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The Renegades #1
Renegades
Elora Pertin spent her life trying to please her father, an esteemed General for the Empire.
When he convinced her to leave her quiet life as a scientist to advance a secret project for the Emperor, she had no idea what she was getting into. The seemingly innocent projects she engineered were actually being used to develop a genocidal weapon. After uncovering the Emperor’s plot, Elora had no choice but to act.
Elora finds herself fighting for her life against the Empire she once served, abandoning everything with only a handful of friends and an unlikely ally—the Emperor’s deadliest assassin. Will he prove himself true as her protector, a loyal servant of the Empire, or a romantic distraction? With the law and assassins searching the star system for them, Elora and her team are determined to accomplish their mission . . . or die trying.
When he convinced her to leave her quiet life as a scientist to advance a secret project for the Emperor, she had no idea what she was getting into. The seemingly innocent projects she engineered were actually being used to develop a genocidal weapon. After uncovering the Emperor’s plot, Elora had no choice but to act.
Elora finds herself fighting for her life against the Empire she once served, abandoning everything with only a handful of friends and an unlikely ally—the Emperor’s deadliest assassin. Will he prove himself true as her protector, a loyal servant of the Empire, or a romantic distraction? With the law and assassins searching the star system for them, Elora and her team are determined to accomplish their mission . . . or die trying.
- GenresScience Fiction
262 pages, Paperback
First published October 31, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 12, 2014
Elora Pertin spent her life trying to please her father, an esteemed General for the Empire.
When he convinced her to leave her quiet life as a scientist to advance a secret project for the Emperor, she had no idea what she was getting into. The seemingly innocent projects she engineered were actually being used to develop a genocidal weapon. After uncovering the Emperor’s plot, Elora had no choice but to act.
Elora finds herself fighting for her life against the Empire she once served, abandoning everything with only a handful of friends and an unlikely ally—the Emperor’s deadliest assassin. Will he prove himself true as her protector, a loyal servant of the Empire, or a romantic distraction? With the law and assassins searching the star system for them, Elora and her team are determined to accomplish their mission . . . or die trying.
My REVIEW
If you enjoy a good adventure SF 'space opera' style story, with good, strong characters and a page turning plot 'Renegades' is for you. I found S A Mason's debut novel a quick, easy read and the characters were well drawn, varied and likeable. Oh apart from the Emperor Unyasa, of course. It's difficult to find anything very likeable about him, but then, he is the villain in this story, even if he does believe he is acting to protect the planet.
Mordecai, on the other hand is something else! At first he seems nothing more than a cold blooded assassin, although the first description of him: "He was tall with shaggy dark hair, slightly curly on the ends. He had a strong jaw, and as she moved up his face, she saw he was looking at her in the mirror. His eyes were dark—almost as black as his clothes." had me intrigued from the start. There is more to Mordecai than is initially apparant and he has reason to be the way he is.
Elora is devoted to her father, and agrees to leave the well paid job she enjoys, on the planet she has grown to love, to participate in a secret project for the Emperor, but she soon realises that if she proceeds with the work it will mean the annihilation of a whole planet. She might be anxious to please her father, but she is far too strong willed to meekly obey without regard to the consequences.
The supporting characters are likeable too. Nigel her bumbling and slightly gauche colleague is a brilliant computer geek and finds it hard to hide his love for Elora and hopes his affection will eventually be returned. Bylis and Zovani, who own a starship and unintentionally become involved in the plot to thwart the emperor's plans, are brothers who are very different, but also interesting in their own right.
There were a few editing errors here and there, 'crumbled clothes' :) and the odd shift into present tense, but not enough to mar my enjoyment of the story. (They are the only reason I award a high four stars rather than five) The story is fast-paced, moving swiftly toward a nail biting climax, and there are a few surprises before the last page is reached; I now anxiously await the author's second book Redemption.
April 21, 2014
I received a free copy of the book from the author for my honest opinion.
Elora Pertin was raised by her father to always be a honorable and loyal servant to the Empire. Elora's father is a General in the Empire's army and is very loyal to the Emperor himself. Elora lives and works as a scientist on a different planet than her father. But her father talks her into leaving her job and coming to live and work for the Emperor making a weapon of mass destruction. When Elora figures out what is going on and what the Emperor has her doing she wants no part of it.
When Elora is roughly jerked out of bed from a dead sleep in the middle of the and someone is twisting her neck which almost breaks it but then all of a sudden the dude dressed all in black for whatever reason decides that he can't kill her and lets her go. He then makes it is place to watch over her and keep her safe. He hides her out in his home and when the Empire finds out they have to run away and leave the planet. This dude was also sent to kill Elora's co-worker Nigel as well but Elora talks him out of it.
