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The Ungovernable #1
Zero Day Threat
Four ex-convicts. One charismatic mastermind. And the most dangerous heist the System has ever seen.
Jez is a damn good pilot, and she’s always worked alone. Until she got picked up for smuggling, that is.
Now she’s lost her ship, lost her job, lost her reputation, and is on the run from the law. So when a mysterious stranger in a battered pilots coat comes to her with an offer that sounds too good to be true, she reluctantly agrees to listen.
All she has to do is fly one little job.
Then she gets the details. She and a hand-picked band of misfit ex-convicts will be pulling a heist on Vitali “the Butcher” Dobrev, the most deadly weapons dealer and crime boss in the System. They’ll be stealing tech that could change the course of history. And the government, the mafia, and every enterprising criminal in the System would kill to get their hands on it.
Thing is, Jez is out of options. She’s going to have to fly this job, and they’ll have to pull it off. And knowing Vitali, if they fail, dying is the least of their worries.
Zero Day Threat is the first instalment in the space opera science fiction series The Ungovernable. Firefly meets Ocean’s Eleven in R.M. Olson’s fast-paced, kick-ass, wickedly fun series.
Jez is a damn good pilot, and she’s always worked alone. Until she got picked up for smuggling, that is.
Now she’s lost her ship, lost her job, lost her reputation, and is on the run from the law. So when a mysterious stranger in a battered pilots coat comes to her with an offer that sounds too good to be true, she reluctantly agrees to listen.
All she has to do is fly one little job.
Then she gets the details. She and a hand-picked band of misfit ex-convicts will be pulling a heist on Vitali “the Butcher” Dobrev, the most deadly weapons dealer and crime boss in the System. They’ll be stealing tech that could change the course of history. And the government, the mafia, and every enterprising criminal in the System would kill to get their hands on it.
Thing is, Jez is out of options. She’s going to have to fly this job, and they’ll have to pull it off. And knowing Vitali, if they fail, dying is the least of their worries.
Zero Day Threat is the first instalment in the space opera science fiction series The Ungovernable. Firefly meets Ocean’s Eleven in R.M. Olson’s fast-paced, kick-ass, wickedly fun series.
253 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 15, 2020
342 people are currently reading
332 people want to read
About the author
R.M. Olson
33 books57 followersR.M. Olson writes queer, feel-good space opera, featuring diverse casts, found families, and loads of action. R.M. has ridden the Trans Siberian railway, jumped off the highest bungee jump in the world, gone cage-diving with great white sharks, faced down a charging buffalo bull, and knows how to milk a goat. Currently they reside in Alberta, Canada with their four children, three cats, and a dog the size of a small bear. R.M. goes hiking and skiing more often than they probably have time for, eats more chocolate than is probably good for them, and reads more books than is probably prudent.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
May 28, 2020
4.5 stars, rounded up. I really enjoyed this first installment in The Ungovernable trilogy and I can't wait to see what our crew gets up to in the next book. The plot was fast moving and action packed, with memorable characters. Perfect for an afternoon of escapism!
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March 27, 2022
I read Zero Day Threat as part of a judging team for the Self-Published Science Fiction Competition (SPSFC), where it is a semifinalist.
Part of competition judging is that you don’t choose your own books, and sometimes you get subgenre mismatch. And I think this is largely what happened here. I don’t have a lot of bad things to say about Zero Day Threat, but I also don’t necessarily gravitate toward sci-fi heists, and the story never really grabbed me.
The prose was smooth and professional, but the mouthy piloting prodigy is not an archetype that usually hits for me. We do get several other perspectives in the ensemble cast, but it’s a pretty short book to get to know five different characters, and none of them were really able to steal the show.
Stealing the tech they were trying to steal, on the other hand? I won’t say, but there was plenty of action along the way and an ending that satisfied but also dangled some tantalizing threads for the sequel. Again, plenty done well here, but I need there to be an element (characters, plot, prose, etc) that jumps out and pulls me into a book, and I just didn’t get that here. But part of that is on personal taste, so I won’t discourage others who may find this book intriguing.
First impression: 11/20. Full review and official SPSFC score to come at www.tarvolon.com
Part of competition judging is that you don’t choose your own books, and sometimes you get subgenre mismatch. And I think this is largely what happened here. I don’t have a lot of bad things to say about Zero Day Threat, but I also don’t necessarily gravitate toward sci-fi heists, and the story never really grabbed me.
The prose was smooth and professional, but the mouthy piloting prodigy is not an archetype that usually hits for me. We do get several other perspectives in the ensemble cast, but it’s a pretty short book to get to know five different characters, and none of them were really able to steal the show.
Stealing the tech they were trying to steal, on the other hand? I won’t say, but there was plenty of action along the way and an ending that satisfied but also dangled some tantalizing threads for the sequel. Again, plenty done well here, but I need there to be an element (characters, plot, prose, etc) that jumps out and pulls me into a book, and I just didn’t get that here. But part of that is on personal taste, so I won’t discourage others who may find this book intriguing.
