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Superdreadnought #4
Superdreadnought 4
The superdreadnought is hunting the cultists. The chase takes the ship and crew to Muultar, a planet tortured by three raging stars. Why would anyone live in such a place? But they do, and the Phraim-‘Eh cult has found fertile recruiting ground. Their plan is nothing short of taking over the whole planet. How are they doing it? And who are those other aliens in the system, the ones who take issue with Reynolds? They seem more powerful than the superdreadnought. Are they the long-lost Kurtherians, and is Muultar ground zero?
- GenresScience Fiction
Audio CD
First published February 3, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
May 20, 2022
These books just keep getting better!
I was just reading the author's notes, once I'd finished this excellent book, and was surprised to read that many of Craig Martelle's fans weren't so keen on it!
I honestly can't see why, unless it's as Craig says, because it's a character-driven story, and not an 'all-action, battle 'em out in space, with no pesky dialogue to spoil it', kind of vibe!
But, as Craig points out - it's a SPACE OPERA!
There's no way that ANY Opera - be it set in Space, or on your local town's rather rundown theatre - can proceed, without there being strong characters, that you can either immediately love, or hate - and, to get their character across, in the short time we are with them, they need dialogue, to push the plot of the story along!
Admittedly, in an Opera, you can get quite ear piercing sopranos to cope with who, so often, play the part of Sylphs, when, in truth, they left that stage of life well behind them - that's if they had it at all - but their job is still to make that audience BELIEVE that they are that young, sweet, sylph-like character they are portraying, even if it's by using a little too much vibrato in the singing! Lol
But, in Space Opera, you have that awesomely amazing backdrop of a wheeling Galaxy, or several Galaxies, to play your story in front of and, just like the Opera, you need those characters, whether they are made of metals, or are 'meatbags', (so gross a term, but I had to laugh at the description), in order to bring that story to life.
Even if the story does involve several space battles (which, of course, this story does), or whole paragraphs of the characters' involved, letting us know what they are thinking and, more to the point, feeling, all of these things should - and did in this story - come together in a work that affects us emotionally, as we read it.
But, for me, that HAS to be a priority in anything I read!
If there aren't good characters, alongside great dialogue, which all the books in the whole series covers beautifully, then I can't see the point of reading a book!
My favourite character in these books is actually Reynolds - both the Superdreadnought ship AI, itself, and Captain Reynolds, his android alter ego - well, along with all the bits of him, that fly the ship, anyway - with my favourite among them being, Tactical, 'cos he has such a potty mouth! Lol
But, to me, I see no point in a book unless it IS character driven - even books about mechanical beings, such as this amazing Superdreadnought, Reynolds or, another of my favourites, the Bolo - a super sized, tank-like, gizmo, that is totally awesome, too, all need to have a character, and that uses some kind of dialogue, in order to drive the plot, surely?
Anyhoo, I'll get off my soap box now, and get back to my review! Lol
This particular book is quite pivotal to the whole story, as Reynolds, and his faithful crew of 'meatbags' find out something crucial to their search for the Kurtherians, here, which will change the way that their search goes!
No, I'm not into spoilers, so read this excellent book, to find out yourself Lol
There was plenty of action, to delight even the most critical reader, here, and the plot thickened so much, I could have made soup with it! Lol
Just get these books! Whether through Kindle Unlimited, or by buying them outright, as I did, and read them, because they are definitely worth your time, and money, to do so!
Anyway, I was saddened to learn, in the author's notes again, that the next book is the final book of the series, so it's going to be a happy/sad time when I read it.
Which, as usual, isn't right now, as I checked my reading list, and the next book to read is, I'm very happy to say, book two of Confessions of a Space Anthropologist: Rogue Instigator!
I do love Giles, so this will, also, be a fun read 😁📖
I was just reading the author's notes, once I'd finished this excellent book, and was surprised to read that many of Craig Martelle's fans weren't so keen on it!
I honestly can't see why, unless it's as Craig says, because it's a character-driven story, and not an 'all-action, battle 'em out in space, with no pesky dialogue to spoil it', kind of vibe!
But, as Craig points out - it's a SPACE OPERA!
There's no way that ANY Opera - be it set in Space, or on your local town's rather rundown theatre - can proceed, without there being strong characters, that you can either immediately love, or hate - and, to get their character across, in the short time we are with them, they need dialogue, to push the plot of the story along!
