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Sol Arbiter #1
Sol Arbiter
"They call us Arbiters. We arbitrate conflict to keep the peace."
In 2853, humanity has established a presence across the solar system. Linked by a network of FTL gateways called Boson Apertures, travel between the 7 colonized worlds and thousands of space colonies takes only hours.
The Sol Federation is the final authority, and the Arbiters travel the system to maintain order.
Arbiters Gabriel Anderson and Tycho Barrett have just been sent to intervene in a growing crisis on Venus. Information is limited, but they know two things:
Tower 7 has gone completely dark, and security androids are killing civilians.
No one knows what has become of the tower's 520,000 residents or who is responsible for the mysterious assault, but the priority of the mission is clear.
Tycho and Gabriel must breach the tower, investigate the missing civilians, and locate the one responsible... all while trying to stay alive.
Witness the beginning of an expansive scifi epic in this first entry to the Sol Arbiter series. If you're a fan of Altered Carbon, Dredd, or Blade Runner, you'll love this cyberpunk thrill ride.
RUNNING TIME ➜ 7hrs. and 41mins.
©2019 Variant Publications (P)2020 Podium Audio
In 2853, humanity has established a presence across the solar system. Linked by a network of FTL gateways called Boson Apertures, travel between the 7 colonized worlds and thousands of space colonies takes only hours.
The Sol Federation is the final authority, and the Arbiters travel the system to maintain order.
Arbiters Gabriel Anderson and Tycho Barrett have just been sent to intervene in a growing crisis on Venus. Information is limited, but they know two things:
Tower 7 has gone completely dark, and security androids are killing civilians.
No one knows what has become of the tower's 520,000 residents or who is responsible for the mysterious assault, but the priority of the mission is clear.
Tycho and Gabriel must breach the tower, investigate the missing civilians, and locate the one responsible... all while trying to stay alive.
Witness the beginning of an expansive scifi epic in this first entry to the Sol Arbiter series. If you're a fan of Altered Carbon, Dredd, or Blade Runner, you'll love this cyberpunk thrill ride.
RUNNING TIME ➜ 7hrs. and 41mins.
©2019 Variant Publications (P)2020 Podium Audio
Audible Audio
First published October 4, 2019
379 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
J.N. Chaney
464 books9,618 followersIf you want to stay up to date on my releases, concept art, or speak to me directly - you should join my Facebook fan group:
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
October 6, 2019
“War doesn’t solve who’s right, it only solves who’s left.”
Two Arbiters, a tower with thousands of civilians on deadly planet Venus, an evil and psychotic villain with an intriguing, mysterious and incomprehensible control on the enforcers..it has been exciting, edge of seat, nerve wrecking and emotional story, with an unexpected turn of events, quasi eerily, with a twist in the plot that had me puzzled and frowning till the end. A perfect description of military strategy, high tech and weaponry. The storyline is so realistic, I could feel and breath with the characters. The human depravity is openly manifested, in all its monstrous glory. Fast paced, gritty and gripping, I was totally snagged from the beginning! Engrossing and spectacular!
Two Arbiters, a tower with thousands of civilians on deadly planet Venus, an evil and psychotic villain with an intriguing, mysterious and incomprehensible control on the enforcers..it has been exciting, edge of seat, nerve wrecking and emotional story, with an unexpected turn of events, quasi eerily, with a twist in the plot that had me puzzled and frowning till the end. A perfect description of military strategy, high tech and weaponry. The storyline is so realistic, I could feel and breath with the characters. The human depravity is openly manifested, in all its monstrous glory. Fast paced, gritty and gripping, I was totally snagged from the beginning! Engrossing and spectacular!
April 21, 2021
Sol Arbiter
By: JN Chaney, Jia Shen
Narrated by: Greg Tremblay
This book was a non-stop action bonanza! The Arbiters, just two, went to Venus for some peace keeping mission. With Sol only sending two, you would think the situation wasn't too bad, wrong! Total chaos! Battle droids shooting citizens, gassing people, and the power was turned off which means air soon to be gone! Guards mind controlled to kill!
Why was the crazy in charge killing off the population? It was a wild ride as the Arbiters battle and deal with more unknowns then planned for. I don't want to give anything away but there is so much intrigue going on!
Loved the characters, plot, but some of the "problem" the Arbiter was encountering was confusing. How it "spread". The technology was great too! The narration was excellent! Definitely want to follow this series!
By: JN Chaney, Jia Shen
Narrated by: Greg Tremblay
This book was a non-stop action bonanza! The Arbiters, just two, went to Venus for some peace keeping mission. With Sol only sending two, you would think the situation wasn't too bad, wrong! Total chaos! Battle droids shooting citizens, gassing people, and the power was turned off which means air soon to be gone! Guards mind controlled to kill!
