Bob Blanton

I did not realize this was a YA book. I like the story line, but don’t know if I can make it thru any more of the books because I cannot stand the character, Caite. I hate it when authors put a know it all kid in the story. Somehow no adult knows anything, and a 13-year-old has all the answers. I don’t have that much suspension of disbelief.

Blanton, Bob. Starship Sakira. Delphi in Space No. 1. Kindle, 2019.
When you read one self-published book on Kindle, Goodreads now shows its corporate colors by recommending other such books for you. They are, as one might expect, a mixed bag. Starship Sakira is a bit better than average. It has likeable characters and a standard science fiction setup. A diver is captured by a submerged alien spacecraft, whose AI is looking for a new captain. After that, the story becomes the kind of show more high-tech nautical derring-do that made Clive Cussler rich and famous. It is solid, though derivative, action adventure. There is some looseness in style and at least one continuity error in which a character says he intends to negotiate with Spain when we know he really intends to negotiate with Portugal. That is life without a professional editor. 3.5 stars, but I will keep reading the series when I am in the mood for something light. show less

Blanton, Bob. Delphi City. Delphi in Space No. 2. Kindle, 2019.
Starship Sakira, the first book in the Delphi in Space series, owed a lot to Clive Cussler, but later books in the series owe more to early Heinlein, especially his juveniles. Given the desire to fix the ecology and get humanity off planet as quickly as possible, what could an entrepreneur engineer, his war hero brother, and his genius 13-year-old daughter do if they had a couple of billion dollars, a working starship, its show more shuttle crafts, alien medical tech, and a strong AI? How about buying an island in the South Pacific and building a high-tech city to begin introducing alien tech into the world economy? Blanton enjoys the logistics of building gee-whiz tech. He takes a little time out for plot developments, but his real interest seems to be in what one could do with a little software and some unobtanium. The style at best is nothing special, but I was entertained. 3.5 stars. show less

Blanton, Bob. Delphi Embassy. Delphi in Space No. 11. Kindle, 2021.
In Bob Blanton’s Delphi Embassy Catie trades in her starship captain’s uniform for her princess dress, mirroring Miles Vorkosigan’s transition from a mercenary fleet commander to an interstellar diplomat. There is not much of a story arc, so the series still seems in jogging mode. But here is a caveat: reading Bob Blanton’s Delphi Embassy at the same time I am rereading some of Lois McMaster Bujold is not fair to Bob. show more You might want to distrust my three-star rating. show less