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The Sibyl's War #2
Knight
A legend of Space Opera is back with Knight , the second book in Timothy Zahn's Sibyl’s War series
Nicole Hammond 19 was trying to survive on the streets of Philadelphia. She, cruel bleeding bully Bungie, and doctor Sam were abducted by a race of silent mysterious moth-like aliens and taken to a vast ship Fyrantha .
Now she is a Sibyl. After harmful throat spray, the special young women exchange ship directions for human crews to fix by quadrants. She has found arenas where ShipMasters force alien tribes to fight like gladiators of old, in teams for food.
Competing factions control different parts of the ship. Humans and other sentient aliens caught in the middle. But Nicole is done being bullied, and now she has a plan to take control of the ship. She just has to outsmart war profiteers and slavers to do it.
Nicole Hammond 19 was trying to survive on the streets of Philadelphia. She, cruel bleeding bully Bungie, and doctor Sam were abducted by a race of silent mysterious moth-like aliens and taken to a vast ship Fyrantha .
Now she is a Sibyl. After harmful throat spray, the special young women exchange ship directions for human crews to fix by quadrants. She has found arenas where ShipMasters force alien tribes to fight like gladiators of old, in teams for food.
Competing factions control different parts of the ship. Humans and other sentient aliens caught in the middle. But Nicole is done being bullied, and now she has a plan to take control of the ship. She just has to outsmart war profiteers and slavers to do it.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2019
76 people are currently reading
276 people want to read
About the author
Timothy Zahn
483 books8,548 followersTimothy Zahn attended Michigan State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1973. He then moved to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and achieved an M.S. degree in physics in 1975. While he was pursuing a doctorate in physics, his adviser became ill and died. Zahn never completed the doctorate. In 1975 he had begun writing science fiction as a hobby, and he became a professional writer. He and his wife Anna live in Bandon, Oregon. They have a son, Corwin Zahn.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
October 7, 2019
Mea Culpa
I am not sure why, but the combination of me in my public library and a Zahn book on a display shelf usually means I end up with it in my hand. This has happened with mixed results and here I have book two of the Sibyl’s war now read without having read book one, Pawn. You can judge how big a mistake this was.
I was immediately experiencing the spaceship, Fryantha, from the perspective of Nicole Hammond. This is an alien ship and Nicole is a human snatched from the Philadelphia streets…..yes! an alien abduction!
Nicole was a member of a street gang in Philly and another gang member was snatched with her. He abused her and she has had to hone her survival techniques. Some of those techniques work better in the Fryantha and some do not.
That ship, which may have been a space-going zoo in its past, was created by aliens whose presence is now a mystery since the ship is being used now for another purpose: to determine which alien races (including humans) can be shipped as fighters to conflicts in various parts of the galaxy.
Nicole has been a “Sybil” --- someone who speaks for a work group. Hers is designated “the green group” and book one chronicles their adventures and Nicole’s attempts to convince the “Shipmasters” that humans are not suitable for fighting.
This apparent theme continues and expands in Knight where we meet more abducted alien groups and see that the Shipmasters are upping the conflicts and are taking over more of the ship. This is a very complex concept since the ship, itself, is resisting these Shipmasters and has designated Nicole as “The Protector” of it and, ostensibly, its mission as a non-combative vessel.
Zahn takes a very risky approach by having Nicole be “street-smart” but not very bright. Also, she needs to use a particular kind of inhaler to communicate with the ship, a process that comes with a price since she is told that every time she inhales the chemical it takes some time off of her lifespan. She is not the kind of character with whom the reader extends an immediate bond of empathy.
Among the aliens species is the Ghorf. These creatures are big, strong and slow (both mentally and physically) but in Knight one, Kahkitah, develops a friendship with Nicole. This proves mutually beneficial and essential for the mission. As a side-development, it seems that as Nicole gets confused and enervated, Kahkitah becomes brighter and faster. Will this be enough to allow Nicole to win a confrontation with the Shipmasters?
I am doubly guilty of making your read this. Remember, I did not start with book #1, Pawn. Book #3 has yet to be written. And, you might recall that I did the same thing with Zahn’s Quadrail saga. Here, I don’t feel the compulsion to backtrack. I also feel that I may or may not read book #3 when it becomes available. So, there you are. Good luck with making use of this 3* rating. I will try to avoid doing this to me and you the next time.
I am not sure why, but the combination of me in my public library and a Zahn book on a display shelf usually means I end up with it in my hand. This has happened with mixed results and here I have book two of the Sibyl’s war now read without having read book one, Pawn. You can judge how big a mistake this was.
I was immediately experiencing the spaceship, Fryantha, from the perspective of Nicole Hammond. This is an alien ship and Nicole is a human snatched from the Philadelphia streets…..yes! an alien abduction!
Nicole was a member of a street gang in Philly and another gang member was snatched with her. He abused her and she has had to hone her survival techniques. Some of those techniques work better in the Fryantha and some do not.
That ship, which may have been a space-going zoo in its past, was created by aliens whose presence is now a mystery since the ship is being used now for another purpose: to determine which alien races (including humans) can be shipped as fighters to conflicts in various parts of the galaxy.
Nicole has been a “Sybil” --- someone who speaks for a work group. Hers is designated “the green group” and book one chronicles their adventures and Nicole’s attempts to convince the “Shipmasters” that humans are not suitable for fighting.
This apparent theme continues and expands in Knight where we meet more abducted alien groups and see that the Shipmasters are upping the conflicts and are taking over more of the ship. This is a very complex concept since the ship, itself, is resisting these Shipmasters and has designated Nicole as “The Protector” of it and, ostensibly, its mission as a non-combative vessel.
Zahn takes a very risky approach by having Nicole be “street-smart” but not very bright. Also, she needs to use a particular kind of inhaler to communicate with the ship, a process that comes with a price since she is told that every time she inhales the chemical it takes some time off of her lifespan. She is not the kind of character with whom the reader extends an immediate bond of empathy.
Among the aliens species is the Ghorf. These creatures are big, strong and slow (both mentally and physically) but in Knight one, Kahkitah, develops a friendship with Nicole. This proves mutually beneficial and essential for the mission. As a side-development, it seems that as Nicole gets confused and enervated, Kahkitah becomes brighter and faster. Will this be enough to allow Nicole to win a confrontation with the Shipmasters?
I am doubly guilty of making your read this. Remember, I did not start with book #1, Pawn. Book #3 has yet to be written. And, you might recall that I did the same thing with Zahn’s Quadrail saga. Here, I don’t feel the compulsion to backtrack. I also feel that I may or may not read book #3 when it becomes available. So, there you are. Good luck with making use of this 3* rating. I will try to avoid doing this to me and you the next time.
February 1, 2019
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan - Tor/Forge for an eGalley of this novel.
Since I was requesting an opportunity to read the second book in a series I decided to read the first, Pawn, to prepare myself for this one. Both Pawn and Knight are quite similar, this second book has Nicole finding more alien races being pitted against each other so those who control the ship can observe how aggressive they are.
