#Monday Review - The Blockade by Jean Johnson #Science Fiction @AceRocBooks

Series: First Salik War # 3
Format: E-Galley, 416 pages
Release Date: November 29th 2016
Publisher: ACE
Source: NetGalley
Genre: Science Fiction

The First Salik War is underway, and the Alliance is losing—their newest allies must find a way to win, or everyone will be slaughtered.  Though committed to helping their V’Dan cousins, the Terrans resent how their allies treat them. The V’Dan in turn feel the Terrans are too unseasoned to act independently. And the other nations fear that ending the Salik War means starting a Human Civil War.   Even as Imperial Prince Li’eth and Ambassador Jackie MacKenzie struggle to get their peoples to cooperate, they still face an ethical dilemma: How do you stop a ruthless, advanced nation from attacking again and again without slaughtering them in turn?

The Blockade is the third and final installment in author Jean Johnson's First Salik War trilogy. If you are new to the series, let me summarize where we stand. The first thing you need to know is that this series takes place 200 years before the authors Theirs Not To Reason Why series. If you've read that series, you can immediately jump into this series since it's the beginning of how things will eventually shape up in Theirs No to Reason Why. 

Jacaranda (Jackie) MacKenzie is one of two main characters along with Li'Eth. Jackie is a very powerful psychic who served with honesty, and integrity over her military and political career. In Terrans, Jackie was called back to military service by the United Planets because precogs saw her meeting new races of aliens. She was given bumps in rank, and took up the mantle of Ambassador of the Terran United Planets. As with Star Trek, United Planets takes seriously their role in First Contact with new aliens. Which leads to Jackie and her crew meeting the vile Salik who love to eat people alive, and a human race called the V'Dan lead by Crown Prince Li'eth Ma'an-uq'en who they rescue and take back to earth. 

In book # 2, The V'Dan, huge issues flared up between the humans and the V'Dan over the fact that humans have given up completely identity politics to identity a person. The V'Dan believe humans are children because they don't have the same markings, which set Jackie off on repairing damage that could have led to catastrophe. As the end of the book, the hated Salik attacked the V'Dan home world, and casualties

rose quickly. Jackie and her Gestalt partner Li'eth saved the day. (Gestalt means rare quantum entanglement of psychic minds.) But, that doesn't stop his sister Princess Vi'alla from being ungrateful and churlish to the point where Jackie makes a powerful decision to shut down the Embassy and have no further contact with the V'Dan or Alliance. As if that weren't bad enough, Li'Eth finds himself sent away from Jackie which is not a good thing.

The Blockade picks up right where The V'Dan left off. The story is filled with politics, and a plethora of details that perhaps could have been cut back a bit. It is a book that weaves back and forth between Jackie and Li'Eth as they both try to cobble up an alliance with, yes, the Alliance of different alien species in order to fight off the Salik. Is there action? Is there adventure? Is there romance? Yes to all three. Does the author explain how she gets from this series to the Theirs No to Reason Why? Absolutely. I have to say that I respect the V'Dan Empress, aka Li'Eth's mother. She sees a good thing by helping the Motherworld humans, and in return, see's a solid investment in having humans colonize various planets and bringing more commerce to their world.

She also slowly understands how important the Gestalt link between Jackie and her son really is, and that if they are separated, they could both die. She is really the third most important character in this book next to Jackie & Li'Eth when all is said and done. This story is filled with secondary characters that either play important roles, or are just there to make the story more militaristic in nature. After all, you can't fight a war without generals, admirals, soldiers, sailors, and marines on the front lines. I loved how strong Jackie was throughout this entire series, and I loved her decision at the end of the book. I dare say that her choice took a whole lot of courage. 

Would I read Theirs No to Reason Why after reading this trilogy? Yes I would and the reason is simple. The Alliance plus Earth made a huge choice at the end of this book in regards to the Salik. I would like to know what happens after 200 years of a Blockade, and the characters that are expected to pick up the pieces left a very long time ago by Jackie, Li'Eth, and their allies.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

#Wednesday Review - The V'Dan by Jean Johnson (Science Fiction)

Series: First Salik War # 2
Format: Paperback, 414 pages
Release Date: December 29, 2015
Publisher: Penguin (ACE)
Source: Publisher
Genre: Science Fiction

The V'Dan always believed they were the chosen race, destined to make a mark on the galaxy. For the last few centuries, they had interacted peacefully with other sentient species—save for the Salik. Cold, amphibious, and vicious, the Salik were set on one goal: to conquer every race within their grasp.

Now that the Salik’s ruthless war has begun, the fate of the galaxy is in the hands of two strange companions: Li’eth, a prince under siege—and his rescuer, Jacaranda Mackenzie. A beautiful ambassador from the motherworld, Jackie possesses more than the holy powers of a goddess. She brings a secret weapon—a strange, wondrous, and dangerous new technology that could be Li’eth and Jackie’s last and only hope to save their people from extinction.

The V'Dan is the second installment in Jean Johnson's First Salik War series. This series actually takes place 200 years before the Theirs Not to Reason Why series. In order to understand the intricacies and political shenanigans that take place in this story, you must read the first book called The Terrans. You have to understand that like all middle books, if you miss the first story, you miss the characters who were previously introduced, the reason why you should care about them, and the setting that Johnson has created.

If you have read Theirs Not to Reason Why series, then you are already familiar with her style of writing, and therefore you will smoothly transition to this series. This series actually focuses on two main characters; Jacaranda MacKenzie, Ambassador of the Terran United Planets, and V’Dan Crown Prince Li’eth. Since the two are connected on a cellular level now, you can't really talk about one, without mentioning the other. One of the main bones of contention in this series is the differences between the V'Dan and the Terrans. 

A large portion of The V'Dan see the Terrans as children because they don't have the jungen marks that indicate if a person is an adult or not. This bone of contention will remain an item for those who have small minds. They will never concede the idea of equality no matter how many times you smack them in the head. Sad to say, unlike The Terrans, The V'Dan is much more of political novel than action packed. Most of the story takes place either on a space station, or within the halls of Jackie's new Embassy on the planet.

I will say that I respect the hell out of Jackie as a character. I am impressed that Johnson hasn't in no way changed the way she wants her character to behave, or how much she shoots straight from the hip when someone gets on her bad side. I dare say that I would LOVE to have a person like Jackie as President of THIS country. Jackie stands up for her people. She never dismisses them, ignores them, demeans, them, or tries to label them as her enemies just because they have a difference of opinion from hers. She goes up against powerful people in order to get a fair shake and a cessation of racist treatment based on silly marks. 

After the Salik attack the home world of the V-Dan, things certain do chance. New leaders, new annoyances, and new challenges ahead. Jackie makes one hell of a statement in the final act of this book. One that will obviously have long term complications for the Terrans, the V-Dan, and the Alliance who need the technology the Terrans are offering. Hoping book # 3 is much more action packed than this one was.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

#Review - The Terrans by Jean Johnson (Science Fiction)

Series: First Salik War # 1
Format: E-Galley, 464 pages
Release Date: July 28, 20156
Publisher: ACE
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Genre: Science Fiction

Jean Johnson's first novel in an explosive new science fiction trilogy set in the world of the national bestselling Theirs Not to Reason Why series—set two-hundred years earlier, at the dawn of the First Salik War…

Born into a political family and gifted with psychic abilities, Jacaranda MacKenzie has served as a border-watcher and even spent time as a representative on the United Planets Council. Now she just wants to spend her days in peace and quiet as a translator—but the universe has other plans…

Humans have long known that they would encounter more alien species, and while those with precognitive abilities agree a terrible war is coming, they do not agree on who will save humanity—a psychic soldier or a politician.

But Jackie is both.

After she is pressured into rejoining the Space Force to forestall the impending calamity, Jackie makes an unsettling discovery. Their new enemy, the Salik, seem to be rather familiar with fighting Humans—as if their war against humanity had already begun…

The Terrans, by Jean Johnson, is the first installment in the First Salik War Trilogy. This series apparently takes place 200 years before the authors Theirs Not To Reason Why series which I haven't read. According to the publisher, it is not necessary to read the previous series before jumping into this one. The Terrans features Jacaranda (Jackie) MacKenzie who is recalled to active duty with a promotion and a large role in what happens to the United Planets for which she serves. Jackie becomes part of a new team that is to be Earth's face to new alien races. If you've watched any of the Star Trek movies, or the TV show, you know that First Contact is when Earthlings meet with a brand new never before known species and offers up knowledge, an alliance, and other things necessary to maintain a good relationship between the species. 

Often times, Terrans travel light years at a heart beat, and come across nothing of importance. Other times, there is contact. This happens when Jackie's team on the Aloha 9 encounters a hostile race of aliens known as the Salik, and ends up rescuing humans called the V'Dan from being eaten alive by the Salik. Jackie is a psychic with powerful abilities which makes her the idea interpreter and face of the Terrans. So powerful in fact, that visions of her meeting new alien races cause the powers that be to name her Ambassador at large. Jackie prides herself in being honorable, ethical, direct and not easily swayed by special interests. Something US Politicians of both parties should take note of and follow. She takes a whole lot of grief from one of her crew members but refuses to back down at any time. 

Jackie, and her family are an interesting collection of individuals. Johnson uses a definite Polynesian influence on this story, and the ships that are sent out to explore the universe are called the Aloha. In fact, this story, when not in outer space, is set in Hawaii where the V'Dan get their first real look at what life has in store on Earth. The author's use of the Polynesian language takes a bit to get used to, but otherwise, the story kept me entertained. There is a bit of a presumed romance, as it were. Her love interest, Captain Li'eth Ma'an-uq'en is a V'Dan who looks human and has strange markings that the Terrans don't have. Li'eth explains that humans without markings would be considered children on their home planet. Guess we'll have to wait for the second book to see how that is played out. One could say that Johnson isn't afraid to use a bit of socio-political commentary to get her point across, and isn't afraid to use Jackie in order to try to remind folks that even severe differences between people can be resolved if you are willing to listen.

The Terrans is a book filled with mind boggling science, political shuffling and maneuvering, intensive at times information dump, and a whole bunch of characters getting to know the other while in quarantine. Downside? Not as action intensive as I would have hoped for. The first encounter with the Salik is the best example of an action packed scene that is well done, and shows how powerful Jackie can really be. Otherwise, The Terrans is best explained as being a conversational getting to know you piece between the Terrans and the V'Dan who honestly thought they were the only humans in the known galaxy.

So, if you love a bit of science fiction in your daily diet, then yes, I do recommend that you pick up the Terrans and read it. 

**I received this book for free from (Publisher) via (NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.**

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo