Home Front

Star Kingdom #7

by Lindsay Buroker

Casmir and his allies have struck a devastating blow to the powerful prince who sent invaders into their star system, but war still rages at home. Worse, the prince has escaped with a lethal bioweapon, and he intends to wipe out all human life on Odin. Casmir could lose his parents, his friends, and everyone he holds dear.

On top of all that, the Kingdom fleet commander Jorg has captured two of Casmir's friends to ensure his “compliance." But Jorg wants a bioweapon of his own as well as the deadly crushers that Casmir has made. To side with him would be to side with the devil. But if Casmir doesn’t… he may never see his friends alive again.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, Action, Adventure

463 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 24, 2020

About the author

I'm a full-time indie fantasy and science fiction author. When I'm not writing, I'm ferrying my dogs to hiking trails for adventures.

Reviews

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

I so wanna read the next book. I love this series, the characters are memorable.

[Letha M Chastain · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Want a Crusher!!

Adventures should be highly entertaining and this series has been one of the best. Nuggets of laugh-out-loud humor meld with ingenious plot twists involving marvelous characters.
I can't wait for the next installment.

[RealF0x · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 out of 5
a definitive improvement in comparison to the last book and the best book in series till this point.

[Arnaud · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much going on!!

What a volume! It lines up plot twists after plot twists. Yet we know where this is all going. Lindsay's talent is keeping you at the edge of your seat not knowing and how and whom is going to be involved. She was juggling with three different plot lines (with three different groups) at one point and each of the story lines were just as nerve wracking as the next :-) Amazing series so far. Very nervous for the last volume \o/

[Jak60 · Rating 1 out of 5]

So, this would be book n.66 in 10 years by Mrs Lindsay Buroker, serial writer.

If I can do my math, this would mean a book every 2 months, including: 1) ideation 2) writing 3) editing 4) publishing. Back to back, day in day out...finish one book one night, start the next one the morning after. What a life...

And I read in her profile Mrs Lindsay Buroker has even time to to ferry her dogs to hiking trails for adventures...she is pure science fiction. And a fantastic money making machine, though I wonder where she finds the time to count the bucks.

It took Mr Leo Tolstoy, sloth writer, six years to write just one book; too bad for him he can no longer learn from Mrs Lindsay Buroker, hiker, serial writer and money making machine; he could have left us War And Peace Episode 36.

Oh, I was almost forgetting: yes, I tried to read one of her books, a friend (?) gave it to me as an absolute must-read/cannot-miss. I could not go beyond page 30, but then I wanted to know more about who could write such crap, and here I am.

Goodbye Mrs Lindsay Buroker, hiker, serial writer and money making machine. What a life...

[Melinda Scaturro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can I just say again that I absolutely freaking LOVE Lindsay Buroker, and feel personally involved with the characters she creates? I know that I have not done a great job at rating/reviewing these books, but every single series I read from her is so expertly crafted, that I feel like anything I could say would be repetitive.

I first discovered Lindsay Buroker with the Dragon Blood series, and instantly fell in love with Sardelle and Jaxi. When you find yourself choosing a weapon as your favorite character, you either assume you are nutty or the author is masterful and truly unique in charachter-building. The rag tag band of extras from fighter pilots, to villain chemists, to quirky dragons - Lindsay Buroker excels at bringing real personality to all her characters, and causes you to become a fan of every character, flaws and all. Her characters are memorable, relatable, and beautifully imperfect.

After Dragonblood, I found the Forgotten Ages series, which I loved, but also feel is my least favorite series so far. Even so, the characters are diverse and full of depth. I am drawn to the strong, independent female characters that depend on skillsets over beauty, and stumble into intriguing plotlines and complex relationships. I absolutely love the marriage between science and fantasy, and as a lover of puzzles and adventure, I became engrossed in the secret-decoding cryptanalyst Tikaya, and her brainy Fleet Admiral Rias. What made this epic fantasy, action-adventure, mystery, and romance even better, was the fact that Tikaya was brilliantly clumsy and OH SO relatable.

I took a break from Lindsay Buroker after the Forgotten Ages series, and dove into the Rylee Adamson series by Shannon Mayer, The Talon series by Julie Kagawa, The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare, and Shadowspell Academy by K.F. Breene (who I also love due to character development).

After all of those, I felt drawn back to my buddy Lindsay (no, I do not actually know her, but I feel like we are close). I read Robots & Roommates, which I thought was a short story, and did not realize it was the start of a beautiful friendship and storyline that I would later fall in love with.

