Well, this story has taken a turn for the worse! It’s getting down-right stupid in my humble opinion. I don’t know if that was the intention of the author, but he’s seemed to have ruined what was becoming a very good science fiction story. Now it’s just getting ridiculous and not very good.
This time, the USS Hamilton is being repaired while it’s Captain, Galvin Quintos, is setting in the brig awaiting a courts marshal. And to top that off, US Space Navy Executive 5-Star Admiral Cyprian Brock had just awarded Quintos his second Silver Star! None, awarding a prisoner in a Brig a Silver Star, isn’t going to happen in any Navy I know of. This is also Quintos’ second Silver Star, so the charges he’s been incarcerated for are pretty lame. He was accused by Captain Eli Tannock, a previously certified insane person by his own ship’s doctor! Captain Quintos had fired on and destroyed the USS Brave during their last fight with the Vaparin. Those aliens were about to overtake the USS Brave and assimilate the crew. All the high tech secrets and capabilities of the US Space Navy would have been compromised if that had happened. With the plea of the ships Captain, Captain Quintos did indeed fire on and destroy the USS Brave. There shouldn’t have been any charges based on any kind of preliminary investigation. Secondly, why Captain Eli Tannock is even around is a major issue. He’s insane and has prove in capable of clear thinking in combat and should never have stayed on the USS Hamilton.
Ok, so now his legal counsel comes to break him out of the brig at the behest of an alien, Empress Shawlee Tee. She has arranged for a “Symbio-Poth” creature that appears to be Captain Quintos to take his place in the brig. Shawnlee wants Captain Quintos and the USS Hamilton to go rescue her Fleet Commander Captain Twinwon who was being besieged by the Grish. What transpires after this is a series of incredible situation which the USS Hamilton finds itself out gunned eighteen to one.
In the meantime, Captain Tannock has found a pair of Port Entanglers which are similar to the old time machines of ancient sci-fi stories. Except in these two machines, Captain Eli Tannock had gotten himself stuck in the memory buffers and couldn’t get himself out. Furthermore, in this story, Doc Viv and the USS Hamilton’s Science Officer were conducting further experiments with the machines to see if they can improve on what they feel will turn into something similar to the “tele-porters” of old Star Trek TV showes. So we’re really getting carried away with some of this story. Throw in the silly “love” thing with Lieutenant Pristy and things get really ridiculous. Oh, I said that once already, didn’t I!
I just don’t know why the author had to turn this story into such a joke. There’s so. many things going wrong with this story including the giant robot with a human consciousness called Hardy! And Captain Quintos seems to be the only one that can do anything. He has to go everywhere and do what he should be having all his other crew do. HIs place is really on the bridge of his starship, not gallivanting around doing everything but commanding.
I suppose this series will continue and if I haven nothing better to read, I might continue to reading it, but it’s not going to be a priority. If this were meant to be a humorous series, then it should have started out they way, but it started out very serious and now has turned to this junk. Sorry, but that’s my opinion and this is my review. I should have given this a 3, but I’ve read three books in the series so that’s got to be good from at least one star above a 3!