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Part 2: Episode 6


A leader recently reborn…
Two men, who are one and the same…
New abilities not yet fully understood…
Yet there is still so much to learn…

Captain Nathan Scott has less than a week to prepare, before he must face the greatest Gunyoki pilot on all of Rakuen. The future of the Karuzari, and the freedom of the entire quadrant depend on one thing:

His victory.


"For the Triumph of Evil" is the 6th episode in Part 2 of the Frontiers Saga: Rogue Castes. Episode 7 is coming soon!

457 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 28, 2017

367 people are currently reading
140 people want to read

About the author

Ryk Brown

61 books855 followers
Born in 1960 and raised on an overdose of television, NASA, and science fiction, Ryk Brown has worked as a cook, rock guitarist, stage lighting technician, and paramedic. He currently resides in Northern California with his wife, daughter, and cat. By day he fixes computers, and by night he creates stories.
Having spent his entire life "thinking stuff up", the advent of digital publishing has finally given him an excuse to write it all down and share it with others. ("Others" meaning someone other than his poor wife and daughter.)
A long-time fan of all things science and space, his goal is to write and publish an on-going series of sci-fi adventures. To be set in his own version of humanity's future, his characters will explore the vast reaches of the galaxy, and perhaps even the universe. He invites you all to join him on this journey through his vivid imagination.

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5 stars
1,092 (58%)
4 stars
579 (31%)
3 stars
160 (8%)
2 stars
26 (1%)
1 star
2 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
Profile Image for Jean.
1,815 reviews802 followers
June 7, 2018
The first part of the book summarizes the prior book. The middle and end are the current story. In this episode there is no action until the last part of the book. Nathan is attempting to gather more allies and ships for their fight against the Jung. While visiting a planet he is challenged to an obstacle race, but he has to fly their fighter plane while knowing this is a trick set up by the break away Jung tribe trying to take over the sector. This is when all the action begins including a space battle.

The book is well written. I have enjoyed all the books in the two series. They make a great escape read.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is almost eleven hours. Jeffrey Kafer does a suburb job narrating the series.
3 reviews
December 28, 2017
I have generally enjoyed this series until now. The endless Gunyoki training and battles dragged on painfully for two thirds of the book which added absolutely nothing to the progress or enjoyment of the series.
You can bypass this entire episode to the next and not miss anything - I only read one paragraph every ten pages and I regret wasting my time reading much.
Profile Image for Ackers61.
49 reviews1 follower
December 10, 2017
Seemed a long read, uneventful until the last 40 mins or so, nearly gave up on this one.
Profile Image for Kathleen.
1,375 reviews28 followers
September 16, 2017
And the Kazura resistance grows! Na-Tan! Busy book, lots going on...

A surprising encounter with Captain Navarro of the Avendahl.

Terig, the young secretary (captive on Mystic Cruise Ship) fearfully keeps his promise to spy on the Dusahn via Lord Mahtise, on Takara.

On Corinari, freedom-fighters Cuddy and Birk make Michael Willard very happy.

Abby invents something new. Vlad detects something hidden. Jessica suspects treachery.

Someone hires an assassin.

Someone else makes an evil deal.

Plus....

Gunship pilot Aiden Walsh seems to have truly and far too easily changed sides -- his flight crew are more credible.

Captain Chris Hunt and his pal Denny show up in several scenes. Apparently, they fought with Nathan and Cam years ago, but I cannot remember them.

Nathan enters a Gunyoki competition on Asian-themed Water World Rakuen, betting it all that he will win, place, or show. His learning curve was off the wall, and thus not credible, unless his rapid growth in The Gunyoki Way is attributed to his new clone-grown abilities (if so, this wasn't made exactly clear, beyond speed reading / perfect memory). However, Master Koku was a nice touch.

And on Aurora and Mystic, some notable personnel changes took place.

------ SHIPS and Captains-------

Seiki, Capt Nathan Scott.
Aurora, Capt Cameron Taylor.
Captain Gullen (daughter Sori) of the huge cargo carrier Glendanon.
Captain Tobas of the Morsiko-Tavi.
Mystic cruise ship Capt Rainey, XO Lara Kaplan (Cameron's XO).
The Innison, a medium cargo ship, Capt Coran Goggins of Corinari
The Manamu, medium cargo ship, captain ??
Eight stolen gunships, one more for parts. Capt Aiden Walsh, young hotdog turncoat.
Two Ranni jump subs, and more at factory.
Bulldog One Ghatazak carrier.

