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The Farian War #1
There Before the Chaos
An epic space opera trilogy featuring the gunrunner empressHail Bristol, who must navigate alien politics and deadly plots to prevent an interspecies war.
The battle for the throne is over. The war for the galaxy is just beginning.
Hail Bristol, infamous galactic gunrunner and former runaway princess, never expected to inherit the throne of Indrana. But after avenging the murder of her entire family and cleansing the Empire of usurpers in a bloody civil war, the former outlaw must fulfill her duties to her people. Hail retires her gun and throws herself into the rebuilding of her Empire.
Her hard-won peace is short-lived. When Indrana's closest ally asks Hail to intervene in an interstellar military crisis, she embarks on the highest stakes diplomatic mission the Empire has ever faced. Caught between two alien civilizations at each other's throats, she must uncover each side's true intentions before all of humanity becomes collateral damage in a full-blown galactic war.
There Before the Chaos begins a fresh, pulse-pounding space opera series from an exciting new voice in science fiction.
For more from K. B. Wagers, check out:
The Indranan War
Behind the Throne
After the Crown
Beyond the Empire
The battle for the throne is over. The war for the galaxy is just beginning.
Hail Bristol, infamous galactic gunrunner and former runaway princess, never expected to inherit the throne of Indrana. But after avenging the murder of her entire family and cleansing the Empire of usurpers in a bloody civil war, the former outlaw must fulfill her duties to her people. Hail retires her gun and throws herself into the rebuilding of her Empire.
Her hard-won peace is short-lived. When Indrana's closest ally asks Hail to intervene in an interstellar military crisis, she embarks on the highest stakes diplomatic mission the Empire has ever faced. Caught between two alien civilizations at each other's throats, she must uncover each side's true intentions before all of humanity becomes collateral damage in a full-blown galactic war.
There Before the Chaos begins a fresh, pulse-pounding space opera series from an exciting new voice in science fiction.
For more from K. B. Wagers, check out:
The Indranan War
Behind the Throne
After the Crown
Beyond the Empire
481 pages, Paperback
First published October 9, 2018
190 people are currently reading
2926 people want to read
About the author
K.B. Wagers
11 books639 followersK.B. Wagers is the author of the Indranan & Farian War trilogies with Orbit Books and the new NeoG novels from Harper Voyager. They hold a bachelor's degree in Russian Studies and a second-degree black belt in Shaolin Kung Fu. A native of Colorado, K.B. lives at the base of the Rocky Mountains with their partner and a crew of recalcitrant cats. In between books, they can be found attempting to learn Spanish, dying in video games, dancing to music, and scribbling new ideas in their bullet journal. They are represented by Andrew Zack of The Zack Company.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews
August 10, 2019
I made the mistake of thinking that this was Book 1; it is actually Book 4 and a continuation of The Indranan War trilogy that begins with Behind the Throne. We follow Hailimi Bristol who is now the head of the Indranan Empire. The first three books, well, I will let “Hail” tell you:
"My flight from home had started off as a mission to find my father’s killer. When my search dead-ended, I decided to stay away and build a life for myself: first, as one of Cheng Hao’s crew, then as the captain of my own ship. The empire didn’t need me. It was safely in Mother’s capable hands and set to be passed along to my older sister, Cire. I was free out in the black, not Hailimi—second daughter, princess by accident of birth—but Cressen Stone, a person of my own making, a woman answerable to herself and the laws she’d chosen instead of the ones imposed on her."
As you might gather, she is a complicated character with a lot of accumulated baggage. It would have been helpful if a “cast of characters” was provided since it is easy to get overwhelmed both by the number of characters and their nicknames. And , more than most authors in the genre, Wagers gives us characters with dimensions (and issues) that are integral to the plot. So even if you can keep the Gupta twins straight, you have Muna, Jagana, Kisah, Zin, Iza, Indula, Ikeki, Gita, as well as Emmory, and these are just one shift of the security staff. Major characters range from family to rivals to those who are considered (and referred to as) “brother” or “sister.”
The plot might be captured by the following: “"It won’t be as simple as choose peace or choose war.” She smiled. “Fasé told you to pay attention to the little things, didn’t she? Every single choice we make is important. Every single choice changes the trajectory of our lives in ways we can’t even fathom. But we make the choices, because to do otherwise is an even worse fate—that of letting the universe drag us along like a swimmer caught in a riptide.”"
Just as Hailimi Bristol becomes Empress, a war breaks out between alien civilizations. One of those has had a treaty with the Indranan Empire for more than 1000 years. These aliens have lifespans far beyond humans and their objectives may not be fully understood by the humans involved. In addition certain of these beings can “see (predict?) the future”……..and did I mention that their touch can kill or even resurrect?
Wagers has done some serious world building because there are rival human empires as well as the Shen and the Faria and each has its solar systems (and planets and moons) and stations in this galaxy. Earth still exists as part of an empire but not that of the Indranan.
Our characters have personal problems, family problems, love entanglements, home planet issues, empire political problems, conflicts between empires, conflicts with criminals who rob, kill or just want to illegally trade in weapons. Yet all of this moves ahead at breakneck pace while Hail tries to reconcile her skills as a former gunrunner with those needed as empress to protect the Indranan Empire.
Eventually, the innovations come aground on the limitations of Wagers’ prose. Some is banal and some just needs reworking (or editing?).
"…what am I being dropped into the middle of?” “Not dropped, Majesty. You were born to do this. As much as Sybil is convinced this is a future that will come to pass, there is still a measure of doubt. No future is set in stone; that defies the very laws of the universe."
"…Life was too capricious. If I believed in the gods, I had to believe they were equally capricious. That only made me angry, so I’d discarded the whole train of thought time and again when it floated to the front of my brain."
“…. Ma’am, you are not just an empress. You are not some empty-headed noble raised in pampered seclusion.” Alba squared her shoulders and faced me. “You are Cressen Stone. You are the Star of Indrana…”
Probably an overly generous 3.5* since this book resolves nothing and isn’t recommended as a stand-alone. I will likely get off the boat here rather than continuing the journey.
Additional quotations to show:
Strong women
"I met with President Hudson late the next morning. It was a formal event at the Indranan Embassy, filled with news cameras and an awkward handshake that pushed the boundaries of even my tolerance for not-so-subtle displays of power. I squeezed his hand back, a pleasant smile on my face as I wondered who’d forgotten to tell their Earth-born president that Pashati’s gravity was slightly higher than Earth’s and I wasn’t exactly what one would call delicate."
Food and Fashion
"Twenty minutes later I found myself at a table in a quiet corner of the Grand Nepal restaurant, sipping one of the best cups of chai I’d had in my whole life. I’d whispered a little prayer of thanks for the pants I was wearing, because sitting on the floor in a sari would have been awkward. Though Alba had shed her heels and tucked her feet up under her skirt with a grace I could never hope to match."
"Over the last year Fasé’s clothing had gone from her ITS uniform, to an approximation of a gray prison outfit, to the white dress she’d been wearing on Pashati. Now she was in all black, an outfit very close to my own chosen uniform. Her red curls were pulled back from her face, done up in an intricate braid that was no doubt the work of my maid."
"My flight from home had started off as a mission to find my father’s killer. When my search dead-ended, I decided to stay away and build a life for myself: first, as one of Cheng Hao’s crew, then as the captain of my own ship. The empire didn’t need me. It was safely in Mother’s capable hands and set to be passed along to my older sister, Cire. I was free out in the black, not Hailimi—second daughter, princess by accident of birth—but Cressen Stone, a person of my own making, a woman answerable to herself and the laws she’d chosen instead of the ones imposed on her."
As you might gather, she is a complicated character with a lot of accumulated baggage. It would have been helpful if a “cast of characters” was provided since it is easy to get overwhelmed both by the number of characters and their nicknames. And , more than most authors in the genre, Wagers gives us characters with dimensions (and issues) that are integral to the plot. So even if you can keep the Gupta twins straight, you have Muna, Jagana, Kisah, Zin, Iza, Indula, Ikeki, Gita, as well as Emmory, and these are just one shift of the security staff. Major characters range from family to rivals to those who are considered (and referred to as) “brother” or “sister.”
The plot might be captured by the following: “"It won’t be as simple as choose peace or choose war.” She smiled. “Fasé told you to pay attention to the little things, didn’t she? Every single choice we make is important. Every single choice changes the trajectory of our lives in ways we can’t even fathom. But we make the choices, because to do otherwise is an even worse fate—that of letting the universe drag us along like a swimmer caught in a riptide.”"
Just as Hailimi Bristol becomes Empress, a war breaks out between alien civilizations. One of those has had a treaty with the Indranan Empire for more than 1000 years. These aliens have lifespans far beyond humans and their objectives may not be fully understood by the humans involved. In addition certain of these beings can “see (predict?) the future”……..and did I mention that their touch can kill or even resurrect?
Wagers has done some serious world building because there are rival human empires as well as the Shen and the Faria and each has its solar systems (and planets and moons) and stations in this galaxy. Earth still exists as part of an empire but not that of the Indranan.
