Paul M. Schofield

Only a couple of pages into this book, I thought, uh-ho, this is another chapter of Star Trek, and I am so not a Trekkie. I am, however, open-minded so read on, eager to be pleasantly surprised. Indeed, I was. The book is set in the 26th century and space is a busy highway.

It’s a sobering thought to think that some things don’t change, even after 500 years; there are still unscrupulous, arrogant, and fraudulent criminals around. Even more sobering is the prospect that, due to virulent diseases created by the 2065 collapse of the eco-system which completely wiped out the male of the species, the new post-collapse ‘Empire’ is overseen by a small group of women, the Guardians. They are aided by the Planetary Control Corps, the military contingent of the Empire, also run by women.

The arrogant criminal in this story is Galen Bestmarke who has bribed a genius engineer, Louis Franelli, to work with him. Louis has developed a system of time travel which Galen intends to use for his own unscrupulous gains and 'trophies'. The Guardians, however, need Louis and his expertise – Louis has to be separated from Galen and enticed to help the Guardians who believe that time travel will help them save mankind, now desperately close to extinction.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The pace kept me keen and interested but never lost me, and the characters were all strong. I liked the fact that they were not ‘robotic’ – in the emotional sense. The women had feelings, ambitions, and heart, which gave balance to the timeframe – life in 2500 is really quite unimaginable. It is a well-written book (though a little editorially slack), and the story unfolded methodically and comprehensibly.

There is a very neat little glossary at the end, explaining and defining various Empire terms, phrases, geography, etc., which I thought was a nice touch – I think I would have preferred it at the beginning, however. I had no idea it was there until I had finished the book. Had it been at the beginning, I would have been aware of its existence, and I would have been able to refer to it usefully.

This book didn’t get me rushing to seek out everything Trekkie, but Mr Schofield has certainly whetted my sci-fi appetite. I look forward to more from Paul.… (más)

I don't usually read sci-fi novels, so I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed Trophy, the first book in the New Victorian Empire saga. With plenty of action, interesting concepts and time travel, it was easy to keep turning the pages. Star Trek fans will enjoy this one.

The story takes place over 500 years into the future where women are in positions of authority and the Earth and Solar System are ruled by CENTRAL—a massive computer government. The story revolves around Galen Bestmarke, a villain who has discovered how to time-travel with the help of Louis Franelli, a genius engineer who once worked for the New Victorian Empire. Lieutenant Janet Rogerton is on assignment to capture Bestmarke before he misuses this technology and puts the human race in peril.

First-time author Schofield succeeds in building suspense and moving the action along. The descriptions and futuristic concepts of the space world setting—fusion-powered starships, space flights, advanced technology, the Keyhole, androids and battle strategies—were brilliant. The whole theory of the guider/pouncer link in which a trained crew member is mentally linked with an animal to fight in space battle was fascinating. The character developments of Martin and Panther and their work as a team was one of the most interesting aspects of the story.

It's true there are some far-fetched ideas that didn't quite work for me because they needed further development. All the crew members and Planetary Control Corps were women. No men. I really had no idea what the men did on Earth or in space. It seemed unbalanced. The only men in the story were the few villains who rebelled against all-women rule. I liked the male characters better than the women, who came across as very idealistic, emotional and soft in a way that undermined their positions of authority. But then again, it's fiction, and the message of peaceful and just rule did come across strongly, which I did like. Galen was the best developed character, with dialogue and actions that suited his twisted persona well.

I did feel that this novel would have benefited from better editing to polish the text from the overuse of ellipses (...) and using dialogue to explain back-story. But because Schofield is a very good storyteller, I was able to ignore these points and truly enjoy the novel. The ending is left open with many future possibilities. His next instalment should prove to be interesting, and I look forward to seeing how far this promising new author will go.… (más)