was unable to review this, as i missed the download deadline. I will watch for more from this author in the future, as they sound very interesting

Of the four samples, only the Starship’s Mage held my interest. This was the only sample I read all the way through. For Starship’s Mage story, I'll give it four stars. The other three samples, I just couldn't get interested in and did not read the entire sample. That said, the one story I liked was good enough to give the entire sampler book a solid three stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital copy of this sampler for review.
I usually prefer my space opera adventures to occur in tv show or movie form but the author’s writing is exciting and drives you to the edge of your seat. He especially has a knack for writing realistic characters in a futuristic setting with very believable battle-sized problems for them to face. For most of these stories I was hooked and will definitely be downloading a couple as soon as possible!

#1 Starship’s Mage
Surprisingly, this intermixing of fantasy and science fiction was a let down only because of the huge amount of technical jargon was too much for me to read the story smoothly. However, the characters seemed very interesting and the exploration of the relationship between physics and magic was an intriguing component.

#2 Ashen Stars
I NEED MORE, was my immediate thought soon as I finished sampling the chapters for this particular title. Snarky characters with “nerves of steel” facing off rebels in intergalactic battles! That’s like all my favourite things thrown in the mix with a promise that this is just the beginning!

#3 Terran Privateer
This sampler started out a little slow but once all the main protagonsits were established, the real fun began. By the end, I had chills! I really enjoyed the badass characters (scientists and space fighters alike!) and the cliché of sudden thrust into battle. Still a lot of technical jargon but the character’s personalities developing alongside the story makes up for it.

#4 Castle Federation: Space Carrier Avalon
It’s like SVU in space! A newly appointed Captain on an old starship realizes he may have inherited more than just that; assault, abuse, murder and a cover up will definitely make this a thrilling and unique read!

This is a great introduction to Glynn Stewart's books. He has several series and you get a taste of each. I had read all but one book featured and after reading the start of Starship's Mage I went to Amazon and got the entire book. All of the series are very well written and fun to read. Each is a unique science fiction story and series.

I adore preview collections and the Space Opera Sampler featuring works of Glynn Stewart did not disappoint. Includes Episode 1 of Starship's Mage, Ashen Stars, the prequel novella to Exile, a sample of Space Carrier Avalon, book 1 in the Castle Federation series, and a sample of The Terran Privateer, book 1 in the Duchy of Terra series. Great fun and highly recommended! 5/5

Pub Date 23 May 2018  

Thanks to Faolan's Pen Publishing and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are fully mine.

#SpaceOperaSampler #NetGalley

I haven’t read much of Glynn Stewart’s works, with the exception of being up to date on the Exile series. So reading this sample bundle was really informative. I know what series of his I’ll be reading next, and in what order.
What was the most interesting, for me, was getting to see how all of the series ended up fitting together. Okay, not all of the series (that I can tell) but more than I expected. I hadn’t been looking for any connections, but I still couldn’t help but find them as I read. It’s a fantastic touch – there’s nothing I love more than expansive world building. Plus it’s nice to confirm that Glynn Stewart has been writing in the same world that he’s built. Eventually I’m going to have to read through everything, then I’ll have a better idea of the order of events.

Starship’s Mage:

When I first read the concept for this series I honestly wasn’t sure what to think. While I’ve read both science fiction and fantasy novels (quite a lot of them, actually), I haven’t read that many that blended the two. Certainly not in the way described here…but it works. It absolutely works.
It took me about a chapter or two to really get into the groove of things, but once I did I found myself devouring the pages, eagerly looking for the next bit of information. Before I knew it I had finished episode one. I think I would have read all the episodes at once, had I had them readily available.
Starships’s Mage managed to completely take me by surprise in just how well it was written. I honestly mean it when I say that I fully intend to pick up the rest of it, as well as any following books in the series. I don’t think it’ll be possible for me to get enough of this concept.
Damien is a brilliant but sympathetic character. It didn’t take long before I found myself rooting for him. His unwavering determination despite the odds was inspiring, and I love that he never let himself get negative about the odds he was given. He just dealt with it. That combined with his unique insight and abilities…well it made him a very likable character.
What I really loved was the complexity of the runes and how they interacted with technology. The more they showed me about how it worked, the more I wanted to know about it. I can’t wait to see our main character (who seems particularly talented in reading the flow of runes) discovers, reads, or learns in the next episode.
I can’t wait to see what happens in episode two and later. I know that Glynn Stewart has written many other science fiction series, and I still have a small sampler pack to go through. It’s taking all of my willpower not to immediately jump on to the next in this series. If I end up loving his other series as much, I may be in for a whole lot of reading in my future (I know, what’s new about that).