Our characters have personal problems, family problems, love entanglements, home planet issues, empire political problems, conflicts between empires, conflicts with criminals who rob, kill or just want to illegally trade in weapons. Yet all of this moves ahead at breakneck pace while Hail tries to reconcile her skills as a former gunrunner with those needed as empress to protect the Indranan Empire.
Eventually, the innovations come aground on the limitations of Wagers’ prose. Some is banal and some just needs reworking (or editing?).
"…what am I being dropped into the middle of?” “Not dropped, Majesty. You were born to do this. As much as Sybil is convinced this is a future that will come to pass, there is still a measure of doubt. No future is set in stone; that defies the very laws of the universe."
"…Life was too capricious. If I believed in the gods, I had to believe they were equally capricious. That only made me angry, so I’d discarded the whole train of thought time and again when it floated to the front of my brain."
“…. Ma’am, you are not just an empress. You are not some empty-headed noble raised in pampered seclusion.” Alba squared her shoulders and faced me. “You are Cressen Stone. You are the Star of Indrana…”
Probably an overly generous 3.5* since this book resolves nothing and isn’t recommended as a stand-alone. I will likely get off the boat here rather than continuing the journey.
Additional quotations to show:
Strong women
"I met with President Hudson late the next morning. It was a formal event at the Indranan Embassy, filled with news cameras and an awkward handshake that pushed the boundaries of even my tolerance for not-so-subtle displays of power. I squeezed his hand back, a pleasant smile on my face as I wondered who’d forgotten to tell their Earth-born president that Pashati’s gravity was slightly higher than Earth’s and I wasn’t exactly what one would call delicate."
Food and Fashion
"Twenty minutes later I found myself at a table in a quiet corner of the Grand Nepal restaurant, sipping one of the best cups of chai I’d had in my whole life. I’d whispered a little prayer of thanks for the pants I was wearing, because sitting on the floor in a sari would have been awkward. Though Alba had shed her heels and tucked her feet up under her skirt with a grace I could never hope to match."
"Over the last year Fasé’s clothing had gone from her ITS uniform, to an approximation of a gray prison outfit, to the white dress she’d been wearing on Pashati. Now she was in all black, an outfit very close to my own chosen uniform. Her red curls were pulled back from her face, done up in an intricate braid that was no doubt the work of my maid."
September 1, 2018
I got this as an ARC. It comes out in October and now I have SO LONG to wait for the next one. Hail is awesome and K.B. Wagers is a treasure.
October 12, 2018
There Before The Chaos picks up in the aftermath of Beyond The Empire. Hail Bristol has wholeheartedly embraced her role as Empress of Indrana. Through her leadership, a coup has been narrowly avoided and Indranan society has managed to survive. Unfortunately, Hail has had little opportunity to catch her breath, an empress’s work is never done. Elsewhere in the galaxy, a war between two alien races threatens to escalate and drag humanity into a bloody conflict. Diplomacy may offer a solution but the only mediator all sides are willing to consider to is Hail.
Like its predecessors, There Before The Chaos strikes a perfectly judged balance between political intrigue and interplanetary action thriller. There are plots within plots as Hail and her friends try to unpick the instigator of her latest woes. Hail continues to be the emotional lynchpin of the narrative. She is not subtle when it comes to making her feelings known, it’s the thing I love most about her. Hail’s gut responses act as a wonderful counterpoint to many of the other characters who are bound by formality and rules. Chancellor and advisors are expected to maintain their composure at all times, empresses less so.
K B Wagers always nails it when it comes to her characters. I love the culture clash that exists between the groups in Hail’s life. There are the politicians, senior military officials and bodyguards who help with the smooth running of the Indranan Empire, and then there are those who Hail knew back when she was known as Cressen Stone, gunrunner extraordinaire. The back in forth that exists in all these relationships is well realised and feels comfortably natural. Somehow, all these individuals have, through Hail, become one large dysfunctional family. It makes sense. Hail is like a feisty planet around which everyone else cannot help but orbit. For the curious among you, character wise, Johar and Hao remain personal favourites. Johar is as incorrigible as ever. Happy to just be along for the ride, she is at her best as long as there is plenty of booze, enough to eat and some good fighting. Hao is a different matter. He has always been caught between two worlds and in this novel, he is finally forced to make a decision about his future. It has been a long-time brewing and I can guarantee there will be repercussions.
Where There Before The Chaos also succeeds is in its exploration of Farian culture. In the first trilogy, the only real evidence of the Farians was in the character Fase. In this new book, K B Wagers takes the opportunity to start digging deeper into the roots of this alien society. The main story focuses directly on a religious and political schism that ripped this race in two.
From Hail’s perspective, being an ex-gunrunner does have some distinct advantages. When people meet her for the first time there is a certain expectation that comes along with her near legendary status. This allows her the opportunity to be delightfully blunt when she feels the need to be. She can also easily defy people’s inherent prejudices. Ultimately, I think Hail’s approach to mediation sits somewhere between insightful, well-judged political savvy and low, animal cunning. More often than not this appears to be the entirely appropriate course of action.
At the very top of this page I suggested you read The Indranan War before you tackle this book, and I’m going to reiterate that point again. Though There Before The Chaos is perfectly serviceable if read without any prior knowledge, there is a whole heap of backstory that has gone before. You really need/want to be aware of the sci-fi epicness. Trust me, it’s well worth your time. I credit The Indranan War with getting me back into reading science fiction again on a regular basis
There Before The Chaos ends with a perfectly executed WTF! moment. Eventually, after I managed to get my jaw back up off the floor, I realised that this book has achieved exactly what I had hoped it would do. I was emotionally exhausted, in a good way, and thoroughly entertained. If fiction doesn’t make you feel like this then something has gone horribly wrong. If you are you looking for science fiction with brains, and a buckload of heart, then look no further.
Like its predecessors, There Before The Chaos strikes a perfectly judged balance between political intrigue and interplanetary action thriller. There are plots within plots as Hail and her friends try to unpick the instigator of her latest woes. Hail continues to be the emotional lynchpin of the narrative. She is not subtle when it comes to making her feelings known, it’s the thing I love most about her. Hail’s gut responses act as a wonderful counterpoint to many of the other characters who are bound by formality and rules. Chancellor and advisors are expected to maintain their composure at all times, empresses less so.
K B Wagers always nails it when it comes to her characters. I love the culture clash that exists between the groups in Hail’s life. There are the politicians, senior military officials and bodyguards who help with the smooth running of the Indranan Empire, and then there are those who Hail knew back when she was known as Cressen Stone, gunrunner extraordinaire. The back in forth that exists in all these relationships is well realised and feels comfortably natural. Somehow, all these individuals have, through Hail, become one large dysfunctional family. It makes sense. Hail is like a feisty planet around which everyone else cannot help but orbit. For the curious among you, character wise, Johar and Hao remain personal favourites. Johar is as incorrigible as ever. Happy to just be along for the ride, she is at her best as long as there is plenty of booze, enough to eat and some good fighting. Hao is a different matter. He has always been caught between two worlds and in this novel, he is finally forced to make a decision about his future. It has been a long-time brewing and I can guarantee there will be repercussions.
Where There Before The Chaos also succeeds is in its exploration of Farian culture. In the first trilogy, the only real evidence of the Farians was in the character Fase. In this new book, K B Wagers takes the opportunity to start digging deeper into the roots of this alien society. The main story focuses directly on a religious and political schism that ripped this race in two.
From Hail’s perspective, being an ex-gunrunner does have some distinct advantages. When people meet her for the first time there is a certain expectation that comes along with her near legendary status. This allows her the opportunity to be delightfully blunt when she feels the need to be. She can also easily defy people’s inherent prejudices. Ultimately, I think Hail’s approach to mediation sits somewhere between insightful, well-judged political savvy and low, animal cunning. More often than not this appears to be the entirely appropriate course of action.
At the very top of this page I suggested you read The Indranan War before you tackle this book, and I’m going to reiterate that point again. Though There Before The Chaos is perfectly serviceable if read without any prior knowledge, there is a whole heap of backstory that has gone before. You really need/want to be aware of the sci-fi epicness. Trust me, it’s well worth your time. I credit The Indranan War with getting me back into reading science fiction again on a regular basis
There Before The Chaos ends with a perfectly executed WTF! moment. Eventually, after I managed to get my jaw back up off the floor, I realised that this book has achieved exactly what I had hoped it would do. I was emotionally exhausted, in a good way, and thoroughly entertained. If fiction doesn’t make you feel like this then something has gone horribly wrong. If you are you looking for science fiction with brains, and a buckload of heart, then look no further.
August 9, 2020
Contrarian time. Didn't work for me.
First, I confess that I got all the way through this without realizing that there was a third book in the first series. Even now I don't feel as if I missed anything. Maybe I *did* read it and didn't record it.
This one opens slowly. Hail (who used to be a gunrunner) talks to 132 people, and each time she demonstrates what a great leader she is, and they simper and say how wonderful she is. Despite the fact that she used to be a gunrunner.
Finally we get the Farians, and I am asked to believe not only that they can kill or heal with a touch, but also that they are here because they NEED humans to bleed off their cosmic energies so they don't go kablooie. Puh-leeze.
