Book Review: Field of Dishonor by David Weber

Field of Dishonor
Author: David Weber
Series: Honor Harrington (Book 4)
Publication: Baen Books (December 15, 2012)

Description: HONOR BETRAYED

The People's Republic of Haven's sneak attack on the Kingdom of Manticore has failed. The Peeps are in disarray, their leaders fighting for power in bloody revolution, and the Royal Manticoran Navy stands victorious.

But Manticore has domestic problems of its own, and success can be more treacherous than defeat for Honor Harrington. Now, trapped at the core of a political crisis she never sought, betrayed by an old and vicious enemy she'd thought vanquished forever, she stands alone

She must fight for justice on a battlefield she never trained for in a private war that offers just two choices: death . . . or a ''victory'' that can end only in dishonor and the loss of all she loves.

My Thoughts: This story concentrates on Honor's relationship with Captain Lord Pavel Young. After his cowardice and desertion on the field of battle that was near the end of the previous book, this book begins with his court martial. But Young has powerful friends and the government needs to appease them if they are going to get the declaration of war against Haven that the need so badly.

An almost hung jury saves Young from being shot but enough was proven to have him cashiered out of the Navy. After his father's death just after the verdict is given, Young becomes the new Lord North Hollow who inherits his father's secrets and position in the House of Lords. But he blames Honor for all his problems and won't be content until she is dead.

Before he gets to Honor though, he decides to make her life terrible by killing Paul Tankersley who is Honor's love and lover. North Hollow hires Denver Summervale to challenge Paul to a duel. Summervale is a cashiered Marine who is a killer for hire who has killed many men on women on the field of honor. 

Honor had been sent to Grayson to get her out from under the massive publicity the court martial has stirred up. When she hears about Paul's death, she is determined to challenge Summervale to a duel and kill him herself. But Honor has friends on her side who get to Summervale and convince him to tell them who hired him. To no one's surprise, the man was hired by North Hollow and Summervale's confession is on tape. Of course, with the confession gotten by less than legal means it is impossible to take the take to law enforcement.

Honor publicly calls out North Hollow and demands that he meet her on the field of honor even though she gets a lot of pressure from the Queen's government and her own superiors to back off. North Hollow's support is still needed in the upcoming war effort. But Honor won't be dissuaded. She feels that the cost to her career is a cost worth paying if it gets justice for Paul and shows North Hollow for the coward he is. 

The story was packed with emotional intensity. Honor's grief for the loss of Paul was very convincingly written.

I bought this story three times - print, Kindle, and audiobook. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: The Short Victorious War by David Weber

The Short Victorious War
Author: David Weber
Series: Honor Harrington (Book 3)
Publication: Baen Books (January 1, 2002)

Description: The families who rule the People’s Republic of Haven are in trouble. The treasury’s empty, the Proles are restless, and civil war is imminent. But the ruling class knows what they need to keep in power: another short, victorious war to unite the people and fill the treasury once more. It’s a card they’ve played often in the last half-century, always successfully, and all that stands in their way is the Star Kingdom of Manticore and its threadbare allies. Enemies who in the past have always backed down. Only this time the Peeps face something different. This time they’re up against Captain Honor Harrington and a Royal Manticoran Navy that’s prepared to give them a war that’s far from short...and anything but victorious

My Thoughts: The People's Republic of Haven is in trouble. Their economy is tanking because so many of their people are on public assistance. They can only support their economy and the privileges the wealthy enjoy by continually adding new star systems to their Republic. So they have the wonderful idea to start, or pretend to start, a war with Manticore.

Honor Harrington has completed her long complicated recovery from the injuries sustained in the previous book and has been assigned as Flag Captain to a new ship named Nike and sent with a task force to a frontier repair base. The only problem is that that Admiral in charge of the task force doesn't like Honor whom he sees as hot-tempered and reckless which causes some problems for her despite the support of her immediate superior who is also in the Admiral's bad books. 

Since the Peeps are conducting all sorts of feints into neighboring star systems, the Admiral decides that he needs to defend one of the more populous systems and leaves Honor and her boss to defend the repair facility with very little help.

Haven has been secretly watching the whole area with stealth ships and knows when the largest part of the force leaves the repair facility and knows that it is time to take it and bring the war into official existence. It should be easy as their ships and armaments vastly outnumber those left with Honor. But Honor and her boss have done all the tricky planning they can to get their system as safe as it can be and can hope to hold out until help arrives to support them.

Meanwhile on Haven, Rob Pierre is planning a revolution which will take down the current government and put himself and his own supporters in control. And he is planning to use part of the Navy he hates to accomplish his goals. 

This was another exciting episode in the Honor Harrington series. It was filled with action and adventure.

I bought the Kindle copy November 19, 2025. It joins the paperback and audiobook already in my collection. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: Rebel by David Weber and Richard Fox

Rebel
Author: David Weber & Richard Fox
Series: Ascent to Empire (Book 2)
Publication: Baen Books; 1st edition (September 3, 2024)

Description: HE NEVER WANTED TO BE A REBEL

The Five Hundred, the elite families who rule the Terran Federation, control its political power and its wealth, and they’ve grown steadily wealthier and more powerful, thanks to the war against the Terran League. War may be hard on the people who get caught in its path, but it’s very good for business, in the short term, and the Five Hundred own the shipyards that build the Navy’s ships. They own virtually all the industry that produces the weapons and matériel the war consumes so voraciously . . . and they’ve made damn sure someone else does the dying.

True, there are a few flies in the Five Hundred’s ointment.

There’s the growing hatred and resentment of the Fringe Worlds, whose children do eighty percent of the dying in the Five Hundred’s war. But the Five Hundred have made sure the Fringe knows what will happen to any system that goes ”out of compliance.”

There are the lunatic conspiracy nuts who insist that the alien Rishathan Sphere is secretly aiding the League’s military, but the Five Hundred have forced them to keep their mouths shut where it matters.

And then there’s Terrence Murphy, a man of honor who loves the Federation, who springs from the Five Hundred, yet knows it for what it is and is determined to speak for its victims. But the five hundred have dispatched ample force to deal with him and his handful of lunatic followers

Unfortunately, the Fringe has paid enough of its children’s lives, and it no longer cares what may happen if it dares to defy the Five Hundred.