Nicole was a member of a gang in Philadelphia before she was abducted by space aliens. She discovered she has the ability to communicate with the ship, thereby proving to be a Sybil, and that ability sets her apart from other human captives. In this second book she has been told she is a Protector and/or a Caretaker of the ship. What Nicole spends her time doing is finding arena spaces on the ship and helping aliens fighting each other for survival. If the home planet of an alien race is shown to be aggressive enough to fight and kill, that planet population can be enslaved and used to fight the battles of other alien races. Sounds complicated but it's actually rather mundane. This series is, indeed, a space opera. Maybe it would present better as a film or television version, but I find the book version too slow and not enough of a challenge to my imagination as I read. I gave the series a fair chance but will not be continuing with future books.
Since I was requesting an opportunity to read the second book in a series I decided to read the first, Pawn, to prepare myself for this one. Both Pawn and Knight are quite similar, this second book has Nicole finding more alien races being pitted against each other so those who control the ship can observe how aggressive they are.
Nicole was a member of a gang in Philadelphia before she was abducted by space aliens. She discovered she has the ability to communicate with the ship, thereby proving to be a Sybil, and that ability sets her apart from other human captives. In this second book she has been told she is a Protector and/or a Caretaker of the ship. What Nicole spends her time doing is finding arena spaces on the ship and helping aliens fighting each other for survival. If the home planet of an alien race is shown to be aggressive enough to fight and kill, that planet population can be enslaved and used to fight the battles of other alien races. Sounds complicated but it's actually rather mundane. This series is, indeed, a space opera. Maybe it would present better as a film or television version, but I find the book version too slow and not enough of a challenge to my imagination as I read. I gave the series a fair chance but will not be continuing with future books.
June 4, 2019
A decent continuation of this series with its interesting variant on giant generation ships. With the young Nicole Hammond as protagonist, the book may be a good YA read as well. A fun read.
January 3, 2021
This is the second book in the Sibyl’s War Chronicles and I was rather hoping it would mark a step up from the first book. It's happened before. Zahn’s Quadrail series is one of his best but for me the first book, Night Train to Rigel, landed with a plop because the grand reveal it dramatically built up to was frankly silly. It was only with subsequent books, when the silliness of the premise was just accepted as background data rather than gradually unveiled as novel insights, that the setting was used to its full and smarter mysteries could be uncovered. I hoped that this was how I'd feel about this series too. But...
My basic problems with the first book involved several issues. First of all is exactly what I just said - the premise is silly. The basic idea is that aliens have kidnapped a bunch of humans to repair their ship while another group of aliens is trying to take it over and is testing humans and other species for their warlike potential. Thus the humans have to play nice and pretend to be utterly incapable of violence or all Earth will be enslaved to serve as soldiers for the highest bidder. This didn't make much sense in the last book and, unlike Quadrail, knowing what’s actually going on doesn’t make it any less dumb. The shipmasters would have to be pretty stupid by this point not to notice that humans are acting in violent ways and the frankly legalistic way they go about trying to catch people in the act of fighting makes no sense. You want them to fight? Put two of them in a room and tell them they’re not coming out until one is dead. Or some variation on that. This isn’t a courtroom where you can dodge liability through clever evasions and are innocent until proven guilty. If they really wanted to know for sure how warlike humanity is they could simply pull someone new in and check. They control the teleporters after all and must know where Earth is if they're planning to sell that information. Why not just use this knowledge if humans on ship are being crafty?
The other issue was one of background and it too is present again here. Zahn has never been much good at depicting reality. Some authors can ape speech patterns and attitudes with ease, but all of Zahn’s characters sound pretty much the same. I don’t mean they're not unique characters with different ways of expressing themselves (he has some truly great characters in his repertoire), but they all feel like they fit into a certain subset of the population - specifically the college-educated middle class rational types. Since most readers of science fiction come from this subset of the population that's not really a problem. Usually. When he does stretch out to present people from different and less educated (or at least more emotion-driven) backgrounds he tends to do so through invented patois or speech patterns. Which works very well in the distant future or in a galaxy far far away but isn't so great for books set in the here and now. Which brings us to the big problem here - his lead is a former gang member from the Philly projects but she talks like the aforementioned middle class rational types. This is not a good fit.
While Nicole’s thankfully accepted her task now and moved on from being weak and dependent on her fellow gang members it never seems believable that she came from that background in the first place. And it doesn’t change the fact that she’s not very bright and wins only through plot shenanigans. Seriously, for someone who’s relying on secrecy to survive it's astounding that she reveals her identity as Protector within fifty pages. Lest that seem longer than it sounds this is literally her first encounter with the villains. And she just blurts it out. She’s supposed to be coming into her brilliance, but really she should be dead a dozen times over by the end. And the rest of the characters are even worse. If an alien race kidnaps you unexpectedly and promises to send you home if you fight to the death for reasons they won’t explain how likely are you to believe them? Well it seems like half the party’s willing to take them at their word, and if this includes some dumb people it includes some pretty “smart” ones as well. The past few years have been pretty disillusioning about mankind’s overall intelligence, but this still seems unbelievable.
There are some things that work better here than in the last book. As I said, Nicole’s become a lot less annoying even if no more believable. And at least one of the big reveals here works. But the final revelation is basically inevitable. Just from my summary above you can guess exactly how this book will end. Why anyone would believe it could be avoided is beyond me. This book is probably an improvement from the last one, but ultimately the basic premise is just fatally flawed. Science Fiction is based around accepting a lot of ideas that you’ve never personally experienced. These ideas are not always particularly plausible. But if the premise makes absolutely no sense and the writing style keeps rubbing your nose in that it’s hard to suppress those higher instincts and just take the setting at face value.
My basic problems with the first book involved several issues. First of all is exactly what I just said - the premise is silly. The basic idea is that aliens have kidnapped a bunch of humans to repair their ship while another group of aliens is trying to take it over and is testing humans and other species for their warlike potential. Thus the humans have to play nice and pretend to be utterly incapable of violence or all Earth will be enslaved to serve as soldiers for the highest bidder. This didn't make much sense in the last book and, unlike Quadrail, knowing what’s actually going on doesn’t make it any less dumb. The shipmasters would have to be pretty stupid by this point not to notice that humans are acting in violent ways and the frankly legalistic way they go about trying to catch people in the act of fighting makes no sense. You want them to fight? Put two of them in a room and tell them they’re not coming out until one is dead. Or some variation on that. This isn’t a courtroom where you can dodge liability through clever evasions and are innocent until proven guilty. If they really wanted to know for sure how warlike humanity is they could simply pull someone new in and check. They control the teleporters after all and must know where Earth is if they're planning to sell that information. Why not just use this knowledge if humans on ship are being crafty?
