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Honorverse: Saganami Island #2
Storm from the Shadows
Perfidious Plots,
Courageous Resolve—and,
of course,
Starships Blown to Smithereens!
The Solarian League Navy has been the premier navy of the galaxy for centuries. Indeed, no one can remember a time when it hasn't been acknowledged as the most powerful fleet in existence.
Until now, that is.
A conference to end the terrible war between the Peeps of Haven and the Manticorean Star Kingdom is slated. Peace is finally within reach.
Yeah, right.
Not with the slaver conspiracy that calls itself Manpower, Inc. pulling intergalactic strings. The plan To plunge the Star Kingdom into a two-front war with Peeps and Sollies—a process calculated to blast Honor Harrington's home system to smoking ruin!
Assassination's afoot. And out on the galactic frontier known as the Verge, big trouble boils over as Solarian League arrogance butts up against the steely resolve of Harrington protégé Michelle Henke, aka Admiral Gold Peak.
Too bad for the Sollies. For Harrington's officers have a habit of coming through in the clutch and finding a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. But most of all—whatever the odds—they never, ever give up the fight!
At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).
Shadow of Saganami sequel—and the latest entry in David Weber's astoundingly adventurous, phenomenally popular, and multiply USA Today and New York Times best-selling "Honor Harrington" saga!
"Following in the best tradition of C.S. Forester, Patrick O'Brian and Robert A Heinlein! These hugely entertaining and clever adventures are the very epitome of space opera." —Publishers Weekly
"Weber's descriptions of space combat remain magnificent." —Science Fiction Weekly
A lifetime military history buff, David Weber has carried his interest in history into his fiction. In the New York Times best selling Honor Harrington series, the spirit of both C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower and history's Admiral Nelson are evident. With over five million copies of his books in print, David Weber is the fastest rising star in the Science Fiction universe. His Honor Harrington series boasts over 3 million copies in print, and Weber has had over thirteen of his titles on The New York Times Best Seller List. War of Honor, book 10 in the series appeared on over twelve Best Seller lists, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and USA TODAY.
While he is best known for his spirited, modern-minded space operas, he has also developed a fantasy series, of which two books have been published: Oath of Swords and The War God's Own. David's solo work also includes three novels of the "Dahak" series, and the stand alone novels: Path of the Fury and The Excalibur Alternative.
Weber's first published novels grew out of his work as a war game designer for the Task Force game Starfire. With collaborator Steve White, Weber has written four novels set in that universe: Insurrection, Crusade, In Death Ground, and The Shiva Option.
Courageous Resolve—and,
of course,
Starships Blown to Smithereens!
The Solarian League Navy has been the premier navy of the galaxy for centuries. Indeed, no one can remember a time when it hasn't been acknowledged as the most powerful fleet in existence.
Until now, that is.
A conference to end the terrible war between the Peeps of Haven and the Manticorean Star Kingdom is slated. Peace is finally within reach.
Yeah, right.
Not with the slaver conspiracy that calls itself Manpower, Inc. pulling intergalactic strings. The plan To plunge the Star Kingdom into a two-front war with Peeps and Sollies—a process calculated to blast Honor Harrington's home system to smoking ruin!
Assassination's afoot. And out on the galactic frontier known as the Verge, big trouble boils over as Solarian League arrogance butts up against the steely resolve of Harrington protégé Michelle Henke, aka Admiral Gold Peak.
Too bad for the Sollies. For Harrington's officers have a habit of coming through in the clutch and finding a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. But most of all—whatever the odds—they never, ever give up the fight!
At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).
Shadow of Saganami sequel—and the latest entry in David Weber's astoundingly adventurous, phenomenally popular, and multiply USA Today and New York Times best-selling "Honor Harrington" saga!
"Following in the best tradition of C.S. Forester, Patrick O'Brian and Robert A Heinlein! These hugely entertaining and clever adventures are the very epitome of space opera." —Publishers Weekly
"Weber's descriptions of space combat remain magnificent." —Science Fiction Weekly
A lifetime military history buff, David Weber has carried his interest in history into his fiction. In the New York Times best selling Honor Harrington series, the spirit of both C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower and history's Admiral Nelson are evident. With over five million copies of his books in print, David Weber is the fastest rising star in the Science Fiction universe. His Honor Harrington series boasts over 3 million copies in print, and Weber has had over thirteen of his titles on The New York Times Best Seller List. War of Honor, book 10 in the series appeared on over twelve Best Seller lists, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and USA TODAY.