Oh, and did you know Hail used to be a gunrunner? It's OK, everyone likes her anyway, despite the surprising fact -- did I mention it earlier? - that she used to be a gunrunner.
OK things happen, the plot develops. Each scene starts with the guards checking the room, the key players fluttering around Hail (who used to be a gunrunner!) , putting a reassuring hand on her arm, and all but waiting for her to throw them another Purina treat. There's chai everywhere, and every eighth word is "Majesty."
Hail's got PTSD, possibly from having been a gunrunner. Aiz is batshit crazy. Hao and Gita are locked in the classic "I don't want to talk about it" loop of every romcom ever made.
I admit that gender issues are well handled, to my inexpert eye anyway. And Hail's moral dilemmas are OK. The plot develops smoothly most of the way, as Hail and the reader together work out that there's something we don't know ... (and no, it's not that she used to be a gunrunner; Wagers has made sure we ALL know that).
Hail is a superb fighter, of course, and clearly has 20 of the 25 best other fighters on her team. Ain't nobody mess with their lady. Until, as in the first series I recall, Makes you wonder why you wasted so much time reading about how great her guards were.
And then we get a rushed, cliffhanger, melodramatic Buck Rogers ending. Dude, did you expect a single volume? Well, KB, sorry, this time I don't care enough to read the next one. I think I can see how it's going to work.
Also an ending in which, essentially,
Feh.
First, I confess that I got all the way through this without realizing that there was a third book in the first series. Even now I don't feel as if I missed anything. Maybe I *did* read it and didn't record it.
This one opens slowly. Hail (who used to be a gunrunner) talks to 132 people, and each time she demonstrates what a great leader she is, and they simper and say how wonderful she is. Despite the fact that she used to be a gunrunner.
Finally we get the Farians, and I am asked to believe not only that they can kill or heal with a touch, but also that they are here because they NEED humans to bleed off their cosmic energies so they don't go kablooie. Puh-leeze.
Oh, and did you know Hail used to be a gunrunner? It's OK, everyone likes her anyway, despite the surprising fact -- did I mention it earlier? - that she used to be a gunrunner.
OK things happen, the plot develops. Each scene starts with the guards checking the room, the key players fluttering around Hail (who used to be a gunrunner!) , putting a reassuring hand on her arm, and all but waiting for her to throw them another Purina treat. There's chai everywhere, and every eighth word is "Majesty."
Hail's got PTSD, possibly from having been a gunrunner. Aiz is batshit crazy. Hao and Gita are locked in the classic "I don't want to talk about it" loop of every romcom ever made.
I admit that gender issues are well handled, to my inexpert eye anyway. And Hail's moral dilemmas are OK. The plot develops smoothly most of the way, as Hail and the reader together work out that there's something we don't know ... (and no, it's not that she used to be a gunrunner; Wagers has made sure we ALL know that).
Hail is a superb fighter, of course, and clearly has 20 of the 25 best other fighters on her team. Ain't nobody mess with their lady. Until, as in the first series I recall, Makes you wonder why you wasted so much time reading about how great her guards were.
And then we get a rushed, cliffhanger, melodramatic Buck Rogers ending. Dude, did you expect a single volume? Well, KB, sorry, this time I don't care enough to read the next one. I think I can see how it's going to work.
Also an ending in which, essentially,
Feh.
October 24, 2025
I really enjoyed the first trilogy so picked this up with eager anticipation. Hail Bristol is now over her troubles and accepting of her place heading up her Empire. Domestic issues have been largely resolved but the new issue is with the mysterious Farians who want her support with some domestic issues. Hail finds that much of her assumptions about the Farians might have been very wrong and that puts her at odds with the race she thought were her Empire’s greatest friend.
My problem was a surprising one, it dragged. And dragged. Yep, Hail shows how she is growing into her political and diplomatic role, but far too much talking and not enough of the pace and action of the first trilogy. There is a point towards the end where the action does kick in, but almost at a level that lacks credibility.
Not sure I will get the next one.
My problem was a surprising one, it dragged. And dragged. Yep, Hail shows how she is growing into her political and diplomatic role, but far too much talking and not enough of the pace and action of the first trilogy. There is a point towards the end where the action does kick in, but almost at a level that lacks credibility.
Not sure I will get the next one.
November 12, 2018
I was enthralled by Wagers' Indranan War trilogy. You better believe I had this first book in the new trilogy preordered--and once it arrived at my house--it quickly moved to the top of my massive to-pile.
Hours after finishing the book, I'm still in a state of withdrawal and shock. This book is GOOD. Seriously good. Like, added to my awards shortlist kinda good.
The overall pace of the book is a bit slower than the past books, but that doesn't mean it's a slow read. The emphasis has changed. Former gunrunner Hail survived an intricate plot to destroy her family and their empire. She is now empress. Many of the maneuvering in the book is of a political nature rather than outright brawling. It's twisty and clever and magnificent, and the tension builds up. Hail is put in an impossible situation to negotiate peace between two alien groups that really don't want peace, and you just know everything is going to go wrong. It does. In spectacular, heart-breaking fashion. The cliffhanger ending is brutal, but then there's a teaser from the next book that feels like salt on a wound.
And now I have to wait how many months to find out what happened?! Noooo!
Hours after finishing the book, I'm still in a state of withdrawal and shock. This book is GOOD. Seriously good. Like, added to my awards shortlist kinda good.
The overall pace of the book is a bit slower than the past books, but that doesn't mean it's a slow read. The emphasis has changed. Former gunrunner Hail survived an intricate plot to destroy her family and their empire. She is now empress. Many of the maneuvering in the book is of a political nature rather than outright brawling. It's twisty and clever and magnificent, and the tension builds up. Hail is put in an impossible situation to negotiate peace between two alien groups that really don't want peace, and you just know everything is going to go wrong. It does. In spectacular, heart-breaking fashion. The cliffhanger ending is brutal, but then there's a teaser from the next book that feels like salt on a wound.
And now I have to wait how many months to find out what happened?! Noooo!
November 7, 2020
The Acknowledgment says the author’s dentist loved reading the book. That tells you everything you need to need to know about this hopelessly overwrought Hindu Space Opera.
Had I wanted a novel to take my mind OFF politics, I could have done far better than this Handmaid’s Tale with guns. It features a protagonist—Empress of a mostly female society—who, when not killing, or trying to make peace, dreams up affirmative action programs to lure more men into STEM positions. CNN almost was better.
Worst of all, this book turns out to be Book 4 in a much longer series, and the author didn’t have the grace to have it come to any satisfactory conclusion here. I’m not following to the next rabbit hole. It’s too much like pulling teeth.
Had I wanted a novel to take my mind OFF politics, I could have done far better than this Handmaid’s Tale with guns. It features a protagonist—Empress of a mostly female society—who, when not killing, or trying to make peace, dreams up affirmative action programs to lure more men into STEM positions. CNN almost was better.
Worst of all, this book turns out to be Book 4 in a much longer series, and the author didn’t have the grace to have it come to any satisfactory conclusion here. I’m not following to the next rabbit hole. It’s too much like pulling teeth.
November 23, 2019
The ending picked up nicely — no spoilers! — plenty of action and the plot really started to get underway just before the book ended. I assume the rest of the story will be spread out over sequels. The world-building was intricate, some of the characters likable. That’s the good.
Where this book failed me was the very slow start, mostly slow rest of it, far too many named characters introduced immediately for me to keep track of (and tons more introduced throughout), and almost constant distractions — in the form of descriptions of body movements that I didn’t understand (and weren’t explained). It didn’t help that I picked it up thinking it was the first book in a series (it said it was), but it turned out to rely on quite a bit that occurred in three earlier books.
(I have published a more detailed review on my website.)
April 13, 2025
Picked this one up as a random library book acquisition. Hail Bristol is secure as the Empress of Indrana after a brutal civil war. Unfortunately, she’s about to be launched into intergalactic politics, as she’s being maneuvered into intervening into a centuries-long war between two alien groups.
I read book one in the series a while ago (long enough to forget most of the details). This is supposed to be book 1 of a new series following the first trilogy, and it suffers for it. A lot of time is spent recapping old plot points and establishing the status quo. For a relatively long book (nearly five hundred pages), There Before The Chaos doesn’t do much with that length besides introduce the new situation and add additional characters. By the end of the book, we don’t get any real resolution to any of the plot threads, just a cliffhanger.
Not appealing enough to jump into as a standalone. For hardened series fans only who’d like to learn more about Hail’s extended career.
I read book one in the series a while ago (long enough to forget most of the details). This is supposed to be book 1 of a new series following the first trilogy, and it suffers for it. A lot of time is spent recapping old plot points and establishing the status quo. For a relatively long book (nearly five hundred pages), There Before The Chaos doesn’t do much with that length besides introduce the new situation and add additional characters. By the end of the book, we don’t get any real resolution to any of the plot threads, just a cliffhanger.
Not appealing enough to jump into as a standalone. For hardened series fans only who’d like to learn more about Hail’s extended career.
Read
October 24, 2018DNF - I really feel I needed to read the original trilogy before picking this up. It can only help and right now there is so much information being summarised I just cant grasp onto anything
July 5, 2019
Review originally posted at Thoughts Stained With Ink:
**ARC copy given by Orbit Books in exchange for an honest review**
Hello, loves.
