Note: While this book reads just fine as a stand alone, it does contain some major plot spoilers for Book 1 (Doctor Mars).

Set approximately one year after Book 1, Liberty Rise is still a Mindcop and she’s still partnered with the smoking Muir. Things are brewing at the mining colony Javelin on Mars’s moon Phobos. Slow Fly has worked hard over the past year to take over the colony. Now, he’s putting on the finishing touches, getting his master computer up and running, and nearly ready to declare his superiority over Mars and the other moon Deimos. Liberty and Muir will have something to say about that!

This book was just as fast moving as Book 1 but was nearly twice as long. I really loved Book 1. The author did a great job in that book creating the setting, the Mindcops, the characters, and the plot, all swiftly and concisely. Here, we already have the setting and many of the characters, so I felt things could slow down a bit and have a bit more detail. The plot wasn’t as neat and tidy as Book 1. There was only a smidge of character development.

With that said, this is still brain candy. It moves along swiftly, so I was never bored. Liberty Rise continues to be interesting. We learn a bit more about her upbringing as a mutant as we get to meet her mom. Then we also have Mr. Bose, Liberty’s and Muir’s boss. He’s an interesting character, being mostly calm and yet decisive. He does a great job of holding the team together when the crap starts flying. Meanwhile, Slow Fly, our evil one, continues to be interesting, though not as thoughtful and sinister as in Book 1. He’s out there, not hiding in the shadows. Folks on Phobos know who he is and that he is trouble.

So we have this mystery with Liberty’s old boyfriend Cal Murray. There’s been no word of him this past year. But now she has questions for Slow Fly about him, forceful questions. Then Slow Fly is trying to build some world domination scheme involving his super computer Regulator and a nuclear arsenal. In this regard, he reminded me a bit of Brain from that cartoon Pinky and the Brain. I don’t think he understands what it takes to build nuclear pits and then to install them in space worthy warheads, even in the 22nd century. Lastly, we have some miner rebels that want to overthrow Slow Fly and banish him. He finds this annoying and the executions will continue until he is no longer annoyed.

There’s a bit more humor, albeit dark humor, in this book than in Book 1. Also, the story continues to be diverse, having several female characters and various ethnicities. I love seeing this in SF. Over all, it’s still a worthy series. I enjoyed my time reading this book and I plan to continue on with the series.

Set in 2137, Mars Colony, Liberty Rise is a member of the local police force, and a mutant with psychic abilities. She can read the recent memories of folks and any other organic material if she puts her mind to it. Her partner, Detective Muir, is one of the very few humans on Mars who smokes and Liberty finds the habit disgusting. Doctor Mars is the mysterious evil mastermind behind some recent scientific experiments that left a few dead. Slow Fly, an excellent fighter, is his greatest achievement to date.

For a novella, there is plenty going on here. This book is part scifi detective and part Mars Colony super hero story. There’s several interesting characters and that coupled with the murder mystery made this book a winner for me. Liberty Rise is our main protagonist. She’s been on the force for some years and lived through the change in politics and law towards mutants. However, there is still some cultural stigmas against them. Out of the two of them (Muir and her), she is the one in charge and calling the shots. Muir seems quite OK with that in his laid back way. He’s a little bit of a slob and a smoker, but I think he acts that way sometimes to shock people.

Meanwhile, we have a few interesting bad guys. Doctor Mars (who has a real name but if I tell you what it is then we enter spoiler territory) is driven in his work, even if much of what he does is distasteful. Slow Fly is the really interesting side character. He’s a dedicated fighter, but I am not sure what he is dedicated to. This makes him mysterious. Later in the story we learn a touch more about him and it becomes apparent that he is a tortured soul. Now this makes him very interesting because he becomes a bit unpredictable.

The murder mystery was fun. Mostly, Liberty and Muir solve it through her special talents and the usual digging up info and cross-checking the facts. The pacing was good with a nice mix of sleuthing, action, and a touch of humor. I’m hooked on this series and look forward to Book 2 in audio.

I won a copy of this book from the author.

The Narration: Elizabeth Phillips was a good fit for Liberty Rise. She had that no-nonsense good cop voice. I also enjoyed her sloppy Detective Muir voice. Phillips did a good job imbuing emotion into the dialogue when required.

The Leopard Stratagem (Leopard King Saga #2)by T.A. Uner

Camus Scorpio, the vicious criminal overlord, who for years tormented the good merchants of Rome, is dead. His ruthless army of thugs and bloodthirsty killers wiped out by the avenging force of Tullus the Leopard King, the Leopardess Celestra, and their Troupe.
But the victory is a costly one. Anna, Tullus’ lover, is dead, and her departure serves as an open wound to all her friends in the Troupe. Needing time to collect himself and continue developing his magical abilities, Tullus decides to seek out the wisdom of a reclusive wizard named Hradack, also known as the Leopard Master and a product of the Age of Paladins.
In Rome Eliana becomes involved in political intrigue and finds herself caught up in a conspiracy involving a persecuted race called the Dryads.
Decimus, now a prominent Centurion in the Praetorian Guard, is assigned to a new Roman Legion in Switzerland, where he faces the biggest challenge of his military career.
As Tullus’ power in Elemence grows, he foresees a hideous plot by an unknown enemy called Serpentus, who has kidnapped his Troupe friends and is holding them hostage on the island of Capri.
Unbeknownst to Tullus, Serpentus seeks revenge against the Leopard King and Celestra, and has armed himself with arcane powers. Under the tutelage of a fanatical cleric, Serpentus harbors plans of destroying the Leopard King and Celestra before embarking on a destructive path of conquest.



