T. Davis Bunn (https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/author/davis-bunn/) is the author of more than 100 novels. Prime Directive was published in 2021. It is the 13th book I completed reading in 2023.

Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to scenes of violence, I categorize this novel as R.

Lieutenant Amanda Bostick of the Galactic Space Arm (GSA) uncovered evidence in reports of a series of deaths at the Lorian scientific outpost. When she brings this to the attention of her superiors, she is ordered to travel to Loria and investigate the 16 deaths in person.

To expedite her mission, Bostick is temporarily promoted to Major. Accompanying her will be two armed Guardians, Sergeant Hamoud and Corporal Nasim. It turns out that all three have experienced setbacks in their careers. This mission may be their last opportunity to put themselves back on track.

Their mission faces difficulties. They are given a ridiculously short time to complete the investigation, and there are some within the GSA that are looking for an excuse to take control of Loria and force the Arab Protectorate to fully submit to the Empire.

Hamoud and Nasim are from the independent Arab Protectorate. The only thing of value in the Loria system is the transit point to the Arab-Protectorate. The incidents at the scientific outpost may trigger action to force the Arab-Protectorate to formally join the Empire.

A further complication comes with the report that pirates are operating from a location close to Loria. Bostick and her team arrive in orbit around Loria and detect a spacecraft they believe to be a pirate vessel. Encounters with the scientists on the planet’s surface are strange. Clearly, they are hiding things from Bostick and her team.

Bostick quickly finds herself in the position of engineering an alliance to preserve peace in the region. Ultimately, she must determine why scientists are dying at the outpost. Bostick and her team risk their lives to resolve the problems to the acceptance of all concerned.

I enjoyed the 5.5 hours I spent reading this 192-page science fiction novel. The plot is woven with action, intrigue, and politics. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4.2 (rounded to 4) out of 5.

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I do not often read this genre, but I was drawn to this novel because I’m a Davis Bunn fan, I found the cover intriguing, so, I jumped in not knowing what to expect. The chapters were short, and the story moved along as the author does his best to give readers the lay of the land and Amanda’s situation in space. I felt there was a lot of telling readers what was, and not much showing (in the way I know this author can do through his characters). But then again, it might just be me in the fact that I hardly ever read space fantasies.

I did read the entire novel. I wanted to like this book (and thought I would by the end), but I found the story and the characters hard to connect with. Their mission and how things were interrupted by space pirates were unclear. This author is still one of my favorites. I’m amazed at how versatile his writing style is. He is brilliant. This is a wonderful read if you are into space novels. I do believe it would work well for your book club pick.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have received a complimentary copy of this book by the publisher through NetGalley. 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”

Nora St. Laurent
TBCN Where Book Fun Begins!
The Book Club Network blog www.bookfun.org

Thank you to NetGalley and Canongate Books - Severn House for an e-galley of this novel.

This book actually rates 2.5 stars from me but I rounded up to 3 because I read the entire book and was mildly interested in it in spite of its irritants. The book blurb tells you the plot so I will concentrate on my findings.

1. The reason Major Amanda Bostick's superior officer despised her was never clearly stated. Surely there must have been a story of some kind there. I waited through the entire book and never got the explanation I wanted.
2. Too many of the chapters had a cliffhanger type ending. After being exposed to that style for the first few chapters my interest became practically nil; the drama wasn't dramatic any longer.
3. Too often somebody (usually Amanda) would come up with a plan (the old "I've got a plan" line) but never share it with anybody until much later by which time I really didn't care. Lots of full or partial head nods and winks when Amanda's crew caught on to what she was maybe/probably thinking she would do.
4. Too much telling me what happened instead of describing what took place to me so I could see and feel how the actions made me react. This was especially egregious with the final confrontational scene which made me have serious longings for the good old throw-the-book-across-the-room times (I read on a device so expensive damage might have occurred).

Plainly this novel was not a success for me. This author is prolific in output so if you've read something by Davis Bunn before and liked that style, you will most likely not agree with me at all.

An intelligent Science Fiction mystery.

This certainly kept me on the edge of my seat not quite knowing where it was going.

The author led you along with great characters.

For me this was really enjoyable.

This is an interesting space adventure. A young woman is sent out on a mission with two young men to discover the cause of 16 murders of scientist on a colony science station. They are a planetary crisis team and it is expected that they will fail in their mission. With first contact on the planet they receive a distress call that the speaker is about to be murdered. On arriving on the planet they find the speaker being forced out of the building to receive her fate. Amanda tries to rescue the woman but the woman is vaporized just as she reaches for her.
As the story progresses, the main character develops a clarity of vision and understanding that helps her piece together the secrets of what is happening on the planet. A group of planetary pirates and a treaty with the empire all come into play as Amanda works out the solution to this puzzle. The calm , analytical efficiency with which the characters tackle the various problems they face is inspirational. This is a very engaging and enjoyable book.

Once again, it’s nice to be the first. First to rate, first to review. Maybe help someone make up their mind about a book. Why, it’s practically community service. And why isn’t anyone reading this book? It looks inviting enough.
It was my first introduction to a seemingly very busy author with many titles in various genres out. A decent intro, all in all. Nothing to object to, really.
A murder mystery set on a distant space colony is pretty much a plot that drew me into science fiction originally, so it’s a premise near and dear to my brain and this one seemed to be intriguingly very much along those lines. 16 dead on a space colony and no one said a word until now…what are the odds. And why. Needless to say the team is immediately sent to investigate, albeit a very small team of three, led by a young lieutenant Amanda Bostick, eager to prove herself to the powers that be.
Their findings will be, well, let’s say unusual. And unexpected. Loria is an interesting place, pink enough to have been decorate by Elle Woods herself and yet surprisingly sinister for all its jolly pastel themes and Lorians are a bunch of quietly menacing telepaths who have formed a very…different relationship with the scientific team there. So different and peculiar this relationship is that it seems the scientists don’t quite mind getting dead. But that is all for Amanda and her sidekicks to sort out.
Soon enough they get involved in all sorts of interplanetary business in a manner I’ve come to associate with space opera genre, which along with military sci fi, makes it some of my least favorite varieties of galactic adventures. If you’re all about that sort of space intrigue, you’ll probably appreciate this more.
It’s fun, enough otherwise, there’s a mystery and space pirates and some interesting world building, but a lot of it was just too busy for me. It’s a personal preference thing and I just really prefer character driven stories (of any variety) over the space politics and techdriven action. So with that said, it was enjoyable enough and a relatively quick read.
It was my first introduction to a seemingly very busy author with many titles in various genres out. A decent intro, all in all. Nothing to object to, really. Which isn’t exactly a red carpet invitation, I know, but it’s something, right…decent is someone’s good. Thanks Netgalley.