The other issue was one of background and it too is present again here. Zahn has never been much good at depicting reality. Some authors can ape speech patterns and attitudes with ease, but all of Zahn’s characters sound pretty much the same. I don’t mean they're not unique characters with different ways of expressing themselves (he has some truly great characters in his repertoire), but they all feel like they fit into a certain subset of the population - specifically the college-educated middle class rational types. Since most readers of science fiction come from this subset of the population that's not really a problem. Usually. When he does stretch out to present people from different and less educated (or at least more emotion-driven) backgrounds he tends to do so through invented patois or speech patterns. Which works very well in the distant future or in a galaxy far far away but isn't so great for books set in the here and now. Which brings us to the big problem here - his lead is a former gang member from the Philly projects but she talks like the aforementioned middle class rational types. This is not a good fit.
While Nicole’s thankfully accepted her task now and moved on from being weak and dependent on her fellow gang members it never seems believable that she came from that background in the first place. And it doesn’t change the fact that she’s not very bright and wins only through plot shenanigans. Seriously, for someone who’s relying on secrecy to survive it's astounding that she reveals her identity as Protector within fifty pages. Lest that seem longer than it sounds this is literally her first encounter with the villains. And she just blurts it out. She’s supposed to be coming into her brilliance, but really she should be dead a dozen times over by the end. And the rest of the characters are even worse. If an alien race kidnaps you unexpectedly and promises to send you home if you fight to the death for reasons they won’t explain how likely are you to believe them? Well it seems like half the party’s willing to take them at their word, and if this includes some dumb people it includes some pretty “smart” ones as well. The past few years have been pretty disillusioning about mankind’s overall intelligence, but this still seems unbelievable.
There are some things that work better here than in the last book. As I said, Nicole’s become a lot less annoying even if no more believable. And at least one of the big reveals here works. But the final revelation is basically inevitable. Just from my summary above you can guess exactly how this book will end. Why anyone would believe it could be avoided is beyond me. This book is probably an improvement from the last one, but ultimately the basic premise is just fatally flawed. Science Fiction is based around accepting a lot of ideas that you’ve never personally experienced. These ideas are not always particularly plausible. But if the premise makes absolutely no sense and the writing style keeps rubbing your nose in that it’s hard to suppress those higher instincts and just take the setting at face value.
February 11, 2019
Publishing Date: April 2019
Publisher: Tor/Forge
ISBN: 9780765329677
Genre: SciFi
Rating: 1.8/5
Review: This was a story line that languished in dialogue while moving at a snails pace. Remember the movie “Speed”? Great movement tied to a simple story line that kept you involved despite the flimsiness of the overall plot. Think of this novel as “Speed 2”. Boring story line set on a boat in the friggin’ ocean going fast…er? Even the idea that Super Speshul Nicole is trying to hide the fact that humans can fight from the slaver aliens is a stretch. The premise that slaver aliens would ever pit other aliens against each other (on a space ship) in order to determine the best fighters for war farming practices, is really not believable.
This novel was not even alien weird. All the aliens understand each other with a universal translator while exhibiting common humanistic idioms. The fractured AI within the ship is the only interesting event as are the Wisps that reside within.
Nicole was a big fall down as a main character. A hot gang/street urchin with a heart of gold, plucked from the streets of Philly and now on a space ship where the Artificial Intelligence has made her it’s “Protector”. She is either in a state of anger or tiredness while constantly being snarky. Most of the dialogue is spent on her internal ruminations. The story line meanders it’s way through corridors while to and fro-ing between the fighting Arenas. The tropes are many what with her former gang mates trying to “get some action” while “sneering evilly”.
Despite the slow delivery, the novel holds promise if more movement were added and the city of Philadelphia was edited down a bit as a point of relevance. Make the aliens more alien in the next installment.
Publisher: Tor/Forge
ISBN: 9780765329677
Genre: SciFi
Rating: 1.8/5
Review: This was a story line that languished in dialogue while moving at a snails pace. Remember the movie “Speed”? Great movement tied to a simple story line that kept you involved despite the flimsiness of the overall plot. Think of this novel as “Speed 2”. Boring story line set on a boat in the friggin’ ocean going fast…er? Even the idea that Super Speshul Nicole is trying to hide the fact that humans can fight from the slaver aliens is a stretch. The premise that slaver aliens would ever pit other aliens against each other (on a space ship) in order to determine the best fighters for war farming practices, is really not believable.
This novel was not even alien weird. All the aliens understand each other with a universal translator while exhibiting common humanistic idioms. The fractured AI within the ship is the only interesting event as are the Wisps that reside within.
Nicole was a big fall down as a main character. A hot gang/street urchin with a heart of gold, plucked from the streets of Philly and now on a space ship where the Artificial Intelligence has made her it’s “Protector”. She is either in a state of anger or tiredness while constantly being snarky. Most of the dialogue is spent on her internal ruminations. The story line meanders it’s way through corridors while to and fro-ing between the fighting Arenas. The tropes are many what with her former gang mates trying to “get some action” while “sneering evilly”.
Despite the slow delivery, the novel holds promise if more movement were added and the city of Philadelphia was edited down a bit as a point of relevance. Make the aliens more alien in the next installment.
May 27, 2024
“Let’s get busy and not fight a war.”
Competent, lightweight, young adult science fiction. Comic book-depth plot and characters.
“Slaves—even military slaves—no. Creatures advanced enough for space travel wouldn’t be that unenlightened.” “What does enlightenment have to do with it? As long as there are wars, people are going to want people to fight and take bullets and die for them.”
Bridges gap to third, concluding episode. Plot, such as it is, is expanded and moved forward, but nothing significant happens.
But now, knowing what was hanging over her whole world, it was brains that were going to count. And she’d better start using hers.
Competent, lightweight, young adult science fiction. Comic book-depth plot and characters.
“Slaves—even military slaves—no. Creatures advanced enough for space travel wouldn’t be that unenlightened.” “What does enlightenment have to do with it? As long as there are wars, people are going to want people to fight and take bullets and die for them.”
Bridges gap to third, concluding episode. Plot, such as it is, is expanded and moved forward, but nothing significant happens.
But now, knowing what was hanging over her whole world, it was brains that were going to count. And she’d better start using hers.
February 19, 2024
The first half was a lot of set-up for the second (and probably the next book). As such it dragged in places. However, the second half got back up to speed moving the plot forward with building tension and rising stakes for the protagonist (the stakes for humanity were already high).
May have to revisit this review after the final book. It could easily go up, not likely it would drop.
May have to revisit this review after the final book. It could easily go up, not likely it would drop.
April 18, 2019
I really enjoyed this one. Nicole is accustomed to living by her wits and it’s this attribute that keeps her alive and relatively unscathed. That, and her stubbornness in refusing to lie down and accept the fate that awaits herself, her companions and the rest of Earth… The stakes in this story couldn’t be higher – Earth is at the mercy of a ruthless, technologically advanced race of aliens who are looking to cash in on whatever humanity has to offer in the way of bankable commodities. Up to now, the abducted slaves on the vast ship that has snatched them up, have managed to persuade their masters that humans are useless at fighting, so they have concluded that selling off humans as slave armies to the highest bidder is pointless.
Nicole’s skills at communicating with some of the odd, alien components of the ship, such as the moth creatures, give her some vital advantages, but I think Zahn has successfully avoided making her too much of a Mary Sue. I also like the fact that the humans on board don’t all think the same way – some are simply intent on surviving at the expense of everyone else; others think the strategy that Nicole and her companions adopt is simply wrong and yet at least one key character believes that if she betrays her fellow conspirators, she will be rewarded by being freed to return to her family.