First impression: 11/20. Full review and official SPSFC score to come at www.tarvolon.com
March 4, 2022
After a little puzzlement, I have to conclude that the title of the book makes sense and is actually memorably clever, since a zero day threat (as explained to my ignorant arse at the front of the book) is a threat that exploits a previously-unknown weakness in a system. Which is a fancy way to frame a heist that does quite a lot of that. And while I wasn’t super-gripped by the initial hook here, I would urge readers to give it a chance because this one’ll sneak up on you.
Our classic mixed bag of colourful characters with haunted pasts and a big old buttload of baggage full of secrets are assembled by a mysterious puppeteer[1], Masha, to pull off a caper. The caper in question? The legendary warship The Ungovernable, or at least the fancy schmancy technology thereof. The shifting points of view in the story are done really nicely, each character having a distinct voice of their own and a compelling story. I make light of the baggage and the secrets, but that sort of stuff is the bread and butter of the motley crew space heist found family subgenre and Olson does it well.
The main protagonist, or at least the one we meet first, is the sassy and super-skilled Jez. A shady pilot who’s just lost her ship and is in debt to a mobster as a result, Jez has hit rock bottom and is ripe for recruitment into a shenanigan or two. Also involved in the heist are a guy who may or may not have an unforeseen and everything-changing connection to the heistee, to say nothing of the dude apparently responsible for Jez losing her ship in the first place, as well as a woman out for revenge (or specifically already a criminal for achieving the revenge) for the murder of her wife and son … and the bloke who [okay I’ll redact the spoilers on this].
It is, as you may imagine, a recipe for tension and excitement and twists, and one has to wonder how much the mysterious Masha really knows – and what her end game is. Because it sure doesn’t seem to be anything as simple as pulling off this extremely difficult and dangerous heist, let me tell you.
While elements of this story felt a teensy little bit contrived and overblown (indeed, it reminded me a little of NBC’s The Blacklist, just without a series of delightful Reddington anecdotes, but that may have just been the fact that the head of the enterprise was named Masha), that’s part of the charm of the whole thing and it was really quite enjoyable (kind of like NBC’s The Blacklist, at least the early seasons thereof before it just got too silly, but everyone has their own threshold for “too silly” and this is not a review of NBC’s The Blacklist). The interlocking of skill sets and the manipulation of secrets is top-notch and nothing is what it seems in this high-stakes action adventure. Should I add a “swashbuckling” in there? Damn it, you only live once. I’m doing it. This high-swashbuckling-stakes action adventure. That’s not quite right but we’re already moving on.
I greatly enjoyed the brief but very colourful take on the “jungle planet where everything wants to kill you” trope, and while some of the heist elements and challenges and methods of defeating said challenges were a bit questionable, overall I loved it. I will say that the scene where a criminal arms dealer minion was showing Lev around and Ysbel was planting explosives, that was totally sus and the minion really wasn’t on the ball. But not for nothing is this story billed as an Ocean’s Eleven adventure in space!
Sex-o-meter
There’s a lot of flirting and sass going on here, and a certain amount of cautious pairing up towards the end, but no sex to speak of. This is first and foremost a crew-assembly story where our heroes find their dysfunctional new family and learn to work together despite being lone wolves and allathat. No time to boink the packmates. Let’s give Zero Day Threat an ugly Christmas sweater out of a possible Wolf Shirt™.
Gore-o-meter
We are treated to a high-stakes game of robbers ‘n’ robbers (and also some cops are around), with plenty lot of threats and descriptions of things, but no real here-and-now gore. The arguably worst atrocity in the story was – well I won’t spoil it, but read to the end on that one. We have a bit of a body-count and the alien jungle had some gross stuff in it, but all in all it was more action adventure than action violence. And that fits, given what the story is. The gore-o-meter gives us one flesh-gobbet out of a possible five, and I can’t argue with that.
WTF-o-meter
Well, Zero Day Threat doesn’t leave us with much WTF to sit in and splash happily either. What you see is what you get, aside from the obligatory twists in the plot – and they don’t count as true pure-grade WTF. The Ungovernable itself, the ship, was very neat – I wasn’t quite certain why it was so amazing and who the genius was who made it, even though it was explained in the story it left me sort of baffled. It could have been more of a thing, making that inventor into an unseen character. Still, I’m sure there is more to learn about the strange ship and its origins and abilities in later books, so that’s kicked a little spark of responsiveness out of the WTF-o-meter. We’re still only registering an Ocean’s Two and a Half starring Charlie Sheen out of a possible Ocean’s Fourteen: A Hunka Hunka Burning Oceans. This is a very low-scoring affair on all the meters, but still wound up being a good story. Who knew?
My Final Verdict
An enjoyable page-turning space heist with some great characters and gorgeous scenery, well deserving of an SPSFC semi-finalist placing. Three stars!
---
[1] Figurative puppeteer. Which is a mild shame since an actual puppeteer would make a hilarious and wonderfully surreal ringleader for this thing, but I’ll let it pass. Still, an idea for the future there?
Our classic mixed bag of colourful characters with haunted pasts and a big old buttload of baggage full of secrets are assembled by a mysterious puppeteer[1], Masha, to pull off a caper. The caper in question? The legendary warship The Ungovernable, or at least the fancy schmancy technology thereof. The shifting points of view in the story are done really nicely, each character having a distinct voice of their own and a compelling story. I make light of the baggage and the secrets, but that sort of stuff is the bread and butter of the motley crew space heist found family subgenre and Olson does it well.