Possible future Ships:
Possibly a new Takara / Dusahn destroyer named Teyentah (designed by Prince Casimir 8 years ago before he was assassinated).
Possibly many Gunyoki fighters from Rakuen
Possible Sol sector cargo ship, Capt Hunt
Profile Image for Mike Nemeth.
674 reviews13 followers
November 26, 2017
Writer Ryk Brown has mastered the episodic space opera. His latest, at least as of this writing, "For the Triumph of Evil," No. 6 in the Rogue Castes series, takes our hero Capt. Nathan Scott back to his roots. Scott, who leads the rebellion against a ruthless foe apparently determined to wipe out all other forms of interplanetary government, has to risk everything to try and enlist the aid of pilots in the battle against the Rogue Caste of Jung. For those who haven't been reading since episode one, I feel for you. Getting into a series late can lead to a random and increasingly growing list of questions like "Who the **** is this?" and "What the **** are you talking about?" However, I would urge the new reader to just go with it. I didn't watch the first season of Seinfeld. Thought he was somewhat pompous. Then the second season I couldn't stop. I got ahold of Brown's first book and was hooked, especially since he pops out a new novel, meticulously edited, about every six months. For me it's a treat. But Brown makes every novel nearly standalone. In this case, Scott has to learn from a master pilot and compete in races that have gained attention across galaxies. The races began as a way to keep the planetary defense force in shape but evolved into something else. The grand master, who has chosen to train Scott, considers the current races a shadow of what they had been and he scoffs at Scott's attempts to learn to fly the complex patterns. The novel has the usual Brown buildup to climactic action, and the end doesn't disappoint. Brown makes it difficult for his protagonists. Odds are always stacked against them. And I'll be reading the next installment as soon as it drops.
894 reviews2 followers
August 5, 2018
This is another book in which much of the material is taken up by planning for what will happen in later novels. There is, however, one very exciting part in the book.

Nathan is trying to enlist the support of Rakuen in their fight against the Dusahn. The Rakuen claim that they are too far out of the sphere of influence of the Dusahn for their to be a threat. When Nathan publically states that the Rakuen fighters aren't good enough to fight against the Dusahn, he is challenged to race against them in one of their own fighters. If he wins, the fighters will join the battle against the Dusahn. Lose the battle, and the assembly plant on Rakuen will be turned over to them. This would be a major blow to the resistance, as it provides much of the income they need to operate.

An ancient fighter legend is assigned to train Nathan to fly one of their fighters in a series of six races. The old master scoffs at Nathan's abilities, but can see the latent talent present. He trains Nathan, enabling him to make it to the final round, a kind of chicken against another fighter.

Prior to the race, Vladimir discovers a device which could be used to remotely disable Nathan's ship during the race. Clearly there is a spy on Rakuen. They rig a bypass around the device so the spy will not know it has been discovered.

In the final moments of the race, the device is activated. At that moment, the Dusahn jump in a frigate in an attempt to destroy the Aurora and capture Nathan. Between the resistance and the Rakuen, they are able to foil the Dusahn plot and drive off the freighter. The Rakuen realize that the Dusahn present a threat to their world, and pledge to help in the resistance.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Wampuscat.
320 reviews17 followers
November 22, 2017
Despite the low rating, I still like this series. The problem with all long running series is that you always end up with some episodes that are not at the top. This is one of them for the Frontiers Saga.

The story, although well told in Ryk Brown's usual fashion, was completely predictable. The action only happens at the last moment, and it has been all but telegraphed, with the expected outcome, since the start of the book.

The continuation of the overall story arc is only minimal, with brief appearances by the various bit characters just to let you know that they are up to something that will pay off eventually.

The main issue I had with this one was the fact that Nathan, et al, committed so much energy, and risk to achieve a very minimal goal. It was hyped as significant, but I just don't buy it. Perhaps my disbelieve was not sufficiently suspended, but that's how I felt reading the book.

Overall, the book is worth reading to keep up with the series, but it was sub-par for the series as a whole. I look forward to the next episode in hopes that it will be more in line with the high quality I've come to expect with this series.

Overall, I can only give this book 2 stars and call it a Passable Read.
170 reviews1 follower
September 2, 2017
Great story!

