Star Carrier: Deep Time: Book Six
Author: Ian Douglas
Publisher: Harper Voyage
Publishing Date: 2015
Pgs: 368 pages
Dewey: PBK F DOU
Disposition: Irving Public Library - South Campus - Irving, TX
=======================================
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
The clock is ticking in the struggle for galactic independence
Once rebels themselves facing off against the Earth Confederation, the United States of North America is now the dominant force in negotiations with the interstellar Sh'daar Collective. But just as the Marines root out the last violent dissenters, an alien ship of unknown origin suddenly flees Earth's orbit. Is it mere coincidence . . . or a terrifying omen?
President Alexander Koenig watches with great interest as USNA forces chase the runaways down. But upon first contact, it's not apparent where—or when—the crew is headed. For this bizarre species has somehow mastered the power to manipulate time itself. Now Koenig must decide whether he's dealing with angels of astonishing technological prowess . . . or the agents of humanity's destruction.
_________________________________________
Genre:
Science Fiction
Hard Science Fiction
Space Fleet
Marines
Militaria

Why this book:
Space battles. Fleet action. It’s the main draw in this series. And I want to know what happens next. The subplots are threatening my enjoyment though.
_________________________________________
The Feel:
The info dumps are overdone, the repetition wasn’t as pronounced this time around.

Favorite Character:
Admiral Gray.

Least Favorite Character:
Dahlquist and his co-conspirators.

Favorite Quote:
Koenig's speech in the ruins of Washington DC hits a great note. "And the old city had been buried in a lot of muck before more than the rising Potomac ever could have dumped in its streets. The men who'd run this city and this country had succumbed more than once to power hunger, to corruption, to idiot fads and fallacies, to the socialistic abrogation of basic rights, to greed, to deception, to outright theft by means both legal and otherwise. Presidents had been disgraced, impeached, and even murdered; congressmen had ignored or betrayed the rule of law, justices had reinterpreted the Constitution. It was a dark and muddy history as had ever swallowed this town."

It's a good political speech that again shows the politics of the author and which side of the divide he's on. As long as he soft-pedals this, I'm still reading cause this is a great series. But, I watch it with a jaundiced eye. I feel that with the flip of one word this describes modern America. All you have to do is flip socialistic abrogation of basic rights to fascistic abrogation of basic rights and it speaks to our post-January 6. 2021 America. But let's get back to the aliens at war with Earth trying to destroy or limit the technological advancement of the species.

Cover and Interior Art:
The alien designs are awesome in this series. Would love it if someone were doing art of some of them. The alien designs stand up to David Brin and his Uplift War dual trilogies.

Hmm Moments:
The classicism in the Navy is horrible, reminds of the Royal Navy, pre-WW1. You know they chaffed at anyone who wasn't an aristocrat who bootstrapped their way into a command position.

Calling the Ball:
Humans will unite the Shdaar factions into a fleet that will attempt to stand off or defeat the Type IIIs, if they are the Rosette Aliens or not, and drive them off.

Meh / PFFT Moments:
Considering Gray's past, he's stupid not to suspect that Dahlquist is going to pull something shady.

The Sigh:
Sigh. How much of a stop down on alien space fleet action is the lewd sex video of the Admiral gonna be. Really? This might be a bridge too far. This colored my enjoyment of the entire second half of the novel.

A Path I Can’t Follow:
The interrupter subplot threatened to be a bridge too far for me. I’m glad it was resolved without blowing up bigger in the overall plot of the story.

The Unexpected:
Thank God, the interrupter subplot resolved itself before the end. I was afraid that that was going to carry forward into the next book of the series.
_________________________________________
Conclusions I’ve Drawn:
The book advances the overall story. The unknown Rosette Aliens are still inscrutable. But they may be, probably are the Type IIIs that are coming to destroy the Milky Way in the future. Plants the seeds of Earthlings being the glue that draws the Shdaar into a cohesive force to oppose the Galactic Dyson Sphere future of the Milky Way.

Things I’d Like to See:
Really hoping that we don’t get to a point where the StarGods come riding to the rescue, deus ex machina-style.

Author Assessment:
I’m still in.
======================================= ( )

Star Carrier Book 6 Deep Time Deep time is the concept of geologic time. The Star Carrier series has always worked around the concepts of space and time, and this book continues that theme in this story. Douglas opens the story in the middle of the closing moments of war between the United States of North America and the European Confederation. In the last minutes of the conflict a starship of unknown origin flees Europe and heads for deep space where it can transfer to faster than light drive. President Koenig orders that the ship be captured at all costs. To do this he orders recently promoted Admiral “Sandy Gray to lead the effort. Sandy is prim and a mongie and therefore resented by his fellow officers for his rapid advancement through the ranks. This resentment affects how those under his command respond to his orders and complicates the capture of the alien ship and will affect the larger mission. The Glothr a client species of the Sh’daar and a race that uses the electromagnetic spectrum to see and communicate. The Glothr are more technologically advanced than the humans and have technology that gives them ability to project a field that stops time for anything that its aimed at. Glothr it turns out are from 12 million years in the future. Earth sends a fleet to the Glothr’s home world to negotiate a peace treaty with them and possibly the Sh’daar. This story tells the tale of the events that flow from that decision. Douglas uses the story to explore implications of Deep Time on the various species and to explore relationships both religious and social among the crew, the Artificial Intelligences and alien races. The book is heavy on space battles yet does not sacrifice character development. It also left me wanting more. ( )