Rapier

     Kathy Masters never expected to journey to the stars. When she does, she experiences the adventure of a lifetime.
    That all changes when she is selected by the prestigious Galactic Geographic Society to photograph and record the flora and fauna of a newly discovered class M planet. Filled with hope and enthusiasm, she boards the S.S. America for the trip to Beta 3 Epsilon to begin her new project. On the way she is abducted and brought aboard the privateer Rapier.
      Going from captive, to slave, to induction into the infamous Brotherhood, Kathy finds herself raising the adopted daughter of the crew of the Rapier. Given the responsibility to raise their princess, Cindy, they travel among the stars preying on merchant ships, dodging Chinese warships, fighting pirates, visiting strange worlds, and encountering fantastic creatures, all under the watchful eyes of Commodore James Ulysses Black. Trying to raise a young girl among gunfights, swordfights, ship-to-ship battles, slave trades, deals, and some of the most feared raiders in human space is no small challenge.
      The only question is, Is Kathy up to the task?

 

 

The reviews below are all five-star reviews on Amazon:

1.) 5 out of 5 stars: Rapier a swashbuckling ride - A tale of Piracy, slavery, interstellar politics and heroism pitted against insurmountable odds!
     By Amazon Customer on October 8, 2017
     Format: Kindle Edition

     "In Rapier you will be following the tale of Kathy Masters a photographer sent on a mission to document flora and fauna of a new planet before colonization begins.
      Her adventure takes a swashbuckling turn, as she and a little girl are taken hostage by a buccaneering starship Captain on a quest of his own.
      When I first started reading the story, the writing style was the first thing springing to mind, I did not quite feel at home reading because the author has chosen a very unique PoV for his story, that at least for readers like me take some time to get accustomed to, but as I read on the style became quite enjoyable and the PoV really allowed the storyline to flow as the adventure both unfolded and deepened as the motives of the mysterious Captain became more clear.
      The story revolves mainly around the female protagonists and how they evolve into full participants in a quest beyond anything they could have imagined. Rapier is filled with space battles, intrigue, thoughts on growing up and how a parent's actions and the child's experiences as a result of said actions can shape a mind.
      The story continuously leads toward a big climax as the protagonist tells her fantastic tale and the possibilities for a sequel certainly are opened up.
      Personally I would love to read more from the Rapier universe in order to see how the big "nation" players fared against each other in their war, I would enjoy a deeper look into the brotherhood and their code as well as delve much deeper into the characters, perhaps especially Lien Lan Yi and Cindy plus not least the Natives of Safe port, in order to better understand their actions, motives and to see if the protagonists can find their peace in the turmoil the Rapier universe has to offer.
      Overall a really nice read by R.A. "Doc" Correra - One I hope you too will have the chance to have an enjoyable encounter with."

 

2.) 5 out of 5 stars: A well-crafted sci-fi fantasy with action and adventure galore!
     By Piaras on October 4, 2017
     Format: Paperback

     "Whatever flaws we might identify or frustrations we might feel are trivial in comparison to a reader's pure joy in losing himself/herself in a narrative. When all the elements come together: an intriguing plot, thoughtful, profound themes, complex, troubling, characters, and language that make us shudder for its honesty, clarity, and confidence; we gratefully set all analysis aside and give ourselves up to the sheer magic of a great book. And for me, Rapier, is such a book.
      Author R. A. "Doc" Correa weaves an amazing action and adventure sci-fi fantasy, with intriguing twists and turns that will easily captivate the reader's attention from the beginning. The author paints a very vivid and moving story of survival against the backdrop of a violent Universe where gunfights, sword fights, ship to ship battles and slave trades abound.
      The book description says it all; ‘Kathy Masters never expected to journey to the stars until she was selected by the prestigious Galactic Geographic Society to photograph and get videos of the flora and fauna of a newly discovered class M planet before colonization begins. Filled with hope and enthusiasm she boards the S.S. America for the trip to Beta 3 Epsilon to begin her new project.
      On the way she is abducted and brought aboard the privateer Rapier beginning her nine-year sojourn among the colonies of mankind. Going from captive to slave to induction into the infamous Brotherhood Kathy finds herself being called on to raise the adopted daughter of the crew of the Rapier.
      Given the responsibility to raise their princess, Cindy, with the help of Lien Lan Yi, daughter of the house of Yi and princess of the imperial court, they travel among the stars preying on merchant ships, dodging Chinese warships, fighting pirates, visiting strange worlds and encountering fantastic creatures all under the watchful eyes of Commodore James Ulysses Black.
      Trying to raise a young girl among gunfights, sword fights, ship to ship battles, slave trades, deals and some of the most feared raiders in human space is no small challenge. The only question is; is Kathy up to the task?'
      Now, if that's not enough to whet your appetite, I don't know what will. But if you want to find out what happens you'll just have to turn the pages for yourself to find out! But I will say it's well worth the read. It's my first time reading this author and I must say I was very impressed.
      This captivating and commendable work had me immersed from the beginning. The story flowed from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional ability when it comes to storytelling. There are plenty of attention-grabbing moments in this page turner that will take the reader on a gripping journey!
It's one of those books that come along once in a while that makes you want to read it non-stop until you get to the end. I'm giving nothing further away here. And this, I hope, will only add to the mystery and enjoyment for the reader.
      If this book is anything to go by, I'll certainly be looking forward to reading more from R. A. "Doc" Correa in the future. I would definitely recommend this book and would love to see it adapted for the Silver Screen. Five stars from me."

 

3.) 5 out of 5 stars: Swashbuckling Space Opera at its Best!
     By Amazon Customer on October 13, 2017
     Format: Kindle Edition

     "R. A. "Doc" Correa imbues Rapier with all the things we love best about science fiction--alien worlds, massive space ships, epic battles and . . . sword fights? You better believe it. Think Pirates of the Caribbean meets Robert A. Heinlein with a little E. E. "Doc" Smith thrown in for good measure. The budding relationship among the principal characters adds an extra element of sweetness but doesn't bog down the story, or the action. Thanks for this one, Doc. Rapier is a wonderful journey in space adventure."

 

Congratulations to R. A. "Doc" Correa for receiving the Book Excellence Award!

 

-- R. A. "Doc" Correa