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Birthright #2
Northwest Passage
Former military super-commando Cal Mitchell is enjoying the pastoral life on his remote star colony home of Canaan, having put the fight against the Corporate Council behind him.
But his past comes back to haunt him when a hired assassin makes an attempt on his life. On the heels of this threat, his old friend and former partner Deke Conner and DSI agent Kara McIntire arrive to warn him of a new conspiracy by old enemies, and this time the stakes are no lower than the fate of the galaxy.
The hunt is on for the fabled Northwest Passage, the extra-dimensional pathway that will give its discoverer access to the rest of the universe…and perhaps to the magical technology of the long-lost Predecessors, an ancient race of aliens who left behind an incredible legacy of terraformed worlds and wormhole passages.
The quest for the Northwest Passage will take Caleb and his friends and family to the farthest reaches of the Commonwealth and beyond into the unknown, where the prize for success may be an even darker fate than the price of failure.
But his past comes back to haunt him when a hired assassin makes an attempt on his life. On the heels of this threat, his old friend and former partner Deke Conner and DSI agent Kara McIntire arrive to warn him of a new conspiracy by old enemies, and this time the stakes are no lower than the fate of the galaxy.
The hunt is on for the fabled Northwest Passage, the extra-dimensional pathway that will give its discoverer access to the rest of the universe…and perhaps to the magical technology of the long-lost Predecessors, an ancient race of aliens who left behind an incredible legacy of terraformed worlds and wormhole passages.
The quest for the Northwest Passage will take Caleb and his friends and family to the farthest reaches of the Commonwealth and beyond into the unknown, where the prize for success may be an even darker fate than the price of failure.
349 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 17, 2015
191 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
Rick Partlow
207 books372 followersRick Partlow is that rarest of species, a native Floridian. Born in Tampa, he attended Florida Southern College and graduated with a degree in History and a commission in the US Army as an Infantry officer.
His lifelong love of science fiction began with Have Space Suit---Will Travel and the other Heinlein juveniles and traveled through Clifford Simak, Asimov, Clarke and on to William Gibson, Walter Jon Williams and Peter F Hamilton. And somewhere, submerged in the worlds of others, Rick began to create his own worlds.
He has written over 70 books in over a dozen different series, and his short stories have been included in many different anthologies.
He currently lives in norther Wyoming with his wife and their dog. Besides writing and reading science fiction and fantasy, he enjoys outdoor photography, hiking and camping.
His lifelong love of science fiction began with Have Space Suit---Will Travel and the other Heinlein juveniles and traveled through Clifford Simak, Asimov, Clarke and on to William Gibson, Walter Jon Williams and Peter F Hamilton. And somewhere, submerged in the worlds of others, Rick began to create his own worlds.
He has written over 70 books in over a dozen different series, and his short stories have been included in many different anthologies.
He currently lives in norther Wyoming with his wife and their dog. Besides writing and reading science fiction and fantasy, he enjoys outdoor photography, hiking and camping.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 22, 2022
A wild ride!
This is an interesting idea where you get to see what happens to different people during the war against the Tahni although it condenses the story into fewer books than the original Drop Trooper series. It remains interesting so I plan on reading the rest of the series.
This is an interesting idea where you get to see what happens to different people during the war against the Tahni although it condenses the story into fewer books than the original Drop Trooper series. It remains interesting so I plan on reading the rest of the series.
March 9, 2023
After reading the book I’m going to concur with some other reviews I've read, which is, not too bad, enough going on that kept me interested and entertained. Although the author does insert a few chapters from the previous book to fill in, which I ignored, no need to read it twice. Caleb trying to fight against his inner demons and conditioning but ultimately failing and giving in to the “machine” to protect his wife and brother, although I think his brother is superfluous to the story. A few twists and turns along the way adds to the intrigue, all in all a decent read.
August 31, 2024
Excellent
"Northwest Passage" is another excellent book in the Drop Trooper Universe. This has mort surprises in it , and Rick sets them up beautifully. The action is hard and fast paced. If you like the other books in this universe, you will also enjoy this book as much as the others.
"Northwest Passage" is another excellent book in the Drop Trooper Universe. This has mort surprises in it , and Rick sets them up beautifully. The action is hard and fast paced. If you like the other books in this universe, you will also enjoy this book as much as the others.
March 28, 2023
Enjoyable but not 100%
I enjoyed the story but less than the previous book. I fear that the storyline is going to move to less aliens and adventures to more treacherous and slow moving politics.
The tendancy towards this was clearly visible in this book. I hope I'm wrong
I enjoyed the story but less than the previous book. I fear that the storyline is going to move to less aliens and adventures to more treacherous and slow moving politics.
The tendancy towards this was clearly visible in this book. I hope I'm wrong
October 1, 2022
Not too bad
Reads well but too much cut and paste from previous book. Good balance of romantic and sexual relationships. Will continue reading this author.
