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Excalibur Lost
A broken species
A broken man
A lost legend…
Only dreams and stories remain of the worlds humanity once called home, but scattered refugees live in the corners of the empire of their conquerors, the Sacred Council of Races.
Among those refugees is Gerard Arkanis, first officer of a salvage ship dedicated to picking over the remains of his species’ desperate attempt to stand against the Council’s galaxy-spanning theocracy.
Hard work and hypocrisy have kept Arkanis alive, serving a god he cannot believe in. Humanity’s fate leaves him no choice—until their ship stumbles onto a legendary lost warship and the remains of a failed plan to save all mankind…
A broken man
A lost legend…
Only dreams and stories remain of the worlds humanity once called home, but scattered refugees live in the corners of the empire of their conquerors, the Sacred Council of Races.
Among those refugees is Gerard Arkanis, first officer of a salvage ship dedicated to picking over the remains of his species’ desperate attempt to stand against the Council’s galaxy-spanning theocracy.
Hard work and hypocrisy have kept Arkanis alive, serving a god he cannot believe in. Humanity’s fate leaves him no choice—until their ship stumbles onto a legendary lost warship and the remains of a failed plan to save all mankind…
146 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 9, 2021
295 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Glynn Stewart
115 books1,748 followersGlynn Stewart is the author of over 60 books, including Starship’s Mage, a bestselling science fiction and fantasy series where faster-than-light travel is possible–but only because of magic.
Writing managed to liberate Glynn from a bleak future as an accountant. With his personality and hope for a high-tech future intact, he lives in Southern Ontario with his partner, their cats, and an unstoppable writing habit.
Writing managed to liberate Glynn from a bleak future as an accountant. With his personality and hope for a high-tech future intact, he lives in Southern Ontario with his partner, their cats, and an unstoppable writing habit.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
February 10, 2021
Great story
Really enjoyed this. Sad that is was a novella and stand alone as there is plenty of story directions for this.
Really enjoyed this. Sad that is was a novella and stand alone as there is plenty of story directions for this.
February 18, 2021
10/10: There is no comparison...This is the Mona Lisa of the fictional world!
“Excalibur is risen. The time is now. Gather home.”
This was brilliant. I absolutely fell into this new world and could not turn the pages fast enough.
At this stage, this novella looks like it might be it, but oh, please, please, please, write more and turn this into a series.
It was simply that good!
“Excalibur is risen. The time is now. Gather home.”
This was brilliant. I absolutely fell into this new world and could not turn the pages fast enough.
At this stage, this novella looks like it might be it, but oh, please, please, please, write more and turn this into a series.
It was simply that good!
May 4, 2021
Excalibur Lost is a starting Novella for what is going to be a new series for Stewart. This is a clever, well thought out story, that is not only full of action, but gives us a broad overview of each of the Main Characters that are going to be key players in this story, as well as developing a unique and fascinating Galaxy (with incredible Galaxy Building) as only Stewart does.
This is a story about how the human race has been beaten down, and almost decimated by a powerful foe, those left are forced to worship a God they don’t believe in just to survive. We follow the crew of a salvage ship, and in particular a Human, Gerard Arkanis, himself broken, in more ways than one, but having survived through lies and deceit, holding on to hope for his people, until one day, the unthinkable happens, and the salvage ship that he works on, finds a Human Myth, a Legend of a lost ship, a Warship so powerful it was named after Humanities greatest legendary weapon – Excalibur.
Gerard, is a veteran of the war with the Medari, the race that cast the ‘Edict of Excommunication’ on his species, meaning that all of their firepower was devoted to eradicating not just humans, but any planet they lived on, turning those planets to slag, or radioactive mudballs, so no one could live on them as a reminder to everyone not to cross the Medari and their ‘One God’. As a veteran of this war, he has been preparing, as all humans have, for the eventuality of a Medari Salvage ship finding human technology, especially a particular piece (I won’t give away spoilers), as the Humans actually have superior technology to the Medari in a lot of ways.
Without giving too much away (you can read the specifics), Gerard, and the Humans aboard the Salvage vessel, revolt, seizing the Salvage vessel, so that they can take Excalibur. But this ship has been sitting here unattended for over 30yrs, and is in need of a lot of maintenance.
And thus, begins a desperate race against time, can Gerard and his eclectic crew of Humans (and some additional allies that I will let you discover on your own, I don’t want to give away too much), enter a desperate race against time, to get weapons, defences, and engines going, before the Medari Council come to investigate their missing Salvage Vessel, as well as to investigate a strange transmission from an unknown source.
Stewart creates an atmosphere of intense excitement making it so you can’t put this book down, you have to know what this ship is that they have found? Can they get it working? Will the council come and find them?
Stewart (as he does in all his books), has created this gritty, quite dark, apocalyptic Universe, one in which Humanity has almost been eradicated from, but is still desperately trying to fight and survive. The Character work is exceptional, there are a lot of different Characters in this story, and also a lot of different races (and Stewart has put a lot of thought into this, creating some fascinating species, not just bipeds). I don’t want to go into the Characters too much, as it will give away aspects of the story, and I really don’t want to give away spoilers.