The main protagonist, or at least the one we meet first, is the sassy and super-skilled Jez. A shady pilot who’s just lost her ship and is in debt to a mobster as a result, Jez has hit rock bottom and is ripe for recruitment into a shenanigan or two. Also involved in the heist are a guy who may or may not have an unforeseen and everything-changing connection to the heistee, to say nothing of the dude apparently responsible for Jez losing her ship in the first place, as well as a woman out for revenge (or specifically already a criminal for achieving the revenge) for the murder of her wife and son … and the bloke who [okay I’ll redact the spoilers on this].
It is, as you may imagine, a recipe for tension and excitement and twists, and one has to wonder how much the mysterious Masha really knows – and what her end game is. Because it sure doesn’t seem to be anything as simple as pulling off this extremely difficult and dangerous heist, let me tell you.
While elements of this story felt a teensy little bit contrived and overblown (indeed, it reminded me a little of NBC’s The Blacklist, just without a series of delightful Reddington anecdotes, but that may have just been the fact that the head of the enterprise was named Masha), that’s part of the charm of the whole thing and it was really quite enjoyable (kind of like NBC’s The Blacklist, at least the early seasons thereof before it just got too silly, but everyone has their own threshold for “too silly” and this is not a review of NBC’s The Blacklist). The interlocking of skill sets and the manipulation of secrets is top-notch and nothing is what it seems in this high-stakes action adventure. Should I add a “swashbuckling” in there? Damn it, you only live once. I’m doing it. This high-swashbuckling-stakes action adventure. That’s not quite right but we’re already moving on.
I greatly enjoyed the brief but very colourful take on the “jungle planet where everything wants to kill you” trope, and while some of the heist elements and challenges and methods of defeating said challenges were a bit questionable, overall I loved it. I will say that the scene where a criminal arms dealer minion was showing Lev around and Ysbel was planting explosives, that was totally sus and the minion really wasn’t on the ball. But not for nothing is this story billed as an Ocean’s Eleven adventure in space!
Sex-o-meter
There’s a lot of flirting and sass going on here, and a certain amount of cautious pairing up towards the end, but no sex to speak of. This is first and foremost a crew-assembly story where our heroes find their dysfunctional new family and learn to work together despite being lone wolves and allathat. No time to boink the packmates. Let’s give Zero Day Threat an ugly Christmas sweater out of a possible Wolf Shirt™.
Gore-o-meter
We are treated to a high-stakes game of robbers ‘n’ robbers (and also some cops are around), with plenty lot of threats and descriptions of things, but no real here-and-now gore. The arguably worst atrocity in the story was – well I won’t spoil it, but read to the end on that one. We have a bit of a body-count and the alien jungle had some gross stuff in it, but all in all it was more action adventure than action violence. And that fits, given what the story is. The gore-o-meter gives us one flesh-gobbet out of a possible five, and I can’t argue with that.
WTF-o-meter
Well, Zero Day Threat doesn’t leave us with much WTF to sit in and splash happily either. What you see is what you get, aside from the obligatory twists in the plot – and they don’t count as true pure-grade WTF. The Ungovernable itself, the ship, was very neat – I wasn’t quite certain why it was so amazing and who the genius was who made it, even though it was explained in the story it left me sort of baffled. It could have been more of a thing, making that inventor into an unseen character. Still, I’m sure there is more to learn about the strange ship and its origins and abilities in later books, so that’s kicked a little spark of responsiveness out of the WTF-o-meter. We’re still only registering an Ocean’s Two and a Half starring Charlie Sheen out of a possible Ocean’s Fourteen: A Hunka Hunka Burning Oceans. This is a very low-scoring affair on all the meters, but still wound up being a good story. Who knew?
My Final Verdict
An enjoyable page-turning space heist with some great characters and gorgeous scenery, well deserving of an SPSFC semi-finalist placing. Three stars!
---
[1] Figurative puppeteer. Which is a mild shame since an actual puppeteer would make a hilarious and wonderfully surreal ringleader for this thing, but I’ll let it pass. Still, an idea for the future there?
May 20, 2022
A space heist with the best of the best—a pilot, a tech mastermind, a weapons expert, a genius with a photographic memory, recruited by a dubious government official. They all have grudges, they all have secrets. Can they pull off the heist of a lifetime? I’d tell you but, NO SPOILERS!
Written in 3rd person, past tense, multi POV, ZERO DAY THREAT is a moderately paced book, with a solid plot and well fleshed out characters.
There are a lot of fight scenes, both hand to hand combat and space battles, and the author did a good job describing the action in a way that makes it easy for readers to follow. There’s quite a bit of overlap with the multi-POV, so some of the scenes felt slightly redundant, even though they were from a different POV.
If you like space operas with rag-tag crews, battle scenes galore and high-stake heists, then you will love this book!
Written in 3rd person, past tense, multi POV, ZERO DAY THREAT is a moderately paced book, with a solid plot and well fleshed out characters.
