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Lindsay Buroker
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Star Nomad: Fallen Empire, Book 1 Kindle Edition

by Lindsay Buroker (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 5,519 ratings
Goodreads Choice Award nominee
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The Alliance has toppled the tyrannical empire. It should be a time for celebration, but not for fighter pilot Captain Alisa Marchenko. After barely surviving a crash in the final battle for freedom, she's stranded on a dustball of a planet, billions of miles from her young daughter. She has no money or resources, and there are no transports heading to Perun, her former home and the last imperial stronghold.

But she has a plan.

Steal a dilapidated and malfunctioning freighter from a junkyard full of lawless savages. Slightly suicidal, but she believes she can do it. Her plan, however, does not account for the elite cyborg soldier squatting in the freighter, intending to use it for his own purposes. As an imperial soldier, he has no love for Alliance pilots. In fact, he's quite fond of killing them.

Alisa has more problems than she can count, but she can't let cyborgs, savages, or ancient malfunctioning ships stand in her way. If she does, she’ll never see her daughter again.

Fans of Firefly and Star Wars should enjoy this fun, fast-paced new series from USA Today best-selling author, Lindsay Buroker.
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  1. Book 1 of 9
    Fallen Empire
  2. Print length
    229 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
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  5. Publication date
    May 26, 2016
  6. File size
    4495 KB
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01FWOW72W
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ (May 26, 2016)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 26, 2016
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 4495 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 229 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 5,519 ratings

About the author

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Lindsay Buroker

Lindsay Buroker

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Lindsay is a full-time independent fantasy and science fiction author who loves travel, hiking, tennis, and vizslas. She's written over ninety novels, appeared on the USA Today bestseller list, and has twice been nominated for a Goodreads Readers' Choice Award.

She lives in the Seattle area and is currently working on the next book.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
5,519 global ratings
Space opera lite with a feisty woman protagonist
4 Stars
Space opera lite with a feisty woman protagonist
“Star Nomad” (Fallen Empires #1) Lindsay Buroker ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Space Opera Lite. Location: Outer Space. Time: Future.The war between the Empire and the Alliance is over-and the Alliance won. But life has not returned to normal for soldiers or civilians. Former Alliance pilot Alisa Marchenko is stranded on a desert planet. Her husband is dead, her 8-year-old daughter billions of miles away. Alisa and her friend Mika reclaim Alissa’s old spaceship so they can leave the planet and find her daughter.The old Star Nomad spaceship now has a motley crew:* Captain and pilot Alisa has snarky humor outbursts at the worst possible times, but can pilot the heck out of the ship.* Engineer Mika, former Alliance soldier, can fix a ship or make a bomb.* Security crew Beck, former Alliance soldier, is on the run from the mafia.Then there are the passengers:* Leonidas, cyborg, former Imperial soldier determined to find his creator. His massive presence scares the heck out of Alisa and Mika.* Dr Alejandro Dominguez, on a secret mission he says impacts the entire galaxy.* Yumi Moon, traveling science teacher, and her live chickens.Well, at least the crew and passengers will have fresh eggs every day. They’ll get to know each other while fighting space pirates and giant bears across space.Author Buroker keeps it light and fun-this is not hardcore SciFi. Go with the flow, don’t question the science, and you’ll have a rollicking good time. Her characters are likable, and I expect we’ll learn more about them as the series progresses. Buroker credits Star Trek, Star Wars, and Firefly as influences, so if you liked those, you’ll like this easy-to-read story of a feisty woman pilot determined to get home to her daughter. It’s 4 stars from this Firefly fan 🌵📚💁🏼‍♀️.
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Top reviews from the United States

Brian
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2024
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I came across this story, not expecting much, but this was an incredible read. The characters are likeable and flawed and come across as very real. I will be reading the next in the series.
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Lola
4.0 out of 5 stars Star Nomad
Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2019
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It's so satisfying when you can figure out exactly what type of book you want to read and then be able to read that exact type of book. That was what happened when I picked up Star Nomad. After reading the novella Bearadise Lodge by this author I knew I wanted to read more by this author as it fit my reading mood. So I decided to start the Fallen Empire series. Star Nomad was a very entertaining read. It's a science fiction book with non stop action, a fast paced plot and likable characters.