I then began to read the Fallen Empire series, and in the first few books knew that I was going to absolutely love Captain Alisa Marchenko and her pessimistic engineer Mika. With every additional character (Yumi, Beck, Leonidas, Alejandro, etc.), each quirky and unexpected character trait became an integral part of the storyline. These fast-paced, action filled books could not exist without this loveable cast of characters, and as Alisa Marchenko grows to love, appreciate, and lovingly loathe each of her passengers, you find yourself looking forward to getting to know each of them more and more. Lindsay Buroker laces humor with unrest and chaos, and reminds us that humanity with a plethora of strongly held beliefs and prejudices, can still learn to respect and appreciate people, no matter their differences. Her rag-tag band of characters, optimistically stumbling through obstacles, bring us hope that even with different goals, through teamwork, we can achieve almost anything.

Which brings me to the Star Kingdom series! I just finished Book 7 - so yes, I realize my opinion could change - BUT WOW, do I love Casmir Dabrowski and Kim Sato. Casmir, with his clutter, his bully-bashing robots, and his unassuming, affable nature, had me instantly drawn in to this storyline. This nerdy, seemingly normal, guy next door has so much believable growth over the course of the first seven books that it is understandable why many reviews I read did not seem impressed with the first book, or even the Robots and Roomates prequel where we are "first" introduced to this fella. I almost did not pick up this series, because many said they were unimpressed with the characters and dialogue after reading the first book (which is SOOOOOO unlike Lindsay Buroker). Then I realized that Casmir was meant to be a beautiful blend of loveable goon and social-awkwardness - and that Kim Sato is most likely a brilliant example of a successful (by societies standards) grown woman living with autism spectrum disorder. Watching these two recognize their difficulties, identify their strengths, and help each other and those around them, is such an uplifting experience, and I found myself constantly impressed with their intelligence, wit, problem-solving skills and moral fortitude.

Kim and Casmir, become more and more comfortable in themselves, and worry less and less about what others expect of them - and I find their growth and journey to be unexpected but heartwarming. Ever other magnificently-crafted character is just icing on an absolutely delicious cake of friendship, loyalty, acceptance, and overcoming adversity.

This space opera, with chivalric knights, genetically modified cat-women, prideful robots, space pirates and an unassuming, heroic central character that positively changes the world around him through creating and gift-giving. I am not sure where this story will take me, but I can promise, I am here for the ride!

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Home Front" is a stark reminder that the Star Kingdom series is coming to an in. It is a bittersweet reminder and I am both dreading and excited to read book 8, the last book in the series.

In "Home Front," Casmir is once again in the presence of the Sultan and he is pleased with Casmir's progress even if he didn't get Dubashi. The Sultan is hosting a summit of sorts and most of the guest are eager to meet Casmir and request his assistance in building robots. The robots have been strutting their stuff so to speak and all the guests are taking notice.

Kim meets with the daughter of the biologist who commited suicide to let her know that he will not be coming home. Additionally, Captain Bonita and Toes have hooked up as well as Asger and Qin. Qin receives a coded message from one of her sisters, Mouser. She is happy that Qin is free and asks if she can assist her other sisters in obtaining their freedom. There is a lot going on and Casmir and struggling to figure out how to get everything done.

Rache has accomplished one of his tasks and is now headed to accomplish the second one. However, he will not go anywhere too far if it leaves Kim in jeopardy. He sends Kim a message that will both shock and thrill her. Now the questions is what is she willing to do about it?

This was a wonderful read and I am continuously shocked at Casmir, the nerds ability to unite people in his quest for peace. I will admit, the cliffhanger ending left me both bereaved and angry but I am hoping book eight will wrap everything up in a neat little package with a bow. Here's to happy endings!

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hoo-boy. Things are heating up for Casmir...err, things are heating up EVEN MORE for Casmir, really. He's trapped with some really awful enemies away from home and the potential for widespread destruction is HIGH.

On the plus side, he's making friends and recruiting allies left and right. And he's doing it without compromising who he is. Which is kind of fantastic. Admittedly, it was a little touch and go for a while on what he'd be able to accomplish (of the good variety) with the orders he was given, but Casmir is nothing if not resourceful. He took those orders and twisted them just enough to make something good out of what could have been an awful situation.