All in all, the desperate skirmishes and adventures aboard this extraordinary, vast ship make for gripping reading and I will be backtracking to discover how Nicole came to be aboard the Fyrantha and looking forward to the next slice of the adventure. The ebook arc copy of Knight: A Chronicle of the Sibyl’s War was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest opinion of the book.
8/10
Nicole’s skills at communicating with some of the odd, alien components of the ship, such as the moth creatures, give her some vital advantages, but I think Zahn has successfully avoided making her too much of a Mary Sue. I also like the fact that the humans on board don’t all think the same way – some are simply intent on surviving at the expense of everyone else; others think the strategy that Nicole and her companions adopt is simply wrong and yet at least one key character believes that if she betrays her fellow conspirators, she will be rewarded by being freed to return to her family.
All in all, the desperate skirmishes and adventures aboard this extraordinary, vast ship make for gripping reading and I will be backtracking to discover how Nicole came to be aboard the Fyrantha and looking forward to the next slice of the adventure. The ebook arc copy of Knight: A Chronicle of the Sibyl’s War was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest opinion of the book.
8/10
October 10, 2023
I liked the way the plot developed from the first book with Nicole taking control and changing from the drunk girl we were introduced to in the first book, to a leader.
And I ship Jeff and Nicole together so hard. Please Zahn, don't break my heart with the third book.
And I ship Jeff and Nicole together so hard. Please Zahn, don't break my heart with the third book.
July 24, 2019
The series is building nicely.
Review: https://derailmentsofthought.com/2019...
Review: https://derailmentsofthought.com/2019...
October 17, 2024
Found this in hardcover at a Dollar Tree for $1 USD. Looked interesting, so figured for a buck (well, almost $2 CAD, but still) why not take a shot.
Loved the concept of a sentient ship hurtling through space, and the interactions with the on-board members! Was an easy, fun read. Now I must go find the rest of this series...
Loved the concept of a sentient ship hurtling through space, and the interactions with the on-board members! Was an easy, fun read. Now I must go find the rest of this series...
April 19, 2019
Nicole explores the rest of the ship in Book Two of the Sybil's War.
Some areas are controlled by the Shipmasters and some areas are controlled by the Fyrantha's computer Caretaker (who chose Nicole as Ship's Protector).
In addition to exploring the ship, Nicole is also discovering more of her role's powers. Sometimes the ship responds to her and, in other areas, it ignores her.
But not everything is what it seems. Who is telling the truth and who is lying (or lying by omission)?
Highly recommended for those who enjoy puzzles in their space opera!
Some areas are controlled by the Shipmasters and some areas are controlled by the Fyrantha's computer Caretaker (who chose Nicole as Ship's Protector).
In addition to exploring the ship, Nicole is also discovering more of her role's powers. Sometimes the ship responds to her and, in other areas, it ignores her.
But not everything is what it seems. Who is telling the truth and who is lying (or lying by omission)?
Highly recommended for those who enjoy puzzles in their space opera!
January 19, 2019
Received an arc from netgalley. LOVED this sf book! Highly recommend getting it when it comes out!
January 29, 2025
When we last left Nicole Hammond, the former gang member-turned-galactic maintenance worker had just been named the protector of the starship Fyrantha. But now she has a problem. The aptly named Shipmasters suspect that their human slaves may be capable of violence.
For decades, the captive humans kept a lid on things by pretending to only fight with their words or pool noodles or something. That’s because the Shipmasters, we discover, search the galaxy looking for new species to fight in their arenas. When a species turns out to be particularly adept at war, the Shipmasters enslave their home world and send the hapless creatures out to fight on the frontlines.
Sadly, no one told Nicole this for plot reasons. Now the cat is out of the bag. The Shipmasters toss the humans into the arena and set them to battle amongst themselves. Their only hope is that Nicole will come up with a convoluted plan to bamboozle their overlords into thinking they made a mistake.
Nicole heads into the arena to speak to the heads of the human factions. One group is willing to throw the fight, but the other is headed by Nicole’s maybe-ex-boyfriend Bungie, a cheap thug with poor impulse control. He’s convinced that winning the battle will grant him a one-way ticket home. Thinking was never his strong suit. Nicole then learns that there is a drug on board that could render Team Bungie unable to fight. She sets off to find it, with the Shipmasters hot on her heels.
It begs the question: If the Shipmasters know what Nicole is up to, why even stage this conflict to begin with?
The answer: Because without it there would be no plot.
Here we are in book two of what is described as “A Chronicle of the Sibyl’s War.” I find the use of the word “War” to be very generous. With the first book, it felt like the entire novel was setting the table for the conflict to follow. This time, it feels like busywork to delay the inevitable. Maybe I’m just too genre savvy for my own good. It’s hard not to see where the breadcrumb trail is headed. Eventually, this story is going to blossom into a battle for control of the Fyrantha. Timothy Zahn spends much of the book laying the groundwork. There’s nothing wrong with a slow build up to a climactic showdown. But there needs to something to fill the slow march to our conclusion.
I’d settle for some decent character development. In the 30 minutes since the first novel ended, Nicole has had a change of heart. Now she’s crabby. She spends most of the book being irritated by everyone, even her closest allies. Being likable isn’t necessary in a protagonist. But Nicole just feels petulant. It’s certainly a shift from her passivity in book one, but it doesn’t feel particularly earned or warranted. The supporting cast serve a plot function and little else.
The biggest missed opportunity—which I touched on in my review of the first book—is that Nicole’s criminal background never feels anything more than superficial. A streetwise gang banger in a space opera is literally the promise that got me to read the first novel. But two books in, and I never really buy her as a street punk. It’s not for a lack of trying. Zahn name drops Nicole’s time in Philly or Trake’s crew about once per page. It just never amounts to much. I guess she learned how to “deal with people.” She could’ve got that as a waitress, or navigating personalities at the rotary club.
Why did she join a gang? Did she have a choice? How does she feel about that? What did she do in the gang? Did she commit any crimes? Does she feel remorse? There’s a lot of fertile soil here that goes unused. I mean, I don’t expect HBO’s The Wire level of verisimilitude here. Not in a story with space centaurs. But getting a sense of where she came from helps contextualize where she ends up. If Zahn wants us to believe that Nicole’s time navigating gang life has prepared her for dealing with the different factions of the Fyrantha, then we need to see that arc and how it develops. Maybe it is being saved for the conclusion.
I think sheer inertia will carry me through the final book here. I might as well see the trilogy through. But I’m glad this isn’t my first brush with Timothy Zahn. There isn’t much here that speaks to the mastery he brought to books like Icarus Hunt, Night Train to Rigel, or his Star Wars tie-ins.
Knight and Pawn exist in that terrible middle ground of benign adequacy. There isn’t enough here to love or hate. It’s just middling. The worst criticism I can make is that days after finishing the book, I struggle to even remember it.
