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Vatta's War #1, part 1 of 2
Trading in Danger, Part 1
Kylara Vatta is the only daughter in a family full of sons, and her father's only child to buck tradition by choosing a military career instead of joining the family business. For Ky, it's no contest: Even running the prestigious Vatta Transport Ltd. shipping concern can't hold a candle to shipping out as an officer aboard an interstellar cruiser. It's adventure, not commerce, that stirs her soul. And despite her family's misgivings, there can be no doubt that a Vatta in the service will prove a valuable asset. But with a single error in judgment, it all comes crumbling down.
Expelled from the Academy in disgrace-and returning home to her humiliated family, a storm of high-profile media coverage, and the gaping void of her own future—Ky is ready to face the inevitable onslaught of anger, disappointment, even pity. But soon after opportunity's door slams shut, Ky finds herself with a ticket to ride—and a shot at redemption-as captain of a Vatta Transport ship.
It's a simple assignment: escorting one of the Vatta fleet's oldest ships on its final voyage...to the scrapyard. But keeping it simple has never been Ky's style. And even though her father has provided a crew of seasoned veterans to baby-sit the fledgling captain on her maiden milk run, they can't stop Ky from turning the routine mission into a risky venture—in the name of turning a profit for Vatta Transport, of course.
By snapping up a lucrative delivery contract defaulted on by a rival company, and using part of the proceeds to upgrade her condemned vehicle, Ky aims to prove she's got more going for her than just her family's famous name. But business will soon have to take a backseat to bravery, when Ky's change of plans sails her and the crew straight into the middle of a colonial war. For all her commercial savvy, it's her military training and born-soldier's instincts that Ky will need to call on in the face of deadly combat, dangerous mercenaries, and violent mutiny...
Expelled from the Academy in disgrace-and returning home to her humiliated family, a storm of high-profile media coverage, and the gaping void of her own future—Ky is ready to face the inevitable onslaught of anger, disappointment, even pity. But soon after opportunity's door slams shut, Ky finds herself with a ticket to ride—and a shot at redemption-as captain of a Vatta Transport ship.
It's a simple assignment: escorting one of the Vatta fleet's oldest ships on its final voyage...to the scrapyard. But keeping it simple has never been Ky's style. And even though her father has provided a crew of seasoned veterans to baby-sit the fledgling captain on her maiden milk run, they can't stop Ky from turning the routine mission into a risky venture—in the name of turning a profit for Vatta Transport, of course.
By snapping up a lucrative delivery contract defaulted on by a rival company, and using part of the proceeds to upgrade her condemned vehicle, Ky aims to prove she's got more going for her than just her family's famous name. But business will soon have to take a backseat to bravery, when Ky's change of plans sails her and the crew straight into the middle of a colonial war. For all her commercial savvy, it's her military training and born-soldier's instincts that Ky will need to call on in the face of deadly combat, dangerous mercenaries, and violent mutiny...
5 pages, Audio CD
First published January 1, 2009
1 person is currently reading
60 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Moon
140 books2,614 followersElizabeth 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 11, 2014
A movie in your mind.
About an hour in. This is the Graphicaudio version, so there's full cast, music, and sound effects. It plays well in my car at night. Like with Elizabeth Moon's Serrano Legacy series, as long as they stay in space I'll be happy. Even listening to the plane engine sounds cool. I think science fiction works well in Graphicaudio; there's often the sound of some tech in the background. It's a little female YA-ish. Cute gravelly voice though.
There's an hour long sound sample of Vatta's War on this page, along with a lot of others:
http://www.graphicaudio.net/extended-...
Ack! The Graphicaudio app doesn't stop playing when I unplug the headphones.
UPDATE:
All done. Pretty good until like 75%, then a lot of mundane stuff and personal drama. At least it's different.
August 12, 2013
Kylara Evangeline Dominique Vatta is a likeable enough heroine, if a bit on the stereotypical side. She’s young and enthusiastic, perhaps a bit too trusting, and prone to fits of hot-headedness. The youngest of five siblings, and the only girl in a wealthy and successful family, all Ky really wants is to make a name for herself. Lacking any real experience, she often is forced to rely on her own instincts and intuition, which turn out to be surprisingly good most of the time. In other words, Kylara is just the kind of person we love to cheer for.
I like the way Ky handles herself in tough situations, although some of those situations are a little too contrived for my liking. In the naval academy, Ky tries to help a friend who, as it turns out, was trying to discredit the military, and she is expelled. That punishment was way more severe than necessary, but the scene does serve to show us that Ky is a good-natured person who truly wants to help people whenever possible. Later on, Ky inadvertently takes her ship and crew into a star system where war is breaking out. Many of the events that transpire from this don’t make much sense logically, but again they serve to give us more insights into Ky’s nature, namely that she is a capable captain and will do whatever is necessary to protect her ship and crew.
The real saving grace to Trading in Danger is the audio production. Graphic Audio specializes in turning books into full cast dramatizations, complete with music and sound effects. This particular production was beautifully done, with sound and music that truly enhance the story rather than distracting the listener.