Something about Star Nomad just was perfect for my current reading mood, the characters are great to read about, but there is little drama. The story was fast paced, but not rushed and there was a lot going on and a lot of action throughout the book. It made for a very exciting and engaging read. And even with all the trouble the characters found themselves in, I found the book as a whole still have a very hopeful and uplifting vibe. The blurb describes it as for fans of Firefly and Star wars and in a sense I think that sums it up pretty well. It had the quirky cast of characters like Firefly and the action packed plot lines like in Star wars.

The story follows Captain Alisa Marchenko, who got stranded on a desolate planet after the Alliance won the war against the empire. Now that she's recovered from her injuries she wants to make her way back to her daughter who is on another planet. To do this she returns to the ship she sold before she joined the war. And that's where the trouble starts. She ends up with some crew and passengers. And they grow into the main cast of characters for this book. I loved learning about the characters and their quirks.

I think Alisa made for a great main character. With how she has this drive to return to her daughter, which gave her a clear mission, but she also was willing to make some detours for her passengers along the way. Then there is her belief in the alliance their mission, her love for flying and also how she returns to the ship she didn't want to ever see again. She has her own brand of humor and I liked how she is optimistic and capable. She also seemed pretty open minded. And she quickly grows to care about the passengers and crew she takes on and quite willing to help other people.

Then there are the side character like Mica, Yumi, Beck, Leonidas and Alejandro mainly. Mica is the pessimistic, but capable engineer and friend of Alisa's. I liked how her pessimism contrasted with Alisa's optimistic outlook. Yumi is a passenger with her own quirks and I thought she was quite likable. Beck is the person they hire for security and he knows how to fight, but has other dreams too, which I thought was a fun twist. Leonidas stays a bit of a mystery, but we get some hints about his character and I am intrigued to learn more. Alejandro is still a bit of a mystery too and I am curious about that object and mission of his. There is a hint of a possible romance, but that's all it is for now.

I found the world building quite interesting. we see a galaxy right after the fall of a big empire. People are stepping into the void, but there also is more unrest and chaos than before. Through dialogue and the main characters inner musings we get a bit of a feel of what the empire was like too, but it still mainly is limited to some big lines. I kinda like world like this that are set after a big event as you can get a feel of the big event and also how the world is adapting after it. Besides that the world building is still pretty limited. There are a few planets we hear about and some other factions and people. It's obvious there is much more to this world, but we will discover that in later books probably.

To summarize: I had a great time reading this book. It was action packed, fast paced and had a fun cast of characters. Everything that can go wrong goes wrong, there is a ton of trouble they run into, lots of action and danger, but at the same time the tone is still hopeful. Which is exactly the type of story I wanted. I liked main character Alisa, with her own brand of humor, how she was capable and optimistic and her love for flying. The side characters were interesting too and they all had their own quirks and personalities. They made for an interesting group of characters and I look forward to get to know them better. I also thought the world was interesting with how the story takes place after the fall of the empire and we see a bit of how the world is doing now. I hope to see more of the world in future books. All in all this was a thoroughly entertaining read and I had a great time reading it. I hope to continue with book 2 soon.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining Storytelling
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2017
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I found this novel to be quite entertaining. I didn't read it straight through, but it kept my interest throughout. I don't typically look at the author's name when I'm browsing for a new read. I tend to let the title and the description catch my attention, so I didn't know but suspected that the author was female. I'm not saying this as a dig or inferring in any way that a female author is inferior. Quite the opposite, in fact. I found Ms. Buroker's main character, Alisa Marchenko, to be wonderfully flawed and believable in a way that male writers just can't seem to either capture or get away with trying to capture. For example, David Weber couldn't write a weak woman if his life depended on it, and if he did, he'd be tarred and feathered for doing so. Alisa, though, acknowledges that she is physically weaker than a man, that she fears being caught by a male enemy, and her fear is very real. She's also a wonderfully brave character in that she faces her fear, works through it, and gets the job done.