While he is best known for his spirited, modern-minded space operas, he has also developed a fantasy series, of which two books have been published: Oath of Swords and The War God's Own. David's solo work also includes three novels of the "Dahak" series, and the stand alone novels: Path of the Fury and The Excalibur Alternative.
Weber's first published novels grew out of his work as a war game designer for the Task Force game Starfire. With collaborator Steve White, Weber has written four novels set in that universe: Insurrection, Crusade, In Death Ground, and The Shiva Option.
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First published March 3, 2009
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About the author
David Weber
322 books4,552 followersDavid Mark Weber is an American science fiction and fantasy author. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1952.
Many of his stories have military, particularly naval, themes, and fit into the military science fiction genre. He frequently places female leading characters in what have been traditionally male roles.
One of his most popular and enduring characters is Honor Harrington whose alliterated name is an homage to C.S. Forester's character Horatio Hornblower and her last name from a fleet doctor in Patrick O'Brian's Master and Commander . Her story, together with the "Honorverse" she inhabits, has been developed through 16 novels and six shared-universe anthologies, as of spring 2013 (other works are in production). In 2008, he donated his archive to the department of Rare Books and Special Collections at Northern Illinois University.
Many of his books are available online, either in their entirety as part of the Baen Free Library or, in the case of more recent books, in the form of sample chapters (typically the first 25-33% of the work).
http://us.macmillan.com/author/davidw...
Many of his stories have military, particularly naval, themes, and fit into the military science fiction genre. He frequently places female leading characters in what have been traditionally male roles.
One of his most popular and enduring characters is Honor Harrington whose alliterated name is an homage to C.S. Forester's character Horatio Hornblower and her last name from a fleet doctor in Patrick O'Brian's Master and Commander . Her story, together with the "Honorverse" she inhabits, has been developed through 16 novels and six shared-universe anthologies, as of spring 2013 (other works are in production). In 2008, he donated his archive to the department of Rare Books and Special Collections at Northern Illinois University.
Many of his books are available online, either in their entirety as part of the Baen Free Library or, in the case of more recent books, in the form of sample chapters (typically the first 25-33% of the work).
http://us.macmillan.com/author/davidw...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 148 reviews
August 5, 2009
I own many of Weber's earlier efforts. This one was a library read which pretty much confirms my assessment of what's gone wrong with Weber's writing lately.
Big book, interesting developments in the Honor-verse plot-lines, but filled with stylistic and writerly choices that really depress me. Most of the book reads like a series of reports, not characters moving through a story. New characters are name-checked and have one physical attribute and one psychological attribute attached to them immediately; characterization rarely goes much deeper than that clunky writer's exercise.
Most non-combat scenes involve characters discussing what other characters might or might not do, followed later by another scene with the other characters discussing their plans and what the first characters might think they're doing. Early on in the series, the advantage of superior knowledge made these scenes somewhat interesting, but when most of the book consists of them, they strike me as the literary equivalent of cruise control.
I always respected Weber for the wargamey background to his space combat scenes. But the "logical" developments of weapons tech in his universe have pretty much turned any combat into a predictable (and fairly mechanical) affair. No more close-quarters strike and counter-strike. Now, we get dry data on missile ranges and numbers. Maybe the first two or three times he presented combat as X missiles fire from Y pods and tubes, with Z missiles hitting after countermeasures doing A damage, it worked dramatically, but now it's as dramatic as reading an Excel spreadsheet.
I've gone from being uneasy at the political implications of the hero kingdom being an aristocracy to being wistful about the treecats--whose inclusion at least causes character's emotions to become relevant--and wondering how much longer investment in this series will prove worthwhile.
Big book, interesting developments in the Honor-verse plot-lines, but filled with stylistic and writerly choices that really depress me. Most of the book reads like a series of reports, not characters moving through a story. New characters are name-checked and have one physical attribute and one psychological attribute attached to them immediately; characterization rarely goes much deeper than that clunky writer's exercise.
Most non-combat scenes involve characters discussing what other characters might or might not do, followed later by another scene with the other characters discussing their plans and what the first characters might think they're doing. Early on in the series, the advantage of superior knowledge made these scenes somewhat interesting, but when most of the book consists of them, they strike me as the literary equivalent of cruise control.
I always respected Weber for the wargamey background to his space combat scenes. But the "logical" developments of weapons tech in his universe have pretty much turned any combat into a predictable (and fairly mechanical) affair. No more close-quarters strike and counter-strike. Now, we get dry data on missile ranges and numbers. Maybe the first two or three times he presented combat as X missiles fire from Y pods and tubes, with Z missiles hitting after countermeasures doing A damage, it worked dramatically, but now it's as dramatic as reading an Excel spreadsheet.
