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Even for the Rangers, an ability-enhanced race, Cameron Summers’ telekinetic powers are too strong and dangerous in this action-packed science fiction novel. Cameron and her grandfather move to a “Human” planet to try to blend in and live a peaceful life. When she is thirteen, however, a raid on her home planet results in Cameron being enslaved and her grandfather held hostage to keep her powers in check. Cameron ends up training to become a useful asset for her new owner, Slave Lord James Ferrell. Though the Slave Lords are only Human, their financial power grants them political sway throughout Known-Space, and James Ferrell is one of the most influential. His bodyguard, Alex Sheridan, is a traitor to his own Ranger race and recognizes Cameron’s potential. He aids in Cameron’s training as she assists him in guarding Ferrell and in planning military-style operations to defend their forces and enlarge Ferrell’s slave empire. Sheridan also mentors Cameron throughout her teenage years as she becomes the weapon her people always feared she would be.
Early in her training, Sheridan tells Cameron, “To survive, you’ll need to toughen up.” Cameron’s journey throughout this story is her painful process of toughening up to match the ruthless environment around her. Her circumstances turn her into a child soldier. While it can be difficult to watch her navigate the decisions she is forced to make, Cameron’s actions all make sense, as she is a product of the merciless world in which she lives. The violence and assaults that happen to her and that she inflicts on others stay with her as she grows and adapts. Her life is not without its joys, such as discovering the old Human drink called a Shirley Temple. There are also tender moments, as when Sheridan shares Ranger memories and lore with her. But inevitably, their harsh surroundings call them back into one battle or another and more difficult decisions.
Cheatham’s Known-Space features several well-imagined races, such as the fierce hunter Draith race, the humanoid Rangers, the reptilian Turcanons, the hybrid Tuskerons, and the mysterious, ethereal Valari. The text paints a fascinating picture of how these races interact with each other and delves into the political systems around them without ever becoming pedantic. The comprehensive narrative smoothly explains how the races adapt through technology to stay competitive with one another and how each race fits within the order of the universe. The expansive setting and interactions between races recall such science-fiction touchstones as Star Wars or Mass Effect. The author expertly balances these large-scale political intrigues with substantial details throughout the characters’ day-to-day lives, making their worlds more vivid and relatable.
As the first book in the Rangers Universe series, the novel’s storyline introduces topics and characters that are unresolved by the end. This expansion of the world comes across as compelling rather than frustrating. The plot hints that some of the powers in Known-Space may come from a combination of scientific and supernatural sources, with references to demonic forces outside the current characters’ reckonings. While these issues and some of the unresolved political tensions are out of Cameron’s immediate problems and areas of expertise, the story reveals enough to suggest more to come in future installments. As Cameron emerges from the brutal events of the narrative and is ready to take on a new phase of her life, this novel opens up the Rangers Universe to take on more topics, setting up readers for an enthralling ride through Known-Space and beyond.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review