Audiobook: Shadow of Victory by David Weber

Shadow of Victory
Author: David Weber
Series: Honor Harrington - Saganami Island Book 4
Narrator: Kevin T. Collins
Publication: Audible Studios (Dec. 6, 2016)
Length: 37 hours and 19 minutes

Description: The Mesan Alignment is revealed, and, for Honor Harrington and the Manticoran Star Kingdom, this means war!

Unintended Consequences

Sometimes things don’t work out exactly as planned.

The Mesan Alignment has a plan—one it’s been working on for centuries. A plan to remake the galaxy and genetically improve the human race—its way.

Until recently, things have gone pretty much as scheduled, but then the Alignment hit a minor bump in the road called the Star Empire of Manticore. So the Alignment engineered a war between the Solarian League, the biggest and most formidable interstellar power in human history. To help push things along, the Alignment launched a devastating sneak attack which destroyed the Royal Manticoran Navy’s industrial infrastructure.

And in order to undercut Manticore’s galaxy-wide reputation as a star nation of its word, it launched Operation Janus—a false-flag covert operation to encourage rebellions it knows will fail by promising Manticoran support. The twin purposes are to harden Solarian determination to destroy the Star Empire once and for all, and to devastate the Star Empire’s reputation with the rest of the galaxy.

But even the best laid plans can have unintended consequences, and one of those consequences in this case may just be a new dawn of freedom for oppressed star nations everywhere.

My Thoughts: I think this was the longest of the Honor Harrington books yet. It clocked in at 912 pages for the book and 37 hours and 19 minutes for the audiobook. 

The book goes back in time from the previous book and, among lots of other things, tells how Damien Harahap of the Solarian League Gendarmarie gets recruited to be a spy for the Mesan Alignment. It also talks about the beginnings of the revolutions he foments on a number of independent worlds which he says he is doing for Manticore. 

The book also spends a lot of time on Mesa as the plans go forward to remove the insiders of the Alignment to their new planet and disguise their disappearances in a number of nuclear explosions that can be conveniently blamed on Manticore and the Ballroom terrorists.

The book also spends time with the fleet in the Talbot center who find out about the revolutions they are supposed to be supporting and goes off to try to find the planets that are waiting for Manticoran support that Manticore doesn't know has been promised. I liked the way many of these revolutions were succeeding even before Manticore arrives. I also liked the way that Manticore and its new ally Haven are chasing Frontier Security off the planets they have conquered and also reducing the strength of the Solarian League Navy.

There were some sections that also took place on Terra. One group of them were about the Mandarins who still can't quite believe that little Manticore could ever successfully face down the Solarian League. Another group has to do with lower level people from a variety of the intelligence services who are putting the pieces together that paint a picture of Mesan interference. The problem is that their bosss don't want to hear about it. 

I have just two more stories to read before my revisit to David Weber's universe is finished - at least for now. I can't wait to get started with the remaining books. 

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