I will say, that Stewart has done a brilliant job of creating the Humans. The War and the Edict was only 33yrs ago, so several Characters are old enough to have been there, and all of them have been directly affected, losing family, homes, entire planets. Each of the Humans seem so haunted by the past they have grown up with, and the lives that they now lead, surrounded by the ghosts of their family (Not literally). The Characters are done so well, for starters, there is such a wide range of personalities, and emotional responses, some are very dark, some vengeful, some have still had a good childhood and are mostly happy people, each of them is portrayed so well, with such complex and multi-faceted emotions. It is a very clever piece of writing.
Overall, Stewarts World/Galaxy building is just extraordinary, not just with the characters, or the alien races, but attention to detail with ships, tech, locations etc, it is all so in-depth, with this wealth of information and different facets that really add to the story and bring it to life.
This is a fantastic start to what is going to be a thrilling, and really exciting series, and I can’t wait for the next part to see what happens with the crew of the Excalibur, and those that hunt them, the Medari.
If you want a really great read, action packed, thriller, with outstanding Characters and Galaxy building, and a plot you just won’t be able to put down, Grab This Now, You Won’t Be Disappointed!!
This is a story about how the human race has been beaten down, and almost decimated by a powerful foe, those left are forced to worship a God they don’t believe in just to survive. We follow the crew of a salvage ship, and in particular a Human, Gerard Arkanis, himself broken, in more ways than one, but having survived through lies and deceit, holding on to hope for his people, until one day, the unthinkable happens, and the salvage ship that he works on, finds a Human Myth, a Legend of a lost ship, a Warship so powerful it was named after Humanities greatest legendary weapon – Excalibur.
Gerard, is a veteran of the war with the Medari, the race that cast the ‘Edict of Excommunication’ on his species, meaning that all of their firepower was devoted to eradicating not just humans, but any planet they lived on, turning those planets to slag, or radioactive mudballs, so no one could live on them as a reminder to everyone not to cross the Medari and their ‘One God’. As a veteran of this war, he has been preparing, as all humans have, for the eventuality of a Medari Salvage ship finding human technology, especially a particular piece (I won’t give away spoilers), as the Humans actually have superior technology to the Medari in a lot of ways.
Without giving too much away (you can read the specifics), Gerard, and the Humans aboard the Salvage vessel, revolt, seizing the Salvage vessel, so that they can take Excalibur. But this ship has been sitting here unattended for over 30yrs, and is in need of a lot of maintenance.
And thus, begins a desperate race against time, can Gerard and his eclectic crew of Humans (and some additional allies that I will let you discover on your own, I don’t want to give away too much), enter a desperate race against time, to get weapons, defences, and engines going, before the Medari Council come to investigate their missing Salvage Vessel, as well as to investigate a strange transmission from an unknown source.
Stewart creates an atmosphere of intense excitement making it so you can’t put this book down, you have to know what this ship is that they have found? Can they get it working? Will the council come and find them?
Stewart (as he does in all his books), has created this gritty, quite dark, apocalyptic Universe, one in which Humanity has almost been eradicated from, but is still desperately trying to fight and survive. The Character work is exceptional, there are a lot of different Characters in this story, and also a lot of different races (and Stewart has put a lot of thought into this, creating some fascinating species, not just bipeds). I don’t want to go into the Characters too much, as it will give away aspects of the story, and I really don’t want to give away spoilers.
I will say, that Stewart has done a brilliant job of creating the Humans. The War and the Edict was only 33yrs ago, so several Characters are old enough to have been there, and all of them have been directly affected, losing family, homes, entire planets. Each of the Humans seem so haunted by the past they have grown up with, and the lives that they now lead, surrounded by the ghosts of their family (Not literally). The Characters are done so well, for starters, there is such a wide range of personalities, and emotional responses, some are very dark, some vengeful, some have still had a good childhood and are mostly happy people, each of them is portrayed so well, with such complex and multi-faceted emotions. It is a very clever piece of writing.
Overall, Stewarts World/Galaxy building is just extraordinary, not just with the characters, or the alien races, but attention to detail with ships, tech, locations etc, it is all so in-depth, with this wealth of information and different facets that really add to the story and bring it to life.
This is a fantastic start to what is going to be a thrilling, and really exciting series, and I can’t wait for the next part to see what happens with the crew of the Excalibur, and those that hunt them, the Medari.
If you want a really great read, action packed, thriller, with outstanding Characters and Galaxy building, and a plot you just won’t be able to put down, Grab This Now, You Won’t Be Disappointed!!
February 22, 2021
My biggest gripe with this book is that it is only a short novella. I would have liked it to be a full novel. As a matter of fact I could easily see this one as the start of a new series.
Humanity is defeated by a “Council” of religious fanatics. As always with religious nutcases their worldview is the only valid one and anyone not adhering to it are heretics that should be killed.
Actually, as we learn in the novella, it is not much of a council. More like a single bunch of religious fanatics that has conquered several star faring nations and the council is more there to make it look politically correct. Kind of like elections in a Communist dictatorship where voting is obligatory and you have exactly one party to vote for.
Humanity was on the verge of winning but, as we know, religious nutcases has neither scruples nor moral so after a cowardly biowarfare attack things went very poorly indeed.
