Mike Shepherd’s Kris Longknife is an intrepid, audacious, resolute, defiant, deserting mutineer. Although not all at once. And, in two weeks, she’ll be undaunted.
I can’t wait.
I was fortunate enough to discover Ms. Longknife when four or five books were already released. Messrs Barnes and Noble were fortunate, as well. Kris is tall, and strong, and keeps her stick-like figure by fighting bad guys and picking fattening croutons out of her salad. The daughter of a prime minister and the granddaughter of an elected king, she seeks the freedom that only a commission in the navy can give. An eclectic mix of talents gets her out of the trouble her mouth leads her into. Her work campaigning for her brother developed acute organizational and leadership skills. Her role as a princess and a politician’s daughter showed her how to confidently bluff her way through anything. And she has all the military skills that heroes of this genre tend to accumulate just by reading one holo-disk.
Her merry band includes a private bodyguard, a maid/lady-in-waiting with a secret past (and an almost uncanny ability to pack exactly what’s needed), and Tommy, her academy classmate and best friend. Interestingly enough, Tommy, whom I believe is Chinese-Irish, is Catholic. I don’t know Mr. Shepherd’s religious background (one site says he studied theology), but Kris does occasionally have moments wherein she wonders if Tommy’s faith might be something she should explore further. Then someone shoots at her, and she blows up their toilet, and the tender, quiet moment is over.
Let’s see, Mutineer hit bookstores in January of ’04. Elizabeth Moon’s first installment of the Ky Vatta series came out that August. The two share quite a few similarities: strong young heroine newly out of the academy (although, Ky was kicked out)…politically powerful family…making her mark by saving the known universe… E.M. does give the series a blurb, though, so I don’t suspect any nefarious plots. It almost felt like they were given the same prompt and told to go write a series.
I have to say, as much as I love Ms. Moon, Kris is just fun. The series is lighter, fluffier. Not completely devoid of angst or intrigue, and not high-literature, but not a soap opera, either. A pleasant serial. I read a review early on that stated something to the effect that Mr. Shepherd grew up in a military family and his knowledge of the chain of command showed through. What a horrible thing to say! “Chain of command”? Whatever. His writing does start out a little rough, then improves over the course of the series. And I’m not entirely sure I could tell you one book’s story from another (it’s been a while since I’ve read them). But there’s a time for serious, deep, philosophical science fiction that leads to communications satellites and the quandary over whether aliens have souls. And there’s a time for an airplane flight to a beach. Or, in these trying economic times, a sugar-coated fat bomb and a latte. Not that Kris would eat a donut, but you don’t have to save the universe, so indulge.
Bonus:
Here’s a video with Mike Shepherd, taken at Orycon 30.
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Kersley Fitzgerald is a not-terribly-frustrated unpublished writer who talks about other people’s work as if she knows anything other than what she likes to read. If you’d like to join in, we need more reviewers. Discover a new book, movie, software, robot, or cereal? Write about it and send it to slushpile@thefridaychallenge.com with “Critical Thinking” in the subject line.
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