Elizabeth Bonesteel

Elizabeth Bonesteel has created a fascinating universe in her Central Corps series. Remnants of Trust, the second book in the series, builds on the promising beginning from the first book and takes her storytelling to the next level.

The story begins with an out of character attack on a Central Corps ship by raiders. The Galileo, home to Captain Greg Foster and Commander Elena Shaw, is near enough to respond to the Exeter’s distress call, but not near enough to prevent its destruction. The show more intervention of the closer PSI ship, Orunmula, is able to avert that disaster, but not the loss of nearly 100 crew members from the Exeter. Signs point to sabotage, but by whom and for what reasons is a deeper mystery. Hidden agendas and factions within the Central Corps government further complicate the mystery and put everyone in danger.

Elena and Greg, as well as Jessica are among the characters who return from the first novel and their characters are further developed here. Strong new characters such as Captain Celik of the doomed Exeter are introduced. None are more fascinating than the very pregnant captain of the Orunmula, Shiang Guanyin. I could read a whole book just about her. We get to spend a lot of time with her and her PSI generation ship which is a fascinating contrast in cultures from the Central Corps ships. We get to take the time to understand how these different cultures frame the perspectives of the individuals who live in them.

Bonesteel perfectly captures people's imperfect understanding of each other. She uses this to show how it influences decision-making and outcomes. The relationships between and among her characters are realistic and nuanced. There are a lot of things to like about Bonesteel’s books. The plot moves along steadily, there are great action scenes, a complicated mystery and a government with agendas within agendas manipulating people and events for reasons that remain murky. The greatest accomplishment, though, is a full cast of characters who are complex, have depth, and have realistic motivations. Bonesteel skillfully lends perspective to show that individual motivations are more complex than simple good or evil.

Remants of Trust is a great entry in the series. It is an exciting story with a solid mystery. Even as the mystery is solved, it leads to more questions to be explored in future entries in the series. The characters and their development is a cut above ordinary military sci-fi and reason enough to read these books by themselves.

Sign me up for more adventures in the Central Corps universe as well as anything else Bonesteel wants to write. Highly recommended.

I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book. show less

How do you take the remnants of a generation ship and keep humanity alive on a frozen, inhospitable planet? It turns out to involve not just a fair amount of technological ingenuity, but also a healthy dose of myth-making and autocratic government (think, iron fist in velvet glove). And then, how do you hold the society you've made together 200 years later, when your far-distant cousins from Earth show up and basically say "hey, we didn't actually destroy ourselves like you thought!"? For show more the governor of Novayarkha, it turns out the answer is, not very well.

Which is all all well and good for plot purposes. Every book has to have dramatic conflict and all that. However, every good book also needs well-rounded characters who have realistic reactions to the conflict. Both of those were lacking here. Across the board, characters behaved in ways that weren't understandable based on the information given to the reader. It's hard to relate to characters when you don't understand why they're acting the way they are. It's a shame that this book was sunk by poor character development, because the premise was quite interesting.

FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review. show less

The Cold Between by Elizabeth Bonesteel is the beginning of an interesting new SF series. Part military sci-fi, part space opera, part mystery and a little bit of romance. It’s an interesting and very entertaining book that has a nicely contained story that doesn’t leave you hanging, but still makes you want to continue the series to learn more about the characters and this universe.

Elena Shaw is a strong lead character who is driven, competent and no nonsense. Elena hooks up with Treiko show more Zajec, a retired space captain and erstwhile chef, for a presumed one-night stand. When Elena’s former lover winds up murdered, things quickly get a lot more complicated. Strong secondary characters, particularly Elena’s friend Jessica and captain Greg, add to a story that’s fueled by mystery and conflict involving both planetary and galactic governments. The mystery dates back to a 25 year old tragedy involving Greg’s mom and may just be the tip of something even more sinister.

Bonesteel does a good job of juggling different plot elements, but it is the strong characters that drive the story here. There’s a lot to like here and I’m looking forward to where she takes the story next in this new Central Corps series. Bonesteel is clearly a talented writer and The Cold Between stands out as something a little different than your typical military sci fi. Recommended read.

I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book. show less

Bonesteel has written another well-rounded space odyssey, combining an interesting cast of characters, a remote space colony, and the arrival of another group of scientists from earth who upset the balance while introducing new ideas and technology. The themes of government, creativity, questioning authority, betrayal, loyalty intensify the suspense of how the colonists will all be able to survive their hundreds of years of hardship and distance from earth while dealing with their differences.