Michael-Scott Earle

"You are my best friend, my saviour, but you don't understand this war. What are you fighting for? Whom are you fighting for?"

You know that moment when you read the last sentence and you think:"Ehi, nonono. Wait. WAIT. This isn't the end, right? There are some missing chapters, right? It CAN'T be the end!!!"? Well, this is one of those moments. I absolutely NEED answers to what happened in the last part of the book and not only there, because the only things I have are some clue and show more suspicions, but no certaintes.

Anyway, let me order my thoughts. Are you looking for action mixed with irony, suspance and sensuality? You've found the right book.
During the first part of the story I was both confused and fascinated. What puzzled me the most (and actually still does) is the character of Kaiyer. He's totally unpredictable: he can be ruthless but also very loyal, cold but at the same time passionate, cunning while also ignorant of the actual time. Just in the first pages he kills without apparent effort something like eight soldiers, not to mention all the other people he will slaughter later on. Oh, and don't forget that he's a capable womanizer, even though in the past his attention was focused only on one single woman. Sometimes this attitude towards women made me quite pissed, but I think it's his only flaw. I found amazingly funny his sarcasm, which he used particularly during some minor scuffles but even during fights, and I appreciated his resourcefulness and combat abilities. He's a kind of hero and antihero at the same time, because even though he wants to help his friends, he's still aggressive, bows to no one and he's ready to sacrifice human lives to obtain his aims. Moreover I'm still trying to understand who he really is, since the only things known about his past are some memories recalled in the middle of the chapters. Incidentally, I think that it would be better using italics for writing those parts, because sometimes at the beginning it was difficult understanding if it was a memory or not.

The other characters are quite well structured too, even though they're less "complex" than Kaiyer. I appreciated Nadea's strenght and intelligence, Greykin's protectiveness and loyalty, Jessmei's glee and naivete. I often found myself a little bit annoyed by Paug because of his insecurities and his apparently weak personality, but at the end I changed my opinion a bit .

Going on with the reading I appreciated more and more the way fighting scenes are described. I must admit they're quite gruesome and bloody, but at the same time really realistic. Not only normal weapons are involved, but even magic, and both elements are perfectly combined to create an amazing fantasy setting. It would have been nice to have a small map with the different territories and the mentioned cities, in order to have a clearer view of the story.
Not to mention the amazing coup de théatre, that actually creates even more doubts than before! It's more like a hint meant for leading the reader towards the solution, and I think it's a great and innovative idea. These questions aren't solved by the cliffhanger representing the ending. I oddly appreciated it, even though at the same time I'm terribly annoyed because I really want to know what happens next. I'm looking forward to the next book! show less

Nevermind my previous idea that these are a modern John Carter series. This is the novelization of a harem anime. Not literally, the anime doesn't exist, but it fits the mold. The author should really try to find some artists to make an anime. Yet again, this isn't high culture, it's having fun without thinking about the consequences. I like it and know well enough that I should feel ashamed of myself for it, but I'm not really ashamed of it. Make what you will of that. On to book four!

I was going to give this a three for being well written but so full of tropes, but you know what? I like it. The grammar only occasionally slips, the plots are only vaguely formulaic, and I had a good time. For me these are like a modern literature form of the John Carter books. They're cheap, not that deep emotionally, and plain fun to read. I swear that it's like trying to read an action film or a video game, but that's fine. If it wasn't in the kindle unlimited library or wasn't about a show more were-tiger in space then I probably never would have found it, and that's okay. This is my literature junk food, or the salad to clean my palate between the real courses. show less

Unanswered questions

Weretiger...in space. . So this isn't really ^science^ fiction, except that they have space ships and plasma weapons and lasers. The vampire is less of an issue, as she is simply an enhanced human type. Gaining mass and size violates some physical laws, which is well within SF, but usually requires explainable tech. And nothing gets explained.

And that is the problem. Stuff just works. Shotguns slugs penetrate several bodies and body armor with ease. The weretiger gets big show more and furry without needing to eat until he shifts back. He heals from severe wounds, changes back to human form, and passes out, only waking to eat a day later. What is his energy source?!?!?

Even the evil corporation trope is hackneyed and weak. Motivations aren't explained, simply assumed. Senior people are evil because...megacorp...and evil. show less