There are a lot of fight scenes, both hand to hand combat and space battles, and the author did a good job describing the action in a way that makes it easy for readers to follow. There’s quite a bit of overlap with the multi-POV, so some of the scenes felt slightly redundant, even though they were from a different POV.
If you like space operas with rag-tag crews, battle scenes galore and high-stake heists, then you will love this book!
August 12, 2020
This surprised me how much I enjoyed this book.
The characters are a motley crew and they all have their own agenda's most importantly the one that bought them all together has the biggest agenda.
Masha works for the government and the mafia. She gets the team together to 'rescue' a ship which is in the hands of a gun dealer who shouldn't have this ship. She employs 4 prisoners she broke out of jail in the promise of credits and pardons
Jez is the best pilot around she went to prison because of tech made by Tae so finding him in front of her sets her off.
Tae had his tech stolen from him, and used against others. Hes trying to help the street kids not be killed by the government taking out 'kid gangs'
Lev is the genius who hates Jez for stealing a ship that his family was depending on.
Ysbel is an explosion expert. Wanting to kill them all because her family were burned alive by the government because she refused to work for them.
I think this book could lead to a very interesting series. Each of the crew is after their own agenda but they've come together to save each other's lives. I'm curious to see what Masha is planning and I'm interested in how Jez and Lev progress...
The characters are a motley crew and they all have their own agenda's most importantly the one that bought them all together has the biggest agenda.
Masha works for the government and the mafia. She gets the team together to 'rescue' a ship which is in the hands of a gun dealer who shouldn't have this ship. She employs 4 prisoners she broke out of jail in the promise of credits and pardons
Jez is the best pilot around she went to prison because of tech made by Tae so finding him in front of her sets her off.
Tae had his tech stolen from him, and used against others. Hes trying to help the street kids not be killed by the government taking out 'kid gangs'
Lev is the genius who hates Jez for stealing a ship that his family was depending on.
Ysbel is an explosion expert. Wanting to kill them all because her family were burned alive by the government because she refused to work for them.
I think this book could lead to a very interesting series. Each of the crew is after their own agenda but they've come together to save each other's lives. I'm curious to see what Masha is planning and I'm interested in how Jez and Lev progress...
January 25, 2021
I loved this book. So much I've bought its sequel
what I liked
- detailed characters. So much you want to like them. And they all work together well. It's fun to see an A team assemble and get ready to carry out its first job
- a gripping story which gets better as you progress
this is classic space opera and that's cool
What I liked less
- technology could have more depth. If you are an hard sf fan, this is not for you. No offense. I also like hard sf and this is not the style
Conclusion
If you're fed up with books about the end of the world, read this one ! you'll feel better soon
what I liked
- detailed characters. So much you want to like them. And they all work together well. It's fun to see an A team assemble and get ready to carry out its first job
- a gripping story which gets better as you progress
this is classic space opera and that's cool
What I liked less
- technology could have more depth. If you are an hard sf fan, this is not for you. No offense. I also like hard sf and this is not the style
Conclusion
If you're fed up with books about the end of the world, read this one ! you'll feel better soon
September 19, 2022
Read for SPSFC Semifinalists!
Overall Thoughts
Take Ocean’s 11, mix in a little Guardians of the Galaxy, and you might have something like this delightful book. A misfit crew with lots of baggage between them—a pilot, an explosives expert, a hacker, and a genius—is brought together by a seemingly innocuous government representative to steal an experimental ship. There’s a lot of fun scenes between the crew as they struggle with the obstacles between them personally and in pulling off the heist. There’s plenty of action, plenty of great character moments, and some great twists a turns. I’m looking forward to reading the second book!
Plot
I won’t go into too many details here so as to not spoil the heist elements, but this starts out with an introduction to the pilot—who has a fear of being grounded and confined—as she escapes prison. We then get an introduction to the rest of the crew and their backstories before getting into the full heist. The setup is excellent. It seems like there’s no way this crew can pull off their assignment, if they even agree to, and every new impediment adds layers of complexity. But there are still plenty of great character moments included.
Setting
This is set in some future space civilization, and while the exact details aren’t too relevant to the plot, we know there are extensive communications and security systems, hidden government programs, and a lot of people stuck on the outsides of society. You could probably plop this story wholesale into the setting of Star Wars or Firefly, and it would work perfectly. While the setting isn’t overly strong, it’s also not necessary. It’s in the background, providing a great playground for the plot and the characters.
Character
This is the real gem of the story. Each of the main characters on the team have their own POVs and get time to confront their own personal problems. We start out seeing the pilot, Jez, as a motormouth annoying character, but through the book, we come to see why she is the way she is. The same can be said of the explosives expert, Ysbel, the hacker Tae, and the genius Lev. We even get some (limited) insight in Masha, the one who brought them all together. The stories all tie in with the plot and really make the whole story enjoyable. It’s a fun jaunt, and I’d recommend this book and looking into the sequels.
Score out of 10 (My personal score, not the final contest score)
A space heist with delightfully flawed characters. A fun and quick read. 8.5/10.
