I'll admit I have not read previous episodes featuring this character which might have given me a deeper appreciation of the book. However this was engaging, traditional space opera with a great cast.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tantor audio for the Advanced Listener copy. This is a new series featuring Kylara Vatta from Moon’s previous series. Ky returns home after quite some time away and while she was promised a heroic welcome- instead she’s greeted with all sorts of treacherous concerns, only her fantastic leadership skills can save the day. There are some fun Sci Fi world building elements here, and a definite reason tough female lead.
Well written Sci-fi. I suspect I would have enjoyed this more had I read the original series first.

This was a fun sci-fi! I did get confused at times at such a large cast of characters, but I fully admit that it is most likely due to the fact that I did not read the Vatta's War sequence. The plot took off running and I had a great time.

I read and enjoyed this author before so Cold Moon has been on my hypothetical tbr for a while. So I was excited for the opportunity to review it on Netgalley. Unfortunately I found the narration quite dry. In my opinion, I should read this one with my eye balls because the audio format is not leading to a positive experience with a book I think I will love.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Ahoy there me mateys!  This is the first book of a military sci-fi duology called Vatta's Peace.  The duology follows the 5 book Vatta's War series.  If ye are not already familiar with the Vatta's War series, I would not begin here.  I have read this story before but was extremely excited when I found out there was an audiobook version.  I absolutely loved listening to it.

In this novel, the systems should be at peace as the interplanetary conflict has ended.  Ky is headed to her home planet to deal with family business affairs.  A straightforward trip ends up sabotaged when the shuttle crashes.  Ky uses her intelligence and grit to survive.

Kylara Vatta is a great character to root for.  One of the best things about both series is watching Ky's progression and character development.  I also enjoy other characters like cousin Stella and Aunt Grace.  Additionally, the author has twists to the story that seem so realistic.  People die.  Artic weather sucks.  Rescue takes a long, long time.  Even in times of crisis, personalities clash.  I really do enjoy survival stories.

There are several small issues with the novel.  There are a couple of plot points that are solved easily.  The novel ends on a cliff hanger.  And the people behind the island's secrets are not really explained in this book.  To get full story, ye need to read the next book.

I don't remember everything that happens in book 2 but I hope Tantor Audio has the conclusion to the duology.  I need to refresh my memory of what happens next.  Arrrrr!

4.5 rounded up

Aunque Elizabeth Moon tiene una extensa producción de ciencia ficción militarista, lo cierto es que yo la conozco por esa absoluta maravilla que es La velocidad de la oscuridad, ganadora en su momento del Nebula. Con la publicación en audiolibro de Cold Welcome vi el camino expedito para adentrarme en su obra más conocida.


Este volumen sirve como comienzo de una nueva serie protagonizada por Kylara Vatta, a la que deberíamos conocer por sus apariciones en sagas anteriores. Moon se cuida mucho de que esta novela sea un punto de acceso fácil y seguro al resto de su obra y aunque hay referencias a otras situaciones anteriores que sin duda se pueden considerar spoilers, Cold Welcome es perfectamente disfrutable sin tener el bagaje de lecturas anteriores.

La narración en audiolibro de Carrie Coello se ajusta a una historia de supervivencia e intriga que la autora nos muestra. Quizá no sea especialmente emotiva, pero sí es muy adecuada para el entorno frío y peligroso en el que se desarrolla la aventura.

El problema que tengo con el libro, si es que se puede decir que sea un problema, es que destaca más su parte militar que su parte de ciencia ficción, un poco como me pasaba cuando leía a Michael Mammay. Por supuesto que tiene elementos que serían difícilmente justificables en un entorno que no fuera de ciencia ficción, pero el meollo del asunto, que es la supervivencia en condiciones extremadamente desfavorables, te la puedes imaginar perfectamente en un desierto helado terrestre.

