Sep 12, 2026
I am part of the Sean Patrick Ryan fan club!
This was the eleventh novel I have read by Declan Finn; in nearly as many weeks. I absolutely love his Saint Tommy Series that starts with Hell Spawn and Death Cult. I read a very old copy of A Pius Man the first in that trilogy of 5 books. They are unfortunately out of print currently and I eagerly await the new editions. And the first White Ops book was excellent. Currently I am reading two Saint Tommy and then a White Ops. But it took a lot of will power not to download Main Street DOA after finishing this one, to find out where the story goes next. I now completely understand why so many people rave about Finn’s works. Being of Irish Catholic descent I greatly appreciate the character Sean Patrick Ryan! And reading this was like going back almost 40 years when I first overcame by dyslexia and read books by Edgar Rice Burrows, Piers Anthony, Harry Harrison, and Robert A Heinlien. This story was like reading a much more wholesome Stainless Steel Rat, Bio of A Space Tyrant, or a story involving Lazarus Long. But Finn is a devoted Catholic unlike Anthony who was agnostic, and Heinlien who was adamantly atheist and against marriage, and Harrison and Burrows who were also an atheists. I so wish there had been books like this when I was a teen. I read so much back then that shaped my thinking consciously and subconsciously for decades. The Saint Tommy Books may go to the edge, but the White Ops books are just excellent space opera, written like much that is considered classic science fiction but with a much better message! I started that the first story up to about half way felt like a fix-up story. Their seemed to be several story lines set in the same universe with overlap here and there. During that first half of the book it felt like a rewrite of J.F. Powers Morte d'Urban set in space. Which in and of itself would not have been a bad thing. But then as things started coming together, it felt more like a rewrite of Tom Clancy’s Clear and Present Danger with so many subplots that when they all started coming together the complexity of the story revealed a masterpiece. In this once we have several clear story arcs at the beginning, and a few get added in. In that way it feels a lot like Babylon 5, which had the 5 years story arc written before they began filming, with characters coming in and going out, and the occasional off references her and they that do not get resolved for several seasons. For example Mollari’s purple files. This is a story that is masterfully written. Many different angles and pieces pulling together it was awesome. It continues to have many throwbacks and callout to fans of science fiction books and movies alike. I am greatly enjoying all the books from the three series I have read by Fins skilful pen. I have also previously picked up several anthologies that Finn has contributed to, that I have not got around to reading. They as well will be bumped up in my to be read pile. But maybe not until I am caught up on these two series. The action is excellent, the story entertaining. Reading this was like jumping back nearly 40 years to when I read Harry Harrison’s Stainless Steel Rat Series and Piers Anthony’s Bio Of a Space Tyrant series. But this series has a great message and underlying faith. It is like a classic science fiction space opera with a strong faith element! An excellent read in what is shaping up to be an amazing series. An easy 5/5 stars!
