Some secrets carry the weight of the world.
Rose McKenzie may be far from Earth with no way back, but she's made a powerful ally--a fellow prisoner with whom she's formed a strong bond. Sazo's an artificial intelligence. He's saved her from captivity and torture, but he's also put her in the middle of a conflict, leaving Rose with her loyalties divided.
Captain Dav Jallan doesn't know why he and his crew have stumbled across an almost legendary Class 5 battleship, but he's not going to complain. The only problem is, all its crew are dead, all except for one strange, new alien being.
She calls herself Rose. She seems small and harmless, but less and less about her story is adding up, and Dav has a bad feeling his crew, and maybe even the four planets, are in jeopardy. The Class 5's owners, the Tecran, look set to start a war to get it back and Dav suspects Rose isn't the only alien being who survived what happened on the Class 5. And whatever else is out there is playing its own games.
In this race for the truth, he's going to have to go against his leaders and trust the dark horse.
***
Okay, so I can be shallow. I requested this one because of the pretty cover and the intriguing blurb. That said, there's nothing shallow about Dark Horse.
The thing I love most about this book is everyone, and I mean everyone, has an angle. Some wear it on their sleeve and others surprise you, sometimes not for a good long while. With several races and political agendas, nobody fits neatly into their role. So many times I found myself muttering no, no, no as something amazing I didn't want to see twisted the plot and ramped up the story.
My favourite character is Sazo, the AI. There's something so chilling and unpredictable about him. He's also inquisitive, immature and very,very likeable.
Rose and Dav are great together. This isn't a Mars Needs Moms trope novel at all. No contrived setup puts them together.
Dark Horse is action packed and full of surprises and backed up by a comfortable and well-built world.
I received a copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
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