Worse, the lunatic conspiracy nuts were right, and the Rish have planned carefully for the Federation’s destruction.

And, worst of all, the Five Hundred have fatally underestimated Terrence Murphy.

My Thoughts: The second book in the Ascent to Empire series by David Weber and Richard Fox chronicles deteriorating conditions in the Terran League. The ruling government is controlled by the 500 -- the richest citizens who control all the industries and much of the wealth -- and they will do anything to hang onto their power and position no matter how reprehensible. 

With colony planets out on the Fringe declaring independence, the 500 are determined to show them just who is really in charge with extremely brutal tactics including bombing non-compliant planets out of existence. And there is Admiral Terrence Murphy who married into the 500 and who was recently appointed governor of one of the Fringe planets. His failure to stop their secession from the League and his determination to convince them that the Rish, an alien species, is acting to keep the war with the League and the rival Terran Federation at a boil has made him Enemy #1 in the 500.

Murphy believes in the League and is reluctant to believe how far from its ideals it has strayed, but he finds himself the focal point of a revolution as more and more planets secede. 

A lot of this episode takes place on Bellerophon which had seceded and asked to join the new Free Worlds Alliance. The 500, with the assistance of their various toadies in the government, has sent General Alaimo to bring the system back into compliance. He had been set aside after atrocities on another planet the 500 wanted to bring into line. This time he has a blanket pardon for any crimes, and he is determined to use it. From strikes from space destroying cities to mass firing squads to torturing individuals for his own sick pleasure, Alaimo runs rampant. 

This is excellent space opera. It is, however, the second book in a series which leaves many, many things unresolved. What is resolved is that Terrence Murphy now knows there is no chance of a negotiated settlement of the grievances of the Fringe planets and his determination to fix the League even if he has to bring battle to Earth. 

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Friday Memes: Rebel by David Weber & Richard Fox

 Happy Friday!

Book Beginnings is hosted by Gillion at Rose City Reader. She asks that the first sentence is posted along with the author and title of the book and the reader's initial thoughts on the sentence, the book, or anything else it inspires. 

Carrie at Reading Is My Superpower.org also provides a linky for sharing first lines and connecting with others. This meme asks that the chosen books be PG or marked as Mature if they are not. 

The Friday 56 was hosted by Freda at Freda's Voice. This meme is currently on hiatus but many of us are still including a sentence from page 56 or from 56% of the ebook. Anne @ Head Full of Books is picking up the slack until Freda is ready to return. I think this link will get you to the correct place. 

Beginning:

RHLNS Cai Shen

Wormhole Space

August 10, 2552

"We're as ready as we are going to be, Sir," Captain Su Zhihao said somberly.

Friday 56:

She really liked Rogers, and for a Heart, he was easy to work with...usually. He was a worrywart, though, when normal shipping routes were disordered.

This week I am spotlighting a new space opera recently added to my TBR Pile. I am a big fan of David Weber and couldn't pass up Rebel (Ascent to Empire, Book 2) when it was recently released. Here's the description:

HE NEVER WANTED TO BE A REBEL

The Five Hundred, the elite families who rule the Terran Federation, control its political power and its wealth, and they’ve grown steadily wealthier and more powerful, thanks to the war against the Terran League. War may be hard on the people who get caught in its path, but it’s very good for business, in the short term, and the Five Hundred own the shipyards that build the Navy’s ships. They own virtually all the industry that produces the weapons and matériel the war consumes so voraciously . . . and they’ve made damn sure someone else does the dying.

True, there are a few flies in the Five Hundred’s ointment.

There’s the growing hatred and resentment of the Fringe Worlds, whose children do eighty percent of the dying in the Five Hundred’s war. But the Five Hundred have made sure the Fringe knows what will happen to any system that goes ”out of compliance.”

There are the lunatic conspiracy nuts who insist that the alien Rishathan Sphere is secretly aiding the League’s military, but the Five Hundred have forced them to keep their mouths shut where it matters.

And then there’s Terrence Murphy, a man of honor who loves the Federation, who springs from the Five Hundred, yet knows it for what it is and is determined to speak for its victims. But the five hundred have dispatched ample force to deal with him and his handful of lunatic followers.

Unfortunately, the Fringe has paid enough of its children’s lives, and it no longer cares what may happen if it dares to defy the Five Hundred.

Worse, the lunatic conspiracy nuts were right, and the Rish have planned carefully for the Federation’s destruction.

And, worst of all, the Five Hundred have fatally underestimated Terrence Murphy.

Audiobook Review: Victory Conditions by Elizabeth Moon

Victory Conditions
Author: Elizabeth Moon
Narrator: Cynthia Holloway
Series: Vatta's War (Book 5)
Publication: Tantor Audio (February 3, 2009)
Length: 15 hours and 40 minutes

Description: For Kylara Vatta, it's not just about liberating the star systems subjugated by Gammis Turek and defending the rest of the galaxy's freedom. There is also a score to be settled and payback to be meted out for the obliteration of the Vatta Transport dynasty...and the slaughter of Ky's family.

But the enemy have their own escalation efforts under way - including the placement of covert agents among the allies with whom Ky and the surviving Vattas are collaborating in the war effort. And when a spy ring linked to a wealthy businessman is exposed, a cracked pirate code reveals a galaxy-wide conspiracy fueling the proliferation of Turek's warship fleet. Matching the invaders' swelling firepower will mean marshaling an armada of battle-ready ships for Ky to lead into combat. But a violent skirmish leaves Ky reeling - and presumed dead by her enemies.

Now, as Turek readies an all-out attack on the Nexus system - a key conquest that could seal the rest of the galaxy's doom - Ky must rally to the challenge, draw upon every last reserve of her strategic skills, and reach deep if she is to tear from the ashes of tragedy her most decisive victory.

My Thoughts: The conclusion to the Vatta's War 5-book series sees Ky Admiral of the combined fleet assembled to end the threat of the pirate Gammis Turok who has assembled a fleet of over 300 ships. Turok has also embedded spies in the major planetary systems who are helping him overthrow the existing governments.

As Ky deals with the loss of her first ship and most of its crew, Stella is dealing with rebuilding Vatta Enterprises and overseeing the manufacture of shipboard ansibles which will bring parity to Ky's fleet since the pirates already have them. Stella is also dealing with an adolescent tech genius ward who has fallen in love for the first time. Unfortunately, Toby's girlfriend's father is one of Turok's plants and a traitor to his planet. 