As far as where the story may or may not fall down, the antagonists were a little flat, but they were basically what amounted to the NPCs one would battle in a random encounter from a tabletop roleplaying game. They were, generally speaking, mooks. Faceless minions. Mostly tropes used straight, no chaser or filler. Even the story's "big bad" was basically just another NPC. Granted, he was a bad motherlover of an NPC, but still pretty much a cardboard cut-out. On the other hand, this story wasn't about the bad guys. The bad guys were just an inconvenience to the protagonists in their ultimate goal of getting from point A to point B, and the good guys are the story's strongest element. There's an air of mystery around many of them. None of them felt flat or like the author was just filling space. I would like to get to know these people. Also, they're very distinctive from one another. They really remind me of the crew of the Serenity from Firefly without being expies OF the crew of the Serenity. Call it a subtle homage or at the very least an obvious influence.

In my humble opinion, Ms. Buroker is a fine storyteller. The story doesn't get bogged down very often, if at all (and that may have been a matter of MY personal ADD acting up rather than the author's plotting). The tale fairly flies by as you're reading. I read most of it while on the treadmill at the gym, so that was a blessed and wonderful break from the tedium of just walking in place for 40-50 minutes trying to decide whether to increase or decrease the incline, go faster or slower, but I digress. I will be purchasing the other two books in the series so far. At $3.99 a pop, that ain't bad, even for an el-cheapo like myself.

In summary, good plot, great main character, interesting supporting characters, excellent price point, VERY ENTERTAINING.
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Karen_in_FLA
4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining
Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2024
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I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. I’ve read Lindsay’s urban fantasy, but this is the first of her SciFi books that I’ve read.

The snark is the same - the same wise-ass characters with irreverent humor. Instead of paranormal entities, you have laser weapons and cyborgs. It was fun, and yet carried a pretty series underlying theme.

After book 1, you don’t know which side is right: the empire or the Alliance. Even more so if you read the prequel, told from Leo’s perspective. Will be interesting to see how that pans out.

Moving on to book 2!
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Top reviews from other countries

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Ara
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Pacy, Space Opera
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 18, 2023
Verified Purchase
Star Nomad was a fun read with some great characters. It has the familiarity of other works like Firefly with the author's own unique spin.
This was a good intro to one of Lindsay's space opera series and I've already bought the next one.
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Andrew Shortall
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Start to the Series
Reviewed in France on August 29, 2018
Verified Purchase
I have always been a big fan of science fiction including space opera such as Star Trek and Star Wars. This would be closer to the latter, but is every bit as gripping and enthralling as both.

Captain Alisa Marchenko has just recently recovered from a horrific fighter crash at the end of the war. Stuck on a dustball of a planet, she needs to find a way to get home to her young daughter. Billions of miles from home and family, and with no money or resources, Alisa must resort to stealing a decrepit old freighter. One that looks oddly familiar! There’s only one thing in her way. An elite, cyborg soldier bent on completing his own personal mission. And the fact that they were on opposing sides during the war!

Aided by her new friend and genius engineer, Mica, and a rag-tag crew of passengers and potential future employees, Alisa must repair the decades old Star Nomad and fly to Perrun, her former home.
From the opening paragraphs, it’s easy to love this book. The writing is clean, easy to read and inspires you to turn the pages quickly. There’s plenty of action too, right from the first chapter. There’s a great blend of great characters, world building and believable stories. There’s also a nice injection of dry humour throughout the story, which is nice to see. You don’t often get that in science fiction.

