A dark story about and ancient AI and a technician named Drake. It was dark and gritty but a real page turner at the same time. I was pretty interesting as I went from page to page. Check this book out!

This novel proves to be an arresting and unexpectedly rewarding read. The premise itself borders on the audacious: a sentient superintelligence and an unremarkable technician joining forces to resurrect history’s most reviled figures as a desperate measure of survival. The narrative’s momentum never falters, inviting the reader onward with mounting intrigue. Bold, unconventional, and thoroughly engaging, this is a work well worth exploring. Four Stars!

Zara, the ancient AI, adds a haunting perspective, while Drake feels refreshingly human in an overwhelming situation. The moral choices are uncomfortable in the best way, forcing you to question what survival really costs. The pacing stays tight, the stakes feel massive, and the darker turns give the story real weight. It left me thinking about ethics, power, and responsibility long after I finished reading.

The book starts as a lecture on how bad the alien civilization is and how they can’t be reasoned with. It’s necessary to get Drake to wake up and rise to save his planet, facing opposition along the way, and an AI instructor in his back pocket. Pretty compelling read. Worth the effort. I cannot wait until the next installment.

Donovan’s Gambit is a gripping, thought-provoking science fiction thriller that goes far beyond space battles and aliens. It explores the devastating cost of failure, the danger of false peace, and the terrifying choices leaders make when survival is on the line. Drake Donovan is an unlikely but compelling hero, and Zara—the ancient AI—adds chilling depth to the story. Bold, dark, and ethically complex, this book asks an unforgettable question: how far is too far when the fate of the galaxy is at stake?

Donovan's Gambit is the kind of sci-fi I’m always hoping to run into. Dark, gritty, and not trying to be polite about it.

The setup works right away.

Far in the future, the galaxy is celebrating peace, while the real danger is still very much alive. Zara, an ancient AI, knows the truth and seems to be the only one who isn’t buying the happy story.

Drake Donovan works as a lead because he’s nobody special. He’s a telecom tech, not a hero, not a soldier, just a regular guy pulled into something way bigger than him. When Earth’s governments refuse to unite against the common threat, things get intense fast. You start wondering if this really is the end of Earth and mankind.

The idea of using the genetic legacy of history’s worst killers as a weapon is disturbing and clever. I did find myself wishing those figures were ones I recognized more, but the concept itself still lands.

Zara is easily the best part of the book. I really liked her. She’s an advanced AI with a heart and a mission, which somehow makes her more unsettling instead of less.

My main issue is the length. At around 70,000 words, it drags in places. The story would move faster and hit harder if it were trimmed to around 40,000 words.

Rough around the edges, but bold and thought-provoking.

First, great cover, I think it captures the malevolent essence of the antagonist; I will not describe the antagonist, because that would not just be a spoiler, it would deflate the tension that builds from the first chapter on what exactly our world (and many others) will face. I can say that you won't be able to predict where this story will lead, at least I couldn't. I can also say that the writer can construct some meaningful and beautiful sentences, quite an accomplishment for a first book. The only critique/suggestion I will make is that a story, any story, should be told by characters actions and, if necessary, their dialogue, as opposed to the story "being told" by someone in a safe, secure time and place; doing the latter tells the reader too much in terms of if and how they survived, so I would just let the events speak for themselves. Other than that, this book shows a great deal of imagination and scope, and though things are fairly well tied up by the last page, I suspect a sequel or two might be in the works. Congrats to the writer on his first book!

What I really liked about Donovan’s Gambit is how ambitious it is, both in scale and in ethics. Roger takes a classic “ordinary person thrown into extraordinary circumstances” setup and pushes it into genuinely dark territory. The relationship between Drake and Zara is especially compelling, blending trust, manipulation, and moral tension in a way that keeps you thinking long after the pages turn. I also appreciated how the story doesn’t rush the consequences of its choices. The ideas around unity, failure, and doing the wrong thing for the right reason feel heavy and intentional. It’s thoughtful, intense, and sets up a universe that feels dangerous, complex, and worth exploring further.

Donovan's Gambit

I have read countless science fiction stories, and this book surprised me with how brave it is. Surely, I was drawn in by Zara, the ancient AI which I felt was wise, unsettling, and far more human than many people I have known. In addition, Drake’s journey from ordinary technician to making morally frightening choices felt believable. Furthermore, the story asks hard questions about unity, failure, and the cost of survival, and it does not soften the answers. In the end, it can be rough and dark at times, but it stayed with me long after I finished reading it.

Good? Bad? Boring? Entertaining? Addictive? Honestly, it’s kind of all of that at once. The character development is really good, and their backstories actually matter and feel well built. What makes it entertaining is watching them grow and change throughout the book.

As for addictive, yeah, the whole thing totally hooked me. I kept saying just one more chapter and suddenly I was way further than planned. And bad? The only bad thing is that it ended. I wasn’t ready for it to be over. When a book leaves you wanting more instead of relief, that says a lot.

Donovan’s Gambit pulled me in with its big ideas and uneasy moral choices. I liked that the main character isn’t a hero at all—just a regular guy forced into impossible decisions. The ancient AI, Zara, is fascinating and unsettling, and the story asks hard questions about survival, power, and how far is too far. It’s dark, thoughtful sci-fi that stays in your head after you finish. Great choice if you enjoy space stories with depth and ethical tension.

A cool blend of galaxy‑spanning danger, ancient secrets, and an unexpectedly relatable main character. Drake’s journey from everyday tech guy to unlikely defender of humanity feels fresh, and Zara adds a great layer of mystery. The world‑building is creative and the stakes are huge, making it an engaging pick for fans of big‑concept sci‑fi.

Good book, great topic, but I would have liked some things a bit different. Some things like: clearly mark/tell when switching back from the past to the present, don't beat around the bush so much ... geez, you say the same things over and over, back and fourth, up and down, left and right. In the next book in the series, I wish you (the author) do less of that. I understood the first 30 times how everybody felt like, why they need to do it and what they need to overcome, no need to remind me another 100 times whith as much details. Another thing I didn't quite like: overdescribing almost everything. I'm reading on Kindle, and for the first 30% of the book it's hard to find a normal conversation, you know, people talking for half a page without overdescribing how they feel, how the grass feels, how the weather is, what is the ant thinking, etc. It get's a bit better after that, but still can be improved. But it also has some great stuff, like for example, this is the first book I read that was written like recalling an old story, and I liked it, also pretty good at capturing the world's reaction when things were revealed (I would have liked more examples of what people did, though) and I definitely woundn't have minded being a bit more agrresive on how to convince people that the Aftlic are real /giggle.