I enjoy 1st person space adventures and this was fun weekend vacation read. The writing style reminded me a bit of Asimov. Perfect for getting away from the news right now and just enjoying life. Thanks!

This is a fairly standard space opera.
Although the characters are entertaining the story line is nothing that hasn't been written previously.
It was good enough to keep me engaged for a couple of days, just seemed to be missing something.

I couldn't get into this book I tried twice I just found it's boring. I got this book from Netgallery in exchange for a honest.

This was unfortunately a DNF (~35%) for me. Most of it is due to personal taste - I just didn't really care for the writing style, and I had a hard time getting into main character and his romantic subplot. Moreover, the story felt rather shallow.

Strong sci fi and world building. Not only that I enjoyed the subplot. I adored Tajen’s relationship with his niece and Liam.

If you love Star Trek, you’ll love this.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2973303003

This is the first book in the series but can be read as a standalone - the story arc completes but leaves room for future books in this realm .
The worldbuilding and memorable characters with lots of witty banter makes for an enjoyable read .

Humans rescued from their derelict spaceship have been absorbed into Zhen empire , albeit reluctantly by many Zhen . One such human , Tajen Hunt , rose high but fell just as low after a defeat in which millions died .
But after discovering that his estranged brother , Daav , has been killed by agents of the Empire he decides to take on his brother's quest to find Earth .
With his motley crew what they discover will shatter peace in the Empire … the Zhen have been lying …..will it put the lives of all humanity at risk .

This is a fast paced space opera , character driven book full of witty banter …….. but also shows how minorities can be treated at the expense of others .

I was given an ARC of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Zhen rescued all that was left of humanity from a deep space colony vessel and for hundreds of years have treated them as second class citizens, telling them that Earth had been lost. Tajen Hunt climbed as high as any human could climb in the Zhen military. Hero of one battle, loser of the next, he left the forces and now pilots his own spacecraft, alone by choice. When he rescues an old military buddy and her crew from marauders he acquires a family of sorts. They sign on as his crew when he gets an urgent call from his estranged brother. Come quickly, come quietly and bring a crew you can trust. He does, but he's too late. His eighteen year old computer whizz-kid niece tells him her historian dad is dead, but he uncovered a secret. Earth is not lost, and the Zhen have been lying. They know where it is, and Tajen must find it. That's the start of a rip-roaring space adventure as Tajen and his crew in The Dream of Earth set out to make that dream a reality. Unfortunately the Zhen have other ideas. This is fast paced space opera with good characters in impossible situations. It doesn't quite end on a cliffhanger, but there's obviously going to be a sequel. The next book is The Blood-Dimmed Tide, but don't hold your breath, it's not due until 2020.

A decent read reminiscent of a John Scalzi novel with James S.A. Corey-style plot and intrigue. I'm excited for the second installment and had a lot of fun while reading about snarky banter between the characters. High on action and attention-grabbing on the other characters which inhabit the universe, the Widening Gyre is a huge success in my opinion.

Although humans are second class citizens in the Zhen Empire, Tajen Hunt managed to work his way up through the military and become a Hero of the Empire. He is the only human to have received this honor. He has retired due to a terrible incident in which many lives were lost. He is now a freighter captain.

When Tajen gets word that he must return home due to his brother's death, he has no idea what he is about to walk into. His brother was part of a movement to find Earth and in his will he asks that Tajen continue his quest. Tajen, his crew and his estranged niece take on this challenge.

I really enjoyed this book. The world building is well done and the science and characters are interesting and entertaining. If you like hard sci-fi and/or space opera, I recommend this book.

Great Start. Loved the characters, the backstory, the world building and the mystery. Then the whole thing just seemed to stop. The end left a whole lot to be desired. This is book one of a series but while one mystery was solved it left everything up in the air. I will pick up the next book just to see how everyone survives. At least I hope they survive.

I received a free copy of the book in return for an honest review.

THE WIDENING GYRE is exciting "hard" science fiction, meaning it's strong on technology, science, and space travel. In a future when the Zhen Empire rules the universe and humans are rated lower than an unwanted stepchild, former hero Tajen Hunt and his crew embark on a quest to locate Earth, humanity's original home planet, which after so many centuries has become a legend rather than an actual location.

Smooth writing, empathetic characters, and great world-building combine to make THE WIDENING GYRE a compelling science fiction read.

In The Widening Gyre, humans are a second class people under the Zhen Empire, they had been saved by the Zhen many many years ago and Earth’s location has been forgotten or lost.

Tajen Hunt is a human who used to be in the Zhen Empire fleet, a hero to them but after a military disaster he retired and now and spends his time exploring space in his ship.

He’s contacted by his estranged brother and races to go help him....but he’s too late......!

Tajen and his ‘crew’ then start a quest to find Earth, but the Zhen do not want it found.......what follows is an action packed, fast paced space opera, with great characters, some fantastic world building and lots of tech and weaponry. An overall enjoyable read.

