There is no better description for this series than 'addictive'.

Part of it comes from the habit the author has of ending each book in a cliffhanger, which makes me very happy to be in possession of all six volumes, so I will not have to endure the wait for the next installment as it must have happened for those poor souls who discovered the series as it was being written.

But the major attraction comes from the characters and the stories: both become more complex and layered with each new book, and so does the universe that acts as a backdrop. The stakes get higher and higher and Jax finds herself torn between public duties and responsibilities on one side and private concerns on the other, while her personality keeps evolving – not without many "growing pains".

An added bonus came from the descriptions of the Ithtorrian culture, that were done quite well and without info-dumps. Vel's character gained so many facets and so many shades that I felt myself falling in love with him - his is the best supporting role in the whole saga.

Jax is also changing so much, and doing it in small, incremental steps that nevertheless manage to transform her in a huge way, both publicly and personally and the overall situation with the Morgut threat is also moving forward in such a way that I can actually perceive the tense, suspenseful music in the background...

Hook, line and sinker – that's me.
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Jax takes on a new role as Ambassador to Ithis-Tor, where her pal Velith is from. This has a lot of first-contact themes to it, which I enjoy. The March drama is a little overdone, but I guess you have to have romantic tension. I enjoy this series, can't wait for the next one. ( )

This is book three in the Sirantha Jax series. Sirantha Jax, a Jumper, is sent to Ithiss-Tor to broker an alliance between the Ithtorians and a human Conglomerate. The people-eating Morgut are attacking human outposts, and the Conglomerate thinks the Ithtorians can intimidate the Morgut out of attacking. However, not all Ithtorian leadership is on board. Meanwhile, the criminal Syndicate and the disgraced megacorp Farwan are trying to take advantage of the political situation. Jax also needs to win back her lover, March, who has detached himself from feeling anything.

For such vivid characters in earlier books, Doc Saul and Hit are given small roles that left me wondering if there could be more involvement with them.

I wasn't super stoked by the interludes from the press. Since we're cooped up on the planet, it's nice to know what's going on out there, but the articles felt a bit scattered to me. The end felt a bit cliffhanger and unexpected..

Jax, March, Constance, and especially Vel have come a long way since the first book. They have suffered and laughed together, and their trials have made their relationships deeper. Jax continues to process her grief regarding her lost love, Kai, and it�Ûªs good to see her less tangled up about it, even if she has to go through a lot of pain to do so. She also struggles to process her new responsibilities without going crazy or becoming someone she can‰Ûªt bear to be around. She has to make some choices she feels awful about in which she would have decided differently one book ago or at the beginning of the saga.

There‰Ûªs action with the politics, for those who would worry about a book about diplomacy dragging. We learn lots about the Ithtorian world, which feels richer than any other place we‰Ûªve been. The culture is sufficiently alien that I had to think about the customs, but civilized so I could keep track of secondary characters easily.

This is not a standalone book. Reading the previous books gave me a richer experience with the characters, not just the plot background. I'd advise reading Grimspace and Wanderlust first. ( )

*No spoilers. Just a lot of ranting.


It was with great elation that I started this book, as I had been slowly falling in love with the series. It was with great trepidation that I ended this book, as it was a huge departure from that which I had become accustomed to in the previous 2 installments. I feared the series had lost its “IT” factor and worried that what I had come to love, was over.

Here’s the thingy: in the first couple of books, Jax has been a badass with little to no regard for others (though we all know that bitch has a heart of gold). In this book, she was appointed as an ambassador and it required her to tone it all down, be respectful, and worst of all – act acquiescently (the horror). It went against all of my Jax grains! I hated her “bowing down” to everyone and everything, so to speak. I wanted her to say, “I’m Sirantha Jax and I have had enough”, then roundhouse kick someone in the face and blow the place to smithereens. I wanted that early in the book. Instead, there was a lot of politics, conversation, waiting around, (snoring, on my part), and prostrating. It was boring and infuriating. There were emotional developments, yes. There was character growth, yes. There were very touching scenes and the interaction with the Ithtorians had its moments, but overall, it was a snooze. It’s saving grace? Vel… Sweet, polite, endearing Vel. I’ll say no more on that.

I love me some Vel. LOOOVE me some Vel - shiny, hard, chitin and all. Thankfully, Doubleblind had a lot of Vel time. I liked it if only because it provided major growth between Jax and Vel. There were superbly poignant moments between them that left me achy in all the right places (my heart, you harlots).

I didn’t understand why there was so much reference to that one Ithtorian, hereby renamed “What’s-his-chitin?”, as I can’t remember his actual name. You know, the young “handsome” one that had a hard-on for Jax? Why beat that hard-on over the head so much if nothing was to ever come of it? It was just a whole lotta nothin.

Oh and how about the shitbomb that was the Jael twist? Total BS! How do you take an awesome character who provided a lot of the little bit of good in the book and make him into a humongo asshole who sells errrybody out? No fair!

Lastly, if ONE more person performed a frikkin WA, I woulda plucked my eyes out.


Moving on - am I the only who is SO over March and his issues? Somebody get this dude a Pretty Robotics Therapist stat. The melodramatic nonsense between Jax and March is suffocating. It is the one thing that I cannot stand about these books. I get that the author wants to create conflict between them, but it’s so frikkin annoying. I think Jax attributes way too many good qualities to March. I don’t think he’s all that great and he needs to get him some Xanax paste or somethin’ and tone it down. He’s painted as this great humanitarian who is brimming with unseen danger and truthfully, I don’t buy it. To me, he comes off as a whiny, immature adolescent. Shut up March and get it together!

So, with all of this being said, did I read the next book? You bet your ass I did. I love this world Aguirre has built and I wasn’t to be deterred by one mediocre book. Keep reading - it gets oh, so much better. =D

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An enjoyable read. Will keep going with this series. ( )