As a fan of Ian Douglas novels, I found this a great start to a new series. Full of suspense and action, the book will grab and hold your attention. In addition, the book causes one to think about how we as a society and civilization is advancing and what impacts technology will have on or humanity. A great Sci-fi novel and a great new series,

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Ian Douglas (https://iancdouglas.com) is the author of nearly half a dozen novels. Galaxy Raiders: Abyss was published earlier this month. It is the 9th book I completed reading in 2025.

Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own! Due to some minor violence, mature situations, and mature language, I categorize this novel as PG.

The setting is the distant future. The Authority is the dominant power in our Galaxy. Because of the long distances, the Authority is slow to react. Now that it has encountered the Earth, it wants to bring it into its folds. There is peace throughout the area ruled by the Authority, but that comes at a cost.

Earth does not want to join the Authority, at least not under the terms the Authority is offering. It does want to have access to the network of interstellar Gates connecting the millions of advanced civilizations that are part of the Authority. They also want the opportunity to trade and have access to Authority technology.

When one of the Authority species, the Veykaar, attacks Earth colonies, there seem to be only three choices. Earth can submit to the Authority. They can reject the Authority, and be isolated to the Solar System. Or they can fight.

US Navy Captain Alexandra Morrigan of the UTS Constellation is assigned to command Task Force Morrigan. The mission is to pass through the gate system and bring the battle to the Authority. The hope is that this will lead to a more agreeable arrangement with the Authority. There is little hope of winning against the might of the Authority but, hopefully, Task Force Morrigan will be enough of an irritant to cause the Authority to settle with Earth.

Beyond all expectations, Task Force Morrigan is successful in its confrontations with Authority forces. The Task Force suffers high casualties, but They continue to make their way deeper into Authority-controlled space.

I enjoyed the 12+ hours reading this 396-page science fiction novel. I like the chosen cover art. I give this novel a rating of 4.7 (rounded to 5) out of 5.

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This book was fine. There wasn’t anything wrong with it, it was just fine. I vacillated between totally locked in and bored to tears. It felt like it wanted to be the Expanse in the mid-series books, but without the amazing and engaging characters.

The saving grace for me was the overall philosophical and moral questions posed throughout. The inherent - and very relevant - concerns about where our human society is going, and an interesting mirror in the form of a galactic colonial power.

Galaxy Raiders: Abyss is the start of a great space opera. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and forward to the sequel. It is an action packed novel that will leave the reader thirsting for more.

Interesting premise with much in the balance. This has danger and tension. Add great characters and you have a hard SciFi novel for all fans

Captain Morrigan became a hero for taking aggressive action against an advanced tech force that risked her ship destruction but saved Earth from total annihilation by an alien galactic AI race who demanded humanity’s subjugation. In appreciation, Morrigan was promoted to Admiral and given command of a thousand-plus ship armada; its aims to hit back at the Galactics and show them the cost of messing with humanity's developmental freedom. Morrigan’s successes in driving out the Galactics from a few of the adjoining star systems they controlled frightened the Galactics. Being AI’s, whose individual existence can span thousands of years results in their fearing the lost of that individual existence more than humans fear death. The Galactics flee a space battle sooner than organics do when their losses mount. Despite being technologically advanced, that trait is what makes their defeat possible.

Space opera genre books are my favorite for escapism and relaxation. I very much enjoyed the uncomplicated nature of the background and character-building Ian Douglas engaged in during Galaxy Raiders's first half. Morrigan’s chapter-long diatribe on religion in the second half, however, didn’t add to the story and should have been left out by his editor. But, I’m hooked on the series and am looking forward to the next book in the series.

I live to read futuristic high stakes military space opera like "Galaxy Raiders: Abyss" by Ian Douglas. Exploring the universe while waging desperate combat to save humanity. The achievements that human civilization Douglas creates is both understandable, exciting, and impressive. But will it be enough to hold off the nearly incomprehensible knowledge, resources, and abilities of the enemy? The main characters hold reader interest as we learn about the insurmountable odds that humanity is facing with admirable courage. Fortunately, this is the first book of a new series. I really look forward to reading many more books about the Galaxy Raiders quest into the heart of the Galaxy!

I thank Ian Douglas and Harper Voyager for graciously providing an electronic advanced review copy of this excellent work.

Ian Douglas (William Keith) is back with an enjoyable but very familiar space opera/miil SF story, the start of a new series. Lead character Admiral Alexandra Morrigan is preternaturally good at defeating alien foes and blazes a trail of victories across the galaxy. Good e Pugh that she is dubbed both The Morrigan, after the Irish goddess, and Alexandra the Great. Some nice speculative concepts are thrown in and Keith is happy to speculate intelligently on machine intelligence, virtual immortality, and other interesting themes.

I just feel he has done this before. Several times. Even in the far future there are plucky American stargazers and marines, somehow winning against superior alien technology and adverse odds, at least one by using a relativistic weapon. While he has perhaps found a winning formula, I would like something new.

Will I read the sequel? Sure. I'm a sucker for the stories Douglas writes. And I think he is a capable writer who actually explores some interesting topics. But I wish he pushed himself for something totally new. P

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.