With a handful of desperate empires scrabbling for control it’s going to take a superhuman effort to bring about anything resembling peace. It’s a good thing, then, that Victor is a fairly tenacious fellow, because that’s exactly what he’s been tasked with doing.
To any science-fiction fan the universe of REFUSING EXCALIBUR should be familiar. There are warring factions, space pirates, exploding planets, mysterious ancient tech, blasters, ship-to-ship battles, hidden bases, space portals and high-tech sword fights aplenty. Fans of Star Wars will be pleased, as this novel inhabits the same futuristic-but-not-futuristic space as the hallowed series. The main difference between the two is REFUSING EXCALIBUR’s serious commitment to wall-to-wall action.
Given the sheer amount there is of it, it’s a good thing that action is something Jones does fairly well. Battles are pleasingly balanced and the fights are exciting and fast-paced. There’s never a dull moment, and nothing ever gets so complex that you have to stop and think about it. Slipped in between the various explosions, rescues, duels and general gadding about in space there’s a spirited stab at character development in the form of a murdered family and some intermittent PTSD, but it’s half-hearted and quickly forgotten. Action dominates the pages of REFUSING EXCALIBUR, with only brief, breathless respites in between.
The novel’s greatest strength, however, might also be its greatest weakness. There are times when the constancy of the action verges on the numbing and meaningless – a lot of colorful explosions which we know we’re supposed to care about, but which we can’t quite recall why. Most of the time Jones manages to avoid overegging it, even as he piles on the explosions. There’s nothing overly complex here, but REFUSING EXCALIBUR manages to be remain both readable and diverting for its entire (not insignificant) length.
If you enjoy ray guns and rocket ship sci-fi action sequences, REFUSING EXCALIBUR is the book for you.