Vigilant

My rating system: I begin with one star being equivalent to a rating of "C-". Progressing upwards, I add ½ star for each step, up to the maximum 5 stars, which is equivalent to a rating of "A+". I reserve ½ star for BOMBS, there being no option of zero or negative stars. As a result, I maximize my rating space for good books, and don't squander half or more of that rating space on books that are of marginal quality.

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Thus, "Vigilant" rates 3 stars, equivalent to "B".

I confess that I do find James Alan Gardner's five novels (I am on my fifth one - will read them all) difficult to assign to sub-genres. There is a galactic empire of sorts (the Technocracy) and an over-whelming influence by the advanced species, via The League of Peoples. BUT it is certainly not the traditional galactic empire treatment, as in masterpieces like Isaac Asimov's Foundation and Empire, or Frank Herbert's "Dune" or the more recent series of 2 novels by Arkady Martine (A Memory Called Empire & A Desolation Called Peace).

Gardner's work is hard science -- more or less -- kind of / sort of. But not in a Larry Niven, Robert A. Heinlein, Lois McMaster Bujold fashion. While most / much of these novels would comfortably fit a hard science definition, there are often key elements that do NOT fit hard SF. And when we consider hard SF -- I tend to forget that Asimov's hard SF included psychic powers (The Mule in "Second Foundation", the hero in "Pebble in the Sky"), time travel ("The End of Eternity") and Frank Herbert's Dune (mostly hard SF) included clairvoyance.

As for RAH, Heinlein is sometimes considered the dean of hard SF, but he had lots of psychic abilities, even some extraordinary physical abilities (some short stories), clairvoyance, downright godliness re Michael Valentine Smith in "Stranger ...", endless time travel loops in his later novels "To Sail Beyond the Sunset", etc. etc.).

James Alan's work is space opera -- but not a la Alastair Reynolds, Dan Simmons, Lois McMaster Bujold -- "Miles Vorkosigan" fashion. It is first contact in many / most of these novels. But not the type of first contact you find in the movies "E.T.", "First Encounters of the Third Kind", "Aliens", or "Avatar". As for Vigilant", this particular novel is not space opera.

So - you might want to take my Sub-genre Tags for these novels with a large grain of halite (NaCl).

Oops - I should be talking about the novel. Ah well, out of time for now. Suffice it to say that you really do owe it to yourself to try some James Alan Gardner!