Jim Brown is a ruthless administrator convicted to a ten-year jail term for tax fraud. Tasked to squash the rebellion in Pirrus, Jim gets entangled with Gina, the fiancee and daughter to top rebels sentenced to execution. Jim gets soft on Gina and releases them against his better judgment.
He soon as always finds himself entangled in a mess of conspiracies when a bunch of spies and invaders posing as journalists visit the planet Pirrus. There is something fishy about the whole setup. Pirrus is supposed to be a backwater planet with distant toes with planet earth regarding DNA and colonization. His regeneration renewal seems to be on the line, but he can’t get over his drug addiction, which is killing him faster than he can guess. With no time to spare, he must figure out how to squall the rebellion, fish out the mole in his organization, and stop the invasion.
The arbitrator is a fast-paced sci-fi novel filled with wit, espionage, and intergalactic politics, which should be a boring combination, but that is not the case. There are surprising twists and not too shocking revelations in the plot. The flow is exceptional with a fulfilling end. Jim is an interesting character that fits the bill — a man for the job of Arbitrator.
By and by, it won’t be a terrible idea if Max spares us more of Jim. The story might have ended in a nice wrap, but I’m pretty curious about so many things like Jim’s son, Gina’s decision to go to earth, and Pirrus being acknowledged as an independent earth man planet.
“It’s up to you. My job is to advise you. As I said one or two things have happened here recently to off-worlders.”
“How can I get in touch with you again?”
“You can’t. Maybe you haven’t realised but I’m an AI. I will change shape once I leave this bar.”
“You can change shape?” asked an incredulous Brown.
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