There are seven more books in the series, and I am looking forward to reading every single one. And then venturing into the writer’s other works. Highly recommended!
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Kumar
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome book...
Reviewed in India on May 23, 2018
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This is an excellent space opera series. I simply enjoyed reading this.
The characters are very well described so that readers can relate to them.

The narrative is awesome...
Not giving any spoilers, but every sci-fi fan will love it.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars 👍 Katie Stanley 👏 EXCELLENT 👌
Reviewed in Canada on October 2, 2016
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🎪 🌀 ⚡ ☀

Star Nomad : by Lindsay Buroker

First, in all honesty, I have to say that I do much prefer to delve into a book that is at least 1,000 pages long rather than say 300 or 400 ~ this seems more to me as appetizer rather than a main course. That said ; however, this is a truly wonderful book well worthy of my time and effort and absolutely, of my imagination. Lindsay has a gifted insight and a talented ability to put ("pen to paper" ~ "that's just an old expression from "back in the day" ;-). Overall I found this book to be a little loose in places, but her characters are well defined and her plot line is well established ... with just enough room for mystery and intrigue in her upcoming books. Very well done Lindsay! I am anxiously awaiting your next installment(s). Oh yes, in closing, I can not leave without saying how masterfully I felt you were able to write in the masculine form. Your ability to switch between characters /male to female /was seamless! 🎩 👒 And the comic relief 🎭 you managed to throw in at just the right moments were absolutely precious! 🐔 🐣 ! I definitely felt the "Firefly" influence in the beginning, but thankfully, that was all. You recognized a unique jumping off point and you made it your own. I just can't say enough great things about this author and this book! WELL DONE! 🙌 ✌ ❤
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Hollenfeld
5.0 out of 5 stars Fataler Fehler
Reviewed in Germany on October 6, 2016
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Vor einigen Tagen bot Amazon diesen ersten Teil des "Fallen Empire" kostenlos an, leider konnte ich nicht widerstehen!
Ich mag wirklich keine Abenteuerromane, aber Lindsay Buroker schafft es immer wieder mich zu fesseln und zu unterhalten, seit ich vor zwei Jahren über Sardelle und ihr komisches Schwert stolperte. Natürlich arbeitet sie mit bestimmten Typen, und die Plots sind oft vorhersehbar. Das ist aber bei vielen Autoren so. Ich habe sofort mit dem Lesen angefangen und komme so schnell wohl nicht aus der Serie raus.

Ich kenne mich mit Weltalltechnologie nicht so aus wie einige Negativrezensenten ... Daher kann ich bei der Plausibilität von Kampfhandlungen etc. nicht wirklich mitreden, mich fazinieren allein die Charaktere und der Plot. Und da bietet Buroker für mich den tollen Mittelweg zwischen strohdoof und superanspruchsvoll. Natürlich ist das nur ein Geschichte, die unterhalten soll. Ich glaube nicht, dass irgendwo auf der Welt Personen, die gerade in Kampfhandlungen verwickelt sind, solche Dialoge abspulen. Das ist alles ein bisschen zu schön, um wahr zu sein. Aber durchaus unterhaltsam. Sogar für mich!

Ich möchte nicht viel von der Geschichte verraten. Die weibliche Hauptrolle spielt die Pilotin Alisa, der im Verlaufe eines Krieges Ehemann und Tochter "abhanden" kommen. Alisa begibt sich auf die Suche nach ihrer Tochter und gerät dabei von einem Drama ins nächste. Ganz langsam erfährt der Leser, dass hinter der einfachen Pilotin eines abgewrackten Frachters doch wesentlich mehr steckt, als es zuerst den Anschein hatte. Mal wieder ein für Buroker typischer Frauencharakter! Mit einer für Buroker typischen Liebesgeschichte mit zwei Partnern, die vermeintlich nicht gut zusammen passen. Wer das nicht mag, befasst sich besser erst gar nicht mit dieser Serie. Die einzelnen Bände sind unterschiedlich spannend. Insgesamt handelt es sich hier aber um kurzweilige Unterhaltung.
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