Empire Reborn by Jay Allan

 

Empire Reborn by Jay Allan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

An endless battle for survival has almost brought the Confederation to it's knees, joined by former enemies the Alliance technology has leapt forwards but never decisively, the battle remains focused within the hearts of the men and women who refuse to give up in defence of the people and worlds who cherish freedom. There comes to a time though when the fleets have been battered and options removed, this is that time as the powerful Highborn armada readies to meet the remnants of the Alliance but even with little or no hope the Battleships, Fighters, Cruisers of the Alliance and all the souls aboard face down the invaders.
Well it's been a long road as they say with the 18th and final novel released and now read, I can't say the series didn't need wrapping up but Jay managed to pull a rabbit out the hat so to speak, in hindsight it makes perfect sense with a little perspective massaging but the conclusion to this series was mostly satisfying. There really is little point in recommending this novel in a standalone context but if you are looking for a long running series in the military scifi genre then here you go, a completed narrative with spin offs that is both entertaining and creative in showing us a humanity living far in the future but one we can still recognise and relate too.


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The Others by Jay Allan

The Others by Jay Allan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Others make their presence known to the Hegemony while Admiral Tyler Barron acting as emissary for the Rim worlds visits the capital of his enemy to ratify their words in terms of the threat the Others represent. What he sees and what he experiences convinces him that even together the entire military of the human race in this region of the galaxy may not be able to defeat the Others. Meanwhile the Confederation Senate (rebuilt despite millions being homeless and ongoing food shortages) are complacent to the threat leaving Admiral Winters, Gary Holsten and Andi Lafarge to force their cooperation and to sell the people that after only a year of "peace" the war machine has to once more spin up despite the ongoing problems. The union under Gaston Villieneuve is still in turmoil and the Alliance like the Confederation desperate to rebuild their military but there is no time, the Others are real, they are a threat and they make the Hegemony conflict look like a childs scuffle.

The latest installment from the Blood on the Stars series by Jay Allan adds a major new player to the galactic mix. The Others who have been mentioned regularly as a motivating factor for the existence and drive of the Hegemony have returned at yes their military capabilities eclipse anything we have seen so far. The question of their genesis has yet to be answered but at this point it would not be difficult to imagine an offshoot of the former galactic empire going down the eugenic/augmentation route and with more retained knowledge of the empire tech being generations ahead of even the Hegemony. I have to say I took no pleasure from the Union aspect of this novel, perhaps just bored with Gaston Villieneuve and that culture but the Others are significantly different to keep me interested overall.

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The Colossus by Jay Allan

The Colossus by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Their failure to secure Megara the capital world of the Confederation has shook the Hegemony to the core, the cost of the war at the Rim has been extreme and they are no closer to securing victory. Faced with abandoning the war they double down bringing to the front lines the mysterious Project Zed and Red Storm despite the ever underlying concern with "The Others" the cause of the huge military build up that has driven the Hegemony from over a century ago.
The Grand Alliance forces under the total command of Admiral Tyler Barron despite a rapid ship building program and resupply are going to be drawn into a confrontation with the resurgent invading forces they are not ready for and they no nothing about Project Zed and Red Storm.
The Colossus as you would come to expect continues to deliver the action, drama and characterisation that has driven the Blood on the Stars series from the first novel. A highly satisfying read which provides a realism to an almost impossible situation as the humans on the Rim fight for their survival against the genetically obsessed Hegemony and continues to weave in one and one confrontations amongst the huge battles between starships.

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The Grand Alliance by Jay Allan

The Grand Alliance by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Confederation capital world has fallen but even so the forces fighting the Hermegony struck a huge blow by destroying a huge swath of battleships and more importantly wiping out the supply/repair facility that was protected well behind the front lines. As the fleet harrassess the resupply of the Hegemony fleet around Megara it soon becomes apparent that playing for time to rebuild the fleet around the Iron Belt worlds will fail, reinforcements to the enemy are increasing and the longer they wait the stronger the Hegemony will be. Admiral Barron decides to act and forces his allies to launch a strike against Megara, an all or nothing battle that the enemy will not see coming.
The Grand Alliance is another strong addition to the Blood on the Stars series, the continuing story growing and developing over each novel. New characters are introduced, after all this is a series that attempts to reflect the reality of conflict and thus people we are invested in die along with those that are just the cannon fodder. As expected the battle scenes are very well written, the interaction between the main characters remains solid and supports the narrative and if you are like me and have read the series from book 1 you will be more than satisfied.

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Nightfall by Jay Allan

Nightfall by Jay Allan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The tenth novel in the Blood on the Stars series "Nightfall" is a no holds barred action packed book relying on the tens of thousands of words used in the previous novels to develop the characters who play out this apocalyptic scenario. This novel is purely the pay off for the chess moves of the Confederation and Alliance against the Hegemony fleet with Union forces circling, it's full of action and drama as the battle for the Confederation capital system ignites and just when you think you can take a breath the conflict explodes again. I've got to give a lot of credit to Jay Allan for maintaining my interest in the series this long, there have been a few dips in form but with interesting characters, well written dialogue and action pieces both small and epic it's been an overall delight and it ain't over yet.