Reads well but too much cut and paste from previous book. Good balance of romantic and sexual relationships. Will continue reading this author.
October 7, 2022
repetition
I understand I need to go back and cover the old material for the reader to understand the situation. Bringing it back Word for Word is truly boring.
I understand I need to go back and cover the old material for the reader to understand the situation. Bringing it back Word for Word is truly boring.
May 17, 2024
Northwest Passage book 3
Another good book in the series. Definitely had me guessing at the end of the book what was fact and what was fiction/ miss direction.
Another good book in the series. Definitely had me guessing at the end of the book what was fact and what was fiction/ miss direction.
November 23, 2024
riveting
The twist and turn of story kept the suspense on high. Once again, Rick Paltrow storytelling shined. Highly recommended for any military SciFi enthusiast.
The twist and turn of story kept the suspense on high. Once again, Rick Paltrow storytelling shined. Highly recommended for any military SciFi enthusiast.
September 3, 2025
Riviting
As usual, a command performance. On thing I really like about Partlow, is the way somehow in every chapter, he uses a word that
I have to look up to understand!!
As usual, a command performance. On thing I really like about Partlow, is the way somehow in every chapter, he uses a word that
I have to look up to understand!!
June 5, 2021
Rick Partlow is fast becoming one of my very favorite authors. I'm re-reading his "Birthright" series which I never do, but I didn't realize at the time of the first reading that it even was a series. But, here we are with book 2, "Northwest Passage", and I'm very glad I picked this series back up. Their are some very easy to understand characters starting with Caleb Mitchell and his wife, Rachel. With them is the Tahni cyborg, Trint. They are all comfortably living on the planet Canaan, for a while, anyway. Then there's Deke Conner and Kara Mcintire. These two had gone their separate ways until just recently. Now they are together and headed for Canaan.
It's been four years since the breakup of the Corporate Council by Mitchell and his friends. That had been a very tough job from which he was surprised everyone survived. Even his wife, Rachel, got involved when she was kidnapped by the then Council Chairman. Things didn't go well for the Chairman once he did that and one of the main reasons is because he pissed off his Tahni Imperial Guard cyborg. Trint, as he was called eventually killed the Chairman as a results of protecting Rachel. Now he's one friend you always want around. He's on Canaan at Mitchell's request and granted by General Murdock. But, the peace and serenity is about to be drastically interrupted.
Caleb noticed this huge think coming for him from across the field. It appeared to be a genetically engineered heavy-worlder called a Titan. While not extremely tall due to the heavy gravity they habitually worked in, they were very strong and made great assassins! That appears to be what this one is attempting to do, assassinate Caleb Mitchell! Well, we all know that Caleb isn't a normal human either. He was genetically enhanced for the war and that has served him well in civilian life as a Constable. His fight with the Titan goes as everyone figured with Mitchell eventually downing the monster! Of course Rachel and Trint are aware of what happened then they are informed that Deke and Kara are on their way to Canaan to "talk" to Mitchell. Rachel definitely doesn't like the sound of that.
It turns out that their "talk" was more of informing Mitchell that General Murdock had gone missing. No one was sure why or how he had come up missing, but they were beginning to worry since no one had heard from him in quite some time. General Murdock wasn't someone that just wander around on his own, yet this time, it appears that he went somewhere to meet with someone. Deke and Kara needed Mitchells assistance because it might directly involve something that no one wanted to deal with and that was Predecessor weapons. They believe that the General had a lead on some Predecessor technology and was trying to keep it out of the hands of the next bad guy. That "next bad guy" appears to be the former Director of DSI (Department of Security and Intelligence) named Andy Gregorian. It was thought that he might well be the one that had kidnapped General Murdock if anyone had done it at all.
So, of course Mitchell agrees to help Deke and Kara go find General Mitchell. Rachel refuses to let him leave her behind so she demands to go along as does Trint. Well, he didn't demand anything. He just said he was going and no one argued! They are off first to Starfleet Headquarters to talk to the second in command and see what he knows. Surely General Murdock clued him in on his pending activities. While they didn't get much information out of him, they did figure out where General Murdock might have gone. They were headed that way when a Predecessor starship began attacking the Starfleet Headquarters! While that didn't seem a very smart thing to do, they noticed that this single ship was not being harmed by any of the starfleet fighters and other larger ships. In fact, it was cutting down everything in sight.
Now that they know someone is using Predecessor technology and weapons, they need to find out where that stuff is coming from. Has someone found another ancient archeology location full of Predecessor tech or has someone from outside the galaxy found a way in? According to the Predecessors, they had sealed off this part of the galaxy from the outside to prevent the very enemy that destroyed them from coming and destroying all humanity. The enemy of the Predecessors was known as the Skrela. If they had found a way into our galaxy, then everything was doomed, unless Mitchell and friends could close off that entry point where every it was!
