Endurance

Rating:
Summary: The Doc Rides Again
Review: Let me start off by saying I am a big fan of the "Doc". The third installlment picks up exactly where the last book ended. Ms. Viehl does a good job of catching the reader up if your "new" or just reminding the "faithfull" why we love our "Doc". As a prisoner of the Hsktskt Slavers she spins most of the book fighting for and trying to save her fellow prisoners while "sticking it in the face" to Reever, her bondmate who betrayed her at the end of Book 2. As usual there are lots of characters to interact with - alien and terran alike and I really enjoyed the return of TssVar and learning more about the Hsktskt race and their customs. As usually this author continues to be a strong writer of characters, how they change and relate to each other. I especially liked the Doc's relationship with one of the Hsktskt females. Although some of the mystery was too easy to figure out it was still a great read - all in one night. I gave the book four instead of five stars as I got a little tired of the prison, the escapes and saves and escapes and saves but that was a minor drawback. In retrospect I will probably be sorry - it should be a five. If you like a space opera with a strong, independent heroine with a great sarcastic sense of humor, enough action for a fast read, interesting supporting cast, some tears and lots of cheers and finally a great continuing overall plot you will not be disappointed - adventures of the Doc are for you. I know I'm hooked and hope Ms. Viehl can continue the adventure. I look forward to the next installment.

Rating:
Summary: I had to have this one too!!!!
Review: Okay, I have read the reviews of everyone else, and now feel it is my turn to share my opinion of this book. I read the other two books and went out and bought this one at the local bookstore as soon as it was on the shelf, because I couldn't wait long enough for it to be shipped to me... So, I'm reading it, not studying for my class once again (I know, I'm a bad colleged student). I must say, this book held my attention just like the other ones. Yet, I can understand the other reviewers comments about the torture scenes. They had me cringing. But, they only seemed to make Cherijo stronger and more determined to help people and get out of the predicament she was in.

I don't think Cherijo is actually stupid when it comes to her relationships with men. The only other relationship she has had was her short marriage to Kao. I think she felt so guilty and still feels guilty about Kao dying, I mean it was her blood that killed him, that she can't really trust herself to be in another relationship without feeling she is betraying his memory. I guess she's also fighting this obvious love she has for Duncan Reever, but you can't half blame the woman, the man has betrayed her, tortured her and done all sorts of despicable things to her!

But what I didn't really understand, was the scene between Cherijo and Maggie. Ms. Viehl has me wondering and waiting for the next installment in this series with that one, not to mention the bit of news Reever received at the end of the book. I'm glad that I won't be pulling my hair out waiting for the next one, like I did this one!

Rating:
Summary: Good book, but not great
Review: Pretty good book, but not the best. i agree with the reviewer who said Cherijo was smart and if you are referring to the character i think you are(Noarr) i agree with you. I also disagree with the person who said this book didn't end on a cliffhanger. It wasn't a cliffhanger like the last one, but i, for one, would like to know his reaction to the news, but i don't know about you. There were too many torurings, escapes, and captures for my taste because they were all the same! Also Reever seemed a little too harsh, even if you've finished the book and know why he acted like he did. Some people might not like this, but i think she has been obsessing over Kao TOO long. I mean, she doesn't need to think about him what seems like every few minutes. THis series is good, and i want to read the next one NOW.

Rating:
Summary: Endurance in more ways than one!
Review: Taking up from the cliffhanger of the previous book, sees the increasingly superhuman (and inhuman) Cherijo enslaved, hated by her fellow slaves and back to square one in her relationship with Duncan. Viehl writes as compellingly as ever but the story turns out to follow an increasingly violent and monotonous pattern of plucky defiance followed by punishment and torture interspersed with the good Doc saving all and sundry in the Medlab. Chojero appears increasingly dour and embittered and the lovely humour that leavened Stardoc is largely missing, apart from a brief subplot with 2 alien teenagers. The good Doc has little to do apart from fend off her various suitors or torturers. I do hope the next book has a lighter touch, but at least this one did not end in a cliffhanger!

Rating:
Summary: Dissapointing.
Review: There is no doubt that Viehl is a talented author. Her alien creatures are very imaginative and her worlds believable, but this book was... well it was boring. Endurance is the third book in the Stardoc series and like its title, any reader will need exceptional endurance to read it.

Cherijo has made it safely to Joren only to have the planet attacked by the league. When her husband runs away and leaves her stranded, Cherijo thinks it can't get worse but wait... yes it can. The Heskiit raiders turn up to pirate the planet and steal anything not nailed down. Cherijo makes a deal with them, helps them capture the league fleet and turn its crew into slaves, but the Heskiit decide they'll take her too.

Now a slave, she is used and abused constantly. She is forced to run the medical facility at the slave compound, where she saves lives every few minutes--no surprise, and is hated by her colleagues--no surprise, who are (most of them) incompetent--no surprise, but come around and warm to her--no surprise, and eventually see her as a supersurgeon and hero--no surprise.

Get it?

