Ascending [Mass Market Paperback]

To this extent, Ascending is simply a good sequel. While it is not truly necessary to have read Expendable (the first book in this series, and the debut novel by James Alan Gardner), there is A LOT which the reader will not understand without having first read Expendable. Similarly, starting the series with Ascending will likely cause the reader fits, as without the "backstory" of Expendable, the main character - Oar, an all-glass female humanoid - is extremely abrasive in the manner in which she tells the tale.

Many areas from Expendable which leave the reader wondering "Why" and "How" are fortunately explained somewhat satisfactorily in Ascending. This novel also expands much more into the realm of the zany at times, albeit muted by Oar's telling of the story.

Overall, Ascending is a good sequel, as well as a good novel... but only for those who have read and enjoyed Expendable. All others should set Ascending aside and read Expendable first.

In "Ascending", Oar is the first person narrator. And (excuse the pun) Oar is a bore. We have no reason to like her, or care about her at all. In fact, the tedium of reading her banal comments virtually destroyed any joy in what otherwise might have been an interesting story concept.

The moral of the story: Only try the first person ploy if it's a person you would want to hang out with. I'd probably skip this book if I had it to do over again.

[Ascending] is a good story, action driven as always, and highly recommended. I did have a few reservations about his choice of Oar, a character from a previous Ramos story, as narrator. Oar comes across as an amalgam of Candide and Commander Data, and the first person narrative occasionally does become wordy and tedious.

This minor quibble aside, Ascending is a worthy addition to the League of Peoples series. And I'm looking forward to the next novel from this fine writer.