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Empire of Bones Saga #3
Command Decisions
Between a rock and a hard place!
After winning a hard-fought victory, Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey discover another insidious foe blocking their way home. A remnant of the Old Empire still exists and seems allied with the savage, AI-dominated Pale Ones.
With the existence of the Terran Empire at stake, another enemy, this one from Jared’s past, threatens everything they’ve worked so hard to achieve. Jared and Kelsey must fight for survival while the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.
After winning a hard-fought victory, Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey discover another insidious foe blocking their way home. A remnant of the Old Empire still exists and seems allied with the savage, AI-dominated Pale Ones.
With the existence of the Terran Empire at stake, another enemy, this one from Jared’s past, threatens everything they’ve worked so hard to achieve. Jared and Kelsey must fight for survival while the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 16, 2015
454 people are currently reading
123 people want to read
About the author
Terry Mixon
87 books299 followers#1 Bestselling Military Science Fiction author Terry Mixon served as a non-commissioned officer in the United States Army 101st Airborne Division. He later worked alongside the flight controllers in the Mission Control Center at the NASA Johnson Space Center supporting the Space Shuttle, the International Space Station, and other human spaceflight projects.
He now writes full time while living in Texas with his lovely wife and a pounce of cats.
He now writes full time while living in Texas with his lovely wife and a pounce of cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
May 21, 2017
Oh man! I know there's more to this history of the Rebel Empire and AI's. And I want to know it! What was the intent of the ship Invincible that they found? There are connections to the planet. Dang! I want more! This book ends with the big battle in space, but leaves me wanting more with the curiosity of what will happen on the planet they found. Thank heavens I have the next audio book!
****FULL REVIEW****
*I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.
Captain Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey have been living in Pentagaran space since the fight with the Pale Ones that crippled their ship. They've been working to get Courageous up to speed along with helping Pentagar build their fleet of ships to fight the Rebels when they return to Erorsi. Surprisingly, six ships from the Empire come through the weak flip point that has stranded Jared and his crew here. And the captain is one who's not a fan of Jared's and difficult to work with. Jared and Kelsey have their work cut out for them on all sides of the line as battles come faster then they hoped.
Veronica has returned for the next Empire of Bones novel, yea! She voices each person as their own. The characters have their own voice tone and personality. By doing this Veronica makes listening entertaining and easy to differentiate the large cast of characters. Thank you! The audio is clear and easy to listen to.
I love the character interactions here! The ones we love are here and interacting better than we ever hoped. Relationships of all kind are growing stronger. I absolutely love Jared and Kelsey. Then their's Elise and Talbot and all others that surround them. All are amazing people and lived through so much already. Kelsey gets to demonstrate her power as second in line to the throne (of the Empire) and it's awesome! Add to it the strength she holds from the implants. Dang that woman is a force to reckon with.
Kelsey. Wow. She's such a strong female character. She's everything wrapped into one little package. She's small, but she is mighty! She has the power to verbally put people into place and quick thinking to get around things. But with her implants, she's also a physically strong woman. Everyone tries to protect her with being the princess, but she can protect herself just the same. Jared faced the frustrating prejudice he has always faced in the Empire as the Kings illegitimate son. I feel he does this with the honor he feels he should, and accepts it. However another doesn't see it that way and feels Jared is worth more credit (tons more!) than he's given. There is a direction taken in the story for this very reason, and it's well deserved.
Then we have new members added. Oh, the new captain we see... Captain Breckenridge. Grrr. I hate him when we meet him. And continue to not care for him as the story goes. Though, he is written to be that way. He's a stubborn old man that won't listen but thinks he knows all. Grrr. He adds a new challenge to the story. I found I was not looking forward to seeing him in scenes because he was just trouble, but I love Kelsey as she stands up to him.
The ships from home that are now stuck in space with them adds a new difficulty in Kelsey and Jared's lives. They are already working to prepare for fights that are coming. And there are more to worry about getting home or what they are going to do next.
The AI and computer connections are starting to unfold for Kelsey and Jared. Wow. The things that we learn here. I'm stunned. And the potential of what's yet to come by learning this... Oh this is so good. Then there's what we learn of the Rebel Empire forces that were to come in contact with the AI on Erorsi (which was found)... The connections are becoming open to us with Kelsey, Jared, and Elise and so many more.
Oh Terry has done an amazing job of creating a system with the Empire I find believable. And the history to go with it! I love the chain of command we see in the space fleet. We get to see that a bit more here. I get the feel we are constantly moving forward with the characters, never going backward - except for that darn new Captain getting in our way, even then things move forward. There is always something to explore and learn about here. And Kelsey is written in a way that she wants to hear all opposing thoughts, which opens up the story even more. Wonderfully written!
Oh man! I know there's more to this history of the Rebel Empire and AI's. And I want to know it! What was the intent of the ship Invincible that they found? There are connections to the planet. Dang! I want more! This book ends with the big battle in space, but leaves me wanting more with the curiosity of what will happen on the planet they found. Thank heavens I have the next audio book!
****FULL REVIEW****
*I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.
Captain Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey have been living in Pentagaran space since the fight with the Pale Ones that crippled their ship. They've been working to get Courageous up to speed along with helping Pentagar build their fleet of ships to fight the Rebels when they return to Erorsi. Surprisingly, six ships from the Empire come through the weak flip point that has stranded Jared and his crew here. And the captain is one who's not a fan of Jared's and difficult to work with. Jared and Kelsey have their work cut out for them on all sides of the line as battles come faster then they hoped.
Veronica has returned for the next Empire of Bones novel, yea! She voices each person as their own. The characters have their own voice tone and personality. By doing this Veronica makes listening entertaining and easy to differentiate the large cast of characters. Thank you! The audio is clear and easy to listen to.
I love the character interactions here! The ones we love are here and interacting better than we ever hoped. Relationships of all kind are growing stronger. I absolutely love Jared and Kelsey. Then their's Elise and Talbot and all others that surround them. All are amazing people and lived through so much already. Kelsey gets to demonstrate her power as second in line to the throne (of the Empire) and it's awesome! Add to it the strength she holds from the implants. Dang that woman is a force to reckon with.
Kelsey. Wow. She's such a strong female character. She's everything wrapped into one little package. She's small, but she is mighty! She has the power to verbally put people into place and quick thinking to get around things. But with her implants, she's also a physically strong woman. Everyone tries to protect her with being the princess, but she can protect herself just the same. Jared faced the frustrating prejudice he has always faced in the Empire as the Kings illegitimate son. I feel he does this with the honor he feels he should, and accepts it. However another doesn't see it that way and feels Jared is worth more credit (tons more!) than he's given. There is a direction taken in the story for this very reason, and it's well deserved.
Then we have new members added. Oh, the new captain we see... Captain Breckenridge. Grrr. I hate him when we meet him. And continue to not care for him as the story goes. Though, he is written to be that way. He's a stubborn old man that won't listen but thinks he knows all. Grrr. He adds a new challenge to the story. I found I was not looking forward to seeing him in scenes because he was just trouble, but I love Kelsey as she stands up to him.
The ships from home that are now stuck in space with them adds a new difficulty in Kelsey and Jared's lives. They are already working to prepare for fights that are coming. And there are more to worry about getting home or what they are going to do next.
The AI and computer connections are starting to unfold for Kelsey and Jared. Wow. The things that we learn here. I'm stunned. And the potential of what's yet to come by learning this... Oh this is so good. Then there's what we learn of the Rebel Empire forces that were to come in contact with the AI on Erorsi (which was found)... The connections are becoming open to us with Kelsey, Jared, and Elise and so many more.
Oh Terry has done an amazing job of creating a system with the Empire I find believable. And the history to go with it! I love the chain of command we see in the space fleet. We get to see that a bit more here. I get the feel we are constantly moving forward with the characters, never going backward - except for that darn new Captain getting in our way, even then things move forward. There is always something to explore and learn about here. And Kelsey is written in a way that she wants to hear all opposing thoughts, which opens up the story even more. Wonderfully written!
Oh man! I know there's more to this history of the Rebel Empire and AI's. And I want to know it! What was the intent of the ship Invincible that they found? There are connections to the planet. Dang! I want more! This book ends with the big battle in space, but leaves me wanting more with the curiosity of what will happen on the planet they found. Thank heavens I have the next audio book!
March 20, 2019
Summary:
Commander Jared Mertz thought the glories of the Old Terran Empire once more within his people’s grasp. One bold strike to make them his. But no plan survives contact with the enemy. Never has, never will… war is a democracy, and the enemy gets a vote. With the odds stacked against him, the battle to save humanity starts the moment you crack those pages. If you love epic, galaxy-spanning, action-oriented space opera, then you should read this series. Plenty of adventure and intrigue to keep you glued to your seat in this page-turning novel! It’s the perfect blend of space opera and military science fiction. If this sounds like your flavor of badassery, then you’ve come to the right place! This novel is the brilliant continuation of the Empire of Bones Saga.
