Hidden (The Sword of Lucifer Book 2)

As a lover of epics, this feels like the preamble, the appetizer, as it sets up the players and the I received a free copy of Lucifer's Star from the author. As a lover of epics, this feels like the preamble, the appetizer, as it sets up the players and the objective with a world of words and blood waiting to be unleashed upon the reader.

And while I am no friend of first person narrators in general, Phipps makes it work to the story's advantage. Cassius Mass, the protagonist and narrator, is a war veteran, hero to some, villain to most others. He was on the losing side of an interstellar conflict and while he can't live with his deeds, there are far more people who don't live because of them. Needless to say, we spend our time in a spaced out spacer who drinks and sleeps his way to oblivion, until something changes.

Confronted by yet more sins of his past, Cassius chooses to open his eyes, mind, and heart and let his conscience be his guide, instead of a regime's propaganda he was one of the few buying into.

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Is it a perfect book? Will you enjoy it? If you like your Star Wars with a Han Solo who shoots not first because that implies there was return fire , if you like your humanity more Babylon 5 than Star Trek, granted a rated R Babylon 5, then yes! It's written like a water slide, first you climb up, slowly, then you sit and gather speed until you splash into the end, wanting more! Apr 03, Lukasz rated it liked it Shelves: Probably, I've read two or three space operas years ago but I barely remember them.

I picked Lucifer's Star because I liked the synopsis and, additionally, I appreciate CT Phipps online presence as a blogger and reviewer. It was a quick and entertaining novel that doesn't lack space battles, futuristic technology, cyborgs, clones, and sex Actual rating: It was a quick and entertaining novel that doesn't lack space battles, futuristic technology, cyborgs, clones, and sex.

The story follows Colonel Cassius Mass, an ex-soldier of the Archduchy of Crius, who once had it all. Intelligent, handsome and beloved by all, he was the best pilot of the Archduchy and a role-model for many. Sadly, it turned out that he was fighting for the wrong side of the conflict. His friends and his family died in the final bombing of his homeworld. To make matters worse, he's now one of the most hated people in the Universe.

He leads a miserable life as a semi-functional navigator on an interstellar freight hauler. He tries to hide who he was and escape his past. While I'm not a genre connoisseur , I appreciate how the authors play with the tropes and put them under critical examination. Things get difficult and dirty, they don't tend to magically and conveniently work out for characters. World-building is done in a steady way. As the story progresses we learn about the world through dialogue and internalizations. There's plenty of secrets and it seems mythical entities have fun while playing with human and alien lives.

The big theme of the book is the politics. Betrayals were easy, but when you ad A. As the story progresses, understanding some of the trickier concepts becomes vital, although it doesn't require a reader to hold a degree in quantum physics. Just to use imagination. The cast of characters is diverse and interesting with strong female representation. I think most characters were compelling and three-dimensional.

Everyone here has a past that influences his choices. Alliances are constantly shifting, and nothing is ever quite what it seems. There is a sort of love triangle between the characters. Ilsa is a bioroid - created to sexually please and seduce others. Even though she's managed to flee her former masters, she didn't manage to reprogram herself and she's not wired for monogamy. She sleeps with Clarice O'Hara, the security chief of Shogun. Cassius sleeps with both of them.

It's not a problem as the society is rather sexually open and it's not a big deal to have multiple partners, even when being in a relationship. There's no unnecessary drama, just people, cyborgs, and bioroids learning to care and fight for each other. While I enjoyed many parts of the novel, I have to admit I wasn't able to fully connect with Cassius' voice.

As a result, my engagement in the story lacked emotional component. I think Cassius is an interesting character - he used to think of himself as a hero just to understand he was a bad guy. He's not who you would call a good person and that's fine. I don't like good characters. It's just there's something in him that irks me. The writing is rather good.

We may discuss if there isn't an excess backstory told here and there and maybe a bit too much telling in places. It's possible but it didn't influence the pacing. The final confrontation was surprising and interesting but didn't manage to knock me on my knees. Overall, Lucifer's Star is a well-paced book with no boring parts at least to me. It's quick to read and easily accessed, all while dealing with ethical concerns, and philosophical questions.