While they are all trying to get off the planet alive they meet some new friends. These two guys help them to get off the planet in their ship. They own a private ship that takes people from planet to planet. I guess it is like a taxi spaceship. When the two brothers find out what is going on and why they are running they decide to join them in their quest.
Elora knew what she had to do and she did it. Elora was not as good at fighting as the assassin or the brothers were but she could stand on her own two feet or at least she gave it her best shot. But her little friend Nigel would run and hide in the corner beside the bed when the sh**t hit the fan. He would go hide because he was afraid that someone was going to mess up his pretty little face. That is just my opinion of him and what kind of person he was it never said that in the book. He was very attracted to Elora and was jealous of the assassin but he was too afraid to fight for her. I guess I have to say ole' Nigel was a computer geek; you know he was more of a lover and not a fighter kind of person.
I loved the world that the author built in Renegades. I loved that you could just hope on a train or subway type spaceship or even a taxi or a private spaceship and travel from planet to planet. You could live on one planet while your family lived on another. I thought that was so cool. I have always wished that I could travel around in space like the folks on Star Trek. That would be so cool. It would be out of this world cool!
Renegade has a little bit of something for different folks. It has a touch of love, suspense, murder, conspiracy along with a space travel just to name a few of its attributes. I can't wait to read more about Elora and her friends in the next book Redemption.
Elora Pertin was raised by her father to always be a honorable and loyal servant to the Empire. Elora's father is a General in the Empire's army and is very loyal to the Emperor himself. Elora lives and works as a scientist on a different planet than her father. But her father talks her into leaving her job and coming to live and work for the Emperor making a weapon of mass destruction. When Elora figures out what is going on and what the Emperor has her doing she wants no part of it.
When Elora is roughly jerked out of bed from a dead sleep in the middle of the and someone is twisting her neck which almost breaks it but then all of a sudden the dude dressed all in black for whatever reason decides that he can't kill her and lets her go. He then makes it is place to watch over her and keep her safe. He hides her out in his home and when the Empire finds out they have to run away and leave the planet. This dude was also sent to kill Elora's co-worker Nigel as well but Elora talks him out of it.
While they are all trying to get off the planet alive they meet some new friends. These two guys help them to get off the planet in their ship. They own a private ship that takes people from planet to planet. I guess it is like a taxi spaceship. When the two brothers find out what is going on and why they are running they decide to join them in their quest.
Elora knew what she had to do and she did it. Elora was not as good at fighting as the assassin or the brothers were but she could stand on her own two feet or at least she gave it her best shot. But her little friend Nigel would run and hide in the corner beside the bed when the sh**t hit the fan. He would go hide because he was afraid that someone was going to mess up his pretty little face. That is just my opinion of him and what kind of person he was it never said that in the book. He was very attracted to Elora and was jealous of the assassin but he was too afraid to fight for her. I guess I have to say ole' Nigel was a computer geek; you know he was more of a lover and not a fighter kind of person.
I loved the world that the author built in Renegades. I loved that you could just hope on a train or subway type spaceship or even a taxi or a private spaceship and travel from planet to planet. You could live on one planet while your family lived on another. I thought that was so cool. I have always wished that I could travel around in space like the folks on Star Trek. That would be so cool. It would be out of this world cool!
Renegade has a little bit of something for different folks. It has a touch of love, suspense, murder, conspiracy along with a space travel just to name a few of its attributes. I can't wait to read more about Elora and her friends in the next book Redemption.
December 31, 2013
I won this book on FirstReads! The author sent me a lovely signed copy of her book. So thanks for that!
In general, I felt kinda meh about this book. It was fast-paced and fairly action-packed, but it all felt rather simplistic. The story was interesting enough, but it wasn't anything I haven’t read before. The prose was OK, not bad, but nothing really spectacular either. There were a few weird inconsistencies . There was not as much world building as I would have liked, I don’t feel like I have a good idea of what the universe looks and feels like, other than the “capital” planet or "military" planet or the “prison” planet (although I do admit the premise of the prison planet was really really cool), etc. Overall, it read a little too intro-to-sci-fi for my personal tastes. I usually prefer more expansive world building, political intrigue, military tactics, etc. But I think this book would be a good intro for someone less familiar with the genre, or someone looking for a quick, fast-paced read.