Admittedly, in an Opera, you can get quite ear piercing sopranos to cope with who, so often, play the part of Sylphs, when, in truth, they left that stage of life well behind them - that's if they had it at all - but their job is still to make that audience BELIEVE that they are that young, sweet, sylph-like character they are portraying, even if it's by using a little too much vibrato in the singing! Lol
But, in Space Opera, you have that awesomely amazing backdrop of a wheeling Galaxy, or several Galaxies, to play your story in front of and, just like the Opera, you need those characters, whether they are made of metals, or are 'meatbags', (so gross a term, but I had to laugh at the description), in order to bring that story to life.
Even if the story does involve several space battles (which, of course, this story does), or whole paragraphs of the characters' involved, letting us know what they are thinking and, more to the point, feeling, all of these things should - and did in this story - come together in a work that affects us emotionally, as we read it.
But, for me, that HAS to be a priority in anything I read!
If there aren't good characters, alongside great dialogue, which all the books in the whole series covers beautifully, then I can't see the point of reading a book!
My favourite character in these books is actually Reynolds - both the Superdreadnought ship AI, itself, and Captain Reynolds, his android alter ego - well, along with all the bits of him, that fly the ship, anyway - with my favourite among them being, Tactical, 'cos he has such a potty mouth! Lol
But, to me, I see no point in a book unless it IS character driven - even books about mechanical beings, such as this amazing Superdreadnought, Reynolds or, another of my favourites, the Bolo - a super sized, tank-like, gizmo, that is totally awesome, too, all need to have a character, and that uses some kind of dialogue, in order to drive the plot, surely?
Anyhoo, I'll get off my soap box now, and get back to my review! Lol
This particular book is quite pivotal to the whole story, as Reynolds, and his faithful crew of 'meatbags' find out something crucial to their search for the Kurtherians, here, which will change the way that their search goes!
No, I'm not into spoilers, so read this excellent book, to find out yourself Lol
There was plenty of action, to delight even the most critical reader, here, and the plot thickened so much, I could have made soup with it! Lol
Just get these books! Whether through Kindle Unlimited, or by buying them outright, as I did, and read them, because they are definitely worth your time, and money, to do so!
Anyway, I was saddened to learn, in the author's notes again, that the next book is the final book of the series, so it's going to be a happy/sad time when I read it.
Which, as usual, isn't right now, as I checked my reading list, and the next book to read is, I'm very happy to say, book two of Confessions of a Space Anthropologist: Rogue Instigator!
I do love Giles, so this will, also, be a fun read 😁📖
June 22, 2019
Make no mistake about it, this a fairly light reading. The entire story of this series is really somewhat on the weird side. It is not exactly hard science fiction. The main character is the ship itself, or rather the AI that runs the ship. Actually, I should probably write characters in plural since he has split himself off in multiple personalities. As I wrote, weird.
It is a fairly fun light read though. Whether it is an AI or a actual person the characters have a lot of the kick-ass qualities that we are used to see on a character in Michael Anderle’s Kurtherian universe.
The story is not bad with plenty of both entertaining dialogue, adventure and kick-ass action. One thing that I am getting a bit tired of though is that Reynolds, the super-dreadnought, gets hammered to pieces…again. I do not understand why so many authors seems to go down this route. It is both unrealistic and not very funny to see the same ship getting shot to pieces in every episode or book. I liked it much more when Bethany Anne’s super-dreadnoughts were just that, super-dreadnoughts kicking ass and if anything was going to be shot to pieces, it was them doing the shooting.
I really liked the twist about halfway into the book though. I am obviously not going to spoil it so you just have to trust me on that. However, together with the new aliens that Reynolds & Co encounters there could indeed be some cool stuff coming up in the next book or books.
I’m probably going to be picking up the fifth installment a little earlier than I thought now.
It is a fairly fun light read though. Whether it is an AI or a actual person the characters have a lot of the kick-ass qualities that we are used to see on a character in Michael Anderle’s Kurtherian universe.
The story is not bad with plenty of both entertaining dialogue, adventure and kick-ass action. One thing that I am getting a bit tired of though is that Reynolds, the super-dreadnought, gets hammered to pieces…again. I do not understand why so many authors seems to go down this route. It is both unrealistic and not very funny to see the same ship getting shot to pieces in every episode or book. I liked it much more when Bethany Anne’s super-dreadnoughts were just that, super-dreadnoughts kicking ass and if anything was going to be shot to pieces, it was them doing the shooting.
