Starship Eternal

War Eternal, Book 1

By: M. R. Forbes

Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer

Captain Mitchell "Ares" Williams is a space marine and the hero of the Battle for Liberty, whose shot heard 'round the universe saved the planet from a nearly unstoppable war machine. He's handsome, charismatic, and the perfect poster boy to help the military drive enlistment. Pulled from the war and thrown into the spotlight, he's as efficient at charming the media and bedding beautiful celebrities as he was at shooting down enemy starfighters.

After an assassination attempt leaves Mitchell critically wounded, he begins to suffer from strange hallucinations that carry a chilling and oddly familiar warning:

They are coming. Find the Goliath, or humankind will be destroyed.

Convinced that the visions are a side effect of his injuries, he tries to ignore them only to learn that he may not be as crazy as he thinks. The enemy is real and closer than he imagined, and they'll do whatever it takes to prevent him from rediscovering the centuries-lost starship.

Narrowly escaping capture, out of time and out of air, Mitchell lands at the mercy of the Riggers - a ragtag crew of former commandos who patrol the lawless outer reaches of the galaxy. Guided by a captain with a reputation for cold-blooded murder, they're dangerous, immoral, and possibly insane.

They may also be humanity's last hope for survival in a war that has raged beyond eternity.

©2015 M.R. Forbes (P)2015 Podium Publishing

Worth reading!!

We can tell going in that something bad is going to happen because Ares needs to be ejected from his hated talking head role. Raping the prime minister's wife will do it! I saw that coming, but I just don't believe her--that she was drugged, or brain-implant-manipulated; she seemed more like a little slut whining to stay on her rich, important husband's good side. The best parts are the fascinating clone idea, the time travel, messages from the past.

I started to lose interest when Ares got mixed up with the Riggers. His relationship with the captain is predictable. And instead of being a ship of maligned spec-ops people who chose exile over court-marshal, we have a ship full of murderers, thieves, and thugs. Now he has to watch his back and his front.

I am curious as to where this will go, but I hope the characters become more fully-fleshed, and more honorable.

Jeffrey Kafer seems to do a better job narrating than he does in The Empire's Corps, since I didn't recognize his voice.

A rolicking beginning to a new Space Opera!

I was given this audiobook by the author, narrator or publisher for free in return for an honest review through Audiobookblast dot com. There, legalese done. I am so glad I asked for a review copy of this book, because it was a really fun read! In the tradition of great space operas before it, it has a conspiracy with aliens behind the scenes, a deadly alien menace, a disgraced starship pilot looking to make things right, and a crew of misfits who come together to help save the day in some incredibly improbable but just possible ways. Forbes, More known for his urban fantasy books, makes a smooth transition to Sci-fi, with his trademark humor and talent for writing engaging characters you can really root for, and fast paced plotting that never lets the story lag. I really enjoyed this story, and can't wait for the next one. Jeffrey Kafer is quickly becoming one of my favorite narrators, easily in my top 5. Any fan of sci-fi should be able to get into and enjoy these books.

Loved it!

Have you listened to any of Jeffrey Kafer’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but JK is easy to listen to and did well with recurring accents and characters. In-story conversations were easy to follow and shock-moments were adequately shocking.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The slapping of Anderson.

Any additional comments?

I'd never heard of M.R. Forbes and came across this series randomly. That being said, I'm hooked! Forbes does a really good job of building and teasing your interest, giving you just enough to answer part of the questions while leaving you yearning for more.

A great story, but poorly performed

I’ve read all of the books in this series. I found them to be an engaging and fun read. I got the audible version for a bed time activity. The reader was … just that…she read with no inflection. Just words, no story. Disappointing.

Fun and bracing listen

This story was fast paced and just enough back story to keep you from being lost. A great read and looking forward to the next.

real good story

alot of action throughout the story the narrator was ok never hurd of the author before I listened to it but for being able to listen to this for free here I got the better end of the deal because this was a bad ass story and a real good start to a series

Good read.

Great story and the narration was great. I would recommend this fast paced story to anyone looking for action science fiction.

Fast paced Military Si-FI action.

Where does Starship Eternal rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I would rank it as above average, but not quite at the top. I haven't read a lot of Military Si-Fi in recent years apart from Ark Royal), but I enjoyed this novel.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Starship Eternal?

Several of the space battles/dog fighting sequences were thrilling.

What does Jeffrey Kafer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Jeffrey Kafer narrated reasonably well, brought individualism to the characters made them feel distinct and brought a sense of excitement to the action sequences.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Without giving too much away... there centainly was a lot of characters lost as the novel reached it's climax, the bravery of some characters was striking.

Any additional comments?

Enjoyable Si-Fi. Definitely the first in a series and a series I will follow if this first book is anything to go by. Highly recommened to any fans of Military Si-Fi.

This is an unbiased review given in exchange for a copy of the book.

I love it, but too much sex

I really enjoyed the book, but I'm pretty sure the author is living out some sex fantasies in their work. maybe I'm just jealous. either way, it is definitely worth a listen, good story and science, maybe...

Story

I felt like this story developed slow, and way too much whining by the lead character for me!