Engaging the Enemy

Nebula Award–winner Moon's third Kylara Vatta novel is sadly more reminiscent of the uninspiring Trading in Danger (2003) than the inspired Marque and Reprisal (2004). Ky has more or less patched up her relationship with her cousin Stella—a good thing, since they're all that remains of the Vatta shipping empire—and finished off the most immediate danger, the renegade Osman Vatta. Ky now faces the much more nebulous threat of an interstellar piracy gang. As she travels from station to station seeking fellow pirate fighters, annoying local officials and repeatedly leaving Stella in the lurch, it's hard to stay interested. It doesn't help that the one genuinely stunning twist-of-fate climax is followed by six plodding chapters on an entirely different topic. Moon's strength is clearly in flash-bang-gee-whiz battles and skulking intrigue, both planetside and in space. It's too bad she so frequently drowns them in mundane details that provide realism at the expense of entertainment. (Mar.)