Thus, when the book starts the main protagonist is working on a scrap collector barge recycling ships (mainly human) and other trash from the conflict between humanity and the said religious asswipes. As can be deduced from the book blurb, they stumble on the legendary human warship, the Excalibur.
That’s when the fun starts. Obviously the humans, as well as a few others who never agreed with the scam council, promptly throws the religious overlords out of the airlock (more or less) and proceeds to capture the Excalibur and reactivate it.
I will not go into too many details since I would probably more or less spoil the entire novella (it is rather short after all) if I did. I quite like the story itself. Humanity strikes back and the religious nutcases gets quite a few surprises. I quite like those kind of stories.
There’s plenty of action which is nicely written. I like the characters. The dialog is good. There are also a few plot hints in the novella that really makes me want to see a continuation of this book. I almost get the feeling that the author wrote this short novella as a kind of testing the waters to see if there was a market for a series. For me the answer to that question is: Hell yes!
Humanity is defeated by a “Council” of religious fanatics. As always with religious nutcases their worldview is the only valid one and anyone not adhering to it are heretics that should be killed.
Actually, as we learn in the novella, it is not much of a council. More like a single bunch of religious fanatics that has conquered several star faring nations and the council is more there to make it look politically correct. Kind of like elections in a Communist dictatorship where voting is obligatory and you have exactly one party to vote for.
Humanity was on the verge of winning but, as we know, religious nutcases has neither scruples nor moral so after a cowardly biowarfare attack things went very poorly indeed.
Thus, when the book starts the main protagonist is working on a scrap collector barge recycling ships (mainly human) and other trash from the conflict between humanity and the said religious asswipes. As can be deduced from the book blurb, they stumble on the legendary human warship, the Excalibur.
That’s when the fun starts. Obviously the humans, as well as a few others who never agreed with the scam council, promptly throws the religious overlords out of the airlock (more or less) and proceeds to capture the Excalibur and reactivate it.
I will not go into too many details since I would probably more or less spoil the entire novella (it is rather short after all) if I did. I quite like the story itself. Humanity strikes back and the religious nutcases gets quite a few surprises. I quite like those kind of stories.
There’s plenty of action which is nicely written. I like the characters. The dialog is good. There are also a few plot hints in the novella that really makes me want to see a continuation of this book. I almost get the feeling that the author wrote this short novella as a kind of testing the waters to see if there was a market for a series. For me the answer to that question is: Hell yes!
May 19, 2025
Going to get some thoughts down while the book is still fresh in mind. I'll start with some positives:
- The initial setting was fun! Gerard Akanis is a downtrodden first officer of a scavenger crew, hating life. Almost everything his ship captain says reminds him of what he's lost: his homeworld, his family, and any hope for his people's future. You see him look out for his younger ship officer as well, quickly painting the picture of a grizzled old guard making sure that no one gets in needless trouble. Really nicely done.
- I liked K'tet. I really did. My hot take is that he was the most interesting character in the whole novella; a loyal priest as well as a miserly scrap ship captain, ignorant of how his mandatory prayer breaks brush the nerves of his largely-human crew. I expected tension, discussions, possible later regret or mutual understanding.. perhaps K'tet being used as a narrative representation of the rest of his species, the Medari, who apparently rule the galaxy. That hope was shot along with K'tet about two chapters in, and sadly no one really rose up—least of all the main character, but that's for later—to take his place. RIP K'tet, my flawed, feathered, probably pro-colonization babygirl
Alright, then my other thoughts...
- After K'tet's death, everything kind of got... weird. Gerard's initial characterization of a caring, tired older officer was thrown out the window as he began spitting wild pro-human slogans with his full chest out at the reader, locking all alien crew into a floor-turned-brig. The eagerness this man had at marking the line between humans and aliens was uncomfortably hypocritical given his reveries about the ways humans (and I'm assuming other alien species other than Medari? but don't worry, Gerard never spends a single second considering that) have suffered in the thirty years post-crushing defeat. I don't know, there wasn't really anything written in to make me believe that he was in a desperate enough situation to kill his captain outright over an assumption, someone he'd known for over a decade, as well as lock his other "close friends" (his words!) into a makeshift jail and put his, and every other human's, job and lives at risk.
- To be honest, a lot of the story felt like a patriotic power fantasy and it hiked up the crazy the more I read. Everyone began instantly going along with Gerard's decisions, even though they all knew that if they instead contacted the Medari Council about their recent scavenged find they'd be given enough money to be set for life. You're telling me this crew is desperate enough to revolt, imprison/kill their fellow crew, and go against an entire galaxy-spanning dictatorship, but not desperate enough to make a single call and grab a larger slice of the cash money for themselves? None of this characterization fit together, and it made Gerard as a character feel delusional and power-hungry. At no point did he even consider giving any crew an out of his crazy either! No offers for people not onboard with his off-the-cuff coup to be able to flee the scene. Of course, that would have put his plan of going against the Medari Council at risk... but he could have at least been shown considering it, or feeling bad about dragging his "close friends" (again, his words) into this without giving them any kind of say... but Gerard isn't that type of guy. What type of guy is he? Well...
- Gerard is insane. By the end, I was still hopeful there would be a coup against him and that was the whole final twist, because goddamn. He was so incredibly unlikeable. While he "luxuriates" in his captain quarters aboard a mystical, legendary vessel that the crew found floating in space he never thinks of the prisoners he left in a makeshift brig "without proper bedding" again, nor do we ever really hear of where his current loyal crew are staying, or who else gets to enjoy the riches he's claimed for himself. There's no regret or grief shown for the captain or crew who die in this venture, and no weight given to the thousands of lives he takes later as he helms an attack against a Medari fleet. He's a cold-blooded psychopath!! Why the narrative never acknowledges his, I have no idea. I guess it's okay, he has a bad knee so, you know. Maybe that evens it out a bit.
- The scene with the Blust engineer, Kralnir, being told by Gerard that he "doesn't have to cover up (his tentacles) anymore" being played off as some human to alien acceptance scene was wiiild. Wild. It felt so condescending. Hadn't Gerard worked with these guys for years already? And basically grown up in Medari territory since he was ten?? This was just a strange moment to include. Also the reveal that the Blust were almost wiped out by the Medari as some kind of gotcha moment was weird. I don't know. I cringed all the way through it. Don't even get me started on Kralnir's self-sacrifice moment; I can only imagine he was tired of putting up with Gerard and decided death was preferable
- Lirrow flickered her ears. Mewled. Flicked her ears. Mewled a sigh. Flick flick. Mewl. Just say she's a catgirl, Stewart. We get it. Also, repeating that she's a "friend" of Gerard countless times does not make her feel like a friend; she forgave Gerard far too quickly for what he did?? He imprisoned his "closest friend" for being an alien and she had to openly pledge her allegiance (risking her life AGAIN) just to get out of jail??? I expected her to airlock him at the first opportunity and I would have applauded her for doing so
- Every POC/Black character having their skin colour brought up every time they were on-screen was... idk. It made me feel some type of way. other characters didn't get the same treatment with any of their features
- Again, Gerard was a freak. The guy's inner logic about humans, human pride, and crowning himself King (????????????) made me cringe. The fact every alien basically agreed or had conversations about how great and amazing the humans were/are was awkward as well. No one thinks about other people that much. No alien is going to sit around and talk shop about how awesome the species was that they almost wiped out three decades ago was/is. Everything felt so self-congratulatory. If the reveal at the end was that this was all Gerard's fanfiction that he writes to self-soothe, I'd have believed it 100%
- It was hard to connect to any of the characters otherwise. The brief insights into how the Council fleets were reacting to Gerard's coup were interesting, but lacked any real characterization in the long-run. Gerard unfortunately took up most of the screentime and he ended up having the personality of a boiled egg. The biggest spoiler of this is that there was no twist, and this guy ends it considering his future throne and leading humanity (and all other species under Medari rule, as an afterthought) to safety and peace, because.... well, Gerard really believes in himself. No one believes in themselves as much as Gerard does. That's my biggest takeaway from Excalibur Lost: Gerard really really sucks.
1/5
- The initial setting was fun! Gerard Akanis is a downtrodden first officer of a scavenger crew, hating life. Almost everything his ship captain says reminds him of what he's lost: his homeworld, his family, and any hope for his people's future. You see him look out for his younger ship officer as well, quickly painting the picture of a grizzled old guard making sure that no one gets in needless trouble. Really nicely done.
- I liked K'tet. I really did. My hot take is that he was the most interesting character in the whole novella; a loyal priest as well as a miserly scrap ship captain, ignorant of how his mandatory prayer breaks brush the nerves of his largely-human crew. I expected tension, discussions, possible later regret or mutual understanding.. perhaps K'tet being used as a narrative representation of the rest of his species, the Medari, who apparently rule the galaxy. That hope was shot along with K'tet about two chapters in, and sadly no one really rose up—least of all the main character, but that's for later—to take his place. RIP K'tet, my flawed, feathered, probably pro-colonization babygirl
Alright, then my other thoughts...
- After K'tet's death, everything kind of got... weird. Gerard's initial characterization of a caring, tired older officer was thrown out the window as he began spitting wild pro-human slogans with his full chest out at the reader, locking all alien crew into a floor-turned-brig. The eagerness this man had at marking the line between humans and aliens was uncomfortably hypocritical given his reveries about the ways humans (and I'm assuming other alien species other than Medari? but don't worry, Gerard never spends a single second considering that) have suffered in the thirty years post-crushing defeat. I don't know, there wasn't really anything written in to make me believe that he was in a desperate enough situation to kill his captain outright over an assumption, someone he'd known for over a decade, as well as lock his other "close friends" (his words!) into a makeshift jail and put his, and every other human's, job and lives at risk.
- To be honest, a lot of the story felt like a patriotic power fantasy and it hiked up the crazy the more I read. Everyone began instantly going along with Gerard's decisions, even though they all knew that if they instead contacted the Medari Council about their recent scavenged find they'd be given enough money to be set for life. You're telling me this crew is desperate enough to revolt, imprison/kill their fellow crew, and go against an entire galaxy-spanning dictatorship, but not desperate enough to make a single call and grab a larger slice of the cash money for themselves? None of this characterization fit together, and it made Gerard as a character feel delusional and power-hungry. At no point did he even consider giving any crew an out of his crazy either! No offers for people not onboard with his off-the-cuff coup to be able to flee the scene. Of course, that would have put his plan of going against the Medari Council at risk... but he could have at least been shown considering it, or feeling bad about dragging his "close friends" (again, his words) into this without giving them any kind of say... but Gerard isn't that type of guy. What type of guy is he? Well...
