Synopsis:
For 3400 years, we conquered the Milky Way, ushering in an age of peace and
prosperity. All of humanity, united beneath the banner of the Martianist Imperium.
Until civil war struck at the empire’s heart…
1700 years after the war, the Imperium is a shadow of its former self. Along the galaxy’s
Outer Reaches, frontier factions and vicious gangs nip at the empire’s heels and jostle for
dominance.
In the year 5122, Alexis Nales wakes from stasis to find her crew long dead and herself the
property of slavers. To survive in the lawless outer region, Alexis must transform a ragtag
group of escaped slaves into a tightknit crew who’ll fight for freedom and a better future.
Elsewhere, an ancient warrior—captured at the civil war’s conclusion—awakens from his
own stasis. Expected to lead a team of fellow captives, Jabari Mbaye soon discovers the
assignment is off-the-books… and the imperial officer commanding it has gone rogue.
When both of their paths converge, Alexis and Jabari must face two questions. Can the other
be trusted? And do they have what it takes to win?
Losing this battle could result in the deaths of both their teams… and ultimately in the destruction of all human civilization.
Review:
I do love a book that starts with a despotic ruler getting their comeuppance, only to find out, as with most revolutions, that who you replace them with is worse.
Okay, so I write space opera with a military scifi bent, or is it the other way around? Either way, the cover of Iconic just grabbed my attention, giving off a very 1960/70’s all-action sci-fi vibe that I kind of dig (did I say dig? I did. I’m old). It drew me in, and once I began reading, well, it hooks you in because it has all the tropes you could want.
We have the survivor, awakened from stasis only to find she has not only absorbed a few new abilities while asleep, but her crewmates are long dead, and she’s been captured by slavers. We have the enhanced Valkyrie-like warrior, the gravity-dwelling strongman, the awkward techno dude, a ship’s robot and of course the lost warriors who fight on the wrong side. This might sound cliched, but Gordon and Aldin wring every last drop of action-oriented fun they can out of the setup while providing us with a few antagonists you love to hate.
I had a great time with this book. The action was well-written; the rollercoaster ride towards the end was perfectly paced. Amid all this was the odd chapter that was a little too full of speech, perhaps a little too eager to set off the banter, but easily forgiven as set-piece after set-piece rolls on in and you go with the flow.
Need some fun space opera? Sorted.
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