Sci-fi / Military Sci-fi - Fans of old school sci-fi will enjoy this book. It is full of action, space battles, star-ship and fighter combat, mysteries, conspiracies, and even little romantic complications. Told in the first person, Lt. Jack Reilly takes the reader along with him as he uncovers a plot to pull the Alliance into a new war and his life becomes even more complicated. Set about 300 years in the future, Earth is part of an Alliance of worlds and has recently concluded a 20-year, bloody and costly war against the Serkin. Reilly thought his career in the fleet was over after being injured and discharge shortly before the end of the war. But he now finds himself back in the fleet as an investigator tasked with cleaning up the corruption from within. What he discovers will send him and Major Mitchell on a chase for the truth and back into the crossfire.
Matthew O. Duncan is part of the resurgence of Old School Sci-fi. His books are a mix of Military Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, and Mystery weaved together with non-stop action.
This is not our genre but we’re glad we gave it a try. My girlfriend and I read the first in this series and really liked the characters and their developing relationship.
The characters felt real. In some ways the book was like a Bogart film from the forties, crisp dialogue, some confusion, well defined good guys and bad guys. It’s sci-fi but also a detective story, the man, brave and confident, the women, vulnerable in their emotional ties but strong, daring, and capable as soldiers, commanders, and diplomats.
This new book took advantage of great characters and placed them in tough situations. We were on the edge of our seats to the end and the military stuff was exciting and felt authentic. The detective sequences were more prevalent than the first book and had some cool twists and turns and the romance was top notch.
We’re going to purchase other books by this author. He knows how to capture our attention. Well worth the time and cost. Might buy it as an audio book for long trips.
Duncan, Matthew O. Lt. Reilly and the Black Bird Offensive. Lt. Reilly No. 2. MOBD, 2020. In Black Bird Offensive, Lt. Reilly has been reenlisted in the military as an undercover investigator. His life is complicated because he cares for both Kayla, whom he rescued in the first novel in the series, and for his partner Mitchel, whom he routinely refers to by her last name. In investigating a routine smuggling case, they discover that a rogue culture is smuggling high tech space fighters and stealthy torpedoes. To prevent a war that could endanger the whole multispecies interstellar alliance, Reilly will need both his military and engineering skills. This is a very readable indie space-opera. 3.5 stars.
Lt Reilly is once again drawn into a major adventure and investigation. Only this time it's a continuation of the last one. Now he and Major Mitchell are in space on another base undercover. Putting the pieces of the investigation together some parts are still missing. Adding to the mix is his relationship with the Major which makes his relationship with Kayla come to the fire of his mind. Another fantastic story which will have you sitting on the edge of your seat as you got from one problem to another.
Reilly and Mitchell are a great partnership - their actions are believable and the scenarios in their sci-fi world are as frightening and full of intrigue as any would be on earth. With no lengthy and boring explanations of places and weaponry that can be more confusing than explanatory, this book is a fast-paced read that provides a very satisfactory conclusion. Matthew Duncan has written a brilliant sequel to his first book - bringing parts of the past into this tale. The third instalment will, I am sure, be a great read too.
Lt. Jack Reilly is trying to find the missing pieces in his investigation. Strange things are happening, and he and Major Mitchell try to find the truth. An unexpected war happens and a rescue needs to occur. His personal life gets complicated with the revelation that he has strong feelings for two women. I like the action, humor and romance. I look forward to another book.
Story and writing style are as good as first, but it really needs an editor. There are a lot of wrong words, and many random mid-sentence page breaks, line breaks and font colour changes.
Also, those last few sentences were really not needed, putting in a cliffhanger for absolutely no reason.
I am glad romantic problems got solved, for a second I was afraid it would turn into a teen drama.
Why is it so hard to find who the narrator of a book you've downloaded is? The guy who reads this is my all time favorite. Wish I knew his name. Guess I will have to go be a Google detective and find it. If you like good voice actors with no lisp who dont sound like they are giving a book report...than this audio book and the one before it are for you! Can not wait for the third one to be ready to listen. Love you guy...whomever you are.