- Gerard is insane. By the end, I was still hopeful there would be a coup against him and that was the whole final twist, because goddamn. He was so incredibly unlikeable. While he "luxuriates" in his captain quarters aboard a mystical, legendary vessel that the crew found floating in space he never thinks of the prisoners he left in a makeshift brig "without proper bedding" again, nor do we ever really hear of where his current loyal crew are staying, or who else gets to enjoy the riches he's claimed for himself. There's no regret or grief shown for the captain or crew who die in this venture, and no weight given to the thousands of lives he takes later as he helms an attack against a Medari fleet. He's a cold-blooded psychopath!! Why the narrative never acknowledges his, I have no idea. I guess it's okay, he has a bad knee so, you know. Maybe that evens it out a bit.
- The scene with the Blust engineer, Kralnir, being told by Gerard that he "doesn't have to cover up (his tentacles) anymore" being played off as some human to alien acceptance scene was wiiild. Wild. It felt so condescending. Hadn't Gerard worked with these guys for years already? And basically grown up in Medari territory since he was ten?? This was just a strange moment to include. Also the reveal that the Blust were almost wiped out by the Medari as some kind of gotcha moment was weird. I don't know. I cringed all the way through it. Don't even get me started on Kralnir's self-sacrifice moment; I can only imagine he was tired of putting up with Gerard and decided death was preferable
- Lirrow flickered her ears. Mewled. Flicked her ears. Mewled a sigh. Flick flick. Mewl. Just say she's a catgirl, Stewart. We get it. Also, repeating that she's a "friend" of Gerard countless times does not make her feel like a friend; she forgave Gerard far too quickly for what he did?? He imprisoned his "closest friend" for being an alien and she had to openly pledge her allegiance (risking her life AGAIN) just to get out of jail??? I expected her to airlock him at the first opportunity and I would have applauded her for doing so
- Every POC/Black character having their skin colour brought up every time they were on-screen was... idk. It made me feel some type of way. other characters didn't get the same treatment with any of their features
- Again, Gerard was a freak. The guy's inner logic about humans, human pride, and crowning himself King (????????????) made me cringe. The fact every alien basically agreed or had conversations about how great and amazing the humans were/are was awkward as well. No one thinks about other people that much. No alien is going to sit around and talk shop about how awesome the species was that they almost wiped out three decades ago was/is. Everything felt so self-congratulatory. If the reveal at the end was that this was all Gerard's fanfiction that he writes to self-soothe, I'd have believed it 100%
- It was hard to connect to any of the characters otherwise. The brief insights into how the Council fleets were reacting to Gerard's coup were interesting, but lacked any real characterization in the long-run. Gerard unfortunately took up most of the screentime and he ended up having the personality of a boiled egg. The biggest spoiler of this is that there was no twist, and this guy ends it considering his future throne and leading humanity (and all other species under Medari rule, as an afterthought) to safety and peace, because.... well, Gerard really believes in himself. No one believes in themselves as much as Gerard does. That's my biggest takeaway from Excalibur Lost: Gerard really really sucks.
1/5
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 24, 2021
Humanity finds itself scattered throughout the stars and subjugated by the Medari Sacred Council when a small group of human scavengers stumble upon the last great hope of their species, the gigantic advanced warship Excalibur. If it can be saved and brought fully online this behemoth found lying dormant in low orbit around a Gas Giant this may prove to be salvation for not just humanity but the other races seemingly oppressed by the Medari.
The concept is somewhat reminiscent of Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda series with one advanced ship frozen near a singularity saved by scavengers being the last hope of humanity etc.
After a tight and compelling opening revolving around a mutiny and discovery of the Excalibur the novella loses momentum somewhat as the problems of solving the various issues aboard the long dormant Excalibur come to the fore. This is approached nearly entirely through management meetings rather than showing any of it first hand and starts to drag after a time. Beyond the bridge and adjoining ready room very little of the ship is explored in the text bar the first visit to the docking bay and this lack of exploration certainly weakens the connection to the plot and especially the reverence the crew have for this supposed pinnacle of human ingenuity.
Despite the looming threat of an incoming hostile fleet and the subsequent exchanges between them and the stationary Excalibur it rarely feels like there's any actual danger of things going wrong. Even with the ship only partially functioning so much is made of the advanced guns, shields, and sheer colossal size of the ship that even hamstrung it clearly is more than a match for its opponents. The Excalibur is essentially a Death Star fighting the Rebel Fleet but without an exhaust port achillies heel to be exploited. The combat is relayed from the bridge with some quite dry talk of differing weapon ranges, missile numbers, and drone deployments rendering it hard to really feel the tension in scenes.
The chest thumping over the great technology and spirit of the humans is a little eye rolling at times too and the near sycophantic glee with which members of other species defected to their side felt unearnt and a little awkward.
"Your race alone seemed to have a chance to challenge them, with the courage to face them— and the beliefs that would drive you to liberate their conquests.”
Excalibur Lost is a quick read with some interesting ideas but it never fully explores them or the characters in enough depth to leave a lasting impression.
