Of Blood and Stardust [Military Hard Sci-Fi | Space Opera]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

In an alternate history, the latter half of the 20th century has gone along a different path, with the world uniting in 2028 under the banner of the International Federal Commonwealth and spreading out into the stars.Book 1Apart from, all had not gone to plan... The "generation zero" hyperdrive capable ships were lost in the shifting tides of hyperspace and were dashed across time at their destinations. Some arriving a week before or after they were supposed to, some landing hundreds of years into the past. Thus all has been kept under wraps while new drives have been developed, but now its time to bring the lost tribes of humanity back into the fold.Edward Fletcher, a newly promoted rear admiral has been given the task of trying to re-integrate one such world, who's inhabitants have reverted to something akin to the medieval era. With only the crew and troops he has, can he bring them back diplomatically, or will other, far more violent means be required to force the largest kingdom on the planet into the federal administration.

Book 2

Rear Admiral Edward has finished his mission on Caelypsus and is now returning to earth for a long-needed rest. However, he soon finds himself called up and given a new set of orders. Firstly, he needs to take the second expeditionary fleet pirate hunting and take their secret hideout. Then secondly, as given in a bound and marked folder, are the orders to look out for what the seventh colony fleet has become. As the ship sent to search for them found a troubling sight that has left everyone in the know nervous.

And who knows what else may be out there, or where the recent batch of stolen ships have gone. All that’s for certain is the continued rapid pace of shipbuilding is going to come in handy.

Book one is complete! However, before continuing with the rest of book 2, I will have to do a re-write to bring the series up to my current standards. This means that the series is on indefinite hiatus. Sorry.

By the way, there are also Bi, Gay, Asexual, Non-Binary and other queer characters here. Apparently I should mention that.

Royal Road Writathon October 2022 winner.

Also on Scribble Hub.

Cover Illustrated By Thorkell=40k / Bluemoon8523Instagram for artisthttps://www.instagram.com/bluemoon8523/

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2022
Author: WhiteRose-BlueSpace

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.2/ 5.0
Followers: 276
Views: 108,214

Chapters(72 total)

Reviews

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Community Reviews(10)

MaxwellKHARoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Of Blood and Stardust is an enthralling and exhilarating sci-fi tale that will captivate readers from its very inception to its final moments. We embark on a journey alongside Captain Edward, whose promotion to Rear Admiral leads him to the challenging mission of tracking down the lost colony fleets.
Overall rating: 5/5 - This remarkable narrative is an exceptional read that will charm enthusiasts of science fiction. It's an absolute must for anyone seeking an electrifying and immersive adventure across the cosmos.
Style rating: 5/5 - The prose is masterfully honed, painting vivid imagery that breathes life into the story. The author's captivating writing style ensures a well-paced and thrilling plot.
Story rating: 5/5 - The plot is gripping and brimming with action, featuring a well-structured narrative and captivating characters that keep readers at the edge of their seats from start to finish. The book deftly builds tension, leaving us guessing about the outcome of the missions. Moreover, the cosmic setting enhances the sense of adventure.
Grammar rating: 5/5 - The grammar is flawless, with clear and concise writing that flows seamlessly without any noticeable errors.
Character rating: 5/5 - The characters are intricately developed and multi-faceted. Their relationships and personal struggles add depth to the tale, making them relatable and believable. Captain Edward's leadership and bravery create a compelling protagonist, and the dynamic interactions between him, David, and Alex are particularly engrossing.
In conclusion, Of Blood and Stardust is an extraordinary book that excels in every aspect. It's skillfully written, engaging, and thrilling. I wholeheartedly recommend this riveting sci-fi narrative to all enthusiasts of the genre!
MenilikRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I want to start by saying I get the feeling the author loves his ships and has a TONN of knowledge about ships (or maybe the author just did their research). Either way I found myself googling what end of a ship was the 'aft end' was. There's also chapters dedicated to the design of a particular ship. So if you like that you'll LOVE this story.
If you're not into that, you'll still love the characters. The story start to hit its stride around chapter 4. After chapter 4-6 you start to understand the world and the characters.
Grammar:
Few things here and there. And sometimes it takes a bit of effort to work out who is doing what. But nothing that ruins the flow of the story.
Story:
I'm at Chapter 8 and it's just getting addictive. There's a lot of world building here. But I do find myself being drawn into the story. Keen to understand the world more.
Characters:
This is the strongest part of the story. The characters are good and interesting. Some chapters are them walking around the ship meeting people and teasing each other - it's honestly fun.
Overall I think this book. There's a lot of visual scenes in the book which are full of mystery - I loved them.
PizzaPizzaRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Of Blood and Stardust is, put it simply, a fantastic piece for anyone who loves military fiction.
A lot of thought has clearly been placed into the worldbuilding, and the author manages to sneak in tons and tons of details about the military future they envisioned without bogging down the tempo and pacing or character writing.
These details include anything from command structures to technical aspects of the actual spaceships, to little breadcrumbs that slowly paint the world we are introduced to as readers. Emphasis been placed on the LGBTQ+ relationships, and it's written in seamlessly and naturally.
Who this is for: JUST about everyone who loves military fiction and/or sci-fi. You can practically feel the attention paid to details from physics and engineering/conostruction, to [Space] geography and individual motives.
SummerRennaRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I'm caught up with the story, and I have to say, "Blood and Stardust" is a blast to read. Between the unique story and the fun cast of characters, I found myself pulled into the story very quickly.
Style: I think the style is very well suited to the type of story being told. The prose is well-written and tight. The author frequently incorporates more technical-based language, which is an element I really appreciate in a story like this. Those added details lend the story a sense of realism and make it more immersive.
Story: I love the plot. It's a space opera involving a military conflict between our technologically advanced, space-faring protagonists and a society with medieval-level technology following a split and subsequent isolation of the latter. It's a fun premise that's well-explored, particularly when the medieval society is introduced and we see how their past experience with space-age tech has influenced their religion and spirituality. The growing clash between the two groups is very exciting to follow and intriguingly written. The world-building in this story is very thorough thus far, aided by brief bonus chapters incorporated into the story.
Grammar: There are a few spelling and grammatical errors, though I didn't find them to be distracting from the story.
Characters: The author has crafted a distinctive and vibrant cast of characters. Edward is a great protagonist to follow. His inner conflict over his mission and the self-doubt as to whether he's ready for this command make for a very compelling read, and his dynamic with his crew is fantastic. I particularly enjoy his banter with David.
Overall: "Blood and Stardust" is proving to be a fun and interesting story. I'm very excited to see where the plot goes from here, and I'm looking forward to reading more of these characters.
Toir McDunnoughRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
"Of Blood and Stardust" starts out with a big battle in which we are given a vivid example of how scary space is. It is slightly reminiscent of "Legend of the Galactic Heroes," which isn't a bad thing at all. The use of missiles and extrapolation of our current technology is great to see and lends a realism usually missing in many sci-fi novels.
Where this shines is the characters and interaction between the societies. The multiple characters' dynamics are good, and the romance hints are cute and sweet. Some have commented on the amount of cursing. They've obviously never been around military personnel for much time. The fact that the admiral is young as is his command staff is a bit of a stretch, but something that was explained away early on. This is where I have the comparison to "Legend of the Galactic Heroes" as both have young command staff that are mavericks.