Wow, has it been a hot second since you've had a book review from me.
*looks at calendar*
*remembers reading slump that lasted almost six weeks*
*realizes this book was the one that suffered throughout that time frame*
*winces*
So, here's the thing. There Before the Chaos by K.B. Wagers is a good book; an enjoyable book. I loved her writing. I loved the world and the characters (but especially Hail Bristol) and I thought the political intrigue was off the charts. I have every intention of continuing this series and the last fifty pages? Holy shit, did it actually get my heart pumping and make me wish the sequel was already published, because damn. I did enjoy this book, I'm really glad I discovered this author and I cannot wait to read more of her work.
Actually, before we move on, I just wanna say: my favorite part? I lied, I have two: Hail fucking Bristol and the band of characters who support her. I love incredible women who I can read about, be impressed by, empathize with, admire and wish I could be like. I experienced ALL of those emotions reading about Hail and it's...been awhile since I appreciated a woman so much for her strength, her no-bullshit attitude, the way she handles herself, yet I also got to see more of her than just that hard ass side. She was complex, multidimensional and honestly, I would be honored to be amongst her friends or her crew. I love her and will probably start naming my video game characters after her--and I haven't switched names since discovering Karris White Oak in Brent Weeks' Lightbringer series.
I also loved how I got a Mass Effect vibe, with Hail being Shepard and the rest of her guards and friends feeling like I was back on the Normandy. That was a great feeling and made me wish I could replay those games again (*grumbles in BioWare's direction about a much-needed remaster*). Though I did have a bit of a hard time keeping up with which character was which character (there were a lot of them), I also appreciated that, actually, a little bit? Because it gave it a more realistic feel? Hail is empress, after all. Of course she's going to meet a lot of fucking people.
But, I also tried to read this book during a reading slump, initiated after reading a sci-fi book that was a bit too dense for this human (on top of just being busy and a hectic life and whatnot). So it took me over a month to read a book that should have (or usually would have) taken me a few days to read, a week, at max. It was hard for me to read because I just didn't want to read period. And I don't want that personal problem, let's call it, to reflect poorly on this book or the quality I truly believe it has. But, like everything else, what's happening in your life can influence other areas, as well, so I felt that this book's pace dragged quite a bit in the first half before finally starting to pick up in the second, so it was hard to be motivated to read it, even though I was curious? I doubt someone else in a better headspace would feel the same way.
However, I do think that I made a mistake of reading this book before reading the previous trilogy Wagers wrote, featuring the same characters. What happened before was well explained and I heard you could read it without doing so, but I felt that I...lost a lot of the emotional connections, pangs and impacts I should have felt because I wasn't as familiar with these characters and their backstory, by jumping into this novel first. And, from what I learned in this novel, I am really curious what happened in the other books. Personally, if you're interested, I'd recommend reading the previous trilogy, first. I just think the book will become more powerful, if you read it in that order, instead.
All that said, I enjoyed this book (as much as one can when they and reading don't get along well) and I think I would have enjoyed it a LOT more if I a) had read the previous trilogy first and b) was in a better reading headspace as I tried to read it. I have every intention of reading the rest of Wagers' works, because she is obviously a very talented writer. Frankly, I'm excited to read her works when I'm not dealing with a slump, so I can truly appreciate the full effect of her works!
Basically, this is a long, ramble-ly post to say that, if you're interested in these books, I think you should check them out!! I haven't heard too much discussion about them and I think they deserve a little more attention, personally.
Read on!
**ARC copy given by Orbit Books in exchange for an honest review**
Hello, loves.
Wow, has it been a hot second since you've had a book review from me.
*looks at calendar*
*remembers reading slump that lasted almost six weeks*
*realizes this book was the one that suffered throughout that time frame*
*winces*
So, here's the thing. There Before the Chaos by K.B. Wagers is a good book; an enjoyable book. I loved her writing. I loved the world and the characters (but especially Hail Bristol) and I thought the political intrigue was off the charts. I have every intention of continuing this series and the last fifty pages? Holy shit, did it actually get my heart pumping and make me wish the sequel was already published, because damn. I did enjoy this book, I'm really glad I discovered this author and I cannot wait to read more of her work.
Actually, before we move on, I just wanna say: my favorite part? I lied, I have two: Hail fucking Bristol and the band of characters who support her. I love incredible women who I can read about, be impressed by, empathize with, admire and wish I could be like. I experienced ALL of those emotions reading about Hail and it's...been awhile since I appreciated a woman so much for her strength, her no-bullshit attitude, the way she handles herself, yet I also got to see more of her than just that hard ass side. She was complex, multidimensional and honestly, I would be honored to be amongst her friends or her crew. I love her and will probably start naming my video game characters after her--and I haven't switched names since discovering Karris White Oak in Brent Weeks' Lightbringer series.
I also loved how I got a Mass Effect vibe, with Hail being Shepard and the rest of her guards and friends feeling like I was back on the Normandy. That was a great feeling and made me wish I could replay those games again (*grumbles in BioWare's direction about a much-needed remaster*). Though I did have a bit of a hard time keeping up with which character was which character (there were a lot of them), I also appreciated that, actually, a little bit? Because it gave it a more realistic feel? Hail is empress, after all. Of course she's going to meet a lot of fucking people.
But, I also tried to read this book during a reading slump, initiated after reading a sci-fi book that was a bit too dense for this human (on top of just being busy and a hectic life and whatnot). So it took me over a month to read a book that should have (or usually would have) taken me a few days to read, a week, at max. It was hard for me to read because I just didn't want to read period. And I don't want that personal problem, let's call it, to reflect poorly on this book or the quality I truly believe it has. But, like everything else, what's happening in your life can influence other areas, as well, so I felt that this book's pace dragged quite a bit in the first half before finally starting to pick up in the second, so it was hard to be motivated to read it, even though I was curious? I doubt someone else in a better headspace would feel the same way.
However, I do think that I made a mistake of reading this book before reading the previous trilogy Wagers wrote, featuring the same characters. What happened before was well explained and I heard you could read it without doing so, but I felt that I...lost a lot of the emotional connections, pangs and impacts I should have felt because I wasn't as familiar with these characters and their backstory, by jumping into this novel first. And, from what I learned in this novel, I am really curious what happened in the other books. Personally, if you're interested, I'd recommend reading the previous trilogy, first. I just think the book will become more powerful, if you read it in that order, instead.
All that said, I enjoyed this book (as much as one can when they and reading don't get along well) and I think I would have enjoyed it a LOT more if I a) had read the previous trilogy first and b) was in a better reading headspace as I tried to read it. I have every intention of reading the rest of Wagers' works, because she is obviously a very talented writer. Frankly, I'm excited to read her works when I'm not dealing with a slump, so I can truly appreciate the full effect of her works!
Basically, this is a long, ramble-ly post to say that, if you're interested in these books, I think you should check them out!! I haven't heard too much discussion about them and I think they deserve a little more attention, personally.
Read on!
December 12, 2018
Excuse me K B Wagers WHERE IS THE REST????? I knew this was going to end in explosions but this was DEVASTATING! Can I get the next two books immediately please?? I missed Hail and Emmory and Zin and everyone else. It was nice to get back into the plodding pace of Indranan politics and how Hail was dealing with them. I am really enjoying the mysteries surrounding the Farians and I'm excited to get to the answers. They integrated themselves so well into human society, I'm very interested in seeing how that plays out. The world building expanded a bit here and I was glad to see Earth and more of the Indranan worlds.
I just love these characters so much I was ecstatic to get to rejoin them. A lot of this book was day to day dealings with Hail but I wasn't ever bored. I felt like the recap of the world at the beginning was a little clunky but it's necessary information to get across. I would really like to find a publication date for the next book soon!!!
I just love these characters so much I was ecstatic to get to rejoin them. A lot of this book was day to day dealings with Hail but I wasn't ever bored. I felt like the recap of the world at the beginning was a little clunky but it's necessary information to get across. I would really like to find a publication date for the next book soon!!!
April 26, 2020
Super slow motion in print ... yay?
Officially this is the start of the second trilogy, but because Wagers has retained the entire cast of characters / setting / everything from the first trilogy, she spends an inordinate amount of time filling in backstories. As in, 200+ pages in and there's yet another infodump. It's -- pretty dull, actually.
I also got tired of various characters telling Hail what a genius empress and wonderful person she is. I'm not sure why this goes on so long. After a certain point, it doesn't add anything more to the story than the endless amount of chai Hail drinks. Could be worse I guess ... we could get a running tally of all the time she must spend peeing.
It's a very elitist novel, because whileMarie Antoinette ... err, Hail spends a great deal of time posturing about how much she really, really cares about all the little people in her empire, we essentially never see them.
The action finally ramps up toward the end. I'm not sure it was worth the wait. I'm wavering on whether I'll bother with No. 5.
Officially this is the start of the second trilogy, but because Wagers has retained the entire cast of characters / setting / everything from the first trilogy, she spends an inordinate amount of time filling in backstories. As in, 200+ pages in and there's yet another infodump. It's -- pretty dull, actually.
