Published: June 23, 2012
Words: 91,982 (approximate)
Language: English
ISBN: 9781938179075

Short description

Self-made security professional Rafe McTavish agrees to investigate his brother-in-law's inexplicable purchase of a dilapidated deep-space mining station. When the miners turn violent, Rafe's only ally is Kama Bhatia, computer hacker and spy, at the station on a mission of her own. Now they must put aside their mutual attraction and distrust to unravel fraud, blackmail, and murder.

Extended description

Rafe McTavish, charming self-made businessman, owns the most successful private security firm in the galaxy. Estranged from his family since his wife's bloody suicide fourteen years earlier, he's nevertheless honor-bound to find out why his brother-in-law, CEO of the mega-corporation EcoMech, has placed his reputation and the company's future in jeopardy by purchasing a dilapidated deep-space mining station.

Kama Bhatia, outlaw computer hacker and corporate spy, works for socialistic non-profit corporation Oasis, in opposition to the ruthless mega-corporations that control society. She has a mission of her own at the mining station: retrieve a secret document accidentally leaked to the station manager—before he can sell it to Oasis' rivals. If she fails, Oasis loses its best hope to rescue the masses from under the iron boot of the mega-corporations.

But at the station, the crooked manager is missing, and the locals are far from friendly. Rafe takes a savage beating from miners w.. (Read more) Rafe McTavish, charming self-made businessman, owns the most successful private security firm in the galaxy. Estranged from his family since his wife's bloody suicide fourteen years earlier, he's nevertheless honor-bound to find out why his brother-in-law, CEO of the mega-corporation EcoMech, has placed his reputation and the company's future in jeopardy by purchasing a dilapidated deep-space mining station.

Kama Bhatia, outlaw computer hacker and corporate spy, works for socialistic non-profit corporation Oasis, in opposition to the ruthless mega-corporations that control society. She has a mission of her own at the mining station: retrieve a secret document accidentally leaked to the station manager—before he can sell it to Oasis' rivals. If she fails, Oasis loses its best hope to rescue the masses from under the iron boot of the mega-corporations.

But at the station, the crooked manager is missing, and the locals are far from friendly. Rafe takes a savage beating from miners who blame him and his corporate employers for fraud perpetrated against them. His safety relies on Kama, an ally no fonder of corporate executives than he is of criminals. With their own lives and the welfare of millions at stake, can they put aside their mutual attraction and distrust to unravel fraud, blackmail, and murder before the tide of violence overtakes them?
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Tags

thriller, murder, action, science fiction, futuristic, dystopian, jd robb, romantic elements adventure

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Reviews

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Review by: Ellen Ell on July 22, 2012 :
I loved this book; I devoured it in just a few days because I couldn't be persuaded to put it down!
The writing style is lean and taut, which matched the tenseness of this sci-fi thriller perfectly. The pace was quick and always had me waiting eagerly for the next disaster. It slightly reminded me of noir-crime, because it had some of those lovely turns of phrase ("triaging a holocaust"; "felt like a violin string, dug out of something's guts and stretched far too tight").
The characters were hard-boiled and tough, even though it was obvious that most of them had a heart of gold underneath.
But it also had moments of humour and tenderness, which I thought gave the book a well-rounded and realistic tone.
I really liked the characters. Rafe McTavish reminded me of a Bruce Wayne billionaire playboy type, only withot the dressing up in a mask and tights to solve crime. As 3D and well-written as the main characters were, I was pleased to see that all the minor characters received the same treatment. My favourites amongst the minor characters were Janice Fisher and Greg. They always made me smile when they were around. I also liked how a lot of characters had a secret that they were trying to hide. It made working out the "whodunnit" of the crime that much more difficult and interesting.
Not that I was able to figure out the "whodunnit" before it was revealed, despite trying. Although, to be honest, I prefer just sitting back and enjoying for the ride in crime thrillers, watching the characters do all the thinking! I was surprised by the revelation, but it also made perfect sense.
The ending was the perfect end to the book, satisfactory, but still leaving me hungry for more. I can't wait for the next book in the series.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

Review by: Ellen Ell on July 22, 2012 :
I loved this book; I devoured it in just a few days because I couldn't be persuaded to put it down!
The writing style is lean and taut, which matched the tenseness of this sci-fi thriller perfectly. The pace was quick and always had me waiting eagerly for the next disaster. It slightly reminded me of noir-crime, because it had some of those lovely turns of phrase ("triaging a holocaust"; "felt like a violin string, dug out of something's guts and stretched far too tight").
The characters were hard-boiled and tough, even though it was obvious that most of them had a heart of gold underneath.
But it also had moments of humour and tenderness, which I thought gave the book a well-rounded and realistic tone.
I really liked the characters. Rafe McTavish reminded me of a Bruce Wayne billionaire playboy type, only withot the dressing up in a mask and tights to solve crime. As 3D and well-written as the main characters were, I was pleased to see that all the minor characters received the same treatment. My favourites amongst the minor characters were Janice Fisher and Greg. They always made me smile when they were around. I also liked how a lot of characters had a secret that they were trying to hide. It made working out the "whodunnit" of the crime that much more difficult and interesting.
Not that I was able to figure out the "whodunnit" before it was revealed, despite trying. Although, to be honest, I prefer just sitting back and enjoying for the ride in crime thrillers, watching the characters do all the thinking! I was surprised by the revelation, but it also made perfect sense.
The ending was the perfect end to the book, satisfactory, but still leaving me hungry for more. I can't wait for the next book in the series.
(reviewed within a week of purchase)

Review by: Deepdown on June 25, 2012 :
I enjoy books that don't stick religiously to one genre, and this one sounded like it had a bit of everything. And indeed it does--some sci-fi, some mystery, some thriller, some romance, and a pair of interesting characters who reminded me a lot of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

It's mostly mystery, though--two mismatched heroes thrown together by chance, stuck on a dangerous space station trying to solve the same crime for different reasons, not knowing whether they can trust each other but being forced to try. The mystery's deftly handed, and there are some exciting action sequences too.

I would have preferred a bit more sci-fi--the action mostly takes place on a single space station, and I'd have preferred to see a bit more of the author's futuristic world, because there are some interesting hints and ideas dropped about it without you ever really seeing it first-hand. However, judging from the ending (which I won't spoil for you), I get the idea that there's a lot more of the world to be revealed in the sequel, so maybe the author's just biding her time.

The best part of the book is definitely the two heroes, though. Rafe and Kama are really interesting characters with a lot of surprising skeletons in their closets and I really enjoyed seeing them battle against their demons throughout the book. It was an enjoyable read and the sort of story that could make a really interesting movie.
(reviewed the day of purchase)

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