Characters:
In this novel, there are two main characters who we follow; Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey Bandar. Keeping the focus on two characters made you feel closer to them, which is how I like things. All of the secondary characters were a lot of fun as well! They were all fully realized, none of them felt flat or fake.
Commander Jared Mertz: He’s a senior naval officer of the largely peaceful New Terran Empire, but he felt real and not one of those stereotypical military pencil pushers from the Pax New Terra. He was a consummate professional who genuinely cared for the sailors and Marines under his command. He was a good officer, who knew his craft and was tactically creative during combat training simulations. He’s the kind of guy you’d want on your side if war ever did break out in the New Terran Empire. When he’s exposed to combat for the first time, against the elusive “pale ones,” he proves that he’s got what it takes to get things done under fire. As the combat intensified during their expedition, he continues to prove his mettle. He’s the illegitimate son of the emperor, whose royal pedigree was discovered on his entrance physical for the Imperial Navy. This knowledge came with dark undertones, as Fleet tried to hold him back to prove they weren’t giving him special treatment. During this novel, we see more growth from him, as he’s forced to accept the continued burdens that come with combat leadership. This is especially evident as he is forced to risk everything in a desperate gamble to keep the existence of the New Terran Empire a secret. Like in any combat scenario, Jared’s orders lead to men dying; men and women whose ghosts will haunt his sleep. He was, by far, my favorite character in this novel. Overall, I enjoyed following him from the first word until the last! It felt like there was so much more to come from him!
Princess Kelsey Bandar: When we first meet her, she’s the spoiled daughter of the New Terran Empire, a petite bombshell of sassy entitlement. Picture a princess in your mind, and you can envision Kelsey. She’s the “spare apparent,” a term I first heard from Terry Mixon and summed her role as the second in line to the imperial throne. When she decided she wants to find a mission for her life, to become more than her status as an imperial princess, her father turns her life upside down. The emperor sends her on the voyage to explore the remains of the fallen empire, where she gets stuck on the other side of a one-sided flip point. During those adventures, she is implanted with super soldier Terran Empire Marine Raider enhancements and is left to deal with the consequences of those changes. She becomes an unlikely warrior, turning a spoiled princess into the “every man” soldier. Except she has those enhancements. In this newest edition the Empire of Bones Saga we see even more growth from her, making her an even more likable character. She’s coolly efficient under fire but well aware of her weaknesses in tactical doctrine. Overall, I was thrilled at her growth in this novel, especially how she handled the action at Boxer Station. I loved watching her process what happened in the last book, while things only compound for her in this latest edition. Her character came alive on the page, giving Jared and Talbot fits as they tried corralling her.
Captain Wallace Breckenridge: He’s a senior officer in Fleet, the fleet of the New Terran Empire that is. He is the same officer who commanded Saber during the opening of Empire of Bones (Bk 1). During that engagement Commander Mertz crushes him in a simulated wargame, leading to a bitter feud between the two officers. It’s probably one-sided, but Breckenridge hates Mertz’s Imperial Heritage. He believes he uses that to advance himself and holds a grudge. He’s the nephew of a senior senator on the Imperial Congress; an all-around politically connected officer. When he finds the weak flip point, he follows Merz through. I can’t really say more about him without giving away spoilers, but he’s the kind of character you love to hate. I rooted for his death from the moment I was introduced to him, wishing he would die. So of course, he’s still alive.
Overall, I really loved the two main characters and the entire supporting class of this book. I give these characters 5 out of 5 Grenades and can’t wait to see where the author takes in the books to come!
Plot:
The premise for this series was not that different from other space opera stories out there, humanity post-earth trying to reclaim the spacefaring society that they’d left behind. However, it’s in the execution where the author excels. His stories are pure escapism and enjoyment, under the banner of intergalactic science fiction. This book, like the rest of the novels in this series, fit squarely within the scope of an expansive space opera that I love to read. I loved that there were never any lulls that bored me, this novel was action-packed with a defined plot. There were places where I thought that he could’ve expanded certain things, but the novel as is – still works. It was just so fun that I wanted to explore every nook and cranny. The story is set as the New Terran Empire is finally revitalizing their exploration of the empire that they lost during the rebellion 500 hundred years before the story began. The New Terran Empire sets out to explore rediscover and reclaim territories it had lost. During one of those exploration missions, the main characters get stranded in an unknown region of space, and the usual shenanigans ensue. This gripping adventure was never boring, and the characters and universe behaved in a way that made sense for the worlds the author created. It was a good set-up and well-executed premise that held my interest. Since I’ve read the rest of this series, I can assure you that there are bigger things to come from the Empire of Bones universe. What I like about this universe is that it fit squarely within the large expansive worlds through the copious amounts of space opera that I read. This plot fits nicely into that framework, and Terry is raising the bar on this one. As you can tell by the gushing, I really got into this book. I couldn’t put it down; the plot was that compelling. Heck, this is my fourth or fifth re-reading of this series. I really loved the premise, and more importantly, I enjoyed how the execution. The pacing was excellent, and there was never a slow moment. There was never a point where the plot was confusing, or that I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I couldn’t ask for anything more; a unique premise, perfect execution, and incredible pacing! I again give Terry Mixon 5 out of 5 Grenades!
World Building:
This is the third book in the Empire of Bones Saga, and I absolutely loved it. The world was flushed out, and everything was explained in a way that made sense. The universe was consistent, with just enough of the mundane facets of life thrown in the fall grounded in this reality. Everything made sense and sucked you into the story. Some of the details seemed inconsequential, but those hooks just make me think that the larger universe will continue to grow and expand. I loved reading about the culture of the New Terran Empire, and Terry spoon fed us those details in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump. I loved how Terry showed a different vision of this future with the Kingdom of Pentagar. It was a fun diversion from what he created on Avalon. I especially love the new tidbits thrown into the lore, giving the feel that this universe could be out there waiting for us just beyond the Milky Way. There was never anything he described that I couldn’t envision, or that felt like it wasn’t “real.” We get to see the weaponry and technology has evolved (or devolved) since the fall of the Terran Empire and feel inspired by what the characters have we gained access to. I could picture every setting described, easily envisioning myself living there. Heck, I’ve even entertained myself on long road trips telling side story set in this larger universe. When describing the world, Terry was light on the details… but not so much that I was lost or experienced the floating head syndrome. I could always picture the scene in my head, watching it in the movie theater of my mind. Despite being a bubblegum space opera, Terry has upped the bar of excellence, adding more sensory input to the mix; sights, sounds, smells, and feelings. He didn’t reinvent the wheel, building on the existing tropes of space opera. Instead, he made brought it into the 21st Century! Overall, the world building was well done, and I was sold on the way it happened. It felt believable, and the characters fit within the universe Terry Mixon created. Like most of the stories I read, this one didn’t take itself too seriously, which allowed you to focus on the fun which is why I read in the first place. I give the world building 5 out of 5 Grenades.
Description:
I have to give it to this author, this novel was chock-full of visualization, and you could definitely imagine yourself in this world. He described things across the sensory spectrum; sights, sounds, smells and even how the world felt. While I could visualize all of the characters, I would still love it if Terry could describe the characters physical traits in more details. Terry went light on the details, with just enough specifics to allow you to visualize it for yourself. Maybe not the same as Terry pictures them, but enough to form a mental image in your mind. I wanted more, but I’m told I’m an outlier on this front. The modern trend is for less description, which I detest. I loved that Terry kept his language simple, reminding me of what I liked about Tom Clancy’s style of writing. Their genres aren’t the same, but their style of language is similar, and I like that. He balanced the explanation of this new world with the need to move a story along. This book didn’t have a single place where I couldn’t picture the scenery and the equipment, which added to the world that felt tangible and I enjoyed it. The author’s description of his universe was evocative, and enough to please your average readers. Again, I always prefer more descriptions over less, but Terry did enough to get the job done. In summary, I didn’t find any issues with the descriptions and was impressed by the literary skills of Terry. I wish he were more descriptive, but he gave you enough to form your own visual image. If you want a pulp era space opera, then this is the book for you! I give him 4 out of 5 grenades in this category. If he gave me more details, it would be a 5, but the normies would hate it!