I've gone from being uneasy at the political implications of the hero kingdom being an aristocracy to being wistful about the treecats--whose inclusion at least causes character's emotions to become relevant--and wondering how much longer investment in this series will prove worthwhile.
January 12, 2010
This book represents, in many ways, Weber's sequel to At All Costs. In that regards, this book has been a long time coming. And, in many ways, it doesn't disappoint. But in some ways it does. The plot concerns the aftermath of the events in Shadow of Saganami and At All Costs and as you read it you can definitely see where the author is completely changing the enemy of the Honorverse from the Havenites to Mesa. This group, with a more sinister objective than the Peeps ever really had, continues to manipulate events from behind the scenes to try to control Manticore's rise.
The book itself goes back over a lot of the events of At All Costs from different perspectives - readers may well be put off as Weber goes about re-telling Henke's capture and the immediate events after that. Henke is, ostensibly, the main character in this book - but it must be admitted that she gets that title only because her name is in the book jacket.
SftS definitely works on the same scale as At All Costs, or War of Honor, or any of the recent Honorverse main works - focusing on many different groups and protagonists as it spins a very large story. This is in marked contrast to Shadow of Saganami which was much more in line with the earlier books of the series, focusing most of its attention on a single Manticoran ship. This is, to my mind, regretful - I liked the idea of a Shadow of Saganami series because I thought that was the intention.
The major problem with this book, though, was pacing. The pace of events in this story is very slow - and even the climaxes turn out to be somewhat anti-climatic. Aside from the first chapter, which really is a prologue, there is all of one combat. Worse than this, both of the big events that this book is clearly leading up to are left out of the book - making this book not so much a stand-alone entry in the series but, instead, a prologue to Mission of Honor (due out in July).
All in all - this is definitely a book anyone who wants to continue following the Honorverse plot needs to read. That said, though, this is one of the weaker entries in that plotline.
Oh, and minor nitpick - the author really, really, really needs to find another expression to replace "such as it was, and what there was of it". The same expression shouldn't come out of three or four different characters, frankly, it breaks the idea that these are supposed to be separate voices if they're going to use the same expressions.
The book itself goes back over a lot of the events of At All Costs from different perspectives - readers may well be put off as Weber goes about re-telling Henke's capture and the immediate events after that. Henke is, ostensibly, the main character in this book - but it must be admitted that she gets that title only because her name is in the book jacket.
SftS definitely works on the same scale as At All Costs, or War of Honor, or any of the recent Honorverse main works - focusing on many different groups and protagonists as it spins a very large story. This is in marked contrast to Shadow of Saganami which was much more in line with the earlier books of the series, focusing most of its attention on a single Manticoran ship. This is, to my mind, regretful - I liked the idea of a Shadow of Saganami series because I thought that was the intention.
The major problem with this book, though, was pacing. The pace of events in this story is very slow - and even the climaxes turn out to be somewhat anti-climatic. Aside from the first chapter, which really is a prologue, there is all of one combat. Worse than this, both of the big events that this book is clearly leading up to are left out of the book - making this book not so much a stand-alone entry in the series but, instead, a prologue to Mission of Honor (due out in July).
All in all - this is definitely a book anyone who wants to continue following the Honorverse plot needs to read. That said, though, this is one of the weaker entries in that plotline.
Oh, and minor nitpick - the author really, really, really needs to find another expression to replace "such as it was, and what there was of it". The same expression shouldn't come out of three or four different characters, frankly, it breaks the idea that these are supposed to be separate voices if they're going to use the same expressions.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 25, 2014
This was a terribly repetitive drag. Read as one dimensional characters in far flung areas of the Talbot Cluster are gradually informed of exciting things that happened in other books. Read on as they have meetings to exhaustively discuss those things. Then read on some more as they summarise those meetings to people that couldn't make it. Every time I read "Let me explain" I wanted to cry. The only interesting scenes are battles covered at length elsewhere so you already know the outcome and I am not enough of a wargamer to care about the exact ranges of missiles. Totally skip this one: literally nothing happens.
July 22, 2009
Unfortunately my first review didn't "save" so this one will probably be quicker and less thought out...
I have really enjoyed all of Weber's Honorverse books as well as some of his other titles, up until now. This book was awful. Unfortunately it would be difficult to give examples of why this book didn't work without giving out spoilers but I will do my best. He stated in the introduction that part of the book would be retelling events in other books from different character's perspectives... and it didn't really do that... but for the effort I found it hard to tell when in the overall story I was supposed to be. It just made the timeline for this book jumbled.
Next, there were too many attempts at subplots and character developments so that no one character or group of characters was focused on long enough for me to get interested in them. Nominally, I took it Michelle Henke was the "main character" but she only had two majour scenes. If you liked the characters from Shadow of Saganami, they're in there too... Aivers Terekhov is mentioned early, and forgotten, then mentioned again later... Honor makes an appearance or two... There's (I think) supposed to be development of Helen Zilwicki's and Abigail Hearn's characters, but Weber never really tells what happens with them, more like gives results in a summary later. (a bit of spoiler here) for example, someone has a problem with Abigail, they bad mouth her for a page or two and get talked to by someone else for a page, then no mention of it until later the Captain reports to the Commodore that "Abigail solved it by being Abigail and working really hard." (no, really, that was the solution.) Another point a competition is mentioned, then chapters later the results are stated in a paragraph... that sort of thing.
There's the main pseudo-antagonist in this but mostly, it's a repeat of what happened in Shadow of Saganami just less-so. There's no big battle.... four ships get blown up total, and none of them fought back...
The books was filled with references to one group's master plan... but they were all deliberately vague and not in any mysterious way... just a "oh, and this group is STILL planning something" way...
The passing touch on any character or group got very old very fast because, among other things, it was people reacting to things that had already happened and reacting incorrectly due to lag time in information due to travel requirements, worse the reader ALWAYS knew people were reacting incorrectly because it dealt with what happened and then with people not knowing about it. Further, one group had secretly developed a faster stardrive and so were always ahead of others, but no one figured it out despite constant references and ponderings about how [that group:] could NEVER have orchestrated all this because the time it would take to coordinate it was too long, or how that group always seemed to know things before others... frankly if every other page that held a reference to how that group couldn't have done something or known something due to travel time had been torn out and burned, there would still be too many incidents of it. Same with talking about other things that happend... an assassination attempt on someone (from another book) gets repeated ad nauseam, as do references to Helen's misadventures in Old Chicago.
By the end of the book, I just didn't care. Nothing really happened. Nothing really got done or was resolved. One group has a master plan. Another group is arrogant. Some people are angry and unreasonable. And most of the things that took place in this book already took place in other books. That about sums this book up. If you read Crown of Slaves, Shadow of Saganami and At All Costs, you'll have already covered about half this book. The other half are pointless hints that something else is going to happen. At some point. But not in this book.
I assume the half of this book that isn't already covered in the other three books will still be repeated in Mission of Honor and Torch of Freedom.
I never give up my books. I buy them and keep them so I can reread them. I have shelves in the attic filled with books, but frankly, if I thought I could get away with it, I'd return this book to Borders tomorrow.
I have really enjoyed all of Weber's Honorverse books as well as some of his other titles, up until now. This book was awful. Unfortunately it would be difficult to give examples of why this book didn't work without giving out spoilers but I will do my best. He stated in the introduction that part of the book would be retelling events in other books from different character's perspectives... and it didn't really do that... but for the effort I found it hard to tell when in the overall story I was supposed to be. It just made the timeline for this book jumbled.
Next, there were too many attempts at subplots and character developments so that no one character or group of characters was focused on long enough for me to get interested in them. Nominally, I took it Michelle Henke was the "main character" but she only had two majour scenes. If you liked the characters from Shadow of Saganami, they're in there too... Aivers Terekhov is mentioned early, and forgotten, then mentioned again later... Honor makes an appearance or two... There's (I think) supposed to be development of Helen Zilwicki's and Abigail Hearn's characters, but Weber never really tells what happens with them, more like gives results in a summary later. (a bit of spoiler here) for example, someone has a problem with Abigail, they bad mouth her for a page or two and get talked to by someone else for a page, then no mention of it until later the Captain reports to the Commodore that "Abigail solved it by being Abigail and working really hard." (no, really, that was the solution.) Another point a competition is mentioned, then chapters later the results are stated in a paragraph... that sort of thing.
There's the main pseudo-antagonist in this but mostly, it's a repeat of what happened in Shadow of Saganami just less-so. There's no big battle.... four ships get blown up total, and none of them fought back...
The books was filled with references to one group's master plan... but they were all deliberately vague and not in any mysterious way... just a "oh, and this group is STILL planning something" way...
