Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsQuick, easy read with all the standard characters
Reviewed in the United States on May 28, 2014
When you call something a "quick" read, you might mean more than simply "the author didn't use any big words I had to look up." It could mean, for example, that you didn't really miss anything important by skimming. As in "Pirates of the Outrigger Rift."
I read "Pirates" because it was a free download via the Kindle for Samsung app, and because it was the best-reviewed of four choices. The main characters aren't pirates, by the way, nor is the chief villain. Our heroic protagonists include two former space Marines--one now a private detective, the other an undercover agent--a freelance space pilot with a thinking spaceship, and an on-the-run gal who's left the mean streets for the corporate world. "Pirates" paints an ugly picture of that world: corporations are all-powerful, headed up by the mostly dimwitted heirs of the original founders, and are a breeding ground for all kinds of nastiness. And did I mention they're evil? Small wonder that one enterprising crook decides to remake himself as a corporate go-getter and allies himself anonymously to a band of pirates. Why should the bluebloods have all the money?
The problem with "Pirates" is that it's predictable. We've seen these characters before. But that's the fun of it, too: we know what we're getting. It's a fast-paced ride that blends in a few bits of less-standard sci-fi fare (one character reminded me of "Minority Report," and I couldn't help but picture Opportunity City as a "Blade Runner" lookalike). What you make of it will depend on whether you're in the mood for light reading or something serious.