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera and followed the first novel in this series. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. Okay, covers are the first thing that grabs us about any universe, but I digress. The spaceship on the cover is growing on me, and they’re well branded as a part of the same universe. I loved the shuttle that was the main focus of this book even more, this is easily my favorite cover in the series. Overall, the covers on this series are a better fit for the space opera market, but this one also managed to hit the military science fiction genre as well. More specifically, the space fleet subgenre of military science fiction. This isn’t a flaw of the series since the books fit into both genres, just an observation. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. The way Terry Mixon portrayed how his characters handled the developments of this book was superbly done; from the “pale ones,” to the political intrigue on Pentagar. There was never a moment where I thought… “that’s not how I would act.” I believe that the characters responded as expected to the situation they found themselves in. This proved especially true in this novel when things were strained by the actions of rogue military officers and lives were wasted on both sides.
One of my complaints from the first book was how sterile the combat felt. It was well within the boundaries for the space opera subgenre but missed the mark from a military science fiction perspective. In the second novel those issues were partially resolved. The combat felt more real, the action more intense and the setting was grittier. It was a nice balance between the two subgenres that this book is positioned in. In this novel, Terry did a better job of amping up the action. Not to the level of the gritty military science fiction I love, but this novel was exactly what you would expect from the best space opera. I won’t downgrade the book for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. I only mention it so that the readers of my Mil SF reviews know what they’re getting with this book series.
Speaking of gritty realism, one of the things that enjoyed about Terry’s novel was that logistics were considered. The characters did seem to run out of supplies, and this was a central plot point. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. Further, he has the sailors worried when they’re low on consumable military tech; missiles and bullets, etc. In this novel, we again see the crew raiding a ship graveyard for missiles and other military consumables and had me clapping along to Veronica’s description of the scene. Folks, do NOT do that while you’re driving. Tends to scare your wife and kids! It cemented that little attention to detail, making me love this series even more.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. Terry kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The examples of ground combat were primal and more fully immersive than in the last novel. In this novel Terry kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. This is especially true with the raid on Boxer Station, we saw action on par with the best of the space opera genre. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. I liked how he made the results of the ship-to-ship combat unexpected, but I can’t say how without spoilers. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jared Mertz, is a career naval officer, but it doesn’t stop him from being creative in the moment.
One place where this book shines for me was where we get to see the space marines in action. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military. They’re not cardboard cutouts, living tropes or cartoonish in any way. They’re real men and women, despite being mostly secondary characters who only exist on the periphery. Even when these people being largely faceless, you felt for them when they fought against impossible odds to protect the country they swore to protect. Maybe I’m projecting… being a combat veteran too, but Terry made you care about these warriors.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created three believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarans. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. With the Rebel Empire, since I’m not sure what to call them, were slightly different. More their attitudes, than their speech patterns, but different enough to add a unique vibe to this empire. Don’t feel bad about the confusion on what to call them, even the author couldn’t decide. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author.
Finally, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. In fairness, I listened to this one on this round. But I’ve read the book three times and listened to the audiobook twice now and never noticed any serious issues. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. This book, Command Decisions, was leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, this novel had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give this novel a 5 out of 5 grenades!
This review was edited to fit size restrictions, see full review here:
https://jrhandley.com/2019/03/19/book...
Commander Jared Mertz thought the glories of the Old Terran Empire once more within his people’s grasp. One bold strike to make them his. But no plan survives contact with the enemy. Never has, never will… war is a democracy, and the enemy gets a vote. With the odds stacked against him, the battle to save humanity starts the moment you crack those pages. If you love epic, galaxy-spanning, action-oriented space opera, then you should read this series. Plenty of adventure and intrigue to keep you glued to your seat in this page-turning novel! It’s the perfect blend of space opera and military science fiction. If this sounds like your flavor of badassery, then you’ve come to the right place! This novel is the brilliant continuation of the Empire of Bones Saga.
Characters:
In this novel, there are two main characters who we follow; Commander Jared Mertz and Princess Kelsey Bandar. Keeping the focus on two characters made you feel closer to them, which is how I like things. All of the secondary characters were a lot of fun as well! They were all fully realized, none of them felt flat or fake.
Commander Jared Mertz: He’s a senior naval officer of the largely peaceful New Terran Empire, but he felt real and not one of those stereotypical military pencil pushers from the Pax New Terra. He was a consummate professional who genuinely cared for the sailors and Marines under his command. He was a good officer, who knew his craft and was tactically creative during combat training simulations. He’s the kind of guy you’d want on your side if war ever did break out in the New Terran Empire. When he’s exposed to combat for the first time, against the elusive “pale ones,” he proves that he’s got what it takes to get things done under fire. As the combat intensified during their expedition, he continues to prove his mettle. He’s the illegitimate son of the emperor, whose royal pedigree was discovered on his entrance physical for the Imperial Navy. This knowledge came with dark undertones, as Fleet tried to hold him back to prove they weren’t giving him special treatment. During this novel, we see more growth from him, as he’s forced to accept the continued burdens that come with combat leadership. This is especially evident as he is forced to risk everything in a desperate gamble to keep the existence of the New Terran Empire a secret. Like in any combat scenario, Jared’s orders lead to men dying; men and women whose ghosts will haunt his sleep. He was, by far, my favorite character in this novel. Overall, I enjoyed following him from the first word until the last! It felt like there was so much more to come from him!
Princess Kelsey Bandar: When we first meet her, she’s the spoiled daughter of the New Terran Empire, a petite bombshell of sassy entitlement. Picture a princess in your mind, and you can envision Kelsey. She’s the “spare apparent,” a term I first heard from Terry Mixon and summed her role as the second in line to the imperial throne. When she decided she wants to find a mission for her life, to become more than her status as an imperial princess, her father turns her life upside down. The emperor sends her on the voyage to explore the remains of the fallen empire, where she gets stuck on the other side of a one-sided flip point. During those adventures, she is implanted with super soldier Terran Empire Marine Raider enhancements and is left to deal with the consequences of those changes. She becomes an unlikely warrior, turning a spoiled princess into the “every man” soldier. Except she has those enhancements. In this newest edition the Empire of Bones Saga we see even more growth from her, making her an even more likable character. She’s coolly efficient under fire but well aware of her weaknesses in tactical doctrine. Overall, I was thrilled at her growth in this novel, especially how she handled the action at Boxer Station. I loved watching her process what happened in the last book, while things only compound for her in this latest edition. Her character came alive on the page, giving Jared and Talbot fits as they tried corralling her.
Captain Wallace Breckenridge: He’s a senior officer in Fleet, the fleet of the New Terran Empire that is. He is the same officer who commanded Saber during the opening of Empire of Bones (Bk 1). During that engagement Commander Mertz crushes him in a simulated wargame, leading to a bitter feud between the two officers. It’s probably one-sided, but Breckenridge hates Mertz’s Imperial Heritage. He believes he uses that to advance himself and holds a grudge. He’s the nephew of a senior senator on the Imperial Congress; an all-around politically connected officer. When he finds the weak flip point, he follows Merz through. I can’t really say more about him without giving away spoilers, but he’s the kind of character you love to hate. I rooted for his death from the moment I was introduced to him, wishing he would die. So of course, he’s still alive.
Overall, I really loved the two main characters and the entire supporting class of this book. I give these characters 5 out of 5 Grenades and can’t wait to see where the author takes in the books to come!
Plot:
The premise for this series was not that different from other space opera stories out there, humanity post-earth trying to reclaim the spacefaring society that they’d left behind. However, it’s in the execution where the author excels. His stories are pure escapism and enjoyment, under the banner of intergalactic science fiction. This book, like the rest of the novels in this series, fit squarely within the scope of an expansive space opera that I love to read. I loved that there were never any lulls that bored me, this novel was action-packed with a defined plot. There were places where I thought that he could’ve expanded certain things, but the novel as is – still works. It was just so fun that I wanted to explore every nook and cranny. The story is set as the New Terran Empire is finally revitalizing their exploration of the empire that they lost during the rebellion 500 hundred years before the story began. The New Terran Empire sets out to explore rediscover and reclaim territories it had lost. During one of those exploration missions, the main characters get stranded in an unknown region of space, and the usual shenanigans ensue. This gripping adventure was never boring, and the characters and universe behaved in a way that made sense for the worlds the author created. It was a good set-up and well-executed premise that held my interest. Since I’ve read the rest of this series, I can assure you that there are bigger things to come from the Empire of Bones universe. What I like about this universe is that it fit squarely within the large expansive worlds through the copious amounts of space opera that I read. This plot fits nicely into that framework, and Terry is raising the bar on this one. As you can tell by the gushing, I really got into this book. I couldn’t put it down; the plot was that compelling. Heck, this is my fourth or fifth re-reading of this series. I really loved the premise, and more importantly, I enjoyed how the execution. The pacing was excellent, and there was never a slow moment. There was never a point where the plot was confusing, or that I couldn’t figure out what was going on. I couldn’t ask for anything more; a unique premise, perfect execution, and incredible pacing! I again give Terry Mixon 5 out of 5 Grenades!