Let’s hope the third time’s a charm.
Also posted on my blog thing.
For decades, the captive humans kept a lid on things by pretending to only fight with their words or pool noodles or something. That’s because the Shipmasters, we discover, search the galaxy looking for new species to fight in their arenas. When a species turns out to be particularly adept at war, the Shipmasters enslave their home world and send the hapless creatures out to fight on the frontlines.
Sadly, no one told Nicole this for plot reasons. Now the cat is out of the bag. The Shipmasters toss the humans into the arena and set them to battle amongst themselves. Their only hope is that Nicole will come up with a convoluted plan to bamboozle their overlords into thinking they made a mistake.
Nicole heads into the arena to speak to the heads of the human factions. One group is willing to throw the fight, but the other is headed by Nicole’s maybe-ex-boyfriend Bungie, a cheap thug with poor impulse control. He’s convinced that winning the battle will grant him a one-way ticket home. Thinking was never his strong suit. Nicole then learns that there is a drug on board that could render Team Bungie unable to fight. She sets off to find it, with the Shipmasters hot on her heels.
It begs the question: If the Shipmasters know what Nicole is up to, why even stage this conflict to begin with?
The answer: Because without it there would be no plot.
Here we are in book two of what is described as “A Chronicle of the Sibyl’s War.” I find the use of the word “War” to be very generous. With the first book, it felt like the entire novel was setting the table for the conflict to follow. This time, it feels like busywork to delay the inevitable. Maybe I’m just too genre savvy for my own good. It’s hard not to see where the breadcrumb trail is headed. Eventually, this story is going to blossom into a battle for control of the Fyrantha. Timothy Zahn spends much of the book laying the groundwork. There’s nothing wrong with a slow build up to a climactic showdown. But there needs to something to fill the slow march to our conclusion.
I’d settle for some decent character development. In the 30 minutes since the first novel ended, Nicole has had a change of heart. Now she’s crabby. She spends most of the book being irritated by everyone, even her closest allies. Being likable isn’t necessary in a protagonist. But Nicole just feels petulant. It’s certainly a shift from her passivity in book one, but it doesn’t feel particularly earned or warranted. The supporting cast serve a plot function and little else.
The biggest missed opportunity—which I touched on in my review of the first book—is that Nicole’s criminal background never feels anything more than superficial. A streetwise gang banger in a space opera is literally the promise that got me to read the first novel. But two books in, and I never really buy her as a street punk. It’s not for a lack of trying. Zahn name drops Nicole’s time in Philly or Trake’s crew about once per page. It just never amounts to much. I guess she learned how to “deal with people.” She could’ve got that as a waitress, or navigating personalities at the rotary club.
Why did she join a gang? Did she have a choice? How does she feel about that? What did she do in the gang? Did she commit any crimes? Does she feel remorse? There’s a lot of fertile soil here that goes unused. I mean, I don’t expect HBO’s The Wire level of verisimilitude here. Not in a story with space centaurs. But getting a sense of where she came from helps contextualize where she ends up. If Zahn wants us to believe that Nicole’s time navigating gang life has prepared her for dealing with the different factions of the Fyrantha, then we need to see that arc and how it develops. Maybe it is being saved for the conclusion.
I think sheer inertia will carry me through the final book here. I might as well see the trilogy through. But I’m glad this isn’t my first brush with Timothy Zahn. There isn’t much here that speaks to the mastery he brought to books like Icarus Hunt, Night Train to Rigel, or his Star Wars tie-ins.
Knight and Pawn exist in that terrible middle ground of benign adequacy. There isn’t enough here to love or hate. It’s just middling. The worst criticism I can make is that days after finishing the book, I struggle to even remember it.
Let’s hope the third time’s a charm.
Also posted on my blog thing.
August 16, 2022
This was a solid follow up to book one of the series. I originally picked a couple of these up on sale as I recognized the author. They have been good books to read as a break from epic fantasy or science fiction reads though.
Book two picked up right where the first left off. I was honestly feeling some deja vu at first. It was really beginning to feel like a simple reskin in the first quarter of this book. I'll explain that a bit more in detail later in a spoiler area of my review. But after that things definitely took a turn and this book became a different story continuing on from the first.
I feel the pacing of the story was on par with the first. We have some good mix of action along with simple dialog and story telling. We meet some new character and learn quite a bit more about those already introduced in the previous book. This isn't one of those non-stop action type of reads but there is more than enough to keep a reader interested.
The world build was done well again. Granted we are still on the same ship we were on in the first book, but we begin to explore a lot more of it. Again I don't want to give to much away in this section of the review but the ship is large enough to have several different feelings or vibes depending on the part the characters are in during the story.
I feel the character development is probably the strongest of the three main areas I usually discuss. As I mentioned earlier we continue to learn more about the previously introduced characters. We get to know them and their pasts more as well as seeing them grow during this story. We also have quite a few new characters introduced which continues to make things interesting in a story like this as well.
All in all I've been enjoying this series for the reasons I gave above. These are just fun, easy, short novels to read through. I still have one more on the shelf to round this trilogy out. I should be able to get to this in the next month or two.
********* WARNING Possible Spoilers below *********
I just wanted to mention a couple of the points I really enjoyed about this book. Early on in this one we begin to get hints that Khakista isn't as big and dumb has he has being coming across as. We meet some more Ghorfs and as the book progresses we find out there are so much more to Khakista and his fellow Ghorfs! I love the fact that this community/race has found a way to grow and exist in this environment right under the noses of the Shipmasters and perhaps even the ship itself.
We get several messages from this book as my takeaways. The first being that some people just can't change their ways. This obviously has to do with the reintroduction to Bungie in book two. But who knows maybe he'll finally turn things around in the final book! We also get to know different views of slavery. As the Ponngs are willing to offer themselves to Nicole as her slaves for a chance to survive. We also get a good feeling of how Nicole feels about this. As she certainly wants to help them but also help the others races involved including all human life back on Earth. Finally after the final battle we finally admit the risks of simply being involved in these arena fights even if we aren't trying to kill or hurt anyone. It might be just as dangerous or even more so if the Shipmasters think of humans not just as fighters but as leaders who can convince others to fight!
Speaking of the ending of book two I was really shocked how willing or cooperative the Shipmaster was being with Nicole and her demands. Though just a few pages later we find out that might not be entirely true and now we feel the Caretaker has been compromised and Nicole and the rest of the crew appear to be even more on their own. Hopefully she and they have learned enough this point so continue to learn how things can be done without the Caretaker's help!
Book two picked up right where the first left off. I was honestly feeling some deja vu at first. It was really beginning to feel like a simple reskin in the first quarter of this book. I'll explain that a bit more in detail later in a spoiler area of my review. But after that things definitely took a turn and this book became a different story continuing on from the first.
I feel the pacing of the story was on par with the first. We have some good mix of action along with simple dialog and story telling. We meet some new character and learn quite a bit more about those already introduced in the previous book. This isn't one of those non-stop action type of reads but there is more than enough to keep a reader interested.
