Sean Danker has written two exciting novels featuring a mysterious character called “Admiral.” We first meet the Admiral as he wakes up from a “sleeper” on a deserted starship. The Admiral and three other “sleepers”–young military trainees–discover their starship is powerless (just emergency power) and survival looks dim. The Admiral and his three charges cleverly figure out how to survive crisis after crisis. Danker does a good job giving the Admiral (and the reader) hope, then dashing those hopes with yet another terrifying peril. Yes, Admiral is a survival novel, but the unraveling of mysteries and the solving of the problems will keep you on the edge of your seat as you quickly turn the pages of Admiral (2016).

Free Space (2017) is the sequel to Admiral. The Admiral and his date are kidnapped and separated. The clever twist in this SF novel is that the Admiral’s date (and a friend) have to rescue the Admiral from a baffling predicament. This is easy, breezy Summer Reading at its best! GRADE: B (FOR BOTH BOOKS)