The Dark Between the Stars

The Dark Between the Stars - Kevin J. Anderson

Space Opera - in sort of all its glory. This book is epic in scope with a very good story to tell. It is book one of a trilogy, so of course there are a lot of loose ends. (I am looking forward to Blood of the Cosmos.) The chapters are short, which lends to reading this 650 page tome quickly - "the next chapter is only three pages so I'll just read one more chapter." These short chapters do not allow the reader to really get to know the characters. And there are a lot of characters. Sometimes it is difficult to remember who is who. This trilogy also seems to be connected to the Saga of the Seven Suns series, which I have not read. I may have liked this book better had I done so, as many of the characters refer to past actions.

The only other Kevin J. Anderson books that I have read are those he wrote in collaboration with Brian Herbert. I was very disappointed in those as I expected books as grand as Dune. Like those Dune sequels, this book seems to be written more for the average teen with a very simple writing style and with very shallow characters. It has been nominated for the 2015 Hugo Award. Compared to some of the books that have been nominated in the past and have won, this book fits right in, despite the controversy surrounding its nomination.

In short, this book is epic in scope and a good story. It is just not that well written. For Space Opera fans like me, it's still worth the read.