I really liked the twist about halfway into the book though. I am obviously not going to spoil it so you just have to trust me on that. However, together with the new aliens that Reynolds & Co encounters there could indeed be some cool stuff coming up in the next book or books.
I’m probably going to be picking up the fifth installment a little earlier than I thought now.
January 31, 2021
So I read Superdreadnought 1 and decided this series was not for me. Then I read the first book of the Metal Legion series to sample another Craig Martelle story, since they are well-rated. I liked that enough to buy the whole series. So I saw that SD4 was free on Kindle, so I gave this series another chance, and I liked this one much more. I didn't feel like I missed much skipping books 2 & 3, so the overall plot does move slowly. I still consider it a shallow young adult space opera, but there's a really good story here and a bit less juvenile dialog. So yes, the series gets better, but I wasn't drawn in enough to want to read the entire series.
February 5, 2019
That was a Close One!
Wow! Reynolds and crew were close to being on the losing end of the battle in this episode, but came through, a bit worse for the wear, victorious nontheless. I believe book 5 will wrap up the series. I expect great things from that book! It will be difficult to say goodbye to these wonderful characters and my hope is that they will pop up elsewhere in the Kurtherian Universe once in a while. Awesome book!
Wow! Reynolds and crew were close to being on the losing end of the battle in this episode, but came through, a bit worse for the wear, victorious nontheless. I believe book 5 will wrap up the series. I expect great things from that book! It will be difficult to say goodbye to these wonderful characters and my hope is that they will pop up elsewhere in the Kurtherian Universe once in a while. Awesome book!
May 12, 2020
Another Great Book
Reynolds and the crew face down an enemy that almost brings them to their knees. They gain a new allie but the ship is severely damaged, but the crew has come together in a way that will make them stronger in the long run. The false god Pharam' El and his cult while not fully defeated are on the run and their attempts to take over the planet are over. You should read this series!
Reynolds and the crew face down an enemy that almost brings them to their knees. They gain a new allie but the ship is severely damaged, but the crew has come together in a way that will make them stronger in the long run. The false god Pharam' El and his cult while not fully defeated are on the run and their attempts to take over the planet are over. You should read this series!
February 5, 2019
New system, same #@!%
Reynolds and his crew have jumped into a new system in their search for the cultists, Phraim-‘Eh, and Jora’nal. They learn more about these evil beings, and what is driving them. There are fierce battles, cutting sarcasm, and grit acts of bravery throughout the tale.
Another exciting tale in the Superdreadnought series, superbly crafted and well-written.
Reynolds and his crew have jumped into a new system in their search for the cultists, Phraim-‘Eh, and Jora’nal. They learn more about these evil beings, and what is driving them. There are fierce battles, cutting sarcasm, and grit acts of bravery throughout the tale.
Another exciting tale in the Superdreadnought series, superbly crafted and well-written.
February 16, 2019
Great Read
I was surprised by how much I liked this series, sad there will only be one more to finish it. Thank you for bringing Reynolds to us as we watched him learn and grow. BA would be proud that he has come so far. I await the next installment to bring me another round of fast paced action as Reynolds and crew finish what they started.
I was surprised by how much I liked this series, sad there will only be one more to finish it. Thank you for bringing Reynolds to us as we watched him learn and grow. BA would be proud that he has come so far. I await the next installment to bring me another round of fast paced action as Reynolds and crew finish what they started.
February 19, 2019
Good Read
Reynolds is tracing the cultists. They find them at a low tech, barely livable planet. They meet a new group of powerful aliens. They wonder if they are friend or foe. I like the action and snarky humor, look forward to the next and apparently final book in the series.
Reynolds is tracing the cultists. They find them at a low tech, barely livable planet. They meet a new group of powerful aliens. They wonder if they are friend or foe. I like the action and snarky humor, look forward to the next and apparently final book in the series.
January 4, 2021
I am not of a scifi-opera fan so I started listening to this series and a little worry. But the story pulled me in and the movie references kill me from tactical. The John-Cab lol. But the story kept evolving in each book with new characters coming in all the time. The SD Reynolds was and steam rolling death machine that issues made the stories all that more enjoyable.