Rafe is dealing with ISC on his homeworld of Nexus II which is squarely in the sights of Turok's fleet. Rafe has a brain-damaged father who is still influential on the board of ISC and who is unreasonably prejudiced against any and all Vattas. His venom finds fertile ground since most of the board resents that Stella Vatta is manufacturing ansibles which leaves ISC's monopoly on communications in jeopardy. 

Ky has to pull together forces from various jurisdictions and convince much older ship commanders that she is the best one to lead the fight against Gammis Turok. 

This was a great space opera series and this volume a satisfying conclusion. 

I bought this one in paperback sometime before 2008. I recently bought the Kindle version and added the Audible Plus version to my Audible Library. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Command Decision by Elizabeth Moon

Command Decision
Author: Elizabeth Moon
Narrator: Cynthia Holloway
Series: Vatta's War (Book 4)
Publication: Tantor Audio (January 21, 2009)
Length: 15 hours and 3 minutes

Description: After orchestrating a galaxy-wide failure of the communications network owned and maintained by the powerful ISC corporation, Gammis Turek and his marauders strike swiftly and without mercy. First they shatter Vatta Transport. Then they overrun entire star systems, growing stronger and bolder. No one is safe from the pirate fleet.

But while they continue to move forward with their diabolical plan, they have made two critical mistakes.Their first mistake was killing Kylara Vatta's family.Their second mistake was leaving her alive.

Now Kylara is going to make them pay. But with a "fleet" consisting of only three ships - including her flagship, the Vanguard, a souped-up merchant cruiser - Kylara needs allies, and fast. Because even though she possesses the same coveted communication technology as the enemy, she has nowhere near their numbers or firepower.

Meanwhile, as Kylara's cousin Stella tries to bring together the shattered pieces of the family trading empire, new treachery is unfolding at ISC headquarters, where undercover agent Rafael Dunbarger, estranged son of the corporation's CEO, is trying to learn why the damaged network is not being repaired. What he discovers will send shock waves across the galaxy and crashing into Kylara's newly christened Space Defense Force at the worst possible moment.

My Thoughts: This fourth book in the Vatta's War series takes place on four fronts. Ky Vatta is trying to fight a war against the pirates with only a few ships and ship's captains who have agreed to work with her. 

Stella Vatta is trying to rebuild Vatta Transport from a base on Cascadia. She is guardian to young Toby who is a tech genius who has managed to improve the ship based ansibles which allow parity with the pirates who already have them. 

Rafe has gone back to Nexus II to try to figure out what is going on with his family and with the ISC global communications network. He discovers his parents and sister have been kidnapped and he needs to mount a rescue mission. The villain of the piece her is his father's second in command and heir apparent. He also learns that ISC never got patents for the ship based ansibles which leaves Stella the freedom to patent and sell them herself. 

And Aunt Grace is on Slotters Key trying to find out why the government turned against the Vatta family. She takes a place in the government after the corrupt president is taken into custody. She connects with Ky's mentor from the Spaceforce Academy and learns that he has been helping Ky since she left the academy. She manages to convince Slotters Key to call in all the privateers employed by Slotters Key and send them to Ky to be her military force. 

This was an engaging space opera filled with interesting characters. 

I bought this one in paperback in 2008. I recently purchased a Kindle copy and added the Audible Plus version to my Audible Library. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Engaging the Enemy by Elizabeth Moon

Engaging the Enemy
Author: Elizabeth Moon
Narrator: Cynthia Holloway
Series: Vatta's War (Book 3)
Publication: Tantor Audio (December 22, 2008)
Length: 15 hours and 35 minutes

Description: The brilliantly unorthodox Kylara Vatta - black-sheep scion of Vatta Transport Ltd., one of the galaxy's wealthiest merchant houses - is a heroine like no other, blessed with a killer instinct both for business and for battle. Now, in the aftermath of cold-blooded assassinations that have left her parents dead and the Vatta shipping empire shattered, Kylara faces her greatest challenge yet.

There is a time for grief and a time for revenge. This is decidedly the latter. Placing her cousin Stella in command of the trading vessel Gary Tobai, Ky embarks aboard the captured pirate ship Fair Kaleen on a twofold mission: to salvage the family business and to punish those responsible for the killings...before they strike again. Since the network providing instantaneous communication between star systems has been sabotaged, news is hard to come by and available information impossible to trust. But as she travels from system to system, with Stella a step behind, Ky pieces together the clues and discovers a conspiracy of terrifying scope, breathtaking audacity, and utter ruthlessness.

The only hope the independent systems and merchants have against this powerful enemy is to band together. Unfortunately, because she commands a ship known to belong to a notorious pirate - her own relative Osman Vatta, whom she killed for his part in her parents' deaths - Ky is met with suspicion, if not outright hostility. Rumors swirl about her intent and even her very identity. Soon, even Stella begins to question her cousin's decisions and her authority to make them.

Meanwhile, the conspiracy Ky hunts is hunting her in turn, with agents insinuated into every space station, every planetary government, every arm of the military, and every merchant house - including her own. Before she can take the fight to the enemy, Kylara must survive a deadly minefield of deception and betrayal.

My Thoughts: The third book in the Vatta's War series has Ky trying to find some way to create a space navy from disparate groups of privateers in order to make the universe safe for trade and restore her family's shipping empire. 

She is facing conflicts from her cousin Stella who believes that she should be focusing on her family more that planning to fight a war. She also has to deal with an established captain of a Vatta ship who is denying that she is really Ky Vatta with plans to take over his ship and perhaps start his own shipping firm.

Meanwhile, back on Slotters Key, Aunt Grace is doing her own part to find out why the government turned on the Vattas and resolve that situation to the Vattas' advantage. 

This one is filled with political maneuvering and space battles. 