The passing touch on any character or group got very old very fast because, among other things, it was people reacting to things that had already happened and reacting incorrectly due to lag time in information due to travel requirements, worse the reader ALWAYS knew people were reacting incorrectly because it dealt with what happened and then with people not knowing about it. Further, one group had secretly developed a faster stardrive and so were always ahead of others, but no one figured it out despite constant references and ponderings about how [that group:] could NEVER have orchestrated all this because the time it would take to coordinate it was too long, or how that group always seemed to know things before others... frankly if every other page that held a reference to how that group couldn't have done something or known something due to travel time had been torn out and burned, there would still be too many incidents of it. Same with talking about other things that happend... an assassination attempt on someone (from another book) gets repeated ad nauseam, as do references to Helen's misadventures in Old Chicago.
By the end of the book, I just didn't care. Nothing really happened. Nothing really got done or was resolved. One group has a master plan. Another group is arrogant. Some people are angry and unreasonable. And most of the things that took place in this book already took place in other books. That about sums this book up. If you read Crown of Slaves, Shadow of Saganami and At All Costs, you'll have already covered about half this book. The other half are pointless hints that something else is going to happen. At some point. But not in this book.
I assume the half of this book that isn't already covered in the other three books will still be repeated in Mission of Honor and Torch of Freedom.
I never give up my books. I buy them and keep them so I can reread them. I have shelves in the attic filled with books, but frankly, if I thought I could get away with it, I'd return this book to Borders tomorrow.
May 28, 2019
I chewed through the Honorverse Saga over the last little while because a housemate is also reading the series, and I'm trying to keep ahead of him so that we can talk about it. So expect a lot of Honorverse reviews from me in the near future.
This book is a significant departure in style from Weber's other Honorverse works. As a result, it has gotten mixed reviews. Some readers accept it as a natural extension of previously-established technique and perspectives; others dislike it because it loses some of the personal third-person focus that has characterized many other books in the series.
I find myself wondering at what Weber's process was when writing this and the remainder of the series. Many of the events are repeated from other books. I suspect he said to himself:
"Okay, I've got this huge George R.R. Martin-style saga to tell, but if I did it that way, I'd have a book so thick you could use it as a brick with a little mortar. Welp; I'm really telling three different stories, aren't I? So which events fit into the three different stories? Story one: Honor's perspective. Story two: Cachat and Zilwicki. Story three: Michelle Henke and Saganami Island. Let's divide them up with post-it notes."
And then he set about telling those three separate stories. He lets you know that because he starts giving timeline information (ie. one section of chapters will appear under a heading like "March 1921 Post-Diaspora").
As a result, some events are repeated, because some events are places where the three stories, and their characters, intersect. Sometimes he's able to tell them in a way that provides new events and new insights. Sometimes he isn't. I would argue you could skip those redone scenes, but skim them so that you know you haven't missed anything important.
I'm not sure he wouldn't have been better off telling all three storylines at once; or perhaps, merging the Honor and Saganami Island storylines and leaving Cachat and Zilwicki their own space (because he co-writes that storyline with Eric Flint.) But I can see why he didn't. The story is really just too damn big for that. Not even Baen would publish it that way! So it's the limitations of the genre that dictates the form.
On the other hand, BIG stories are a hallmark of good space opera.
This book, admittedly, suffers by the division when considered on its own. A lot of it feels like exposition and backstory. Secondary characters end up giving us a lot of it. I don't mind that, but I would suggest he'd have done better with the intense third-person personal style of Martin that way. He's clearly not as invested in some of these secondary characters as he is in Honor and Mike, Cachat and Zilwicki. That's okay, but the result is that some of the voices sound more... distant, or impersonal, than they ought to.
Now that I've read the series to the end, I'm probably going to re-read these last several books simultaneously. That is, I'm going to stack them all on my table, start with the earliest date in the sequencing, and go through all the books reading what happened in that month. Then I'm going to go on to the next month and do the same thing. And so on. I suspect it will have much more immediacy and intensity that way.
But when you consider this book as a complete unit, it's backstory. You need it to understand what's going on in the rest of the books, and there are individual stories of secondary characters worth following. So read it if you're reading the series. But if you're focused on the adventures of the major characters, skim this one for the places where Honor, Mike and Aivars appear, and glance through the rest.
This book is a significant departure in style from Weber's other Honorverse works. As a result, it has gotten mixed reviews. Some readers accept it as a natural extension of previously-established technique and perspectives; others dislike it because it loses some of the personal third-person focus that has characterized many other books in the series.
I find myself wondering at what Weber's process was when writing this and the remainder of the series. Many of the events are repeated from other books. I suspect he said to himself:
"Okay, I've got this huge George R.R. Martin-style saga to tell, but if I did it that way, I'd have a book so thick you could use it as a brick with a little mortar. Welp; I'm really telling three different stories, aren't I? So which events fit into the three different stories? Story one: Honor's perspective. Story two: Cachat and Zilwicki. Story three: Michelle Henke and Saganami Island. Let's divide them up with post-it notes."
And then he set about telling those three separate stories. He lets you know that because he starts giving timeline information (ie. one section of chapters will appear under a heading like "March 1921 Post-Diaspora").
As a result, some events are repeated, because some events are places where the three stories, and their characters, intersect. Sometimes he's able to tell them in a way that provides new events and new insights. Sometimes he isn't. I would argue you could skip those redone scenes, but skim them so that you know you haven't missed anything important.
I'm not sure he wouldn't have been better off telling all three storylines at once; or perhaps, merging the Honor and Saganami Island storylines and leaving Cachat and Zilwicki their own space (because he co-writes that storyline with Eric Flint.) But I can see why he didn't. The story is really just too damn big for that. Not even Baen would publish it that way! So it's the limitations of the genre that dictates the form.
On the other hand, BIG stories are a hallmark of good space opera.
This book, admittedly, suffers by the division when considered on its own. A lot of it feels like exposition and backstory. Secondary characters end up giving us a lot of it. I don't mind that, but I would suggest he'd have done better with the intense third-person personal style of Martin that way. He's clearly not as invested in some of these secondary characters as he is in Honor and Mike, Cachat and Zilwicki. That's okay, but the result is that some of the voices sound more... distant, or impersonal, than they ought to.
Now that I've read the series to the end, I'm probably going to re-read these last several books simultaneously. That is, I'm going to stack them all on my table, start with the earliest date in the sequencing, and go through all the books reading what happened in that month. Then I'm going to go on to the next month and do the same thing. And so on. I suspect it will have much more immediacy and intensity that way.
But when you consider this book as a complete unit, it's backstory. You need it to understand what's going on in the rest of the books, and there are individual stories of secondary characters worth following. So read it if you're reading the series. But if you're focused on the adventures of the major characters, skim this one for the places where Honor, Mike and Aivars appear, and glance through the rest.
April 9, 2021
2018 re-read.
August 6, 2020
This episode has a lot of overlap with AT ALL COSTS. It reprises the battle that has Michelle Henke captured. It expands on her conversation with President Pritchart that leads to a proposed peace conference. It also talks about the various assassinations that derail that conference.
This episode provides the viewpoint of the Mesan Alliance - a secret organization with galactic ambitions. Manpower, Inc., Manticore's long-time enemy, is just one branch of the Mesan Alliance.
Most of the action takes place in the Talbot Quadrant where Henke has been sent in command of a military force to help protect the Quadrant. The Mesan Alliance is continuing to foment situations which will lead to Manticore fighting a war on two fronts - against Haven and against the Solarian League. The Solarian League is immense and they can't believe that any neobarb could pose any threat to it. Unfortunately, they are quite mistaken. Their supposed superiority has led them to skimp on both renovation and refit and the research to keep improving their military hardware that Manticore and Haven had to so since they have been at war for a number of years.
When the Sollies sent a particularly arrogant admiral in the person of Admiral Bing to the quadrant, an incident that would likely lead to war is almost inevitable. And Manpower's agents are right there stoking the fires.
This was another entertaining and exciting episode in this space opera.
This episode provides the viewpoint of the Mesan Alliance - a secret organization with galactic ambitions. Manpower, Inc., Manticore's long-time enemy, is just one branch of the Mesan Alliance.
Most of the action takes place in the Talbot Quadrant where Henke has been sent in command of a military force to help protect the Quadrant. The Mesan Alliance is continuing to foment situations which will lead to Manticore fighting a war on two fronts - against Haven and against the Solarian League. The Solarian League is immense and they can't believe that any neobarb could pose any threat to it. Unfortunately, they are quite mistaken. Their supposed superiority has led them to skimp on both renovation and refit and the research to keep improving their military hardware that Manticore and Haven had to so since they have been at war for a number of years.
When the Sollies sent a particularly arrogant admiral in the person of Admiral Bing to the quadrant, an incident that would likely lead to war is almost inevitable. And Manpower's agents are right there stoking the fires.
This was another entertaining and exciting episode in this space opera.
February 18, 2024
Yet another David Weber novel, "Storm from the Shadows".
It's a spin-off set in the Honor Harrington Universe that parallels (or "shadows") the main Honor Harrington series. Honor's friend, the Admiral Lady Michelle Henke has been captured by the enemy (the Republic of Haven), and then returned in a POW exchange. She is now on parole in the old sense of the word. The two sides agree that Henke will not fight against the Republic of Haven so the Manticore Star Empire has sent Admiral Henke to the Talbot Sector, another battlefront where Manpower (genetic slavers) have precipitated what may be a war between Manticore and the Solarian League. The Talbot Sector is the backside of nowhere, but now it looks like the backside of nowhere is about to get a swift kick.
Any problems with this novel? There is a lot of talking, and explaining, mostly to bring the reader up to date, but also to explain the politics of the Talbot sector. Although this is Book 2 of the Saganami series (following young officers graduated from the academy on Saganami Island) it is paralleling (shadowing) book 11 "At All Costs" of the Honor Harrington series. A lot has happened in that long series, so there is a lot to explain.
The author apologizes in the beginning of the book (but not in the audiobook) for reproducing passages already published in previous books. Necessarily, certain passages of previously published books are duplicated in the current book because this is a shadow book. I understand, but it can get a little tiresome if one is binge reading through the series.
Any modesty issues? The F-word is used on occasion. Some sexual promiscuity is implied (such as knowing looks passed between lovers), but it never happens. Sexual slavery is discussed in a clinical sense and in casual conversation, always expressing disgust.
It was a pretty good read and I'll read it again.
It's a spin-off set in the Honor Harrington Universe that parallels (or "shadows") the main Honor Harrington series. Honor's friend, the Admiral Lady Michelle Henke has been captured by the enemy (the Republic of Haven), and then returned in a POW exchange. She is now on parole in the old sense of the word. The two sides agree that Henke will not fight against the Republic of Haven so the Manticore Star Empire has sent Admiral Henke to the Talbot Sector, another battlefront where Manpower (genetic slavers) have precipitated what may be a war between Manticore and the Solarian League. The Talbot Sector is the backside of nowhere, but now it looks like the backside of nowhere is about to get a swift kick.
Any problems with this novel? There is a lot of talking, and explaining, mostly to bring the reader up to date, but also to explain the politics of the Talbot sector. Although this is Book 2 of the Saganami series (following young officers graduated from the academy on Saganami Island) it is paralleling (shadowing) book 11 "At All Costs" of the Honor Harrington series. A lot has happened in that long series, so there is a lot to explain.
The author apologizes in the beginning of the book (but not in the audiobook) for reproducing passages already published in previous books. Necessarily, certain passages of previously published books are duplicated in the current book because this is a shadow book. I understand, but it can get a little tiresome if one is binge reading through the series.
Any modesty issues? The F-word is used on occasion. Some sexual promiscuity is implied (such as knowing looks passed between lovers), but it never happens. Sexual slavery is discussed in a clinical sense and in casual conversation, always expressing disgust.
It was a pretty good read and I'll read it again.
June 25, 2014
I went back to pick up the two trilogies woven around the main Honor series, so I'm still working my way through these to get to Mission of Honor - mainly because after At All Costs, I really wanted the repercussions of the Battle of Manticore, and when I started Mission of Honor, they were discussing another battle... so I had to work backwards.
Finally, chronologically at least, this book shows a bit of the post Manticore battle, but from Mike Henke's (and the fleet in the Talbot cluster).
This book is mostly (say 60%) from Mike's POV, which makes it an interesting addition to the series. I think I'd like to follow her some more. She, Helen Zilwicki and Abigail Hearne all definitely have potential, but as usual, David Weber's character development takes a back seat to the political machinations.
Much of this book is side meetings to discuss how to position ships, how to best utilize forces, and the different perspectives of both friend and enemy. There are a few battles, but it really does feel like this book is set up for something bigger. It ends on a cliffhanger.
I want more space battles from Weber. After this many books, I understand his tech and it's physics. Now I want more of At All Costs and less of the political maneuvering. And if I have to read "on the other hand" one more time, I might throw my ipod.
Jay Snyder was a decent narrator, his accents were all fine, but I really wish he'd drop his falsetto for the female characters. Even if Honor and Helen are supposed to be sopranos, Snyder makes their voices sound like fingers on a chalkboard.
Finally, chronologically at least, this book shows a bit of the post Manticore battle, but from Mike Henke's (and the fleet in the Talbot cluster).
