Only Bad Options

Galactic Bonds, Book 1

By: Jennifer Estep

Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang, James Fouhey

Length: 12 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best-selling author Jennifer Estep blasts off with an exciting new science-fiction/fantasy adventure with a dash of historical romance. This action-packed space opera features a mix of magic and technology, along with a soul mates and enemies-to-lovers story. Perfect for fans of Star Wars, Bridgerton, and Pride and Prejudice.

A woman who sees everything...

Few people know the name Vesper Quill. To most folks, I’m just a lowly lab rat who designs brewmakers and other household appliances in the research-and-development lab at the powerful Kent Corp. But when I point out a design flaw and a safety hazard in the new line of Kent Corp spaceships, everyone knows who I am—and wants to eliminate me.

I might be a seer with a photographic memory, but I don’t see the trouble headed my way until it’s too late. Suddenly, I’m surrounded by enemies and fighting for my life.

I don’t think things can get any worse until I meet Kyrion Caldaren, an arrogant Regal lord who insists that we have a connection, one that could be the death of us both.

A man who can’t forget his past...

The name Kyrion Caldaren strikes fear in the hearts of people across the Archipelago Galaxy. As the leader of the Arrows, the Imperium’s elite fighting force, I’m used to being a villain, as well as the personal assassin of Lord Callus Holloway. Even the wealthy Regals who live on the planet of Corios are afraid of me.

But everything changes when I meet Vesper Quill. I might be a powerful psion with telepathic, telekinetic, and other abilities, but Vesper sees far too many of my secrets.

Thanks to an arcane, unwanted quirk of psionic magic, the two of us are forced to work together to unravel a dangerous conspiracy and outwit the deadly enemies who want to bend us to their will.

©2022 Jennifer Estep (P)2022 Audible, Inc.

Great, once I got over The Spider in space

When you have two series with the same author, narrator, snarky female MC, dangerous male MC, and fantasy intrigue elements, then it can be hard to separate the two amidst the deja vu. So, as much as I enjoy Ms. Fortgang, I wish the author had chosen a different narrator for this series. It took me a long time to stop from hearing Vespyr and also hearing Gin Blanco (aka The Spider) from the author’s Elemental Assassin series, especially with both gals narrated using a Southern twang.
The dual narration of this series went a long way towards separating the two series.

Unfortunately, Mr. Fouey’s narration doesn’t kick in until two hours into this book. Which brings me to another downside: the first two hours of this book was a slog of summaries, recaps, and stage setting.
I think I would have enjoyed this more just reading the summary (lab rat Vespyr finds dangerous ship design flaw and gets conscripted to bury truth via death by battlefield), and then starting at Chapter 5.

From Chapter 5, I very much enjoyed this space opera thriller. It’s not hard sci-fi by any stretch. Instead, it’s more like campy Buck Rogers fare, with cool future tech (healing gels, blasters, and disguisers) amid regency-romance-like palace intrigue (an Emporer, Regal houses, marrying for power and position), and with a heavy layer of psionic powers (which even the characters unapologetically refer to as “magic”).
My favorite is Vespyr’s MacGyver power, which gives her the ability to cobble together weapons and other tech like some Lego-Master-Builder.

Much like her Elemental Assassin series, there’s only sparks of romance in book 1, even though there’s zero doubt the MCs will get together eventually. I finished liking this far better than I thought when I started it. It was fun, with decent action and intrigue, even if formulaic. And by the end, I was hardly nitpicking about the parallels between the author’s two series, like having magic materials beginning
with S (Silverstone knives in the other series and Safsidian swords in this one).
Cause if the formula ain’t broke…

Solid Sci-Fi story

Good story. I really like the two POV and the narrators. Recommend for a break from reality.

pretty good, hope the series continues.

Action packed romantic fantasy combining magic and science. great summer listen for the beach. Light on the science though

wonderful

delicious... left me wanting more! I know where my next credit is going and can't wait to use it!

my kind of scifi

I can't wait for the next one. I love the world, the blend of tech and magic, the romance, and the promise of what's in store for future books. The world is vivid, and the intrigue and plotting kept be hooked the whole way through. The book ends with a great question that leaves me wanting more (not a cliffhanger at all).

Great book!

I enjoyed every minute. Great narrators, good story that kept me interested from beginning to end. Definitely hoping for this storyline to continue!

Fun, Well Performed!

I really enjoyed the story and the performances. Nice space opera, magic, romance plot. Very well executed. Loved the heroes, hated the villains. Cant wait for the sequel and I’ll look for more by this author. Strongly recommend!

Hard to walk away

This was a great sci fi read. interesting world of magic versus technology and Vesper and Kyrion were great characters. The story arc was really entrancing & I found myself sitting in my car way longer wanting one more chapter.

Great read

Another great series from Jennifer Estep. Hope to read many more books in the saga.

Unique plot well-told

No spoilers here. The twist is different from any other SciFi I’ve read. The narrators are great too. Looking forward to the next book(s).