Meanwhile, things are heating up back on Odin. Oku is starting to see some of the cracks in the royal infrastructure and she's not okay with it. Doing what she can behind the scenes miiiight not be enough to help Casmir. That said, hopefully whatever she can manage doesn't completely destroy her family in the process. Not that there's much to save with her family, but they ARE her family. So, you know, she probably doesn't want them all to end up dead or worse.

Things are getting tense(-r) and I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE HOW CASMIR GETS OUT OF HIS NEXT SCRAPE. I can only imagine it's going to be with the help of all the friends and allies he's accumulated along the way. *thumbs up*

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal

[Cmoore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore Star Kingdom Lindsay Buroker's series is great fun and Home Front is packed full of action, proving that Lindsay Buroker is the queen when it comes to Space Opera! Lindsay Buroker continues to tell the story from multiple points of view which can in turn become aggravating if you let it. Like for instance you want to find out more about Qin in her story, and you find yourself flung into Oku's who trying to rescue her dog. And next thing you know Zee 6000 the crusher, is doin his job and protecting Casmir from flying bullets... you get the picture. But that only makes the book seemingly read faster!!! In spite of it all, it's way past time to stop Dubashi who's still holding the Planet Killer virus. So pick-up this penultimate book and discover how things are starting to reveal themselves. Although we won't really know for sure until the next book 'cause Lindsay Buroker holds her cards close.

And here's a few quotes that amused me:

The crew finds the coffee bulbs in the ship’s stores as execrable as I do.”

"Asger wasn’t sure how close they were, but he’d seen them flirt—if throwing insults at each other could be called flirting."

"When I told the much-quelled man to have a seat, the crusher turned into a seat with cuffs."

“Androids are as cunning as socks with holes in them."

"Like tea.” His nose wrinkled. “Maybe that sweet bubble tea that comes with a straw.”

[Frances Law · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic series!

This is the penultimate book in the Star Kingdom series and I have to say that, though I am looking forward to the last book, I’m also going to be very sad when it ends.
Poor Casmir has been dropped in the deep end from the very beginning. Everything that he has done has been wrong in the eyes of his kingdom. Of course the fact that his king is a power hungry tyrant whose orders Casmir can’t in all conscience obey to the letter, doesn’t help. Jager, the king, had Casmir and his clone brother, David (Rache) birthed as an experiment. Rache was genetically enhanced and raised as weapon, someone to be a war leader. Eventually he had a falling out with Jager and left vowing vengeance. Casmir was left to grow up naturally with all the medical issues that his famous progenitor had. Despite this his genius made him a foremost robotisist while his ‘parents’ made him a genuinely good person.
Somehow, Casmir manages to win people over to him throughout the twelve kingdoms, with the exception of his own king. We have travelled with Casmir and his roommate Kim and delighted in their adventures. Now it is nearly over. If you haven’t read any of the books in this series then I recommend that you start with book one and I promise that you’ll have to binge read to the end!
I’d give this series six stars if I could!

[Dennis Zimmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy Lindsay Buroker’s science fiction series, and especially enjoy the Star Kingdom series. If you like sci-fi that’s action packed, humorous, with worthy characters, with some light romantic touches, than read on - but be sure to start with the first book of the series so you don’t miss out.

The characters are interesting, and worth getting to know, and the dialogue among characters allows the reader to become a passive, enthusiastic observer of their interactions and personality quirks. The world building is there, although much of the story arch is in and among various star ships, and short stints in some locations.

Casmir and Kim are the central characters, with other characters revolving around them. Although there is some romance, its nuanced and just adds another dimension to each character. The only downside at this point is the scheduled end to the series — how sad but I am hopefully the author will allow some of the characters appear in her other stories. After all, Casmir is building characters as he continues his adventures so hopefully some more fodder for future stories.