As to the cast, what you have basically is a main narrator, and several voice actors who read the parts of the various characters. The main narrator, and I believe also the voice of Kylara, is Cynthia Holloway, who did a more than adequate job. The other actors are too numerous to name here, but I’m happy to say that they are all named in the recording. That makes me happy because sometimes full-cast audio productions neglect to name the actors, so thank you for that Graphic Audio.
Trading in Danger wasn’t the best story, what you might call a space opera I suppose, but there’s plenty of fast-paced action to keep you listening. And the cinema quality sound enhancements are definitely worth a listen.
Steven Brandt @ Audiobook-Heaven
I like the way Ky handles herself in tough situations, although some of those situations are a little too contrived for my liking. In the naval academy, Ky tries to help a friend who, as it turns out, was trying to discredit the military, and she is expelled. That punishment was way more severe than necessary, but the scene does serve to show us that Ky is a good-natured person who truly wants to help people whenever possible. Later on, Ky inadvertently takes her ship and crew into a star system where war is breaking out. Many of the events that transpire from this don’t make much sense logically, but again they serve to give us more insights into Ky’s nature, namely that she is a capable captain and will do whatever is necessary to protect her ship and crew.
The real saving grace to Trading in Danger is the audio production. Graphic Audio specializes in turning books into full cast dramatizations, complete with music and sound effects. This particular production was beautifully done, with sound and music that truly enhance the story rather than distracting the listener.
As to the cast, what you have basically is a main narrator, and several voice actors who read the parts of the various characters. The main narrator, and I believe also the voice of Kylara, is Cynthia Holloway, who did a more than adequate job. The other actors are too numerous to name here, but I’m happy to say that they are all named in the recording. That makes me happy because sometimes full-cast audio productions neglect to name the actors, so thank you for that Graphic Audio.
Trading in Danger wasn’t the best story, what you might call a space opera I suppose, but there’s plenty of fast-paced action to keep you listening. And the cinema quality sound enhancements are definitely worth a listen.
Steven Brandt @ Audiobook-Heaven
October 13, 2014
I wasn't very convinced at first about this whole Graphic Audio thing, but until the end I've absolutely loved it.
May 29, 2017
4 stars.
The Vatta family reminds me of Clan Korval from Sharon Lee's Liaden series. It's all about trading and family. It's more of a YA story but I'm expecting that Ky will mature very rapidly as the series progresses.
The Graphic Audio version of Trading in Danger is split into 2 parts. So this review is for both Parts 1 & 2. The different voices and the sound effects made it very entertaining. I liked Ky's young but husky voice. Looking forward to listening to the next book in the series.
The Vatta family reminds me of Clan Korval from Sharon Lee's Liaden series. It's all about trading and family. It's more of a YA story but I'm expecting that Ky will mature very rapidly as the series progresses.
The Graphic Audio version of Trading in Danger is split into 2 parts. So this review is for both Parts 1 & 2. The different voices and the sound effects made it very entertaining. I liked Ky's young but husky voice. Looking forward to listening to the next book in the series.
February 13, 2024
I have read the book and loved it. This dramatization follows the same narrative fairly well but I prefer the audiobook.
The voice acting in this dramatization was reasonable, but at times the secondary characters were overly done. I also found the transitional sound effects to be more distracting than helpful. Also there was a sound sequence near the beginning where it seemed that there was the normal audio narrative with a news report running in the background. While this fit with what I remember of the storyline, the overall effect was confusing. It just didn't work.
I doubt I will listen to this audiobook again.
The voice acting in this dramatization was reasonable, but at times the secondary characters were overly done. I also found the transitional sound effects to be more distracting than helpful. Also there was a sound sequence near the beginning where it seemed that there was the normal audio narrative with a news report running in the background. While this fit with what I remember of the storyline, the overall effect was confusing. It just didn't work.
I doubt I will listen to this audiobook again.
April 24, 2019
Ooops forgot to leave a review.
I actually really enjoyed this.I can't remember the details of it right now. But I did rather enjoy it and I went out to obtain the next in the series.
I remember not being annoyed by the youngness of the character, other than right at the start.
However, it was a really well done production, and a good story.
I actually really enjoyed this.I can't remember the details of it right now. But I did rather enjoy it and I went out to obtain the next in the series.
I remember not being annoyed by the youngness of the character, other than right at the start.
However, it was a really well done production, and a good story.
February 7, 2024
I like this one. It's got an interesting protagonist, not exactly in the most traditional scenario, and it just seems kind of fun.
July 29, 2023
It took a while to get used to the voice actor for Ky and some of the choices made at the beginning about her emotional stability, but it's well done otherwise. I really like this story, and I'm glad there's an audio version that's so good.
August 13, 2014
I'm very pleased with this full-cast audio version. I've tried the version from Audible and can't stand the narrator's choice of voice for the main character.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews