• The Good: Imaginative nuggets that will likely blossom into better ideas in future novels
• The Bad: One-dimensional characters; dull political plot
• The Literary: Origin story of the Galactic Empire of the Empire series

Biron Farrell is young and ready to prove himself, just finishing up his education at the University of Earth. When a radiation bomb is planted in his dorm room and his father, the highly respected Rancher of Widemos, is arrested and murdered as a traitor to the Tyranni Empire, Biron grows up fast, forced to flee from an unknown assassin.

This novel is an early prequel to the Empire series, and serves as the origin story as the founding of the Galactic Empire. As such, the plot is highly political. The Tyranni Empire, made up of about 50 planets near the Horsehead Nebula, actively suppresses space travel and science as a means of control. On the advice of a friend, Biron travels to Rhodia, a powerful planet in the empire, where he learns from the Rhodia’s Director’s cousin Gillbret of the rebellion against the Tyranni.

Even though Biron is mostly interested in learning about his father’s death, he’s soon pulled into the political intrigue of the rebellion. Unfortunately, the intrigue falls flat. The action is silly, the reveals are expected, and the final reveal of the story’s McGuffin doesn’t really make sense in this world. Biron is a young man, but he’s a dull character who falls in love with a vapid young woman, the daughter of Rhodia’s Director, and their romance adds nothing to the story.

I really enjoy Asimov’s Robot series, and I’ll continue to read the Empire series, but I may need a break after this one. In his autobiography In Memory Yet Green, Asimov calls this is least favorite novel. I’d have to agree with him.