Hard Sci-Fi Space Opera- HEGEMONY, by Mark Kalina

[kalinamark]

I've e-published a novel on Amazon and Smashwords.
"Hegemony" is a space opera with a hard-sci-fi edge and some transhumanist themes. It's got space battles, intrigue, data warfare, action...

Most of my readers to date seem to have liked it. A few of the Amazon reviews are excerpted below:

"I wasn't expecting a whole lot when I downloaded this book for $.99... but it drew me in from the first page. I don't know that I've ever read a book that did a better job of rendering a plausible and exciting space battle, yet the characters really came alive as well. I've read a lot of full-price science fiction from big name authors that didn't nail that combination anywhere near as well as the author has here."
-Mark Bartlett


"..."Hegemony" is a gem. If you like the writing of Peter F. Hamilton, C.J. Cherryh or Stephen Baxter you will love this one. It is a compelling story in a brilliantly crafted universe. I became instantly hooked ... - haven't done anything else that day and it was well worth it.
Part of the fun are those background politics. Neither the Hegemony, nor the Coalition or the Brotherhood are all shiny and spotless. There is no black and white, only different shades of grey and the protagonists have to come up with their own solutions to overcome the shortcomings of their side in this upcoming conflict.
Nevertheless, it is a fast paced action novel. And [the author] has, believe it or not, been very careful in adhering to reality-style physics in this book, which, in this case, also adds to the storytelling. And if you wonder what daemons do in a high-tech space opera - well, I recommend: Get "Hegemony and see for yourself."
-Fish


"This fun little space adventure introduces a nice scenic world that I hope the author will continue to fill with spies, transhumans, space battles and political intrigue. I enjoyed that he presented both sides of the- what's the space faring equivalent of the geopolitical divide?- with flawed characters and premises without judgment. Lots of tech, some of which follows along current lines -and a couple of classic ones -and an interesting take on FTL travel. Great sci-fi and I can't wait for the next one."
- R. Peterson

"Hegemony" is available for 99 cents from Amazon or Smashwords.

If you're interested in a hard sci-fi space opera, you might want to check it out.

http://www.amazon.com/Hegemony-ebook...6777058&sr=8-1

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/162093

[kalinamark]

Hegemony has passed 1,000 sales on Amazon and Smashwords... I'd be curious to know if that's good, bad, indifferent, etc., as self-published books go.

[kalinamark]

Hegemony has been assigned Premium status on Smashwords, as a result of which, it is now available via the Apple iTunes book store, and in theory should be available at Barnes & Noble's online Nook store as well (along with several other digital outlets.)

[suciul]

Here are my raw thoughts (from Goodreads as usual as i write them there first) on finishing the novel ; I plan to give them a coherent form and do a full review on Fantasy Book Critic, tentatively next week or the week after

- finished the book as it was a relatively short, fast and generally engaging read which promises a lot if the author will continue the story

- it reminded me to a large extent of the early Honorverse books especially when the shift moved from the character in the blurb to the other main character, who is a young ship captain, not originally from the aristocracy but with protectors there (and now of course a member of it as all ship officers and pilots are), up and coming etc etc

- there are some major differences in so far the Hegemony is completely dominated by the aristocracy who are all neural net humans (there is a good setup explaining the one way transition from flesh to quantum state which can be embodied but not duplicated, the way the Church treats it etc)

- the opposition are a sort of atheist People's Republic with (generally dumb but powerful) commissars on board and set on conquest and on mischief

- there are pirates and corrupt hegemony officials as well as some that believe that the power structure that prefers the 'zombies" not the flesh humans is wrong..

- the info dumps are Weberian on occasion too and the author does not quite have (yet) the narrative pull but there is a lot of promise so I really hope the series gets continued

- the book itself solves its main storyline and ends at a good point though of course there is a huge TBC