Overall Thoughts
Take Ocean’s 11, mix in a little Guardians of the Galaxy, and you might have something like this delightful book. A misfit crew with lots of baggage between them—a pilot, an explosives expert, a hacker, and a genius—is brought together by a seemingly innocuous government representative to steal an experimental ship. There’s a lot of fun scenes between the crew as they struggle with the obstacles between them personally and in pulling off the heist. There’s plenty of action, plenty of great character moments, and some great twists a turns. I’m looking forward to reading the second book!
Plot
I won’t go into too many details here so as to not spoil the heist elements, but this starts out with an introduction to the pilot—who has a fear of being grounded and confined—as she escapes prison. We then get an introduction to the rest of the crew and their backstories before getting into the full heist. The setup is excellent. It seems like there’s no way this crew can pull off their assignment, if they even agree to, and every new impediment adds layers of complexity. But there are still plenty of great character moments included.
Setting
This is set in some future space civilization, and while the exact details aren’t too relevant to the plot, we know there are extensive communications and security systems, hidden government programs, and a lot of people stuck on the outsides of society. You could probably plop this story wholesale into the setting of Star Wars or Firefly, and it would work perfectly. While the setting isn’t overly strong, it’s also not necessary. It’s in the background, providing a great playground for the plot and the characters.
Character
This is the real gem of the story. Each of the main characters on the team have their own POVs and get time to confront their own personal problems. We start out seeing the pilot, Jez, as a motormouth annoying character, but through the book, we come to see why she is the way she is. The same can be said of the explosives expert, Ysbel, the hacker Tae, and the genius Lev. We even get some (limited) insight in Masha, the one who brought them all together. The stories all tie in with the plot and really make the whole story enjoyable. It’s a fun jaunt, and I’d recommend this book and looking into the sequels.
Score out of 10 (My personal score, not the final contest score)
A space heist with delightfully flawed characters. A fun and quick read. 8.5/10.
October 28, 2025
This review has been a long time coming since I finished the book at the beginning of this month.
I had read two series from this author, but both were unfinished, and when I saw they had a finished series, I had to grab it. And this one didn’t disappoint.
The plot revolves around a band of misfits who have been hired by Masha, a government agent, to pull a heist on one of the most dangerous men in the system: Vitali Dobrev, weapons dealer and crime boss, who are sought after by mafia and criminals, and whose inventiveness is matched only by his brutality.
Jez is a pilot, a damn good one, but she’s on the run from the law as well as Lena, her ex-boss gang leader whose ship she stole and which is now lost. For Jez, Masha’s offer couldn’t have come at a more opportune time.
Tae is a street kid, trying to keep himself and the other kids alive. He’s also a tech genius, and his attempt to get back at someone who stole his tech has him in prison. When Masha offers him money and immunity in return for a job, he’s wary, but has no choice if he’s to keep his friends alive.
Lev is a genius with an eidetic memory who is now in jail for seeing documents he should never have seen. What’s worse, his entire family has been imprisoned because of his actions. When Masha offers him a chance to free his family, Lev agrees, but he has agendas of his own.
Ysbel is a weapons expert, but she’s in prison for killing 35 people who worked with her. Having lost her family when the government forced her into service, revenge is the only thing that keeps her going. Thirty five is only the start. The crew Masha puts together might be her best chance at getting revenge.
Can they learn to work together and pull off the heist of a lifetime?
Ngl, I love Jez. Her neurodivergence SHINES as do her queerness. She’s unashamedly, unapologetically herself, and despite being annoying to everyone, she was my favouritest. Tae and Lev are babies, really, and I love Ysbel and her calm stolidity. Not sure what to think of Masha yet, though.
The book had me at the edge of my seat, anxious to know what’s going to happen. The plot flows smoothly and the world is fascinating, feeling lived in, but what really shines is the characterisation.
If you love character driven space opera with underdogs, queer characters, technology, and an enthralling plot, you’ll love this book.
I had read two series from this author, but both were unfinished, and when I saw they had a finished series, I had to grab it. And this one didn’t disappoint.
The plot revolves around a band of misfits who have been hired by Masha, a government agent, to pull a heist on one of the most dangerous men in the system: Vitali Dobrev, weapons dealer and crime boss, who are sought after by mafia and criminals, and whose inventiveness is matched only by his brutality.
Jez is a pilot, a damn good one, but she’s on the run from the law as well as Lena, her ex-boss gang leader whose ship she stole and which is now lost. For Jez, Masha’s offer couldn’t have come at a more opportune time.
Tae is a street kid, trying to keep himself and the other kids alive. He’s also a tech genius, and his attempt to get back at someone who stole his tech has him in prison. When Masha offers him money and immunity in return for a job, he’s wary, but has no choice if he’s to keep his friends alive.
Lev is a genius with an eidetic memory who is now in jail for seeing documents he should never have seen. What’s worse, his entire family has been imprisoned because of his actions. When Masha offers him a chance to free his family, Lev agrees, but he has agendas of his own.
Ysbel is a weapons expert, but she’s in prison for killing 35 people who worked with her. Having lost her family when the government forced her into service, revenge is the only thing that keeps her going. Thirty five is only the start. The crew Masha puts together might be her best chance at getting revenge.
