Only way to describe this one, is that it is a side story that most authors would have put in their novel to get the page count higher. Now instead of doing this, it was fleshed out with its own padding to be turned into a novella. Yes it gives insight to what is happening when the heroes are away but the story is so way off from what makes the main series so great, that it ends up being fairly boring.As other reviewers have said, the keepers (who are actually supposed to be professional experie...

There's always trouble in ParadiseIn this little novella the little team Perkins assembled when Paradise was in trouble is still running around activating the planetary weapon system. It's action filled and it gives us the necessary background for book 6 of the main series. I enjoyed it a lot, especially the new liasion Nert. He's cool.

I am about half way thru this book. I am actually reading this one. I listened to the other on Audible. Having trouble with the read because of that. It is more fun the hear Skippy and Joe.

As was a huge strength in book 3, 3.5 jumps around in POVs and particularly has good alien characterizations adding flavor and even technical details of non-space flight tech to the Expeditionary Force series.It’s nothing groundbreaking but incredibly solid, and many genuinely funny moments especially with the Ruhar Nurd (don’t know the spelling since I listened on Audible). There is even some, semi-ideological commentary about human character and faults we find in ourselves and alien habits are...

Even without Skippy, The expetitionary force works. Good interlude - but I admit that I DO miss Skippy - so - on to book 4.

3.5 starsIn book 3, Joe, Skippy and company wreak havoc on the Kristang space battle group stationed around the planet Paradise (that's what the humans call it). Book 3 has Joe and Skippy leaving Paradise since it was critical that their presence there was never known to anyone human or alien. So, what happened on Paradise after they jumped through wormhole to travel light years away?This is where Trouble in Paradise picks up the story. There's no Joe or Skippy in this book. In fact, this book j...

To be honest, I really don't feel as if this was necessary towards the progression of this story. The only bit I really enjoyed were the parts about Nert, and I really hope he is in the 4th book. I will also say that I can't believe a 5 hr "novella" was the same damn price as the regular audiobooks. What a rip off. Not worth it.

A quick and enjoyable read! This intermediary novella certainly delivered. Sure... it was odd to have essentially no interaction with Colonel Joe, Skippy, and the Merry Band of Pirates et al. However, it did provide for a measure of peace and satisfaction with regards to a positive fate for UNEF on Paradise. There still was/is, however, the cliffhanger regarding the fate of the so-called "Keepers". I DO hope that is quickly resolved in book 4 which I shall be starting in on after a bite to eat.

Constant adventure, fun and humorNumbers 1 and 2 I read here (Kindle) earlier and, in a cheapskate mode, went looking for something fun enough to reread; up popped Craig’s books. Craig’s getting better, of course - best way to get better at writing is to write. Betcha his planning helps too. Still in cheapskate mode, I discovered that our local library found Craig popular enough to have ExForce on the shelves, so i read #3 on my tax money. They didn’t buy 3.5, so here I am. One of my measures is...

This shorter book in the Expeditionary Force series is variously listed as Novella Volume 1 or Expeditionary Force 3.5. It veers off a bit from the extended story involving Joe Bishop and the alien artificial intelligence dubbed "Skippy", but still involves the ongoing struggle between the hamster-like Ruhar and the lizard-like Kristang and which side the humans from earth should be siding with. On Paradise, a planet tensely shared by humans and the Ruhar, there's an unbalanced alliance. But the...

The beginning was really dry. I wasn't sure if I was going to finish it. It reminded me a bit of book 1 as it didn't have the funny characters until the end of the story. I was able to purchase for a couple of dollars with a gift coupon so I didn't sink as much money for it as other readers. But I agree with other feedback that this piece of the story could have been slimmed down and added to another book. Generally with .5 books there's an interesting side story that expands your knowledge of t...

This was a fin change of pace for this series. While I did miss Skippy and Joe bantering, we have plenty of action and high stakes in this tale. Nert made me laugh so much! I wish I had him for a little brother. And I think Emily Perkins and her team is very lucky to have him. Befriending him will make it easier to gain the confidence of the Ruhar in general.Captain Chism was also interesting because he held to his original oath so strongly. Originally, humans swore allegiance to the Kristang. L...

This is a fun diversionary novel (book "3.5") in Craig Alanson pulp space opera series.It tells the story of some of the side characters left on the planet Paradise after the events of book 3.It's fun, but so much of the delight of the series is the interplay between the main characters (Joe and the AI known as Skippy) that the absence of those characters makes this novella just plain average.It is a short novella, so it does not take long to get through. It's not bad, just not special. I do not...

Trouble on ParadiseBy Craig AlansonNarration by R.C. BrayThis is just another great book in the series with more humor, action, twists, turns, wit, clever schemes, and fun dialogue. Can't get enough!Of course the best narrator makes this book super awesome!

A novella set between the third and fourth books in the series... this story centers around the characters left behind when the main characters set off on their adventures. Not a bad entry, but I prefer the other group of characters and didn't keep picking up the book as often as I had with the previous three novels. Solid story, though.

I missed Joe and Skippy - but this was a great bit of backstory and made especially good by the character of Major Emily Perkins. And RC Bray is consistently fabulous on audio.

Almost acceptable adventureThis is so weird. The Ruhan have no communication security still. The UNEF is clueless, make a no attempt to disseminate what information is available to the various units. The only officer setting policy by acting is a major, yet she still sort of defers to the expeditionary generals. So here the story is back to a military adventure. The writer(s) still hasn't devised a trajectory for the series and is adding a disconnected story to the mix. The Ruhan seem to have no...

This is a kind of novella between books 3 and 4 in the series, but it's actually my favorite in the whole series.For one thing, it focuses on side characters and thus manages to avoid Skippy the Beercan for most of the book. All things considered, I kind of hate Skippy as a character, so that was good.For another thing, I just like the side characters better. This is a consistent theme for me in a lot of long-running series. Sometimes--like with the Dresden Files--the main guy is also basically

When Authors take a mid-season break to focus on secondary characters, I often dread facing the choice of skipping what will normally be a dull side quest, and potentially losing precious insight into the main plot. Not so with Alanson’s novella that has zero mentions of the series’ Bishop and Skippy.The youthful alien provides the comic relief that pushes these stories forward and Major Perkins provides the light problem solving narrative. In the end we have a book that remains as enjoyable as