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Invasion by Jay Allan

Invasion by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The ninth novel in the Blood on the Stars series by Jay Allan heightens the tensions within the Confederation as the media and political manipulation by agents of the Union continue to shake the very structure of this culture. Admiral Barron has gathered many ships and crews around him and is facing the cold hard truth that to save the billions of people of the Confederation then control has to be seized and quickly despite the loss of life and stain on his own soul. Admiral Winter's fleet battle the invading forces of the Hegemony and a controlled tactical retreat in the hopes of breaking supplies lines is the only hope but pressure continues to mount as enemy forces get ever closer to the capital world of the Confederation.
Invasion more so than recent novels ramps up the space based action something which Jay writes with pace and style but does not ignore the politics and intrigue going on within the major powers including the Hegemony (which was most welcome). The writing is solid as you would expect with well developed characters being supported well and new characters and situations merging seamlessly. With a number of novels still to come in the series I can honestly say after a little dip in my enjoyment the series is back on track.

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The White Fleet by Jay Allan

The White Fleet by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The war between the Union and the allied forces of the Confederation and Alliance is over. The Confederation Senate quick to appease the public and massaged by self interest sign peace accords which gut their military but leave a "weak" Union with no further recriminations. Elements of the Admiralty and Intelligence services knowing the mistakes that were made and continue to be made send the cream of the military led by the Dauntless with Admiral Barron deep into the badlands to seek out technology that could aid them in what will no doubt be a future conflict with the despotic Union. There are mysteries and wonders to be found in the remains of the former galaxy wide human civilisation that fell into chaos and destruction and as the White Fleet flies deeper into the heart of the galaxy they are noticed....
The White Fleet is the seventh novel in the series and as I often say if you have read the books so far that will certainly not be disappointed with this installment. Regular characters with circumstances obviously changing remain as strong as ever and new storylines open up as the military and political landscape changes. The novel doesn't quite hit 5 stars for me because I found the covert plot arc on the Confederation capital to be maybe too close to what is happening in the modern world to be entertaining but events in the badlands are certainly hitting the mark. A solid addition to the series and gotta say the book cover is beautiful :)

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Echoes of Glory by Jay Allan

Echoes of Glory by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The fourth novel in the Blood on the Stars series by Jay Allan brings the Alliance back into the main arc after their spectacular appearance in the first novel. The Union and its covert services continue to influence members of the Alliance who consider it was a mistake not to engage fully against the Confederation. The aim is to stage a coup replacing the more moderate Alliance leader with one who sees nothing but the power and glory of an immediate war regardless of the dwindling benefits of a society facing opponents far stronger than they are. Of course the Union just wants the Alliance to bleed the Confederation and as the Confederation are drawn into a second front the battleship Dauntless under the command of Captain Tyler Barron brings all its experience back to the rim to do whatever is required to save the Confederation.
This latest novel provides much more detail to the inner workings of the Alliance and shows that there are elements within who believe in the tenants that lead to their freedom and growth over the last six decades or so but also acknowledge their society has to change. This is the underlying theme which allows the plot of this novel to progress and stay within bounds of the narrative as created over the previous three novels. There is the usual space based combat between rival battle ships and fleets as well as some rather tense engagements between the Union and Confederation and the Dauntless on her journey to the Rim to face the Alliance. Another strong addition to the series and having caught up with the novels released so far I now have to wait for the fifth novel in the series due a little later in the year. I guess a little patience is required but I really do want to know how this is all going to pan out, pretty good recommendation I suppose:)

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Ruins of Empire by Jay Allan

Ruins of Empire by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ruins of Empire is the third novel in the Blood on the Stars series by Jay Allan and in this novel the war between the Confederation and the Union has reached an impasse as both sides consolidate however the Confederation has far greater manufacturing capacity and new battleships will soon be leaving the yards in ever increasing numbers.
The Badlands are huge tracts of the galaxy which contain the worlds of the human empire which feel during the cataclysm, sacrosanct by treaty does not prevent scavengers and other maybe more ethical ships running deep into the badlands to search out technology and much of it ends up on the black market. However world is out of a huge find, one that could tip the balance of power for generations to come to whichever government recovers it. The Dauntless is sent into the Badlands as news comes through that the Union may have secured an intact starship generations ahead of any ship currently serving either state.
The increase in detail of the "universe" these novels inhabit was most welcome, we still know little about the empire but certainly the technology in this ship kinda indicates they were truly a force that could reshape a galaxy and explains why so little is found centuries later be it technology or population remnants. As always the series relies on the reader being invested in the main characters and if you are upto the third novel that like me you must be enjoying the adventures of Captain Barron and his crew. The addition of the Pegasus livened things up and we'll see where that leads the narrative but never fear there are lots of battles both major fleet engagements and more personal fighter clashes as well as marine combat. This novel is perhaps my favourite of the series so far but not quite the fifth star but never the less a highly entertaining story.

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Call to Arms by Jay Allan

Call to Arms by Jay Allan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The long expected invasion of the Confederation worlds by Union forces is upon them, a vicious and seemingly unstoppable surge by Union forces leaves the once powerful Confed fleet in retreat. Meanwhile Captain Tyler Barron and his battleship the Dauntless are rushed to the front before fully completing repairs, they arrive to find only the remnants of a major battle. As the Union punch ever deeper into Confederation space their support/supply system remains impressively strong but Dauntless is now well behind enemy lines and with unexpected support may strike at the heart of the invasion and turn the tide of the war.
Call To Arms once again provides a well paced and exciting glimpse into the clash between mighty battleships and fighters as the two opposing forces meet. The insights into the preparation the Union laid down prior to the invasion is impressive but their major strength ultimately is their greatest weakness and Jay makes sure once you invest in the characters the pay off is very satisfying.

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