Kylara had to leave a bright future as a military cadet, and was thrown into the brutal world of off-world trading. This subsequent career in the family business was tough: marked by war, mutiny and attempted assassination. But then her home was attacked and her parents killed - their trading empire left in ruins. Now she must save what is left of the family and the business, with few friends and too few assets. She must make full use of her hard-won experience to not just survive, but to restore the shattered fortunes of the Vatta family and their allies. Now, Kylara Vatta, space-trader and sometime privateer, has destined herself for a dangerous and unpredictable future. She will muster an interplanetary taskforce and forge them into a lethal weapon: one that the pirates who destroyed her family will never forget...
Elizabeth Moon was born March 7, 1945, and grew up in McAllen, Texas, graduating from McAllen High School in 1963. She has a B.A. in History from Rice University (1968) and another in Biology from the University of Texas at Austin (1975) with graduate work in Biology at the University of Texas, San Antonio.
She served in the USMC from 1968 to 1971, first at MCB Quantico and then at HQMC. She married Richard Moon, a Rice classmate and Army officer, in 1969; they moved to the small central Texas town where they still live in 1979. They have one son, born in 1983.
She started writing stories and poems as a small child; attempted first book (an illustrated biography of the family dog) at age six. Started writing science fiction in high school, but considered writing merely a sideline. First got serious about writing (as in, submitting things and actually getting money...) in the 1980s. Made first fiction sale at age forty--"Bargains" to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword & Sorceress III and "ABCs in Zero G" to Analog. Her first novel, Sheepfarmer's Daughter, sold in 1987 and came out in 1988; it won the Compton Crook Award in 1989. Remnant Population was a Hugo nominee in 1997, and The Speed of Dark was a finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and won the Nebula in 2004.
The story continues with different threads following some of the other characters besides Ky. The action in this book is virtually non-stop, with some interesting revelations, in particular regarding Rafe and ISC.
Some of the characters who joined Ky in her fight are quite funny... I really enjoyed this installment and can't wait to start the next book, which should be the finale.
This review applies to both Parts 1 & 2 of the Graphic Audio edition.