I rather liked this. A thriller set in space and on Earth, the NeoG are a cross between the Coastguard and a police force. The daughter of a wealthy but dysfunctional family joins the force rather than her family’s traditional service in the Navy; the family are famous for developing a life-extension treatment. The crew of a NeoG Interceptor stumble on a smuggling ring apparently smuggling countfeit life extension…

A bit rough round the edges; I was reading an eARC but the bones of the story were there and all hung together. Some of the scene transitions were a bit abrupt, and I found the plethora of nicknames a bit confusing.

Recommended.

My first DNF of the year: statistically, it was bound to happen sooner or later, but still the disappointment stings… The blurb for this book promised a space opera focused on an organization, the NeoG, labeled as the space equivalent of the Coast Guard, and on the crew of one particular ship, Zuma’s Ghost, also adding that “A routine mission to retrieve a missing ship has suddenly turned dangerous, and now their lives are on the line. Someone is targeting members of Zuma’s Ghost, a mysterious opponent willing to kill to safeguard a secret that could shake society to its core . . . a secret that could lead to their deaths and kill thousands more […]”.

Quite intriguing, indeed, and the start of the novel - despite some slight info-dump concerning the characters - introduced some captivating themes, like the promotion and subsequent transfer of a beloved second in command coinciding with the arrival of a new officer, whose past history and present uncertainties would add some spice to the interpersonal mechanics aboard the ship. Given these premises I expected a lively, adventurous story peppered with some interesting character evolution, but unfortunately things did not work that way at all.

From the very start the story seems focused solely on the annual Boarding Games that pit the various branches of Earth’s military against each other, with much space given to Zuma’s Ghost’s commander and crew lamenting their defeat in the previous edition of the Games, and their preparations for the upcoming session: up to the point where I stopped reading there were only a couple of instances in which the crew faced emergencies related to their actual job, and they were solved quickly, almost off-handedly, immediately going back to talk of the impending Games. From a quick online search I discovered that the more adventurous section of the story does come into play once the “Space Olympics” are over, but I could not find the strength to go through chapter after chapter of fights and simulated battles to reach what might have been the “meat” of the story.

To be entirely truthful, I have to admit I don’t care for team sports of any kind, so that might very well have colored my reaction to this story, but still I don’t understand the importance of the competition in the economy of the novel (at least as it’s presented in the blurb): a passing reference seems to indicate that the winning faction would get the greater portion of the government’s funds destined to military operations, and since NeoG did not gather any wins they are forced to go into space with sub-standard and/or old equipment. If that’s how things are in this future vision of humanity, it’s a ludicrous way indeed to manage a space-faring civilization…

Which brings me to the background, or rather scarcity of it: there are references to a Collapse that threatened to end civilization, but since it’s now four centuries in the past no more details are given about what it entailed, or how Earth overcame it; technology seems advanced enough - ships achieving light speed, instant communications spanning great distances with no time-lag, rejuvenating treatments keeping people young well beyond human standards, and so on - but it looks like an afterthought rather than an organic part of the whole. Then you are met with weird details like swords as onboard armament because “no one yet had the lock on a reliable handheld laser weapon”. Granted, once my inner Nasty Nitpicker is awakened, it tends to sink its teeth onto these trivial details and to never let go, but to me this speaks of poor planning, or editing, or both.

When all is said and done, A Pale Light in the Black looks like the kind of book I might have read - and probably enjoyed - a few decades ago, when I began reading SF: now that I have a good number of books under my proverbial belt, and that I have hopefully honed my tastes, books like this one feel totally unsatisfying. This is not the droid… pardon me … the novel I was looking for.

Moving on…. ( )

It took me a little while to warm up to A Pale Light in the Black, but much like Petty Officer Jenks once it had me by the throat it wasn't going to let up until it was good and ready.

If Becky Chambers leaves you hankering for more action in your casually inclusive, fundamentally good-hearted SF, KB Wagers and the NeoG have your back. I went from mildly interested to unable to put it down, and spent the second half sniffling as Wagers landed one emotional blow after another (in a good way) based on the architecture they'd put in place.

Undemanding fun, where the corporate conspiracy and military competition subplots ultimately play second fiddle to the best crew in the Near-Earth Orbital Guard confronting some of their issues as newbie officer Maxine Carmichael fights to find her place.

Full review ( )

Going into this novel all I was really looking for was a military procedural set in space and that's what I got: Mission accomplished. Beyond that, if you've enjoyed the "The Expanse," John Scalzi, and Becky Chambers, I can't see why you won't enjoy this book. Beyond that, if I was going to be critical, I might have liked a bit more world building, and the book feels (if anything) a little over-stuffed with plot. We'll see how the follow-on novels go. ( )

Lots of fun, not quite as novel or imaginative as Hail, but really very good, and an exciting start to a new series.

There are many intertwined threads, people of interest, themes and plots so it's quite hard to summarise. Max(ine) is a young officer, having ducked out from the security of a comfy billet in Navy admin, she's joined the Near Earth Orbital Guard's Interceptor crew, replacing a respected Lieutenant who's been promoted to his own captaincy. Jenks is the Petty Officer who's brother has just been promoted and she's going to have to cope without him looking out for her, and not sure that the new LT can fill his place. The captain Roca has her own doubts, having narrowly failed to win the coveted inter-Forces Games last year, she didn't need her experienced LT replacing, but it wouldn't be fair to him to hinder his career, the fresh-faced LT doesn't seem very confident, but comes well recommended and seems to have some skills when pushed. The team head out on their first missions rescuing ships in difficulty around Jupiter, and start encountering an unusual amount of incidents. Meanwhile the Games get closer and they still haven't bonded as tightly as they need to. And fo course they all have families, or lack of them, causing emotional ties and pulls in many directions.

It all comes together very well, the characters are great. I think KB manages to shoehorn in every possible romantic combination which is perhaps overkill, but a welcome change. The team are all massively over-trained for most of the thugs they meet, so their only real competition is the Games, but the violence is never a focus, just part of the (predictable) tension, and very well handled.

There are quite a few SF books out there about a new team-member joining a crew, it's a common trope, but this brings a new spark and is much more than just a few pranks and coping with tricky situations. A very well done blend of action and camaraderie, and trust when the chips are down.

One things that is missing in the acknowledgements is a shout out to the brave and bold crew of our Coast Guards who put their life on the line for us every day, whatever the weather, and on whom the NEOG are based. There's also one glaring continuity error where the team debate and decide to leave their helmets in an airlock, and in the next paragraph have them clanking by their sides. Wagers doesn't normally make these mistakes.

I've read all of Wagers novels so far, and enjoyed every one. I'm glad she's started on a new series and I look forward to further adventures of the NEGO.
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After re-read. Pretty much as above. The mystery is a bit contrived, but just about believable given the setting - just occasionally conspiracies might be real. The huge tangle of mixed relationships is still excessive, but it is refreshing, and always fun. The characters sizzle and the drama perfectly paced. Veyr much looking forward to the next one. ( )