I think of it as a good reintroduction to the Space Opera genre. Because I couldn't really connect with Cassius, rating won't be higher. I need to emphasize that it's highly subjective; interesting plot plus great secondary characters made it a fun read for me, even despite the mentioned "issue". May 23, Andy rated it really liked it. Fight for people rather than fight for the people themselves. Individuals are worthwhile but people as a whole are a nebulous concept which can be used to justify anything.

Lucifer's Star has all the elements I generally look for in space opera: It also has the hallmarks of "grimdark" genre fiction that appeal to me: Fans of epic space battles, shifting alliances, fast-paced action, betrayal and treachery will find everything they're looking for in this book along with the kind of nuanced and complex ruminations on what it means to be human that the best stories involving AI, robots, androids, and clones often provide. This story has the deep philosophical elements of something like Ancillary Justice, but is still pulpy enough to keep your adrenaline pumping and the pages turning.

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Every character in the story has a past, alliances are constantly shifting, and nothing is ever quite what it seems. The evolving motivations of the main character, Cassius Mass, feel organic and never driven by plot necessity. I think my favorite character is probably Isla, a "bioroid" who longs to be free of her programming so she can discover who she really is.

I reserve 5 star reviews for those books that truly stand above the rest. This one is a solid 4, but there's not much I can offer in terms of criticism other than that I generally like a story with more of a slow build rather than non-stop action. I also tend to go for a more plausible, hard sci-fi type of space opera rather than pulpy space fantasy with laser-swords, etc.

The authors did a fine job of rooting the book in hard science for the most part, but yeah Those are completely subjective criticisms based on my own preferences though; overall this is probably the best space opera from an independent author I've ever read. Looking forward to reading the further adventures of Cassius Mass! Jun 07, Stephen Kozeniewski rated it really liked it. Without being a hacky Star Wars knockoff trust me, I've read my fair share of those C. Phipps takes this basic premise and runs with it.

Cassius Mass was the greatest starfighter pilot of the Crius Archduchy - which makes him either a war criminal or a war hero, depending on your perspective. After going into hiding for years, Cassius himself gradually comes around to the former What if Darth Vader had survived the Battle of Endor and went on to realize that The Empire had been the bad guys?

After going into hiding for years, Cassius himself gradually comes around to the former conclusion as he realizes that no matter how noble and selfless his actions were, ultimately they were in support of an evil government. It's notoriously harder to win the peace than to win a war, as Cassius learns as he's drawn into a variety of spy networks and criminal enterprises, all while mostly just wanting to drink himself into a stupor.

Space battles, fistfights, and political double-dealing all ensue, resulting in a rip-roaring narrative that rarely falters or slows. Phipps has a killer instinct and a killer style. His work is simple in the most admirable sense of that word. I suspect he actually probably toils away at his prose and stories for hours on end until it just seems simple to the reader - an even more remarkable feat, actually.

His writing is crisp, clear, concise, and yet also evocative. Let's talk negatives briefly. For one, his love of Lovecraft bled through on every page. Second, there was a lot of tangled spy networks including more than a few clones and imposters and God knows what else. By the time Judith or Clarice or Zoey or somebody had died for the third or fourth time, I started wondering who the hell they had been in the first place. Either the spy-fi antics needed to be streamlined a bit or I needed to pay a bit more attention, and I won't even pretend to know which it was.

You won't be disappointed. Aug 19, Aubrey Law rated it really liked it. Lucifer's Star was an entertaining science fiction story full of space battles and some super cool future technology. Looking forward to the next book s in the series. Nov 24, Allan Batchelder rated it it was amazing. A fun read -- a real popcorn, space opera that will keep you entertained for hours. Aug 13, Jon rated it it was amazing. A really fun space opera that's about as twisty as it gets. Every chapter the character peels back an onion where there's different layers, different interests.

The most appealing part to me of this was the concept of the bioroids, how they are thought of in society and how they get manipulated. A lot of clone sheenanigans, and very cool conceptual stuff which you don't usually see in SF novels in that regard -- most books have one type of clone and that's that, but this shows a variety of optio A really fun space opera that's about as twisty as it gets.

A lot of clone sheenanigans, and very cool conceptual stuff which you don't usually see in SF novels in that regard -- most books have one type of clone and that's that, but this shows a variety of options of how a person might end up, and that's intriguing, and probably more realistic in that regard. The main character feels very real, the characters are very distinct in general.