The world build was done well again. Granted we are still on the same ship we were on in the first book, but we begin to explore a lot more of it. Again I don't want to give to much away in this section of the review but the ship is large enough to have several different feelings or vibes depending on the part the characters are in during the story.
I feel the character development is probably the strongest of the three main areas I usually discuss. As I mentioned earlier we continue to learn more about the previously introduced characters. We get to know them and their pasts more as well as seeing them grow during this story. We also have quite a few new characters introduced which continues to make things interesting in a story like this as well.
All in all I've been enjoying this series for the reasons I gave above. These are just fun, easy, short novels to read through. I still have one more on the shelf to round this trilogy out. I should be able to get to this in the next month or two.
********* WARNING Possible Spoilers below *********
I just wanted to mention a couple of the points I really enjoyed about this book. Early on in this one we begin to get hints that Khakista isn't as big and dumb has he has being coming across as. We meet some more Ghorfs and as the book progresses we find out there are so much more to Khakista and his fellow Ghorfs! I love the fact that this community/race has found a way to grow and exist in this environment right under the noses of the Shipmasters and perhaps even the ship itself.
We get several messages from this book as my takeaways. The first being that some people just can't change their ways. This obviously has to do with the reintroduction to Bungie in book two. But who knows maybe he'll finally turn things around in the final book! We also get to know different views of slavery. As the Ponngs are willing to offer themselves to Nicole as her slaves for a chance to survive. We also get a good feeling of how Nicole feels about this. As she certainly wants to help them but also help the others races involved including all human life back on Earth. Finally after the final battle we finally admit the risks of simply being involved in these arena fights even if we aren't trying to kill or hurt anyone. It might be just as dangerous or even more so if the Shipmasters think of humans not just as fighters but as leaders who can convince others to fight!
Speaking of the ending of book two I was really shocked how willing or cooperative the Shipmaster was being with Nicole and her demands. Though just a few pages later we find out that might not be entirely true and now we feel the Caretaker has been compromised and Nicole and the rest of the crew appear to be even more on their own. Hopefully she and they have learned enough this point so continue to learn how things can be done without the Caretaker's help!
July 13, 2024
I complained in reviewing Pawn that it took a long time to get started. This second book is better, and it's making me think perhaps I should reread the last few chapters of the previous book. Still, it does feel like a slow build, whereas I've read other trilogies (even by Timothy Zahn, yes, especially by Zahn) that each book was effective on their own and didn't NEED all of them for a payoff.
I mean, in some ways the dullness is not even unrealistic or unexpected. It's almost a metaphor -- life IS tedious when you're doing the same mundane work every day, especially when it's not your choice. Personal problems, conflicts with coworkers, and drama with exes can indeed expand to fill your entire life, and yet to outside observers all that is not very interesting, and you're so focused you can overlook your incredible surroundings. But we don't read these books for more of the same.
Granted, all that I just said was mostly about the first book -- I must admit this book has growth. The main character has discovered her new role (Protector of the ship!) and is trying to do her best to live up to it. She's thinking less about herself and how to just get by, and wants to stand up for the threatened and the exploited. She's got new tools and allies, but also new enemies, so can't draw too much attention to herself.
Some of the setting could make a great game. Imagine a giant ship that has become divided over time; computers and systems in four quadrants aren't talking to each other, and so the credentials and progress you have in one section don't necessarily carry over to other sections. In quadrants where you haven't established your reputation or control, you could be treated as an outsider, or even a threat. You can retreat to known areas to recover and regroup.
So, 4 stars, acknowledging that it'd be lower if I weren't biased towards the author and giving him the benefit of the doubt. I'm expecting the third book to really accelerate -- unless there are more than 3 books (which I don't believe there are), a lot needs to happen.
I mean, in some ways the dullness is not even unrealistic or unexpected. It's almost a metaphor -- life IS tedious when you're doing the same mundane work every day, especially when it's not your choice. Personal problems, conflicts with coworkers, and drama with exes can indeed expand to fill your entire life, and yet to outside observers all that is not very interesting, and you're so focused you can overlook your incredible surroundings. But we don't read these books for more of the same.
Granted, all that I just said was mostly about the first book -- I must admit this book has growth. The main character has discovered her new role (Protector of the ship!) and is trying to do her best to live up to it. She's thinking less about herself and how to just get by, and wants to stand up for the threatened and the exploited. She's got new tools and allies, but also new enemies, so can't draw too much attention to herself.
Some of the setting could make a great game. Imagine a giant ship that has become divided over time; computers and systems in four quadrants aren't talking to each other, and so the credentials and progress you have in one section don't necessarily carry over to other sections. In quadrants where you haven't established your reputation or control, you could be treated as an outsider, or even a threat. You can retreat to known areas to recover and regroup.
So, 4 stars, acknowledging that it'd be lower if I weren't biased towards the author and giving him the benefit of the doubt. I'm expecting the third book to really accelerate -- unless there are more than 3 books (which I don't believe there are), a lot needs to happen.
December 13, 2019
(See all of my Book Reviews) - “Knight” eBook was published in 2019 and was written by Timothy Zahn (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy...). This is the second book in his “A Chronicle of the Sibyl's War” 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’. The story is set in more or less contemporary time, but it is predicated upon the abduction of the main character, Nicole Hammond, as well as a few others from Philadelphia by aliens.
In the first book of the series, Hammond was taken aboard the starship Fyrantha. While she is far from the only human on board, she is the only human with the ability to communicate with the aliens and the ship. The enormous ship is divided into areas controlled by different factions. The aliens pit various races against one another looking for who is the most combative. The aliens that abducted Hammond seem to be testing the races to find those capable of becoming soldiers. Once identified as having warlike tendencies the information is sold to others who will enslave them for their wars.
Hammond and a few of the other humans aboard the Fyrantha realize the need to make humanity look incapable of taking up arms. That is the only way they think they can save Earth. Hammond finally gets tired of keeping off the alien’s radar and decides she needs to take action. She feels she must find a way of taking control of the ship from the aliens.
I enjoyed the 7+ hours I spent reading this 326-page science fiction novel. I thought that the beginning was a little chaotic. There was no lead-in to the story. Definitely, the first book in the series should be read before this one if possible. The plot is different and enjoyable. I’m not sure that the cover art is a very good choice. It doesn’t seem to have a lot of relation to the story. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.
Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.
April 21, 2019
Timothy Zahn is always worth a read. His abilities to create suspense, twists and turns, and good characters are the reasons he is one of the best Sci-Fi writers out there.
This book is no different. I read the first book in his series, Pawn, in June of 2017 because someone at Barnes and Noble had said he'd heard good things about it(really, he was just trying to sell the book off their shelves since it was the only Zahn book they had in hardcover and I was asking for a Zahn book). I read it and instantly wanted the second book in the series.
Well, it's been two years, and after finishing "Knight", I already want the last book in the trilogy. The suspense and sense of "I need to know what happens" propelled me through the book. I didn't really care for Nicole too much in the first book and now I really am drawn to her character.
