When starfighter pilot Simon Dodds is enrolled in a top secret military project, he and his wingmates begin to suspect that there is a lot more to the theft of a legendary battleship and an Imperial nation's civil war than either the Confederation Stellar Navy or the government are willing to let on. Within weeks of being reassigned to the Confederate border system of Temper, the five would begin to untangle a web of lies and a cover-up that seemed to span the entire galaxy. And it would not be long before they would come face to face with that which destroyed an empire: an unforgiving, unstoppable, and totally unrelenting foe. There seemed to exist only one glimmer of hope of driving back the darkness: The ATAF Project - a secretly developed set of starfighters that well may just harbour some terrible secrets of their own... I’m not a literary expert, but I read enough to know a good book when I find one. This is a good book. I liked it, and will recommend to readers of my type who want to try a Sci-Fi book. At times observation of the characters fluxed between intrusive and apathetic. But, I found it relatively effortless to put myself into the shoes of a male fighter pilot from my reading seat at home as I sipped my hot chocolate and listened to Bat for Lashes warbling in the background. It was more like I was a bystander in the lead characters mind rather than in the driving seat – so to speak.
There were moments where it felt like I ran into a solid wall of back-story in the middle of a seemingly casual conversation, but nothing to cause a fuss over. SF of this nature is not easy for me to digest as I read so much romance and contemporary/urban fantasy. However Sweeny’s storytelling style allowed me to sink into something I would never have been able to tolerate otherwise. The descriptions of the environment and technology itself were surprisingly roundabout - usually this kind of detail is stuffed down your throat, and not in a good way. This gave me the ability to enjoy this novel. I like my imagination to work as I read rather than being force fed, which can happen with Sci-Fi, Epic/High fantasy because of the out-of-this-world situations the writer is trying to reveal to you.
I should mention the ending was wonderful. The beginning ... you need to open yourself up to and allow it to wash over you rather than allowing yourself to become frustrated with the sluggish pace. Stick it through, as I have said the ending is excellent.
The use of language is admirable, and the sophisticated cover appeals to me (like most book addicts I love my covers). Overall this is a shining example of what an Indie book should be and was a pleasure to read.
4 skulls.