The Captain’s Daughters
by Doreen D. Berger (Goodreads Author)
3 out of 5 stars

Diane and Robin are kidnapped by an alien race to be sold as slaves on a far-away planet. Their father, a starship captain, is searching the galaxy for them, but he will have to travel farther than anyone thought possible in order to rescue his daughters. However, Diane and Robin are not sitting around waiting to be rescued. They take matters into their own hands, and try a daring escape.

I enjoyed this book! The plot is a fun adventure and has some interesting twists. There were a couple of times when lucky coincidences in the plot made it a little unbelievable. I feel like the plot could have been a bit tighter in a few places. But those were few and far between, so I still liked the story a lot!

The writing is really good! I immediately connected with the story and with the characters. The pacing is excellent, and the scenes have a lot of suspense. I laughed several times at some of the funny dialogue! Those girls are so sassy!

The story includes a lot of flashbacks as the characters encounter something in the present that reminds them of something important in their past, and we get a little snapshot memory from that character. Most of the flashbacks are of the girls getting punished for some crazy prank. It got a bit repetitive after a while, and I felt like 90% of the interactions between father and daughters was always of them getting punished for something. They must have spent half their lives being grounded in their rooms!

The world-building is not particularly imaginative; it’s a basic sci-fi setting similar to Star Trek. But I didn’t mind that, because the main focus is on the characters.

Diane and Robin are wild little girls! They are always getting into mischief. They are bold, but also sensitive and sweet. I love how intelligent and resourceful they are!

Captain Marsh, their father, has a strong personality. He is resolute, which is good since he spends most of his time disciplining his wild daughters. He can come across as too serious at first, but then his sense of humor will shine through. I love his character!

I was so touched by the close family relationships in the Marsh family. Despite spending half their lives being grounded, the girls really do love their father and I think that deep down they appreciate the boundaries he gives them to make them feel safe. Family relationships are complex, and that is beautifully explored in this book!

I liked all the supporting characters, and the way they form strong connections with the main characters. There are the sweet grandparents who just want to protect the girls. There are various starship personnel who joke around with the girls and turn a blind eye to their pranks.

The alien villain is really nasty and evil, which gave the story weight and suspense. The stakes are high, because you can tell that this villain means business.

Overall, I enjoyed this book very much!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.