[R · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the seventh book in the Star Kingdom series. I do not recommend it as a standalone, the series should be read in order. When I read it, I did not realize it was not the final book in the series. I usually try to buy the whole series together as I like to read them one after another.
Like the first book, I did not think this was one of the better books in the series, but it was good. I also think that the author balanced the story lines for each of the characters to continue to make them multi-dimensional.
Lindsay Buroker is an auto-buy for me. The story is multi-faceted and raises several questions and opens several plot lines. Because it is part of a series, each book answers some of the questions raised until the finale.
I enjoy the vocabulary used by the author. She uses interesting words in her writing. I also enjoy the richness of her stories. For example, if you look up the meaning of Tenebris Rache, it adds to the story.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of fun stuff happens, action & adventure galore, it does end in a bit of a cliffhanger, but Lindsay Buroker somehow makes a cliffhanger a little bit less obnoxious than other authors. Maybe it's because she presents us with a problem, but also shows us some ways it could work out ok. Which is maybe why I like her books. Bad stuff happens, things get dark, but it's never *all* bad. Some series in similar genres just end up devolving into an endless string of tragedies befalling our main characters and everything is bleak af. These characters find humor in every situation and keep fighting the good fight even when it looks like there's no hope. And that is ultimately what makes them heroes. But I am psyched up for book 8. I need it. This series is an all time favorite, and I love it SO much.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

tensions held skillfully in counterpoise

I think I like this one the best so far. There’s a good balance of action and relationship, and the plot moves swiftly. There aren’t any annoying moments where otherwise decent people insist that Casmir be something he’s not, or devalue his gifts and personality (other than Jorg and Jager, but they’re hopeless anyway). Everyone seems to have grown up a lot—especially the secondary characters Asger the Younger, Ishe and the crushers in general. And the Rache-Kim thing is both more explicit and more complex—something that was bound to happen as their core desires came into conflict. There’s less whining and more consideration from the characters in general, and less time spent on the rather cardboard villains (the weakest aspect of this series, IMO). Anywa

[Celandra Dawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome as always. Science was a bit quirky but heh.

Lindsay never fails to make interesting characters and I’ve learned a lot reading her work. The story felt a little ‘bulkier’ than usual but still a fun read. The science, well, not everyone is a physicist. The rotational mechanics of the Sultan’s station were hard to digest but an A for effort works. Fyi, min rotational speed for that station is around 125 mph and max somewhere around 300+ mph, assuming you have 1 g acceleration, so Casmir would have been a bug on the windshield of the stationary asteroid. I would imagine there would be serious turbulence as well. Since I’m working on a novel with a similar designed $pace $tation, I scratched my head a lot thinking about the logistics. Looking forward to the finale.

[Kara Prem · Rating 5 out of 5]

The penultimate book in the Star Kingdom series was so good that I am stuck anxiously awaiting the sequel but also not wanting the series to end. Casmir has destroyed the base of the prince astro-shaman who wants to wipe out civilization on his home world of Odin, but the price escaped with weapons that could very easily do just that. Unfortunately, while defeating the evil prince, the maybe just as evil Prince Jorg of Odin has captured Qin and Bonnie holding them captive to make Casmir and Kim comply with his orders to create a bioweapon and crushers. Casmir just wants to make peace, save his friends and go home to his university job, but of course that doesn't seem likely to happen. The book ends on a cliffhanger, and I can't wait to see how he gets out of this.

[Maren · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Still an excellent and engrossing addition in the series, but there are four different viewpoints to keep track of for the last half of the book and each chapter ends ... Melodramatically? Not in a "OvErAcTiNg SuCh WoE" kind of way, just a mini cliffhanger kind of way, leaving everyone in various states of "Oh shit" before jumping to another storyline in the following chapter. It cycles through all of them at least 5 times (maybe more? I didn't count but it seemed like a lot) before the various conclusion are reached. Everyone is still all over the system by the end of the book, too, with some storylines ending more cliffhanger-y than others. Not a bad method of storytelling, mind, but it does get a little frustrating after the first few jumps.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 7 in the Star Kingdom series has our heroes targeting a prince who is behind the attempts to kill robotics expert Casmir Dabrowski and who is masterminding a plot to take over his home planet. They track him deep into an asteroid where he’s created a deadly bioweapon. Can Casmir risk defying King Jager to put his own plan into action? Space pirates, smugglers, planetary leaders and mercenaries must come together if they’re to save themselves from disaster. Can Casmir’s inherent leadership abilities unite them to defeat the enemy, even if it means putting his life and his friends in danger?

[Noodle The Naughty Night Owl · Rating 5 out of 5]

9/10: Fantastic, left me wanting more.

“Human friends, this should be apparent simply by comparing the new line—of which I am a prototype—with the old line. We are substantially bigger.”

Zee, the crusher!

I should have said this in person before we parted last, but I was too focused on my plans, and perhaps that is still true. My fatal flaw, if you will. But I will say it now, on the chance that I never get the opportunity to do so in person. I love you. ~David

Oh, Rache!