The concept is somewhat reminiscent of Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda series with one advanced ship frozen near a singularity saved by scavengers being the last hope of humanity etc.
After a tight and compelling opening revolving around a mutiny and discovery of the Excalibur the novella loses momentum somewhat as the problems of solving the various issues aboard the long dormant Excalibur come to the fore. This is approached nearly entirely through management meetings rather than showing any of it first hand and starts to drag after a time. Beyond the bridge and adjoining ready room very little of the ship is explored in the text bar the first visit to the docking bay and this lack of exploration certainly weakens the connection to the plot and especially the reverence the crew have for this supposed pinnacle of human ingenuity.
Despite the looming threat of an incoming hostile fleet and the subsequent exchanges between them and the stationary Excalibur it rarely feels like there's any actual danger of things going wrong. Even with the ship only partially functioning so much is made of the advanced guns, shields, and sheer colossal size of the ship that even hamstrung it clearly is more than a match for its opponents. The Excalibur is essentially a Death Star fighting the Rebel Fleet but without an exhaust port achillies heel to be exploited. The combat is relayed from the bridge with some quite dry talk of differing weapon ranges, missile numbers, and drone deployments rendering it hard to really feel the tension in scenes.
The chest thumping over the great technology and spirit of the humans is a little eye rolling at times too and the near sycophantic glee with which members of other species defected to their side felt unearnt and a little awkward.
"Your race alone seemed to have a chance to challenge them, with the courage to face them— and the beliefs that would drive you to liberate their conquests.”
Excalibur Lost is a quick read with some interesting ideas but it never fully explores them or the characters in enough depth to leave a lasting impression.
May 20, 2025
Glynn Stewart's work is something you can while away an afternoon with. Pulpy fun that occasionally rises to something very good and subtle (I'm thinking here of the comparison he draws between humanity & the Kanzi in the "Duchy of Terra" novels.)
A lot of his SF oeuvre, though, is him rehashing other IPs. The first couple "Duchy of Terra" books are his spin on "Star Control 2", and the later part of the series is a retelling of "Mass Effect". "Excalibur Lost" is a reheating of Proximal Flame's "The Last Angel".
Humanity has been conquered by a dystopian theocracy (Sacred Council of Races = Compact of Species), relegated to a "racially inferior" status, and then a ship with human crew stumbles upon a super-advanced human warship, which then proceeds to be utterly game-breaking with its power. The Respite system = the Rally system. There's even a furry alien who is essentially a Didact. Unlike "TLA", where you have a variety of viewpoints among the evil alien empire - the bigwigs' actions are not exempt from criticism from within; the alien commanders struggle with their decisions, do the best they think they can, and desperately hope their actions are justified - the worshipers of the One God come in two flavors: paternalistically evil, and villainously evil.
Lately the idea of a multi-species religion has been tickling my brain, and it's unforch that the only real example of this trope, the Covenant from "Halo", is bent on total human extinction. There could have been a cool opportunity in "Excalibur Lost" to show human diehards of the One God, even while struggling with (or minimizing away) the anti-human violence of the setting. ("TLA", while featuring a creepy theocracy, takes a North Korea-style "official secularism" approach to it. It's simply a fact that the Triarchs are immortal, benevolent, and wise, after all!) It's a shame this opportunity got wasted.
It sort of troubles me that Mr. Stewart is selling "Excalibur Lost" while its inspiring material is released online for free. It strikes me as ethically questionable in a way that scraping the numbers off of a commercially released video game does not.
A lot of his SF oeuvre, though, is him rehashing other IPs. The first couple "Duchy of Terra" books are his spin on "Star Control 2", and the later part of the series is a retelling of "Mass Effect". "Excalibur Lost" is a reheating of Proximal Flame's "The Last Angel".
Humanity has been conquered by a dystopian theocracy (Sacred Council of Races = Compact of Species), relegated to a "racially inferior" status, and then a ship with human crew stumbles upon a super-advanced human warship, which then proceeds to be utterly game-breaking with its power. The Respite system = the Rally system. There's even a furry alien who is essentially a Didact. Unlike "TLA", where you have a variety of viewpoints among the evil alien empire - the bigwigs' actions are not exempt from criticism from within; the alien commanders struggle with their decisions, do the best they think they can, and desperately hope their actions are justified - the worshipers of the One God come in two flavors: paternalistically evil, and villainously evil.
Lately the idea of a multi-species religion has been tickling my brain, and it's unforch that the only real example of this trope, the Covenant from "Halo", is bent on total human extinction. There could have been a cool opportunity in "Excalibur Lost" to show human diehards of the One God, even while struggling with (or minimizing away) the anti-human violence of the setting. ("TLA", while featuring a creepy theocracy, takes a North Korea-style "official secularism" approach to it. It's simply a fact that the Triarchs are immortal, benevolent, and wise, after all!) It's a shame this opportunity got wasted.
It sort of troubles me that Mr. Stewart is selling "Excalibur Lost" while its inspiring material is released online for free. It strikes me as ethically questionable in a way that scraping the numbers off of a commercially released video game does not.