Ashen Stars:

Ashen Stars is the novella preceding the events that occur in Exile (which only recently released). Honestly, you could read these in either order and be okay. The prequel will help you understand the main character better, but reading them in the reverse order won’t hinder you either (it’s how I did it, and I had no trouble understanding what was happening in either plotline).
Exile is the only series by Glynn Stewart that I’m up to date on. I will say that what I’ve read of his other series has impressed me, and that I wish I had found him and his writing sooner. Still, I’m enjoying the world that’s been established here.
This whole Novella is about Isaac Gallant, in one way or another. It establishes his character; right away we’re aware that he’s stubborn, hardworking, and determined not to ride on his mother’s coattails. As we delve in further it becomes clear that there’s more driving the man. He’s haunted by the actions of his mother, and even now debating about the morality and ethicality of allowing her to continue. It explains a lot about Gallant’s actions in Exile (specifically the stubborn refusal to take too much control – he fears becoming his mother).
Gallant’s journey here not only establishes the world for us, but it teaches Gallant a very important lesson as well. He knows what is right and wrong, but many of the people that surround him do not, and the longer he pretends otherwise the more complicit he becomes in their actions.
I loved this novella – I found myself diving headlong into it, and really wish it had continued. Having read Exile I will say that I do hope there’s one more novella coming out, something for between these two events. I want to see more of this transitioning perspective that Gallant is struggling with. So far what I’ve seen has been incredibly well written.



Sample from the Terra Privateer:

This is from the sample of the Terra Privateer, which is the first in the Duchy of Terra series.
The Terra Privateer looks like it’ll be a very interesting read. Here I got to read the first eight chapters, and I’m more than a little bit curious about what will follow. Like other works by Glynn Stewart this series is very clearly a space opera, focusing more on tech and aliens this time around. If it’s anything like his other series, it should be a good one!
While I don’t think I enjoyed the plot as much for this one (so far – it’s only eight chapters so that very well could change for me) I will say that I absolutely adore the main characters. I wasn’t expecting to see them in the situations they were thrown into…and that was tough. I hadn’t realized how attached I had gotten until that point.
This series has a lot of potential, not to mention that it has a chance of going in multiple different directions. I’ll confess that I’m more than a little bit curious on how it all ends up.



Sample from Space Carrier Avalon:

This is from Space Carrier Avalon, the first in the Castle Federation series.
I really enjoyed the sample from Space Carrier Avalon – though to be honest I wasn’t really expecting to. It ended up reminding me of a more detailed and hyper realistic version of Rebels, in a weird way.
There’s so much happening in just the six chapters given here. There’s a new captain on board, a space craft to get in ship shape (sorry for the pun), espionage, smuggling, murder, assault, and even some NCIS levels of crime tracking.
Listing it all out like that, it’s actually hard to believe that it’s really only six chapters of the book instead of the whole book. Man, what else must happen in it? I’m sure that they’ll continue down the rabbit hole that’s already been started – tracking down the criminals behind everything. That should be interesting.

A very nice sampler of the type of work this Author can bring to work. He incorporates the right amount of realism into his books to make the characters relatable and just enough fantasy to bring it to life with the Mage series. Highly Recommend as a way to figure out which stories you will like.