Can they learn to work together and pull off the heist of a lifetime?
Ngl, I love Jez. Her neurodivergence SHINES as do her queerness. She’s unashamedly, unapologetically herself, and despite being annoying to everyone, she was my favouritest. Tae and Lev are babies, really, and I love Ysbel and her calm stolidity. Not sure what to think of Masha yet, though.
The book had me at the edge of my seat, anxious to know what’s going to happen. The plot flows smoothly and the world is fascinating, feeling lived in, but what really shines is the characterisation.
If you love character driven space opera with underdogs, queer characters, technology, and an enthralling plot, you’ll love this book.
March 6, 2022
Zero Day Threat is a semi-finalist in the SPSFC! This is my personal review and does not reflect the thoughts of the rest of my team.
This review has been a long time coming, and it's finally about time I put my thoughts into an actual, cohesive review! I read Zero Day Threat as part of the SPSFC, and it became one of FanFiAddit's semi-finalists, it beat 27 other books to become one of our top three, and for good reason.
Zero Day Threat has a trope that we all love, found family. R.M. Olsen takes a ragtag group of criminals and turns them into a family, who might fight at times, but ultimately work together to perform a heist to steal a piece of technology. We mainly read from Jez's point of view, an incredible pilot who can perform every manoeuvre possible with her arms tied behind her back, literally.
This book starts with a sequence that sets the pace for the rest of the book, it takes off with a pulse-pounding escape and a showcase of our pilot's skills. It also does a great job of setting up another character that we meet a little bit further on into the story. It grabs you from the start and doesn't let you go.
One of the clever things about Zero Day Threat is that there are clearly some plot points being set up in the background that will come into play throughout the rest of the book and series, and the end of this book contains a mystery that will have you wanting the next in the series ASAP. (As of writing there are 7 in the series so it seems perfect for a binge-read!)
Olson takes the found family trope and really makes you love this ragtag group of people who really don't always see eye to eye, but that is the beauty of their relationships. The chase sequences in Zero Day Threat are really what have stuck with me, and Olsen has a particular skill for making them truly pulse-pounding.
This is a great heist book with a group of characters you will come to love.
This review has been a long time coming, and it's finally about time I put my thoughts into an actual, cohesive review! I read Zero Day Threat as part of the SPSFC, and it became one of FanFiAddit's semi-finalists, it beat 27 other books to become one of our top three, and for good reason.
Zero Day Threat has a trope that we all love, found family. R.M. Olsen takes a ragtag group of criminals and turns them into a family, who might fight at times, but ultimately work together to perform a heist to steal a piece of technology. We mainly read from Jez's point of view, an incredible pilot who can perform every manoeuvre possible with her arms tied behind her back, literally.
This book starts with a sequence that sets the pace for the rest of the book, it takes off with a pulse-pounding escape and a showcase of our pilot's skills. It also does a great job of setting up another character that we meet a little bit further on into the story. It grabs you from the start and doesn't let you go.
One of the clever things about Zero Day Threat is that there are clearly some plot points being set up in the background that will come into play throughout the rest of the book and series, and the end of this book contains a mystery that will have you wanting the next in the series ASAP. (As of writing there are 7 in the series so it seems perfect for a binge-read!)
Olson takes the found family trope and really makes you love this ragtag group of people who really don't always see eye to eye, but that is the beauty of their relationships. The chase sequences in Zero Day Threat are really what have stuck with me, and Olsen has a particular skill for making them truly pulse-pounding.
This is a great heist book with a group of characters you will come to love.
June 20, 2024
This is a Sci-Fi heist story and I am fond of those, so it was right up my alley. Masha is pulling the strings and gets three different convicts released from prison, and then one more, Jez, escapes on her own but is soon persuaded to join the group. The reason - she’s a pilot with no ship, no money and people are after her that want to hurt and/or kill her, so she has nothing to lose. Once the job is explained to the group, they realize it might be a suicide mission, but Jez is fine with that as long as she has a ship she can fly. Ysbel has lost her family, so all she wants to do is wreak havoc with her explosives, Lev has made a deal with Masha to save his family from prison, and Tae wants to save his fellow street kids from life on the street, so all of them have incentive to go along with the plan, once they figure out what the plan is going to be. They all have their strengths and some of their past actions have impacted the other members of the group, which is revealed as we go along - so there are lots of secrets and misunderstandings as well. There is plenty of action, especially during the actual mission, and by the end, the mismatched group has meshed into a great team. The characters were all very different, but interesting, and Masha is a really mysterious mastermind. First she says she’s working for the government, then the mafia, but we don’t really know who she’s working for, if anyone, and I’m sure we’ll learn more about her and her motives in future stories. I really enjoyed the book and I’m looking forward to reading about their next mission, which they decided on at the end of this one.
January 12, 2024
Firefly meets Oceans Eleven is a great selling point for my lazy day reading, and this had the usual elements of the subgenre--scrappy team with anti-govt back stories and unusually brilliant skills, amazing pilot, etc. Characters include some who are clearly neurodivergent, assorted sexual orientations (though thankfully no stupid instalove between characters--the team is getting to know each other, and the most we get is the weapons expert pining for her dead wife and children), progressive use of pronouns for a side character, and the sort of general interplanetary heist mission that you would expect from the description. Though it's an engaging tale with distinctly drawn main characters, I don't know that it feels different from other books I've read along these lines. It looks like there are nine books in the series, so the author certainly has a lot more to say in this world.