I bought this one as a paperback sometime before 2008. I recently bought the Kindle and added the Audible Plus edition to my Audible Library. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Marque and Reprisal by Elizabeth Moon

Marque and Reprisal
Author: Elizabeth Moon
Narrator: Cynthia Holloway
Series: Vatta's War (Book 2)
Publication: Tantor Audio (December 1, 2008)
Length: 14 hours and 21 minutes

Description: Although the exciting military career she hoped for never got off the ground, Ky Vatta ended up seeing plenty of combat when she took the helm of one of the commercial transport vessels in her family's fleet...and steered it into a full-blown war. Now the lessons she learned in that trial by fire are about to pay off - because this time, the war has come to her. Someone has launched a full-throttle offensive against Vatta Transport Ltd., Ky's father's interstellar shipping empire. In short order, most of Ky's family is killed, and subsequent attacks sever vital lines of communication, leaving Ky fighting, in every sense, to survive.

Ky is determined to identify the ruthless mystery enemy and avenge her family's name, but she needs not only firepower but information. And she gets both in spades - from the band of stranded mercenaries she hooks up with; from her black-sheep cousin, Stella, who has been leading a secret life; and from Stella's roguish ex-lover, Rafe. Together they struggle to penetrate the tangled web of political intrigue that is wreaking havoc within InterStellar Communications, on whose effective operation their own livelihoods - and perhaps lives - depend.

But the infighting proves to be infectious, and it isn't long before Ky's hired military muscle are turning their suspicions on the enigmatic Rafe, whose wealth of knowledge about ISC's clashing factions and startling new technologies has begun to make him smell like a rat...or a mole. With swift, violent destruction a very real possibility, the last thing Ky needs is a crew divided against itself - and she's prepared to take whatever measures are necessary to ensure that Vatta stays in business, as well as in one piece.

What she is not prepared for is the shocking truth behind the terror - and a confrontation with murderous treachery from a source as unexpected as it is unrelenting.

My Thoughts: The second book in the Vatta's War series sees Ky dealing with treachery. She's survived a war but now she has to deal with direct attacks on her family which leaves her parents and uncle among the many Vatta dead. 

Ky has to use her underpowered and old ship to take the war to the enemy - once she identifies who the enemy is. Luckily, her aunt Gracie survived and sent Ky's cousin Stella to her with her father's implant which contains proprietary files and the command codes she'll need it she hopes to restore the Vatta shipping empire. 

Ky also rescues and young cousin who was the only survivor when the Vatta ship upon which he was apprenticing is blown up at dock. 

Stella's arrival also brings Rafe who is a shady character Stella worked with once as an undercover operative for Vatta. Turns out Rafe is also undercover for ISC which has a monopoly on interstellar communications which is also being attacked in this conspiracy. 

When Ky and her ship encounter another relative - Osman Vatta, they soon learn that his grudge against the family and his role as a pirate may have something to do with the reason Vatta was targetted. Osman is determined to capture Ky's ship and seize her implant for its Vatta information. Ky isn't going to let that happen even if she has to go active as a privateer according to the Marque that was sent her from Slotter's Key.

This fast-paced space opera was packed with action. Ky is a great character who is learning a lot about herself as she tries to survive and find her family's enemies. 

I bought this one in Kindle and Audible audiobook recently. I have the paperback in my keeper collection and have had them since 2008. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Trading in Danger by Elizabeth Moon

Trading in Danger
Author: Elizabeth Moon
Narrator: Cynthia Holloway
Series: Vatta's War (Book 1)
Publication: Tantor Audio (November 13, 2008)
Length: 13 hours and 45 minutes

Description: Kylara Vatta is the only daughter in a family full of sons, and her father’s only child to buck tradition by choosing a military career instead of joining the family business. For Ky, it’s no contest: Even running the prestigious Vatta Transport Ltd. shipping concern can’t hold a candle to shipping out as an officer aboard an interstellar cruiser. It’s adventure, not commerce, that stirs her soul. And despite her family’s misgivings, there can be no doubt that a Vatta in the service will prove a valuable asset. But with a single error in judgment, it all comes crumbling down.

Expelled from the Academy in disgrace–and returning home to her humiliated family, a storm of high-profile media coverage, and the gaping void of her own future–Ky is ready to face the inevitable onslaught of anger, disappointment, even pity. But soon after opportunity’s door slams shut, Ky finds herself with a ticket to ride– and a shot at redemption–as captain of a Vatta Transport ship.

My Thoughts: Kylara Vatta is the daughter of a merchant family who decided to go to the military academy instead of following her family's path. But when she causes a scandal by trying to be helpful, she finds herself captain of a ship that she is to take to be salvaged. 

When a business opportunity arises that might allow her enough to refit and keep the ship, she finds herself caught in the middle of a war with a ship in need of repair. She takes a contract to hold the captains and officers of captured ships until the mercenaries have things settled.

Unfortunately, a mutiny and severe food shortages make life difficult. Ky is really tested as she has to find a way to survive. 

I really enjoyed the audiobook version of this book I read many, many years ago. I liked the adventure and I liked Kylara Vatta. This is her coming of age story. She learns who she is and what she wants for her future. 

This is the first of a five-book series of space operas. 

I bought this one this book in 2008. I am listening to the audiobook via Audible Plus. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: The Oldest Starfighter by Jamie McFarlane

The Oldest Starfighter
Author: Jamie McFarlane
Series: Oldest Starfighter (Book 1)
Publication: Fickle Dragon Publishing LLC (May 10, 2024)

Description: The fate of the free universe comes to rest in the hands of the Oldest Starfighter, when grizzled veteran ace fighter pilot, Gordy Harmen, once again heeds the call to battle.

In this gripping new military science fiction novel, the universe teeters on the brink of invasion, and the Obsidian Union scrambles to assemble a formidable force of combat pilots. Enter Gordy Harmen, once a legendary Air Force pilot whose illustrious career came to an end due to physical limitations.

Desperate and with nothing to lose, Gordy is approached with a tantalizing proposition: join the Obsidian Union's fight, and they'll rejuvenate his weary body, granting him the chance to fly once more. With his unmatched skills in the cockpit, Gordy must adapt to a new battlefield—the vast expanse of space.

As the tension mounts and the fate of the universe hangs in the balance, "The Oldest Starfighter" takes readers on a thrilling journey through epic space battles and pulse-pounding action. Will Gordy's courage and expertise be enough to turn the tide of war? Find out in this captivating first installment of Jamie McFarlane's exhilarating new series, promising to enthrall fans of sci-fi adventure.