I really would like to get to know the before-Judith better, of which there's a flashback scene but not a lot other than that, it probably would make me more sympathetic to her compared to other events in the book, but it was a fine first book in a series, with plenty of room to explore a lot with these characters and this universe.

Something to note, but I'm not going to ding a book for intentional character choices. The writer clearly understood what he was doing so it is not a commentary on skill or enjoyability of the book, but something to note. Lots of unexpected turns, great perspective character. May 19, Devin Madson rated it really liked it.

It has been WAY too long since I read any sci-fi, having fallen into a deep fantasy groove over the last few years, but it was about time to break free so here we are. And thankfully I picked a good book to leap back in with. I have a terrible habit of having multiple books on the go and reading them in bits and pieces rather than devouring, but with this one I put everything else down by the third or fourth chapter because the characters just got under my skin and it keeps up the pressure to tu It has been WAY too long since I read any sci-fi, having fallen into a deep fantasy groove over the last few years, but it was about time to break free so here we are.

I have a terrible habit of having multiple books on the go and reading them in bits and pieces rather than devouring, but with this one I put everything else down by the third or fourth chapter because the characters just got under my skin and it keeps up the pressure to turn pages. Lucifer's Star is a fast-paced, twisting adventure that takes all the action, espionage and back stabbing that I like in my fantasy into SPACE.

Add a dose of moral ambiguity, deep questions about identity and humanity, and some fine, humour-laced prose and I can happily say I enjoyed this read very much. However, I think it will take time to get used to sci-fi again and I did find myself occasionally broken out of the zone. I am not sure whether that is the fault of small nit-picks that jarred my author brain seriously, being an author is a curse when you want to just read or the setting being not what I'm used to, or a little bit of both, but that is probably something unique to my reading experience.

As is the weirdness of having a character that shared my daughter's quite unusual name. Not sure I'l ever get used to that one! Jul 21, Shawn D Robertson rated it really liked it. Let me start by saying how viciously intricate the plot of this book is. The backstabbing runs deep and you really never know who to trust. The pacing is fast, making for a quick read. The characters are well constructed and they stick to their motivations, even when we didn't know all those motivations from the outset. The main character Cassius Mass , in particular, exemplifies the nature of the book.

He's bitter, jaded, screws himself over, and while he is clearly confused about much in his l Let me start by saying how viciously intricate the plot of this book is. He's bitter, jaded, screws himself over, and while he is clearly confused about much in his life, his better qualities often shine through. It is clear that Phipps and his partner loved what they created, and Charles brought it to life in a big and darkly beautiful way. May 22, Tim Martin rated it it was amazing Shelves: Trying to steer clear of feudal, house, and familial politics back home, he only wants to love his wife and fight for his people even as he suspects he is fighting for ideals that his superiors secretly snicker at.

The opening, quite gripping chapter is a space battle with Cassius the leader of his squadron, men and women he leads to death and defeat against what was probably always insurmountable odds, as he was on the losing end of a massive interstellar war as his side, the feudal Archduchy, surrenders to the Commonwealth, an empire in spirit if not in name that is 30 times the size of the Archduchy.

After the war, his home planet of Crius virtually destroyed by orbital bombardment, his wife Judith, sister, the entire family dead in the destruction, the rulers of the Archduchy either dead, terrorists, or working with the victors to make themselves rich, and Cassius a wanted war criminal for terrorist activities after the war, though he was always a very well-known figure to both sides , Cassius is in hiding. Doing his best with medication, alcohol, and a somewhat carefree life, Cassius strives to forget the lost friends, family, and nation as well as the horrible things he did after the Archduchy had surrendered.

Cassius through the vast majority of the book navigates a virtual minefield of double crosses, spies, assassins, liars, blackmailers, and worse as each play dangerous games with very high stakes one game placing the entire human race throughout the stars at grave risk, no matter their allegiances during the last war as the galaxy gears up for a war perhaps a great deal bigger than the last. The world building was superb, it felt like a rich, layered space opera setting with a sense of history and not a setting tied too much around one idea though the rights of sentient beings and in fact what is a sentient being were major issues touched upon again and again in the novel, a concept that had much wider implications than it first appeared, very well done.

We are introduced to a rich world of Watchers, rogue A. The characters were vivid and interesting, all of them morally gray at best to varying degrees and pretty much none of them what they appear at first. Cassius himself was a very interesting character and while not always completely laudable for his actions, did hold to a moral central core far more than most of the other characters in the novel past and present.

