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Title: Dark Run

Subtitle: Keiko, Book 1

Author: Mike Brooks

Narrator: Damian Lynch

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 10 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-24-16

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 106 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fantasy: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

The Keiko is a ship of smugglers, soldiers of fortune and adventurers, travelling Earth's colony planets, searching for the next job. And nobody talks about their past.

But when a face from Captain Ichabod Drift's former life sends them on a run to Old Earth, all the rules change. Trust will be broken, and blood will be spilled.

Critic Reviews:

"Mike Brook's Dark Run is a rambunctious, rapidfire rollercoaster of a listen. Get signed up and strapped in for a helluva ride!" (Michael Cobley, author of the Humanity's Fire series)

"Dark Run is a thrill-ride of non-stop action, wise-crackery and adventure in the vast vaults of outer space. I look forward to revisiting Ichabod Drift and the crew of the Keiko time and again...." (Luke Scull)

Members Reviews:

Fun sf in a familiar setting *cough Firefly cough*

This was a light, entertaining story. But for a few twists, it could easily be the story of some other ship and crew in the Firefly universe. I don't mean that as a criticism; the story is action-packed, well told with some interesting characters....just like Firefly. Brooks does a great job of mixing back story with fast paced action.

The narration is excellent; Lynch does a great job with different accents and voices. Pacing is a bit fast but not really a problem.

It appears to be the first in a series: I will definitely be back for more.

Clichéd and Flat

I'm ok with tropes as they are familiar and comforting. However when the author uses a cliche to describe character annd plot points as a crutch so they don't have to actually spend effort writing something creative. That's not very enjoyable to read. Also the narrator is particularly bad... from half hearted to muddled accents to poor attempts at stage whispering or shouting. There are a couple of scenes where a character slips into another persona to con or trick someone ... but despite the book explaining what accent or speech pattern he is using to pretend to be someone else... the narrator basically uses the same voice... except one version has a slight sore throat, the other a stuffed nose.

You should definately give this one a try.

It's fairly rare when I bother to do written reviews of books. I like them or don't like them to varying degrees and don't feel like it's important to tell people why I like them. That and I don't much like having to analyze a book I read for enjoyment because it wrecks it for me sometimes.

This book, I wanted to do at least a little something for. I don't think it's had enough praise personally.

Damien Lynch did an amazing job bring this story to life. He's an excellent narrator and I have enjoyed the books I have that he has done.

There are a lot of people that compare this to Firefly*. It does have some of the things I valued most about Firefly such as the interplay of characters. You'll find a similar layout. A Captain that's got a past and a mostly stable moral compass...maybe it wobbles a little, sometimes. A strong female first mate or whatever you'd deem her, an amazing pilot, a talented engineer, and a mercenary. There are also characters that aren't exactly dups of the crew. Such as the tech wizard (I know sort of River, but not) and the gentle giant (sort of like Shepherd Book, but not).