2 books but either way it was a fun read and I will read the next in the series.
Profile Image for Charles.
524 reviews5 followers
October 1, 2019
This was just ok. There were parts that felt too familiar and some solid unique stuff as well. It's worth checking out if Sci-Fi is your thing. I'm not really interested in continuing the series though.
1,089 reviews15 followers
March 24, 2023
Not for me.

DNF at 5%. The starting characters seemed naive and wooden. The two "fated" events at the begin were too unbelievable for me. The wilful ignorance of space physics later on were too much for me..
47 reviews1 follower
March 12, 2017
Good Collaboration

I enjoyed the characters very much. Kia and Sen are young so there's lots of potential character development for future stories.
315 reviews1 follower
May 19, 2017
Good scifi

A little slow starting out but picks up speed. I look forward to the next book in the series. Wondering where it will go.
51 reviews4 followers
January 5, 2018
Good book .

Really good book!

Fun, fast paced, lots of military action , and saving worlds.

What's not to like?

Buy it, it's worth your time and money .
9 reviews
April 25, 2019
Entertaining Space Opera

An interesting array of unique characters. I’m looking forward to seeing how it turns out in the second book of the series.
Profile Image for Sam.
165 reviews
May 10, 2019
I really loved this story. I miss watching french shows set in space and for some reasons this reminded me or them. I really want to continue this series now.
Profile Image for Brian Layman.
451 reviews6 followers
May 22, 2019
Dissatisfying. It would make a better movie. Sunday night 90s Disney movie sci-fi. Speeding the narration to 1.95x got me through the last third of the book.
Profile Image for Dana Alley.
41 reviews6 followers
July 12, 2019
Wanted to like it.. Couldn't do it. It's like listening to a scifi TV show. You hear the dialog, but you cant see anything. Non-descriptive and plain. :(
3,323 reviews30 followers
August 24, 2019
Prominence

Lots of drama and skirmishes with predatory alien species and bad guys. I found some of the action disjointed and the fights irresponsible.
Profile Image for Adam Kovac.
25 reviews2 followers
December 28, 2019
Felt like a new author trying to hard. It was sometimes confusing and it felt like the story struggled to make since. Because i love sci-fi it had continue reading but i want wowed.
Profile Image for Jessica.
167 reviews
May 23, 2021
Really enjoyable book with a cross of Stargate (Atlantis) and Firefly.
24 reviews
August 5, 2022
The first 2/3 of this book were enjoyable, but the climax and ending felt too rushed, chaotic, and forced.
Profile Image for Timothy.
130 reviews
February 26, 2023
It was fine, solid sci fi. A quick read with a few surprises. But doesn’t inspire me to continue the series.
Profile Image for Gr.
1,160 reviews9 followers
August 13, 2019
Likeable characters but the writing felt choppy and rushed. This story suffers from a significant lack of world-building and the science fiction has little in the way of a scientific foundation. Needs more depth.
Profile Image for Mandy Walkden-Brown.
619 reviews31 followers
July 14, 2017
This was a fast-paced, compelling and fun read.

Such a well penned space opera. The likeable characters are very well developed, the universe intriguing and the array of aliens is fascinating. There are also some awesome twists, great tech, and riveting battle scenes. Conspiracy abounds.

Would like to read the next book right now, but I guess I'll just have to be patient and wait for it to be written!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews

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