Fast-paced adventure in space

Such an awesome book. The author grabs you right off the bat with the premise of humanity as scavengers just surviving on the fringe of a crowded, advanced galaxy and keeps you hooked as the story runs from one narrow escape to the next.

The narration is fantastic and I especially appreciated the voice work on the characters. I got the real feeling that these were unique, distinct alien races I was listening to.

3 people found this helpful

Firefly meets Fury Road

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Great listen, very addicting with just the right amount of sci-fi, space & military tactics, and action. Scott's universe for the Vultures is familiar but with unique aspects that kept me wanting more. Can't wait for the next one!

3 people found this helpful

My first ever review

Fast paced and detailed.
It grips you and keeps you interested in both story and characters from start to finish.
I won't write details of neither story or characters because you should have a clean frame of mind to absorb and enjoy this.
Attach this book to a part of your memory because it deserves a place inside your mind to be remembered and enjoyed for a good while by just reminiscing.
I have never listened to a full audio book before because I have problems with audio perception.
So trust me when I say: I am glad I didn't let that stop me.

2 people found this helpful

A Rolicking Good Space Opera!

I had a lot of fun with this book. It had all the necessaries of a very good space opera: fire and action; an evil enemy; a somewhat slutty Captain; and a crew that knew how to talk, barter, or "appropriate" what was needed by their subpar ship. And just to put frosting on the cake, the ship had Marines that didn't take a back seat to any fight, especially one for their ship. It was just a good all around light listen made even better by the narrator, Steve Barnett. I was listening to a new (to me) author and narrator and it was well done. Why not 5 star? Even though I knew the profanity was mostly uttered by the Captain to establish her rough, tough exterior, I flinched with it and felt that in some places it was a little too much.

2 people found this helpful

The campiness is intentional? Right? RIGHT?!

I legitimately can’t tell if this book is terrible or intentionally campy. As such, I’m going to write this review as of it is an intentionally campy trope-ridden comedy.

If this book were a movie, it would belong on Mystery Science Theater 3000. It is perfect to over-analyze every little thing and laugh at how stilted the dialogue is. Really, anything related to people just comes off as so hilariously bad it is enjoyable when you’re not worried about injuring yourself with eye-rolls. That said, the things not related to people are made up of some pretty decent ideas, like war-like humans being sneakier than the ancient alien civilizations. Are these ideas well executed? Not really, but see above.

Ummm, I’m not sure who I’d recommend this to, but if the above sounds good to you, go for it?

1 person found this helpful

A fun light read.

In a galaxy full of politicians, aliens, and royalty in distress, Victoria Marin her crew of the privateer U. E. Condor are having difficulty locating some worthy salvage. The Vultures are getting restless, so Victoria takes a chance on a faint distress signal. What the Vultures find may be more than they are prepared to handle – First Prince Tavram and his entourage.

This was a fun fast-paced space story. Vick and her Vultures are an efficient crew. At first, I wasn’t sure what to make of Tavram and his crew, same as Vick. I was pleased to see several of Tavram’s people meshing with the Vultures. There’s even a little side romance.

Meanwhile, the aliens that tried so hard to take out Prince Tavram won’t easily be put off. Best Wishes of the ship Spring Dawn is in pursuit. I really enjoyed the names of these aliens, such as Modest Barry. Wishes and his crew have their orders and their empire has these hidden motivations that eventually become clear. There are bigger things at work and Vick and her Vultures are now caught up in the middle of this mess.

I read somewhere that this book has been compared to the TV series Firefly. For me, Firefly has a lot of great humor, and it’s a mix of the obvious and the subtle. This book really only has the obvious humor, which is good but I wouldn’t compare this book to Firefly in that way. This book has a great mix of cultures represented in the characters, such as Hu-wan, Uri, Red Calhoun, Vega, etc. In some ways, this story has greater diversity than Firefly.

Over all, it was a pretty fun, light action story. There’s no great in-depth meaning or some soulful love story. It was the perfect book for a busy time of the year when I just want some brain candy. I look forward to seeing what the author does next with this series.

The Narration: Steven Barnett does a great job with all the accents and then the made-up alien accents as well, which included a kind of bug voice and a slightly bubbly like underwater voice. I was really impressed with his range.

1 person found this helpful

Good Pacing. Good characters. Good action.

Really enjoyed this book and performance. I found the species Warren introduces to be interesting and imaginative. Quickly jumps in to lots of great space faring adventure. Sometimes space fantasy has me rolling my eyes. The book pretty deftly avoided overselling humans in the cosmos and offers up an interesting take on our place in the universe. I enjoyed the female hero in Captain Victoria Marin. I hope Warren has another tale in the works! Full disclosure, I snagged a free copy of this from Parvus with some quick commenting in response to a FB post, but would have felt like it was a credit well spent even if I had not been so fortunate to get a free copy.

1 person found this helpful

An Expansive Universe to Fall in Love With

Would you consider the audio edition of Vick's Vultures to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the print version. I picked up the audible edition because I was very eager to read the story but had trouble finding time except during my commute.

Who was your favorite character and why?

It's a tie between Aurea and Victoria. I loved Vick's attitude and sailor's vocabulary, but I was always happy to read more about Aurea and her system modifications. I also loved the side story and brave efforts of Tessa Baum.

Which character – as performed by Steven Barnett – was your favorite?

Best Wishes was the most distinct voice in the crowd, with perhaps the exception of Hibbevox, whose voice in the text is described as moist and warbling and is nothing short of that in the audio book narration.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The battle scenes were well narrated. The emotional and physical tension was captured flawlessly.

Any additional comments?

Victoria's voice was not narrated as I might have expected it (it was a little higher pitched and generally softer than I'd imagined), but by the end of the book I was completely comfortable with its depiction.

1 person found this helpful

One of the best

amazing performance. like honestly one of the best I've ever heard. sorry was good. don't expect any twists or turns. it's straight forward, fast paced, and a great space battle. very unique take on humans in space. but seriously the audio is incredible. do yourself a favor and give it a go!

Surprisingly excellent

I'm very picky about sci-fi. There are so many troupes and cliches that it's hard to find something enjoyable and unique. This Universe is phenomenal. Well worth every penny. I can't wait to re-listen again in a few months. Great work!