I had few complaints about the book and some of those complains could easily be addressed in the sequel. Isla had a fascinating past and while a major character for much of the book, sometimes it felt like she drifted away from the attention of the narrative, though that was probably unavoidable. She was continually surprising and I had a difficult time predicting her actions, though in truth I think many characters in the novel had that same problem as well.

She was definitely a difficult character to pigeon hole. I would like in a sequel to get more of a sense of the Community or the Elder Races but there was more than enough information in this novel to make sense of how they related to Cassius and the events of the book. There was a lot of betrayals, intrigue, and double crosses in the book and it almost edged sometimes in being too much to keep track of though this never happened as the strongly character driven aspects of the intrigue made it easier to follow than it otherwise might have been.

Pacing was absolutely excellent as the e pages just flew by as I would spend hour after hour immersed in the story. Looking forward to the next book in the series! View all 8 comments. May 18, Trevor Sherman rated it it was amazing Shelves: This in no way influences what I say. As always, my opinions, while completely awesome and undeniably correct, are completely my own.

This book starts during what turns out to be the last battle of a huge war between the Crius Archduchy and the Interstellar Commonwealth. This first chapter can be called nothing but epic. And even though the scale is soon lowered the epicness never goes away. Cassius is a great character from the start, even though he is beaten and in hiding he is proud of who he is.

Although he probably should not be proud of his hiding skills.

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But like I said the scale is lowered and what at first looks to be a grand space opera with huge battles becomes a character driven story of intrigue and deception with huge Battles. And the characters doing the driving are first rate. I loved them all, even the ones I hated, if that makes any sense.

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I blazed through the book so fast it felt like it only took a few seconds but I loved every second of it. I give it 5 stars out of 5 and I wish I could give William a hand. Check out my other reviews on my blog https: This is the story of Cassius Mass, a famous star pilot working incognito on a freight hauler after being on the losing side of an intergalactic war. Through a series of discoveries amidst undercover operations, and some bit of chance, Cassius realizes he may have been fighting on the losing side all along. Lucifer's Star is filled with big ideas, plenty of twists, and witty dialogue.

I would have enjoyed a little more world building in the visceral sense, but all-in-all a solid read. If you're i This is the story of Cassius Mass, a famous star pilot working incognito on a freight hauler after being on the losing side of an intergalactic war.

If you're into big intergalactic epics where your heroes are just as sharp with the banter as they are their guns in the spirit of Han Solo this is for you. Apr 28, C. Baum rated it really liked it. I enjoyed this book thoroughly. It had some content that actually made me laugh The rest of the story is well written If you haven't read CT Phipps, you're missing out. Oct 30, Matthew Davenport rated it it was amazing.

The world building in this book was amazing and we see a lot of detailed explanations in the interplanetary relationships as well as the individual cultures, all without taking away from the main story by being too filled with description. The descriptors come out naturally. Cassius is a clone of the sovereign, with cybernetic implants to make him the perfect warrior, the perfect royal heir, and the perfect sexual partner.

By the start of chapter 2, we find a down and out, drug and alcohol addled, his face and DNA changed to hide his identity, and living aboard a pirate spaceship with a questionable crew. From that point, his past begins to come back in a huge way and takes Cassius on a path that makes him question not only who he is, but also everything that he previously held as true. He goes through a huge transition from the beginning of the book all the way to the end.

When I said this book reminded me of a couple of other stories, it really did, but mostly in just elements.

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There was even a moment that reminded me of the Borg from Star Trek. A lot of reminders, or ingredients, that made themselves into a great cake. And I love cake! Epic Space Fantasy that leaves me begging to learn more about Cassius Mass! Aug 30, David Hambling rated it really liked it. Cassius Mass is on the run for war crimes, hiding out as navigator on a tramp merchant spaceship.

Because Mass is really an ace starfighter pilot with over four hundred kills to his name, cybernetic enhancements and a proton sword hidden in his quarters. Because this is a darkly comic work which upends the usual expectations, with no Jedi, no Force and no good guys and survival Cassius Mass is on the run for war crimes, hiding out as navigator on a tramp merchant spaceship.

