Renegade

About This Audiobook

Renegade drops you into space’s most combustible cocktail: a crew of hardened misfits, a ship that barely holds together, and a war they’re losing. This isn’t your grandfather’s military SF—it’s a propulsion-heavy brawl where tactics matter less than sheer audacity. Commander Zeris’s unorthodox gambits feel earned, not forced, because the cost is always visible in the wake of every decision. The writing crackles with a lived-in grime, where advanced tech coexists with gritty survival instincts. If you crave a space opera that trusts its audience to keep up with the chaos, this is your next hot drop.

The audiobook’s dual-narrator magic turns dialogue into theater. Richard Brock’s Zeris is a baritone hurricane—equal parts charm and menace—while Raya Kane’s layered performances give side characters surprising depth, particularly in the Dowd’s chilling, non-verbal vocalizations. It’s a rare audiobook where the narration isn’t just a service; it’s a spotlight, shining on the cast’s crackling chemistry and the story’s razor-sharp stakes. Expect to laugh, gasp, and occasionally wince as the plot spirals into territory traditional space operas rarely dare."

"review": "I went in expecting another gear-up-and-burn space romp, but Renegade subverts that from minute one. Zeris isn’t a hero; he’s a desperate gambler willing to burn his own ship to keep the Dowd off balance, and Brock sells that recklessness like a veteran poker pro with a tell. Kane’s ability to switch between characters without losing tonal cohesion is borderline uncanny—she nails the Dowd’s eerie, echoing presence in a way that lingers longer than the credits. The pacing is relentless, but not at the expense of worldbuilding; Hawke folds in enough lore about the Dowd’s biology and the crew’s backstories to make you care about *why* certain sacrifices hurt.

My biggest critique? The final act leans hard into a third-act twist that feels slightly telegraphed if you’ve read your share of space opera. And the production occasionally swells with a tinny resonance during intense action scenes, as if the acoustics of the bridge were recorded in a slightly too-small tin can. But these are minor quibbles in an otherwise stellar audio experience. If you want a space adventure that punches above its weight in grit and wit, this one’s a must-listen."

"tags": ["space opera with attitude