There are a couple types of heist stories --the one where a talented team of varying abilities flies by the seat of their pants, and the one where the master planner has it all planned out two steps ahead of everyone so that you don't realize until the end that the "mishaps" were actually part of the plan all along. Classic Mission: Impossible and Ocean's Eleven are the latter type; this book is the former. My heist-loving teens and I are more fans of the master plan heist, and while this does not have R rated language or sex that you get in a lot of this subgenre, it's definitely edgier in damns and general innuendo than my girls read.
There are a couple types of heist stories --the one where a talented team of varying abilities flies by the seat of their pants, and the one where the master planner has it all planned out two steps ahead of everyone so that you don't realize until the end that the "mishaps" were actually part of the plan all along. Classic Mission: Impossible and Ocean's Eleven are the latter type; this book is the former. My heist-loving teens and I are more fans of the master plan heist, and while this does not have R rated language or sex that you get in a lot of this subgenre, it's definitely edgier in damns and general innuendo than my girls read.
January 8, 2025
I feel like Masha has more secrets than the rest of them. For all we know, she could be the villain.
I find the idea of making death threats as a joke disturbing. But I guess the characters' realization that they can be a team towards the end of the book compensates with how much they hate to be in a situation they were in when the story started.
This story can still be improved. For me, it lacks depth. I am not sure where the direction of the story is going, just like Jez, the pilot, does not care where she's going as long as she's flying. I do find her monologue about society and its rules to be thought-provoking. They were unwritten, and unspoken, and you were just supposed to know what they were and follow them. There are rules for how you act around other people, and what you say and don’t say, and how you should dress and how loud your voice should be and when it’s an appropriate time to laugh, and some secret code of what a look means, or how you interpret this word said in that tone.
2.5
I find the idea of making death threats as a joke disturbing. But I guess the characters' realization that they can be a team towards the end of the book compensates with how much they hate to be in a situation they were in when the story started.
This story can still be improved. For me, it lacks depth. I am not sure where the direction of the story is going, just like Jez, the pilot, does not care where she's going as long as she's flying. I do find her monologue about society and its rules to be thought-provoking. They were unwritten, and unspoken, and you were just supposed to know what they were and follow them. There are rules for how you act around other people, and what you say and don’t say, and how you should dress and how loud your voice should be and when it’s an appropriate time to laugh, and some secret code of what a look means, or how you interpret this word said in that tone.
2.5
May 24, 2020
Great start to an exciting series! I never realized "sci fi found family heist" was a genre I needed until now. The main characters are all people who have both done wrong and been wronged: by their families, the corrupt government, each other. The world and action are beautifully drawn and easy to imagine, and it's never too heavy on the exposition. There's twists you may guess and others you probably won't, and enough mysteries left unresolved to keep the plot hurtling forward into the sequel. Loved it and looking forward to the next!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 16, 2020
This book is so much fun! Learning more about the characters as they learn more about each other, and the development of their relationship as a team is wonderful. The story is also fun and exciting. I love that each character discovers a new sense of hope as individuals, and that they are able to share in each others hopes. I found Olsons sense of humor absolutely delightful. I have read so many dark and heavy books recently, and with all the darkness and heaviness in the real world, this book was a perfect escape! And it made me feel hopeful.
July 30, 2022
Four disperate and desperate souls, faced with their own secrets and demons, agree to carry out an impossible task for a shady government operator.
The sci fi heist, done well, is a blast to read and Olson's pageturner zips along at a joyful pace with revelations galore. The characters bounce, whinge, moan and grow into the family none of them thought they wanted.
Reading like a mash up of Mission Impossible, Aurora Rising and Six of Crows, this first book in a series of adventures is a winner and would make a great tv series.
The sci fi heist, done well, is a blast to read and Olson's pageturner zips along at a joyful pace with revelations galore. The characters bounce, whinge, moan and grow into the family none of them thought they wanted.
Reading like a mash up of Mission Impossible, Aurora Rising and Six of Crows, this first book in a series of adventures is a winner and would make a great tv series.
June 28, 2023
DNF - Having a hard time caring about the characters. Sometimes the author uses a word that almost sounds like the correct word, but it isn't, and that throws me out of the story. An editor should have fixed this.
Went online to see if the series is worth powering through this first book and it appears that the series leaves science fiction territory and moves more toward romance per a complaining review farther down the series.
So, I won't return this book since I've listened to a third or half of it already, but this is a DNF.
Went online to see if the series is worth powering through this first book and it appears that the series leaves science fiction territory and moves more toward romance per a complaining review farther down the series.
So, I won't return this book since I've listened to a third or half of it already, but this is a DNF.
August 11, 2020
Everything that I absolutely love about the genre of Space Opera was in this book. The main cast is incredibly complex and likeable and I appreciate the lesbian and bisexual representation as well. What I found most interesting was how this group of strangers was connected to each other, oftentimes having hurt the other in the past before they even met. It made it all the more impactful once they became a family.
