Book Review: Shadow Ops: Control Point by Myke Cole

Shadow Ops: Control Point by Myke Cole (Ace)

Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of Shadow Ops

Publication Date: January 31, 2012

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Mogsy's Rating: 4 of 5 stars


Shadow Ops: Control Point is military science fiction, but definitely not the kind I had been expecting. And honestly, if I'd known earlier just what kind of excitement I was going to be in for, I probably wouldn't have let this one hang out so long on my to-read list.

Not long ago though, I was in a bit of a reading funk and was in dire need of a book to pick me up, and Control Point sure did the trick. The book follows protagonist Oscar Britton, an Army officer who suddenly manifests a power which allows him to summon portals between and within worlds. In a time when people with such magical abilities are strictly regulated and under surveillance, those who run from the government are immediately labeled renegades and hunted down. Panicked and overwhelmed, Oscar chooses to flee but in time realizes there is a lot more to this world of magic than he's ever known.

The first chapter was like a pure shot of adrenaline, laying out everything I needed to know about this book and what I saw pleased me. It pleased me greatly. Sorcery and spec-ops tactics? Soldiers with superhero-like powers and codenames? This is a marriage of science fiction and fantasy made in heaven, where magic and futuristic technology co-exist in harmony with the unadulterated action of a military sci-fi novel, from an author who obviously knows what he's writing about. 

The cover? Totally does not do this book justice. I wouldn't had a clue what was waiting for me within these pages if I hadn't dug deeper. Even the description belies the true nature of the world in this novel, which is unlike any setting I've ever encountered. An entire civilization has been altered, the existing social structure upended because of people waking up with magical talents, and Myke Cole does a great job showing this in is storytelling. A whole other realm also exists on another plane, home to a race of goblin-like creatures who are in constant war with the military base there. The magic system is also fleshed out and presented well.

I was also surprised to see that the story is not just nonstop action. Between the hectic battles and covert military operations, there is a real attempt at character building and exploration of the relationships between the main protagonist and the others around him. Britton is a much deeper character than I'd expected, a thoughtful man who struggles with his own feelings a lot, constantly asking questions and evaluating his situation. 

Like most other reviewers, I've also noted Britton's indecision and his frequent switching of sides. To tell the truth, I didn't find it as extreme as some make it out to be, though my issue with this has less to do with his wishy-washiness and more to do with the fact that his inability to make up his mind often seems like a tactic to drive the story forward. It's obvious from his constant self-analyzing that Britton is a smart, introspective person, and yet on several occasions he will do things without thinking, and always much chaos and loss of life would be a direct result of his actions. He would be sick with guilt afterwards, but it's hard to feel for him after the first time it happens, especially when he doesn't learn from his mistakes. It's a very small gripe though, considering the pile of positives that more than made up for it.

This book offered me a side of the genre that I haven't seen much of before, and as such the author has my attention. I'm looking forward to see how the rest of this series will unfold; something tells me the next book will be just as much fun and full of surprises.

Book Review: 23 Years on Fire by Joel Shepherd

23 Years on Fire by Joel Shepherd

Genre: Science Fiction

Series: Book 4 of Cassandra Kresnov

Publisher: Pyr

Date of Publication: September 10, 2013

Author Information: Website | Twitter


23 Years On Fire was a bit of a pleasant surprise. Not really knowing what to expect when the book arrived from the publisher for review, I didn't exactly plan on reading this right away, seeing as it is described as the fourth Cassandra Kresnov novel and I generally prefer not to start reading in the middle of a series if I can help it.

However, my curiosity became too hard to ignore. Plus, the sleek, elegant cover image was part of the attraction, appearing to show an armored female black ops-type soldier in the midst of performing a military free fall jump. I flipped it open to read the first line, with the intention of just checking out the first few pages...only to get pulled in by the explosive opening scene of a covert assault on an enemy base. I ended up finishing the whole book in a matter of days.

As it turned out, not having read the first three books that came before did not hinder me too much, and I was able to follow this one just fine. It can definitely be read by itself, and the main character Cassandra "Sandy" Kresnov's backstory is easy enough to unravel just based on what unfolds in this book alone. An artificial person or an android called a "GI", Sandy was created by the League but defected to the Federation to join their security forces on the world of Callay.

That decision had a lot to do with the one thing Sandy would not stand for, which is the mistreatment of her fellow GIs. Just because they are synthetic doesn't mean that they do not possess humanity, and when it is brought to light that New Torah is involved in ruthless experimentation with artificial soldiers, Sandy leads a mission there to investigate. What she finds on New Torah, however, is a lot more than she bargained for.

Before this, I never would have thought military sci-fi would be my kind of thing (actually, I hadn't even read enough of it to determine whether it's my "thing" or not) but this turned out to be highly entertaining. It rather reads like a summer Hollywood sci-fi flick, and as such I thought the sex was a little overplayed and the book is heavily indulgent on the action, gun fighting and explosions, but it is a high-tech in-your-face roller coaster ride as it should be.

Sandy herself is somewhat of an enigma, even though I think she's a great character. She's certainly a different and unique kind of protagonist, being a synthetic human. Because she is a more advanced designation, this also gives her higher intellect, thus leading to her ability to have a wider range of emotions, to question her circumstances and form her own moral code.

As a result, she has a developed personality but also a childlike attitude towards certain topics, sometimes caring too much about something and at other times caring too little, and often her approach is very direct. I think Joel Shepherd did an incredible job giving Sandy an identity that stands out and at the same time making it clear that she is hardwired to be a certain way. I still don't know what to make of her yet, but then again I didn't have the benefit of getting to know her from the beginning of the series.

Ultimately, I went into this book knowing very little about it, but came out glad for the experience. Furthermore, I enjoyed this even though it has a bit of a cyberpunk feel to it, which was surprising but also a credit to the author, given how that has been a subgenre I've had little luck with in the past. A lot of the ideas I encountered were very interesting, and the book proved tough to put down.

Note: I received a review copy of this book compliments of the publisher, in exchange for my honest opinions. My thanks to Pyr Books!

3.5 of 5 stars

"A pleasant surprise which proved

tough to put down"