What do you think?
Rate this book
A Learning Experience #5
The Long-Range War
The gloves have finally come off ...
The Tokomak, the unquestioned masters of the galaxy, have dispatched a massive fleet to crush the Solar Union - and the fledgling Galactic Alliance - before the human race and its alien allies can tear the galactic order asunder. Hundreds of thousands of starships under the command of an alien tactical genius, bent on exterminating the entire human race ... the darkest hour is truly at hand.
Admiral Hoshiko Stuart has a plan. The Solar Union will dispatch a fleet of its own, with the objective of smashing the alien fleet before it reaches Sol. But, as human technology clashes with alien treachery, experience and sheer numbers, it becomes clear that there can be only one victor ...
... And whoever loses will lose everything.
The Tokomak, the unquestioned masters of the galaxy, have dispatched a massive fleet to crush the Solar Union - and the fledgling Galactic Alliance - before the human race and its alien allies can tear the galactic order asunder. Hundreds of thousands of starships under the command of an alien tactical genius, bent on exterminating the entire human race ... the darkest hour is truly at hand.
Admiral Hoshiko Stuart has a plan. The Solar Union will dispatch a fleet of its own, with the objective of smashing the alien fleet before it reaches Sol. But, as human technology clashes with alien treachery, experience and sheer numbers, it becomes clear that there can be only one victor ...
... And whoever loses will lose everything.
378 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 8, 2018
186 people are currently reading
111 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
July 28, 2018
One of the best series ever!
I'm a huge fan of this "Us against the Universe" genre and this series has exceeded my expectations. Mr Nuttall does tend to lapse into preaching his personal geopolitical views but he has managed to do so without disrupting the momentum of story . I'm really looking forward to a predictable but highly anticipated happy ending to this very entertaining series.
I'm a huge fan of this "Us against the Universe" genre and this series has exceeded my expectations. Mr Nuttall does tend to lapse into preaching his personal geopolitical views but he has managed to do so without disrupting the momentum of story . I'm really looking forward to a predictable but highly anticipated happy ending to this very entertaining series.
July 23, 2018
Great continuation of a very good series.
Title says it all, another good read by a fantastic author. CN, keep up the good work and I will keep purchasing said works. 😁
Title says it all, another good read by a fantastic author. CN, keep up the good work and I will keep purchasing said works. 😁
September 16, 2018
The story was going quite well, although a bit long winded at times, too many repeated descriptions and I lost count of the number of times and different ways we were told the Tokomak have many many more ships.
Then just over half way through the book the Tokomak turned the tables on the human fleet. I didn’t mind that the Tokomak were able to produce a surprise, what I didn’t like was the way it was done.
In some ways this wasn’t a bad Space Opera and I could quite easily see me giving three stars, but I just couldn’t ignore the inconsistencies.
Then just over half way through the book the Tokomak turned the tables on the human fleet. I didn’t mind that the Tokomak were able to produce a surprise, what I didn’t like was the way it was done.
In some ways this wasn’t a bad Space Opera and I could quite easily see me giving three stars, but I just couldn’t ignore the inconsistencies.
February 15, 2020
Kinda boring
60 years ago, some intergalactic aliens tried to kidnap a seal team which, to their dismay, took over their ship. Rather than turning their spoils over to the earth governments, they established a new government on the moon and started taking immigrants. In the process, they took the elite of earth which degenerated the earth into squalor, and set up the solar government into becoming an upstart galactic power. This was essentially the theme of the first set of books in this series, and it was exciting. This book was essentially an endless set of skirmishes where the underdog succeeds at winning no matter the odds. I didn't know whether to pan this book as boring or rated it highly for the writing skill and imagination shown. I decided to make it a four star so that no one will read this review. If you like reading an endless bunch of battle scenes where poor comparisons are made to WWII Japanese thinking then this may be the book for you. If you are bored by inaccurate and poor comparisons to Japanese philosophy while reading battle scenes where the winner succeeded in luring the other side into a trap, then you might not like this book.
60 years ago, some intergalactic aliens tried to kidnap a seal team which, to their dismay, took over their ship. Rather than turning their spoils over to the earth governments, they established a new government on the moon and started taking immigrants. In the process, they took the elite of earth which degenerated the earth into squalor, and set up the solar government into becoming an upstart galactic power. This was essentially the theme of the first set of books in this series, and it was exciting. This book was essentially an endless set of skirmishes where the underdog succeeds at winning no matter the odds. I didn't know whether to pan this book as boring or rated it highly for the writing skill and imagination shown. I decided to make it a four star so that no one will read this review. If you like reading an endless bunch of battle scenes where poor comparisons are made to WWII Japanese thinking then this may be the book for you. If you are bored by inaccurate and poor comparisons to Japanese philosophy while reading battle scenes where the winner succeeded in luring the other side into a trap, then you might not like this book.
July 14, 2018
Three and a half stars. This is a decent book but it doesn't really offer much up towards the series. There is too great a reliance on the 'history' for this to really stand on it's own. It does have a clear beginning, middle and a strong conclusion but they don't really add the larger story arc.
The characters never saw anything other that military conflict and there wasn't any real development. This felt more like a contractual obligation fulfilled then a crafted installment to the series.
The characters never saw anything other that military conflict and there wasn't any real development. This felt more like a contractual obligation fulfilled then a crafted installment to the series.
