My original The Lost Starship audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.

Captain Maddox is just a little faster, stronger and more perceptive than those around him. So when the “New Men” attack and decimate a military convoy, he questions if he might be somehow related. These so-called “New Men” are human beings that have been genetically enhanced to better than old humans in every way. No one is sure what they want, but their superiority clearly threatens the survival of the human race.

There is an old space rumor of an ancient alien star ship with superior technology that might be humanity’s only hope. Captain Maddox and a ragtag group of scientists and soldiers fight their way across the void to find the star ship and more importantly, get it back home in time.

There is a classic tone of the novel, reminiscent of the 1940s and 50s. The larger than life Captain Maddox leads the barely held-together group of criminals and misfits into certain death only to find the only possible escape at the last possible second. The characters make the story; they are quirky, alcoholic, angry, dangerous, brilliant and unpredictable. You don’t know if they are going to save the galaxy or tear each other apart. It’s a fun ride that is well worth the listen.

The story is read by David Stifel. He has a unique character to his voice, dramatic and human; sometimes stumbling to pronounce a word correctly. Perhaps not as polished as many performers these days, his reading is enjoyable none-the-less. It is such a personal thing, but this listener found his voice enjoyable because of the flaws.

Lost Star Ship is the first in a series of unknown length. The story wraps up nicely, but leaves the door wide open for its sequel. This quirky and strange space adventure is a thoroughly entertaining ride. You’ll want to find out what happens to Captain Maddox and his crew of misfits in the next installment.

Audiobook provided for review by the narrator. ( )

This was a poor choice for a book to read. About half way through I wanted to know the publication date, and was astonished that it was written recently. I would have put money on that it was published in the 1950's..... The writing, the dialog, the overall stereotyping and cliches were right out of a pulp fiction novel. I ended up not finishing the book about 3/4s of the through because I it was actually making me upset on how sexist and droll the main character was. I would not recommend this book ( )

Must have been written by a schoolkid. ( )

This is a good space opera adventure read. I liked that the level of threat and danger is continuous from the beginning of the story through to the end.

The parts I liked the best were the boarding of the alien starship and the space battles. The protagonists are faced with the daunting task of seizing control of an alien spacecraft that was built by an unknown civilization thousands of years ago. How they attempt to accomplish that is unique in my reading experience. I would never have thought of trying that. This book is only minimally military fiction. The space battles are few and far between, but I liked how they are handled. The opposing sides are alien cultures to each other and employ different weapons and tactics. It is refreshing to see battle postulated between mismatched military cultures. Military fiction is overflowing with fictional alien cultures that are armed exactly the same on each side. I liked the approach that each side had different strengths and weaknesses when they meet in battle.

The part I found the hardest was the character exposition. For me, the dialogue between the characters dragged. I found positive and negative in the character relations. It is a good thing that the protagonists are not a smoothly working team. Again science fiction books are filled with the heroes being of one mind and never disagreeing. In this book, the protagonists disagree and argue about what to do at each stage of the mission. I found that realistic and somewhat refreshing, while also getting a little tired of the bickering.

The leader seemed too much of a martinet during the first part of the book. He is always sure of what to do next, and orders his team to shut up and obey him. This felt like an unlikely style of leadership because they were such a small group in a tiny little scout craft. Then toward the end he changes, but starts trying to sleep with his underlings. Perhaps realistic for a man, but it irritated me.

I enjoyed this read and would read a sequel. ( )