When we move into the main story the ground battles are treated with the same care and detail that the spaceship battles are done. I rather prefer these as the writing has improved from the first chapters and really shows the potential of the author.
Overall this is a story that I have added to my follows and will be reading to completion. I gotta find out how the war goes and if certain romances happen.
srwoodsRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
So one of my favorite genres is military sci-fi and this reminded me of the old paperbacks I used to read. The space battles are fun and fast paced and the characters are interesting and well written. I enjoyed the inclusion of tech specs of the starships as well. I plan I continuing this series and I would recommend it to others.
rhyRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
i have no idea what's going on in full detail but i can say that ship shoot ship is cool, and there's the silly little people like edward and elliot.
there's some minor stuff that's a little bothersome and i'd recommend that spellchecking and proofreading is done more extensively, but this barely subtracts from the story in the end
my favorite thing about the story has to at least be the characters, they're intuitive and they almost have a "real" vibe to them, which gives them a depth i don't usually see in much fantasy/sci-fi content.
i'm glad that this story is both equal parts "drama" as it is technical terms, i'm not the most literate in terms of ships and how they operate. most people seem to love the attention to detail and i do to, but it can be a little overwhelming to take all of the information in sometimes.
overall i really love this book, and despite the small mistakes here and there, it doesn't waver in sucking you in.
KonstanceKayRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Are you one of those readers who looks at the reviews first before picking it up - if so, I have one thing I want to point out right away:
There were a few reviews regarding the spelling and grammar and yes, it is not up to published standards, however - once you get into the story and read it for that, they can be easy to ignore. I do admit, I stumble over the grammar a bit here and there and find myself wanting to take a pen to it, but there were so many other things happening that I preferred to keep going with the story than ruin it for myself by being picky. The more I read, the less time I had to focus on the grammar and instead got sucked deep into the plot and the characters.
Speaking of, the characters are awesome. Everyone I've met so far is unique and different, has their own voice, and they are all easy to distinguish. It makes for a very smooth read and very little confusion - adding onto the fact that each of them has their own personality flaws that make them more relatable? *chef's kiss* - huge plus for the LGBTQ+ representation too :D
Space operas can be so hard to do with travelling such great distances and dealing with such huge matters, but the author has been able to do that in a way that does not feel overwhelming. I feel like a part of this world and the zoom-ins to the characters are so good. I am loving the writing style as well, giving me a perfect balance of prose and plot, balancing dialogue with exposition so well that everything flows so smoothly.
(PS. This is a review swap and I had told myself I'd comment on every chapter, but not only did I find myself clicking "next chapter" too fast to comment, I also jumped over the agreed review count and didn't even notice!! The story grabs you, it really does and I am definitely continuing this!)
The plot itself is an interesting take on the future with enough similarities between our current world and situations/history to make you feel less like thrown into a new universe (pun not intended) a
LeSmileRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Scratches the Sci-Fi itch that permeates throughout my body and mind at all times of day and keeps me awake at night. I approve of this story and hope that everyone else likes it too. Also starting a chapter with a quote for some reason always gives me goosebumps and there are several chapters which do so thats also a win in my books. P.S I like the technical specs, more of them please
M.G DriverRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Amazing space opera! While the idea of a sci-fi invasion on a medival tech society is not new, the author manages to put it into a much more realistic and emotionally charged story.
The extreme technical details are a treat for hard sci-fi fans such as me myself - I'm all for it! It makes the story so much more immersive, and really gives you the spacefaring vibe.
Style:
Writing style is clean, fluid and paced well. I never felt like the story was being dragged ridiculously long for no reason. Characters got their adequate time in the spotlight, critical points in the story are properly dwelled on. The descriptions of scenes and areas are just enough for the reader to paint a scene in their head.
Story:
Great prose so far halfway through Book 1, though I feel like it is lacking a bit of tension. It seem pretty much a given that the space fleet will win no matter what, so it's hard for me to feel invested into the outcome of the battle. There were a few twists and turns along the way, but the final outcome felt like it was already decided from the start.
This is just a personal opinion, and it's the nature of the story. Based on the synopsis of Book 2, I can tell there are even more high stakes fights in the future to come - so keep reading is my best advice.
Grammar:
Perfect - didn't spot any errors, not that I'm very good at English either. Nothing threw me off the reading experience.
Character:
By far the best part of the story. The interactions between the MC and his friends as well as his subordinates are what really sells the realism of the story. I do feel it is a bit light-hearted slightly in terms of ranking, but anyone who's been in the military during downtime would probably see the same issues. I must note it is also expected seeing as the MC is young and not a prick for rules.
One personal issue I had in the earlier chapters is that there doesn't seem to be enough characterization of the people in the kingdom. I do see signs of more information trickling