The Stars Entwined

The Aryshan War, Book 1

De: Jon Del Arroz

Narrado por: Zak Jordan

The Aryshan Empire and Earth are on the brink of war!

The Stars Entwined is the first installment in an epic space opera series by multiple award-nominated science-fiction writer Jon Del Arroz. If you like Old Man’s War by John Scalzi or Rogue World by B.V. Larson, then you’ll love this epic adventure with action, intrigue, and an escalating interstellar war between galactic civilizations.

After several recent attacks along the border of Aryshan space, internal affairs agent Sean Barrows is brought to Palmer Station to ensure the Interplanetary Navy’s on the right track in their terrorism investigations. What he discovers could lead to the biggest war the galaxy has ever seen. Sean’s work leads him to his most dangerous assignment yet—into the heart of Aryshan territory as a spy.

Meanwhile, Aryshan Commander Tamar is being groomed by the Ruling Committee to one day assume leadership of her people. First, she needs to prove herself in warship command. As tensions increase with Earth, Tamar finds herself increasingly isolated as one of the few in opposition to the war. Her troubles deepen when she comes face-to-face with a new member of her crew, the most intriguing man she’s ever encountered.

©2018 Jonathan Del Arroz (P)2023 Jonathan Del Arroz

decent story, not the best reader

the story is ok. not the best, not the worst...but the reader doesn't do the narration justice. the very flat delivery is a bit disappointing, but not overly annoying

Great story telling, good characters!

It starts a bit slow but as soon as it gets going you can't put it down!

Kind of a love story

I feel like this is more of a love story but still really good. There’s action and stuff. Feel like the setting could’ve been fleshed out more in the beginning. Leaves you flying blind for a bit, but maybe that’s intended?

Great find

Great characters, plot development and pacing. I've been wanting to find a new sci-fi series for a while. This one is really good. I'm buying the rest of the series right now.

good stuff

little slow at first, but picks up really fast. good stuff. space spy thriller. 15 words

Interesting sci fi story

I enjoyed the story. In the same vein as a Star Trek book. I would recommend to anyone who enjoys science fiction

Overall pretty good, but the plot has some gaps

I enjoyed this book enough to finish listening. The performance was solid, the characters are likeable and distinct, and the plot is interesting. I am a bit lukewarm on it though and it seems like something is missing, though I am not sure exactly what that is.

I did notice some of what I won't go so far as to call plot holes, as they may be covered later on, but a few things stood out.

1. I remember one part of the book mentioned how the main character needed to avoid using human idioms, but shortly thereafter did so, and nothing happened and it was just understood by the aliens. This felt like a mistake or a missed opportunity either for him to realize he did it later and be surprised that he got away with it and think about the cultural similarities or something, or to have it be a plot event of some sort.

2. The romance arc in the story just feels abrupt and forced. It's central to the plot, but it just happens too fast and I found myself thinking the main character just has incredibly bad judgement, though only on one subject. It would have been more believable if he had spent some time struggling with his loyalty and the incredible risk he was taking, but instead he just barrels ahead with it. It's not entirely unbelievable, but for someone who is supposed to be an intelligence officer and not some impulsive teenager, it just didn't work for me.

3. There was a lot of material around how the aliens are basically immune to deceit because of their bond and basically being able to read each other's minds to a degree, but they then proceed to lie to each other and even kill each other.


None of these are necessarily plot holes, and I think it will be possible for the plot to progress to show that a lot of these things represent common beliefs and social norms that can be violated rather than really being as strong as the characters think it is initially. Still, they gave me some pause, as that loop isn't closed in the first book, or foreshadowed for a next book, so I have to wonder if they were mistakes or just a mystery to be solved later in the series.

Overall though it is still an enjoyable listen,