This book was so repetitive that I wanted to scream "GET ON WITH IT!" I persevered groaning at the repeated scenes of torture and abuse the author subjects Cherijo too. Enough already! We know she heals super fast, we know the slave brand disappears from her arm. We don't need to see her branded and tortured every five minutes. Also, how realistic is it for slaves to be taken to torture chambers and have them escape over and over and over again only to reappear in the normal slave population under the noses of the slavers? The slavers just look at them and send them back to work. Come on!

Okay, enough ranting. The Stardoc series is an excellent one, but this book is the worst of them so far. I would have given it one star, but the series is so good I couldn't do it. I really really hope the following stories make up for the huge disappointment I felt for this one.

Mark E. Cooper
Warrior Within (ISBN:0954512200)

Rating:
Summary: Cherijo is in trouble again!
Review: Third novel in the StarDoc series. Now we find Cherijo Grey Veil Torin taken captive by the Hsktskt's, on their way to a trade port that deals in selling slaves. She is branded and made slave to OverMaster HalaVar, who is not a true Hsktskt but her own husband Duncan Reever.

Under his protection she is allowed to serve on the HskTskt ship as a medical doctor, and along the way discovers a strange disease among the league prisoners that kills without leaving behind any traces except a resemblance to spinal meningitis.

This series is best started at the first book, StarDoc, and followed through in its sequence. The first two novels, StarDoc and Beyond Varallan are much better than Viehl's third effort here. Although I still give it four stars for the quality of characterization and imagination in dreaming up new species, Viehl's plot in this sequel falls flat compared to the other two.

I became a little bored with the repetitive "catch and release" theme that seemed to dominate here: she's working in medical, a bad guy takes her to solitary (or torture) Reever rescues her, she goes back to medical, a bad guy takes her to solitary (or torture), Reever rescues her, and so on and so on.

This plotline cycled through itself way too many times in this follow-up in Cherijo's journeys, but I like the character so much I was willing to cycle with her. I am now reading the fourth installment and have both confidence and hope that Viehl will not repeat the weak plot mistake she made in this book.

All in all, the series is an extremely imaginative and fun romp through space with odd aliens and medical disasters and action packed thrills, just consider this third in the series a break from the norm. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Cherijo is in trouble again!
Review: Third novel in the StarDoc series. Now we find Cherijo Grey Veil Torin taken captive by the Hsktskt's, on their way to a trade port that deals in selling slaves. She is branded and made slave to OverMaster HalaVar, who is not a true Hsktskt but her own husband Duncan Reever.

Under his protection she is allowed to serve on the HskTskt ship as a medical doctor, and along the way discovers a strange disease among the league prisoners that kills without leaving behind any traces except a resemblance to spinal meningitis.

This series is best started at the first book, StarDoc, and followed through in its sequence. The first two novels, StarDoc and Beyond Varallan are much better than Viehl's third effort here. Although I still give it four stars for the quality of characterization and imagination in dreaming up new species, Viehl's plot in this sequel falls flat compared to the other two.

I became a little bored with the repetitive "catch and release" theme that seemed to dominate here: she's working in medical, a bad guy takes her to solitary (or torture) Reever rescues her, she goes back to medical, a bad guy takes her to solitary (or torture), Reever rescues her, and so on and so on.

This plotline cycled through itself way too many times in this follow-up in Cherijo's journeys, but I like the character so much I was willing to cycle with her. I am now reading the fourth installment and have both confidence and hope that Viehl will not repeat the weak plot mistake she made in this book.

All in all, the series is an extremely imaginative and fun romp through space with odd aliens and medical disasters and action packed thrills, just consider this third in the series a break from the norm. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: No, Read It--Really
Review: This third StarDoc novel, which finds Cherijo Torin enslaved by the Hsktskt Faction, succeeds almost in spite of itself. The basic problem is that it should never have happened. In StarDoc, Duncan Reever told Cherijo that being named designate for a Hsktskt infant "virtually guarantees you'll never be taken as a Hsktskt slave." Agreed, "virtually" isn't the same as "absolutely," but it's close enough so that only a serious crime against the Faction should trigger such a fate. All Cherijo did was negotiate a trade-the safety of Joren's inhabitants in exchange for the easy capture of an entire League military fleet. The Hsktskt admit the undamaged fleet is a major prize. So TssVar demotes his child's godmother to slave status for handing him this prize? Not likely. Viehl's disregard of her own back-story here makes it harder for readers to trust anything she writes.

Regular romantic fiction readers may find no complaints beyond Endurance's basic premise. Those who prefer their protagonists smart, savvy, and quick on the uptake will find part of the plot very frustrating. Despite all they've been through together, Cherijo has now arbitrarily pegged Duncan as a bad guy without so much as a "you owe me an explanation." This is a convention often used in books with torrid covers of Fabio clutching a chesty female in long skirts. Readers know the heroine will torture herself interminably for loving a monster, disregarding mounting evidence to the contrary. At no point will either she or said monster insist on simply talking it all out. Cherijo supposedly has a genetically enhanced brain, but it doesn't show here. Viehl can do better. Her readers-and characters-deserve better.

Luckily for everyone involved, Viehl does do better in much of Endurance. The star-crossed-love theme runs its full course, but isn't the whole story. As Cherijo adjusts to slave life, first aboard ship and then at the slave depot on Catopsa, she resumes medical duties by tending to her fellow captives. Since she got them into this mess, her life's as much at risk from them as from her captors. The pangs of tortured love pale beside the tale's almost casual physical brutality and occasional bodily torture. When push comes to shove, Cherijo morphs back into the protagonist of previous books-a diminutive Arnold Schwarzenegger, only with better gag writers. The action sequences are fast-paced, creative, and leavened with humor. Along the way, Cherijo gains new information about the mysterious Maggie and about herself.

Even at the darkest points, there's reason to hope. Cherijo's old pal Alunthri is back. She earns the grudging respect of some League captives, and makes friends among the slaves on Catopsa. Then there's Noarr, a slave runner of unknown species who becomes more than friendly. Other allies appear from unexpected quarters. The cavalry appears in the nick of time.

Viehl's basic writing skills continue to improve, though sentence structure remains a problem for her. Both of her extended attempts at dialect will annoy some readers.

Rating:
Summary: No, Read It--Really
Review: This third StarDoc novel, which finds Cherijo Torin enslaved by the Hsktskt Faction, succeeds almost in spite of itself. The basic problem is that it should never have happened. In StarDoc, Duncan Reever told Cherijo that being named designate for a Hsktskt infant "virtually guarantees you'll never be taken as a Hsktskt slave." Agreed, "virtually" isn't the same as "absolutely," but it's close enough so that only a serious crime against the Faction should trigger such a fate. All Cherijo did was negotiate a trade-the safety of Joren's inhabitants in exchange for the easy capture of an entire League military fleet. The Hsktskt admit the undamaged fleet is a major prize. So TssVar demotes his child's godmother to slave status for handing him this prize? Not likely. Viehl's disregard of her own back-story here makes it harder for readers to trust anything she writes.

Regular romantic fiction readers may find no complaints beyond Endurance's basic premise. Those who prefer their protagonists smart, savvy, and quick on the uptake will find part of the plot very frustrating. Despite all they've been through together, Cherijo has now arbitrarily pegged Duncan as a bad guy without so much as a "you owe me an explanation." This is a convention often used in books with torrid covers of Fabio clutching a chesty female in long skirts. Readers know the heroine will torture herself interminably for loving a monster, disregarding mounting evidence to the contrary. At no point will either she or said monster insist on simply talking it all out. Cherijo supposedly has a genetically enhanced brain, but it doesn't show here. Viehl can do better. Her readers-and characters-deserve better.

Luckily for everyone involved, Viehl does do better in much of Endurance. The star-crossed-love theme runs its full course, but isn't the whole story. As Cherijo adjusts to slave life, first aboard ship and then at the slave depot on Catopsa, she resumes medical duties by tending to her fellow captives. Since she got them into this mess, her life's as much at risk from them as from her captors. The pangs of tortured love pale beside the tale's almost casual physical brutality and occasional bodily torture. When push comes to shove, Cherijo morphs back into the protagonist of previous books-a diminutive Arnold Schwarzenegger, only with better gag writers. The action sequences are fast-paced, creative, and leavened with humor. Along the way, Cherijo gains new information about the mysterious Maggie and about herself.

Even at the darkest points, there's reason to hope. Cherijo's old pal Alunthri is back. She earns the grudging respect of some League captives, and makes friends among the slaves on Catopsa. Then there's Noarr, a slave runner of unknown species who becomes more than friendly. Other allies appear from unexpected quarters. The cavalry appears in the nick of time.

Viehl's basic writing skills continue to improve, though sentence structure remains a problem for her. Both of her extended attempts at dialect will annoy some readers.

Rating:
Summary: she's one of the special ones
Review: This was a page-turner, no doubt about it. The plight of Catopsa's prisoners is a desperate one indeed. But I keep asking myself why Ms. Viehl deems it necessary to put Cherijo in such extremely violence situations? Other reviewers seem to agree with me.

Someone with her intellect and tragic experiences should be wiser about potential lovers and enemies. Also, she never gives Duncan a chance to explain his actions until everything is said and done. How could she be so dense? She's so busy shooting off her mouth that she doesn't listen and when she does listen it to the wrong people!

The first book in this series was fresh, engaging and a touch of mystery with Cherijo's "step" Mom Maggie. Now the question remains: what stupid, mindless act of violence is going to occur next? Quit padding the plot and and let's get on with the real questions: Who was/is Maggie? Why was Cherijo created? Will she ever be free of Dr. Grey Veil's relentless pursuit? Is Duncan Reever going to ever loosen up? My writing teacher once told me if you need to rely on sex and violence to move a plot along than its not really a plot. Ms. Viehl, Dr. Torin is a breakthrough character, don't demean her with all this nonsense.