February 5, 2019
Great
Great book . Action , destruction , enemies and allies . Looking forward to book five but also with regret if it is really the last in the series. Meanwhile , grab a copy of this book and enjoy.
Great book . Action , destruction , enemies and allies . Looking forward to book five but also with regret if it is really the last in the series. Meanwhile , grab a copy of this book and enjoy.
February 12, 2019
I love Reynolds
Another great book in the Superdreadnought series. I have loved all of them and think that they just keep getting better. I am really looking forward to the next book and any book by CH Gideon.
Another great book in the Superdreadnought series. I have loved all of them and think that they just keep getting better. I am really looking forward to the next book and any book by CH Gideon.
March 28, 2020
Stuff is heating up, and I feel like they are getting closer to catching the evil cult. I love the good they bring to each planet they show up at. Kinda crazy there's so many problems going on out there in the verse.
Read
February 11, 2021Better and Better
Captured the Star Trek vibe as I expected.
Best story so far.
The character development is spot on.
Love all of the references to Bethany Anne in the story.
Thank you for sharing this interesting story guys.
Captured the Star Trek vibe as I expected.
Best story so far.
The character development is spot on.
Love all of the references to Bethany Anne in the story.
Thank you for sharing this interesting story guys.
June 1, 2021
Finally cohesive
Finally this series is showing solid development. Both character and plot arcs have improved. Unlike the first three this actually held my attention. Looking forward to book five.
Finally this series is showing solid development. Both character and plot arcs have improved. Unlike the first three this actually held my attention. Looking forward to book five.
March 11, 2023
Fun book
If you love tense adventures and battles, you will love this book. There is a lot of great characters that are put through the some of the worse situations they have ever seen. I really loved it. You should also always read the auth notes. Enjoy!
If you love tense adventures and battles, you will love this book. There is a lot of great characters that are put through the some of the worse situations they have ever seen. I really loved it. You should also always read the auth notes. Enjoy!
August 8, 2025
Strong Characters
Characterization continues to be solid, and the battle with Murphy's laws and corrilaries continues apace! Evil characters are evil, and they struggle with remaining honorable in the face of unforseen dangers.
Characterization continues to be solid, and the battle with Murphy's laws and corrilaries continues apace! Evil characters are evil, and they struggle with remaining honorable in the face of unforseen dangers.
February 7, 2019
Just wonderful
Wow!!! So much happened in this story. Maybe Reynolds will reintegrate in the final story. Still waiting for Reynolds to get super weapons and the crew to meet BA.
Wow!!! So much happened in this story. Maybe Reynolds will reintegrate in the final story. Still waiting for Reynolds to get super weapons and the crew to meet BA.
February 12, 2019
Thoroughly enjoyed
I loved the book from start to finish, and am quite disappointed to hear that there's only one left in the series,.
I loved the book from start to finish, and am quite disappointed to hear that there's only one left in the series,.
February 14, 2019
Great battle
Reynolds comes upon a species more advanced and for the first time is vulnerable but all is not as it seems.
Reynolds comes upon a species more advanced and for the first time is vulnerable but all is not as it seems.
February 18, 2019
Another great episode
Lots of action and intrigue and some cool new allies. This is a great must read series. If you haven't started it you should, if you have, dive in!!
Lots of action and intrigue and some cool new allies. This is a great must read series. If you haven't started it you should, if you have, dive in!!
February 18, 2019
So loving this series!!!
Reynolds just got a level up from the looks of things!
Maybe the Gulg used the Etheric to teleport?
Howard S
Reynolds just got a level up from the looks of things!
Maybe the Gulg used the Etheric to teleport?
Howard S
October 1, 2019
Lovely book.
Enjoyable installment in the saga of SD Reynolds and his stalwart crew. I'm looking forward to seeing where the next book takes them.
Enjoyable installment in the saga of SD Reynolds and his stalwart crew. I'm looking forward to seeing where the next book takes them.
October 8, 2019
Another exciting action packed story
Well done! Little hard to believe Reynolds is so powerful when he keeps getting his ass kicked. Beware lots of swearing in this book.
Well done! Little hard to believe Reynolds is so powerful when he keeps getting his ass kicked. Beware lots of swearing in this book.
October 28, 2019
This story keeps getting better and better!
February 25, 2023
At some points quite entertaining. Rest mostly readable
July 30, 2024
Best one of the series, so far.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews