Cursed Command

Angel in the Whirlwind #3

by Christopher G. Nuttall

Captain Kat Falcone owes her life and career to her former right-hand man, William McElney, and she did everything in her power to make sure he was front and center for a promotion. But now that he has it, she fears he’ll have to watch his back. Captain McElney has been assigned to the HMS Uncanny—nicknamed Unlucky—a heavy cruiser tainted by the mysterious deaths of two former captains and rumors of mutineers. Nevertheless, as the interstellar war with the Theocracy rages on, the Uncanny will travel in tandem with Kat’s starship, the HMS Lightning, to the notoriously lawless Jorlem Sector to forge alliances for the Commonwealth and quash rampant piracy.

As Captain McElney struggles to whip a hostile crew of miscreants into a disciplined fighting force, Kat is saddled with an undermining new executive officer—an untested aristocrat whose bigotry colors his sense of duty. Both captains wage war against ruthless pirates while conspirators aboard the Uncanny plot to seize the ship. When the starships find themselves locked in a death match with an enemy juggernaut, Kat must make a desperate and devastating sacrifice.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Military Fiction, Fiction, Military Science Fiction, Space, War

416 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 7, 2017

Reviews

[Lexxi Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure if I should rate this 3.5 or 3.75.

This book showed a new dynamic - one of the point of views from prior books, William McElney, has moved to a command of their own spaceship - away from Kat Falcone. And one of the crew members on McElney's new command, Ucanny (the unluckiest ship in the navy), also has a point of view. And like prior books, there's several POV's given over to the other side of the conflict.

Other than being able to come up with 'brilliant' plans in the heat of the moment, I find myself kind of disliking Falcone and somewhat questioning her abilities. She's whinny, bratty, seemingly incapable of properly acting in certain social situations (basically everything in the civilian world), and shows an inability to keep from making snap prejudicial snap judgements. Rightly or wrongly those judgements might be. On-duty she does stuff that could get her in front of a court-martial (going by herself into dangerous situations; she's a captain of a starship, not wonder woman for fuck sake), off-duty she does stuff that could get her court-martialed - and can/could/somewhat does cause 'issues' on her ship (her constant need to be fucking the head of the marines on her ship). People have needs but for fuck sake . . . do you have any self-control? I mean, Kat's constantly slut-shaming her sister and calling her an air-head and Kat does the things she does? pfft.

Yeah, I didn't like this book as much as I would have liked. And the constant mention of just how young she looks and naive; coupled with the comments about her looking older now . . . (while, I guess, still being naive), got old in the first book. By now? Shesh, we get it already.

Right.

Rating: 3.62

June 15 2017

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is book three in the Angel in the Whirlwind Series. Captain Kat Falcone’s XO, William McElney, receives a promotion to Captain and is given command of the HMS Uncanny whose nickname is “Unlucky”. The prior two captains of the Uncanny have died mysteriously. There are rumors of mutiny among the crew or spies from the pirates. The Interstellar War with the Theocracy continuous from the prior books. The HMS Uncanny is to follow Falcone’s ship HMS Lightning to the lawless Jorlen Sector. Their mission is to obtain allies, fight the Theocracy and pirates. At the end of the book, Falcone and McElney both faced boards of inquiry for losing their ships.

The book is well written. The story flips back and forth between Falcone and McElney. The characters are continuing to develop. Nuttall is creating an interesting universe. The space battles are nail biter. Nuttall also has a political plot intertwined with the war and pirate’s activity. Looking forward to next book.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is just over twelve hours long. Lauren Ezzo has done an average job narrating the book. She has narrated the series. I think I would have preferred a female narrator with an alto voice instead of Ezzo’s soprano voice.

[Alice · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this book as much as the previous ones. While I liked that there was a more multi-character angle with this book, the constant mentioning of 'prostitutes' and 'whores' in what felt to me like a very negative way, seemed very much against what the series originally seemed to stand for. While the legal sex work is described to be a huge and necessary part of space port economy, the generally negative attitude towards the sex workers is unnecessary and poisonous. It was a constant in the narration, not just character attitudes. It put me off and made it hard to enjoy the book.

