I’m a huge fan of Janet Edward’s books – see my reviews of Earth Girl, Earth Star, Earth Flight, Earth and Air, Frontier and her short story collection Earth Prime which are all books set in her Earth Girl series, as well as Telepath, Defender, Hurricane and Borderline in the Hive Mind series, and Scavenger Alliance and Scavenger Blood in the Scavenger Exodus series, which is a spinoff prequel series set in the Earth Girl world. This series featuring disaster magnet Draco Tell Dramis is also set before the Earth Girl books in the same world – but only a few years before we get to meet young Jarra.
BLURB: Array 2781 is the second of three full-length novels set immediately after the short story ‘Hera 2781’.
Drago has now learned the secret that his Betan clan has been hiding for almost a decade. He’s currently alternating between moods of pitying his second cousin and fighter team leader, Jaxon, and wanting to strangle him.
They both have to put their feelings aside though, and concentrate on using lumbering solar array transport ships to help with the repairs of the five Earth solar arrays, because Earth is critically short of power. Fortunately, repairing solar arrays is perfectly routine work, so Drago definitely can’t get into trouble.
REVIEW: I’ve had the pleasure of reading both the short story ‘Hera 2781’ and Hestia 2781 – see my review – which deal with events leading up to this book. And while I definitely recommend that you get hold of both of these books as they are stormingly good reads, if you did happen upon this one and decided to dive in without having read the previous books, I don’t think you’d flounder. Edwards does an excellent job of giving sufficient information without silting up the pace.
Picking up this one reminded me all over again just how much I enjoy Edwards’ bouncy, upbeat writing style. There is an energy and optimism in her work that is so often missing in sci fi writing, which often deals with the worst-case scenarios. That isn’t to say there aren’t disasters and action adventure within this book – they’re there, alright. But it is far more about the people who strive to do the best in difficult circumstances, rather than concentrating on those who are only out for themselves.
The main protagonist, Draco, could so easily have come across as a bit of a Gary Stu – he comes from a rich, well-connected family, can charm the stars out of their solar systems and is classically handsome. But without having him seem unduly victimised or whiny – Edwards also demonstrates that those traits can also be a major disadvantage. It’s cleverly done and a lot harder to achieve than Edwards makes it look. She is also adept at providing all sorts of details about the solar array that powers Earth in 2781, without any of it coming across as remotely boring. It reminds of when she took us on all those futuristic archaeological digs in Earth Girl, which had me rapt. As I read this one the pages turned themselves, until I was approaching the final chapter with dread as I didn’t want the adventure to end – which is always a sure sign I’m reading a well crafted story with charismatic characters, moments of humour and a cracking plot.
Very highly recommended for science fiction fans who appreciate science fiction that isn’t painted in shades of dread. I was provided with a review copy of Array 2781 by the author, which in no way has influenced my honest, unbiased opinion.
9/10
Brainfluff 
I love the sound of this, Sarah. And I’m glad to have another Janet Edwards book on my radar😁
I’ve really dropped the ball on science fiction this year. I will have to make it a goal to read more next year!
I’ve been reading a lot more fantasy, too, Stephanie. I think it’s because generally sci fi tends to be a bit bleaker in its overall outlook and right now, I’ve needed more lightness in my life. Obviously, that’s a generalisation – but that was one of the reasons why I enjoy Janet’s work so much.
It’s so true that SF tends to go toward the “doom & gloom” flavor these days, both in books and TV, so learning of a series where humor and “feel good” themes are the backbone of the story is indeed a great discovery. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I have ignored the SciFi genre during the past months. Instead I read and watched fun stuff with a bit of romance. But thank you for sharing this book with us. Wishing you all the best!
Thank you for your kind good wishes, Vi. I quite understand why you wouldn’t want to be facing some of the more apocalyptic storylines that sci fi is often so fond of. This one, while still full of action and adventure, tends to be a lot more upbeat.