“Is this the way to win over the universe? Not by war and conquering but by giving people things?”

Casmir in a nutshell!

[John Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The wait was worth it as this latest Star Kingdom (book 7) was fun from start to finish! Great story telling with action, romance and humor all woven into a set of great characters. If you're new rot this series start on book one and you will be treated to a great storyline that will not disappoint. I've been reading several other sci-fi book series - but Star Kingdom is by far the best. I love that you can be reading and then bust out laughing at some of the characters. I look forward to the final book once it comes out :-)

[Keith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the Expected Ending

The series continues ... and I’m not sure that’s a good thing. If this were a TV series, I’d say that with this installment it has “jumped the shark” -a phrase which indicates the storyline has gone from “mostly probable or believable” themes to “anything for impact.” The romance elements are multiplying rapidly, and the advanced technologies has morphed into an anything goes format. I have been hoping for a positive end for the series, and sadly find that this book is not it. There will be more, but I’m now at the point that I’m not sure I care.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too many perspectives, too much shifting

There were too many different characters’ individual perspectives, and too frequent shifting between them, which prevented me from being engrossed in the story.
The last two books have been hectic, without time to enjoy character interactions, but at least in this book a couple of antagonists have been resolved.
It seems like there’s an obvious direction the plot is going, but I’m not enjoying the journey like I had been earlier in the series.

[Ju Transcendancing · Rating 5 out of 5]

I continue to love this series and the characters and their adventures. I love the cameraderie, I love the interactions and I love that the relationships have nuance to them and depths and quirks that make them real. I appreciate how Casmir continues to act in the situations he finds himself, however improbable (I might liken it to reading about Miles in Bujold's Vorkosigan Saga). The story is fun and I love the space opera high-stakes aspect of how it's put together, the drama of the politics involved is intriging and I'm deeply invested in seeing how it plays out.

[Joe Rush · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this sci-if series. This is my second time reading it.

Is it dense writing with complex emotions and impressive world building? No, but that’s what’s great about it. The characters are memorable and delightful. The plot moves quickly and the dialogue is full of dry humor. Best of all, Casmir is an unlikely hero, using his wits to prevail in spite of his poor vision, seizures, allergies, and motion sickness. And I love how his kindness to robots and people benefits him in unexpected ways.

[Alice L Parry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 7 of Star Kingdom was totally awesome!

I think I've read everything Lindsay Buroker had released. I am continually impressed with her ability to commit to a consistent level of story-telling. Each series is true to itself. I loved the humor and drama mixture in this book. The end of Chapter 33 made me laugh out loud. I'm waiting with bated breath for the final book. Thank you Lindsay!!

[Jim DeVinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series

Lindsay Buroker has a wonderful sense of humor that she imparts onto her character's, this bringing them to live. A lot of subplots evolved in this chapter with many being resolved, while others are still hanging. While this book in the series feels like the denouement there is still the Rachel/Jager plot that needs to be resolved. Along with the Casmir/Oku love interest. Stay tuned.

[S.K. Wee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, action-packed installment of the Star Kingdom series. All the characters are well-developed, most are quirky, none are close to perfect which makes them so enjoyable. High praise to Buroker for creating not only endearing main characters but even the robots have developed amazing personalities along with Iggo, the sentient spaceship. Love this series along with many others that she has created. Keep them coming! Highly Recommended!

[wilfredo rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Impressive

I have been a fan of Lindsay Buroker since her Agents of the Crown series. She has skill of building characters that you adore even if they are non human. This book was a prime example because when Jager ( the most vile human ever) forced Casmir to surrender, I cursed. I want the ending now so I can celebrate Jager downfall and Casmir's rise. Thank you, Ms Buroker for another great tale and showing that ruling by fear and corruption will never win.

[Drew Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've thoroughly enjoyed this series. Light and fun would be the best words to describe it. Wonderful spider web of a story if the spider is drunk. Super easy read that is exactly what I needed waiting for the last complicated expanse book to come out. Love the drunken spider web entanglement of the characters. Buroker has proven that every character can be a wild card and her novel will still be amazing. Perfect escape from reality.

[Eliza Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my gosh so good!

I love this series SO much and I can't wait to get into the last book, but also sad there is only one more. The ending of book 7 is a bit of a cliffhanger, but book 8 is already out so you won't have to wait. This author is amazing at writing intense action, as well as believable romance, and interesting, original characters who are different from each other and evolve naturally throughout a series. Just fantastic.