My Review:
Take a minute to really check out the cover work on the LK saga books. I am not typically a reader that is convinced by the cover art to read a book because there's more to a book than great cover art but TA has some really great art for his books they're beautiful. I have read a few of TA's books in the past and I've always been impressed with the work he's done. The Leopard Stratagem continues where Vanguard left off but this time the stakes are higher. I really enjoyed the character dynamic because regardless of whether its a main character or a secondary character everyone has something special they put into the mix. The fantasy/history is brilliant because it treads a multi genre line that skirts between sci fi, horror and suspense and the Leopard Saga can appeal to both YA, NA and Adult readers alike. Uner writes stories that are lush with vivid imagery and plot twists to keep everyone entertained. Stratagem maintains the thread of inner strength, a surrounding of those that want to help you rise and those that want to see you fall. A fun read.


My Rating:
4 Stars


Reviewed By:
Krissy's Bookshelf Reviews
http://kkmalott.booklikes.com/

Note: I received a digital copy in exchange for an honest review from the author.

Synopsis:

 

In the early 22nd century, Mars has been fully colonized and terraformed by humans. On this new Earth colony the members of the MCPF (Mars Colonial Police Force) keep the peace. Liberty Rise is a gifted mutant with the power to manipulate time using her “mind-shifting” technique. As a member of the Mindcop division, she must use her skill to solve paranormal crimes.

When a recluse scientist named Dr. Andreas Hitzig threatens the safety of Mars, Liberty and the MCPF must intervene.

 

 

My thoughts:

 

 This was a great short book to introduce you into the world of the Mindcop Dossiers series.

I thought it gave you just enough to see what is in store for the rest of the books and gave a good idea of the world building.

It all seemed pretty fast paced, I liked what I saw in this short book, good characters and story telling, the writing was easy to follow as well and good.

It was short but it was pretty good and overall I rate it at 4★

 

2.75 stars: The book was entertaining but couldn’t get me excited.

Copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

A stolen treasure that hides a secret more valuable than gold itself, a recreated Roman Empire full of political intrigue where magic has been forbidden and almost forgotten, and a hero that will slowly unravel all the secrecy and mysteries.

From the very start of the book, our protagonist, Senior Centurion of the Roman Legion Tullus, will be riding into battle, what is nothing but promising. The particular turning of events will give him an unrefusable opportunity which will lead him to Rome and the possibility of a better life.

This is probably a good moment to insert a warning: if you haven’t read the synopsis of this book, please DON’T. Let’s say that it is a little bit too informative.

So, unfortunately, after that very well written first battle the plot soothes and left me reading a quasi-predictable story (at least until half the book), spiced up with gore and sex scenes, and with a bunch of characters I couldn’t really relate to:

- Tullus is a hero who is honest and does not so honest things to achieve the goals that he thinks are honest.
- The women, Ana and Eliana, are both portrayed as strong characters, but they both have a slightly neurotic side.
- Norbanus, the tribune, is the best developed character in my opinion. He lets us see his past and what exactly fuels his actions and his greed for power.
- Scorpio is that bad man that does bad thing. It would have been cooler if there was some development or a little more information about his past.
- Celestra, the incantra leopardess, that is as intelligent as any human being and posses the power of summoning thought provoked spells. She’s pretty awesome, I can’t deny.

In general, there is a palpable sense of drama that, for my personal liking, goes a little over the top drenching everything: the plot, dialogues, characters and the actions they take, making it all seem a little absurd at times (example: the whole leopard king disguise and act). But, of course, that’s a pretty subjective opinion.

Regarding the historical settings, I’m no Roman history expert, but it does feel really good. We set off from the prologue with the Tacfarinas rebellion, through the ascension of Emperor Caligula and until the actual change of mind during his rule which inspired lots and very interesting rumors that the author uses fully. It’s pretty clear that the author did a good share of investigation for this book.

As for the plot, there seems to be a separation between the trilogy plot and the actual plot of this book. This book establishes a well conformed, good paced story with a begining, middle and ending, but the trilogy plot seems to barely advance reveling very little about, for example, what happened to magic and air paladins or what is exactly the value of the stolen treasure.

Concluding, I would say The Leopard Vanguard has everything needed for a light, entertaining read: adventure, action, gore, sex and romance, with a strong point on historical setting. I wouldn’t jump into this looking for fantasy and lots of magic, complex plot or political intrigue (as it’s quite transparent to the reader).

A final thanks to T.A Uner for allowing me to read his books and being so very attentive during the whole process.