In general, I felt kinda meh about this book. It was fast-paced and fairly action-packed, but it all felt rather simplistic. The story was interesting enough, but it wasn't anything I haven’t read before. The prose was OK, not bad, but nothing really spectacular either. There were a few weird inconsistencies . There was not as much world building as I would have liked, I don’t feel like I have a good idea of what the universe looks and feels like, other than the “capital” planet or "military" planet or the “prison” planet (although I do admit the premise of the prison planet was really really cool), etc. Overall, it read a little too intro-to-sci-fi for my personal tastes. I usually prefer more expansive world building, political intrigue, military tactics, etc. But I think this book would be a good intro for someone less familiar with the genre, or someone looking for a quick, fast-paced read.
September 27, 2014
Elora Pertin (scientist) works on Naruta (planet). She is the daughter of 4 * General Ladok Pertin of the Unyasa Empire.
General Pertin talked Elora into heading up a secret project (deadly weapon canister, adimath; rare metal) for the Emperor Ademos Unyasa of the Unyasa Empire (7 planets). Kress is the planet capital.
Elora & Nigel Radmir (Elora lover, designed security system, Innovative Engineering Corporation) have a 3 day deadline to meet & end up getting transported by Zovani Nalakel (private space ship transport) & Bylis Nalakel (brother).
Emperor Ademos Unyasa finds out some things he doesn’t like from Beck (new security supervisor) about the 2 & decides to send Mordecai (assassin #1) to whack them.
Well low & behold Mordecai has a heart & helps the 2 to escape. Now all of them are being hunted down by other assassins.
The plan is for all of them to go to Tingard (military planet, academy) & destroy the genocidal weapon that Elora created.
Will Elora & Mordecai fall in love?
Politics don’t you just love them. Will their mission be accomplished?
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written outer space sci-fi book. It was very easy to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. No grammar errors, but several typo errors (older Microsoft program?) but no repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make great outer space sci-fi movie, animated cartoon, or mini TV series (The Palmer Supremacy). To be continued. There is no doubt in my mind this is a very easy rating of 5 stars.
Thank you for the free Autographed Goodreads book (& the cool page marker)
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
General Pertin talked Elora into heading up a secret project (deadly weapon canister, adimath; rare metal) for the Emperor Ademos Unyasa of the Unyasa Empire (7 planets). Kress is the planet capital.
Elora & Nigel Radmir (Elora lover, designed security system, Innovative Engineering Corporation) have a 3 day deadline to meet & end up getting transported by Zovani Nalakel (private space ship transport) & Bylis Nalakel (brother).
Emperor Ademos Unyasa finds out some things he doesn’t like from Beck (new security supervisor) about the 2 & decides to send Mordecai (assassin #1) to whack them.
Well low & behold Mordecai has a heart & helps the 2 to escape. Now all of them are being hunted down by other assassins.
The plan is for all of them to go to Tingard (military planet, academy) & destroy the genocidal weapon that Elora created.
Will Elora & Mordecai fall in love?
Politics don’t you just love them. Will their mission be accomplished?
A very awesome book cover, great font & writing style. A very well written outer space sci-fi book. It was very easy to read/follow from start/finish & never a dull moment. No grammar errors, but several typo errors (older Microsoft program?) but no repetitive or out of line sequence sentences. Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make great outer space sci-fi movie, animated cartoon, or mini TV series (The Palmer Supremacy). To be continued. There is no doubt in my mind this is a very easy rating of 5 stars.
Thank you for the free Autographed Goodreads book (& the cool page marker)
Tony Parsons MSW (Washburn)
November 11, 2013
Elora Pertin is the daughter of a high ranking General of the Unyasa Empire that spans multiple planets within their star system. She is also a brilliant scientist who is enlisted by the Emperor himself to develop a deadly weapon. Upon completion of her work she tests the weapon to find that it could be used to kill millions of people, and that a massive genocide might actually be it's true purpose. Impulsively she looks to uncover the truth and when she does she finds herself a fugitive and on the run from assassins, but she is clear on one thing, she will destroy the weapon she created or die trying.
The characters are very well developed, you couldn't help but to fall in love with most of them (naturally depending on your own personality these will differ). The characters were very believable and you want to see them succeed.
I personally love the world creation, the thought of an empire spanning multiple planets, I would have loved to have read more about the Unyasa history and would have been engulfed.
The action is well balanced with comic relief, and some romance, and a little unrequited love. Some of this annoyed me because of my own thoughts on the characters, but was well written by the author.
I would highly recommend this to anyone who is a fan a sci-fi fiction, and really anyone who enjoys some action and romance, the science fiction was highly present as to turn anyone off.
