School Days – Nathan Lowell

“School Days” is labeled book 1 of 3, but “SC Marva Collins” reads like a single longish novel, without much separation between the sections. (The three parts came out in successive months.)

SCMC doesn’t stand very well on its own. Think of it as a postscript to the other series featuring Ishmael Wang, Pip Carstairs, Zoya Usoko , and Natalya Regyri. Ishmael’s first captain, now the head of the Space Academy, persuades them to take over another ship - and take Cadets as junior crew.

The book has a lot of discussion about the Toe Holds, and how they are eclipsing what we thought was the core civilization. There’s a major subplot that amounts to discovering that large numbers of inexperienced students can be a problematic addition to a crew. Both slow the story down without adding much to it. The main characters are the main draw. If you enjoyed those series, you’ll enjoy this one.