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Primaterre
Summer Empress
What began on Cato ends in SUMMER EMPRESS.
Enemies are trapped together. Will their fractious peace survive as the Exile stranglehold takes its toll on the galaxy? Is now the time for Skald to strike and win its heart's desire, or will the hidden cadre within the Primaterre gain the upper hand?
All-out war. All will be lost. All will be gained. Alliances will rise. Alliances will fall. All or nothing. All that glitters...
Enemies are trapped together. Will their fractious peace survive as the Exile stranglehold takes its toll on the galaxy? Is now the time for Skald to strike and win its heart's desire, or will the hidden cadre within the Primaterre gain the upper hand?
All-out war. All will be lost. All will be gained. Alliances will rise. Alliances will fall. All or nothing. All that glitters...
609 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 22, 2020
17 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 1, 2026
I don’t usually go for hyperbole, but this is a series that blew me away. I loved every moment of my journey, especially once I was properly into the series following the end of the first book. This was a fitting conclusion (although there is also the suggestion of more to come?), leaving me with that conflicted feeling of wanting more yet at the same time being at peace with where our characters ended up.
I really, really liked the characters overall – I can’t remember a single book or series (fantasy or scifi) offhand that has made me care about such a high percentage of the overall cast of heroes, even those who have lesser roles, like Vanguard, for instance. At the same time, the “bad guys” are really well done and somehow likeable, and even when alliances are formed, you can always tell that they are shaky and you’re just waiting for that inevitable betrayal – while perhaps at the same time hoping the betrayal doesn’t come and there’s a redemption arc to be had.
Although all the books are pretty intense, this one really put me through the wringer, with probably my favourite character of the bunch finding herself in almost constant peril. I won’t say who it is here to avoid spoilers, but she makes a perfect kick-ass heroine and was at her absolute best here with some of my favourite scenes and quotes.
The pacing continues to be really well managed here, with a fast overall speed, but somehow also giving enough of those quieter moments where you can catch your breath. Like with Lonely Castles, I am amazed at how much happened in this one. Thinking back to where we started, and what was happening in those first chapters, it can be difficult to comprehend that everything that came after was all in the same book – there just don’t appear to be enough pages to coherently include everything that happened, and yet it all fits in, nothing ever feels rushed or half-assed, and it makes for a fantastic bit of storytelling.
I’ll have to go to the Primaterre Tales before too long, because I think I’m going to need another fix soon…
I really, really liked the characters overall – I can’t remember a single book or series (fantasy or scifi) offhand that has made me care about such a high percentage of the overall cast of heroes, even those who have lesser roles, like Vanguard, for instance. At the same time, the “bad guys” are really well done and somehow likeable, and even when alliances are formed, you can always tell that they are shaky and you’re just waiting for that inevitable betrayal – while perhaps at the same time hoping the betrayal doesn’t come and there’s a redemption arc to be had.
Although all the books are pretty intense, this one really put me through the wringer, with probably my favourite character of the bunch finding herself in almost constant peril. I won’t say who it is here to avoid spoilers, but she makes a perfect kick-ass heroine and was at her absolute best here with some of my favourite scenes and quotes.
The pacing continues to be really well managed here, with a fast overall speed, but somehow also giving enough of those quieter moments where you can catch your breath. Like with Lonely Castles, I am amazed at how much happened in this one. Thinking back to where we started, and what was happening in those first chapters, it can be difficult to comprehend that everything that came after was all in the same book – there just don’t appear to be enough pages to coherently include everything that happened, and yet it all fits in, nothing ever feels rushed or half-assed, and it makes for a fantastic bit of storytelling.
I’ll have to go to the Primaterre Tales before too long, because I think I’m going to need another fix soon…
May 9, 2022
Unknowable, creepy, indefatigable aliens with undefeatable technology. Rival, duplicitous factions lusting for artefacts and/or power. A set of characters that have been slowly honed over a couple of thousand pages into essential three-dimensional, vibrant people. Revenge, adventure, all out war, philosophy - it's all furnished so effortlessly and is never predicable.
I bought paperbacks of all four of these books, because they're now the sort of books that you can pull off the shelf, open randomly, and just start reading and it's like toasting marshmallows on the fire (that's spewing from a rift in inter-dimensional space).
6 out of 5 stars, 11 out of ten.
More please.
I bought paperbacks of all four of these books, because they're now the sort of books that you can pull off the shelf, open randomly, and just start reading and it's like toasting marshmallows on the fire (that's spewing from a rift in inter-dimensional space).
6 out of 5 stars, 11 out of ten.
More please.
March 28, 2026
I was going to say that this was an epic conclusion to this series, but I saw after the epilogue, in a note from the author, that there is going to be a 5th book, so... Tholin definitely left some pretty tantalizing loose threads, so I won't complain.