I also got tired of various characters telling Hail what a genius empress and wonderful person she is. I'm not sure why this goes on so long. After a certain point, it doesn't add anything more to the story than the endless amount of chai Hail drinks. Could be worse I guess ... we could get a running tally of all the time she must spend peeing.
It's a very elitist novel, because while
The action finally ramps up toward the end. I'm not sure it was worth the wait. I'm wavering on whether I'll bother with No. 5.
January 6, 2019
I deducted half a star for the cliffhanger ending. Another half star for so much of what felt like filler - meetings and drinking chai and this and that. It felt like the action didn't happen until the final 1/4 of the book. But wow was that good, even though the ending leaves the reader hanging over the cliff.
October 30, 2018
https://delivreenlivres.blogspot.com/...
Ce tome se passe peu de temps après la fin de la trilogie précédente, The Indranan War. Même si ce tome ci a démarré un peu lentement, je l'ai finalement autant aimé que les précédents.
Ancienne hors-la-loi, contrebandière et pirate, Hail Bristol a fini par embrasser sa nouvelle fonction d'Impératrice de l'empire Indranan. Alors qu'elle est en pleine phase de reconstruction de son empire après la guerre qu'ils ont subit et que l'argent nécessaire devient difficile à trouver, une autre guerre menace de déborder chez eux. En effet il semblerait que deux civilisations extraterrestres, dont finalement on ne sait que très peu de choses, ai redémarré les hostilités qui couvent entre eux depuis des siècles.
Il se trouve que depuis sa création, l'empire Indranan est allié aux Farians, une des deux factions en guerre. Mais cette alliance c'est faite en temps de paix et Hail a de plus en plus peur que leurs alliés leur réclame de l'aide et ce n'est définitivement pas le moment étant donné l'état de l'économie et des ressources de son empire ...
Je dois dire que j'étais ravie de retrouver tous les personnages de la première trilogie. Que ça soit la multitude de gardes du corps et de conseillers, les domestiques, les différentes factions et familles politiques avec chacune leurs objectifs, les amis ou alliés de son ancienne vie ... Toutes ces personnes forment en fait comme une très grande famille dysfonctionnelle.
Et c'est c'est la qu'on s’aperçoit qu'ils sont vraiment très nombreux en fait. Du coup c'est vrai que j'ai trouvé le début un peu lent, parce qu'on prend vraiment le temps de tous les réintroduire, de nous ré-expliquer toutes la situation en détail pour ceux qui n'auraient pas lu la première trilogie et/ou ceux qui en aurait tout oublié.
Mais en même temps je n'ai pas non plus détesté ce passage, loin de la. Je trouve que ça fait vraiment réaliste de suite Hail au quotidien, avec ses forces et ses faiblesses, sa façon d'être très humaine dans ses décisions tout en étant très stricte et ne supportant pas les coups fourrés pourtant très nombreux en politique. L'empire Indranan fait vraiment très grosse machine qui demande de la patience à l’extrême pour être bien gérée.
Pour ce qui est des autres protagonistes on trouve bien évidemment les Farians, vu qu'il s'agit de leur guerre.
Ils sont un peuple avec des capacités hors du commun. Ils peuvent guérir car en fait ils savent gérer "l’âme" des être vivants (enfin celle des humains, même si ils n'y touchent pas, et des leurs, au moins). Dés lors ils peuvent en fait ressusciter à l'infini, à chaque fois dans un nouveau corps. Si on n'intervient pas, l’âme se réincarne naturellement dans un nouveau né, qui se souvient alors de toutes ses vies antérieures, mais ils peuvent aussi la stocker pour empêcher que ça se produise, emprisonnant la personne en quelque sorte, ou même la détruire si besoin.
Ils sont régis par une religion très stricte, qui leur dicte leur quotidien et l'usage de leurs pouvoirs. En fait leur apparence physique est le résultat de ces pratiques et dés lors qu'ils ne les suivent plus ils finissent par changer. C'est d'ailleurs à cause d'une question de pratiques ancestrales et de religion qu'ils sont en guerre contre leurs adversaires dont je ne dévoilerais rien vu qu'une partie de l'intrigue consiste justement à obtenir des renseignements sur eux.
Du coup on comprends bien que la guerre qui existe depuis des centaines d'années concerne en fait toujours les même personnes, qui entretiennent la haine à chaque réincarnation, dans une boucle sans fin.
Le coté diplomatique est très important tout du long du livre, que ça soit quand Hail traite avec son propre corps politique ou dans ce qui concerne la guerre.
Pendant une grande partie du tome on se demande bien pourquoi ils veulent tous impliquer Hail et son empire dans leur guerre. C'est d'ailleurs une question qui demeure à la fin.
Du coup on est très loin d'être dans de la science-fiction d'action, en dehors de la toute fin qui d'ailleurs était vraiment très stressante. D'ailleurs ce tome porte très bien son titre, il est la pour nous parler de toute la partie avant le vrai début des hostilités et du chaos, que j'ai hâte de découvrir.
A noter qu'il se termine en cliffhanger, mais vu que dans ma version ebook il y avait aussi les premières pages du tome suivant en aperçu à la fin (que je n'ai pas pu m'empêcher de lire, bien sur) ce cliffhanger se résout directement et j'avoue avoir soufflé de soulagement !
Au final pour résumer malgré un début assez lent pour replacer tous les personnages dans le contexte, j'ai vraiment été prise dans ce livre qui nous offre une science-fiction diplomatique et politique de qualité
16.5/20
Ce tome se passe peu de temps après la fin de la trilogie précédente, The Indranan War. Même si ce tome ci a démarré un peu lentement, je l'ai finalement autant aimé que les précédents.
Ancienne hors-la-loi, contrebandière et pirate, Hail Bristol a fini par embrasser sa nouvelle fonction d'Impératrice de l'empire Indranan. Alors qu'elle est en pleine phase de reconstruction de son empire après la guerre qu'ils ont subit et que l'argent nécessaire devient difficile à trouver, une autre guerre menace de déborder chez eux. En effet il semblerait que deux civilisations extraterrestres, dont finalement on ne sait que très peu de choses, ai redémarré les hostilités qui couvent entre eux depuis des siècles.
Il se trouve que depuis sa création, l'empire Indranan est allié aux Farians, une des deux factions en guerre. Mais cette alliance c'est faite en temps de paix et Hail a de plus en plus peur que leurs alliés leur réclame de l'aide et ce n'est définitivement pas le moment étant donné l'état de l'économie et des ressources de son empire ...
Je dois dire que j'étais ravie de retrouver tous les personnages de la première trilogie. Que ça soit la multitude de gardes du corps et de conseillers, les domestiques, les différentes factions et familles politiques avec chacune leurs objectifs, les amis ou alliés de son ancienne vie ... Toutes ces personnes forment en fait comme une très grande famille dysfonctionnelle.
Et c'est c'est la qu'on s’aperçoit qu'ils sont vraiment très nombreux en fait. Du coup c'est vrai que j'ai trouvé le début un peu lent, parce qu'on prend vraiment le temps de tous les réintroduire, de nous ré-expliquer toutes la situation en détail pour ceux qui n'auraient pas lu la première trilogie et/ou ceux qui en aurait tout oublié.
Mais en même temps je n'ai pas non plus détesté ce passage, loin de la. Je trouve que ça fait vraiment réaliste de suite Hail au quotidien, avec ses forces et ses faiblesses, sa façon d'être très humaine dans ses décisions tout en étant très stricte et ne supportant pas les coups fourrés pourtant très nombreux en politique. L'empire Indranan fait vraiment très grosse machine qui demande de la patience à l’extrême pour être bien gérée.
Pour ce qui est des autres protagonistes on trouve bien évidemment les Farians, vu qu'il s'agit de leur guerre.
Ils sont un peuple avec des capacités hors du commun. Ils peuvent guérir car en fait ils savent gérer "l’âme" des être vivants (enfin celle des humains, même si ils n'y touchent pas, et des leurs, au moins). Dés lors ils peuvent en fait ressusciter à l'infini, à chaque fois dans un nouveau corps. Si on n'intervient pas, l’âme se réincarne naturellement dans un nouveau né, qui se souvient alors de toutes ses vies antérieures, mais ils peuvent aussi la stocker pour empêcher que ça se produise, emprisonnant la personne en quelque sorte, ou même la détruire si besoin.
Ils sont régis par une religion très stricte, qui leur dicte leur quotidien et l'usage de leurs pouvoirs. En fait leur apparence physique est le résultat de ces pratiques et dés lors qu'ils ne les suivent plus ils finissent par changer. C'est d'ailleurs à cause d'une question de pratiques ancestrales et de religion qu'ils sont en guerre contre leurs adversaires dont je ne dévoilerais rien vu qu'une partie de l'intrigue consiste justement à obtenir des renseignements sur eux.
Du coup on comprends bien que la guerre qui existe depuis des centaines d'années concerne en fait toujours les même personnes, qui entretiennent la haine à chaque réincarnation, dans une boucle sans fin.
Le coté diplomatique est très important tout du long du livre, que ça soit quand Hail traite avec son propre corps politique ou dans ce qui concerne la guerre.