World Building:
This is the third book in the Empire of Bones Saga, and I absolutely loved it. The world was flushed out, and everything was explained in a way that made sense. The universe was consistent, with just enough of the mundane facets of life thrown in the fall grounded in this reality. Everything made sense and sucked you into the story. Some of the details seemed inconsequential, but those hooks just make me think that the larger universe will continue to grow and expand. I loved reading about the culture of the New Terran Empire, and Terry spoon fed us those details in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump. I loved how Terry showed a different vision of this future with the Kingdom of Pentagar. It was a fun diversion from what he created on Avalon. I especially love the new tidbits thrown into the lore, giving the feel that this universe could be out there waiting for us just beyond the Milky Way. There was never anything he described that I couldn’t envision, or that felt like it wasn’t “real.” We get to see the weaponry and technology has evolved (or devolved) since the fall of the Terran Empire and feel inspired by what the characters have we gained access to. I could picture every setting described, easily envisioning myself living there. Heck, I’ve even entertained myself on long road trips telling side story set in this larger universe. When describing the world, Terry was light on the details… but not so much that I was lost or experienced the floating head syndrome. I could always picture the scene in my head, watching it in the movie theater of my mind. Despite being a bubblegum space opera, Terry has upped the bar of excellence, adding more sensory input to the mix; sights, sounds, smells, and feelings. He didn’t reinvent the wheel, building on the existing tropes of space opera. Instead, he made brought it into the 21st Century! Overall, the world building was well done, and I was sold on the way it happened. It felt believable, and the characters fit within the universe Terry Mixon created. Like most of the stories I read, this one didn’t take itself too seriously, which allowed you to focus on the fun which is why I read in the first place. I give the world building 5 out of 5 Grenades.
Description:
I have to give it to this author, this novel was chock-full of visualization, and you could definitely imagine yourself in this world. He described things across the sensory spectrum; sights, sounds, smells and even how the world felt. While I could visualize all of the characters, I would still love it if Terry could describe the characters physical traits in more details. Terry went light on the details, with just enough specifics to allow you to visualize it for yourself. Maybe not the same as Terry pictures them, but enough to form a mental image in your mind. I wanted more, but I’m told I’m an outlier on this front. The modern trend is for less description, which I detest. I loved that Terry kept his language simple, reminding me of what I liked about Tom Clancy’s style of writing. Their genres aren’t the same, but their style of language is similar, and I like that. He balanced the explanation of this new world with the need to move a story along. This book didn’t have a single place where I couldn’t picture the scenery and the equipment, which added to the world that felt tangible and I enjoyed it. The author’s description of his universe was evocative, and enough to please your average readers. Again, I always prefer more descriptions over less, but Terry did enough to get the job done. In summary, I didn’t find any issues with the descriptions and was impressed by the literary skills of Terry. I wish he were more descriptive, but he gave you enough to form your own visual image. If you want a pulp era space opera, then this is the book for you! I give him 4 out of 5 grenades in this category. If he gave me more details, it would be a 5, but the normies would hate it!
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera and followed the first novel in this series. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. Okay, covers are the first thing that grabs us about any universe, but I digress. The spaceship on the cover is growing on me, and they’re well branded as a part of the same universe. I loved the shuttle that was the main focus of this book even more, this is easily my favorite cover in the series. Overall, the covers on this series are a better fit for the space opera market, but this one also managed to hit the military science fiction genre as well. More specifically, the space fleet subgenre of military science fiction. This isn’t a flaw of the series since the books fit into both genres, just an observation. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. The way Terry Mixon portrayed how his characters handled the developments of this book was superbly done; from the “pale ones,” to the political intrigue on Pentagar. There was never a moment where I thought… “that’s not how I would act.” I believe that the characters responded as expected to the situation they found themselves in. This proved especially true in this novel when things were strained by the actions of rogue military officers and lives were wasted on both sides.
One of my complaints from the first book was how sterile the combat felt. It was well within the boundaries for the space opera subgenre but missed the mark from a military science fiction perspective. In the second novel those issues were partially resolved. The combat felt more real, the action more intense and the setting was grittier. It was a nice balance between the two subgenres that this book is positioned in. In this novel, Terry did a better job of amping up the action. Not to the level of the gritty military science fiction I love, but this novel was exactly what you would expect from the best space opera. I won’t downgrade the book for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. I only mention it so that the readers of my Mil SF reviews know what they’re getting with this book series.
Speaking of gritty realism, one of the things that enjoyed about Terry’s novel was that logistics were considered. The characters did seem to run out of supplies, and this was a central plot point. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. Further, he has the sailors worried when they’re low on consumable military tech; missiles and bullets, etc. In this novel, we again see the crew raiding a ship graveyard for missiles and other military consumables and had me clapping along to Veronica’s description of the scene. Folks, do NOT do that while you’re driving. Tends to scare your wife and kids! It cemented that little attention to detail, making me love this series even more.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. Terry kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The examples of ground combat were primal and more fully immersive than in the last novel. In this novel Terry kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. This is especially true with the raid on Boxer Station, we saw action on par with the best of the space opera genre. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. I liked how he made the results of the ship-to-ship combat unexpected, but I can’t say how without spoilers. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jared Mertz, is a career naval officer, but it doesn’t stop him from being creative in the moment.
One place where this book shines for me was where we get to see the space marines in action. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military. They’re not cardboard cutouts, living tropes or cartoonish in any way. They’re real men and women, despite being mostly secondary characters who only exist on the periphery. Even when these people being largely faceless, you felt for them when they fought against impossible odds to protect the country they swore to protect. Maybe I’m projecting… being a combat veteran too, but Terry made you care about these warriors.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created three believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarans. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. With the Rebel Empire, since I’m not sure what to call them, were slightly different. More their attitudes, than their speech patterns, but different enough to add a unique vibe to this empire. Don’t feel bad about the confusion on what to call them, even the author couldn’t decide. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author.
Finally, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. In fairness, I listened to this one on this round. But I’ve read the book three times and listened to the audiobook twice now and never noticed any serious issues. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. This book, Command Decisions, was leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, this novel had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give this novel a 5 out of 5 grenades!
This review was edited to fit size restrictions, see full review here:
https://jrhandley.com/2019/03/19/book...
January 23, 2017
It seems like I cannot let go of this series until I have read all the books published. Command Decisions is book three of The Empire of Bones Saga and continues the adventures of Jared, Kelsey & Co. It is, naturally, in the same style as the other books which means it is a simple, fast paced and enjoyable space opera adventure.
Commander Jared and Princess Kelsey continue their effort towards getting back home at the same time as they try to disrupt the enemies efforts. As with the other books new discoveries are made and there are of course more fighting going on.
However, their successes are severely hampered with the arrival of Captain Breckenridge. I have to say that Captain Breckenridge dragged down the book somewhat for me. He is so absolutely over the top that it becomes just ridiculous. His stupidity, egoism, bigoted worldview and utter lack of any competence or redeeming qualities whatsoever makes him not only ludicrous and annoying but also utterly unrealistic. I'm sure this person would really not be able to tie his own shoes let alone command anything, not even a garbage transport. There is no way in hell this person could have been given command of anything in a more realistic setting despite his powerful connections.
Naturally Captain Breckenridge not only disobeys lawful orders from the Princess, refuses to follow the agreed on plan but manages to utterly screw up, in a way that is almost laughable, at the worst possible moment causing the loss of the overall target objective as well as thousands of his own crew's lives. Fortunately his incompetence manages to screw him up himself after having screwed up everything else. Unfortunately it now falls on our heroes to save his bacon if for nothing else than to put him in front of a court marshal.
Having said that the book was still a quite enjoyable read and it was really sad that the author went so over the top in the portrayal of Captain Breckenridge.
Commander Jared and Princess Kelsey continue their effort towards getting back home at the same time as they try to disrupt the enemies efforts. As with the other books new discoveries are made and there are of course more fighting going on.
However, their successes are severely hampered with the arrival of Captain Breckenridge. I have to say that Captain Breckenridge dragged down the book somewhat for me. He is so absolutely over the top that it becomes just ridiculous. His stupidity, egoism, bigoted worldview and utter lack of any competence or redeeming qualities whatsoever makes him not only ludicrous and annoying but also utterly unrealistic. I'm sure this person would really not be able to tie his own shoes let alone command anything, not even a garbage transport. There is no way in hell this person could have been given command of anything in a more realistic setting despite his powerful connections.