My Thoughts: This story begins with a knock at the door, Retired Air Force flying ace Gordy Harmen is bored with sitting on his couch, watching baseball, and drinking beer. When Korsic from the Obsidian Union comes to his door and recruits him to fight in their war, Gordy is intrigued enough to sign up.

Gordy quicky finds out that there are problems that Korsic didn't mention to him. Gordy and the other Earth pilots soon learn that they will be facing overwhelming odds against an enemy with more advanced technology than they will have. They also have a population to defend that is having trouble believing that the enemy is coming their way and may have been infiltrated with the enemy too. 

The story is filled with action and adventure as Gordy and his fellow citizens of Earth fight battles with the enemy and the government that hired them. The story reminds me of Old Man's War by John Scalzi in some ways: advanced medical technology and the need to recruit fighters with experience. 

I liked the writing style. I liked Gordy's "take no prisoners" style and complete willingness to tell it like it is. I liked the comradery among the recruited pilots. I even liked the potential romance with his alien liaison. 

This is the first in a new series and ends with a lot unresolved. I look forward to reading more. 

Favorite Quote:

You have an enemy who wants to take all your stuff. If you don't want to hand it over, you have to change the way you approach war. Because, no matter what the cool kids are saying, boys and girls, you're in a war. 

I bought this one July 24. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: Governor by Richard Fox and David Weber

Governor
Author: Richard Fox and David Weber
Narrator: Jonathan Davis
Series: Ascent to Empire (Book 1)
Publication: Podium Audio (January 16, 2024)
Length: 20 hours and 36 minutes

Description: For more than fifty years, the Terran Republic and the Terran League have been killing one another.

The death toll has climbed ever higher, year after year, with no end in sight. But the members of the Five Hundred, the social elite of the Republic's Heart Worlds, don't care.

Rear Admiral Terrence Murphy is a Heart Worlder. His family is part of the Five Hundred. His wife is the daughter of one of the Five Hundred's wealthiest, most powerful industrialists. His sons and his daughter can easily avoid military service, and political power is his for the taking. There is no end to how high he can rise in the Republic's power structure.

All he has to do is successfully complete a risk-free military "governorship" in the backwater Fringe System of New Dublin without rocking the boat. But the people sending him to New Dublin have miscalculated because Terrence Murphy is a man who believes in honor. He believes in duty—in common decency and responsibility. He believes there are dark and dangerous secrets behind the façade of what "everyone knows."

Terrence Murphy intends to meet those responsibilities, to unearth those secrets, and he doesn't much care what the Five Hundred want. He intends to put a stop to the killing.

Terrence Murphy is coming for whoever has orchestrated fifty-six years of bloodshed and slaughter, and Hell itself is coming with him.

My Thoughts: This space opera begins in new series in the same universe as the Honor Harrington series. Its star is Admiral Terence Murphy. He's from a military family and he is a member of the Five Hundred - the most powerful families in Terran Republic.

According to his father-in-law, one of the wealthiest industrialists of the Five Hundred, Terrence is a sure bet for a life in politics. He's presentable, has a useful heritage, and he's something of a fop who will surely follow the guidance of more capable men.

However, the Five Hundred has severely underestimated Terrence Murphy. His assignment to be the governor of New Dublin, a fringe world, is supposed to give him some experience and built some political points. But when he runs a rescue operation to Inverness, another fringe world, which has been attacked by the Terran League, his priorities change. 

The Terran Republic and the Terran League have been at war for more than fifty years. The Five Hundred has found multiple ways to profit from the war and it isn't bad for them. The taxes and soldiers commandeered from the fringe worlds have both paid for it and staffed the spaceships that are fighting it. New Dublin is sick of it and on the verge of declaring independence from the Terran Republic. And they are not alone. 

The Terran League has plans, a secret alliance with the alien Rish, and a secret base building a massive fleet. They also have plans to change the war by moving the fight deep into the Terran Republic's planets. But Terrence Murphy finds out about the plans. Now all he has to do is convince the Five Hundred what is happening which is against all their entrenched beliefs and profit margins. 

This was an excellent space opera. I am looking forward to more of this series. 

I bought this one December 8, 2023. You can buy your copy here.

Book Reviews: Kris Longknife Boot Recruit & Kris Longknife's Maid Goes on Strike by Mike Shepherd

Kris Longknife Boot Recruit
Author: Mike Shepherd
Publication: Self-Published (June 11, 2021)

Description: Everyone has known since Kris Longknife – Mutineer that Kris ran off to join the Navy after graduating college much to her parents’ dismay. However, the story has never been told of how that came to pass. Worse, how does a scion of the Longknife clan survive that massive drop in social levels, plummeting from the Prime Minister’s brat to a lowly Boot Recruit. Here, at last, is the story in all it’s fuss and feathers still on this rare bird. Enjoy.

Kris Longknife's Maid Goes on Strike
Author: Mike Shepherd
Publication: KL & MM Books (October 13, 2017)

Description: This collection of 4 short stories under one cover: Maid Goes on Strike, Ruthie Longknife's First Christmas, Among the Kicking Birds and Bad Day.

My Thoughts: These are fill-in pieces to the long-running Kris Longknife series. 

Boot Recruit is a novella and talks about Kris's reasons for joining the Navy after college and things that happened when she attended OCS. Fun story with all sorts of adjustments for both Kris and the Navy. 

Kris Longknife's Maid Goes on Strike contains four short stories. The first is about a problem on Alwa and the way Abby decides to solve it. Ruthie Longstreet's First Christmas is about a visit to Grandfather Al which turns into the second assassination attempt the baby manages to survive. Among the Kicking Birds takes place on Alwa and has Kris negotiating with the ostriches for land for the humans. Bad Day has Kris at Navy Headquarters on Wardhaven during her time as a staff officer and the reason why she asked for another job. 

The stories were all entertaining and filled in some other adventures in the universe. None were really essential, and none would really stand alone without having read the rest of the series. 

Favorite Quote:

"Why didn't your famous computer tell you that was a defective pod?" gunny asked.

"The interface on the pod's computer was so obsolete I could not attach," Nelly answered for herself.

"That was when I realized I had a problem," Kris put in. "I just didn't know how bad it was."

I bought these. You can buy your copies here and here.

