This was a kind of strange book. I’m not sure how to explain it, but something just didn’t read right to me. The story line is very good and has some really exciting parts. The author did request this review, but I bought the book from Amazon and I’m glad I did. I think this is the beginning of a series because the end didn’t come with this book.
You start of getting a glimpse into something two guys getting Operation Athena started off. Zane Silver and Aven Sabu are megalomaniacs who, for some reason, think they could run the universe much better than it’s ran right now. They lived on what was call a planet-ship hybrid which was the home world of the Seythra. Now, this is where it gets a little confusing. There seems to be three different species involved. The Seythra are huge, eight feet tall monsters, while the Othal seem to be more gentle and political. Then there’s the Fesar who, while part of this triumvirate, really want to be independent. I have no idea how Humans of Earth fit into this, but they are around. It’s also best if you don’t try to pay to much attention to what species anyone is because it doesn’t seem to matter in the end.
Next, we come to two of the good guys in Commander Seraph Adrian, a human, and Lieutenant Sadhis Loxai, both part of the Confederate military which enforces laws and such within this part of the universe. They are often put together for various mission since they seem to balance out each other. Serpah is very brutal and direct in his actions while Sadhis is more of a thinker and tries to solve things peacefully if possible. They are on a mission together at the start of the book and they will find themselves very much together for the rest of the story. You’ll eventually meet quite a few more characters as things get heated up with all of them finding themselves in the middle of a civil war!
The Seythra are the most militant of the three species. They have built up major military bases and forces on almost every planet in the Confederation. And now, they are being directed by Zane, Aven and Lahen to begin the process of exterminating every other species! They are brutal and thorough in their efforts. There isn’t another military force on any of the planets capable of really fighting back. Yet, Seraph and Sadhis do fight back and start something of a resistance movement. Their first objective is the huge Baryon, flagship of the Seythra! It’s destruction would obviously be a devastating blow to the entire Athena Operation. But, they didn’t plan on stopping there. If successful in this first objective, they planned on taking down the Trini 5010, the Seythra planet-ship hybrid. Oh, and Seraph and Sadhis were just two of the five or six people they had to do these missions. Some weren’t even military!
So, needless to say there is a lot of fighting. I had some trouble keeping things straight in my head while reading the story. Maybe you’ll do better! I think having the name of so many things, like Seraph, Sadhis, Seythra, start with the same letter though me off a little bit. I just couldn’t keep the characters straight. And I also didn’t understand how humans could successfully fight off eight foot tall monsters as the Seythra were described. Yet, Seraph didn’t have any problem stabbing them or shooting them in the head. Still, the did what they had to do, but don’t believe they all survive! I’m not so sure how the second book will turn out, but it might just be interesting reading to see who comes out of this book and continues in the next.
I think this was the authors first book. The writing wasn’t just as polished as it could have been. It didn’t flow quite right. There might have been too many conversations going on, I don’t know, but it seemed to get very confusing at times. I also don’t know how anybody can be shot so many times and just get up and go again. Yeah, it mentions they had some kind of armor, but not all the time and it got pretty shot up in places. Anyway, it’s a good story that doesn’t end with this book so if you like what you read here, then please continue on with the series in the next book, “The Athena Operation II”, catchy title, right?