Una de las cosas que más me ha interesado de la lectura es la puerta abierta que deja a la especulación sobre el origen de las estructuras que se encuentra Kylara y su grupo en su periplo. La explicación de la terraformación de muchos planetas a cargo de desconocidos me atrae irremediablemente, se me ocurren explicaciones variadas pero me gustaría saber qué idea tiene la autora en mente.

En cuanto a la conspiración política que da origen al gélido viaje de Vatta, parece demasiado obvio a la vista del lector. Sin entrar en muchos detalles, la importancia que se le da a los trajes de seguridad para un descenso a priori rutinario no es demasiado sutil y hay otros detalles que son muy exagerados para que no nos quepa duda de que hay una conspiración. Normalmente prefiero mis conspiraciones más diluidas, agitado pero no removido, gracias.

Cold Welcome cumple lo que promete, es un ejemplo perfecto de ciencia ficción militarista con especial énfasis en el cumplimiento de órdenes y la jerarquía militar.

I must admit I have never read any books by Elizabeth Moon and don’t have much context about the world I was plunged into, but I rated this book 3/5.

It certainly had its moments. The world-building is top-notch, and I appreciated the intricate characters and their struggles. However, I felt like the pacing dragged a bit in the middle, which made it hard to stay fully engaged. The plot could have used a bit more action to keep things exciting.

Overall, it's a decent read, especially if you're a fan of her work, but it didn't quite resonate with me. I'd say it's worth picking up if you're in the mood for something cozy with not much happening.

◇ Synopsis
Nebula Award–winning author Elizabeth Moon makes a triumphant return to science fiction with a thrilling series featuring Kylara Vatta, the daring hero of her acclaimed Vatta’s War sequence. Summoned to the home planet of her family’s business empire, space-fleet commander Kylara Vatta is told to expect a hero’s welcome. But instead, she is thrown into danger unlike any other she has faced and finds herself isolated, unable to communicate with the outside world, commanding a motley group of unfamiliar troops, and struggling day by day to survive in a deadly environment with sabotaged gear. Only her undeniable talent for command can give her ragtag band a fighting chance. Yet even as Ky leads her team from one crisis to another, her family and friends refuse to give up hope, endeavoring to mount a rescue from halfway around the planet—a task that is complicated as Ky and her supporters find secrets others will kill to protect: a conspiracy infecting both government and military that threatens not only her own group’s survival but her entire home planet.
◇ Thoughts
In "Cold Welcome," Ky returns to her home planet only to have her shuttle sabotaged, leaving her and the passengers stranded in the polar regions. The story masterfully blends survival elements with military intrigue, keeping me reading late into the night. The Vatta family’s efforts to find Ky, along with new plots involving Rafe, add layers to the well-developed world and characters. Despite some cliché moments, the story is engaging but I was a little disappointed at the abruptness of the ending. I eagerly anticipate the next book in the Vatta's Peace series.
Thank you to NetGalley and providing an ARC of this book!

Wellll, I am disappointed in myself for never having read an Elizabeth Moon book before. This is exactly the kind of thing I enjoy -- lots of action, admirable people I can really like, intrigue. There does have to be some suspension of belief because the plot isn't totally logical, but this book starts out strong and stays that way. The narrator adds to that sense of excitement, telling the story in a way that makes you need to know what happens next. Now I just need to go back and see what I've missed by Moon so far!
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me listen to this audiobook.

I received a copy of this audiobook from NetGalley. The book itself has been out for several years now, but the audiobook is new in 2024.

I thought this was the first in a series, but I did not realize it's the first in a series that is a sequel to <i>another</i> series that I never read. There is a massive info dump in the beginning of this book. If I'd known this is military sci-fi and a sequel to a five part series, I probably would not have requested it. I let most of the exposition just flow past me without taking too much note of the details, other than to learn that Vatta is a famous war hero - I figured I'd either be able to enjoy this for what it is, or not.