The character I liked the most in Pawn was Jeff because of his dedication to doing the right thing and to helping Nicole. My favorite character in this book was Kahkitah. His unflinching willingness to do whatever it takes to further the greater good, even risking his own life, made him very endearing indeed.
The plot was slow at times, and despite the series being called "A Chronicle of the Sibyl's War", there isn't much action or battles going on, and the "war"(spoilers ahead) doesn't even officially begin until the last page of the book. The war will be the main part in "Queen", which comes out next year.
Still, the book was fun and interesting. I was happy that Zahn toned down the language significantly compared to the first book(although the language is still present in some places). I think that the series is worth reading for Sci-Fi hard core fans, and also really reads like a YA book set in a fantasy(could be marketed as that).
Overall, solid read. I can't wait for the next one(I mean, I will have to wait a year, but you know what I mean). 7.7 out of 10!
This book is no different. I read the first book in his series, Pawn, in June of 2017 because someone at Barnes and Noble had said he'd heard good things about it(really, he was just trying to sell the book off their shelves since it was the only Zahn book they had in hardcover and I was asking for a Zahn book). I read it and instantly wanted the second book in the series.
Well, it's been two years, and after finishing "Knight", I already want the last book in the trilogy. The suspense and sense of "I need to know what happens" propelled me through the book. I didn't really care for Nicole too much in the first book and now I really am drawn to her character.
The character I liked the most in Pawn was Jeff because of his dedication to doing the right thing and to helping Nicole. My favorite character in this book was Kahkitah. His unflinching willingness to do whatever it takes to further the greater good, even risking his own life, made him very endearing indeed.
The plot was slow at times, and despite the series being called "A Chronicle of the Sibyl's War", there isn't much action or battles going on, and the "war"(spoilers ahead) doesn't even officially begin until the last page of the book. The war will be the main part in "Queen", which comes out next year.
Still, the book was fun and interesting. I was happy that Zahn toned down the language significantly compared to the first book(although the language is still present in some places). I think that the series is worth reading for Sci-Fi hard core fans, and also really reads like a YA book set in a fantasy(could be marketed as that).
Overall, solid read. I can't wait for the next one(I mean, I will have to wait a year, but you know what I mean). 7.7 out of 10!
July 21, 2021
Knight: A Chronicle of Sybil's War is the second novel in Timothy Zahn's series, Sybil's War. It's an epic space opera perfect for fans of the genre.
Once upon a time, Nicole Hammond and her partner Bungie were focused entirely on trying to survive on the streets of Philadelphia. Now, that seems like so long ago. Against all odds, they have been abducted by mysterious aliens – and unfortunately for them, they do not imagine this experience.
Her time among the aliens changed her, and now she is a being known as a Sybil – a human with the ability to communicate with aliens. She must find a way out of this war, for everyone's sakes, even if nobody is thrilled with the situation.
Before I delve into my review, I need to be completely honest here. I did it again. AGAIN. I picked up yet another novel without realizing it was a sequel beforehand. I don't know why I seem to have gone through a string of this lately. I need to up my Goodreads search skills.
Anyway, despite not having read the first novel, I didn't have any trouble following along with Knight. Many early events sound pretty similar to other series (games and novels) that I've seen in the past, so that helped a lot.
I enjoyed reading about Zahn's alien races and how they function as individuals and society. If I'm honest, those were the highlights of this novel to me. That doesn't mean the rest was bad, just that these moments and revelations stole the show as far as I'm concerned.
Thanks to Tor Books and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Read more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Once upon a time, Nicole Hammond and her partner Bungie were focused entirely on trying to survive on the streets of Philadelphia. Now, that seems like so long ago. Against all odds, they have been abducted by mysterious aliens – and unfortunately for them, they do not imagine this experience.
Her time among the aliens changed her, and now she is a being known as a Sybil – a human with the ability to communicate with aliens. She must find a way out of this war, for everyone's sakes, even if nobody is thrilled with the situation.
Before I delve into my review, I need to be completely honest here. I did it again. AGAIN. I picked up yet another novel without realizing it was a sequel beforehand. I don't know why I seem to have gone through a string of this lately. I need to up my Goodreads search skills.
Anyway, despite not having read the first novel, I didn't have any trouble following along with Knight. Many early events sound pretty similar to other series (games and novels) that I've seen in the past, so that helped a lot.
I enjoyed reading about Zahn's alien races and how they function as individuals and society. If I'm honest, those were the highlights of this novel to me. That doesn't mean the rest was bad, just that these moments and revelations stole the show as far as I'm concerned.
Thanks to Tor Books and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Read more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
October 17, 2020
Sibyl's War book 2. In Pawn Nicole was taken from Earth to be a Sibyl aboard the Fyrantha, receiving instructions from the ship which she relays to the work crew. In the arena the shipmasters were pitting two groups against each other. Nicole found them and did her best to keep them from killing each other. The ship named her protector.
We pick up with Nicole exploring the ship. She finds a ghorf, on a low deck, lost and hungry. She helps him back to his crew, but they have to pass through the Q3 arena. Here they find two more groups fighting. One of the shipmasters catches her interfering again and threatens her. When she gets back to Q4 and finds no one there she deduces that Fievj has taken her crew to one of the arenas to fight.
Nicole has a great ally in the ship, but only one fourth of the ship. The shipmasters are trying to find races they can sell into slavery. Her part of the ship doesn't want that or it's original purpose of being a warship.
Fast read, lots of action. Different from Zahn's Cobra or Blackcollar series in that Nicole has no enhanced physical skills or weaponry. She has to rely on her street toughness. In Philly she had to deal with crooks that were strong and mean. Her defense there was to lay low. To make a difference here she'll have to change, but use what she's learned. 4 1/2 stars.
We pick up with Nicole exploring the ship. She finds a ghorf, on a low deck, lost and hungry. She helps him back to his crew, but they have to pass through the Q3 arena. Here they find two more groups fighting. One of the shipmasters catches her interfering again and threatens her. When she gets back to Q4 and finds no one there she deduces that Fievj has taken her crew to one of the arenas to fight.
Nicole has a great ally in the ship, but only one fourth of the ship. The shipmasters are trying to find races they can sell into slavery. Her part of the ship doesn't want that or it's original purpose of being a warship.
Fast read, lots of action. Different from Zahn's Cobra or Blackcollar series in that Nicole has no enhanced physical skills or weaponry. She has to rely on her street toughness. In Philly she had to deal with crooks that were strong and mean. Her defense there was to lay low. To make a difference here she'll have to change, but use what she's learned. 4 1/2 stars.
October 22, 2020
My feelings towards this are similar to my feelings towards Pawn, the first book in this trilogy (see my review here). However, this book was better than the previous. Not so good to bump it up to an enthusiastic 4-star, but certainly enough to keep me reading and get me to pick up the third and final book in the trilogy. The characters less infuriating, the story less frustrating and predictable, and to balance them Zahn's skill at the craft of structuring a story continue to be on full display, making it easy to turn the page. When I say "less infuriating" and "less frustrating," I still just mean "less." The main character, Nicole, has gone from someone with no self-esteem to someone downright arrogant, and Bungie is still irritating beyond belief but he's thankfully absent from most of the story. If you read Book 1 and like me were willing to see where it went, Book 2 won't disappoint; what you like about Book 1 is here with less of what was irritating, and it's still a quick read.