Pendant une grande partie du tome on se demande bien pourquoi ils veulent tous impliquer Hail et son empire dans leur guerre. C'est d'ailleurs une question qui demeure à la fin.
Du coup on est très loin d'être dans de la science-fiction d'action, en dehors de la toute fin qui d'ailleurs était vraiment très stressante. D'ailleurs ce tome porte très bien son titre, il est la pour nous parler de toute la partie avant le vrai début des hostilités et du chaos, que j'ai hâte de découvrir.
A noter qu'il se termine en cliffhanger, mais vu que dans ma version ebook il y avait aussi les premières pages du tome suivant en aperçu à la fin (que je n'ai pas pu m'empêcher de lire, bien sur) ce cliffhanger se résout directement et j'avoue avoir soufflé de soulagement !
Au final pour résumer malgré un début assez lent pour replacer tous les personnages dans le contexte, j'ai vraiment été prise dans ce livre qui nous offre une science-fiction diplomatique et politique de qualité
16.5/20
December 6, 2020
So after having read the previous trilogy to get up to speed to read this, I'm pleased to say it was worth. I like the Indranan War trilogy, but this feel like a bit of a step up from that trilogy. The world building has been opened out here, and rather than the plot being all about Hail (Empress Gunrunner of the pulpy previous trilogy) she is instead embroiled on the side. An age old conflict between two alien races threaten to involve her planets as they have been allied to one side for a long time, but she spends most of the book trying to stay out of it because - and this is a point the previous books glossed over a touch - war is terrible, and also terribly expensive. And whilst there is plenty of action here, the real meat is in political negotiations between two parties who have hated each other forever, plus a third revolutionary party looking for peace in its own way.
Despite the alien war the book takes its time to unfold, its set about a year after the previous trilogy ended and so we do get a bit of day to day governance (and therefore the attempts at getting reform into place). Everything seems far too centralised too, but much like having aliens who can bread with humans and warp drives, these are the building blocks which you either take or leave. What is most interesting is the idea of being the neutral negotiator, what is the price the neutral party has to pay. There is also a trip to Earth in the process, which considering the thousand years has not changed all that much, but finally solidifies much of the pre-history of these books in just enough bedrock to let the story play out.
What impressed me the most was having moved from a broad adventure tale, Wagers has managed to use the same characters and tell another quite breathless bit of action whilst most of it really being about peace negotiations. As the neutral party it is also relatively even handed between all parties, it may shake down to a single aggressor in the end, but there is enough unexplained about the alien cultures which are left open (one side literally murdered the gods of the other) that this will continue along the same line and add increasing political complexity to its already solid adventure narrative.
[Netgalley ARC]
Despite the alien war the book takes its time to unfold, its set about a year after the previous trilogy ended and so we do get a bit of day to day governance (and therefore the attempts at getting reform into place). Everything seems far too centralised too, but much like having aliens who can bread with humans and warp drives, these are the building blocks which you either take or leave. What is most interesting is the idea of being the neutral negotiator, what is the price the neutral party has to pay. There is also a trip to Earth in the process, which considering the thousand years has not changed all that much, but finally solidifies much of the pre-history of these books in just enough bedrock to let the story play out.
What impressed me the most was having moved from a broad adventure tale, Wagers has managed to use the same characters and tell another quite breathless bit of action whilst most of it really being about peace negotiations. As the neutral party it is also relatively even handed between all parties, it may shake down to a single aggressor in the end, but there is enough unexplained about the alien cultures which are left open (one side literally murdered the gods of the other) that this will continue along the same line and add increasing political complexity to its already solid adventure narrative.
[Netgalley ARC]
December 27, 2021
I wasn't exactly sure where Wagers was going with this one or whether it would work out, particularly after the first trilogy featuring ex-gunner turned empress Hail Bristol.
Authors frequently want their heroes to get the rewards for their accomplishments and then either set them aside immediately or don't know what to do with them once they get there. Hail's "reward" from the last trilogy was to sit on her throne as the unquestioned leader of Indrana. So where do we go next that's both interesting and appropriate?
Well, Wagers has that well in hand, because she is more than comfortable spinning a tale of high-powered interstellar politics with a healthy dose of planetary maneuvers and keeping it all as exciting as any gunfight or space battle. Hail is definitely a bit of a bull in a china shop kind of empress, but she's using her violent reputation and that attitude with a surprising amount of subtlety in moving people around the chessboard where and when she can, and it's incredibly entertaining.
Where do you go with a character once they've successfully retaken their throne as empress of a multi-planet people? Make her arbitrate in a pending war between two incredibly powerful and semi-immortal alien races that's really a civil war between the two of them, but also might have another faction that's had it with the both of them. Nice.
It's fun and feisty, and the relationships that Hail is forming with her BodyGuards and the few friends who don't entirely care that she's empress give a nice backdrop to the interstellar politics.
Looking forward to the next one, especially since the last book left us going "oh, hell."
Authors frequently want their heroes to get the rewards for their accomplishments and then either set them aside immediately or don't know what to do with them once they get there. Hail's "reward" from the last trilogy was to sit on her throne as the unquestioned leader of Indrana. So where do we go next that's both interesting and appropriate?
Well, Wagers has that well in hand, because she is more than comfortable spinning a tale of high-powered interstellar politics with a healthy dose of planetary maneuvers and keeping it all as exciting as any gunfight or space battle. Hail is definitely a bit of a bull in a china shop kind of empress, but she's using her violent reputation and that attitude with a surprising amount of subtlety in moving people around the chessboard where and when she can, and it's incredibly entertaining.
Where do you go with a character once they've successfully retaken their throne as empress of a multi-planet people? Make her arbitrate in a pending war between two incredibly powerful and semi-immortal alien races that's really a civil war between the two of them, but also might have another faction that's had it with the both of them. Nice.
It's fun and feisty, and the relationships that Hail is forming with her BodyGuards and the few friends who don't entirely care that she's empress give a nice backdrop to the interstellar politics.
Looking forward to the next one, especially since the last book left us going "oh, hell."
January 17, 2021
There Before The Chaos is actually the first book I’ve read from this author, not realising there was a previous trilogy set in the same universe- it wasn’t a problem though I soon got to grips with the main back story and was soon hooked into this brilliantly immersive adventure and engaged entirely with main character Hail who has rather a lot on her plate…
The imaginative world building creates an excellent backdrop to the story being told…one of honour and betrayal,of long held grudges and simmering factions. In the midst of all this, ex gun runner turned Majesty Hail Bristol may be the only thing standing between peaceful resolution and all out galactic war.
I really loved this. It had quality writing and quality storytelling, the characters were all full of depth and the author creates a society that in a lot of ways mirrors our own in social status. There is love and loss, loyalty and betrayal, action and adventure all done in emotionally resonant ways that keep you turning the pages.
A banging good ending that makes you desperate for the next book is just the icing on an already delicious cake. I’ll be diving into book 2 asap.
Recommended.
The imaginative world building creates an excellent backdrop to the story being told…one of honour and betrayal,of long held grudges and simmering factions. In the midst of all this, ex gun runner turned Majesty Hail Bristol may be the only thing standing between peaceful resolution and all out galactic war.
I really loved this. It had quality writing and quality storytelling, the characters were all full of depth and the author creates a society that in a lot of ways mirrors our own in social status. There is love and loss, loyalty and betrayal, action and adventure all done in emotionally resonant ways that keep you turning the pages.
A banging good ending that makes you desperate for the next book is just the icing on an already delicious cake. I’ll be diving into book 2 asap.
Recommended.
May 23, 2021
4.5 stars - An awesome start to a brand new adventure with our favorite gunrunning empress!
General Thoughts:
Something to note when starting this trilogy is that there is a whole story that came before it and is frequently referenced in this book. The author does a fairly good job of getting you up to speed, but it is my recommendation that you start with Behind The Throne and treat this new story as a continuation. It will read a bit better and make more sense.
That said, there is a lot I really enjoy about this series. I’ve always been a huge fan of a “rogue with a heart of gold” trope and the main character, Hail, is exactly that. She’s a former gunrunner turned Empress to the planet Indrana. So much has happened to her since we first met her and her story is only beginning.
I enjoyed hanging out with old friends from the original trilogy and meeting some new ones too. All our faves are back, recovering from a healthy dose of trauma, and getting thrown right in the middle of a political shit storm that could end in another war. No rest for our royal Indrana fam today!
Wrap Up:
I have a lot of fun with these books. The concept is just right for me and I have the best time. This new trilogy started off great and sets us up for a great new story.
General Thoughts:
Something to note when starting this trilogy is that there is a whole story that came before it and is frequently referenced in this book. The author does a fairly good job of getting you up to speed, but it is my recommendation that you start with Behind The Throne and treat this new story as a continuation. It will read a bit better and make more sense.
That said, there is a lot I really enjoy about this series. I’ve always been a huge fan of a “rogue with a heart of gold” trope and the main character, Hail, is exactly that. She’s a former gunrunner turned Empress to the planet Indrana. So much has happened to her since we first met her and her story is only beginning.
