The Captains Daughter
By Peter F Hamilton
- The Captains Daughter
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Author: Peter F Hamilton
- Series: Book 2 of Arkship Trilogy
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Publisher: Angry Robot
- ISBN: 9781836730118
- Published: June 2026
- Pages: 256
- Format reviewed: Paperback
- Review date: 08/07/2026
- Language: English
The wonder and the worry of the difficult second book in a trilogy. Book one is all introduction, book three is all conclusions. The second book is that awkward sandwich in the middle that gets you from one to the other. The best way to avoid a second outing being all filler is to make each part of the series its own mini story that informs the next. The Captain’s Daughter by Peter F Hamilton is part two of the Arkship Trilogy, but is it true to itself, or just a means to an end?
After the dramatic conclusion of A Hole in the Sky the order on the Arkship Daedelus has changed forever. Hazel discovered that she was not only the Captain’s Daughter, but that an alien race known as the Yi had colonised large parts of the ship and have trapped the humans in the land section. Washing up back near the villages, Hazel has a lot to do – inform the locals that they are no longer alone, find another AI to help battle the Yi, get the ship turned around so that they can arrive at their new home world. Should be easy.
Whilst Hole had a lot of introduction, to the characters and the ship, Captain has the luxury of being able to crack on with the action, and this is exactly what it does. Hazel and co have a short time to meet up with old friends and family, but only long enough to tell them that to get ready for war, and then they are off once more to discover more about the Yi.
Your enjoyment of Captain will depend a lot on your enjoyment of action in fiction. Although there is some character development in this outing it is not nearly as much as book one. This is story about movement, learning new things about the ship and the Yi. It is also a novel of moments, of a group of mostly young characters discovering mind blowing new concepts. There are some great set pieces in the book, both in battles against the Yi, but also just in the characters learning more about their wider world.
This naivety of character does affect the style of the book. It has that coming of age feel to it that borders on teen fiction. The way that the characters react to a situation seems immature, even with the help of AI, they do not always seem to able make a mindful decision. Younger readers may connect with this, but as an older reader I just assumed that they are all doomed unless they are incredibly lucky.
The book is fast paced and action filled fun but does feel a little empty compared to book one. It really falls into the trap that many second parts of a trilogy do, it feels a little like filler, merely a means to get from the introduction novel to the concluding novel. That is not to say that there is no fun to be had on the way, but I can picture a longer, more mature novel handling the bulk of all three books in one.
Written on 8th July 2026 by Sam Tyler .
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