Naturally Captain Breckenridge not only disobeys lawful orders from the Princess, refuses to follow the agreed on plan but manages to utterly screw up, in a way that is almost laughable, at the worst possible moment causing the loss of the overall target objective as well as thousands of his own crew's lives. Fortunately his incompetence manages to screw him up himself after having screwed up everything else. Unfortunately it now falls on our heroes to save his bacon if for nothing else than to put him in front of a court marshal.
Having said that the book was still a quite enjoyable read and it was really sad that the author went so over the top in the portrayal of Captain Breckenridge.
March 18, 2021
First, this is the fifth time I've listened to this series and I still love every second of it. I'll list my overall thoughts and then link to the full review on my website!
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera and followed the first novel in this series. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. Okay, covers are the first thing that grabs us about any universe, but I digress. The spaceship on the cover is growing on me, and they’re well branded as a part of the same universe. I loved the shuttle that was the main focus of this book even more, this is easily my favorite cover in the series. Overall, the covers on this series are a better fit for the space opera market, but this one also managed to hit the military science fiction genre as well. More specifically, the space fleet subgenre of military science fiction. This isn’t a flaw of the series since the books fit into both genres, just an observation. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. The way Terry Mixon portrayed how his characters handled the developments of this book was superbly done; from the “pale ones,” to the political intrigue on Pentagar. There was never a moment where I thought… “that’s not how I would act.” I believe that the characters responded as expected to the situation they found themselves in. This proved especially true in this novel when things were strained by the actions of rogue military officers and lives were wasted on both sides.
One of my complaints from the first book was how sterile the combat felt. It was well within the boundaries for the space opera subgenre but missed the mark from a military science fiction perspective. In the second novel those issues were partially resolved. The combat felt more real, the action more intense and the setting was grittier. It was a nice balance between the two subgenres that this book is positioned in. In this novel, Terry did a better job of amping up the action. Not to the level of the gritty military science fiction I love, but this novel was exactly what you would expect from the best space opera. I won’t downgrade the book for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. I only mention it so that the readers of my Mil SF reviews know what they’re getting with this book series.
Speaking of gritty realism, one of the things that enjoyed about Terry’s novel was that logistics were considered. The characters did seem to run out of supplies, and this was a central plot point. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. Further, he has the sailors worried when they’re low on consumable military tech; missiles and bullets, etc. In this novel, we again see the crew raiding a ship graveyard for missiles and other military consumables and had me clapping along to Veronica’s description of the scene. Folks, do NOT do that while you’re driving. Tends to scare your wife and kids! It cemented that little attention to detail, making me love this series even more.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. Terry kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The examples of ground combat were primal and more fully immersive than in the last novel. In this novel Terry kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. This is especially true with the raid on Boxer Station, we saw action on par with the best of the space opera genre. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. I liked how he made the results of the ship-to-ship combat unexpected, but I can’t say how without spoilers. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jared Mertz, is a career naval officer, but it doesn’t stop him from being creative in the moment.
One place where this book shines for me was where we get to see the space marines in action. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military. They’re not cardboard cutouts, living tropes or cartoonish in any way. They’re real men and women, despite being mostly secondary characters who only exist on the periphery. Even when these people being largely faceless, you felt for them when they fought against impossible odds to protect the country they swore to protect. Maybe I’m projecting… being a combat veteran too, but Terry made you care about these warriors.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created three believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarans. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. With the Rebel Empire, since I’m not sure what to call them, were slightly different. More their attitudes, than their speech patterns, but different enough to add a unique vibe to this empire. Don’t feel bad about the confusion on what to call them, even the author couldn’t decide. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author.
Finally, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. In fairness, I listened to this one on this round. But I’ve read the book three times and listened to the audiobook twice now and never noticed any serious issues. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. This book, Command Decisions, was leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, this novel had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give this novel a 5 out of 5 grenades!
If this book sounds like it’s right up your alley, check it out, you won’t regret it! Well, unless you decide to join Commander Jared Mertz as he jumps through the flip points into the unknown. And you after you enlist or take a commission, get kitted up, you realize that the god of your world is a dick. He’s an evil jerk that likes to send men with guns after you. In a rush to stand a fighting chance, you decide to try some old empire implants. But you clicked the wrong button and add a computer virus inside your brain. What could possibly go wrong? Well yeah, I guess this could be bad for you. Or maybe you’ll be okay? I mean, you could be the first sailor to make it out of Terry’s insane world alive? On second thought, be warned, fanboy/fangirl syndrome just MIGHT kill you. Be wary, you were warned and if you have to go out like that at least enjoy the view from the end times!
My full review can be read here!
https://jrhandley.com/2019/03/19/book...
Overall:
I really loved this book, it was a lot of fun to read. It is worth mentioning again, I’ve read these novels multiple times and never once felt like it was a waste of time. They brought back the era of pulp science fiction that started the genre we know and love. This novel harkened back to what I loved about space opera and followed the first novel in this series. The vibe of this story was amazing, and I loved seeing where the adventurers would end up. I wanted to know what happened to the Terran Empire, and how they lost so quickly to the rebels that broke an intergalactic empire in several weeks. There were no deep messages, or political themes, just good clean fun.
Like the other novels in this universe, the first thing that caught my eye was the cover. Okay, covers are the first thing that grabs us about any universe, but I digress. The spaceship on the cover is growing on me, and they’re well branded as a part of the same universe. I loved the shuttle that was the main focus of this book even more, this is easily my favorite cover in the series. Overall, the covers on this series are a better fit for the space opera market, but this one also managed to hit the military science fiction genre as well. More specifically, the space fleet subgenre of military science fiction. This isn’t a flaw of the series since the books fit into both genres, just an observation. Keep in mind, I’m colorblind, so your mileage may vary. Check them out, share your thoughts in the comments.
Now onto the book itself! The military culture shown was spot on, just what I’d expect from an Army veteran. He created a compelling interstellar naval force, but again… the author spent some time working for NASA, and it shows. The place where this novel really shined was the characterizations, nobody felt like cookie cutter clichés or parodies. The way Terry Mixon portrayed how his characters handled the developments of this book was superbly done; from the “pale ones,” to the political intrigue on Pentagar. There was never a moment where I thought… “that’s not how I would act.” I believe that the characters responded as expected to the situation they found themselves in. This proved especially true in this novel when things were strained by the actions of rogue military officers and lives were wasted on both sides.
One of my complaints from the first book was how sterile the combat felt. It was well within the boundaries for the space opera subgenre but missed the mark from a military science fiction perspective. In the second novel those issues were partially resolved. The combat felt more real, the action more intense and the setting was grittier. It was a nice balance between the two subgenres that this book is positioned in. In this novel, Terry did a better job of amping up the action. Not to the level of the gritty military science fiction I love, but this novel was exactly what you would expect from the best space opera. I won’t downgrade the book for this because I believe this is just my preference for military sci-fi bleeding through. I only mention it so that the readers of my Mil SF reviews know what they’re getting with this book series.
Speaking of gritty realism, one of the things that enjoyed about Terry’s novel was that logistics were considered. The characters did seem to run out of supplies, and this was a central plot point. He doesn’t dwell on it, but several casual mentions that they’d packed for a journey of several years was enough. Further, he has the sailors worried when they’re low on consumable military tech; missiles and bullets, etc. In this novel, we again see the crew raiding a ship graveyard for missiles and other military consumables and had me clapping along to Veronica’s description of the scene. Folks, do NOT do that while you’re driving. Tends to scare your wife and kids! It cemented that little attention to detail, making me love this series even more.
Another place where this novel shined was with the pacing. The action was intense, and the characters responded as you’d expect in those circumstances. Terry kept the story moving along, constantly introducing new complications just when they’d come to some sort of resolution to the old one. The examples of ground combat were primal and more fully immersive than in the last novel. In this novel Terry kept the action moving along, illustrating the chaos of combat while not dwelling on it. This is especially true with the raid on Boxer Station, we saw action on par with the best of the space opera genre. Again, it was everything you expect from this subgenre. The fleet battle scenes were believable, gripping and I never felt like the author missed a chance to get creative with the tactics. I liked how he made the results of the ship-to-ship combat unexpected, but I can’t say how without spoilers. It was in the fleet battles where this novel really stood out, technically speaking. The main character, Jared Mertz, is a career naval officer, but it doesn’t stop him from being creative in the moment.
One place where this book shines for me was where we get to see the space marines in action. The ship’s onboard Marine complement take charge when necessary, much like you expect if that situation happened in today’s modern military. They’re not cardboard cutouts, living tropes or cartoonish in any way. They’re real men and women, despite being mostly secondary characters who only exist on the periphery. Even when these people being largely faceless, you felt for them when they fought against impossible odds to protect the country they swore to protect. Maybe I’m projecting… being a combat veteran too, but Terry made you care about these warriors.