The setting is the aftermath of a war between the evil and fascist Archduchy, which has been defeated by the evil and corrupt Commonwealth. There are other parties involved too, including merchant guilds, slavers and aliens. The fun here is the combination of galactic warfare, from space battles to blaster shootouts to power-armor punch-ups and swordfights, with Phipps snark-infested dialog. The plot goes through some convolutions and revelations abound. I listened to the audiobook of this far-future, ship-based, first-person sci fi novel and I really enjoyed it.

The combination of C. The gestalt entity of Phipps-Burns switches flawle I listened to the audiobook of this far-future, ship-based, first-person sci fi novel and I really enjoyed it. I highly recommend it. Aug 12, Laz the Sailor rated it really liked it Shelves: After a very rough start, this became an enjoyable romp, bouncing all over the place. Although I never lost track, the plot lines were tangled and everyone had two agendas - except our beleaguered hero who wanted to rescue everyone except himself.

Some of the themes have been well explored over the decades, but I felt that most were handled well here - though there were too many of them. The characters and larger themes were intriguing. I'm glad this was chosen as a BOTM, as I probably would have After a very rough start, this became an enjoyable romp, bouncing all over the place. I haven't yet decided whether to read any subsequent books. Jun 26, James allen Razor rated it it was amazing. I failed to mention this is a more adult book then normal star wars fare it's not grim dark but it's a great inbetween. I am excited to see what comes next in a galaxy plunged with laser swords in there back.

May 23, Luke Hindmarsh rated it it was amazing. Think Firefly but with the Browncoats being absolute bastards instead of people seeking freedom.

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I mean imagine they'd been into experimenting on people in a feudalistic society where the nobles have a great time treating everyone else like dirt. Then give a huge dollop of Star Wars and a cherry called Dune. Then you're beginning to get an idea of the direction Lucifer's Star will take you.

But it's even better than that. I haven't had much reading time recently, but I was forced, yes forced, to Think Firefly but with the Browncoats being absolute bastards instead of people seeking freedom. I haven't had much reading time recently, but I was forced, yes forced, to make time to read Lucifer's Star.

It gripped me, amused me and left me looking forward to the sequel. Please let there be a sequel! Well written and flowing prose which avoided too much 'techno-babble'. I found the dialogue witty and convincing--the sort of dialogue I could expect from something by Joss Whedon. Are there any flaws? None that stood out for me. I liked the pop-culture references that were woven in - they never broke immersion for me or seemed out of place.

When you realise who Isla is supposed to look like it's amusing but it's only suggested, never plainly stated. The characters--these were not simple caricatures but felt very well put together. Many of the other characters also will surprise you. In particular, the characters Isla, Clarice, William and Hiro all struck me as having real depth to them.

No clear good and evil here--knowing who is in the right is not clear cut in this book. That moral ambiguity is pulled off with skill and really added to a highly entertaining read. The setting--felt well-developed with a sense that there was a world or rather a universe outside the events of the story. Impressively realised but subtly. Martin Green, the police detective who had been involved with Mark and Lilith has moved out of London to escape the corruption, but his peaceful life begins to be disrupted by a series of increasingly bizarre events including the resurrection of a notorious crime boss who acts to halt a bank robbery.

After following the strange trail he is led to discover that his friends, Mark Hobson and Lilith are not dead as he had thought but in hiding with their unusual son who was born shortly after the atomic blast that held back Lucifer and killed his strongest human allies. Their son David represents the second coming, born ten years later than expected and trying desperately to gain all of his power before the End of Days.

Martin and his wife become his guardians to give him a relatively normal childhood when Mark and Lilith have to go underground, setting up the Church Militant that will fight on the side of righteousness in the coming battles. Every death caused helps strengthen the growing evil so he, and those around him, start to fight back.

The remarkable talent for shooting which he had thought and hoped he had finally put behind him is forced to new heights as he is has to defend everything he knows is right. Forgiveness comes at a price though and it may be more than he can afford to pay.

Luckily for Martin he is backed up by loyal friends and a rock solid relationship with his loving wife. As he is drawn ever deeper into a web of mystery founded in ancient prophecy Martin begins to doubt that they will ever succeed but while he may feel that there are things he is never going to understand he is sure of one thing; the young child of God is a loyal son. Action packed as its first installment Hidden takes up the thrills, romance and erotic excitement to keep you turning the pages until the very end.

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