The David Drake RCN Series Part 1

With The Lightnings
Lt. Leary, Commanding
The Far Side of the Stars
The Way to Glory
 
My first foray into science fiction was technically Lois McMaster Bujold but I'm skipping over her for now and going straight to my second foray; David Drake. I picked this author mainly because I remember seeing his name boldly printed on the covers of several of my father's books. He seems to read a lot of David Drake so I thought I would try him first. So four books into the RCN Series here are my observations:

It didn't take me long to get attached to Lieutenant Daniel Leary and Librarian-turned-Cyber-spy Adele Mundy. I've even grown to love bosun Ellie Woetjans. But is this what pulp fiction reads like? I feel the characters are not growing at all or if they are it is at a glacial pace. This series seems to be all about ACTION. I can respect that and I will even enjoy it but give me some meaningful character development too please. Maybe I need to start paying more attention to the historical bases for each book but I don’t think basing plots on historical incidents should exclude an author from making all this drama from changing and molding how their characters react and interact. 
 

Also I get it, Tovera is a crazy person; you don’t have to keep telling me that over and over and over and over and….over. Also Adele is reserved and Daniel is a young hot-blooded, yet likeable, male. After four books I've got their "types" down pat. Now how about letting the poor characters grow a little? I love the relationship between Leary and Mundy but it too needs to grow and change over time. No human relationship stays static for long. I personally have had one good friend since 3rd (or was it 4th) grade and our relationship is nothing like it was when we first met. It isn't even the same as it was four years ago. We've grown, things have happened, and although we are still great friends, we are not the same people we were when we met--thank goodness. 


I’ve only read four books into the series so far and they are pretty quick reads (at the pace I read at least) but I think I’m going to stop paying for them and just borrow my dad’s copies instead.

If you want to read David Drake's RCN Series you should start with "With The Lightnings". Amazon has a digital copy for sale right now for $0. Yes you read that right ZERO DOLLARS! Or you can get the paperback for a respectable $5.96. But don't go in thinking you're going to learn anything new about humanity or even the characters. This isn't deep stuff people so just sit back and enjoy the mayhem.