I enjoyed hanging out with old friends from the original trilogy and meeting some new ones too. All our faves are back, recovering from a healthy dose of trauma, and getting thrown right in the middle of a political shit storm that could end in another war. No rest for our royal Indrana fam today!
Wrap Up:
I have a lot of fun with these books. The concept is just right for me and I have the best time. This new trilogy started off great and sets us up for a great new story.
September 29, 2023
A follow-up to the original Indranan War trilogy this continues the story of one of my favorite fictional characters, Hail Bristol, the Empress of Indrana. This one has a more expansive plot, bringing in the idea of Indrana being caught in a conflict between two greater alien races, and, ostensibly, having to play diplomat. This was a bit darker and more serious in tone, with an ending that was explosive and definitely more of a cliffhanger than in prior books. Space politics aside, it is the character of Hail, and the interaction of her team that really sells these books for me.
March 3, 2021
I loved the first trilogy. This one starts with negotiations. Same characters we know and love but there are a lot of politics happening. and while there is action I didn't feel a huge drive to finish this quickly. It ends pretty crazy so happy I have the next book on my shelf to read...but I might wait a little bit to get to it. Definitely read after the initial trilogy.
May 20, 2019
Another great, action-packed novel in this universe. I really enjoyed getting back to Hail and co, but I am not okay with how this ended. My heart hurts.
September 17, 2018
I am in book hangover. :) That's not a bad thing - means I ADORED this book! In the interests of full discolsure, I won the ARC of the book via a contest on K.B.'s patreon, but that in no way changes how I feel about it.
This is one of those times where I wish I was a good review writer. Sadly I am not.
When I was 3 chapters in, I already felt like I had met up with a gang of friends I had not seen in a long while and whom I had missed terribly.
Now, there is not be quite as much harum-scarum action as there was in the first trilogy of Hail Bristol's tale, the last five chapters notwithstanding. This book gives us more of a sharing of Hail herself, who she was, who she wishes to be, and who she really is. We also learn more of certain important characters, through Hail's eyes of course, and maybe grow to love them as she does. Well, I did. :) I think it's a more personal feeling book, if that makes any sense.
I need more Dailun and Hail in my life too!
There's something going on and despite many hints and answers and discoveries in this book, I still don't know what's going on. *LOL* But that's okay. It's a trilogy and I know I'll get answers before the end, I just have to be patient. And thanks to the way that K.B. Wagers weaves the story, it's never dissatisfying.
If I have complaints, they're... negligible in the whole scheme of things. One is that every damned character winks. Some more often than others, but there are far too many winks going on. It's K.B.'s tic I think. I'm sure I've mentioned it before. The other is the THRICE DAMNED CLIFFHANGER!!! Thank GOD the format I read - the ARC of the trade paperback - had an excerpt of the next book because I was starting to hyperventilate! And I must add, the excerpt was FASCINATING!
I cannot believe how long I have to wait for the next book! I love these books and I love Hail Bristol and her crew of found family, so I will wait. And try to be patient. It's not something I'm very good at.
This is one of those times where I wish I was a good review writer. Sadly I am not.
When I was 3 chapters in, I already felt like I had met up with a gang of friends I had not seen in a long while and whom I had missed terribly.
Now, there is not be quite as much harum-scarum action as there was in the first trilogy of Hail Bristol's tale, the last five chapters notwithstanding. This book gives us more of a sharing of Hail herself, who she was, who she wishes to be, and who she really is. We also learn more of certain important characters, through Hail's eyes of course, and maybe grow to love them as she does. Well, I did. :) I think it's a more personal feeling book, if that makes any sense.
I need more Dailun and Hail in my life too!
There's something going on and despite many hints and answers and discoveries in this book, I still don't know what's going on. *LOL* But that's okay. It's a trilogy and I know I'll get answers before the end, I just have to be patient. And thanks to the way that K.B. Wagers weaves the story, it's never dissatisfying.
If I have complaints, they're... negligible in the whole scheme of things. One is that every damned character winks. Some more often than others, but there are far too many winks going on. It's K.B.'s tic I think. I'm sure I've mentioned it before. The other is the THRICE DAMNED CLIFFHANGER!!! Thank GOD the format I read - the ARC of the trade paperback - had an excerpt of the next book because I was starting to hyperventilate! And I must add, the excerpt was FASCINATING!
I cannot believe how long I have to wait for the next book! I love these books and I love Hail Bristol and her crew of found family, so I will wait. And try to be patient. It's not something I'm very good at.
July 28, 2019
So well done, and then ending had me ready for the next book, and then I made the mistake of reading the sample chapter from the next book, and now I need it right now!
December 22, 2018
I enjoyed the first trilogy, but I found this book a bit of a slog. Most of it is buildup to the last few pages, which sets up the next installment.
December 3, 2018
This series is reminding me of CJ Cherryh's Foreigner series, because the main character is asked to negotiate a peace agreement between two alien species. She's an empress, and former gun runner, so you know there's going to be action and adventure. It's set in space, and the aliens have supernatural powers. I think this is a good story with a great heroine, but I could not wade through the plot. The plot didn't excite me.
I like the idea. It's character-driven. Maybe what's missing is the mise-en-scene. It just doesn't feel detailed or convincing. I can believe in the character, but I don't immerse in the scenarios. That being said, this could evolve into a great series. You want the first book to catch everyone's attention, but the next one could be the winner.
I like the idea. It's character-driven. Maybe what's missing is the mise-en-scene. It just doesn't feel detailed or convincing. I can believe in the character, but I don't immerse in the scenarios. That being said, this could evolve into a great series. You want the first book to catch everyone's attention, but the next one could be the winner.
April 19, 2021
This is the first book in the "Farian War" trilogy by K.B. Wagers. This is a continuation of the story started in the "The Indranan War" trilogy. In this one Hail Bristol, Empress of Indrana and former gunrunner has finally overcome the elements who were trying to overthrow her rule of the Indranan Empire. She is hoping for a long period of peace but that is not to be. The alien Farans have long been allies of the Indraran Empire but have been at war with the alien Shen even longer. Now the Farans come asking and later demanding that Hail Bristol help them in a coming war with the Shen. Not her empire but Hail Herself. She at first refuses but after several battles between the Farans and the Shen spill over into human space and cause mass casualties she reconsiders. She soon finds that the Farans have been concealing the truth about the Shen and that neither race are what they seem. Hail and her empire will face treachery on several fronts, but if she fails it might very well mean the end of the entire human race!
I stated in my reviews of the books in the "The Indranan War" trilogy that they were some of the best Space Opera that I had read in quite some time. This book continues that trend. I will note that you should read the books in the "The Indranan War" trilogy before starting this trilogy because you need the background laid out for context in this book.
I stated in my reviews of the books in the "The Indranan War" trilogy that they were some of the best Space Opera that I had read in quite some time. This book continues that trend. I will note that you should read the books in the "The Indranan War" trilogy before starting this trilogy because you need the background laid out for context in this book.
October 15, 2018
*Received ARC through Goodreads drawing*
At the end of the Indranan War trilogy, I just wanted more of the characters and especially more of their universe. This book, the first in a new trilogy, totally delivers on that. For me, these characters evoke a very Bujold/Vorkosigan vibe, but with a different and very interesting flair. The storyline here is an interesting start to the trilogy and I look forward to seeing what happens next!
For readers new to Indrana, I wouldn't recommend starting here because I think the backstory is important to really enjoying this book - start with Behind the Throne and move forward from there.
At the end of the Indranan War trilogy, I just wanted more of the characters and especially more of their universe. This book, the first in a new trilogy, totally delivers on that. For me, these characters evoke a very Bujold/Vorkosigan vibe, but with a different and very interesting flair. The storyline here is an interesting start to the trilogy and I look forward to seeing what happens next!
For readers new to Indrana, I wouldn't recommend starting here because I think the backstory is important to really enjoying this book - start with Behind the Throne and move forward from there.
December 29, 2023
I so love these characters and I'm so glad we get another series with them!
October 3, 2019
Just finished There Before the Chaos by K.B. Wagers. Giving it 1 star.
My major complaints revolve around 3 areas.
#1. This book is not a stand-alone read.
There are 3 books that comes before this one (the Indranan War trilogy), yet nowhere on the cover of this volume is the purchaser warned of this. Yes, there was a positive shill for the book Behind the Throne, which is the first in the Indrana War series, but nowhere on THIS book does it state that it is a continuation of the saga!
How is this a problem? Well, for the first thing, the book throws the characters at you hard and fast. By page 12, Ms. Wagers has introduced 25 characters, 4 non-Indranan species/ races/ humanoids, 7 areas/solar systems/planets/space stations/geographic areas, and 4 unexplained, non-standard English Indranian terms. Jesus H, K.B., that's a lot to keep track of! How about having a list of cast members at the front of the book to make things easier for your readers? Lots of writers use it -- you should have too.
Secondly, there is little to remember all these introduced characters by. They aren't immediately fleshed out very well at all. I guess the reader is supposed to recognize/remember them from the previous books? Well, I haven't READ the previous books! And since every sex can have ever job, and can marry any other sex, there's nothing to differentiate the characters beyond knowing their present-sex and appearance. Could you PLEASE AT LEAST differentiate between male and female names? -- it would just make remembering who the hell each of these characters IS SO MUCH easier! Take a look at these names and see if you can guess who are the females and who are the males: Nila, Gita, Cas, Johar, Bakava, Zin, Indula, Iza, Muna, Riddhi, Sahil, Jet, Will, & Portis. Yeah, good luck there!
