I rather enjoyed this book, but I must admit that it is not very good. The author gets too hung up on protocol descriptions. And clothing descriptions. And speeches. Those are arguably the worst. Yes, I understand the whole lack-of-jungen thing is a big deal, but the repeated speeches about how unacceptable the V'dan behaviour is can easily get on your nerves. Plus, it is seriously unbelievable in some places. I understand prejudice can be insidious, but the V'dan have been hit over the head with the error of their viewpoint. I am sure this does not always change the way they see things, but at the very least they know that those viewpoints are unacceptable, so to air them in a critical moment when giving medical aid to someone who has been attacked seems a bit much. Particularly when said medical worker blames the victim for being attacked. I don't believe a well-trained professional would have said anything of the kind if the victim had been a true juvenile., so that should translate to not saying it here either.
Despite all that, I liked reading this book. I guess I enjoy methodical descriptions and some self-righteousness at times... And one really good point is that both the Terran and the V'dan society are truly without misogyny. With the major cliffhanger at the end, I immediately continued in book 3. ( )

It ended well

Unfortunately, most of the book was made up of reasonable people having reasonable conversations about the same problem. Over. And over. And over. A bit boring. Diplomats being diplomatic does not make for riveting prose.

The last 1/5th of the book had some movement and ended with an off-screen space battle that resolved into a very momentous declaration. The presence of one particular character was actually the worst decision in the book.

I loved the original series. This is shaping up to be much like Star Wars: 4, 5, & 6 rocked; then there was 1, 2, & 3. Still readable, but not something I will ever consider reading again.

I will most likely buy the next in the series because I ^do^ like the universe and I have invested the time. ( )

Continuing Jackie's diplomatic story as she and her mate Li'reth attempt to form an alliance with the V'dans. Very engaging and detail oriented, the majority of the story is about the V'Dans not respecting the Terrans, treating them as juveniles because they do not have jungen markings and the severe consequences of not letting go of their prejudices.

Lots of struggles and several diplomatic incidents. Li'eth and Jackie's bond continue to strengthen as they go through these struggles. There is so much texture and depth the author makes you feel very immersed in their world. This is a to be continued story so you'll want to have the next book, 'The Blockade,' close at hand so you can continue the story. Love this series, love the attention to detail.

More of my reviews can be found at https://wyldheartreads.wordpress.com/ ( )

At its core this book is about Earth's first contact with aliens and its affects on both cultures. The book has some merit in that it mocks racial prejudice. The V'Dan are born with tattoos that change as they get older. Humans who are directly related to them aren't born with then. The V'Dan use this difference as an excuse to treat Humans as children. Humans have their own prejudices to deal with. They are frighten by human sized Spider like aliens who are more advanced than they are. All the parties in this book need what the other has to offer. The question this book explores is if they can get over their fears phobias and prejudices to co-operate? The book has a romantic subplot running through it. The human heroine in the story is psychically bonded with a V'Dan whose mother is the Empress of the empire. If the two protagonists are separated by too large a distance for too long a time they will die. The question is will the politics of the imperial court prevent this? Johnson uses this book to take pot shots at religion. The V'Dan call anyone with psychic powers holy ones. Psychic powers are viewed theologically. This is contrasted with human approach to same thing which is .scientific. In this area the humans are clearly more advanced than the V'Dan because of their scientific approach. This contrast is highlighted by humans approach legal and ethical issues to these abilities. The exploration and exploitation of psychic abilities is a two edged sword in science fiction. They can enhance the story or give the writer and excuse them for a Deus ex machine ending. In the case of this story Johnson used them as the later Ultimately I was disappointed with this book. It should have been shorter. Johnson did not need to describe in detail what each of the characters was wearing at each meeting. Toward the middle of the book I began to skim those pages. The action sequences felt truncated and rushed. The book's emphasis is diplomacy. These sequences are done well but they telegraph the stories end. ( )

Very good. It continues almost directly from The Terrans - First Contact is done, now diplomatic contact must take place. Problems range from an unnecessarily abrupt introduction to the K'Katta (arachnoid aliens) to a robot assault on Jackie - both internal problems, more or less - to a stubborn insistence that Terrans are juvenile V'Dan, both from V'Dan and from other alien races. The latter builds up until there's a serious crisis at the climax of the book...and it ends. It's not _exactly_ a cliffhanger, but there are certainly a lot of threads hanging - from Terran interaction with the Alliance to Jackie and Li'eth's personal lives. And the chapter from the next book appended at the end only opens those questions up further. I'm waiting patiently...patiently...patiently... ( )