Quack, quack!

A routine, if unexpected, delivery of a package by the all female crew of the almost legitimate retrieval ship, the Nanshe,, finds the named recipient dead and a young girl hiding in a cellar. She says she's fifteen but looks no older than twelve. And she is terrified. And talking in biblical phrases. Not knowing what else to do since she is obviously alone and had probably been abused, the crew take her on board and Lena, the most recent of the seven members, is tasked with caring for her until she can be delivered to a Convent community a few days travel distant.
And then it all goes wrong.

Fast paced, intriguing and well written, this first book of a new space adventure series is both exciting and, at times, amusing with good characterisation and dialogue. The women on board are very individualistic, far from perfect loners but with an intense loyalty of family to each other. They try to do what is right but in this futuristic world, that isn't always clear and rarely easy.
A good series introduction, starting gently but rapidly building into cosmic action, it is also narrated by the author, S.A.Huckton, which can frequently be a big mistake, but in this case her performance definitely enhances the listening experience. Her reading is clear, well paced, with good intonation and adherence to the nuances of the text. Her character voicings are superb, very distinctive and different and with a variety of accents, increasing the feeling of really getting to know the crew. I very much look forward to book two with Ms.Huckton once again narrating.

My thanks to the rights holder who, at my request, freely gifted me a complimentary copy of Make Bright the Arrows, via Audiobook Boom. Recommended for all who enjoy S.F.stories of space adventuring. It's good, serious, fighting fun.

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