Book & Audio Review: Downbelow Station by C. J. Cherryh

Downbelow Station
Author: C. J. Cherryh
Narrator: Brian Troxell
Series: Company Wars (Book 1)
Publication: DAW; Reprint edition (December 2, 2008); Audible Studios (July 10, 2012)
Length: 430 p.; 19 hours and 13 minutes

Description: The Hugo Award-winning classic sci-fi novel about interstellar war.

The Beyond started with the Stations orbiting the stars nearest Earth. The Great Circle the interstellar freighters traveled was long, but not unmanageable, and the early Stations were emotionally and politically dependent on Mother Earth. The Earth Company which ran this immense operation reaped incalculable profits and influenced the affairs of nations.

Then came Pell, the first station centered around a newly discovered living planet. The discovery of Pell's World forever altered the power balance of the Beyond. Earth was no longer the anchor which kept this vast empire from coming adrift, the one living mote in a sterile universe.

But Pell was just the first living planet. Then came Cyteen, and later others, and a new and frighteningly different society grew in the farther reaches of space. The importance of Earth faded and the Company reaped ever smaller profits as the economic focus of space turned outward. But the powerful Earth Fleet was still a presence in the Beyond, and Pell Station was to become the last stronghold in a titanic struggle between the vast, dynamic forces of the rebel Union and those who defended Earth's last, desperate grasp for the stars.

My Thoughts: This Classic science fiction novel, which won the Hugo Award in 1982, is quite an example of a space opera. While it outlines how humanity came to the stars, its main focus is on what happens when Earth is too far away to influence events and humanity is splintered into rival factions. 

A lot of the action happens on a space station called Pell which orbits a planet inhabited by aliens - the hisa. Pell wants to remain neutral in the battle between the Company which was begun on Earth but which has gone off on its own and Union which controls the outer stars. 

There are a lot of memorable characters. Signy Mallory commands the Fleet ship Norway. She's at odds with Mazian who commands the remaining fleet begun by the Company on Earth. There's Josh Talley who was born and bred to be a Union man, but who is becoming himself and choosing his own loyalties. There is Damian Konstantin who is one of the founding family of Pell and is determined to protect his station's future. And there are the Downers, aliens who have adopted some of the people from Pell Station, and who are loyal and peaceful people.

I enjoyed listening to this Classic. Brian Troxell did an excellent job distinguishing all the different characters.

Favorite Quote:

Star after star after star...nine of them--until Pell, which proved to have a livable world, and life.

That was the thing which cancelled all bets, upset the balance, forever.

I bought the paperback in 1997 and never read it. I recently bought the Kindle and Audible editions. You can buy your copy here.

Audiobook Review: A Call to Insurrection by David Weber, Timothy Zahn & Thomas Pope

A Call to Insurrection
Author: David Weber, Timothy Zahn, & Thomas Pope
Narrator: Eric Michael Summerer
Series: Manticore Ascendant (Book 4)
Publication: Baen Books; 1st edition (February 1, 2022); Audible Studios (December 6, 2022)
Length: 480 p.; 14 hours and 11 minutes

Description: Book four in the nationally best-selling Manticore Ascendant series, set in the world of David Weber’s multiple New York Times best-selling Honorverse series.

Yesterday, the Star Kingdom of Manticore was a small, unimportant interstellar backwater. A quiet little star nation, only recently recovered from the devastating blow of the Plague Years. More affluent than some, perhaps, but with little to attract trade or interstellar commerce, it had little need for a navy...and even less interest in paying for one.

But Manticore has now become a target. The Star Kingdom isn't certain who is attacking it, or why, or what its mysterious foe can possibly want, but Queen Elizabeth I knows she has to find out. And she knows that whatever some of her subjects think, Manticore does need a navy. And it needs allies, friends like the dynamic Republic of Haven and the Andermani Empire. It needs their trade...and to learn from their more experienced and powerful navies.

It is the job of officers like Travis Long and his wife, Lisa, to acquire that experience. Of utterly inexperienced diplomats like Travis's brother Gavin, Earl Winterfall, to build those alliances.

They have been sent to the powerful Andermani Empire to do just that, for the Imperial Navy is one of the most potent and experienced fleets in the galaxy. But the Andermani have problems of their own. Their Emperor's death is the trigger for insurrection, and now that powerful and experienced navy is locked in civil war

The Manticoran visitors find themselves squarely in the path of the storm, and before Travis, Lisa, and Gavin can accomplish anything else, they first have to survive.

My Thoughts: This is the fourth book in the Manticore Ascendant series. It takes place in the early years on Manticore when they have just come through the plague years and are trying to build relationships with their interstellar neighbors. They have also attracted an enemy who has made numerous attempts to destabilize and conquer Manticore.

Travis Long and his new wife Lisa have been sent to the Andermani Empire at the request of Emperor Gustav. Travis is hoping to absorb some of the Andermni's military knowledge to bring home to Manticore's fledgling Navy. 

Also on the trip is Travis's brother Gavin who is Earl Winterfall and a new member of Manticore's government. Though inexperienced, he has been sent to try to forge trade agreements with the Andermani.

Left at home is Chomps who has run afoul of Navy Intelligence and has been sent to the countryside until things cool down. However, he quickly gets involved in solving the murder of the local duke and all of his family. He thinks the determination that it was an accident caused by a drunken duke is very suspicious. 

Travis and Gavin also soon find out that their trips are much more complicated than they had thought. Emperor Gustav has died and things in the Andermani Empire are a little unsettled as the new 23-year-old emperor is trying to consolidate his position. Gavin stumbles upon conspirators who have a different candidate in mind for emperor.

And Travis and Lisa find themselves about a fleet sent to put down an insurrection as the would-be emperor has joined forces with a world that wants out of Andermani control. There are lots of space battles in this section of the story.

And weaving through all the different plot threads are the machinations of a shadow corporation whose aim is to conquer Manticore without sending in a fleet this time since it didn't work at all well when they last tried it. 

I enjoyed this story very much. I like the characters and find the world building very entertaining. Eric Michael Summerer did an excellent job with the different voices and accents.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

 

Friday Memes: A Call to Insurrection by David Weber

 Happy Friday everybody!

Book Beginnings on Friday is hosted by Rose City Reader. The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Beginning:

Hereditary President Trudy McIntyre had never been what Lucretia Tomlinson would have called a handsome woman. But there were pictures from two decades earlier that had captured a smoldering fire, a defiance, and a sense of righteousness that had more than made up for the lack of physical beauty.

