Parliament has rejected the cease-fire agreement and has declared war on the colonies. Terra is the first to fall, and the torrents are sent running for their lives. The Collective Unified Forces have declared open season on all colonists as they swing a heavy fist across the four fringe worlds.
The fight for independence is doomed unless the torrent marshals can turn the odds back in their favor. To stave off defeat, Reyne must reclaim a colony once destroyed by a deadly blight, and Critch must strike at the very heart of the Collective. The fringe has the numbers, but the Collective has the technology and the weapons. The torrents will have to sacrifice everything to defeat the CUF, and even then, it may not be enough. Can the torrents survive long enough to win their freedom before the CUF bombs every colony into oblivion?
Rachel Aukes is the bestselling author of over forty books, including 100 Days in Deadland, which made Suspense Magazine’s Best of the Year list. She writes in a number of genres, including science fiction, fantasy, horror, thriller, and more. Her series includes Waymaker Wars, Space Troopers, Flight of the Javelin, Fringe, Deadland Saga, Colliding Worlds, and Guardians of the Seven Seals. Her novels have repeatedly been Amazon Top 100 bestsellers and #1 bestsellers in Horror, Post-Apocalyptic, Space Fleet, Space Marine, Galactic Empire, Colonization, Alien Invasion, and Cyberpunk. When not writing, Rachel can be found flying old airplanes with an incredibly spoiled dog over the Iowa countryside.
OK, so this is the 10th book of Rachel's I have read this summer. I am a bit of an avid reader and a binge reader. So when I find a series or an author I like, I devour everything they have written. I found that in Rachel's work. I started with a 99 cent special, and like a crack addict, I was hooked. While this is a SYFY book, it really is as much mystery and suspense. It just happens to take place in a galaxy far, far, away.... I love the character development, the enemy of my enemy forging strange alliances, and the plot twists. Some you see coming, others, maybe not. As I mentioned in my last review of this series, not everyone makes it through, so be careful of which characters you get attached to... I like that the story is mostly believable (it is SYFY after all) i.e. there is no superman with bullets bouncing off him, no character who is so skilled it is like playing with children. There are multiple heroes, and multiple villains, with a master villain running the show. The key is, is this master villain as smart as he thinks he is. It certainly seems like it... Just when you think the story is over, the door is opened for a follow on... Good news is Rachel gets her books out quickly, so it should not take long for Fringe Legacy to get here. Buy the first book and check out the story. If you have already read the first three books, you don't need to read this review to know that you need to buy this book. It is as good as the others.
“Fringe War” (Fringe Series Book 4) is by award-winning author Rachel Aukes, who also penned “The Deadland Saga” and the 2018 “Colliding Worlds Trilogy”. It is the presumed culmination of her unique storylines developed through the three previous novels: “Fringe Runner”, “Fringe Station”, and “Fringe Campaign” involving the unique solar system of The Collective’s 6 terra-formed worlds, the Space Coast, and all of their fringe stations. In this novel, it’s 'the Collective' versus 'the rebel worlds and alliances' as the story takes dramatic, dangerous, and heartbreaking twists and turns that go from the lowest to the highest levels of the military, political, and social structures of this universe. Author Aukes dials up the magnitude of events as there are lots of ‘scores to settle’ amid even more death, destruction, heartache, treachery, audacity, and bravery than usual. Read through all of the material at the end as Aukes seems to give a surprising hint. Highly Recommended. (Waypoint Books, LLC. 201 pages.)
**I received a copy of this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway**
“Fringe War” being the fourth in a series, I went back and started with the first book and read through each one before beginning this one. I can’t put my finger on exactly what it is about a sci-fi series that makes it perfect, and exactly what I like to read, but this series has it. I fell in love with all the characters and felt immediately like I was part of the crew. The author pulls no punches and anyone and anything is up for grabs as this book tells the story of the final conflict for the torrents. I felt like I was immersed in a fantastic sci-fi show and wanted to binge watch each season. Luckily, the author wraps up this story arc, but it looks like there will be more episodes and seasons to come, and I’ll definitely be following the crew into whatever new adventures they find.
First, if you haven't read the first 3 in the series, go read them.
On to the war - betrayal, sacrifice, more betrayal, hacking, comeuppance with moral ambiguity (in a good way, IMO, because that's what someone would really do to someone else). Essentially, all of the fun stuff in good space opera.
If you want to spend pages of a novel repeatedly reading about what everyone wears, this isn't for you. If you want page turning action with flawed characters with real vulnerabilities that affect their actions, this should absolutely be on your Space Opera reading list.
I am so addicted to this series. If you want action, a LOT of action, suspense abounding at every turn, and a small side of romance, this series has it all. At the end of the last chapter I found myself crying, not because of sadness although there was that because this is a war after all, but because of everything this rag tag band of rebels went through. Then for the Epilogue to throw a sinister shadow over my bittersweet mood, sheesh....now what?
The author continues to entertain and provide intrigue in this series. There's a war going on and the author treats it as the serious matter it is. Facing the overwhelming power of the collective, The Fringe has to use its wits if it's going to succeed.
This is an exceptionally well written series with wonderful characters, lots of action and mystery. I enjoyed it very much and would recommend it to anyone that enjoys a great space adventure.
Along for the ride after having read the first three. The author keeps things interesting and fast-paced. As she says, she doesn't mind killing off her characters. This kept up the suspense, to be sure.
As a person of color, I have to applaud her inclusion of people of all stripes having important roles in the story. For anyone tempted to dismiss this as PC, I say you have to be someone used to being privileged by skin color due to accident of birth or gender to say that. It's not PC, it's a reflection of reality--we all want to see ourselves in the stories we read and all stripes of people can lead, can be evil, can be risk-takers, can demand social justice.
Hopefully, if anyone of that ilk reads these books, they can grasp the price that comes with exploiting others outside of their tribe. The cost may not be immediate, but it comes, and it will bite the exploiters in the ass or the asses of their progeny. And, it doesn't have to be that way.
I won this book in a Goodreads give away. This is the fourth book in a series called the Fringe War. Unfortunately, I missed that when entering the giveaway. That left me dropped into the middle of a story whose characters and plot were totally unfamiliar to me. Nonetheless, I read the book and thought that the author conceived an interesting sci-fi vision of far world's , an interplanetary war and political skullduggery. I can see how fans would become Hooked on the series. Therefore, I recommend it to fans of the series and the genre to try.
Another satisfying entry in the Fringe series. You definitely need to have read the previous books as there's a lot of movement between characters and worlds. Even after reading the first three installments, I still struggled at times to remember who was who and who was where. It's not often I think this but I wish it was a little longer to flesh out some of the sub characters stories. Still, it's an easy, fun, entertaining, fast-paced read. Looking forward to the finale this fall. Received my copy via my first ever Goodreads giveaway win :-).
I read the 4th book in series so I missed much of the background from the series. That being said, this series has fast acting politically instigated intrigue and legal questions on how does a colonized asteroid, planetoid, etc. belong in the chain of government. Are they independent, what rights are theirs but not the larger group's concerns. Characters well rounded and placed,
1. It is so easy to jump back into the series. 2. I love the characters. 3. Plot works for me. 4. The action was spot on. 5. Yes. Sweet revenge. 6. I’ve never seen the TV show but I might have to check it out.
TL;DR - Freedom fighters kick back against the government that oppresses them, war ensues. Full of plotting, politics and spaceships.
Ragdoll Rating: 3.5/5 Buttons
Recommended For: Fans of sci-fi
About the Book...
Fringe War is the fourth book in a series I haven't read. It follows the story of a group of freedom fighters in their struggle to wrestle control and a better life from the hands of a corrupt - and evil - government. It's your classic space-based underdog story.
What I thought...
I've given this book 4 stars, although if I'm honest I feel I should give it three. I'll explain that first and then move on to the book itself. I personally felt that there were too many characters and names being thrown about it this book - I really, really struggled to keep track of who was who, and even now I could only name two characters, and I only really know who one of them is. For this reason, I would have rated this book a three - however, I am erring on the side of caution, as this could just be my own issue rather than a genuine problem with the book so I would encourage you to make up your own mind on that front.
The story itself - or at least, the bits I could keep track of - were very interesting. I enjoyed reading about the political landscape of The Collective, and the unpleasant motivations of Heid, who seems to run the parliament. There were a lot of references to things that must have happened earlier in the series that influenced a lot of the decisions made by the characters, and I would definitely consider picking up the rest of the series to learn about them.
I think the story had a good balance of action and political thought, which made for an easy read, aside from the issues addressed above.
Final Thoughts…
This book definitely seems to have the potential to be really enjoyed by someone who can get their head around all the characters. So if that sort of thing isn't a problem for you, I'd recommend you give it a try.