So far, each of these books have a beginning and end so you can read one without having to read the next to find out what happened. That's kind of good since it gives you a breather, but after this book, I can't imagine what's coming in the next book, "Enemy of My Enemy", but I'll be reading it!
It's been four years since the breakup of the Corporate Council by Mitchell and his friends. That had been a very tough job from which he was surprised everyone survived. Even his wife, Rachel, got involved when she was kidnapped by the then Council Chairman. Things didn't go well for the Chairman once he did that and one of the main reasons is because he pissed off his Tahni Imperial Guard cyborg. Trint, as he was called eventually killed the Chairman as a results of protecting Rachel. Now he's one friend you always want around. He's on Canaan at Mitchell's request and granted by General Murdock. But, the peace and serenity is about to be drastically interrupted.
Caleb noticed this huge think coming for him from across the field. It appeared to be a genetically engineered heavy-worlder called a Titan. While not extremely tall due to the heavy gravity they habitually worked in, they were very strong and made great assassins! That appears to be what this one is attempting to do, assassinate Caleb Mitchell! Well, we all know that Caleb isn't a normal human either. He was genetically enhanced for the war and that has served him well in civilian life as a Constable. His fight with the Titan goes as everyone figured with Mitchell eventually downing the monster! Of course Rachel and Trint are aware of what happened then they are informed that Deke and Kara are on their way to Canaan to "talk" to Mitchell. Rachel definitely doesn't like the sound of that.
It turns out that their "talk" was more of informing Mitchell that General Murdock had gone missing. No one was sure why or how he had come up missing, but they were beginning to worry since no one had heard from him in quite some time. General Murdock wasn't someone that just wander around on his own, yet this time, it appears that he went somewhere to meet with someone. Deke and Kara needed Mitchells assistance because it might directly involve something that no one wanted to deal with and that was Predecessor weapons. They believe that the General had a lead on some Predecessor technology and was trying to keep it out of the hands of the next bad guy. That "next bad guy" appears to be the former Director of DSI (Department of Security and Intelligence) named Andy Gregorian. It was thought that he might well be the one that had kidnapped General Murdock if anyone had done it at all.
So, of course Mitchell agrees to help Deke and Kara go find General Mitchell. Rachel refuses to let him leave her behind so she demands to go along as does Trint. Well, he didn't demand anything. He just said he was going and no one argued! They are off first to Starfleet Headquarters to talk to the second in command and see what he knows. Surely General Murdock clued him in on his pending activities. While they didn't get much information out of him, they did figure out where General Murdock might have gone. They were headed that way when a Predecessor starship began attacking the Starfleet Headquarters! While that didn't seem a very smart thing to do, they noticed that this single ship was not being harmed by any of the starfleet fighters and other larger ships. In fact, it was cutting down everything in sight.
Now that they know someone is using Predecessor technology and weapons, they need to find out where that stuff is coming from. Has someone found another ancient archeology location full of Predecessor tech or has someone from outside the galaxy found a way in? According to the Predecessors, they had sealed off this part of the galaxy from the outside to prevent the very enemy that destroyed them from coming and destroying all humanity. The enemy of the Predecessors was known as the Skrela. If they had found a way into our galaxy, then everything was doomed, unless Mitchell and friends could close off that entry point where every it was!
So far, each of these books have a beginning and end so you can read one without having to read the next to find out what happened. That's kind of good since it gives you a breather, but after this book, I can't imagine what's coming in the next book, "Enemy of My Enemy", but I'll be reading it!
January 30, 2017
Protecting Interstellar Humanity & Friends
Partlow, in this second volume, continues his original approach to exploration/military space opera with lots of action, complex plot twists, interesting character development and creativity. The plot is so complex that I have read difficulty summarizing it. My summary after reading this is darn enjoyable space opera.
I think Partlow must have sketched out a volume between the first and second, but he transmits the experiences in flashbacks. I would have preferred to read the entire story, rather than follow characters as they provided individuals recollections of the experience. That's a relatively minor complaint. I look forward to reading more from Partlow!
Partlow, in this second volume, continues his original approach to exploration/military space opera with lots of action, complex plot twists, interesting character development and creativity. The plot is so complex that I have read difficulty summarizing it. My summary after reading this is darn enjoyable space opera.
I think Partlow must have sketched out a volume between the first and second, but he transmits the experiences in flashbacks. I would have preferred to read the entire story, rather than follow characters as they provided individuals recollections of the experience. That's a relatively minor complaint. I look forward to reading more from Partlow!
August 24, 2016
Great continuation of the story. All the characters are back and better than ever. There were some decent plot twists albeit very logical. Rick does a great job of describing what the different characters are seeing/experiencing. My only knock is that most of the characters 'read' the same without much variation in style, driving force, or attitude. I think there is a third book which I'm going to seek out to continue this journey. Great job Rick!
August 11, 2020
Liked the story, plenty of action, plenty of story.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews