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timinbc's review against another edition
4.0
I almost ticked the "horror" box for this, so be warned.
If you thought #1 in this series was dark and gory and violent and nasty, just put the book down now and back away, no one has to get hurt.
If this is not a horror story, it is at least horrible. We're on a planet where the best of them is not at all a nice person, where a person's best choice is what we'd call a worst choice. There are a few sheltered rich people, and the slightly-implausible offworlders, but we spend most of our time in the gutters and sewers, which are almost the same thing here anyway.
Juno is out of the KOP now. His drinking problem as we start is described rather clumsily, but we get past that and the plot moves on. Juno and Maggie learn stuff a bit at a time, quite plausibly. Each new thing is another "Ick!" for the reader, but important to the plot.
In the end, Juno has to make a tough decision that seems to make some other decisions easier.
Finally we see that even Maggie is learning that to make omelets you have to break eggs. Times a thousand on this planet.
Good plot, well paced - but again if you don't like tough people doing really tough things, stay away.
If you thought #1 in this series was dark and gory and violent and nasty, just put the book down now and back away, no one has to get hurt.
If this is not a horror story, it is at least horrible. We're on a planet where the best of them is not at all a nice person, where a person's best choice is what we'd call a worst choice. There are a few sheltered rich people, and the slightly-implausible offworlders, but we spend most of our time in the gutters and sewers, which are almost the same thing here anyway.
Juno is out of the KOP now. His drinking problem as we start is described rather clumsily, but we get past that and the plot moves on. Juno and Maggie learn stuff a bit at a time, quite plausibly. Each new thing is another "Ick!" for the reader, but important to the plot.
In the end, Juno has to make a tough decision that seems to make some other decisions easier.
Finally we see that even Maggie is learning that to make omelets you have to break eggs. Times a thousand on this planet.
Good plot, well paced - but again if you don't like tough people doing really tough things, stay away.
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
Wow...continues where Kop left off and Hammond does not disappoint. Excellent.
eastofthesunwestofthemoon's review against another edition
4.0
3 1/2 stars, shading up because I did like this second entry into the KOP series, despite its overall grim and gritty tone. Juno, now an ex-KOP, is still involved with former colleagues to varying degrees. This book deals with a twisty, perverse, and very ugly series of killings that leads Juno to digging up the dirt on some of the KOP officers in his former outfit. Many characters from KOP appear in this volume as well. Pieces of Juno's life are exposed and some are dealt with. It's a good take on a PI book with some procedural thrown in, but the sci-fi elements are relatively minor, other than some beefed up weaponry and the (continuing) impressive setting descriptions of the planet and its climate and wildlife.
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