ISBN: 0-671-31951-5 Order from: Amazon.com
A mildly entertaining, and very conventional naval adventure in space, with lightly sketched characters and many familiar tropes.
Reviewed by David on November 29, 2000
Genre: Science Fiction (Military, Naval Adventure, Aliens, Space Opera, War)
Synopsis: The war of the Commonwealth against the fanatic Mollies is not going well. While smaller, the Mollies happen to posess the huge resources of the rare anti-hydrogen, the vital fuel that powers interstellar ships. Worse than the dire fuel crisis, are the new Mollie allies: enigmatic but very cruel Fibians.
Caught up in a surpirse attack deep inside the Commonwealth territory while recovering from their last mission, Commander Peter Raeder and his friends on the ship Invincible are forced to embark on yet another dangerous flight.
Full Review: Pete Raeder is a good space hero—a former fighter pilot who switched to engineering because of an injury, and has gathered significant combat experience in unorthodox missions. Normally not in line for independent command, he is once more thrust by the circumstances to lead his forces into deadly danger. Supported by the lovely and strong-willed pilot Sarah James, the irascible engineer Patty and the rest of the crew, Peter plunges deep into combat, trying desperately to discover a vulnerability in the deadly Fibians.
Fast-paced, the plot is full of battles, and a few bureaucratic frustrations in the Commonwealth fleet even as it comes under desperate pressure.
The aliens are insectoid, with nearly every expectation of science-fictional intelligent arthropods fulfilled. The human cast of characters is predictable as well, with stereotypes clear enough for humor.
Most of the novel moves with tremendous speed, resolving complex situations in pages, especially near the end of the book. This is not entirely problematic, since it allows a firm conclusion to this series; the alternative being a nearly endless saga of small merit and almost no distinction from dozens of other space wars. While somewhat entertaining, the complete absence of originality, and the predictability and superficiality of characters render this conclusion to the series mostly flat.
Overall: 4.5; Plot: 4.5; Characters: 4; Style: 4.5; World-building: 5; Originality: 3;
Copyright date 2000, Baen Publishing Enterprises (Baen), November 2000, Cloth, 407 pages
ISBN: 0-671-31951-5 Order from: Amazon.com