Why was the crazy in charge killing off the population? It was a wild ride as the Arbiters battle and deal with more unknowns then planned for. I don't want to give anything away but there is so much intrigue going on!
Loved the characters, plot, but some of the "problem" the Arbiter was encountering was confusing. How it "spread". The technology was great too! The narration was excellent! Definitely want to follow this series!
March 7, 2021
Notes:
Currently on Audible Plus
Okay setup for a series set within a world J.N. Chaney created. I'm going to bet most of the writing was done by Jia Shen vs Chaney. Last half of the book was more interesting than the first half. Awkward middle part made the story fall flat & lose all momentum. Kinda recovered towards the end but not enough for me to spend money.
Good thing that I've already paid for KU. I can read the books on KU. I may do that at some point.
Currently on Audible Plus
Okay setup for a series set within a world J.N. Chaney created. I'm going to bet most of the writing was done by Jia Shen vs Chaney. Last half of the book was more interesting than the first half. Awkward middle part made the story fall flat & lose all momentum. Kinda recovered towards the end but not enough for me to spend money.
Good thing that I've already paid for KU. I can read the books on KU. I may do that at some point.
October 6, 2019
Buy this book!
These two managed to stick a lot of non stop action into 273 pages and I’m all about it. Lots of intrigue and well written. Ready for the next!
These two managed to stick a lot of non stop action into 273 pages and I’m all about it. Lots of intrigue and well written. Ready for the next!
October 30, 2019
Not my favorite but good, this is a lot like the first Reaper book to me. There is so much time spent wondering around in the tower and going from here to there without really advancing the story very much. I thought the premise was good and the action scenes were interesting, but the constant running around in circles part is hard to keep up with for me.
October 11, 2019
True not to read
I'm truly excited to see where this storyline leads to. Great sci-fi military action, enjoyable personal interaction and engaging underlying story.
I'm truly excited to see where this storyline leads to. Great sci-fi military action, enjoyable personal interaction and engaging underlying story.
October 25, 2019
I really enjoyed it!
It's almost like reading two books in one, and really picked up the pace in the theoretical second half, making me interested to see where book 2 goes.
It's almost like reading two books in one, and really picked up the pace in the theoretical second half, making me interested to see where book 2 goes.
October 29, 2019
Good read
Enjoy d the concept & the pacing of this author.
Hope to read a sequel in the near future in this series.
Enjoy d the concept & the pacing of this author.
Hope to read a sequel in the near future in this series.
August 1, 2024
Meh. Not a fan of the writing style, the thin characters or the mostly boring plot. There were some interesting aspects but not enough to keep my attention. DNF at 36%
2/5 stars.
2/5 stars.
October 5, 2020
I was really into the premise of this book, and I've read several of the author's works before, so I was excited to dive in. At first, I thought it started off great. The reader is thrown right into the action, and given enough backstory to make it intriguing. All in all, the setup really worked and had me primed to enjoy one hell of a good sci-fi thriller.
Unfortunately, the middle part of the book really fell flat for me. I never really felt attached to the characters, and they just kind of drifted from one battle to the next. And aside from the sometimes-referenced ticking clock they were up against, there wasn't much rising action or increased stakes to differentiate one battle from the next.
One of the things that I really enjoy about this author is that he's prolific and he isn't afraid to try his hand at different kinds of stories. I think there was a lot of potential in this one, but it ended up as a bit of a missed opportunity. I appreciate the swing he took, though, and so I'll optimistically look forward to checking out more of his work in the future. I'm not sure I'll continue on in this series, necessarily, but he always seems to have something new and interesting up his sleeve.
Unfortunately, the middle part of the book really fell flat for me. I never really felt attached to the characters, and they just kind of drifted from one battle to the next. And aside from the sometimes-referenced ticking clock they were up against, there wasn't much rising action or increased stakes to differentiate one battle from the next.
One of the things that I really enjoy about this author is that he's prolific and he isn't afraid to try his hand at different kinds of stories. I think there was a lot of potential in this one, but it ended up as a bit of a missed opportunity. I appreciate the swing he took, though, and so I'll optimistically look forward to checking out more of his work in the future. I'm not sure I'll continue on in this series, necessarily, but he always seems to have something new and interesting up his sleeve.
November 21, 2022
20. A good premise. Definitely a shoot-em-up, snark and boyish enthusiasm type of book. It was a quick fun read. Recommended to the normal crew.
October 17, 2019
Fascinating storytelling
I gave it a 5 out of. 5, because I really enjoyed the read, very fast paced I almost read the whole thing before I put it down. No profanity or gratuitous sex. Violent, yes, but then it had to be. The concept of a hive mind it's not new, but a different twist "we are NOT the Borg".
