Reviews for The Heart of Valor (Torin Kerr: Confederation Series #3)

The average rating for The Heart of Valor (Torin Kerr: Confederation Series #3) based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2018-10-01 00:00:00 Cynthia Lindell After her harrowing experience on board Big Yellow, Gunnery Sergeant Torin Kerr is subjected to days of questioning. Oddly, she notices that no one involved with the incident remembers the escape pod from Big Yellow, other than her and Craig Ryder. Torin begins wondering about the Elder Races and memory wipes, and this, coupled with the repetitive days of questions has her on edge and increasingly angry. When Major Svensson, recovering from massive injuries, invites her along on a marine training exercise, she sees it as the perfect opportunity to escape for a while. Feeling a combination of anger and relief, Torin Kerr travels to Crucible to help shepherd a squad of marines through what should be a relatively peaceful training exercise. That she and the others are soon evading mines, drones and missiles turns what should have been a relaxing time away from her debriefings to a serious and dangerous situation. Complicating matters are Svensson's somewhat odd recovery behaviour and a di'Taykan suffering from some strange health situation that the other di'Taykan in the squad seem embarrassed to talk about. With more questions being raised the longer they're at Crucible, Torin shows her competence, managing her marines' emotional and physical stress, while also dealing with Svensson and a civilian doctor with aplomb. Though I had a tough time keeping track of the personalities of the individual marines, their interactions felt believable. I liked Torin's use of toughness and calm in a steadily worsening situation, something she seems to excel at. These stories aren't deep, and I don't find myself learning anything new about Torin. Rather, the Confederation series has fast-moving plots with interesting interpersonal dynamics between a variety of aliens, with a sensible, world-weary, competent woman central to the action.

Review # 2 was written on 2014-04-05 00:00:00 Susan Parker [ as here we have a running battle across land rather than a group held up in a given fortification (hide spoiler)]