February 27, 2021
Yet another masterpiece by a wonderful author. From the opening scenes of the book you can feel it's going to be riveting. That feeling continued and morphed into unadulterated excitement as Glynn subtly introduces the traumatic backstory of the Human Diaspora and the culture / history of the Council. In a dozen or so pages the audience is sucked into the conspiracy along with Arkanis as he decides to start a revolution to free Humanity. As Glynn always does, the truamatic backgrounds of all the characters are woven together in a complex way forcing the plot forward in a singular direction. The ending of the book is exhilarating and left me wanting more. What is more impressive is that in Excalibur Lost, he accomplishes all of this in 150 pages. The sheer amount of content, exhibition, plot, and character development crammed seemlessly into such a short novel excellently highlights Glynn's ability to masterfully write anything he sets his mind to. Thank you for writing this book and allowing your readers to join you on your creative ride through this setting.
The only negative of this book is that it is planned to be a stand alone novella with no continued series :((((
The only negative of this book is that it is planned to be a stand alone novella with no continued series :((((
February 24, 2021
Interesting concept but it has some flaws
Overall this new universe from Glynn Stewart is quite interesting. The form of space travel as well as well as weapons is quite intriguing. There are a couple of flaws that kept bugging me though...
Slight SPOILERS AHEAD
I fail to understand how a tiny crew of non-military humans that are unlikely to have ever even seen a Terran military space vessel are so capable at restarting a twenty year old ship that is supposed to be crewed by thousands.
The ending. That soured me on the main character a bit too much. His final thoughts of certain entitlement felt quite sudden after all the liberation talk throughout the novella.
Overall this new universe from Glynn Stewart is quite interesting. The form of space travel as well as well as weapons is quite intriguing. There are a couple of flaws that kept bugging me though...
Slight SPOILERS AHEAD
I fail to understand how a tiny crew of non-military humans that are unlikely to have ever even seen a Terran military space vessel are so capable at restarting a twenty year old ship that is supposed to be crewed by thousands.
The ending. That soured me on the main character a bit too much. His final thoughts of certain entitlement felt quite sudden after all the liberation talk throughout the novella.
February 9, 2021
This is the first book (a novella) in a new series by the author. Quite a bit of universe building went into this novella to set up the next books. We’re introduced to the various main alien races, how the war had ended and the situation of the current main characters. The Excalibur, a lost starship, is one of the main focuses of the second half of the novella, along with the race of aliens who had conquered Earth, attempting to destroy the starship. I enjoyed the book and look forward to reading the next in the series when it comes out.
February 26, 2023
Classic Sci Fi origin, great fun and easy read
A straightforward sci.fi novel. An introduction to a series bringing fortj hope to the oppressed remnants of Earth and.other defeated races. From oppression to hope but not without sacrifice. Set against overwhelming firces hunankind with a legendaey vessel strive to reignite hope and once more engage in the fight for Eath snd other subjugated alien races. A good solid read. Enjoyable. Though not in itself a unique plotline still a really good read. Sequeld to follow. ...
A straightforward sci.fi novel. An introduction to a series bringing fortj hope to the oppressed remnants of Earth and.other defeated races. From oppression to hope but not without sacrifice. Set against overwhelming firces hunankind with a legendaey vessel strive to reignite hope and once more engage in the fight for Eath snd other subjugated alien races. A good solid read. Enjoyable. Though not in itself a unique plotline still a really good read. Sequeld to follow. ...
February 12, 2021
As the first third of a novel, the novella works. Good pacing, good set up, some interesting pacing.
As novella meant to stand on its own? It falls a bit flat. Novellas seem to do best when they allow you to come in with a certain amount of knowledge of the universe they are set, so you aren’t trying to balance “let me explain my universe” and plot.
And too much of this book gets tied up in that.
As novella meant to stand on its own? It falls a bit flat. Novellas seem to do best when they allow you to come in with a certain amount of knowledge of the universe they are set, so you aren’t trying to balance “let me explain my universe” and plot.
And too much of this book gets tied up in that.
March 16, 2021
Exciting war story-a lost gigantic warship has been found and is still functional after many years
This was an uplifting story; it got pretty nerve wracking for a while when "Excalibur" was not able to move and not all of her guns were working; some last minute repairs saved the day.
This was an uplifting story; it got pretty nerve wracking for a while when "Excalibur" was not able to move and not all of her guns were working; some last minute repairs saved the day.
March 20, 2021
A very short one, would love to see a full length series novel on this. Humans have been enslaved by an alien Empire and work under them. In one of the salvage operations, a mixed crew of aliens and humans find trace of a ship which they had all considered as a myth. The humans revolt against the alien master race and now it's a race against time to get the ship working before they are destroyed.
April 7, 2021
Hopeful this is the beginning
I have enjoyed many of Flynn Stewart's books. First time writing a review. It seems obvious there is more to tell in this tale. As in the past enough characters are available to build an even more enjoyable series. I look forward to the follow-up. Please!
I have enjoyed many of Flynn Stewart's books. First time writing a review. It seems obvious there is more to tell in this tale. As in the past enough characters are available to build an even more enjoyable series. I look forward to the follow-up. Please!
April 20, 2021
I returned so many of these Kindle books that were not worth the time to read them they were total waste. Muenster does pretty good job of Storytelling ,
Amazon says I have to come up with another 20 words isn't that just wonderful what a waste of my time I wonder is that 20 yet probably non. Well what else can I say testing testing 1 2 3 is this 20 words testing.