I am itching to read the rest in the series!
I am itching to read the rest in the series!
May 18, 2020
I absolutely loved this book! Olson's debut novel is filled with compelling characters and endless excitement. The diversity of the main cast is extremely refreshing. Ysbel is my new book crush, but every character is loveable in their own way and I loved watching them grow and change and become their own 'found family.'
Can't wait for the sequel!
Can't wait for the sequel!
December 29, 2020
I wasn't sure at first
At the beginning, quite a few of the characters seemed unlikable, but as the story progresses and I saw more background they seemed like better people. I really liked how the characters had misconceptions about each other that cleared up as they went along. Not all, but some.
At the beginning, quite a few of the characters seemed unlikable, but as the story progresses and I saw more background they seemed like better people. I really liked how the characters had misconceptions about each other that cleared up as they went along. Not all, but some.
April 22, 2022
breakouts
All over the place.
Honestly this first book of a series didn’t particularly make me want to move on to volume 2. I wasn’t even sure who the lain character was. I’m not even sure if it was a juvenile or not.
I may get volume 2 someday, and if I do, I hope it gets my attention.
I know that I have a few followers, and for you I will say that there could be some potential, but only with a lot more character development.
With that caveat, I’ll recommend it.
All over the place.
Honestly this first book of a series didn’t particularly make me want to move on to volume 2. I wasn’t even sure who the lain character was. I’m not even sure if it was a juvenile or not.
I may get volume 2 someday, and if I do, I hope it gets my attention.
I know that I have a few followers, and for you I will say that there could be some potential, but only with a lot more character development.
With that caveat, I’ll recommend it.
May 24, 2022
Not What I Expected from the Preview
The description and preview were intriguing but as the narrative develops it slides down into a very dark past which I could not endure. By 42%, I realized I had no joy, I was not being entertained and while there was a small possibility that could improve, I no longer cared to continue.
The description and preview were intriguing but as the narrative develops it slides down into a very dark past which I could not endure. By 42%, I realized I had no joy, I was not being entertained and while there was a small possibility that could improve, I no longer cared to continue.
May 25, 2022
Bog-standard Space Opera, but...
The writing is good enough that doesn't matter. The pace is cracking and the dialogue is entertaining. I'd have gone 5★s if zthe book had passed through a competent editor's hands before being published. Seriously, if you can read past occasional wrong word choices and homonyms, it's a very entertaining book.
The writing is good enough that doesn't matter. The pace is cracking and the dialogue is entertaining. I'd have gone 5★s if zthe book had passed through a competent editor's hands before being published. Seriously, if you can read past occasional wrong word choices and homonyms, it's a very entertaining book.
July 1, 2024
This is a great found-family space opera. Nonstop action, crazy bunch of characters thrown together, working together to try to pull off an insane heist. I’m on book 7 now and they just keep getting more outrageous and entertaining, with just the right mix of friendship, sweetness and romance sprinkled in. Very enjoyable reads.
April 25, 2021
Great story
Well written with awesome characters that I'm looking forward to watching them grow through the rest of the series. Highly recommend this start to the series to anyone wanting to add to their library. Excellent!
Well written with awesome characters that I'm looking forward to watching them grow through the rest of the series. Highly recommend this start to the series to anyone wanting to add to their library. Excellent!
September 21, 2021
Great space opera
Olson has created a group of characters that will endear you to this series. The plot of this book is pure Space Opera. Very enjoyable. A Very Good Read! Santa Mike
Olson has created a group of characters that will endear you to this series. The plot of this book is pure Space Opera. Very enjoyable. A Very Good Read! Santa Mike
October 12, 2021
Because life interferes with reading, this book sat in my reading queue for quite a while. I was delighted to finally have time to read , and delighted that I had placed this book in my queue. Finding a new author and new series is an endless gift. I've already opened the next two presents.
May 20, 2022
Super fun space opera
Need something just for fun, but decently written? Then this is.for you. A nice mix of young shady damages characters get thrown together and off on big space risks. Nice queer perspectives are built right in.
Need something just for fun, but decently written? Then this is.for you. A nice mix of young shady damages characters get thrown together and off on big space risks. Nice queer perspectives are built right in.
July 16, 2023
Wow
This was a roller coaster from start to finish, fabulous book, couldnt put it down...and can't wait to read the rest.... although probably need to sleep before I start the next one!
This was a roller coaster from start to finish, fabulous book, couldnt put it down...and can't wait to read the rest.... although probably need to sleep before I start the next one!
July 10, 2024
Excellent start of a series!
The author has done a great job of creating a world populated with interesting, complex characters. While the plot is well developed and engaging, it is the depth of characterization that elevates this novel from "very good" to "excellent"!
The author has done a great job of creating a world populated with interesting, complex characters. While the plot is well developed and engaging, it is the depth of characterization that elevates this novel from "very good" to "excellent"!
November 21, 2024
(Audible.) This story was like a "Mission Impossible" in space. The story is probably excellent in print, although it was difficult to follow the plot and keep track of the characters just by listening. I probably will not continue the series.
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