Thirdly, the new terms introduced -- Ekam, Dve, Uie Maa, and Smati -- are an annoyance, rather than signposts fleshing out the setting of the story. For example: I hit the first unknown term ("You need to stop discussing politics with your Ekam, ..." pg2), and I'm up for the challenge! I go to Wikipedia and look up the term Ekam. Turns out it's Sanskrit for "One" or "Unity," and is "the term used in Akilathirattu Ammanai, the holy book of the religion of Ayyavazhi, to represent The Ultimate Oneness." So I'm thinking, OK, so Ekam means "spiritual adviser, right?," and I can see where the protagonist might speak with her spiritual advisor about politics. Reading about 5 more pages in and "EHHHHH! WRONG!," Ekam means bodyguard or security personnel. OK, two things here K.B.: first, you've burned me once, so I'm not going to waste any more of my time looking up any more of your stupid foreign terms! Secondly, can you PLEASE add a G-D GLOSSARY to your frikkin' book if you are going to have these idiotic unknowns scattered throughout the read without explaining what they mean? Otherwise they're just a pain in the @ss to deal with! Of course, maybe these aren't actually "new" terms, right? MAYBE they were mentioned IN THE PREVIOUS BOOKS of the series? Yeah, we've gone over that problem already.
So, not a stand-alone friendly read this.
#2. I absolutely HATE it that the protagonist (Hail Mercedes Bristol Jaya) is a former gunrunner, and proud of it. She mentions it, one way or another, about every 4 pages. Think I exaggerate? In the first 40 pages, Hail alludes to it on pages 1, 11/12, 12, 16, 22, 25, 29, 30, 34, 36, and 37. 11 times in 40 pages. (The math is correct.)
Wager, couldn't she could have smuggled spices, or genomes, or rare resources, or software, or fine art instead? In the REAL WORLD we are ALREADY inundated with violence -- especially gun violence -- on a weekly if not daily basis, and YOU, K.B., take advantage of and exploit this!
I absolutely DESPISE the fact that Hail is an ex-murderess/ gunrunner and seems proud of her past!
#EATSHIT HAIL! (You, too, Ms. Wagers.)
#3. Finally, and this is a personal-opinion-only kind of thing, I CAN NOT STAND that Hail is an extreme "touchy-feely" person, and brings this to her diplomacy. She is constantly, and I mean CONSTANTLY "touching" family, friends, bodyguards, matriarchs, diplomats, her maid, her chamberlain, strangers she's just met -- frikkin' EVERYONE. Again, think I'm exaggerating? Let's look at the first 60 pages and see how many times she's "hands on" someone: 10, 11, 24, 30(twice), 31, 38, 41, 47, 48, 57, 58, & 59. Sixty pages, 13 touches -- touchin' someone every 5 pages or less. I would have LOVED it if someone in the book, in a loud voice, would have said, "WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP TOUCHING ME?!," and see how Hail dealt with THAT.
Anyway, if you as a person aren't a big fan of being touched by others, then this book WILL DRIVE YOU UP A FRIKKIN' WALL.
*****
Those are just my major complaints. There are so many others: the fight scenes (ludicrous), the huge amount of TALKING (as opposed to action) that goes on in the book (you must read over 300 pages before any kind of fight/battle occurs), the anachronistic technology discrepancies, the blatant stupidity of certain important characters, the "glandular-ness" of about 50% of all the characters (i.e., they are constantly crying, choking up, feeling like their hearts will stop, feeling like their hearts will burst from their chests, feeling claustrophobic, feeling out of control, shouting, hitting, cursing, etc., etc., etc.), the plot-holes, the egregious use of plot-armor, and just so many other things.
Sigh...
So yeah.
Not a fan of this book.
Giving it one star.
My major complaints revolve around 3 areas.
#1. This book is not a stand-alone read.
There are 3 books that comes before this one (the Indranan War trilogy), yet nowhere on the cover of this volume is the purchaser warned of this. Yes, there was a positive shill for the book Behind the Throne, which is the first in the Indrana War series, but nowhere on THIS book does it state that it is a continuation of the saga!
How is this a problem? Well, for the first thing, the book throws the characters at you hard and fast. By page 12, Ms. Wagers has introduced 25 characters, 4 non-Indranan species/ races/ humanoids, 7 areas/solar systems/planets/space stations/geographic areas, and 4 unexplained, non-standard English Indranian terms. Jesus H, K.B., that's a lot to keep track of! How about having a list of cast members at the front of the book to make things easier for your readers? Lots of writers use it -- you should have too.
Secondly, there is little to remember all these introduced characters by. They aren't immediately fleshed out very well at all. I guess the reader is supposed to recognize/remember them from the previous books? Well, I haven't READ the previous books! And since every sex can have ever job, and can marry any other sex, there's nothing to differentiate the characters beyond knowing their present-sex and appearance. Could you PLEASE AT LEAST differentiate between male and female names? -- it would just make remembering who the hell each of these characters IS SO MUCH easier! Take a look at these names and see if you can guess who are the females and who are the males: Nila, Gita, Cas, Johar, Bakava, Zin, Indula, Iza, Muna, Riddhi, Sahil, Jet, Will, & Portis. Yeah, good luck there!
Thirdly, the new terms introduced -- Ekam, Dve, Uie Maa, and Smati -- are an annoyance, rather than signposts fleshing out the setting of the story. For example: I hit the first unknown term ("You need to stop discussing politics with your Ekam, ..." pg2), and I'm up for the challenge! I go to Wikipedia and look up the term Ekam. Turns out it's Sanskrit for "One" or "Unity," and is "the term used in Akilathirattu Ammanai, the holy book of the religion of Ayyavazhi, to represent The Ultimate Oneness." So I'm thinking, OK, so Ekam means "spiritual adviser, right?," and I can see where the protagonist might speak with her spiritual advisor about politics. Reading about 5 more pages in and "EHHHHH! WRONG!," Ekam means bodyguard or security personnel. OK, two things here K.B.: first, you've burned me once, so I'm not going to waste any more of my time looking up any more of your stupid foreign terms! Secondly, can you PLEASE add a G-D GLOSSARY to your frikkin' book if you are going to have these idiotic unknowns scattered throughout the read without explaining what they mean? Otherwise they're just a pain in the @ss to deal with! Of course, maybe these aren't actually "new" terms, right? MAYBE they were mentioned IN THE PREVIOUS BOOKS of the series? Yeah, we've gone over that problem already.
So, not a stand-alone friendly read this.
#2. I absolutely HATE it that the protagonist (Hail Mercedes Bristol Jaya) is a former gunrunner, and proud of it. She mentions it, one way or another, about every 4 pages. Think I exaggerate? In the first 40 pages, Hail alludes to it on pages 1, 11/12, 12, 16, 22, 25, 29, 30, 34, 36, and 37. 11 times in 40 pages. (The math is correct.)
Wager, couldn't she could have smuggled spices, or genomes, or rare resources, or software, or fine art instead? In the REAL WORLD we are ALREADY inundated with violence -- especially gun violence -- on a weekly if not daily basis, and YOU, K.B., take advantage of and exploit this!
I absolutely DESPISE the fact that Hail is an ex-murderess/ gunrunner and seems proud of her past!
#EATSHIT HAIL! (You, too, Ms. Wagers.)
#3. Finally, and this is a personal-opinion-only kind of thing, I CAN NOT STAND that Hail is an extreme "touchy-feely" person, and brings this to her diplomacy. She is constantly, and I mean CONSTANTLY "touching" family, friends, bodyguards, matriarchs, diplomats, her maid, her chamberlain, strangers she's just met -- frikkin' EVERYONE. Again, think I'm exaggerating? Let's look at the first 60 pages and see how many times she's "hands on" someone: 10, 11, 24, 30(twice), 31, 38, 41, 47, 48, 57, 58, & 59. Sixty pages, 13 touches -- touchin' someone every 5 pages or less. I would have LOVED it if someone in the book, in a loud voice, would have said, "WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP TOUCHING ME?!," and see how Hail dealt with THAT.
Anyway, if you as a person aren't a big fan of being touched by others, then this book WILL DRIVE YOU UP A FRIKKIN' WALL.
*****
Those are just my major complaints. There are so many others: the fight scenes (ludicrous), the huge amount of TALKING (as opposed to action) that goes on in the book (you must read over 300 pages before any kind of fight/battle occurs), the anachronistic technology discrepancies, the blatant stupidity of certain important characters, the "glandular-ness" of about 50% of all the characters (i.e., they are constantly crying, choking up, feeling like their hearts will stop, feeling like their hearts will burst from their chests, feeling claustrophobic, feeling out of control, shouting, hitting, cursing, etc., etc., etc.), the plot-holes, the egregious use of plot-armor, and just so many other things.
Sigh...
So yeah.
Not a fan of this book.
Giving it one star.
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