Amazon says I have to come up with another 20 words isn't that just wonderful what a waste of my time I wonder is that 20 yet probably non. Well what else can I say testing testing 1 2 3 is this 20 words testing.
February 9, 2021
The Sword in the Stone
Really good stuff. Strong scarred characters on all sides. I want more. Can the remnants of humanity
I'll down the evil Council and free the races. I hope we find out.
Really good stuff. Strong scarred characters on all sides. I want more. Can the remnants of humanity
I'll down the evil Council and free the races. I hope we find out.
February 12, 2021
4.5*
A small crew with guts and hate on a legendary but damaged ship racing to fix it in time to save humanity’s hope from genocidal aliens. Taut, engaging and fast-paced, with reasonable character development in the limited space of a novella. I hope there’s a series coming.
A small crew with guts and hate on a legendary but damaged ship racing to fix it in time to save humanity’s hope from genocidal aliens. Taut, engaging and fast-paced, with reasonable character development in the limited space of a novella. I hope there’s a series coming.
February 12, 2021
Hmmm and an interesting novella. I am not sure what the author's plans for this book are, but I could see it becoming a full-fledged series to rival The Dutchy of Terra series. I hope Glynn continues the story as there's plenty of meat left on the bone!
February 13, 2021
Thoroughly enjoyable..
As good as one would expect from Glynn Stewart. A tale that has me hooked, I will be interested to see if this leads to a series, it certainly has the potential.
As good as one would expect from Glynn Stewart. A tale that has me hooked, I will be interested to see if this leads to a series, it certainly has the potential.
February 14, 2021
Good Start
This was a beginning with a few minor hiccups for what will hopefully be a new series. Decent initial character development and acceptable tech to support our protagonists. The book ends on a positive note, looking towards the future.
This was a beginning with a few minor hiccups for what will hopefully be a new series. Decent initial character development and acceptable tech to support our protagonists. The book ends on a positive note, looking towards the future.
February 15, 2021
What a great beginning!
I am excited to see where this series ends up. What an exciting foundation to build on. As with all Glynn's book I will eagerly be awaiting the next installment to binge read
I am excited to see where this series ends up. What an exciting foundation to build on. As with all Glynn's book I will eagerly be awaiting the next installment to binge read
February 16, 2021
Looks like another great saga
Hopefully this is but a taste of a new series. Excalibur Lost has all the marks of a great series. In the same vein as the Terran Privateer series great story line with brilliantly painted characters. My only complaint was it’s too short.
Hopefully this is but a taste of a new series. Excalibur Lost has all the marks of a great series. In the same vein as the Terran Privateer series great story line with brilliantly painted characters. My only complaint was it’s too short.
February 23, 2021
The Birds 🐦
Fairly good take on the old "Us vs Them" story. Not much character development and very light on a descriptive narrative but short and sweet. Obviously the first book in a series,so don't expect a stand alone book
Fairly good take on the old "Us vs Them" story. Not much character development and very light on a descriptive narrative but short and sweet. Obviously the first book in a series,so don't expect a stand alone book
March 5, 2021
Awesome start, look forward to the next
Whilst a bit short, its a novella so its expected. Story has great promise, characters as usual have enough to draw you in and want to carry on. Looking forward to the next one
Whilst a bit short, its a novella so its expected. Story has great promise, characters as usual have enough to draw you in and want to carry on. Looking forward to the next one
March 10, 2021
I sure hope there are sequels.
An exciting and interesting universe that I hope to see more of. Lots of promise but barely scratched. Plenty of room for character development and a stage set for continued conflict at the highest stakes.
An exciting and interesting universe that I hope to see more of. Lots of promise but barely scratched. Plenty of room for character development and a stage set for continued conflict at the highest stakes.
March 11, 2021
Great find
This popped up on my kindle unlimited recommendation. list I'm so glad I downloaded it. What a wonderful read. I do hope the author will expand this into a series as I am hooked.
This popped up on my kindle unlimited recommendation. list I'm so glad I downloaded it. What a wonderful read. I do hope the author will expand this into a series as I am hooked.
March 21, 2021
Everything a good "Space Opera". should have!
Humanity scattered to the winds, under the thumb of a tyrant, treated
Like slaves! A whisper of a tale of an almost forgotten story the warship big enough to hang a race's hope on! A good way to pass an hour or two!
Humanity scattered to the winds, under the thumb of a tyrant, treated
Like slaves! A whisper of a tale of an almost forgotten story the warship big enough to hang a race's hope on! A good way to pass an hour or two!
April 23, 2021
Good short story that left me wanting more. A rag tag crew that discovered a very powerful starship left behind as the humans lost a war and were second hand citizens of another empire. This rag tag crew has a chance to change this for the good for the human race.
June 19, 2021
Great story
Hi enjoyed reading the novella characters that came alive on the page.
The struggle is an age old one that everyone understands and can appreciate. I would recommend this novella anyone who is looking for an interesting read.
Hi enjoyed reading the novella characters that came alive on the page.
The struggle is an age old one that everyone understands and can appreciate. I would recommend this novella anyone who is looking for an interesting read.
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