I gave it a 5 out of. 5, because I really enjoyed the read, very fast paced I almost read the whole thing before I put it down. No profanity or gratuitous sex. Violent, yes, but then it had to be. The concept of a hive mind it's not new, but a different twist "we are NOT the Borg".
October 21, 2019
What a ride!
The action is non stop, the story keeps you guessing, and the characters are like a ragtag overwatch team, all having their own special techniques that they each bring to the table.
Chaney and Shen have really built a great universe and I'm excited to see where we arbitrate next.
The action is non stop, the story keeps you guessing, and the characters are like a ragtag overwatch team, all having their own special techniques that they each bring to the table.
Chaney and Shen have really built a great universe and I'm excited to see where we arbitrate next.
October 12, 2019
Another excellent entry in JN Chaney' s best tradition: action, adventure, and plenty of terrific First Person narrative musings. Well worth the read!
October 13, 2019
Thrilling
Epic science fiction adventure,. Lots of action nd intrigue. Plot twists and good character descriptions and actions. Can hardly wait for book 2
Epic science fiction adventure,. Lots of action nd intrigue. Plot twists and good character descriptions and actions. Can hardly wait for book 2
October 15, 2019
Great book
Really enjoyed this book. It did start a little slow but that really helped make tbe second half even better. I cannot wait to read tbe next book.
Really enjoyed this book. It did start a little slow but that really helped make tbe second half even better. I cannot wait to read tbe next book.
September 10, 2023
Not sure what to make of this book.
It started off like your garden variety good guys against bad guys, but then began to get quite grim. Dead bodies galore, with more dying every minute. The purpose is kept obscure until about the half way point of the book, when the brakes are slammed down, and a chapter and a half of exposition is thrown into the mixed. The reason for all the senseless killing is never explained, and then we get the stereotypical elite super secret hit squad to save the day. Not sure why this book was called Sol Arbiter, when Section 9 stole the show.
It was shortly after this teams introduction, that the book stopped making sense to me. I kept reading it because I was committed to see how it ended, and well, it was spot on with your typical action genre books. Good guys took a beating, some almost didn't make it, but they all managed to stop the bad guy just before the last chapter concluded.
On one hand the book was somewhat predictable on the other is was still entertaining. I might give the second book in the series a chance, see what's this goes, but only a chance. At this point, very few of Chaney's collaborations have bared fruit I'm willing to take. I'm sure they're not all bad works of sci-fi, they're just not my kind of sci-fi.
It started off like your garden variety good guys against bad guys, but then began to get quite grim. Dead bodies galore, with more dying every minute. The purpose is kept obscure until about the half way point of the book, when the brakes are slammed down, and a chapter and a half of exposition is thrown into the mixed. The reason for all the senseless killing is never explained, and then we get the stereotypical elite super secret hit squad to save the day. Not sure why this book was called Sol Arbiter, when Section 9 stole the show.
It was shortly after this teams introduction, that the book stopped making sense to me. I kept reading it because I was committed to see how it ended, and well, it was spot on with your typical action genre books. Good guys took a beating, some almost didn't make it, but they all managed to stop the bad guy just before the last chapter concluded.
On one hand the book was somewhat predictable on the other is was still entertaining. I might give the second book in the series a chance, see what's this goes, but only a chance. At this point, very few of Chaney's collaborations have bared fruit I'm willing to take. I'm sure they're not all bad works of sci-fi, they're just not my kind of sci-fi.
October 29, 2021
It's not terrible. It's tedious with its descriptions of the tower's chaos and the initial progression. The main character isn't terribly well trained or disciplined for a supposedly high level operator. His tendency to think too much is something they really want to drive home as a character attribute, whether or not the characterisation evinces such. His over-thinking is often a vulnerability in combat but fails to translate into intelligence, circumspection, or any form of kenning. He's beaten over the head with heavy-handed clues, which he refuses to even acknowledge until someone else hands him the finished puzzle. Even then, they have to hold his hand constantly, to point out every step and coax him to lift his feet. All this would be fine if these were character flaws. But it seems the authors are unaware that giving a character a prestigious title doesn't sell the audience on his competence.
I'm trying to like the story. But the main character is bland and maladroit as a rule. They should have presented it as a comedy.
**Update**
I've read through to book 5 despite my misgivings. This should indicate something to anyone considering this series. Much of what I stated regarding the first book holds for the rest. Much of it improves. My overall dissatisfaction and frustration with the protag mellows, though his introspection never does quite blossom into an asset or something that drives the story along. Even so, I wouldn't dissuade anyone from reading it.