If that kind of thing doesn't bother you, you'll probably enjoy this book. Kat still kicks lots of butt, there's some awesome strategising, and some interesting new characters. I just don't think I'll be continuing with the series.

[Tony Hisgett · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the previous two in the series. To be honest I found most of it a bit boring.
I think this is partly because the narrative is split between Kat and William, on two different Ships and although I have nothing against William, he isn’t the character I wanted to read about.
Then there is the additional plot concerning a group of potential pirates planning a mutiny on a William’s ship. Reading pages and pages about people that I don’t like just waiting for something to happen was not only quite tedious but it left a depressing cloud hanging over the whole book.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Kat is happy to see her former XO William McElney finally receive his well-deserved promotion and be given a command of his own, she can't help but worry when he is put in charge of HMS Uncanny, a ship that is known to be a dumping ground for troublemakers and has a reputation so terrible that it is said to be cursed. His promotion also means that Kat has to deal with a new XO on HMS Lightning, an unexperienced aristocrat who makes a very unfavourable first impression on her that doesn't improve much over time. Both ships are sent to the Jorlem sector to deal with its pirate problem and make overtures to local governments in hopes of gaining alliances for the Commonwealth. Unfortunately, the Theocracy had the same idea, and Kat and William find a state of the art Theocracy battleship waiting for them.

Jumping back and forth between Kat and William on their respective ships, this third book in the series juggles an even bigger number of simultaneously running story threads than before - and it does it very well. While I did wish for a little more action in the first half, the second more than made up for that.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captain Kat Falcone, commanding the starship Lightning, goes after pirates along with Captain Sir William McElney, her former first officer. William has taken command of the Uncanny, a cursed ship whose former captain died in a mysterious action. As they head into pirate territory in the lawless Jorlem sector, neither one suspects that mutiny is brewing. They discover an enemy Theocracy ship in orbit around Jorlem, a neutral planet. Can they survive pirates, mutineers, a greedy planetary leader, and a deadly enemy ship? Adventures abound as these two captains and friends work together to meet leadership challenges, fight piracy, and gain a foothold for the Commonwealth in this system. It’s another fun installment that focuses more on interpersonal dynamics than one space battle after another.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kat Falcone continues her progress in the fleet, although this time on a separate missing with just two heavy cruisers into an area controlled by neither the Theocracy nor the Commonwealth. Mostly escorting freighters with some pirate suppression, there is also an large Theocracy ship on hand in the sector. You can guess what happened in the end, but a lot of worthwhile action leads to that point.

[Damaged142 · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

We take a 180° here with this book. Rather than the story continuing to follow the progress of the war, our protagonists and their ships are assigned to a backwater sector to "show the flag." It's a large reduction in stakes that comes out of left field, and I feel like it's evident throughout. While the book does a good job of world building, that's basically all it does.

Regardless, I still enjoyed it

[eyes.2c · Rating 4 out of 5]

Angel of Death!

Another rewarding adventure with Kat Falcone and crew as they are ordered to investigate the outer reaches of space for the Commonwealth, seeking out allies and partners in the war against the Theocracy. (The Theocracy has some of the earmarks of a combination of the Havens and the Masadans in the Honor Harrington novels. They are implacable enemies of Kat. She has bested them in all encounters.) This time Kat's former executive officer has been granted his own command. William McElney is to captain his own heavy cruiser, the HMS Uncanny. The cruiser has been dogged by the deaths of two former captains. It is commonly referred to as HMS Unlucky--not a glowing recommendation. Captain McElney is faced with command of a cruiser where the crew are undisciplined, both the crew and the ship are physically and mentally unready for action, and with some crew discontent verging on mutiny. All this as McElney sets forth with Kat and HMS Lightning to the Jorlem Sector, a sector rife with piracy and possible Theocracy intrusion. Kat as usual is an unpredictable counter on the battle chessboard. Not as forceful a novel as previous contributions, although the character of McElney and his place in things, his viewpoint as someone who's come up through the ranks and is not from the elite echelons of the Commonwealth, more than makes up for that. This for me is where the full interest lies of this story--how to break through the circle of power and attitudes of entitlement of the Commonwealth's inner circles that extend to the command structures of the armed forces. This continuing saga of Kat and her people places all in readiness for the next episode in Nuttall's exciting interplanetary space opera.

A NetGalley ARC

[Lori Pritzl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the third book and by far the best in the series, so far. The characters are still a bit undeveloped, and the story still a bit formulaic, but finally, there is a new villain, besides the evil Theocracy.

I received this book from Goodreads.

[John Purvis · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Cursed Command” eBook was published in 2017 and was written by Christopher Nuttall (http://www.chrishanger.net). Mr. Nuttall has published nearly 30 novels. This is the third book in his “Angel in the Whirlwind” series.

I received an ARC of this novel through https://www.netgalley.com in return for a fair and honest review. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set in the far future. While the main character is Captain Kat Falcone, her former Exec and now Captain, William McElney is also a prominent figure.

Falcone and McElney are sent with their ships away from the front and the war with the Theocracy to the Jorlem Sector. They are on a primarily diplomatic mission. McElney’s new command, the HMS Uncanny, has a spotted history and is nicknamed the Unlucky.

McElney must overcome the reputation of the Uncanny, assist Falcone in fighting pirates, help smooth diplomatic relations and carefully confront a Theocracy ship that is on a “diplomatic” mission in the Jorlem Sector. Falcone again comes across as a strong and resourceful leader.

I thoroughly enjoyed the 8.5 hours I spent reading this 416 page Science Fiction novel. I have read all three of the novels in this series and have thoroughly enjoyed them all. This is another good military science fiction novel. I have liked the principal character of Kat Falcone. The cover art is OK, but does not appear to relate to any particular part of the story. I give this novel a 5 out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really enjoyable series and i will certainly be reading the next one very soon.
I am not a particularly critical reader - if the story is interesting and I care about the characters I can forgive many of the "faults" mentioned by other reviewers. If, as in this case, I have to read (or listen) to the end regardless of what else i am supposed to be doing - then i am happy to give 5 stars.
There are definite similarities to the Honor Harrington books - but also sufficient departures to make these a very worthwhile read for David Weber fans (I would count myself one of these!).
This would probably have been a 4 star rating - but the last quarter of the book was very climactic and I was immersed in another world unwilling to leave - which is everything I ask of a book! Hence 5stars. (although I guess Honor would have to be 5.5 stars on the same scale!)

[BobA707 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: Simple space opera with classic goodies and baddies, but likeable main character, interesting plot, the premise is quite interesting as well - so in summary not very thought provoking but a good read. Book 3 continues from where 2 left off, but this time in a quiet sector of the galaxy

Plotline: The plot is well thought out, a bit predictable, but interesting. The mutiny and its reasons just don't add up and the action is mostly pirate bashing

Premise: Hyperspace is never really explained (yet) but it interacts with the plot in interesting ways, simple but effective

Writing: Very readable, light

Ending: Mutiny put down, the enemy thoroughly trounced by our heroine

Pace: Never a dull moment!

[Adam Windsor · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you read any single given page of "Cursed Command" you'd find a solid space opera going on. Reviewing the work as a whole though, reveals some serious structural issues with the book (which was also the case in the first entry in the series, as I recall). Nuttall introduces a looming threat early in this work and keeps reminding the reader of it ... but he waits until he's passed the 300 page mark to actually pull the trigger and then promptly wraps it up inside forty pages so he can deliver the real ending of the book. There's enough connection between the threat and the actual ending that I can see what he was going for, but the pacing is too long on the foreshadowing and too short on the follow-through.

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four and a half stars. The adventures of Kat and Sir William continue. While this book includes Kat and she retains command, the heart of the story focuses on Sir William and his first command. I think a large part of why I've rated this book higher than the previous two is that Sir William is a much better character. He has more depth and a richer history. He is all around more interesting as a person.

