The Trafalgar Gambit

Ark Royal, Book 3

By: Christopher G. Nuttall

Narrated by: Ralph Lister

Humanity is losing the war. The once-mighty space navies have been crippled, officers and crew have been stretched to the limit, and Earth herself has come under heavy attack. The end cannot be long delayed. For Admiral Smith and the crew of HMS Ark Royal, the stakes have never been so high. The one hope is to make contact with alien factions that might oppose the war. But, as Ark Royal sets off on a desperate diplomatic mission, it rapidly becomes clear that there are both human and alien factions that wish to fight the war to the bitter end - and that her previous missions have sown the seeds of success...or total failure.

©2014 Christopher G. Nuttall (P)2014 Audible Inc.

Mr. Nuttall we get it...really...we do

What did you love best about The Trafalgar Gambit?

It is a good basic storyline, with a lot of room to expand in. The problem is the author tends to dwell on things over and over again. The Ark Royal is old, and armored and the only ship that can stand up to the aliens. OK. The Crown Prince is out there too. OK. There is some problems with the Royal succession. OK. Please stop repeating it aud naseum. The story is worth the listen, as long as you are prepared for the repeats. You do get involved in the storyline of what will happen, and will there be a breakthrough, and how will it happen. Stick with it and hope the author gets the message and the next book is cleaner and smoother.

If you’ve listened to books by Christopher G. Nuttall before, how does this one compare?

Mr. Nuttall seems to make the same mistakes in all three books, maybe he rammed them out at once. His editors let him down by not cleaning it up and asking for a rewrite.

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

Not sure, he does a good job. Characters are distinct and clear.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Don't hold the repeats against me, please.....

Any additional comments?

A good, original way to treat first contact, and possibly a realistic one. The tramline idea is good and explains FTL transits well. The characters are good, if we just got one dose of them we would all be better off. But still a good listen.

Fantastic end to a great story

This entire series was probably one of my favorites in a long time.

And this book ends the storyline very well.

I don't think I will move on to the next book because I know it fallows a completely different set of characters it goes in a different direction, and I know it sounds cheesy but I just don't think I can give up the emotional attachment I add to this story line.

Great 3rd entry to a series that I truly enjoy.

A very enjoyable entry to the series. I plan on listening again, and look forward to more from the author.

A must have book!

Great story and a fantastic climax! The performance was excellent, and really adds to the story. Was totally worth the time to listen too.

Good story

I'm really enjoying this series, it's believable, scientifically possible with good character development. Looking forward to #4. Reader does tend to overdue the voices somewhat. 30 something sounds like a 70 year old and he can't do an American accent to save his life.

Odd reading

Strangely, the narrator for this book tended to lower his voice at the end of some sends is making it seem like there were words that were truncated. Otherwise, he was a great reader. The story was fluid and consistently interesting.

Cliched ending perhaps..

The series reminded me a wee bit of Battlestar Galactica's story line. Battlestar's story line was more rich I thought.

More of the same with a solid resolution

The strength of this series, the story arc of humanity's war with the Aliens, comes to a conclusion in The Trafalgar Gambit. Christopher Nuttall does not leave many loose ends as he builds the story to a crescendo that results in a satisfying ending to humanity's first interstellar war.

Fundamentally this book is more of the same as far as the characters and plot goes. If you are already sick of being reminded that Ark Royal is old and the only ship that humanity has that can stand up to the Aliens then you should move on, but if you want to find out if the Old Lady can survive another confrontation with the Aliens then you won't be strung along. Humanity is losing the war and Ark Royal is sent out on a final mission to make contact with a peaceful alien faction as a last chance to save humanity.

I am not a fan of "trilogies" that get milked for extra books so I applaud the fact that Nuttall wraps up the story arc of the war very nicely with this book. It concludes a solid military sci-fi trilogy and yet still allows for more books to begin with a new story arc. If book 2 kept you engaged then there is no reason not to pick up book 3 and see how it all ends.

Ralph Lister remains consistent as the narrator so I am giving him 4 stars this go round for yet another 3.5 star performance. :)

so unbelievably good!

i loved the whole ark royal story! i hope to find something that is half as good as this! if you are having doubt, i will at least say it was fantastic!

Good conclusion to an interesting military sci fi story

All three books were interesting and enjoyable. The narration was especially good. It seems humanity's future is dark, though. Those darn reporters and aristocrats are the bane of us.