August 16, 2024
I'll begin with a caveat that I at first thought this was one of his Star Wars novels--the cover art of the audiobook looks very much like one of the myriad iterations of a Star Destroyer, and Zahn is, at least in some circles, best known for his SW books, and never mind that my first encounter with his writing was his non-SW Conqueror trilogy--and it took me a bit to realize otherwise. After that, my experience smoothed out.
Even beginning with book 2, I didn't find myself disoriented, thanks both to Zahn's excellent writing, and to the bits of recap slipped in here and there (as opposed to some other writers who wedge large blocks of infodumpy recap into perfectly good narrative). I found the world-building imaginative, and an interesting explanation for alien abduction. Most of all, the persistent dedication of the main character to solving every problem and conflict through nonviolent means, despite temptation to chuck it all and shoot here way out and despite the increasing difficulty to use nonviolence, felt fresh and intriguing.
Even beginning with book 2, I didn't find myself disoriented, thanks both to Zahn's excellent writing, and to the bits of recap slipped in here and there (as opposed to some other writers who wedge large blocks of infodumpy recap into perfectly good narrative). I found the world-building imaginative, and an interesting explanation for alien abduction. Most of all, the persistent dedication of the main character to solving every problem and conflict through nonviolent means, despite temptation to chuck it all and shoot here way out and despite the increasing difficulty to use nonviolence, felt fresh and intriguing.
June 23, 2019
I didn't enjoy this as much as its predecessor; maybe I just found the premise a bit harder to swallow. Namely, Nicole Hammond was in a street gang in Philadelphia when she was abducted by aliens. It turns out that a spaceship (formrely a zoo!) has become a flying gladiatorial arena ... the aliens are looking for races that can be enslaved to form armies to fight in interstellar wars. Thankfully, humans are only abducted in small crews to be maintenance workers ... but events in the first novel have made the alien shipmasters suspicious that humans might be excellent soldiers.
How can Nicole, privileged with certain authority over parts of the ship, manage to keep humans looking like horrible soldiers, while trying to save the other non-human abductees or even protect the ship itself?
Somehow I just never sank into the setting. It mostly reads like Zahn's other work, though, so it was smooth.
How can Nicole, privileged with certain authority over parts of the ship, manage to keep humans looking like horrible soldiers, while trying to save the other non-human abductees or even protect the ship itself?
Somehow I just never sank into the setting. It mostly reads like Zahn's other work, though, so it was smooth.
September 1, 2024
3.5/5 stars
This was significantly better than the first book because the actions both from that book and this one felt like they were having fallout rather than solely setting things up. There was also significant growth in a decent number of characters. However, my biggest gripe continues to be with Nicole's character. She's entertaining, and has some growth, but she also seems to not really be flashed out to know exactly she grows from. There are certainly flashes of it, but I feel like typically they don't appear until the second before she does something to go against them making the growth and the arc of her character (the actual character, not what she does) feel cheap and harder to get behind.
This was significantly better than the first book because the actions both from that book and this one felt like they were having fallout rather than solely setting things up. There was also significant growth in a decent number of characters. However, my biggest gripe continues to be with Nicole's character. She's entertaining, and has some growth, but she also seems to not really be flashed out to know exactly she grows from. There are certainly flashes of it, but I feel like typically they don't appear until the second before she does something to go against them making the growth and the arc of her character (the actual character, not what she does) feel cheap and harder to get behind.
May 6, 2019
I like Timothy Zane. He writes good SF. This book is well written. However, it’s like an exposition of a video game. I’m not a gamer, so this subject and treatment does not interest me. Another count against this book, is that I read this book first and it’s the second book of the series, with apparently a lot of the backstory in #1. Nicole’s from Philly, but not a lot about Philly in this book. Got this one at the library as an express book (ie, new and no renewals allowed). I dutifully plowed thru the book. It’s now safely back at the library. I’ll read more Zhan, just not this series.
July 1, 2020
Very plot driven with minimal character development but fun and exciting. Nicole's growth was handled very well. She's developing into a more moral character, but still has enough quirks and flaws to feel like a real complex human being, and not just a saint who's perfect at everything. She makes mistakes, she has moments of weakness and agression, but she preservers.
Great sequel to the Pawn. Very imaginative spaceship and all the arenas.
I loved it and can't wait for the next one.
Great sequel to the Pawn. Very imaginative spaceship and all the arenas.
I loved it and can't wait for the next one.
August 30, 2020
Second entry in the "Sibyl's War" series. This isn't Zahn's best work, but Knight was more enjoyable than the first book, "Pawn." My two main issues with the series are:
a) The protagonist, Nicole, is more annoying than interesting.
b) Much of the plot hinges on Nicole being able to find secret ways to move around the massive alien starship she is trapped on. But the descriptions of the ship are not always clear, and it's hard to have a mental image of how the ship is laid out. Given that it's a big part of the plot, that's a definite problem.
Language: PG
Violence: PG
Sexuality: G/PG
a) The protagonist, Nicole, is more annoying than interesting.
b) Much of the plot hinges on Nicole being able to find secret ways to move around the massive alien starship she is trapped on. But the descriptions of the ship are not always clear, and it's hard to have a mental image of how the ship is laid out. Given that it's a big part of the plot, that's a definite problem.
Language: PG
Violence: PG
Sexuality: G/PG
July 17, 2021
This is a three book science-fiction series that tells the story of a rundown spaceship controlled by alien overlords that are capturing humans. Humans and human women have the unique ability to interface with the fragmented consciousness of the ship to find out the myriad repairs needed. Over the three books the story evolves to explain the role of Nicole, one of these ship “communicators“ termed a Sybil. We find out who’s controlling the ship the story behind it and see Nicole transition from a beaten down street wise woman to a strong protector.
September 29, 2025
In the second story of the Fyrantha, we again return to Nicole Hammond who is now the Protector of the ship (whatever that means) and now has at least learned what the ship's purpose is and who are the factions vying for control. The humans are caught in the middle, having demonstrated that they have aggressive or war-like tendencies. The ship's rulers must have been pretty dull to not understand this after how many generations of humans have come onto the ship.
I still find Nicole to be pretty one dimensional as a character and now she has all these random alien followers because she's special and might get them home. The ship's design also made little sense to me why are there different distinct quadrants and why are humans the only species that can fix the ship?
I still find Nicole to be pretty one dimensional as a character and now she has all these random alien followers because she's special and might get them home. The ship's design also made little sense to me why are there different distinct quadrants and why are humans the only species that can fix the ship?
July 8, 2019
An excellent story, as expected. With some clever twists and uses of strategy. Again, as expected. It's interesting watching reluctant hero Nicole learn what type of leader she wants to be. She's still abrasive and difficult, but only a character like her could possibly succeed in the task she's been set. I do find some of the language a bit wearing, but I understand it fits her background. This is an intriguing series, and I'll definitely keep reading.
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