Thank you to the author, publishers and netgalley for the opportunity to read a free copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest, unbiased review

I received a free copy of THE WIDENING GYRE by Michael R. Johnston in exchange for an honest review. Captain Tajen Hunt, part of humanity’s remnant, was a war hero for humanity’s host species, the Zhen, and a role model for humans. Though humans were treated as second-class citizens by the Zhen, Tajen’s progress through the Zhen military and entry into the officer corps made history for the humans. Tajen retired after a catastrophic failure and began working as a civilian freighter. When his brother dies, Tajen and his cadre end up on a quest to find the lost planet Earth. The Zhen do not want it to be found.

First, you should be informed that Captain Hunt is gay. There is not any graphic sex in the book, only kisses. However, there is leering and yearning and discussing. This was completely irrelevant to the main storyline; this aspect of the book was only included because the author, apparently, wanted to make a point. Space opera, at it’s best, does not even touch on the sexual/romantic fantasies and yearnings of the main characters until many books into the series - the characters are too busy to settle down. Second, if you don’t mind the author’s politics or can overlook them and the failure to market the book as LGBT literature, the plotline and the story were pretty good.

#TheWideningGyre #NetGalley

This book meets anyone's definition of a space opera. It is detailed and humorous without slowing down with unnecessary explanations. I would have like to know more about the non-humans. My only issue is with the blantant gay relationship that developed between the captain and a crew member. Just did not seem necessary.

A good and fast paced space opera, entertaining and engaging.
The plot is fascinating, the world building very good.
I loved the characters and was hooked till the last page.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Flame Tree Press and Netgalley for this ARC

Sometimes you come across a book that is basically the synthesis of all the best things in life. For me, this book was one of those. It’s an action-packed space opera, featuring (best of all) LGBT characters! (Well. G, as opposed to L, B or T, but. It’s a start.) Plus, it gave me distinct Star Trek vibes, which is always a good thing.

In The Widening Gyre, humans are a client people under the Zhen Empire, ostensibly because their ship had been saved by the Zhen many years back, and the true location of Earth lost. We are introduced to Tajen Hunt, a human ex-commander in the Zhen Empire fleet, who has spent the last 15 years exploring space in his ship, for reasons that are not initially clear. When he gets an urgent call from his brother, who he hasn’t spoken to in a decade and a half, Tajen drops everything to go help him.

One of the reasons I really enjoyed this book was because of the main character. Tajen is a war hero to the Zhen, and not quite that to humanity. He’s the highest ranked human in the Zhen empire, and the only one to be awarded what is effectively a medal of honour. But, he’s also a ball of guilt and self-hatred, complete with some family angst, so obviously he was always going to be my favourite character (I have a type, I realise). And he gets to work through all that angst and guilt and self-hatred with the help of a found family!

Which brings me to my next point: the supporting cast. They were perhaps a little less developed than I would have liked. There were a couple of times I wanted to know more about them, but given how the length of the book and how much had to happen, I let that slide a bit. Besides, they still had some really good (and angsty) moments with the main character and he learned and developed from those, so. I thrived.

Another thing I loved about this book was how fast-paced the plot was. I often have very little patience reading books (blame uni), so an action-packed space opera was just what I wanted. However, I did think at times that there was maybe too much was shoved into it. Some scenes felt like they happened pretty rapidly, but could have had more to them, especially towards the end when it did feel a little like things started to get rushed.

And I guess that kind of translated a little over into the romantic relationship. There wasn’t a lot of tension there. I mean, they were clearly attracted to one another, and they did have some good conversations. But the tension wasn’t there and when they said “I love you”, it felt kind of underdeveloped, honestly. I do recognise though that it was only secondary to the main plot, so that wasn’t a huge issue. And it was so refreshing to see more gay relationships in adult lit that isn’t just advertised as being gay.

So basically, I have one last thing to say, which is: read this book.

Tajen Hunt became a war hero at the Battle of Elkari. He's the only human considered an official Hero of the Empire. Sent to command the fleet and fight enigmatic Tabrans, he failed causing the deaths of millions of people. He faded into life on the fringes as a lone independent pilot.

Early in the book Tajen discovers his brother, Daav, has been killed by agents of the Empire. He, his niece, and their newly-hired crew set out to finish his brother's quest: to find Earth, the legendary homeworld of humanity.

Widening Gyre is very much a character-driven story, and fortunately, the characters are pretty solid. But not entirely convincing.

I suspect most readers will enjoy The Widening Gyre more than me. It offers plenty of action, twists, and explosive developments. For me, though, despite trying really hard, it lacks any kind of real depth.

Tajen Hunt, a human hero of one the Zhen Empire wars answers his brothers plea for help and goes home. His brother has a secret and Tajen discovers a terrible fact. I liked the book and will read the sequel.