The Pirates of Aireon

This review is from: The Airmen (Part One: The Pirates of Aireon) (Kindle Edition)

When reading the new novel by R.J.Ashby and the first in a series called The Airmen (this first book is titled The Pirates of Aireon) I was quickly reminded of a series of Sci Fi books from my youth called The Lensmen series by the famous E.E. Doc Smith. Like that series, in this book we are quickly thrown into a world where men are men and women are even more dangerous. This is real swashbuckler reading where the action starts on the very first page and does not stop until the last page. The author throws everything he can think of at his young hero called Jardan and as the body count rises we find ourselves drawn further and further into the world of this young airman as he strives to stay alive on the wild water planet while battling monsters (both human and alien) all while being hunted by one of the most evil characters I have come across for a long time, the unforgettable Jatta.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to the second in the series published by Dragonfall Press. It has a real old fashioned feel to it (and I mean that in a good way). This is not a book about the niceties of life, not a book that wants you to take a deep breath and sink into some fantasy creation of gentle creatures and romantic settings. This is a kick-arse adventure book where action is piled on top of action, the whole story weaving precariously back and forth, doomed to collapse any moment under the weight of chaotic action - except it does not collapse. Instead it just makes the Reader's heart beat faster and faster as you wonder how the young hero will manage to escape this time, and then this time and again.

When I finished this book I just held it for a moment and tried to catch my breath and then I looked at the last page and read the title of book 2 in the series - The Kraken Hunters. That is as good a sign as you can get for a book. Having finished the first I immediately wanted to start the second. To R.J. Ashby I can only say,'Hurry Up!'