"Fleet Command's Enigma Ship" is a story of a ship's captain who has paid his dues and of his conceptual warship Pegasus. From his entrance to the Fleet Academy to the end of the novel there is no doubt Capt. J.T. Buckton is the main character. He is both "book smart and a "man of the world" at the same time. He is warm and caring to those who are close to him, but to others he seems to be distant, even cold and hard as steel, almost an automaton.
Click here to see the rest of this review...
The first two chapters are expressly devoted to main the character JT Buckton, with the first chapter being devoted primarily with his character development, the what, where, when, how and why he became the man he has become. The second chapter chronicles his life's work and achievements in Fleet Command and how he came to be selected for the honored position of captain of the fleet's newest and greatest warship, Pegasus. The third chapter is where I created and developed the officers Capt. Buckton selects to serve as his command staff. Each of these characters is detailed to include their looks, specific physical abilities, desires, wants and wishes, etc. The fourth chapter is the last chapter that deals with the foundation not only of this book, but of the series I've created. This chapter deals directly with the warship Pegasus. It deals with the idea behind its construction to include the materials used in the construction, how the ship is constructed, its revolutionary propulsion system called the X-Drive, its completely new offensive and defensive weapons, and even some of the older ones that are upgraded. Once again these chapters are necessary for the foundation of the book and the series.
The rest of the novel deals with Pegasus' shakedown cruise (tests), disasters that occur, such as ship explosions during those tests, and events that occur back on Earth that affect their status way out in space. There are specific events that occur on Earth, i.e. Perseton spies within the alliance that lead to war with the Perseton Empire when the Persetons invade alliance space. Captain Buckton displays his wisdom throughout the story and "his baby" Pegasus gets to display the new technology that was developed specifically for this ship. There are several underlying events in the story, one of which involves the Chief Medical Officer's attempt to capture the captain's love. There is a great deal of feelings and emotions displayed by the characters and even some misinterpreted ideas about the captain by some of his staff.
The review of this Book prepared by John B. Bolton
