Good idea, nice writing but everything else i found rather lacking in this book and wish the author would have maybe taken a bit longer to work over or out so that it all was ... well more i guess? Since as it is it feels a bit boring and underwhelming which i personally think is not at all what anyone wants reading more or less a soap opera set in space!

This was a nice military space opera.
Certainly had a nice twist and was an easy read..with the pages flying past.

Unfortunately I was unable to finish Blackwelder 2164. I loved the concept and the setting, but the plot was disappointing and I didn’t care for any of the rushed relationships. 

 

Blackwelder 2164 starts by introducing two gay/bi men as star crossed lovers, which is what I was really interested in, especially as it was set in space. The men are separated, and right after, one of the men falls for someone else. I wasn’t here for that, since he’d just left his best friend and secret lover behind. He moved on far too quickly.

 

I gave up on the book shortly after, because the focus was more on this new romance or crush than any sci-fi action.

i love-love-love space sci-fi that has lgbtqia elements in it because space is gay and we all know it.
however, i didn't like the book. i liked the setting and the romance, but i didnt like the plot itself and the characters were very bland. the narration is too bumpy, i think author tried to get more than he could achieve.

I was interested in reading this first and foremost because a big part of this book was LGBTQA representation, in space. You can’t get much better than that. As I read the summary of this novel, I really expected a lot of emotion from Blackwelder’s story, through love and life-or-death situations, but at the same time expected a lot of world-building, because the setting is military bases, in space, with a side of enemy aliens warring against the humans. I sadly didn’t get much of either from the story, mostly due to how fast-paced the story turned out to be, and because there were just so many characters, I could hardly keep up, and I’ve tackled novels where there seem to be too many characters, like Game of Thrones. The world in Blackwelder isn’t very vivid, and I didn’t always know what characters looked like or what to expect from them because the blurring together made some of them appear flat. There was too much background to cover with the number of characters the novel included, characters who were important, and Blackwelder himself didn’t thrill me, although I did enjoy Juan-Miguel. Despite the mild disappointment, this book is still packed with action and fire-fights that I really enjoyed, and I am interested in seeing more of the alien species if another book is to come. If you enjoy a quick, sci-fi story with gay romance and action, this is definitely the novel for you.

Sadly, this is the first book in my life that I have ever DNF’d. This is a resolution I’m making this year as I have far too many books to get through to linger on ones which I’m really not enjoying. I did give this book 3 chapters, but I really just didn’t want to read it and the cheesiness was too much for me as the relationship was already annoying me. Not my style sadly, there isn’t much more to say about this badly portrayed relationship and poorly portrayed characters. I received this book as an eARC from NetGalley and NineStar in return for an unbiased review

Blackwelder 2164 was a fast-paced, intriguing read with a lot of diverse characters, aliens who attack for no reason (or so it seems), warships cruising through our solar system, inhabited planets and moons, a network of intrigues and in the middle of it all is a likeable male protagonist who loves the wrong person. The story concetrates rather on the conflict between humans and aliens than on romance though, which I normally prefer. In this case the romance part just felt a bit too distant since readers are not involved in the process of "finding each other". One day Spencer Blackwelder and the man of his dreams meet and some pages later they are already declared a couple. There is nothing wrong with it the couple just couldn't trigger my affection for them.

This book is a standalone as far as I understand, but there are enough questions left that a sequel might be possible. So maybe there will be more? If so I would definitely return to this universe.

I received this from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
My rating is really 3.5 for this book. I enjoyed the concept, but the telling was uneven. It was like the author put together a bunch of short stories without really transitioning from one story to the next. The ending also felt rushed. I would like to go back to that universe as long as it is a smoother story.

This is a Sci-Fi book with a little MM romance.  It is set in space and has some great battle scenes in it.  I don’t read a lot of Sci-Fi, but I really enjoyed this story. The pace was really good, so it kept me interested and the characters are well developed.  The description of the alien environments was really interesting.  Overall a great read.

I really enjoyed this book! The story started fast and almost felt rushed at first, but the writing is done so well that you get pulled in so fast and it doesn’t feel overdone. There are some spicy love scenes that get pretty intense. As for the characters and setting they are great. You learn enough about the characters to feel for them but not too much that you know their whole life story. The setting is unique and definitely fun for a sci-fi fan! I would definitely recommend this book and for sure would read it again!

In this book, war is brewing between the Elumerians and the Allied Earth Forces. While the Elumerians appear to be the aggressors, they are actually launching a retaliatory attack. 
There is a lot that could be done with this plot, and the book succeeds in places. I found myself confused in the opening paragraph, however, and it took a while for me to put the pieces together.

Special thanks to Netgalley for sending me my very first ARC!

Overall, I enjoyed this, and thought it was a decent read. If you're want a short, fun diverse sci-fi with an M/M romance, this would be a good pick. Although, let me just say, that I am super happy to read a sci-fi that's diverse, AND has awesome characters. I have a tendency to find sci-fi that has a diverse cast of characters, but all or majority are so flat and boring. 

First of all, I love the hell out of Blackwelder as a character. I was worried that he was going to be your typical badass sci-fi hero, but then he proved to have a personality, and is quite the flirt. His romance with Juan Miguel is rather adorable, and of course, Juan Miguel is also a fun character. The side characters did have some shining moments, especially the scenes with Vernita Burton, but I just wish we had some more time with them. I loved how casually diverse the cast is, and I wanted more of their friendships and relationships. 

The writing was simple and effective, which I vastly prefer over purple prose. There are some places where I think some of the description could have been cut down, especially when we're being introduced to a new setting. 

The pacing was a bit rushed, but I like how we got into the story almost immediately. I was hooked, and I wanted to know what was going to happen with this war, and how it was going to affect the characters. Super fast pacing is my kind of thing, however, slowing this down might've given us a little bit more worldbuilding and character development that would've also made this book even better. 

This last thing is a nitpick, and doesn't count toward the rating of the book, but I figured I should mention it. The cover is a pretty generic sci-fi space opera-y cover, and I think might blend in, especially if you're scrolling through the sci-fi section on Amazon or Goodreads. It's not a bad cover by any means, but like I said, it's kind of easy to look past unless you're seeking it out. 

Also, I love that the main ship in the story is called the Barack. Just thought I should mention that too.

An action packed adventure. There is romance in the book, and some sex scenes hinted at, but the primary focus of the plot is preparing for, and then engaging with Earth's alien enemies. I liked the all the action, and people actually do get hurt and die, instead of just wandering away with a flesh wound. There are gay, bi and straight characters, and they all feel fleshed out. The background given about the politics of Earth, and why most countries are now monarchies isn't given a lot of detail though, and the book does end on a cliffhanger of sorts regarding the war. A pretty good start, hopefully any additional entries in this world give more backstory.