When it comes to creating believable civilizations, Terry stood heads and tails above his peers. He created three believable political polities and made the differences between them facilitate the reader’s ability to easily distinguished one from the another. I liked that he messed with the language of the Pentagarans. It felt just alien enough to be different from how we would normally speak, while still being accessible to modern readers. I detected a slight medieval vibe to some of the word choices, which he managed to pull off without sounding overly cheesy. With the Rebel Empire, since I’m not sure what to call them, were slightly different. More their attitudes, than their speech patterns, but different enough to add a unique vibe to this empire. Don’t feel bad about the confusion on what to call them, even the author couldn’t decide. I could definitely envision myself walking among these people, interacting with them and that’s all you could ask for from an author.
Finally, I didn’t really find any grammatical or technical issues with this book. In fairness, I listened to this one on this round. But I’ve read the book three times and listened to the audiobook twice now and never noticed any serious issues. Seriously, I realize I’ve gone full fanboy, but the authors have definitely raised the bar for space opera. He’s one of the shining stars of science fiction authors everywhere, you should check it out. This book, Command Decisions, was leaps and bounds above most of what’s out there! I was hooked from the first page because he wove the action in such a compelling way that you wanted to jump into the page and join the party. Some of that was because I’m already invested in this world, but if you’ve been following me, you already know that. Basically, this novel had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole novel. This is a book I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. Buy the novel! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give this novel a 5 out of 5 grenades!
If this book sounds like it’s right up your alley, check it out, you won’t regret it! Well, unless you decide to join Commander Jared Mertz as he jumps through the flip points into the unknown. And you after you enlist or take a commission, get kitted up, you realize that the god of your world is a dick. He’s an evil jerk that likes to send men with guns after you. In a rush to stand a fighting chance, you decide to try some old empire implants. But you clicked the wrong button and add a computer virus inside your brain. What could possibly go wrong? Well yeah, I guess this could be bad for you. Or maybe you’ll be okay? I mean, you could be the first sailor to make it out of Terry’s insane world alive? On second thought, be warned, fanboy/fangirl syndrome just MIGHT kill you. Be wary, you were warned and if you have to go out like that at least enjoy the view from the end times!
My full review can be read here!
https://jrhandley.com/2019/03/19/book...
August 4, 2017
JAFO
Jared and Kelsey have worked hard to build a coalition. They have a strong alliance in the unknown territories. The time has come to take a freighter filled with desperately needed technology. Just before it is time for the attack, Captain Breckenridge comes through the one way wormhole. Jared is no longer the senior fleet officer in this sector of space, and the new commander has his own way of doing things.
As the disasters pile up, Kelsey and Jared fight desperately to get on the same page with Breckenridge. The consequences are more dire than the Captain's fragile ego. An error here could spell disaster for their new found allies. If their new allies fall, it will only be a matter of time before the Rebel Empire finds their home.
Terry Mixon dazzles us with his continuing Empire of Bones saga. More secrets of the Old Empire are revealed, and more hints about how it fell come to light. A wonderful story for space opera fans.
Jared and Kelsey have worked hard to build a coalition. They have a strong alliance in the unknown territories. The time has come to take a freighter filled with desperately needed technology. Just before it is time for the attack, Captain Breckenridge comes through the one way wormhole. Jared is no longer the senior fleet officer in this sector of space, and the new commander has his own way of doing things.
As the disasters pile up, Kelsey and Jared fight desperately to get on the same page with Breckenridge. The consequences are more dire than the Captain's fragile ego. An error here could spell disaster for their new found allies. If their new allies fall, it will only be a matter of time before the Rebel Empire finds their home.
Terry Mixon dazzles us with his continuing Empire of Bones saga. More secrets of the Old Empire are revealed, and more hints about how it fell come to light. A wonderful story for space opera fans.
October 23, 2016
Commander Jared and Princess Kelsey have won a hard fought battle over Erosi, and discovered that a remnant of the Old Empire still exists. Not to mention a force of people survived the Pale Ones on Erosi, and have lived underground for 500 years! Jared has pledged to help them against the Old Empire fleet remanant coming to Erosi soon. However the arrival of a small fleet from Jared and Kelsey's home planet throw a wrench in all their plans. The captain in charge of the fleet hates Jared with a passion. With a battle on two fronts, can Commander Jared and Princess Kelsey stop the Old Empire from revealing their existence to the rest of the remnant?
I love how the author has written this series. Each book is better than the last, and they are so addicting! The dialog is fantastic, witty, and hilarious! It keeps you on your toes, and the edge of your seat, the whole way through. This has easily become one of my all time favorite space opera series. I highly recommend it! Check it out!
I love how the author has written this series. Each book is better than the last, and they are so addicting! The dialog is fantastic, witty, and hilarious! It keeps you on your toes, and the edge of your seat, the whole way through. This has easily become one of my all time favorite space opera series. I highly recommend it! Check it out!
August 26, 2018
Before you start this book, please realize it is the third title in the series: you will need to read the first two books in the series in order to understand the back story and the characters.
The author picks up right where he left off with book one of the series and I enjoyed it. Without having a spoiler, however, there are a couple of scenes / situations that were unrealistic and the book just ends right in the middle of a situation – to find out what happens, go buy the next one in the series. While that is very frustrating, I picked this up for free with my Kindle Unlimited plan vs. the normal price of $4.99, which makes that more bearable. If you enjoyed the first two books of this series I am confident you will like this one, also, but be prepared to have the story stop on a dime without a reasonable conclusion.
The author picks up right where he left off with book one of the series and I enjoyed it. Without having a spoiler, however, there are a couple of scenes / situations that were unrealistic and the book just ends right in the middle of a situation – to find out what happens, go buy the next one in the series. While that is very frustrating, I picked this up for free with my Kindle Unlimited plan vs. the normal price of $4.99, which makes that more bearable. If you enjoyed the first two books of this series I am confident you will like this one, also, but be prepared to have the story stop on a dime without a reasonable conclusion.
March 25, 2020
Compared to the previous two books in the saga, this is terrible. The female protagonist's personality changed a lot - without any real cause. She simply behaves like a marine would do. (While the marines don't...)
The technical bullshit with the computers was bad. In the previous book, the IT genius boy was struggling to write a "hello world" program. In this book, he simply became H/\ck3RM@N.
By overwriting some text files on a computer, they can override the behavior of human enslaving AIs. Which conquered the Old Empire. Why didn't John Connor do the same in Terminator?
(Oh, and almost everything is an Empire. Old Empire, Rebel Empire, Terran Empire. Even Star Wars had only 1 empire...)
The annoying fleet officer re-introduced in this book is spot on. It was very annoying. (Oh, and there will be a female version at the very end of the book. Joy.)
The technical bullshit with the computers was bad. In the previous book, the IT genius boy was struggling to write a "hello world" program. In this book, he simply became H/\ck3RM@N.
By overwriting some text files on a computer, they can override the behavior of human enslaving AIs. Which conquered the Old Empire. Why didn't John Connor do the same in Terminator?
(Oh, and almost everything is an Empire. Old Empire, Rebel Empire, Terran Empire. Even Star Wars had only 1 empire...)
The annoying fleet officer re-introduced in this book is spot on. It was very annoying. (Oh, and there will be a female version at the very end of the book. Joy.)
May 11, 2017
The story continues with our cast of heroes coming into a more complex situation then they had envisioned. Some characters unfortunately do not make it to the end of the story, as things do not always go as hopped. These books are meant to be story telling of the best type and intent. The characters show their flaws as well as their strengths as they move from one situation to the next. These first three books were paperback, easy reading and hard to put down. Unfortunately it appears that hard copies of the next stories are not available and possibly restricted to a single source. However, the first three books are good fascinating reads.
November 28, 2017
The brilliant saga of Jared and Kelsey continues with one of the most infuriating antagonists I've ever seen. The human obstacle introduced early on in this novel made me want to throw the book across the room. I couldn't wait for his comeuppance.
That said, about halfway through this book, my interest waned. It wasn't bad, but the second half or so of this book just didn't grip me like previous ones in the series. It was still a great read. Don't get me wrong. But the crux of the main conflict just didn't have me like books 1 and 2 of the series. The ending was excellent, though, and I will, of course, be continuing to read the series.
That said, about halfway through this book, my interest waned. It wasn't bad, but the second half or so of this book just didn't grip me like previous ones in the series. It was still a great read. Don't get me wrong. But the crux of the main conflict just didn't have me like books 1 and 2 of the series. The ending was excellent, though, and I will, of course, be continuing to read the series.