I'm trying to like the story. But the main character is bland and maladroit as a rule. They should have presented it as a comedy.
**Update**
I've read through to book 5 despite my misgivings. This should indicate something to anyone considering this series. Much of what I stated regarding the first book holds for the rest. Much of it improves. My overall dissatisfaction and frustration with the protag mellows, though his introspection never does quite blossom into an asset or something that drives the story along. Even so, I wouldn't dissuade anyone from reading it.
May 26, 2020
A good read in the end
A good read in the end. I did find it a little hard going to start with maybe even boring but then a few good books start that way. They have to give you a start with as much background as possible without making it read like a course work text book about history. I am glad I did keep reading as the more I read the harder I found to put it down and even now I am already downloading the next installment. I suggest you read and keep reading as it is worth it. Keep up the good writing.
A good read in the end. I did find it a little hard going to start with maybe even boring but then a few good books start that way. They have to give you a start with as much background as possible without making it read like a course work text book about history. I am glad I did keep reading as the more I read the harder I found to put it down and even now I am already downloading the next installment. I suggest you read and keep reading as it is worth it. Keep up the good writing.
February 10, 2021
I thought I was getting military sci-fi. Instead I got super space cops.
Not gonna lie it was a pretty fun ride and the 2 cops against the world was fantastic. The ending it builds up to is very intriguing too. Without spoiling what exactly is going on, there's a lot more happening in the world than Barret is aware of, and Aliens might be involved.
I say might be because it definitely looks like they are but I gotta read more to know for sure.
Not gonna lie it was a pretty fun ride and the 2 cops against the world was fantastic. The ending it builds up to is very intriguing too. Without spoiling what exactly is going on, there's a lot more happening in the world than Barret is aware of, and Aliens might be involved.
I say might be because it definitely looks like they are but I gotta read more to know for sure.
November 29, 2021
This was a surprise and I really enjoyed the book. I don't want to put any spoilers but the book was full of action and great world building. Is it just me that wants to know how people go so long without eating or sleeping though? I have to suspend that bit of my belief when I work out how long it is that someone has gone without eating, but it did not detract from the story line in the end.
January 8, 2022
The beginning dragged a bit for me— a lot of shooting and action without much substance to give it all weight. It got better once the protagonist linked up with some other characters to talk to, but I’m not sure that I’d drop an audible credit on another book. I’d listen/read if it was part of Audible Plus or relatively inexpensive to get the next, though.
January 19, 2022
Kind of feels like the book was split in two, a lot of things could have been cut out and the thing would still make sense, i loved the start and the end of the book, when the main character met with the 'special' team, the dynamic with the characters was very good i enjoyed their banter so much, really hoping the series continues with the same flow the 2nd half of the book went with
November 1, 2022
Do you like Judge Dredd? MK Ultra conspiracies? Crumbling megatowers built to hold the vast swathes of humanity scattered throughout the universe? Interesting characters who bounce off each other and clash in realistic ways due to their personality?
If you said yes to any of the above, you're going to love Sol Arbiter.
If you said yes to any of the above, you're going to love Sol Arbiter.
April 20, 2020
Great Storyline
Wow what a cracking action packed storyline from start to finish well done IN Chaney and Jia Shen your storylines just get better and better. Totally looking forward to book 2
Wow what a cracking action packed storyline from start to finish well done IN Chaney and Jia Shen your storylines just get better and better. Totally looking forward to book 2
September 14, 2021
awesome
Really enjoyed this one! Great story and it tells how the world in the story works naturally at it moves on. Definitely lots of action and enough cyber stuff to fit the genre. Looking forward to what comes next for the Arbiter.
Really enjoyed this one! Great story and it tells how the world in the story works naturally at it moves on. Definitely lots of action and enough cyber stuff to fit the genre. Looking forward to what comes next for the Arbiter.
March 28, 2022
This book combines future technology and people that have gone power hungry. It then adds a bunch of normal people trying to live their lives, in a tower on Venus. Add in a pair of future police officers in mech suits and near indestructible armor, and you have a great book.
December 20, 2022
Fastpaced, entertaining sci-fi that is pretty much non-stop action. Tycho Barrett isn't exactly the most engaging protagonist Chaney has created, but the last part of the book finally got me properly hooked.
January 15, 2023
Pretty ordinary military sci-fi with two alpha males needing land on a planet (on/in a tower) to find out why it has gone dark. Of course, weapon and violence is the only way forward. Has a nicr twist after a while thou and I feel hopefull about the rest of the series.
September 2, 2020
Great theme and story
I recommend getting into this since it's a solid read that gives you a badass time with a great character. Excited to get into the next book!
I recommend getting into this since it's a solid read that gives you a badass time with a great character. Excited to get into the next book!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews