Boneyards
by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Paperback: 301 pages
Publisher: Pyr (January 24, 2012)
ISBN-10: 1616145439
ISBN-13: 978-1616145439
Product description: (PYR)
The novellas in the Diving universe have won three Asimov’s Readers Choice Awards.
When multiple Hugo Award winner Kristine Kathryn Rusch decided to put her stamp on classic space opera, readers wanted more. Now Rusch’s popular character Boss returns in a whole new adventure, one that takes her far outside her comfort zone, to a sector of space she’s never seen before.
Searching for ancient technology to help her friends find answers to the mystery of their own past, Boss ventures into a place filled with evidence of an ancient space battle, one the Dignity Vessels lost.
Meanwhile, the Enterran Empire keeps accidentally killing its scientists in a quest for ancient stealth tech. Boss’s most difficult friend, Squishy, has had enough. She sneaks into the Empire and destroys its primary stealth tech research base. But an old lover thwarts her escape, and now Squishy needs Boss’s help.
Boss, who is a fugitive in the Empire. Boss, who knows how to make a Dignity Vessel work. Boss, who knows that Dignity Vessels house the very technology that the Empire is searching for.
Should Boss take a Dignity Vessel to rescue Squishy and risk losing everything to the Empire? Or should Boss continue on her mission for her other friends and let Squishy suffer her own fate?
Filled with battles old and new, scientific dilemmas, and questions about the ethics of friendship, Boneyards looks at the influence of our past on our present and the risks we all take when we meddle in other people’s lives.
Boneyards is space opera the way it was meant to be: exciting, fast moving, and filled with passion.
My thoughts:
I’m sure that I would have gotten a lot more out of “Boneyards” had I read the first two books. The novel shifts gears a little more than I liked with two interconnected stories and flashbacks. One story is about Boss and the other half of the tale is about a character named Squishy. Boss is basically one of your questing for profit stories and Squishy is your basic infiltration story.
I enjoyed the Boss character and I enjoyed much of her portion of the book. The Squishy portion simply had to many flasbacks and the bouncing storyline should have been handled much better.
For the most part, I liked the book. However, I would suggest that you read the other books in the series before tackling this one. I would recommend it for the scifi space opera fan.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Pyr. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Gnostalgia 