Cagebird
Lowachee's third space opera depicts the conflict begun inWarchild(2002) andburndive(2003) from another point of view, that of a young pirate. Although only 22, Yuri Kirov is a former pirate captain now in stir doing a life sentence. Then Earth Hub black-ops agents make him an offer he can't refuse: to return to the pirate organization as their agent. Lowachee interweaves the past and the present, showing the episodes in Yuri's past that formed his present attitudes and actions. She uses this technique skillfully, and produces a seamless whole featuring some memorable characters, including Ryan Azercon, the protagonist ofBurndive, as Yuri sees him. This installment in the series stands on its own very well, so there's no need to know its predecessors before plunging into it for good action reading's sake.Frieda MurrayCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved