Saturday, March 9, 2013

The Last Praetorian - Mike Smith

The Last Praetorian is the first book in the Redemption Trilogy. This book is free for the kindle. The story doesn't have a real cliff hanger, but you'll still want to read the second book.

Jonathan Radec was the commander of the elite praetorian guard, and personal bodyguard to the emperor. When the empire collapsed Jon blamed himself and never stops trying to pay for what he sees as his mistakes. As the CEO of Vanguard Shipping, Jon now fights against the corrupt syndicate that's trying to take over the sector. The syndicate has targeted Jon and Vanguard Shipping for elimination. Epic fighter duels and space battles are the spice in a solid hard science fiction story.

There were two part of this novel that slowed me down. The first was too much introspection. It would have been better if the story had kept flowing, instead of wasting pages on guilt and worry. The second was the chapter headings with superfluous information: "Present day (five years later) Terra Nova, Zeta Aquilae System" Why can't the narrative explain the where and when? Especially when the where changes mid-chapter anyway. Other novels do. That said I still really liked this book and hopefully I'll get to read the rest of the trilogy. Highly recommended.

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