September 2, 2025
A good well thought out story
This is a good book. The story holds together well and continues the premise of Sol continuing to think outside of the box to battle a numerically superior enemy
As with most wars, luck plays a major part and for the humans this is very evident in at least two of the battles fought this time round
Now that this episode is over, humanity needs to decide how far they can/want to go, in defeating the Tokomak entirely
Whilst this book is part of a series, I don't think much would be lost by reading it as a standalone story
This is a good book. The story holds together well and continues the premise of Sol continuing to think outside of the box to battle a numerically superior enemy
As with most wars, luck plays a major part and for the humans this is very evident in at least two of the battles fought this time round
Now that this episode is over, humanity needs to decide how far they can/want to go, in defeating the Tokomak entirely
Whilst this book is part of a series, I don't think much would be lost by reading it as a standalone story
November 3, 2022
Lost 1 star for not keeping the most prominent POW locked up, even when you knew she was an admiral and had changed the 1000s of years old battle tactics on the fly.
Lost another star for using an old tactic which the human admiral is well verse in, as she had that tactic used on her by a previous enemy. Daisy chain warships behind freighter ships.
Lost another star for using an old tactic which the human admiral is well verse in, as she had that tactic used on her by a previous enemy. Daisy chain warships behind freighter ships.
July 14, 2023
Military space sci-fi
Ebola has done the unthinkable and accomplished a coup, making herself the new empress of the Tomohak. Her only goal is to gear up the empires overwhelming fleets and destroy all of humanity. Earth knows they are coming but had hoped for more time. They can only hope what they have done will keep the empire from their solar system.
Ebola has done the unthinkable and accomplished a coup, making herself the new empress of the Tomohak. Her only goal is to gear up the empires overwhelming fleets and destroy all of humanity. Earth knows they are coming but had hoped for more time. They can only hope what they have done will keep the empire from their solar system.
January 5, 2024
The best comparison for this non-stop military action book is the Starfire series by Weber and White. The military elements are well done, with interesting tactics and believable strategy.
But this lacks the character and world development of the Starfire series.
Fun for what it is, but limited.
But this lacks the character and world development of the Starfire series.
Fun for what it is, but limited.
August 11, 2018
Spoilers:
I really liked the part where a single admiral decided on her own to commence an offensive war, ignoring her direct orders after losing a huge portion of her forces and with even keep resources than she started with.
Gg
I really liked the part where a single admiral decided on her own to commence an offensive war, ignoring her direct orders after losing a huge portion of her forces and with even keep resources than she started with.
Gg
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 23, 2018
Robert's Review
Awesome, I need more alien butt kicking space drama. I think humans need more Linkships and just big old armored space cruisers to deal out some serious pain to the Tokomak empire. Thanks for the GoodRead.
Awesome, I need more alien butt kicking space drama. I think humans need more Linkships and just big old armored space cruisers to deal out some serious pain to the Tokomak empire. Thanks for the GoodRead.
October 23, 2018
Great Series
The book continues the story sci fi fans will love. The characters are compelling, description and action is well written and I already can’t wait for the next book to come out!
The book continues the story sci fi fans will love. The characters are compelling, description and action is well written and I already can’t wait for the next book to come out!
October 6, 2023
Great series
I have read five of these books already and I highly recommend every hard science fiction reader jump right in. The action and drama are top notch. There is nothing I don't like about this series.
I have read five of these books already and I highly recommend every hard science fiction reader jump right in. The action and drama are top notch. There is nothing I don't like about this series.
December 12, 2025
Space Science Fiction done right. I love Nuttall's work and his ability to craft these detailed worlds filled with conflict and angst but also with these characters that I really am invested in. I can't wait to read more!
July 11, 2018
Awesome
This book was truly awesome. I hope to see more exciting technology. I can’t wait for Book 6 to be released.
This book was truly awesome. I hope to see more exciting technology. I can’t wait for Book 6 to be released.
August 31, 2018
Action Pack
I couldn't put the book down. It kept my guessing what would happen next! Great Book! I'm looking forward to the next one in the.series.
I couldn't put the book down. It kept my guessing what would happen next! Great Book! I'm looking forward to the next one in the.series.
September 2, 2018
Worth The Wait
Only negative is the book is not on Kindle Unlimited...
And the wait since the last book.
One of the best books of the series - very well done!
Only negative is the book is not on Kindle Unlimited...
And the wait since the last book.
One of the best books of the series - very well done!
December 10, 2018
Nice read
Good story line with so.e twist and turns. Nice trying to guess where story is going and not being right most of the time.
Good story line with so.e twist and turns. Nice trying to guess where story is going and not being right most of the time.
May 3, 2019
The battles were fun but not believable, even for the setting. The ratios of ships to damage was contradictory.
June 29, 2019
This read much more like the middle of a series than the end. There was a lot of description of action, but it felt unresolved at the end. It still was a fun read.
April 18, 2020
good read
book one is always going to be one of my favorite. I wish the series went slower and concentrate more of the forming early days. that said book still good military sifi
book one is always going to be one of my favorite. I wish the series went slower and concentrate more of the forming early days. that said book still good military sifi
October 20, 2022
Things are coming to a spectacular conclusion! 👍🏾👍🏾
August 23, 2025
Absolutely exciting.
Always pleasure to read any book from christopher nutthall. This one was awesome. Cant wait to read the next in the series
Always pleasure to read any book from christopher nutthall. This one was awesome. Cant wait to read the next in the series
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews