Review of What Rough Beast

What Rough Beast by Michael R. Johnston

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've read the previous two books in this trilogy and so I ordered #3. It arrived last month without fanfare and I just got to read it last night. I found it a very satisfying end to the series. On that note, one of the things I found most helpful was that the author had one of the characters deliver a brief summary of the previous books, which helped refresh my memory.

A human, Tajen Hunt, became an important military figure in the alien Zhen Empire. Then he lost a battle and discovered that much of what he had been told about Human / Zhen history was a lie. This set off an interstellar war which ended up involving multiple alien species. The action is non-stop but believable.

But the real strength of the book are it's characters. Tajen is gay and married to Liam, who at the start of this book believes Tajen is dead. Tajen has a niece, and the two men have long-time friends and crewmates who are also involved in the war. Their stories and actions are compelling, realistic, and interesting. Overall, I highly recommend this book and the entire series.



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