Doubleblind by Ann Aguirre

Love, love, love Vel!by MicheleLeesBookLove

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November 02, 2009: I bought this book.

Doubleblind, the third book in Aguirre's SF-romance series, isn't going to be my favorite book in the series. In this volume jumper (a special kind of person who can navigate the subspace area that makes deep space travel possible), ex-criminal and formerly broken Sirantha Jax lands on the infamously closed planet Ithiss-Tor, home of bounty hunter-turned-friend, Vel, on a mission to forge an alliance between humans and Ithtorians to save both from the savage cannibal Morgut who are raiding space ports and far planets, leaving occupants dead. With her mother (head of the criminal Syndicate) trying to make sure she fails, and lives depending on Jax's success, not to mention the Ithtorian repulsion of humans, disaster is not just possible, it's imminent.

First the good, Aguirre maintains a full cast of characters, each with unique strengths and weaknesses and stories. Jax's struggle to shuck her selfish, party-girl past comes to odds with the responsibilities and expectations others unfairly put on her creating a tense, conflicted inner dialog as the story moves on. Jax's personal quest to rebuild the mind of March, once her lover, a psi forced to cut himself off from his emotions to mentally survive a war thrust on him by manipulations of his personal honor, is especially heart breaking.

Aguirre spins a fascinating world in Ithiss-Tor, home world of a bug species that, true to type, communicate as much with body language and scent as with verbalized language. This is truly a reason to pick up this book, as the imagery is complex and solid, not to mention the Ithtorian characters are full developed despite being such a inhuman race.

Aguirre's rich and descriptive world and characters are as solid as ever in Doubleblind, so already established fans will definitely want to continue with their story.

And, finally the bad. Aguirre, with Doubleblind clearly comes down on the side of romance rather than maintaining a fine split between romance and science fiction as in the previous novels. A large amount of the drama and tension has to do with the personal relationships between the characters. In the end I was left with a feeling that conflicts were tied up too neatly, with very little actually conflict, just emotional strain.

March's method of recovery is truly interesting, but easier than I expected. Add to that only one true fight scene in the whole book, which Jax largely avoids, and a climax with wired in tension, but no conflict after all is said and done and I was left with a bit of a dissatisfied feeling with this addition to the Jax world.

I badly wanted to see Jax throwing down in some sort of ritual combat to prove her worth to the Ithtorians and earn at least some respect from them instead of primarily suffering emotionally and playing politics. She is such a contrary, stubborn and steel-souled character that all the politics, as Jax herself worries about in the book, neuters her too much for my tastes.

I hope Aguirre finds a place between emotionality and action for the next book. Coupled with the vivid details, fine characterization and inspired writing it makes for excellent writing, which is what I've come to expect from this series.

doubleblindby SeeMichelleRead

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October 24, 2009: Sirantha Jax is feeling the pressure - as a jumper, the urge to dive headlong into grimspace (yet again) is stronger than ever but here she is, traveling to Ithiss-Tor as an ambassador for the Conglomerate. In the wake of the Farwan Corporation's collapse, the Conglomerate is still struggling to keep citizens safe in the face of the mafia-esque Syndicate subtly flexing their muscles and the Morgut's increasingly frequent fatal attacks. Jax isn't necessarily ambassador material, but since she's probably the only human ever to become friends with an Ithorian-turned-bounty hunter, Vel, she's the best mankind has to offer. And how scary is that? As ambassador, she is charged with creating an alliance with the Ithorians 'bugs' since they are essentially the only civilization ever to have defeated the Morgut. The Ithorians however, distrust and loath humans: seeing them as inferior, weak beings. They even think Vel somewhat defective for leaving their planet to live among humans. Lucky for Jax however, he's got her back and is there to help her navigate the political doublespeak and intricate Ithorian customs.

Not only is Jax having to tread lightly with the Ithorians - she's the kind to shoot first, blow up the planet, salt it, and then, ask questions later - she has to figure out a way to help her lover March come out of his permanent 'kill' mode. The least touch or perceived threat (real or imagined) results in him literally going berserk on anyone and everyone. Worst of all, even though he remembers loving Jax, he can't figure out why he ever did and can see no future whatsoever with the feisty jumper. But Jax isn't giving up on him and will try to do everything in her power to bring the old, uber-conscientious March back.

Doubleblind distinctly departs from the non-stop action formula present in the previous two Jax books with spectacular results. Essentially a character-driven novel, we are truly able to see how much Jax has grown over time. Nothing is so satisfying as that. Two books ago there is no way she would have been able to complete a mission as ambassador, let alone one as delicate in nature as this one. Jax herself understands the irony of her situation and let's just say, she's feeling the strain.

After facing some rough make-or-break situations, Jax has learned the value of patience, listening to those around her, and not always going off half-cocked. Fun that, but not always effective. Much of this change has to be the direct result of her time spent primarily with March and secondly with Vel. Vel has that alien viewpoint which has caused Jax to look at the effect of her choices in a new light - she's still paranoid and a smart-mouth, but she's learned how to control it in her favor. Furthermore, March used to be the one who had to wait patiently for Jax and now she is the one making sure March knows she'll never give up on him - a monstrous task since we always knew the man was crazy but now, he's downright off his rocker. In Doubleblind, Jax proves she is more than capable of subtly as well as a respectable right hook and I'm just not sure I can wait until next year for her next adventures in the upcoming Killbox (promising title, don't you think?).

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