I really enjoyed this book. I absolutely love these characters





I really enjoyed this book and I absolutely love the characters. I'm always amazed at how this author can layout a storyline, and convey the action and personalities of the characters in such an organized and thoughtful way that it comes off effortless when I'm sure it's anything but effortless. The characters , their depth of personality, their relationships with each other and their banter with each other makes these characters come to life and a joy to read. They become your friends. That's how good this author's writing is. This particular book didn't have near the battle action of most of the others in this series; there's just not those typical lengthy battle scenes. There's action of a different sort in this one which is what makes the storyline fun. You never know what's going to happen to these characters next.

I am always in awe while reading the story and then the whole anticipation process begins again while the author writes the next chapter in this groups future. I can't wait!! 😁


15 reviews
September 22, 2017
Another entertaining episode, bravo Mr. Brown, bravo!

I love this series. It is both exciting and fulfilling to watch the evolution of Nathan Scott and the band of people around him. To experience his highs and lows. To see the creation of a consortium of nations bound together to fight against the evil that resides within men.

In this episode I was disappointed in the out come of one of the new main characters (no spoilers here). There also seemed to be less offshoots or side stories than was presented in previous episodes. The majority of the story takes place in one location only. I hope that future episodes will be more feature rich as those offshoots give more depth to the series. Given those misgivings I would still highly recommend this book, and look forward to future additions!

P.s. This story would make a great HBO series.Hope your listening TV producers!
2 reviews
September 5, 2017
Can't recommend this series enough!

I've been hooked on this series for a while now. So much so that in-between new books I find myself rereading the whole series all over again (thank you kindle unlimited!) I'm constantly caught up in the emotions and excitement that fill the pages that I find myself up into the wee hours of the morning struggling to put it down.
If you enjoy a good thrill with a dash of techno mumbo jumbo and an exciting plot without getting too deep or philosophical, this is the series for you.

The fact that I've never posted a review and I'm here doing it now is a good sign. But don't take my word for it, get kindle unlimited for a month and see if you can put the book down long enough to sleep...
Profile Image for John (JP).
561 reviews3 followers
May 9, 2018
This another strong contribution an excellent space opera. The problem with the episodic nature of this story is that unless you are borrowing the audio books or ebooks from your local library is that its getting expensive read all the books.

This book as with most of Browns books can stand on its own. This story centers on Nathan Scott's ability to convince another system form an alliance with the rebellion. In this case Nathan must master the system's primary defense weapon a space fighter that is symbolically the equivalent of the Japanese Samurai Sword.Of course Nathan with his enhanced clone ability does this extraordinarily quickly.While this is happening Nathan and crew must also discover the machinations of the Dusahn.
Profile Image for Christian Leonard Quale.
241 reviews3 followers
September 10, 2023
For the Triumph of Evil is an instalment in the Frontiers Saga that I think had the potential to be great, but stops short at “perfectly solid”.

For the most part, it feels disconnected from the rest of the series, as if it’s a bit of a Christmas special in the same world with the same characters. That’s not to say that the overall plot doesn’t develop through this book, it does, the outcome of this book is meaningful, but a lot of the oxygen in this particular instalment spent on what is essentially a self-contained story within the wider story. This isn’t a problem - it’s still a good story - but for me, it fails to stir up and utilise some of the engagement and emotional attachment I feel about the plot as a whole.
263 reviews1 follower
September 5, 2017
A stitch in time saves nine, well perhaps....

Nathan Scott is back and this time the Pentaus Cluster under the control of the Dusahn, need Na Tan to come to the rescue once again.

As usual Ryk Brown has given us a well written book with very well developed characters, both primary and secondary. The plotlines extend from the previous book and expand to provide us with a broad tapestry , convoluted and exciting

As usual Ryk Brown's writing grips you from the beginning. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and regret that I must wait for the next chapter of this amazing saga!
715 reviews2 followers
February 10, 2024
Not much progress

Seems a bit of a filler story, all the usual characters are here, but the whole.premise is about a space race, rather than the conflict with the Darshan
Remove this book from the series and I doubt it would have any significant impact on the storyline, that a small chapter couldn't cover
There are the odd reference to the main story and the very end has references to a spy that may figure more in future books, but it did not need an entire book to cover it all
It's an OK story as a standalone novel
25 reviews6 followers
August 31, 2017
Another Egaging Chapter in the Story

Although it felt a little slow in parts, it was difficult to put down this continuing tale of Nathan Scott. While questioning himself is clearly part of his character, one hopes he does it significantly less after this book. It's starting to feel as tiresome as it appears to for the other main characters.
Hopefully the next episode will be out well before Christmas and we will see where the clearly stated loose ends lead.
Profile Image for Mike Lovell.
12 reviews
September 1, 2017
Love this series!

