I really wanted to like this book, but it wasn't working for me. It took me forever to get past the first few chapters and I only managed to finish with some very heavy skimming. I did not really enjoy reading this, but the plot was interesting enough for me wanting to find out how it ends.

I really disliked the religious undertones and the vaguely Roman setting with the silly outfits. The explanations of various SF concepts were too vague for me and I would have liked a more detailed world building.

The characters were not convincing. The female main character was supposed to be some secret super soldier, but with the exception of a few fight scenes she came across as an insecure girl to me. The bad guy was oddly boring. He had people killed left, right and center and had no reaction of any kind to it. ADIM, the android, was the only character that interested me. He didn't feel like a cardboard cutout.

On top of that I didn't like the way women were portrayed. They were either sex objects or too fugly to be considered worthy of notice. Yes, this is fiction, but it still annoyed me a lot.

And there was some strange Instalove going on between the two MCs, which I am never a great fan of.

Bottom line, this was very, very light space opera with unconvincing characters. I read some great reviews for this book and I don't get it. I doubt that I will pick up the next book. Sorry!

I received this free e-copy from the publisher/author via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

It’s difficult writing a review for a book that left you feeling `meh` about it. We all know the type I’m talking about: it’s not bad, and you want to find out what happens. But at the same time, you’re reading it just to get to the end rather than for any true enjoyment.

This is exactly how I feel about The Circuit: Executor Rising.

The premise is interesting: man has fled to the stars because Earth has died and become inhabitable. But in true humanity form, they have broken into factions and are now warring amongst themselves. The characters come from three very different backgrounds, which gives an interesting mindset into the different regimes.

Cassius was initially an interesting character. He has broken away from the Tribune and is determined to make them pay for the loss of his son. But the death count rose too high for me to still be able to empathise with his character by the end – he had become too cold even if I understood his motivations.

Sage is an Executor – part of the Tribune but operates in secret to maintain the peace. She has a complicated history with Cassius, which definitely added depth to their interactions. But despite her amazing fighting skills, the majority of the book seemed to focus on men reaction to her – or her reacting to the men’s reactions! She should have been a powerful character in her own right – and to some degree, she was – but it felt she was objectified. As the only main female character in the book, this was frustrating!

Talon was by far my favourite. I could relate to his character. I understood what drove him and why he made the choices he did. He only wanted to protect his daughter and was determined to do whatever it took to do so. But unlike Cassius, he doesn’t become cold or detached from his situation.

The characters’ relationships weren’t given sufficient time to develop. Sage and Talon had a budding friendship (if not romance) but it was killed before it could be explored. The entire book felt like the characters were isolated from each other and telling different stories even when they were together.

This lack of unity was reflected across the book. The switching narration between the three of them (and ADIM, Cassius’ android) gave the book a disjointed feel. It took me a long time to get a grip on the characters and the world they were living in. In fact, I think I was almost halfway through before the pieces started slotting together for me.

While this works for some books, it just felt disjointed and jarring in this one. It was a shame because the worlds being created were unique and a different take on man leaving for the stars that I have read before. But the characterisation didn’t work for me, and that unfortunately made the whole book fall flat.

I’m didn’t engage enough to want to read the second book.

“The Circuit” eBook was published in 2015 and was written by Rhett C. Bruno (http://rhettbruno.com). Mr. Bruno has published four novels.

I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The story is set around the Solar System in the far future. While there are several characters, the primary ones are Executor Sage Volus and former Tribune Cassius Vale.

Vale was forced out as a Tribune (the power guiding all of humanity) and is now hatching a plan that he believes will free humanity from the control of the current Tribune. He has developed outlawed tech and is willing to let many die in order for those that remain to ultimately live better lives.

Volus is an enforcer of the Tribune’s laws. She goes undercover to discover who is hijacking Tribune ships. While undercover, she develops feelings for the head of a misfit crew who plans to hijack a transport.

Volus is tied to Vale as she was his son's girl friend. He also replaced her damaged arm with an advanced prosthetic.

This is a story filled with political intrigue and action. None of the characters are what you would call outstanding examples of humanity, but many of them are doing what they do because they believe it is the only way to survive.

I spent just over 6.5 hours with this 276 page Science Fiction novel. It has an old feel to it as you read about the robots and the ‘newly discovered element Gravitum’ that much of their tech is based on. I almost called a ‘Rule of 50’ after the first couple of chapters, but persisted and the story did improve. The cover art implies a Science Fiction tale in space, but not much more. I give this novel a 3.4 (rounded down to a 3) out of 5.

Further book reviews I have written can be accessed at https://johnpurvis.wordpress.com/blog/.

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I didn't finish this book. I managed two chapters before putting it down. And I only read the second chapter to confirm my impressions of the first chapter weren't too hasty. I found it poorly written, with a very clunky style that I couldn't get past. Too much tell, and not enough show. A close third-person perspective that jarred with the POV characters (a robot described as feeling emotions). Intrusive description that interfered with the flow of the story. Bad grammar and poor sentence structure. It's always a bad sign when I find myself editing as I go, rather than being able to enjoy the story. There may be a fantastic piece of space opera here, but it needs a good editor and a lot more work before I'd be prepared to put the effort in.

Review copy received through NetGalley.