BOOK REVIEW: Retribution (Mass Effect #3) by Drew Karpyshyn

Retribution by Drew Karpyshyn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Humanity has reached the stars, joining the vast galactic community of alien species. But beyond the fringes of explored space lurk the Reapers, a race of sentient starships bent on “harvesting” the galaxy’s organic species for their own dark purpose.

The Illusive Man, leader of the pro-human black ops group Cerberus, is one of the few who know the truth about the Reapers. To ensure humanity’s survival, he launches a desperate plan to uncover the enemy’s strengths—and weaknesses—by studying someone implanted with modified Reaper technology. He knows the perfect subject for his horrific experiments: former Cerberus operative Paul Grayson, who wrested his daughter from the cabal’s control with the help of Ascension project director Kahlee Sanders.

But when Kahlee learns that Grayson is missing, she turns to the only person she can trust: Alliance war hero Captain David Anderson. Together they set out to find the secret Cerberus facility where Grayson is being held. But they aren’t the only ones after him. And time is running out.

As the experiments continue, the sinister Reaper technology twists Grayson’s mind. The insidious whispers grow ever stronger in his head, threatening to take over his very identity and unleash the Reapers on an unsuspecting galaxy.

A rating so well deserved, and probably the most 'unputdownable' book of the series so far. The action is non-stop and the overall plot really opens up. I did find the scale of the story to be a little smaller than the previous novels, but the excellent action more than made up for it. I find myself really torn between the Illusive Man and the rest of Alliance society. The xenophobic cult that is Cerberus, at least, are trying to combat the lurking threat of the Reapers while elsewhere the 'myth' is suppressed and nothing is done. I'm guessing that more unconventional pacts and alliances are formed in the next book to really have a crack at the Reapers. That said, I've read some not-so-positive reviews of book four, claims that it errs somewhat from the established plot. However, Dietz is a fine author so I'm sure it's not all that bad. I think I will read it.

View all my reviews