SF. only fair. Alternate realties. Couldn't keep straight which one they were in at a given time. Muddled

In McCaffrey's Brainships universe, children who are born with an immobilizing or other severe disability are raised and educated to be the 'brains' that steer Starships. They are also assigned a "Brawn" to be their companion and assist with activities that can only be done by a person with a functional body.
Most of the books in this series have not had the same set of protagonists as each other, functioning more as stand-alones set in the same universe. This one is co-written by the same co-author as the previous, and thankfully, a continues the story of the Simeon-Haps with the focus on Joat instead of her parents. Joat's formative years were without the benefit of any parental supervision, and she's come up with her own, very interesting, set of ethics. Her adventures in space are entertaining to say the least!
I just love this series so much and it was so great to revisit Joat as an almost-adult.
Note: According to the series page, and probably the chronology of the universe, this is the 7th book in the series, but as it's more of a companion for the 4th, I read it as 5th, then continued to the 'official' 5 & 6. ( )

As the last book in a favoured series this was so disappointing. Too many villains. Too much bad stuff happening to the good guys with not enough leavening. The one important piece of information that this reader wanted by the end of the book was barely two lines of cryptic crap that I reread four times till I figured it out and could let the book go with the answer I had hoped for. Since I don't believe I am stupid, I prefer to believe the writer failed. The promise of Joat was unfulfilled. Not enough of Simeon and Channa. Just an all around let down. ( )

Though Anne McCaffrey wrote the first Brainship novel alone, most of the books in the series have a co-author, and two were written without her. Of these two, I think Stirling's contribution stands out as the best. Their combined effort, "The City Who Fought", is my favorite of the series after the original, "The Ship Who Sang." Though this one wasn't as good as McCaffrey's solo work or their combined talent, it is the best of the ship books not written by McCaffrey. Stirling offers a lot of action, and the familiar setting readers have come to expect. Where the story is lacking a bit is the character development - which is something McCaffrey excels at. However, this was a fun adventure, and well worth reading. ( )