At the end of the last book, "Devil's Gun", Niko and her crew still have the one gun that can take out their nemesis, Tubal Last, and the only person in the whole galaxy, Petalia, who can fire it.  All they need now is a target.  And this will be a bit harder since Last cloned himself and set the clones loose.  Theoretically, they will need to destroy all the clones to be able to fire the gun at Last.

Petalia still hates Niko and won't really talk to her.  Talon has finally come to the realization that his cloned brother, dubbed Rebbe, will never be his lost brother; those memories are gone forever.  But even though Talon finally recognizes this fact, he is still trying to forge a relationship with Rebbe.  Rebbe, on the other hand, hates Talon and refuses his every overture.  What Rebbe really hates, though, is the idea that he isn't the real boy; he worries all the time that the lost Thorn's memories might still surface within him. Dabry is withholding significant information from Niko; that maybe his daughter might still be alive. And, Lassite, the prophecy-following ex-priest, is still watching for deviations from the Golden Path and trying to give Niko just enough information without affecting the Path. Skidoo is also keeping information from Niko and her crewmates; information that will, undoubtedly, affect every one of them.  Atlanta is still trying to find her purpose; maybe it will be as a Trader.  Niko has no problem encouraging that and gives Atlanta a stake to use while she is on Coralind.  But, in the tradition of poor Jack and his Beanstalk, Atlanta is tricked into using all her stake for a handful of seeds.  Seeds that, according to Niko's analysis, aren't even viable...maybe.  And, finally: Jezli.  Jezli continues to be a thorn in Niko's side.  Niko doesn't trust the conwoman for a second but there are times when Jezli seems to say just the right thing or be in the right place.  She might have actually saved both Talon and Rebbe from making a regrettable decision that Niko didn't even see coming.

Niko sets sail for the planet Coralind; one of several possible locations to find Tubal Last. She hopes to make contact with her insurance agency and get the pay-out for their last destroyed restaurant; without that policy, it's doubtful that Niko can keep Thing flying or the crew fed.  It's also the home of an old comrade who might be able to share information regarding Last's location.  And for the crew, it's an opportunity for some much needed shore leave as Coralind is home to the Festival and lots of gardens that cater to every type of being.  Unfortunately, Niko's nemesis, Gnarl, has come to the same conclusion as to their destination and he is hard on their trail; determined to destroy Niko and recover his escaped crewmember, Gio.

And as for You Sexy Thing, well…the ship is still trying out certain characteristics; trying to make sense of the flesh creatures housed within her.  Not all her attempts are met with approval; Niko did not appreciate the subtlety of the myriad eyes that Thing deployed in the wall just so she could roll them.  She had a bit more success with the crew with her attempts to provide atmospheric music. But when Thing discovered that Niko's old friend is now a bioform that actually runs the infrastructure of the whole planet Coralind, she's terribly excited about meeting a creature that might understand her and also help explain people.

So many secrets and personal dilemmas that could either bring the crew together as a family or break them entirely.  Rambo keeps a lot of balls in the air both with the crew and the challenges they face.  The biggest unresolved mysteries concern Jezli and Sessile; there are hints that they will become more than shadowy antagonists.  The story causes the crew to confront their fears and hopes while using their individual skills and strengths to benefit everyone.  I like that about the plot; it's hopeful and optimistic.  What I still don't like is the lack of understanding for what drives each of them.  What we do get from each of them feels very superficial.  The plot did suffer a bit from too many threads and I felt the author worked too hard to make them interrelated.  But, I suppose, that such a large ensemble of characters required something from each one of them.

Overall, I enjoyed it for a light read.  It appears that the author intends to keep the series going so I expect to see the next book appear on my desk sooner or later.  There really wasn't anything that kept my imagination engaged but it was light fun.  ~~ Catherine Book

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