So this is how it goes down. First, I get notified a new book is available. Next I instantly purchase the book. If I'm reading something else, well too bad because I'm going to read the new book next. And finally we come to the end of the novel and I'm left anxiously waiting the next book. These are fun books, I'd recommend starting at the beginning and read them all.
10 reviews1 follower
September 9, 2017
A great read!!

I have read every episode of both series covering the Aurora. This was a very enjoyable read experience. The episode was well written and flowed smoothly. The story did reference past events and people from within the series. The author spent what I felt was the right amount of effort to explain those post events and weave them nicely into this story. I couldn't put the book down.
1,182 reviews17 followers
September 26, 2017
Too much filler, not enough action.

This book was extremely slow for me, did not care about racing aspects at all, too much world building. Not enough action I would’ve thought what light for General Telles to go out looking for more soldiers to add to his army, that may have made book a little bit more exciting, he needs more troops. Besides that I still enjoy all the characters in the book and hope the next one is better, I will be waiting for the next book.
832 reviews4 followers
October 14, 2023
ver good. I never give 5 stars because there is always room for improvement

Well, what to say? Excellent, is some what convoluted plot, but what else to expect from Na Tan. Humor, action, intrigue sacrifice, drama etc. Excellent writing and an exceptional amount of research. Especially the quote from Edmond Burke,one of my favorite historical people. Star at 1:1 or be extremely confused and in the dark.
Profile Image for Roger Ball.
73 reviews3 followers
September 3, 2017
Just keeps getting better

Ryk Brown just keeps giving us great stories in this series. If you haven't already found this series, start with the first and jump on board for a great ride. Great characters you will happily invest many hours reading about. Wish the next episode was ready to read. Hopefully soon!
1,037 reviews4 followers
September 5, 2017
OUTSTANDING SIMPLY OUTSTANDING!

As always the characters and their families and backstory is great. I'm always so glad to catch up with what is going on with what I consider old friends at this point. The battle scenes always get the blood pumping and the heart racing. Please keep them coming!
Profile Image for Andrew Anderson.
44 reviews
September 13, 2017
Another great episode in the saga

The characters are well developed and great to follow through the series. The book has action, adventure, and best of all lots of laughs. I would recommend the series to anyone but make sure to start from the beginning of the first series, this is the second series.
3 reviews1 follower
September 27, 2017
Excellent series

I am really enjoying Frontiers Saga. I have been a long for the ride since the beginning and look forward expectantly to each episode. Great character development and a fun, riveting story line. It's hard to take a break once I start a new episode. Can't wait till episode 7, and 8, and ....
Profile Image for christopher kishel.
106 reviews4 followers
October 15, 2017
This was essentially star wars episode 1

This was an entire book about pod racers. We didn't get to see one ship blow up, the only admirable character died (Quai Gon), and the chosen one wins the race. This was a very silly and disappointing chapter in the saga, when I've thoroughly enjoyed every other book.
Profile Image for Phillip Olive.
103 reviews
November 14, 2017
Space races!

I particularly enjoyed this episode of the Frontier saga. This segment included space races that included a samurai type back story full of honor that is slowly being eroded by money hungry businessmen and complacency. In my head I saw it as pod racing (from Star Wars episode one) in space. Overall a good entertaining piece of this expanding saga.
209 reviews
June 15, 2019
I liked it okay. It was definitely not the best in the series. It reminded me a lot of Star Wars Episode 1, where a lot of the story was based on a race. That's not particularly bad or anything, but it was fairly predictable.
I still like the series, but it does feel like it's running out of steam.
13 reviews1 follower
August 31, 2017
Another fun read in a great series

I am already looking forward to the next installment in what has become one of my favorite series. NA-TAN! The characters are what truly separates this series from most othwrs in this genre. A definite must read.
1 review
September 5, 2017
A very enjoyable read

Ryk Brown has constructed a rich and detailed possible future. Each episode falls quickly because you can't put them down. As always, a very enjoyable read. I'll be in line for Episode 7.
11 reviews
September 6, 2017
Science fiction at its best

This story this saga continues in top form, I do not like giving details, this I leave for others, all I can say is if you enjoy science fiction(space opera) then this is a book and story to revel in. Enjoy
Profile Image for Hilton mather.
50 reviews1 follower
September 6, 2017
Exciting episode / speed racer

I loved this episode, some good character development especially in Nathan and Jess. The action was fast paced in both the racing and ground combat. All in all a good read and looking forward to the next one.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews

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