The characters are very well developed, you couldn't help but to fall in love with most of them (naturally depending on your own personality these will differ). The characters were very believable and you want to see them succeed.
I personally love the world creation, the thought of an empire spanning multiple planets, I would have loved to have read more about the Unyasa history and would have been engulfed.
The action is well balanced with comic relief, and some romance, and a little unrequited love. Some of this annoyed me because of my own thoughts on the characters, but was well written by the author.
I would highly recommend this to anyone who is a fan a sci-fi fiction, and really anyone who enjoys some action and romance, the science fiction was highly present as to turn anyone off.
April 29, 2014
Renegades surprised me; I went into the book thinking that I would have a hard time of this story, it being a sci-fi. The blurb gives enough away to make it seem like a space-political-thriller, but the book did not come off like that at all. Mordecai was not the soulless assassin that he was portrayed, but neither is he all hearts and fuzzies on the inside. It's a pure coincidence that Elora is not shipped off to the afterlife on meeting him, and a string of other consequences as well.
But you do have to feel sorry for Nigel. No matter what the poor boy does, he just isn't getting the girl. That would be the job of Mr Tall-Dark-and-Hansom. Bylis and Zor are fun, but know when to be serious. Though, admittedly, I think their story would have been a much better kicker.
Spelling and Grammar aside, this is a delightful romp of a book, spanning all the known galaxies – and even a couple of unknown planets as well.
4/5
But you do have to feel sorry for Nigel. No matter what the poor boy does, he just isn't getting the girl. That would be the job of Mr Tall-Dark-and-Hansom. Bylis and Zor are fun, but know when to be serious. Though, admittedly, I think their story would have been a much better kicker.
Spelling and Grammar aside, this is a delightful romp of a book, spanning all the known galaxies – and even a couple of unknown planets as well.
4/5
July 19, 2016
4.5 Stars
I really enjoyed this book! What a great adventure it took me on.
From the world building to the characters, to the fast paced plot line. This was one incredible book.
The world they live on in this story is very interesting and left me quite intrigued, I think I could read a whole book on the history of Unyasa alone! The world building was very well done. I feel that a lot of books these days spend too much time in character development and plot that the world building is almost forgotten, that was definitely not the case with Renegades.. My curiosity still has left me wanting more information though!
The characters were very well defined and developed that by the end of the book I was very much attached to them, the good and the bad.
I think Renegades definitely has a little something for everyone and people should go get themselves a copy ASAP!
I really enjoyed this book! What a great adventure it took me on.
From the world building to the characters, to the fast paced plot line. This was one incredible book.
The world they live on in this story is very interesting and left me quite intrigued, I think I could read a whole book on the history of Unyasa alone! The world building was very well done. I feel that a lot of books these days spend too much time in character development and plot that the world building is almost forgotten, that was definitely not the case with Renegades.. My curiosity still has left me wanting more information though!
The characters were very well defined and developed that by the end of the book I was very much attached to them, the good and the bad.
I think Renegades definitely has a little something for everyone and people should go get themselves a copy ASAP!
February 26, 2014
I loved this book! This story was sci-fi without being too unbelieveable or cheesy. I found myself eagerly waiting to see what would happen next; there was not a boring moment to be found in this book! The main characters are also so unique and enthralling that I easily fell in love with them. This book embodies what reading is about: an entertaining ride through an exciting world with characters that you wish you could meet and when you're done all you can do is smile. Can't wait to read the second one! I won this book through GoodReads FirstReads program.
December 16, 2014
I love the action in this story and I so love Elora. She so brave and smart with a great heart. Then there is Mordecai the Emperor number one assassin. Nigel who is Elora best friend but he is so in love with her. Then there is the two brothers Zovani and Bylis who are just amazing and so funny. In this story there is all kinds of action and twist that you can't help love this story it is freaking awesome. So a must read!!!!
April 4, 2014
Fast paced SF thriller with well developed characters. What happens when an evil emperor makes plans against the empire? This story keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout. If you like Science Fiction you will like this one too.
The story has Nigel the computer geek, Elora the smart and spunky woman, General Pertin, trained assassins and a love interest. All the romance, space travel, and explosions that SF fans enjoy.
The story has Nigel the computer geek, Elora the smart and spunky woman, General Pertin, trained assassins and a love interest. All the romance, space travel, and explosions that SF fans enjoy.
January 3, 2014
After reading this book, I was really bummed that I have to wait for the next book to come out. I could not put it down. It was a great first book from this author. I think she has lots of talent, and an excellent future as a writer.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews