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Sword and Starship #1
Blood's Force
Where superstition is law, there is no order!
Dame Jessamine is a knight errant with a spaceship for a steed, a pupil of ancient science and technology who quests on behalf of the downtrodden. She’s accustomed to forging her own path through the galaxy—until she’s hijacked at sword-point and sent to investigate Nidaros, a remote barony known for bursts of rebellion.
In Nidaros, Jessamine finds a populace short on food and patience, innocents detained for torture, and a court trapped in a web of delusion. The Baron considers her a distraction. The magicians, convinced of a “curse,” dismiss her pleas for rational action. Even as Jessamine forges an alliance with the soldiers, an unknown foe seeks to frame her as an agitator.
Stuck amid murderous intrigue and cut off from her mentors, Jessamine must figure out how to save Nidaros from starvation. But the only people who understand the true “curse” have been accused of witchcraft—and if Jessamine’s not careful with her ancient knowledge, she’ll join them in the dungeon!
Dame Jessamine is a knight errant with a spaceship for a steed, a pupil of ancient science and technology who quests on behalf of the downtrodden. She’s accustomed to forging her own path through the galaxy—until she’s hijacked at sword-point and sent to investigate Nidaros, a remote barony known for bursts of rebellion.
In Nidaros, Jessamine finds a populace short on food and patience, innocents detained for torture, and a court trapped in a web of delusion. The Baron considers her a distraction. The magicians, convinced of a “curse,” dismiss her pleas for rational action. Even as Jessamine forges an alliance with the soldiers, an unknown foe seeks to frame her as an agitator.
Stuck amid murderous intrigue and cut off from her mentors, Jessamine must figure out how to save Nidaros from starvation. But the only people who understand the true “curse” have been accused of witchcraft—and if Jessamine’s not careful with her ancient knowledge, she’ll join them in the dungeon!
- GenresFantasy
340 pages, Paperback
First published September 25, 2015
1 person is currently reading
638 people want to read
About the author
Ellis Morning
4 books93 followersEllis has always loved staging adventures in her head before going to sleep each night. When she was twelve, she started putting these adventures on paper.
For the next twenty years, she wrote with varying degrees of seriousness, but always as a hobby. In that time, she fell in love with Mark Twain and Kurt Vonnegut, the original Star Trek series, and Mystery Science Theater 3000. Science fiction became her favorite domain to work in, but she also enjoyed reading fantasy, horror, Western, and detective stories, and incorporating their elements into her own work. One of her favorite things to do was make people laugh.
Ellis denied being a writer for decades. ut then she sold articles to The Daily WTF, and a short story to Analog Science Fiction and Fact. After quitting her full-time job to finish her first novel, it was time to own up to writing as her calling. She's currently having the time of her life penning the Sword and Starship series, and has ideas for many more stories and books to come.
For the next twenty years, she wrote with varying degrees of seriousness, but always as a hobby. In that time, she fell in love with Mark Twain and Kurt Vonnegut, the original Star Trek series, and Mystery Science Theater 3000. Science fiction became her favorite domain to work in, but she also enjoyed reading fantasy, horror, Western, and detective stories, and incorporating their elements into her own work. One of her favorite things to do was make people laugh.
Ellis denied being a writer for decades. ut then she sold articles to The Daily WTF, and a short story to Analog Science Fiction and Fact. After quitting her full-time job to finish her first novel, it was time to own up to writing as her calling. She's currently having the time of her life penning the Sword and Starship series, and has ideas for many more stories and books to come.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 24, 2015
The series title, "Sword and Starship" is about as on-the-nose as it can possibly be. Sometime, in the long-ago past, there was a great galaxy-spanning empire known only as the "Shipbuilders". That civilization collapsed, for reasons that remain mysterious. In the ruins of that once-great civilization, the galaxy has descended into medievalism, with knights armed with swords pilot starships between baronies, while priests and wizards use ancient technology and sleight of hand.
Against that background, Ellis writes a tight adventure story that mashes genre elements into a blender and produces something truly unique. The pacing is quick, the underlying mysteries of the story are engaging, and the protagonist is a likable blend of intelligent, strong, and vulnerable.
If you're looking for some sword-and-sorcery mixed up into your rayguns-and-rocketships, with ancient mysteries, court intrigue and weird technology, this is an enjoyable, fast-paced read.
Against that background, Ellis writes a tight adventure story that mashes genre elements into a blender and produces something truly unique. The pacing is quick, the underlying mysteries of the story are engaging, and the protagonist is a likable blend of intelligent, strong, and vulnerable.
If you're looking for some sword-and-sorcery mixed up into your rayguns-and-rocketships, with ancient mysteries, court intrigue and weird technology, this is an enjoyable, fast-paced read.
November 19, 2015
Set in the far future, Blood's Force is a fun questing adventure that blends science fiction and medieval fantasy beautifully. The characters are interesting and scenarios believable. The action is fast-paced moving toward an important discovery under the threat of epic conflict. But as with all great sci-fi, the setting provides a flexible and intelligent framework for exploring deeper social constructs.
This book is very enjoyable and I look forward to the next adventure.
This book is very enjoyable and I look forward to the next adventure.
December 7, 2020
Dame Jessamine is a knight errant with a spaceship for a steed - the premise sold me on this immediately.
It's also the best thing about the book - that and the worldbuilding. Unfortunately I found it hard to connect with Jess, much less any other characters or relationships including the one with Ingvar. The pacing was uneven and the plot always seemed more improvised than thought through. And I knew this is book one of a series, but I still hoped for more of a resolution for at least a few threads at the end. Still, overall it was a quick decently entertaining read, and there were enough elements that I thought had potential that I'm considering reading the sequel.
It's also the best thing about the book - that and the worldbuilding. Unfortunately I found it hard to connect with Jess, much less any other characters or relationships including the one with Ingvar. The pacing was uneven and the plot always seemed more improvised than thought through. And I knew this is book one of a series, but I still hoped for more of a resolution for at least a few threads at the end. Still, overall it was a quick decently entertaining read, and there were enough elements that I thought had potential that I'm considering reading the sequel.
March 29, 2016
Good first novel from Ellis Morning :) The story itself is classic, and the world is novel and new. I really enjoyed the development of the world.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews