A sci-fi relic, dystopian and morally shocking in its day but overtaken by events and now merely curious.

Resnick maintains the quality of the series with this third installment. Adding a few new memorable characters (particularly the Platinum Duke), introducing a cool new setting (Singapore Station) and once again changing the nature of the hero's mission (as the titles imply: progressing from Mutineer to Pirate to Mercenary), Resnick has once again written 300 pages that feel like 30, leaving you wanting more RIGHT NOW. The only question that remains is how long he can keep it up? (Cheating tells us at least twice more, since books 4 and 5 are already published.)

Read aloud to the family in the car. It is an excellent story without being an excellent novel. The storyline digressions and the major characters introduced in the final three chapters are poor from a storytelling standpoint but believable in the context within which Tolkien wrote - that of a history.

An uneven, but entertaining look at all of the elements in the periodic table - how we found them and anecdotes about their use.

A collection of detailed illustrations showing New York City in the mid 1920's. Sarg packs his pictures with more detail than any one observer could take in in a single sitting, practically necessitating a second or third examination of his work.

Resnick bites off more than he can chew. Like an intimate off-Broadway play, the plots and characters, while effective in a small setting, cannot be effectively scaled up. When he attempts to transfer Wilson Cole's personal story of moral rebellion to a grander galactic stage it falls flat.

Whether you blame the odd digression into the definition and justification of torture, or the lack of any effectively developed new characters (i.e. Val in Pirate, the Duke in Mercenary, the Octopus in Rebel) or the inexplicable and indefensible Deus Ex Machina that hijacks the final act of the story, the cause is secondary to the effect; in the end Starship:Flagship is a disappointing conclusion to an enjoyable series. 

Quaint corn-pone humor from a simpler time. Comparable as an American (and apolitical) Good Soldier Svejk.

** spoiler alert ** There were at least half a dozen (maybe as many as 15) plots elements that could have been spun into an entire book here;squeezing them all int one short novel resulted in a confusing, twitchy and unpredictable reading experience that was not nearly as enjoyable as his previous three novels.

SPOILERS

For those who are interested, major plot elements include (but are certainly not limited to)

1) Sunken Treasure of Cortez
2) The modern incarnation of the Spanish Inquisition
3) The last, secret submarine in the Cuban Navy
4) Evil Vatican bankers
5) a Megalomaniac Mexican drug Lord
6) The Blackmailing son of a Nazi spy
7) A shadowy group that spies on the aforementioned Evil Vatican Bankers
8) An evil/incompetent father/son due operating an unethical international drug conglomerate
9) Nuclear bombs lost during the Cuban Missile crisis
10) Mutated flora and fauna attributed to #9
11) Chinese Special Forces working with the Captain of #3 and after #9
12) A Shadowy Assassin for hire
13) A legendary lost ship in the California desert

A swift and unpredictable thriller in the tradition of Clive Cussler.

A nice collection of religious-themed stories.

Another well paced thriller.

A stand-alone novel that is the equal of an entry in either of his series.

A disappointing end to the series. Events of the previous novels are either convoluted, contradicted or conveniently ignored; the central 'deus ex machina' that has been a feature of the novels is shunted aside for over 100 pages and is made into a coda rather than a conclusion; and the concepts of Middle Eastern politics are shockingly naive. The best part of the book is the delightfully prescient description of the folly of bio-fuel - its inefficiency and its threat to food supplies both direct and indirect.

A stilted translation where a slavish devotion to accuracy pulls the reader away from the story with obscure and tone-deaf terms.

For a series book that hasn't had a new volume in two years, I would have liked a few paragraphs reminding us of the minor characters relationships - not having it left me puzzling for who they were rather than paying attention to the story itself.

Anti-Christian screed disguised as entertainment. To be avoided at all costs.

A 1950's novel with (surprisingly) More mate-swapping than a daytime soap opera.

It's rare I find myself agreeing with the New york Times, Boston Globe and Chicago Tribune, but their descriptions of Jonathan Franzen as a "pompous prick, an "ego-blinded snob", and a "spoiled,whiny little brat" are spot on.

While the language is just as complex and florid as in his novels, these essays reveal far to much about the man behind the typewriter, and none of it is flattering. 

Another thriller consistent with his style - wild leaps of logic, improbable coincidences, and a complete lack of character development or scenic transitions.

A coming of age tale in Roman Britain that looks at the concept of honor and responsibility in a more brutal time.