The Privateer (The Flight Engineer, Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)

by James Doohan (Author), S.M. Stirling (Author) "It's a formality, Commander Peter Raeder thought..." (more)
Key Phrases: Brother Captain, Sarah James, Star Command (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Gene Roddenberry created Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott--the Enterprise's beloved chief engineer Scotty--in the image of his friend James Doohan, a former real-life engineer and officer in the Canadian Army. Now Doohan, in his Flight Engineer series, coauthored with military-SF powerhouse S.M. Stirling, has created an equally likable character in Scotty's image: Commander Peter Ernst Raeder, a sly and salty flight engineer for the Commonwealth Navy.

Be warned: Baen Books has given the series an astronomically inappropriate tagline--"Beam us up again, Scotty!" And they've likewise made the unseemly decision to set Doohan's disembodied head afloat on the cover of both this and the last book, spinning surreally above generic space battles like some mustachioed, Scottish Death Star. But despite the crass cashing in on Scotty and his mug, Doohan and the already accomplished Stirling come through with fun and competent, if straightforward, work, a jocular mix of naval intrigue, pitched ship-to-ship combat, and (surprise!) last-minute, skin-of-your-teeth problem-solving. And at the heart of the story sits the worldly-wise, sardonic wit of Commander Raeder.

If you're new to the series, you'll probably want to check out The Rising first. But if you're anxious to see whether Raeder's daring aboard the Dauntless earned him reprimand or reward, pick up Privateer. One of his commanders puts it best: "You know the reward for good work, don't you, son?" "More work, sir?" "You're learning, son." We can trust the same applies to Doohan and Stirling. --Paul Hughes --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly
In a sequel to their coauthored The Rising, Doohan ("Scotty" on the original TV series Star Trek) and SF veteran Stirling (the Drake series, etc.) again deliver the exhilarating action that their fans want. Commander Peter Raeder of Space Command is facing reassignment to an earthbound desk post for a reckless act of bravery that saved every hand aboard the Dauntless, but contradicted the orders of his superiors. So when the inscrutable General Scaragoglu offers Raeder a dangerous and deadly assignment, he accepts eagerly. Doohan fans will be delighted as the high-spirited crew of the Dauntless set out on their new ship, the Invincible, and Raeder's highly talented fighter-jock buddiesAincluding the lovely Lt. Comdr. Sarah JamesAtrain for their top-secret mission. Piloting "Speeds"Afighters reconfigured to resemble the ships of space piratesARaeder's band conducts attack raids on their enemy, the "Mollies," within a dangerous asteroid belt. But when the Invincible is nearly crippled in battle, with just enough fuel to limp home to Ontario Base, Raeder and his band are left, with supplies dwindling, to face the enemy on their own and to rescue Sarah, who has been taken prisoner. Though they're writing here far from the borders of serious SF, Doohan and Stirling bind sharply drawn characters and rousing adventure with an energetic story line, offering first-rate escapist entertainment. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Baen (August 29, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671319493
• ISBN-13: 978-0671319496
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #940,734 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable reading, a good sequel to, The Rising., September 29, 1999

By	Michael Huston (Summerville, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Privateer: Flight Engineer Ii (Flight Engineer/James Doohan, Vol 2) (v. 2) (Hardcover)

I give this book my highest accolade: Good enough to be a David Weber novel. It reads a lot like a William Keith novel and anyone who likes the Wing Commander series would really enjoy this one. The main character, Peter Raeder, is a brave and compassionate leader who always wins, very much like Honor Harrington in the David Weber series. I enjoyed the characters. Sterling has proven himself to be an excellent scifi writer, but in collaboration with Doonhan, his novels are really ENJOYABLE. It's hard to tell what the influence of each author is in a novel, but they make a great team and I hope they collaborate on many more novels. I'd order the next book in the series right now if I could.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars surprisingly good, July 12, 2000

By	Ian Clark "bookwurm" (WELLINGTON New Zealand) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Privateer: Flight Engineer Ii (Flight Engineer/James Doohan, Vol 2) (v. 2) (Hardcover)

I received this book as one of a group purchase as I wanted the other three in the bundle, I only read it as I was short of material, I'd already passed up the previous book by "Scotty", after all he's only an actor what does he know about writing.

Well he knows how to (co)write a damn good SFF novel thats what. Interesting characters in exciting situations, this book is good!

Ive since bought the first in the series and i am waiting for the third to come out (soon).

Enjoy.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great Story but..., December 16, 2000

By	Roger E Benton (Wauregan, Ct United States) - See all my reviews

Read this book right after reading the first one and was disappointed that the authors got the saboteur confused in this book. He was the head of the Invincibles quartermasters not the XO.