Good read, but felt the quality dropped off a lot from the first book. Became harder to accept the main character having every answer and always taking control despite the expertise required. First book was better when it was focussed on using his engineering skills. Hard to explain more without spoilers, but hope the author pulls back a bit for the third book. At the current price, worth a read.
Quick read, that was fine as a standalone. I have not read the first book in the series. Self-published, utilising a different formatting structure than I'm used to with all the paragraphs separated by line spaces. Some spelling & grammatical errors but otherwise an interesting short space mystery/adventure. The main character was in situations a little too conveniently in places but really good for a light rainy day read.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book and I am leaving this review voluntarily. The opinions are my own.
This book is action packed and very enjoyable. The ending didn’t resolve much of the big picture so I assume the author will be writing more in this series. That is ok as I look forward to reading more.
Another fun read in this series. One criticism: not sure if the author is using speech recognition while he writes these books, but there are some glaring errors. For example, birthing assignment, rather than berthing assignment. The typos and misspellings were just frequent enough to be annoying. But, I still enjoyed the story.
REPROBATE TO INVESTIGATOR, PEACE TO INTERSTELLAR INSURRECTION, MISFIT TO MENAGE a TROIS.
Pitfalls of relationships, binding of colleAgues, camaraderie of combat; desperate actions against a deteriorating international situation. Fast paced and action filled with heartrending loss and beautifullyrecounted relationships.
It's okay, although for an engineer the hero 'manages' to get himself involved into almost all situations that require courageous interventions and solves most things. If you can accept that he is slightly overpowered, it's an enjoyable reading.
Could be even better with a good editor. Not just for correcting the grammatical errors but also get a more logically flowing storyline.
The first book was a fun jaunt but felt more like a rail shooter... go from A to B then B to C.... than a novel. This book felt more like a novel... and was still a fun jaunt. It doesn't recreate the genre or do anything particularly new and exciting with it... but it was an enjoyable evening read and, really, that's all we can ask for.
Decent book right up to the end... where the author let the integrity of his characters fall apart. Setting the stage for the next installment perhaps, but I will never know because it soured my desire to read any more about them.
Really enjoyed both of these books. The MC is a likable grump with a soft heart. Some of the military terms and choices seem a bit of a stretch but didn't detract from the story. Hope there is a third book.
I enjoyed this book, it appealed to me in that you are reading about an older man, no a boy growing up. Good character development and rapidly moving story. Fun read.
Both books were a lot of fun to read and a great diversion from current events. Sometimes first person stories are tough but this one works. Loved the characters, the intrigue, the adventure, and O’Riley’s complicated love life. Hope more adventures are coming.
Book 2 in this series, good plot line , likable main character. Lil bit quirky but an enjoyable read. Sorry I didn’t review the first book, I’m not good about that.
Good space fiction. Lots of action and decent physics. Interesting personal issues that are part of the background while the main story line is kept moving forward
Good story lots of intrigue, two complicated relationships, honestly with out spoiling anything let's just the reunion at the end made me nervous for Reilly, not sure how well I would have handled it.
This second book was a fun read as well. The three main characters are likable. Some of the repetitive typos were annoying, such as Cyperus instead of Cyprus and ordinance instead of ordnance.
Fast like a space novel should be. With new weapons changing the way wars are fought only to find that they are now obsolete . is Lt. Reilly finding himself obsolete with the girls new arrangement.
I enjoyed this book, a great take on the future, with plausible techy stuff that made sense. Great battles and twists, with unusual,take on relationships. Without giving too much away, I was unusually rooting for the baddies at the end... I shall say no more.
Lt. Jack Reilly is now established in his new investigator role with new partner Major Mitchell. While looking at a cold case Reilly uncovers a deep conspiracy, that could bring about a new war. Good follow up book.