Lucky for me, the core of this story is a survival story, and I LOVE a good survival story on a remote island where the characters have to improvise and fend for themselves. This was my favorite part of the book, but it wasn't enough to get me to truly love the book. In this case, Ky was TOO competent and sure of herself, and that took away some of my enjoyment. We rarely saw her figuring things out, she always just seemed to KNOW what to do (with a few exceptions).

In the end, I could tell this was well-written, but I didn't love it. This genre is not my favorite, and the book proves that it's just not for me, because if a great writer like Moon can't get me to love military sci-fi, then no one can.

By virtue of the genre, this book is chock FULL of details and there are so many characters. This might not have been the best choice for an audiobook, because I struggled to keep track of it all, and it would have been easier for me to absorb all the info if I had been reading it with my eyes.

Carrie Coello read the audiobook, and she did a fine job injecting emotion into the characters, and maintaining different voices for men and women, but her repertoire of voices was limited, she basically has one male voice and one female voice, therefore many characters sounded the same. There are about 2 billion different characters in this book (I exaggerate ... a little bit) and I was only able to keep track of six or seven. Some of that was Bear's fault in the writing, but some was because Coello spoke the dialogue the same so I lost track of who was speaking. Almost all of the women had a somewhat old-fashioned and fussy way of speaking, which made sense for elderly Aunt Grace or the uptight Cascadians, but not for the rest of the female characters.

Occasionally the text takes a leap to a completely different location with different characters, and there was nothing in the audiobook that would indicate that, no noticeable pause, which could be confusing. I borrowed the ebook as well, and in the text the spacing and formatting clearly indicated new sections.

Coello had a surprising lisp for a professional audiobook reader, and she pronounced a few words oddly, making me wonder where she grew up. For example, she says "potable" with a short o, like "pots and pans." And her pronunciation of "slotter" confused me - I thought she was saying "slaughter" until I got a copy of the ebook and got a look at the words. I struggled with Private Ennisay's name, because it sounded like "NSA" and I kept thinking a National Security admin was involved, which made sense in a book about political intrigue and espionage.

Wow that was a whole lot of boring! The pace of this story makes for a great movie perhaps, but super slow read/listen. The narrator was not horrible but there were lots of times I thought the characters seemed very whiney. So pretty much a flight was sabotaged and wrecked. Survivors end up in giant rafts with months' worth of life saving gear. Huh? They find a military facility that is alien. People die. Definitely not for me. I had to relisten to the beginning so many times to get what was going on. Luckily this is a pre-release book, and I was able to get the written version which is available on KU so I could tandem read/listen. I hate giving a bad review because I know my several days of listening took the author months/years to create but definitely not for me. Thank You Netgalley, Tantor Audio, and Elizabeth Moon.

I got to listen to the audibook version and I have two things to point out, I did like the story, but I didn’t enjoy that much the person reading, I am a bit spoiled, in the last few months I have been listening to more audiobooks than actually reading, and one thing that makes me really enjoy one audiobook is when the person reading does the voices for us to be able to differentiate the characters, and with Coello that didn’t take place, so every character sounded the same for me.. and because of that I had to go back to the beginning of the chapter to really understand who was talking and what part of the story was taking place in what moment…

this book took me back to star trek, the stories about the academy and how Ky was, reminded me of captain kirk, she thinks out of the box, and her main difference from captain kirk is her gender. She is a strong and clever woman, and I did enjoy reading how she survived and how she fought to get through what was throw at her, at first her reasoning of who was the traitor, I thought, it was too obvious, but maybe I am used to more obscure reasoning hah ^__^ but it ends in a way the character thought they would be doing something else, but were prevented and thus gave us a reason to go to book 2.

it was still a good read, just wish I had also the ebook to read along and that way not get so lost at some times but I still liked the story and will recommend it.

3 stars for narrator part and 4 stars for story

Thank you NetGalley and Tantor Audio, for the free Audio copy and this is my honest opinion.