March 13, 2022
"Command Decisions", third in the series, is the book where the author, Terry Mixon, finally gets the pacing right. Up until now it has always been a slow burn leading an explosive finish but here the action starts right off.
Don't even think about starting it as a standalone read - it is very much a continuation of the first two books.
It's classic Space Opera, complete with our heroes, Jared and Kelsey, conveniently finding wondrous gadgets just when they are needed (it happens quite a lot).
If you like space epics "Command Decisions" will be right up your street, but if you don't you should avoid it like the plague.
I'm a fan.
3 Stars.
Don't even think about starting it as a standalone read - it is very much a continuation of the first two books.
It's classic Space Opera, complete with our heroes, Jared and Kelsey, conveniently finding wondrous gadgets just when they are needed (it happens quite a lot).
If you like space epics "Command Decisions" will be right up your street, but if you don't you should avoid it like the plague.
I'm a fan.
3 Stars.
September 23, 2017
Wow I could hardly put it down.
Audio version, Of volume 1 of empire of the bones, includes books 1-3 + a short story.
Well the title says it all. I listened to the three books in 2 days.
The narration is superb.
These Audiobooks was given to me for free at my request from the publisher or author or narrator and I provided this voluntary review.
Reasons I enjoyed this book:
Action-packed, Easy-to-read, Entertaining, Great world building, Original, Page-turner, Unpredictable Whimsical, Wonderful characters.
Audio version, Of volume 1 of empire of the bones, includes books 1-3 + a short story.
Well the title says it all. I listened to the three books in 2 days.
The narration is superb.
These Audiobooks was given to me for free at my request from the publisher or author or narrator and I provided this voluntary review.
Reasons I enjoyed this book:
Action-packed, Easy-to-read, Entertaining, Great world building, Original, Page-turner, Unpredictable Whimsical, Wonderful characters.
April 14, 2021
The adventure of Imperial siblings continues. Now with an added difficulty of the superior officer who ignored all the warnings and brought a small task force without a way to get back. His rank is the result of nepotism and connections and his antipathy of our Imperial Bastard is well known since he was soundly defeated during war games way back in book 1. Will they overcome the friction? Find out right now!
October 16, 2017
I really enjoyed reading Terry Mixon's book
I am enjoying reading this series. The series is good and easy to read. The story has so far held my interest and the pages are zipping by. The story line changes and expands the plot. Not complicating, but really drawing you into thick of things. Good science fiction.
I am enjoying reading this series. The series is good and easy to read. The story has so far held my interest and the pages are zipping by. The story line changes and expands the plot. Not complicating, but really drawing you into thick of things. Good science fiction.
November 24, 2017
The trend continues... more space battles, more intrigue, more back story about the old Empire.
It gets better and better.
The main characters are still not very interesting. They do not drive the story and I am not really invested in any one of them.
But I am interested in how this all plays out...
It gets better and better.
The main characters are still not very interesting. They do not drive the story and I am not really invested in any one of them.
But I am interested in how this all plays out...
September 21, 2020
Continued Interest
The saga continues with good character development and a storyline which continues to pull the reader along. Continued development for existing characters with the introduction and development of new cast. The book provides satisfactory ends to the current story threads and leaves an opportunity for more.
The saga continues with good character development and a storyline which continues to pull the reader along. Continued development for existing characters with the introduction and development of new cast. The book provides satisfactory ends to the current story threads and leaves an opportunity for more.
March 29, 2020
Command Decisions
This mission is getting more and more complex as Jared and Kelsey and there crew plus there allies try to figure out the Rebellion Fleet that is trying to takeover humanity.
This mission is getting more and more complex as Jared and Kelsey and there crew plus there allies try to figure out the Rebellion Fleet that is trying to takeover humanity.
July 5, 2021
Good story!
The stories may not be getting much better, but they aren't getting worse. It's like going on a walk and encountering a gully across the path, then a rabid wild dog, then something else. He's trying to get his people home and all these problems.
The stories may not be getting much better, but they aren't getting worse. It's like going on a walk and encountering a gully across the path, then a rabid wild dog, then something else. He's trying to get his people home and all these problems.
September 30, 2018
4 stars. Good continuation
November 9, 2019
A good entertaining read, but a little confusing at times
December 9, 2019
Keeps on giving!
February 9, 2021
Not a bad continuation
Another satisfying book in the series. Seems a bit drawn out but an easy read looking forward to the next book
Another satisfying book in the series. Seems a bit drawn out but an easy read looking forward to the next book
June 10, 2021
Very good
What a great ending for this book. You know you must buy the next book in the series to see what is next.
What a great ending for this book. You know you must buy the next book in the series to see what is next.
August 26, 2021
Pretty good military Space Opera. It has everything it needs, but somehow falls short of the best in the genre. Still if you are into this stuff at least check out book 1 in this series
August 26, 2021
A fabulous read you must read All the books one after the other
September 5, 2021
This one got a little slow and tech heavy and left with a cliff hanger. I hate that. It's still a great series and I'll read on.
March 28, 2017
“Command Decisions”, book three in The Empire of Bones Saga, is a continuation where book two left off. It is written by Terry Mixon and narrated by Veronica Giguere. There are currently four books in the series released in audiobook format on Audible with more planned; I will be reviewing the fourth shortly. If you like large light-hearted serialized space operas, I think it would be safe recommending this book. If you are someone who does not like large portions of dialogue, detailed character creation, and expansive world development between your action scenes, you may want to look at another series. Again, there will be multiple books released in the series, and not all of them have been released in audio format at the time of this review. This is not intended to scare you away from the books, but simply know what you are getting into prior to starting. Also note that the author leaves each of the books with a cliff-hanger, so expect on getting the next in the series when you finish them.
The book drops the reader right where the second left off. This is a great place to start if you have just finished the previous books. If not, it would have been good to have had a prologue chapter summarizing the previous two books main story arcs so a person would understand what events have lead up to the point of this book. Such would also be a refresher for those who have waited for the next book to come out; in some cases months later. Because of this, it took me a bit longer than usual to get back into the story and know what was happening, but like riding a bike things clicked and I was at it again. It is without surprise that the book is written as well as the previous books in the series, and with the same narrator, it flows well from one to the next, if you can listen that way.
The book continues with our main character Commander Jared and Princess Kelsey attempting to find their way home while also attempting as much as possible to sabotage the efforts of the enemy. We are introduced to a few new characters in this book along with the other supporting characters from previous books. We are also faced with an evil AI (Artificial Intelligence) that is in full control of the old empire, etc. The main characters are likeable, a bit questionable when talking about the new captain introduced, and one cares what happens to them throughout this series. This is often a sign of a well written and thought out book. Terry is very consistent from one to the next and I hope he keeps this up in future books.
I was a bit surprised at the use of some vulgar language in this book which I do not remember from previous books. There are also some discussions including sex and sexual topics, but these are not frequent. A few of the concepts around encryption and safe technology could have been better researched to make it more believable, however this may not bother you as much as someone who is knowledgeable in these items. One other criticism is Terry’s use of the words God and Lord, often when characters are being thankful and expressive in both good and bad times. Many other books in this genre will use other made up expressive terms or swear words, it just seemed odd these lasted as long as they did for this distant colony. Just letting people know who may not like the use of this type language in their books.
As with the previous books in the series, the narration by Veronica Giguere is well read and paced. A few of the same issues I discussed in my previous reviews also were present in this third book. The Princess speaks in a very high and somewhat annoying tone. It is more spoiled-brat or valley girl speak than I would expect from royalty. I know she is relatively young, but her voice in this story seems like she is about six years-old. There were also a few editing issues in this book that I do not remember from the previous two books in the series. One about halfway through when the Princess was testing a new rifle, the sentence is repeated and the error was not edited out. I only experienced this in one place I could remember. There were also a few areas where pauses or swallows were not edited out either. Neither of these made the book unacceptable to listen to, it is more just to let others who like very clean audio that there were a few slight issues in this book.
Would I recommend it? Yes, for those who want a rather long, compelling, and action-packed space adventure. If this is not your thing, I would say this could be a pass.
The book drops the reader right where the second left off. This is a great place to start if you have just finished the previous books. If not, it would have been good to have had a prologue chapter summarizing the previous two books main story arcs so a person would understand what events have lead up to the point of this book. Such would also be a refresher for those who have waited for the next book to come out; in some cases months later. Because of this, it took me a bit longer than usual to get back into the story and know what was happening, but like riding a bike things clicked and I was at it again. It is without surprise that the book is written as well as the previous books in the series, and with the same narrator, it flows well from one to the next, if you can listen that way.