I think I did enjoy this installment the most so far. So many twists and turns and the character work was great. This series is full of action and adventure but is also thought-provoking for sure. I highly recommend it!
I think I did enjoy this installment the most so far. So many twists and turns and the character work was great. This series is full of action and adventure but is also thought-provoking for sure. I highly recommend it!
May 12, 2024
A fantastic closure to a fantastic series.
So I read this book throughout an entire night.... I have work in two hours. I am a 34 year old man.... I haven't done that since I was a kid. Amazing closure to an amazing series. Tholin has a fan for life out of me.
So I read this book throughout an entire night.... I have work in two hours. I am a 34 year old man.... I haven't done that since I was a kid. Amazing closure to an amazing series. Tholin has a fan for life out of me.
August 27, 2025
I had a little less fun with this one. I have to admit that I’ve been binging pretty constantly for 3 or 4 days and that tends to make me grumpy. So a grain of salt. It’s definitely worth finishing.
At this point I’m just skipping most of Casamirs chapters. There is just a lot of extra stuff that I’m not very interested in. For example, he is very much in a hurry to save his wife and the universe or whatever, and he’s with a very entertaining combination of characters, but he stops to have tea with some random lady. I mean ok, but they talked and talked and talked about nothing remotely interesting. That sort of thing. Im listening to the books so I can’t skim, which doesn’t help.
The Delirium thing is dragging on a bit. Im not a huge fan of nonsense/dream scenes because there are no real rules and therefore no real stakes. Everything is confusing and that’s bad if I’m bored. That’s fine from time to time but this bit is dragging. We’ve got new characters at the 10 yard line and Joy has to stop and baby every last one of them.
The only thing that is really truly bothering me is the fact that they are continuing to include Skald in their plans to fight a ‘bigger’ enemy. He isn’t a cute frienemy like Kivik. Things have gotten more explicitly dark and gory. That’s fine but it means he can’t be used as a quirky sidekick anymore. He’s unlikable and unforgivable and he has literally never improved any situation he’s been in. He’s delivering things as a rat and leading them around.. those just aren’t justifiable reasons to include the guy.
I do like the way he was handled there at the end.
While the Joy/Casamir relationship is sweet, it’s very one dimensional. All worship and no true conflict. I would’ve enjoyed more character development between them and less plot chaos overall.
Otherwise, 20% of the book felt like an epilogue, with things wrapping up conveniently. Not a bad thing but not particularly interesting.
I’m going to do a reread in the near future and will probably change the review to something more positive. Overall the series was excellent.
At this point I’m just skipping most of Casamirs chapters. There is just a lot of extra stuff that I’m not very interested in. For example, he is very much in a hurry to save his wife and the universe or whatever, and he’s with a very entertaining combination of characters, but he stops to have tea with some random lady. I mean ok, but they talked and talked and talked about nothing remotely interesting. That sort of thing. Im listening to the books so I can’t skim, which doesn’t help.
The Delirium thing is dragging on a bit. Im not a huge fan of nonsense/dream scenes because there are no real rules and therefore no real stakes. Everything is confusing and that’s bad if I’m bored. That’s fine from time to time but this bit is dragging. We’ve got new characters at the 10 yard line and Joy has to stop and baby every last one of them.
The only thing that is really truly bothering me is the fact that they are continuing to include Skald in their plans to fight a ‘bigger’ enemy. He isn’t a cute frienemy like Kivik. Things have gotten more explicitly dark and gory. That’s fine but it means he can’t be used as a quirky sidekick anymore. He’s unlikable and unforgivable and he has literally never improved any situation he’s been in. He’s delivering things as a rat and leading them around.. those just aren’t justifiable reasons to include the guy.
I do like the way he was handled there at the end.
While the Joy/Casamir relationship is sweet, it’s very one dimensional. All worship and no true conflict. I would’ve enjoyed more character development between them and less plot chaos overall.
Otherwise, 20% of the book felt like an epilogue, with things wrapping up conveniently. Not a bad thing but not particularly interesting.
I’m going to do a reread in the near future and will probably change the review to something more positive. Overall the series was excellent.
November 30, 2024
this series is all i've been reading the past week, and i adored it to bits; it truly scratched a sci-fi itch i've been having. i loved how the author tied off the series' plot threads in this book, as well as the conclusions to the characters' arcs. joy is one of my most favourite female characters ever.
i really hope this series eventually gets more attention in the sci-fi sphere; it truly deserves it!
i really hope this series eventually gets more attention in the sci-fi sphere; it truly deserves it!
July 6, 2025
*4.75
August 20, 2025
Great conclusion!
Really enjoyed the final entry in this series, wraps everything up very nicely seven more words are required to submit
Really enjoyed the final entry in this series, wraps everything up very nicely seven more words are required to submit
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews