• About
  • Review Ratings
  • Author’s Information
  • Recommended Authors

Whiskey With My Book

~ And a cozy spot to enjoy them both.

Whiskey With My Book

Monthly Archives: April 2016

Admiral by Sean Danker

30 Saturday Apr 2016

Posted by WWMB in Book Review

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

5 stars, military scifi, scifi, spaceships, spy, stranded, survival

Admiral

Four people, strangers, are roused from their sleeper units for some unknown reason. They are not on the ship they thought they would be on. The crew of the ship is nowhere to be seen and the admiral didn’t even know he was an admiral. Thus begins the story of a group of survivors who have no idea where they are, where their next breath of oxygen will come from, if they will be rescued and what dangers they will face before they figure it all out.

Little by little they learn more about what happened, to the ship and to the crew. But the planet they crash landed on is extremely hostile to humans. There is no atmosphere, it is covered in a strange green mist and the surface is very unstable. They have limited power and almost no resources for getting off the planet. They have only each other to help them stay alive. They are going to get to know each other very well. And yet not at all.

There is an intensity to the story told in Admiral caused by so many unknowns. The biggest unknown is the admiral. Who is the admiral? Salmagard thinks she knows. So does Deilani. Nils isn’t sure. Even though the story is told entirely from the admiral’s point of view, it takes the entire book to definitively figure out who he is. Hints in the story might help you guess, but they might also help you second guess.

Throughout the book, the characters were constantly speculating, thinking, planning, moving, and acting on survival plans. They had no chance to sleep. This aspect of the story made it edgy. And I’m pretty sure the characters lack of sleep in the story led to some interesting dreams in my own sleep.

Is this a spy story – as hinted in the book’s blurb? Even having finished the novel, the spy element is vague at best, though I can tell you that there is a spy in the story. How’s that for absolute uncertainty?

Admiral is a departure from the type of novel I usually read. While you got to know 4 very interesting characters, you really didn’t get to know them very well at all. Especially the admiral. Most of my reads involve a more intimate understanding of the characters and of the relationships between them. Though I still prefer my normal fare, Admiral is a fascinating read and I am glad I read it. And I am likely to read the next book the Evagardian series when it is released. I can definitely recommend it to readers of SciFi.

 

Admiral by Sean Danker releases on May 3, but can be pre-ordered now.

“I was on a dead ship on an unknown planet with three trainees freshly graduated into the Imperial Service. I tried to look on the bright side.”
 
He is the last to wake. The label on his sleeper pad identifies him as an admiral of the Evagardian Empire—a surprise as much to him as to the three recent recruits now under his command. He wears no uniform, and he is ignorant of military protocol, but the ship’s records confirm he is their superior officer.
 
Whether he is an Evagardian admiral or a spy will be of little consequence if the crew members all end up dead. They are marooned on a strange world, their ship’s systems are failing one by one—and they are not alone.

Sean Danker’s Website

Admiral on Goodreads

Amazon Link:

Admiral

 

Featuring: The Black Orchid by Celine Jeanjean

26 Tuesday Apr 2016

Posted by WWMB in Featuring....

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Adventure, favorites, mystery, Steampunk

The Black Orchid

I fell in love with Rory and Longinus and the city of Damsport when I read The Bloodless Assassin last fall. So, when I learned the book I read was only the first book of a steampunk series, book 2 (which did not yet have a name) became one of the most anticipated new books of 2016 for me. From the first word on page one to the last word on the final page, The Black Orchid met all of my expectations and has a place on my favorites shelf!

On April 29, my review for The Black Orchid will post at Smart Girls Love SciFi Romance.  I hope you will check that out.  But in the meantime, I thought I’d feature a few short excerpts that I really enjoyed and that depict why I love these characters so much.

Longinus on Fashion

He had taken such care over dressing the part too, right down to selecting just the right shade of aggressive nutmeg for his waistcoat — elegance mixed with a hint of intimidation.

and

Longinus couldn’t feel like himself if he wasn’t attired properly, and he knew he didn’t look like himself, either. Of course people would doubt his abilities if he was dressed in grey — grey! Who had ever heard of a competent assassin dressed in grey? Appearances were everything, and right now he didn’t look like the deadliest and most elegant assassin in town.

and

“There’s a lack of black silk, and who has need of black silk more than an assassin? Maybe we have a new assassin in town…”

and

“Oh, I know her well enough,” said Longinus nonchalantly. “We’ve had sartorial disagreements by proxy, and that tells me all I need to know about her.”

Rory’s Total Abandon

She backed the spider to one end of the roof and pushed it to full speed, hurtling towards the opposite edge. As she reached the edge, she pushed the lever that released a powerful burst of steam from the spider’s abdomen and legs. They jumped easily to the next roof.

“Yeah!” she shouted, grinning from the thrill of it. Cruikshank had taught her to use the spider, but had never let her take it out of the workshop. This was infinitely better than making it jump over chairs.

They jumped again, and Rory increased the speed. Her rope-like hair streamed behind her. The spider’s legs moved so fast on either side that they were a blur, and the rapid clicking they made sounded like rain hitting the tiles.

Rory threw caution to the wind, hooting and cheering at each jump as they continued to race towards Longinus’ tailor.

* * *

Longinus was so pale as to be almost grey by the time they reached their destination.

“This method of transportation is entirely inadequate for the Viper,” he announced in a shaky voice as he climbed down, staggering a little on shaking legs.

“Oh, was I going too fast?” asked Rory.

Longinus on Rory’s Skill With a Rapier

“You’re becoming less terrible,”

Rory When Longinus is Beset by Prostitutes

“Aw. Need me to defend your virtue, do you?”

Rory and Longinus Typical Conversation

“I feel a bit guilty now,” Rory whispered. “Not to mention, if we get caught, we’ll be up to our eyeballs in shit.”

“No need to get scatological,” Longinus whispered back.”

 

Those were just a few examples of why I adore Rory and Longinus.  Lest you think Longinus is shallow and Rory irresponsible, you should know it is not all fun and games and clothes shopping for these two.  There are plenty of serious and heartfelt moments that make them all the more appealing.

You might like to know a little about what the book is about.  Here is the blurb:

A couple of months after Rory and Longinus saved the Old Girl, they’re trying to settle into the honest life of being in her employ. Unfortunately, Rory is bored with nothing to steal, and Longinus finds living in Cruikshank’s workshop insufferable, what with the sub-par coffee and lack of suitable clothing.

When an old friend of Rory’s is found exsanguinated, Rory and Longinus fear that Myran has returned. To make matters more delicate, an important diplomat is visiting Damsport, and her death would make the city vulnerable to attack from Airnia, so the Old Girl tasks Rory and Longinus with uncovering and stopping whatever is going on.

As they investigate, clues lead them to the Black Orchid, a new brothel in town where the clientele has a tendency to vanish. But when the diplomat’s bodyguard is found dead outside the Black Orchid, Rory and Longinus find themselves framed as the masterminds behind the whole operation. To clear their names and save the city, they’ll have to solve the mystery of the Black Orchid before Myran catches up to them.

Living an honest life turned out to be far more complicated than they’d expected.

 

Celine Jeanjean’s Blog: Down the Rabbit Hole

The Viper and the Urchin series on Goodreads

Amazon Links:

The Bloodless AssassinThe Black Orchid

Deadlocked

23 Saturday Apr 2016

Posted by WWMB in Book Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

5 stars, aliens, scifi romance, space opera

I reviewed Deadlocked by Libby Sinclair on Smart Girls Love SciFi Romance. Deadlocked has only 91 pages, has more than enough to keep me interested.

← Older posts

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 451 other subscribers

Tags

4 stars 5 stars Adventure aliens Art book feature Book Review cats excerpt fantasy giveaway guest post historical humor magic mystery paranormal Pauline Baird Jones reading romance scifi scifi romance series space opera Steampunk

Recent Posts

  • The Dueling Duchess (Wicked Women of Whitechapel, #2) by Minerva Spencer – Review
  • The Poisoner’s Ring (A Rip Through Time, #2) by Kelley Armstrong – Review
  • The Bond (The Secret Tales, #1) by Sanna Brand – Review
  • MicroP (The Cyborg Chronicles, #5) by Pauline Baird Jones – Review
  • Weekend Tales

Archives

  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016

Currently Reading

NetGalley Challenge 2016

2016 NetGalley Challenge

Copyright Notice

© This site's content is protected by copyright.

FTC Disclaimer

Some of the books reviewed on Whiskey With My Book are provided by authors, publishers, or other third party promoters. Other than review copies, no compensation is accepted for reviews.

Affiliates

This blog uses affiliate links to direct you to sites where you can make purchases. Use of these links supports this blog and is much appreciated!

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Whiskey With My Book
    • Join 337 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Whiskey With My Book
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...