The perspectives from the other side add a lot of color to the story as well. It is interesting to see how Joel becomes caught in the trap of his own devising. It is especially telling when we explore the similarities between Joel and Sir William.

[Steven Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was another good book in this series. Very good action and suspense with enough space opera to keep the pace fast enough without bogging down in minutia. I like how the character of Kat is maturing into more than just a pretty face from a wealthy influential family into a capable naval commander. There are some similarities to the Honor Harrington series and I wonder if the author has maybe read that series, as the story arc is similar, although Honor is not from a wealthy family. Another similar series is the Kris Longknife books, so if you like the Angel in the Whirlwind series you might give a try to the Honor Harrington and Kris Longknife series.

[Flak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kat and William are of to the frontier to keep an eye on a cluster of neutral planets and systems.
The book is a little heavy on intrigue, I didn't really enjoy that part of the book. It feels like the book spends a long time develop the plot and then because of how serious mutiny is, it spends most of the aftermath to play it down. Mr Nuttall is very talented and could have done something smarter.

[PyranopterinMo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the author on Amazon and he looked like he might be interesting but at the time he had one very very long series and for me that's big minus. This series came up recently and of the four books this one had the best start. Unfortunately it turns into a pretty standard story with a few things I didn't think were acceptable. This rating is just for the story. Think of the film Galaxy Quest without the humor or odd characters.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before you start this one, please realize it is the third book in a series. You will need to have read the first two books or the characters, plot, etc. won’t make much sense to you. The author picks right up where he left off and, without having a spoiler, it did seem a bit slow the last half of the book. I picked this up for “free” with my Kindle Unlimited subscription vs. its regular $4.99 price, and I certainly received more than $4.99 in entertainment value from it.

[Kevin Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow!

Great action! Wonderful (continued) development of the main characters. Nuttall, unlike a number of other authors, doesn’t smooth things over...have everything end 100% well. Rather, he writes in the spirit of real life - winners have their share of despair and death. Love this series!

[Edward Reuysser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story line

Thank goodness for authors like this one who bothers to inject their craft with humanity and art.

The hardest part of writing is creating lifelike characters that the reader cares about. You really want the people in these stories to succeed and they have to work to overcome significant challenges to do so. I love it.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real politics

Just like his previous two books in the space opera genre, the two prequels to this book, Christopher has made a realistic Political landscape the reacts very much like our own world. Worth a read.

[Frank Bertino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brave Deadly Angel

Kat and William fight prejudice, mutiny, the Theocracy, pirates, and politicians in their efforts to keep innocents safe. Many stand in their way such as the very insidious villain Joel. With sacrifice, they move forward with their goals. Why does the King continually take her into his confidence? Will she and William get promotions and be assigned major commands in the upcoming battles? I look forward to the next book.

[Dave Withe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another good yarn from Chris that tackles current events

I corresponded with Chris years ago. Hes was good then and now has natured into a masterful space opera writer. He's also quite the social critic.

This new series promises a good ride for his fans.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another action-packed story

This is the third book in the series about Kat Falcone and her crew. I like the idea of having two spaceships going together on a mission and then each one has its own problem to solve. I'm glad that Sir Maclery finally gets to command his own ship.

[Joy Kamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this series. It is great. I think that it is well written, something exiting to happening at every turn and the characters of people are well develop. You learn to hate some people really well and root for others.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and very light read. Lots of tropes, good characters. Some thinly veiled parallels to the current global political system. Enjoyed it if you ignore all the obvious plot flaws. Same review as number 1&2, as it is a direct follow on.

[Mark Zodda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, but not as good as the previous two books in the series. While there were some sex scenes in the previous books, in this one they were more detailed to no purpose, but didn't take away too much from the story or the action.

[x x x · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice finish

So unlucky and planned mutinies can be suspenseful so this tale includes suspense, diplomatic tension, prejudice, and the slime of hidden politics. Mostly just a fun read.

[Riku Lindblad · Rating 3 out of 5]

The third viewpoint carried me through this book pretty much.

Nothing much else happens, we spend a bunch of time inside William's and Kat's heads, with the questioning everything and theorising about what might happen at the larger scale.