Friday 56:

"Absolutely not," Elizabeth said. "We start by downplaying the urgency. Dr. Tolochko's analysis indicates that the shift has been gradual, and was only noticeable over decades of readings. No rush, no worry, no drama."

This week I am spotlighting A Call to Insurrection by David Weber, Timothy Zahn, and Thomas Pope. I got the Kindle copy a year ago, but it got lost among all the TBRs. When the Audible book was released December 6, I bought it and realized that I had never read and reviewed the print copy. Oops!

Here's the description from Amazon:

Book four in the nationally best-selling Manticore Ascendant series, set in the world of David Weber’s multiple New York Times best-selling Honorverse series.

Yesterday, the Star Kingdom of Manticore was a small, unimportant interstellar backwater. A quiet little star nation, only recently recovered from the devastating blow of the Plague Years. More affluent than some, perhaps, but with little to attract trade or interstellar commerce, it had little need for a navy . . . and even less interest in paying for one.

But Manticore has now become a target. The Star Kingdom isn't certain who is attacking it, or why, or what its mysterious foe can possibly want, but Queen Elizabeth I knows she has to find out. And she knows that whatever some of her subjects think, Manticore does need a navy. And it needs allies, friends like the dynamic Republic of Haven and the Andermani Empire. It needs their trade . . . and to learn from their more experienced and powerful navies.

It is the job of officers like Travis Long and his wife, Lisa, to acquire that experience. Of utterly inexperienced diplomats like Travis's brother Gavin, Earl Winterfall, to build those alliances.

They have been sent to the powerful Andermani Empire to do just that, for the Imperial Navy is one of the most potent and experienced fleets in the galaxy. But the Andermani have problems of their own. Their Emperor's death is the trigger for insurrection, and now that powerful and experienced navy is locked in civil war.

The Manticoran visitors find themselves squarely in the path of the storm, and before Travis, Lisa, and Gavin can accomplish anything else, they first have to survive.

Book Review: Kris Longknife: Defender by Mike Shepherd

Kris Longknife: Defender
Author: Mike Shepherd
Series: Kris Longknife (Book 11)
Publication: Ace (October 29, 2013)

Description: Kris Longknife is back in the good graces of the brass—and to demonstrate that, they've promoted her to Admiral.  Now her mission is to find the home base of the space pirates who are plaguing the fringes of the galaxy.

But no mission is ever simple when your name is Longknife. And this time the complications range from the military to the personal, as Kris finds herself—reluctantly—having to make some command decisions about her future...

My Thoughts: Kris managed to save the people of Alwa from attack from an alien force that refuses to communicate and rediscover her own great-grandmother at the same time. 

Her great-grampa King Ray comes to try to rescue his long-lost wife who is determined to stick at her new home. He also puts Kris in charge of the Alwa Defense, makes her CEO of Nuu Enterprises, and Viceroy to the human colonists. He's dropped off a number of ships, personnel and supplies. He wants Kris to take on the aliens at least long enough for the rest of humanity to prepare to fight a war against them. 

Kris is busy as she can be because Alwa doesn't have an infrastructure. The colonists are on the near course to starvation and not ready to take care of an additional 20,000 personnel who have come to prepare for that battle. 

Between building ships, building infrastructure, and dealing with aliens who have no concept of organized warfare, Kris is finding it hard to find time to spend with her new husband Jack. 

There were lots of great characters in this one from Kris's core people to those sent to help prepare for war and build a planet. There was also a lot of preparing for and fighting a great battle to defeat the overwhelming number of aliens who have their eyes set on Alwa.

Favorite Quote:

"Well, Your Royal Highness, have you got any more ideas? I'm plumb out."

Kris sighed. She'd been about to ask Captain Drago the same question.

But she was the Longknife. Admitting she'd scraped the bottom of the barrel of ideas for how to keep alive while killing what was after you was just not part of the legend.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: Kris Longknife: Intrepid by Mike Shepherd

Kris Longknife: Intrepid
Author: Mike Shepherd
Series: Kris Longknife (Book 6)
Publication: Ace (October 16, 2008)

Description: Kris Longknife has been assigned to The Wasp, the best warship beyond the Rim of Human Space. But while hunting for pirates, Kris stumbles upon something. It’s a plan to kill one of the members of the aristocratic Peterwald family—and the would-be killers are setting her up as the assassin.

My Thoughts: Kris Longknife should be far enough away from the centers of civilization to keep out of trouble. Assigned to The Wasp and packed with scientists who are exploring the Rim for new planets and new opportunities should keep her out of politics.

However, just because she's far away doesn't mean she's trouble-free. After all, pirates and slavers like to be away from the center of civilization too. She and her crew capture the Compton Maru and find it filled with cargo and slaves. She takes her captures ship to Cuzco in hopes of selling the cargo and ship for prize money and dumping the pirates on Cuzco' legal system. While there she has a chance to connect with a couple of old enemies - Captain Kratz and newly made Ensign Vicky Peterwald. 

While stuck on Cuzco where the legal system makes the pirates look good, Kris and her crew meet Andy Fronour of Pandemonium - one of the illegal colonies beyond the Rim - and are convinced to take him and his cargo home on their way to doing the exploration the scientists are agitating for. Upon arrival, they find that the colony has been captured by another set of pirates hired by businessmen to loot the planet for their profits. 

Kris and her crew come to the aid of the first group of colonists in retaking their planet with lots of nice maneuvers which make use of Kris's ingenuity. This second group of pirates is commanded by Kris's own first captain who left the Wardhaven Navy just ahead of his own court martial and who blames Kris for his problems. 

After solving problems there, Kris and her crew go to Xanadu which has been settled by Abdicators who were agitating for all humanity to return to Earth to get away from alien hordes that they believed were coming. Only they have gone beyond agitation and have sent out a group of young fanatics to start a war between Wardhaven and the Peterwalds. It is up to Kris to find these terrorists and stop them. Since it is well known to her that a war between parties of equal strength doesn't do much beyond creating a lot of devastation and can have no clear winners.

Now Kris has to find a way to save her and her planet's greatest enemy before they can be edged into outright war. 

This story was entertaining science fiction with a larger-than-life main character and many other intriguing characters too.

Favorite Quote:

"I'm not a princess," Vicky snapped, "except I guess you have a point. My dad is acting like an emperor or something, and I guess that makes me a princess or something."

"Mostly, it makes you a target or something," Kris observed.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: Rita Longknife: Enemy in Sight by Mike Shepherd

Rita Longknife: Enemy in Sight
Author: Mike Shepherd

Narrator: Dina Pearlman
Series: Jump Universe (Book 6)
Publication: KL & MM Books; 1st edition (August 31, 2017)

Length: 240 p.; 5 hours and 23 minutes

Description: The victory parades are over and half the fleet is back in mothballs. The Navies better start getting them back in Commission! Rita Longknife, commander of the heavy cruiser Exeter, has proof. Proof that there is something else out there. Proof we are not alone in the galaxy. Aboard her ship is evidence that we have blown up an alien ship, and they have blown up one of ours. So far, contact with the aliens is being made by pirates, the worst scum humanity has. How do the right people take over making contact? Is there already too much bad blood between us? Have we already blown first contact?

My Thoughts: The war is over. An age of exploration, using knowledge Ray Longknife gained from a computer on a frontier planet, has begun. It is a wild and wooly time with anyone with a spaceship or any government or corporation that can fund one sending explorers out to try to find a new Earth.

It is also a time when space pirates are out exploring and raiding and pillaging. 

Ray Longknife and his wife Rita are both ministers of Wardhaven's Ministry of Exploration. They are doing their best to get mothballed ships space worthy and sending them out to explore. But too many ships are going missing. So now the Ministry is tasked with finding out what happened to them. 

When a ship comes racing back shouting about aliens, Ray and Rita need to find out if humans have finally actually made contact with an alien race. The only problem is that the first contact has been made by pirates who are much more interested in the alien's gold planet than doing anything diplomatic.

Needless to say, humans haven't made a great first impression. Can Rita, Ray and their various crews find the aliens and make peaceful contact? 

Favorite Quote:

Humanity was not alone. Not anymore. First contact had been made by a bunch of bloody minded pirates looking for loot.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: Rita Longknife: Enemy Unknown by Mike Shepherd

Rita Longknife: Enemy Unknown
Author: Mike Shepherd

Narrator: Dina Pearlman
Series: Jump Universe (Book 5)
Publication: KL & MM Books; 1st edition (October 24, 2018)

Length: 226 p.; 5 hours and 33 minutes

Description: The war is over. Hurray! Half the fleet is back in mothballs. But out on the rim of human space, ships are disappearing. Some are merchant ships going about their business. Others are exploration ships on deep space probes. What's happening to them?

Captain Rita Nuu Longknife is ready to take the heavy cruiser Exeter to space and see what's out there. She may have a nursery next to the captain's cabin, and a two-month-old baby on her hip, but she's taking a warship out there and nobody better get in her way.

My Thoughts: The war is over but that doesn't mean things are peaceful. Pirates are running rampant, and the good guys have few ships that aren't in mothballs and no crews to man them. Ray Longknife is heading the Exploration Corps trying to discover new planets using the star maps he got from an alien computer. Private enterprise is also busy with planetary exploration looking for new worlds to maximize their corporate bottom lines.

However, ships are disappearing and, because the private explorers aren't sharing their routes, the number actually missing is unclear. Then, to add to the problem, "Admiral" Whitebred escapes from custody on Savannah with 24 other ships and goes out to be a pirate himself. So, are the losses due to Whitebred's efforts or is something else going on?

Rita Nuu Longknife and her two-month-old son have a ship that is going out to see what is going on in space. She's looking for missing ships and pirates, but what she finds is something else. It seems that humanity has finally met aliens. And pirates aren't the best possible ambassadors for first contact. 

Hearing this episode of the Jump Universe books highlights the negatives of this series. The dialog is a little clunky. The characterizations are a bit wooden. But the worldbuilding is excellent. The adventure carries the day for this story.

Favorite Quote:

Whitebred didn't tell the begging skippers how happy he was not to shoot. He didn't tell them how much he wanted those sleeping workers for his own farms and drug plantations.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Book Review: They Also Serve by Mike Moscoe

They Also Serve
Author: Mike Moscoe
Series: Jump Universe (Book 3)
Publication: Ace (August 27, 2013)

Description: A WAR WITHIN

Colonel Ray Longknife and Marine Captain Mary Rodrigo were once enemies in an interstellar war. Now they’re working together to keep the peace. But can they protect themselves from an enemy they can’t even see?

When a bad space jump flings their starship thousands of light-years away from home, Longknife and Rodrigo make an amazing discovery: a planet inhabited by the descendants of a ship’s crew—lost three hundred years earlier.

As acting ambassador, Longknife is eager to welcome the planet’s population back into the fold of humanity. But Rodrigo is suspicious. She senses that something is wrong under the planet’s veneer of peace and prosperity. And she’s right....

My Thoughts: Sabotage flings the spaceship Colonel Ray Longknife and Marine Captain Mary Rodrigo are travelling on thousands of light-years away from home where they discover a planet settle by the descendants of a spaceship lost 300 years earlier. 

While the ship's captain and crew try to find the way home, Ray and Mary are on planet trying to be ambassadors to the castaways. They discover a planet that seems peaceful and prosperous until they look closer. The descendant of one of the settlers, who claimed all the mineral rights on this mineral poor planet, is getting ready to make herself the ruler of the world.

But what is more troubling is that the humans are not alone on the world. There is a massive computer in the ground that has been tampering with the new settlers since they arrived - engineering them to survive on the planet and encouraging the growth of a new organ in their brains. 

Ray has been tampered with which is actually a good thing because it means that he can communicate with the computer that calls itself Teacher. But after a million years of isolation, the computer is going insane. It has decided that the humans infesting it have to be eliminated.

It is up the Ray with three young human children and nodes of the disintegrating computer to fight against the large piece of the computer that wants humans dead. While he is battling, Ray learns a lot about the jump gates that humans use but don't understand and which were built by the three long-vanished races that the Teacher taught.

This was a fast-paced and engaging space opera. I liked getting to know more about Ray, Mary, and the Marines who were on planet with them. There was a lot of intriguing stuff about war and fighting and making choices. 

Favorite Quote:

If you find yourself in a situation, you can always choose not to use the rifle you've got. You can't use the one you don't have.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.