The book continues with our main character Commander Jared and Princess Kelsey attempting to find their way home while also attempting as much as possible to sabotage the efforts of the enemy. We are introduced to a few new characters in this book along with the other supporting characters from previous books. We are also faced with an evil AI (Artificial Intelligence) that is in full control of the old empire, etc. The main characters are likeable, a bit questionable when talking about the new captain introduced, and one cares what happens to them throughout this series. This is often a sign of a well written and thought out book. Terry is very consistent from one to the next and I hope he keeps this up in future books.
I was a bit surprised at the use of some vulgar language in this book which I do not remember from previous books. There are also some discussions including sex and sexual topics, but these are not frequent. A few of the concepts around encryption and safe technology could have been better researched to make it more believable, however this may not bother you as much as someone who is knowledgeable in these items. One other criticism is Terry’s use of the words God and Lord, often when characters are being thankful and expressive in both good and bad times. Many other books in this genre will use other made up expressive terms or swear words, it just seemed odd these lasted as long as they did for this distant colony. Just letting people know who may not like the use of this type language in their books.
As with the previous books in the series, the narration by Veronica Giguere is well read and paced. A few of the same issues I discussed in my previous reviews also were present in this third book. The Princess speaks in a very high and somewhat annoying tone. It is more spoiled-brat or valley girl speak than I would expect from royalty. I know she is relatively young, but her voice in this story seems like she is about six years-old. There were also a few editing issues in this book that I do not remember from the previous two books in the series. One about halfway through when the Princess was testing a new rifle, the sentence is repeated and the error was not edited out. I only experienced this in one place I could remember. There were also a few areas where pauses or swallows were not edited out either. Neither of these made the book unacceptable to listen to, it is more just to let others who like very clean audio that there were a few slight issues in this book.
Would I recommend it? Yes, for those who want a rather long, compelling, and action-packed space adventure. If this is not your thing, I would say this could be a pass.
December 25, 2017
Confusion reigns
There's a continuation of "girl talk" from the first two novels which of course isn't much as talk and wouldn't work for most twelve year olds. It does women a disservice to portray women as girls when they get acquainted or daddy 's girl ever. An heir to the throne puts herself in danger which almost gets herself killed. Then pouts and has childish tantrums with no consequence. She doesn't even consider that her marine bodyguards are put in more danger trying to protect her when she decides that she wants to be reckless.
Then she can be drawn as the one woman fighter in the books. It just highlights a lack of female command staff and representation in the naval, marine and science members of the expedition.
The books would read better with both more diversity in culture and ethnicity as well as gender. None of that would be a stretch in the context of the story. In a lot of ways, this book is more of the same. It could maybe use a little (or maybe a lot) more focus on characters rather than battles. All in all a pleasantly bland read, if the offensive portrayal of noble women is acceptable instead of annoying then disturbing.
I found another of his books "Liberty Station". I was unable to finish it because of the number of racist comments he worked into the very beginning of it. That explains his all-Anglo humanity and the bonus is his total ignorance of all things military, political or economic. He's (as the Australians say) a Keeper.
There's a continuation of "girl talk" from the first two novels which of course isn't much as talk and wouldn't work for most twelve year olds. It does women a disservice to portray women as girls when they get acquainted or daddy 's girl ever. An heir to the throne puts herself in danger which almost gets herself killed. Then pouts and has childish tantrums with no consequence. She doesn't even consider that her marine bodyguards are put in more danger trying to protect her when she decides that she wants to be reckless.
Then she can be drawn as the one woman fighter in the books. It just highlights a lack of female command staff and representation in the naval, marine and science members of the expedition.
The books would read better with both more diversity in culture and ethnicity as well as gender. None of that would be a stretch in the context of the story. In a lot of ways, this book is more of the same. It could maybe use a little (or maybe a lot) more focus on characters rather than battles. All in all a pleasantly bland read, if the offensive portrayal of noble women is acceptable instead of annoying then disturbing.
I found another of his books "Liberty Station". I was unable to finish it because of the number of racist comments he worked into the very beginning of it. That explains his all-Anglo humanity and the bonus is his total ignorance of all things military, political or economic. He's (as the Australians say) a Keeper.
March 25, 2015
This is the third book in Terry Mixon's excellent "Empire of Bones" series.
Mixon has created an intriguing and complex setting for the story to unfold in. Characters are intriguing and the dialogue is laugh out loud hilarious at times. The book is a study of how to create tension, crank up the stakes, introduce setbacks and force character change. The latter half of the book seemed to have a much more desperate tone than the prior works - which given the plot twists, makes a great deal of sense.
Above all else, this was a fast-paced, incredibly entertaining read. From a pure STORY perspective, it simply kills. Does it involve experimental, expert-driver-closed course work? Nope. Just plain old-fashioned space opera / military sci-fi exploits with excellent entertainment value.
And for fans of Mixon's "Dead Robot Society" podcast there are countless Easter Eggs and Tuckerizations within the pages. In all honesty, I found myself laughing at least as hard at some the "inside jokes" as the intentional humor in the book.
It was not a flawless work. I get the sense that perhaps there was some time crunch involved, as it was planned to be published in December. There were a number of chronology, stealth typos and other minor nitpicky details. Nothing serious enough to derail the story, but it was noticed. For example, in one paragraph a protag is described as "...hearing through her external speakers." Speakers, I think, generally are omni-directional. Again, nothing serious. Just minor detail work.
The entire series is well done and just entertaining as hell. Go buy all 3 of them. You won't be disappointed.
Mixon has created an intriguing and complex setting for the story to unfold in. Characters are intriguing and the dialogue is laugh out loud hilarious at times. The book is a study of how to create tension, crank up the stakes, introduce setbacks and force character change. The latter half of the book seemed to have a much more desperate tone than the prior works - which given the plot twists, makes a great deal of sense.
Above all else, this was a fast-paced, incredibly entertaining read. From a pure STORY perspective, it simply kills. Does it involve experimental, expert-driver-closed course work? Nope. Just plain old-fashioned space opera / military sci-fi exploits with excellent entertainment value.
And for fans of Mixon's "Dead Robot Society" podcast there are countless Easter Eggs and Tuckerizations within the pages. In all honesty, I found myself laughing at least as hard at some the "inside jokes" as the intentional humor in the book.
It was not a flawless work. I get the sense that perhaps there was some time crunch involved, as it was planned to be published in December. There were a number of chronology, stealth typos and other minor nitpicky details. Nothing serious enough to derail the story, but it was noticed. For example, in one paragraph a protag is described as "...hearing through her external speakers." Speakers, I think, generally are omni-directional. Again, nothing serious. Just minor detail work.
The entire series is well done and just entertaining as hell. Go buy all 3 of them. You won't be disappointed.
October 16, 2016
Bad Writing, Fanciful Plot, and Generally A Juvenile Effort
The mediocre (at best) storyline that started with a Book 1, has continued to devolve with "Command Decisions,", hamstrung by the immature writing, fanciful plot devices, and inept story structure. Editing is absence, while proofreading is adequate.
The author, Mr. Mixon, has constructed a mishmash of hackneyed SciFi concepts, most "explored" by others, and thrown against the wall, hoping some will stick. The Old Terran Empire, defeated by the Rebels, is controlled by sentient AI's, using humans as their primitive vassals. The nascent New Terran Empire exploratory force, previously stranded, has become involved in a coup within a royal kingdom, defeated an AI in an adjoining system, seen a rescue flotilla turn on them, and discovered a graveyard fleet of advanced Old Terran ships.
The characters are one dimensional cartoons, who express dismay by rubbing or touching their faces, a repetition throughout the eBook, a change from Mr. Mixon's previous modus operandi-rubbing or squeezing noses-in Books 1 and 2.
The glorified novella, not a true eBook, was fully read via Kindle Unlimited and is not recommended.
The mediocre (at best) storyline that started with a Book 1, has continued to devolve with "Command Decisions,", hamstrung by the immature writing, fanciful plot devices, and inept story structure. Editing is absence, while proofreading is adequate.
The author, Mr. Mixon, has constructed a mishmash of hackneyed SciFi concepts, most "explored" by others, and thrown against the wall, hoping some will stick. The Old Terran Empire, defeated by the Rebels, is controlled by sentient AI's, using humans as their primitive vassals. The nascent New Terran Empire exploratory force, previously stranded, has become involved in a coup within a royal kingdom, defeated an AI in an adjoining system, seen a rescue flotilla turn on them, and discovered a graveyard fleet of advanced Old Terran ships.
The characters are one dimensional cartoons, who express dismay by rubbing or touching their faces, a repetition throughout the eBook, a change from Mr. Mixon's previous modus operandi-rubbing or squeezing noses-in Books 1 and 2.
The glorified novella, not a true eBook, was fully read via Kindle Unlimited and is not recommended.
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