Elite: Reclamation

It was alright, the story had a lot of promise early on, but there are some truly strange turns and some kind of ridiculous coincidences that pop up to make the story work. The protagonist doesn't do much to endear you to her, and a lot of things to the opposite, which I can't go into without spoiling, that makes reviewing any book incredibly hard without referencing specific things. Her motivations are fairly petty, and she seemingly gets character motivation from single conversations with random people. Frankly, if you finish the book, you can look back and see that she did everything wrong and was selfish, but is praised as a hero who was righteous.Compared to some of the other Elite books, it at least ties up the story at the end for the most part, but those resolutions are packed in on top of one another. They also did an in-game event tied to this book and a sequel, but it was a complete disaster that forcefully excluded a vast majority of the playerbase in favor of some who got the inside track.

The book had kept me engaged from beginning almost to the end; I did finish it, which I think is high praise when there are so many interesting books to read, but I'm not sure if I would have if the book wouldn't have been set in the world of Elite. The said, the world shines through and makes for an interesting adventure for the fans of the game.MINOR SPOILERS ALERTThere were a number of points I disliked -- for my taste, most of the characters were not particularly likable, and the ending felt a bit rushed (eg., there is a scene where the antagonist duels the protagonist and says how much he wants to kill her in no uncertain terms, and less than a paragraph later, he says "I don't want to kill you."). Characters also don't seem to have much inner conflict or internal dialogues going on, things just sort of happen, and they roll with it as best as they can. For example, a character is stranded on a planet in relative isolation for 25 (twenty five) years before he manages to escape ... he doesn't seem bothered in the slightest -- one or two sentences mention him shrugging it off, and that's about it. I would expect a bit more emotion from somebody in his position. Also, closer to the end the protagonist has one of the "bad guys" at her mercy, and since she doesn't come off as a particularly kind or compassionate herself, instead of murdering him on the spot, the bad guy suddenly has a dagger and lunges at her, giving her the perfect excuse to kill him without losing any karmic points. Almost the same thing happens with the next bad guy a few pages later. The book is a solid effort, and I would recommend it to fans of the game and of space operas in general, but I can not fullheartedly give it 5, or even 4 stars, its main flaw being that it is somewhat, for a lack of a better word, uneven.The good part, however, was the plot. Like I've said when I started writing this review, it kept me interested enough to continue reading regardless of the flaws, wondering what will happen next in the face of all the intrigue, and with all these characters having agendas of their own, I was genuinely curious to see how the story'll play out.

I can't believe i went two years and didn't pick this up. If you love Elite as much as most do, this should be required reading. You should be able to pick up an audio version by flying to the Prism system in-game and have your ship play it to you. Wait a minute.... somebody from Frontier needs to get on that.I normally am not the "fan-fic" type and I had been given the misconception that's this what the Elite books were, but far from it. I will be going to pick up the other Elite books by the other authors and am really looking forward to Drew's second contribution to the series.

I’ve just finished reading this adventure in words, and I’m quite pleased. I’m new-ish to Elite and the world it’s been building for so long, having just joined the fray with Elite: Dangerous. That said, I thoroughly enjoy what the game offers and as I delve deeper I desire lore and stories to flesh out my experience.With Reclamation I can feel this author’s care for the subject, and I can appreciate the details that are brought to life.With all that said, I must now return to the game for a time, until I acquire time enough again to devote to another story. I’ll be in the black, catch me if you can. o7

Drew really seems to be a likeable guy, based on his availability to and his regular engagement with the community around Elite: Dangerous, and I sometimes get the impression that everyone who plays the game absolutely loves this book, but I really didn't like it.I'm even glad I didn't buy it as a paperback, to store it with the rest of my collection. I have read hundreds of SF novels (I own most of them), and that is maybe part of the reason I thought this book isn't good enough: it just can't stand up to the competition that is out there. I have only finished it because of the background it provides to some of the lore of the game. I'll probably read the next one as well when it comes out, but only because I think I may miss some bit of background information if I don't.

Whether or not you play Elite Dangerous, this is a great sci-fi adventure story . All of the threads are well woven together, with plenty of excitement along the wayThe characters appear to be heavily influenced by star wars, we have the equivalent of a Luke a leia, and a Han slash obi-wan character, but the author does a great job of making them just different enough to be unique. Hard to do with an oversaturated genreThe book paces along nicely once the main characters are established. The political backstory is well defined without being too long to bore you.Overall a great read, which kept me wanting more.

I enjoyed this book both as a stand alone science fiction book and as a companion to the Elite Dangerous game. I'm a long time science fiction fan and I found this one of the best that I have read in a long time. There was good character development and interesting plots and sub-plots. I've read it through a couple of times (along with Elite: Premonition). I'd love to see another book in the series.

I've been a fan of Elite since the 80's, playing on the CPC464 (Amstrad, for the youngsters), and spent many a sneaky night playing away the hours whilst the parents slept, and I completely relate to Drew's introduction in this book.I bought this book recently, having spent weeks playing Elite Dangerous since the initial release, and hearing about Kahina Loren and her backstory on Galnet (which I think was created from Drew's mind), I decided to buy Drew's book.It is good, and if you're an Elite player, new, old, or even older, then I'd recommend it highly. Took me a little while to get started with it, which is unusual for me, as I read (and spend) a lot on books, but you won't regret it.My only criticism, and it's down to the publisher, not Drew, or the story line, is that the publisher doesn't seem to have really checked the layout of pages. My copy has various carriage returns / line breaks in inappropriate places - you can be reading what a character is saying or seeing, and suddenly the line breaks halfway through to a new line, which contains a single word, then you're onto the next section or line or paragraph. Typically, when different characters speak, you'd expect a line break to differentiate between the characters, and whilst this does usually happen here, it's not always the case, and it's distracting when it happens. It's not frequent, and it doesn't ruin the story, but if you're a regular reader, it will throw you off track because it's not normal.The publisher really needs to go through and recheck the book, because the irritating, unexpected line breaks / character speech merges etc. are really poor, and for me, they prevent this from receiving the 5 that it really does deserve.For clarity, I love the Elite universe, the story, the characters, but the lackadaisical and poor editing / composition of the publishing house is a let down.

I have to give a big thumbs up to Drew for bringing a little life and much needed story to the Elite: Dangerous game-universe. Without it the game can feel a bit empty. This book really helps to stoke the imagination when playing the game. It references places inside the game and the developers have also included some of the mysteries from the book too.I found Drew's writing style a little awkward and whilst not requiring a high reading level, it felt difficult to read sometimes. The story itself held together well enough and I was interested enough to read it through to the end. Some of the scenes painted were a touch on the graphic side which seems to be common in sci-fi, but I find completely unnecessary.Very little of substance happens in the plot and is more following the antics of a thoroughly unlikeable protagonist. Drew wrote the book well enough that you found yourself rooting for somebody you would never want to cross paths with in your life. There was enough of a story line to continue some events in-game.If you really want to get more involved in the computer game then this is a must read, but otherwise, it's not that enjoyable.

This book is an absolutely fantastic piece of science fiction. I'll admit, that because it's based on a computer game I didn't have high expectations, but I play Elite Dangerous and wanted to find out more about the games story, so decided to give it a go. Surprisingly It really is up there with some of the best space opera I've read, such as stuff by Ian M Banks or Vernor Vinge, and any sci-fi fan would enjoy it regardless of their interest in the game.The story is a really fast paced adventure, not slowing down for any excessive description or explanation like much science fiction, instead it captured my imagination from the start and kept me turning the pages till the end.The characters are really multi dimensional, this isn't a universe of black or white, good or evil, instead each struggles with their motivations, and whether to give into selfish desires or work together. I also love the strong female characters, including that rare thing of a female villain.I hope the game connection doesn't hold the book or author back as it really deserves wider recognition.It inspired me to read Drew's Shadeward books, which if anything are even better.

I first heard about this book after a player posted a question about "The Formidine Rift" on Frontier Development's Elite Dangerous forum back in 2015. That simple question led to hundreds of players of Elite Dangerous undertaking detective work to find out what the secret of The Rift was. All that from what seems like a throwaway scene in a hospital between two characters.At the heart of the story is a young lady who is shaken from her comfortable life and thrown onto a course that ultimately leads to the brink of war between the Federation and Empire over the resources of the border system of Prism. A number of the secondary characters are portrayed with cowardice, honour and almost stereotypical villainy on occasion. Not everyone is who they appears to be.The book itself is an easy read and accessible to anyone looking for a character driven story in a futuristic sci-fi setting. If you're a player of Elite Dangerous, then it sets the scene for the detente between Federal and Imperial factions, and the Elite galaxy in general. You don't have to be a player of Elite Dangerous to appreciate this book, but it helps. Having followed the Elite games since 1984, I could be considered biased.

Although I know very little about computer games - and had not heard of 'Elite:Dangerous', the game which inspired Drew Wagar to write this book - I do like a well-written science fiction story, and 'Elite:Reclamation' certainly delivers. The story is set in the 34th century, when the human race has colonised numerous planets, most of which are under the control of two competing power blocs - the Empire and the Federation. The action starts on Chione, which is part of the Empire and is prized for both its beauty and its mineral wealth. The original settlers plan a coup against the Empire to reclaim their world and all but one member of the ruling imperial family, Lady Kahina Loren, are killed. She escapes, and although her aim is to return to Chione, to reclaim the throne she believes is rightfully hers, she is quickly out of her depth and unsure who she can trust.I really enjoyed 'Elite:Reclamation' - it's well-written, fast-paced and imaginative. I will certainly be on the look-out for more from Drew Wagar.