2018 SF, continuation of the Poor Man's Fight series. Tanner Malone
left the Navy with a reputation as a bloody-handed butcher, and went
to university to study planetary surveying. The reputation won't leave
him behind, and neither will the corporate assassins, so he joins a
xenoarchaeological expedition…
And that's more like it. After the frankly disappointing No
Medals For Secrets, this is Elliott Kay back on form. Yes, all right,
Tanner does seem to get involved in every tricky situation… but a
lot of that is specifically because of his reputation, because
everyone knows that trouble seems to follow him about – indeed,
because when his name pops up people start to get edgy and make
mistakes. If you're going to have a hero who keeps getting involved in
stuff, this is the way to do it – have people in the universe notice
it, and react accordingly.
Another very positive point is the continuing consideration of
Tanner's PTSD. Most military series would brush this off, or perhaps
make it a minor problem to be overcome with manliness, but Tanner
still has occasional nightmares, he's still going through therapy, and
while it's not made explicit I can't help thinking his tendency to
snark at people who could have him casually killed may well be a
manifestation of this too.
But anyway. Off he goes on the expedition. To a corporate world with
indentured labourers, and an insurrection that's a bit more advanced
than the liability waiver suggested, and a mercenary force that's
struggling to put them down for all the usual reasons. And even those
aren't the real threat, which is something that'll end up mobilising
both Union and Archangel space forces… which sees the welcome return
of several other characters from earlier books.
"That's correct," she said. "We're not in business as mercenaries,
but if the job turns rough, we can handle it. We've all been through
rough before."
"Ah!" Elise gasped. "Moelleux au Chocolat!" She looked to Lynette
with wide, happy eyes and a giddy smile. "Save room for dessert."
"Hard-bitten combat veterans," said Lynette. "Every one of us."
There's plenty of action, but there's also discussion of why the
action is happening: this isn't just a grunt's-eye view with lots of
shooting, it's got the emotional weight that comes with understanding
the background and the decisions that have put these people into this
fight in this place.
This is the latest book to have come out, and Kay has since been
working on his other series; but I'm glad to see that he can
successfully move beyond the original story, and I look forward to
more.
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