Moving Target - Elizabeth Moon

Moving Target - Elizabeth Moon. Also known as Marque and Reprisal.

~ About the Author ~

Elizabeth Moon is a Sci-Fi and Fantasy writer of some considerable note. What makes her writing fairly unique though is the fact she has a military background, attaining the rank of Lieutenant with the US Marine Corps, who she joined in 1968. She is also an experienced paramedic, has at least one degree in History and has been involved ...
...across in her novels, and Moving Target is no exception.

~ The Book ~

This is the second book in a series of 4 (although a 5th is due to be published sometime in early 2008).
It is very much a Sci-Fi novel, so not to everyone's taste.
The series has been described as being 'Space Opera' - A term I hadn't heard of, but having looked, describes it as being a sub-genre of Sci-Fi that emphasis romantic adventure, ... more

Moving Target - Elizabeth Moon. Also known as Marque and Reprisal.

~ About the Author ~

Elizabeth Moon is a Sci-Fi and Fantasy writer of some considerable note. What makes her writing fairly unique though is the fact she has a military background, attaining the rank of Lieutenant with the US Marine Corps, who she joined in 1968. She is also an experienced paramedic, has at least one degree in History and has been involved in local government at various levels.
A lot of her military background comes across in her novels, and Moving Target is no exception.

~ The Book ~

This is the second book in a series of 4 (although a 5th is due to be published sometime in early 2008).
It is very much a Sci-Fi novel, so not to everyone's taste.
The series has been described as being 'Space Opera' - A term I hadn't heard of, but having looked, describes it as being a sub-genre of Sci-Fi that emphasis romantic adventure, has characters that are larger than life, and massive futuristic settings.
Now, personally, most Sci-Fi stories I've read would qualify, and I wouldn't agree that these books - or in this instance, Moving Target - are Romantic Adventure.
But then, I suppose it depends on what your own definition of Romantic Adventure is.
In this book there is a little more romantic involvement, but mostly because of former loves rather than anything currently happening.

The full book list for this series are:
Trading in Danger.
Moving Target - Known also as Marque and Reprisal - I think for the US market, but not entirely sure.
Engaging the Enemy.
Command Decision
Victory Conditions. (Due out 2008 - Believe it to be April 2008)
Please note most of the above information is taken from my other reviews about the whole series since it is relevant to all the books.

~ Synopsis ~

Ky (Kylara) Vatta is the daughter of a wealthy Interstellar Trading Shipping Family and although she went to the Space Academy on her home planet for four years, she wasn't able to graduate when an innocent mistake on her part meant she was thrown out.
Because of this, Ky landed up captaining an old ship (The Glennys Jones) from the family fleet, which was due to be broken up as junk. Along the way, Ky also took the opportunity to do a little Trade and Profit (part of her family motto) and she even entertains the idea of refitting the ship to bring it up to standard and keeping it running, although she knows the costs would be far above anything she could generate.

But there is Interstellar Chaos. The communication beacons (known as Ansibles) have been sabotaged, and Ky and her crew are now very much on their own.

Then, just as Ky thought it couldn't get any worse, she hears news that changes the course of her life completely.

The Vatta Company is being targeted ruthlessly. Her own family are killed in a co-ordinated attack on their family home, as are other family members and the company headquarters.
Although a few family members do survive, among them Aunt Grace very much the matriarch of the family, and Ky's cousin Stella. Stella is sent out by Aunt Grace to try and find Ky, and while trying to get out to Ky's last known location, Stella also comes across a 15 year Vatta boy called Toby who only survived an attack on the docked ship where he was serving his apprenticeship on because he was planet side.

Ky meanwhile believes the attacks are in retaliation to her actions (as shown in the first book) and when she first hears of the attacks that have taken place on her home planet, initially clings onto the hope that her own family might have survived.

Stella also runs into an old flame, Rafe who saves Stella and Toby from another attempt on their lives. Stella is reluctant to trust Rafe but she is desperate to get to Ky and relative safety.

Eventually Stella, Toby, Rafe and Ky all meet up also bringing the news Ky was dreading and that was her family didn't survive, and now between them they are not only now struggling to keep the Vatta fleet (or at least what is left of it) alive and trading, but also fighting an unknown enemy who seem to be about to launch more than just an attack on the Vetta family.

~ My thoughts about the story ~

This was the second book of the series I was given at Christmas, and I wasn't disappointed in any way.
Like the first book, the pace starts off well and you're straight into another page turner, with the Vatta family left on the brink of ruin, with accounts frozen, communications down and concerted attacks on Vatta ships and family taking place throughout known space.

As you begin to find out more about the Vatta family, you also begin to realize that at times they haven't always been the straight upfront traders that Ky and Stella had believed in and this helps push the story in another direction without bogging it down with the same old information.

Again, even with the new additions I found that I enjoyed the characters, both Vatta family, Ship's Crew and even the bad guys had padding to them and were nicely fleshed out.

Ky is still a good strong female lead, with nice tight writing and plots throughout. I didn't feel as if I had lost sight of the main story at any point and it continued on well from the first book.
Another good action adventure set in the future, with a good strong lead role and writing that holds up well, as do sub-plots and secondary characters.
Also, nice human characteristics are brought out again, some pleasant, others not so pleasant but all equally fascinating and in some ways a little thought provoking.

~ Final Thoughts ~

Apart from the first book in this series, I don't have any other Elizabeth Moon books to compare this against, but I did, like the fist book, enjoy this immensely.

As I've said in the first book in the series review, this isn't a genre that everyone will enjoy. Nor, I suspect, would it be something a really die-hard Sci-Fi fan particularly grapples with and enjoy as much.
I do though think this would be a good set of books for someone who might be thinking of reading this genre for the first time.

Again, Elizabeth Moon's military background comes to the fore, but doesn't swamp the book too much.

These aren't taxing reads - And I doubt were written to be in that style.
I would though recommend you read this series in sequence, because while some series of books can get away with you reading them out of turn, in this instance I feel it would be a disadvantage.

~ Price and availability ~

This can be obtained from Amazon.co.uk for £5.49 in paperback. 

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