Review: Hope’s Folly by Linnea Sinclair

Posted November 27, 2020 by Sophia Rose in Reviews / 8 Comments

Tags: Dock Five Universe, Hope's Folly, Linnea Sinclair, Sci-Fi Romance

Hope's Folly

by Linnea Sinclair

Series: Dock Five Universe #3
Genres: Sci-Fi Romance
Published by Bantam
Released on February 24, 2009
Pages: 425
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchased

The Delight

Now that the Empire has been blown wide open by hostile takeover and conspiracy, an Alliance is born to stabilize, to hold the line, and to save as many as possible against all odds. And, leading the charge is a war-worn Admiral, a misfit crew, and an old converted cargo ship known as Hope’s Folly. It just keeps getting more intense and exciting.

Review

Hope’s Folly is the third of the Dock Five Universe books and connects strongly to the two that came before it.

Admiral Phillip Guthrie was never in the miracle business, but now with terrorists on one side and Tage in charge of the government and military on the other, he and the newly formed Alliance need to pull a space fleet together and get underway before they get taken out early in the game. His flagship awaits him and it’s a doozy. Once a military ship that wasn’t the best engineering marvel in its heyday, but even less of a prime ship after years hauling fruit for the growers, Hope’s Folly is waiting for him and a crew to get her fitted out and smashing Tage’s blockades before they can tighten at all the ports and gates. Finding the refit materials is the easy part of the tough list. Two attempts to kidnap him by the terrorists so he can be used in hostage exchange and sabotage acts when he only has half a crew are capped by the stunning appearance of his former captain’s fiery, impulsive daughter his first day on the job. Too bad he can’t seem to remember she’s one of his crew and too young for him. Her expertise with weapons and skill on the job coupled with her looks are more than a distraction.

Rya Benneton once part of the security division and lately nothing more than a glorified station cop has left it all behind to join up with the Alliance. She wants Tage who had her beloved father killed, but her goal is challenged and expanded when she finds herself guarding a certain gorgeous Admiral’s six. The rest of the crew might side-eye a former security officer especially since her group were responsible for assassinating the former Admiral’s Council and other hits, but she finds a ship full of potential danger and a mission needing her particular skill set. Phillip Guthrie challenges her in many ways, but he forces her to reconsider her thirst for revenge in light of the big picture. He’s so far out of her sphere from his rank to his family wealth and position, but a gal can have hope, right?

Hope’s Folly turns the spotlight from Chaz and Sully to Phillip and a new heroine with the struggle against the usurping and powerful Tage and the Faroian terrorists still happening. Things got off to an exciting beginning and never really slowed down. Phillip and Rya are military and the tone and pace of the book reflects this. This one felt more like space opera than the first two the way the romance was there, but ran along side the driving element of fitting out the ship, rooting out those who were intriguing against them from within while fighting off those from the outside. There is a new ship’s crew coming together on a quirky rag tag ship with a scrappy cat as their mascot. It was thrusters at full and fire away and I gladly belted in for the rush of a ride.

In the two previous books, Phillip acted the role of Chaz’s ex who still had feelings for her and she for him until it was obvious to both that their time was past and he had never really been the love of Chaz’s life. They had a strong, enduring friendship that would help them work for a common goal. I was curious to see him move on with his own story and who he would get matched with. Rya was much younger, his old friend’s daughter, working in a section of the military that the others were wary of because she worked shadow ops and had a rep for tossing the regs or at the very least bending them to get the job done. Their connection was what her dad taught them both though they went down two different paths with what they learned. Rya was not a kid- she’s 29- and she matched up well with the strong, powerful and personable Phillip. He pulled a few stunts when fighting his attraction that I was glad she called him on or made it clear was unacceptable. I liked how he was remembering how he went wrong before with Chaz and knew how to apologize when he screwed up. They both had baggage from the past, but were mature enough to work through it and figure out they were better together.

And, that brings me to the action. I figured out quickly who the ship-board saboteur was with some obvious hints, but Rya and Phillip weren’t slow on working stuff out. It was great seeing her work things out as she watched, listened, and then acted even while Phillip was juking and jiving his way out of tough spots to keep them all alive. There was a great camaraderie among Phillip and his officers that built as they faced crisis after crisis and pulled through. Folly, the cat, was a hoot. He played a pivotal role a few times and was hilarious the way he kept Phillip in his place from their first meeting. The ship, Hope’s Folly, practically had its own personality, too. There were some great action and suspenseful fighting moments, but the climax was epic.

Things were left in a good place, but it is obvious this was merely a skirmish that left them in a game with plenty still needed to happen. I am eager to pick up the next book in the series though I have my suspicions that I just read my favorite of the series. The couple dazzled, the action sizzled, and the overall story kept me flipping pages and disappointed at seeing the last page. Dock Five Universe series got even better.

Challenges Met

Mt. TBR #68
COYER Quarantine #75
Reading Assignment Fall #12 Prof Author Luv
Series That Never Ends #11

About the Book

HOPE’S FOLLY BY LINNEA SINCLAIR

Enter a world where Polite, Professional, and Prepared to Kill is more than a motto…

Admiral Philip Guthrie is alive and kicking—despite an Imperial kill-order with his name on it. Now he’s leading a rebel alliance against the oppressive Imperial forces. Or he would, if he could get his command ship—the derelict cruiser, Hope’s Folly—functioning. If lack of crew and supplies isn’t trouble enough, his assigned bodyguard turns out to be former Imperial assassin Rya Bennton—the daughter of his best friend and first commanding officer. A man whose death is on Philip’s conscience.

Rya Bennton has been in love with Philip Guthrie since she was a girl. But can her childhood fantasies survive an encounter with the hardened rebel leader who is now her commanding officer? Or will her determination to destroy the Empire put not only their mission, but their hearts and lives in jeopardy?

It’s an impossible mission on a derelict ship called HOPE’S FOLLY. A man who feels he can’t love. A woman who believes she’s unlovable. And an enemy who will stop at nothing to crush them both.

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Sophia Rose

I was born and raised near Sacramento, CA. I have read since I was four years old and developed tastes that run the gamut of literature. I went away to college and have a degree in education, a certificate in family history research, and a certificate in social work. I worked for a non-profit agency with low income families for 20 years which included being responsible for the children’s library and promoting/teaching adult literacy. I have lived in Southeast Michigan for the last 18 years and I am currently a book addicted homemaker with a cat and husband who keep me grounded. Recently, I made it a challenge to review each book that I have read as a favor to author friends who said reviews are important. I have done reviews for Good Reads, Amazon, eBay, and Smashwords, but mostly at Goodreads and Amazon.