This book is mostly (say 60%) from Mike's POV, which makes it an interesting addition to the series. I think I'd like to follow her some more. She, Helen Zilwicki and Abigail Hearne all definitely have potential, but as usual, David Weber's character development takes a back seat to the political machinations.
Much of this book is side meetings to discuss how to position ships, how to best utilize forces, and the different perspectives of both friend and enemy. There are a few battles, but it really does feel like this book is set up for something bigger. It ends on a cliffhanger.
I want more space battles from Weber. After this many books, I understand his tech and it's physics. Now I want more of At All Costs and less of the political maneuvering. And if I have to read "on the other hand" one more time, I might throw my ipod.
Jay Snyder was a decent narrator, his accents were all fine, but I really wish he'd drop his falsetto for the female characters. Even if Honor and Helen are supposed to be sopranos, Snyder makes their voices sound like fingers on a chalkboard.
Read
August 4, 2011Storm from the Shadows is the sequel to the "Shadow of Saganami" story arc in the Honorverse. Weber has chosen (and explains in the Forward) that he will be telling the same events from different angles through the three story arcs (Honor, Saganami, Crown of Slaves).
As such, SftS follows Mike Henke through her capture by Haven, parole and then deployment to the Talbott Cluster. Mike, and the other characters presented are written well, though they tend to self-monologue a bit too much for my tastes. (which is to say they do this even more than in previous Weber books) Mike comes across as well written and in some ways more interesting to follow than Honor, since she isn't the super-human than Honor has turned into.
The book is primarily scene-setting and politics, with little in the way of combat, so fans of the large starship actions will probably be somewhat disappointed. He throws a couple of tech curve balls at the end that will probably make the tech consistency folks tear their hair out.
Overall, I liked it and think it provides 1) a different perspective 2) a dose of the political stuff that Weber is good at 3) an important bridge for the next big balloon to go up.
Recommended for Honorverse fans. Folks who want the combat may want to steer clear as they can get most of what will happen in this book by the references that will be provided in the other story arcs.
As such, SftS follows Mike Henke through her capture by Haven, parole and then deployment to the Talbott Cluster. Mike, and the other characters presented are written well, though they tend to self-monologue a bit too much for my tastes. (which is to say they do this even more than in previous Weber books) Mike comes across as well written and in some ways more interesting to follow than Honor, since she isn't the super-human than Honor has turned into.
The book is primarily scene-setting and politics, with little in the way of combat, so fans of the large starship actions will probably be somewhat disappointed. He throws a couple of tech curve balls at the end that will probably make the tech consistency folks tear their hair out.
Overall, I liked it and think it provides 1) a different perspective 2) a dose of the political stuff that Weber is good at 3) an important bridge for the next big balloon to go up.
Recommended for Honorverse fans. Folks who want the combat may want to steer clear as they can get most of what will happen in this book by the references that will be provided in the other story arcs.
September 30, 2010
It's a betweener book.
Al the characters are familiar from previous books and this entire book feels like an effort to get them into the right places for the next story arc with the bad guy's changing to be "the alignment"
Almost all of the big events in the book actually happen in other books and it's hard to escape the feeling that the entire cast of this book are sitting in the wings waiting to be cool.
Feel free to skip this book until the 3rd book in this arc is available. Reading the follow up to this book straight away might help as one of the things that really annoyed me was the cliffhanger at the end
Al the characters are familiar from previous books and this entire book feels like an effort to get them into the right places for the next story arc with the bad guy's changing to be "the alignment"
Almost all of the big events in the book actually happen in other books and it's hard to escape the feeling that the entire cast of this book are sitting in the wings waiting to be cool.
Feel free to skip this book until the 3rd book in this arc is available. Reading the follow up to this book straight away might help as one of the things that really annoyed me was the cliffhanger at the end
June 8, 2009
This one is very definitely a disappointment. The quality of writing is down there with War of Honor and for mostly the same reasons. The characterization is flat yet important to the enjoyability of the story. The politics, and acompanying exposition, are likewise critical to the novel but just don't work. Weber just doesn't have the knack for either with a lot of character moments just becoming repetitive and the exposition being the usual "info dump".
The whole thing is just slow, stilted, and it ends rather unsatisfyingly.
The whole thing is just slow, stilted, and it ends rather unsatisfyingly.
October 17, 2019
This was good. Frustrating in that it felt as though it spanned about three of the HH series although it really was concurrent with #11, At All Costs and a bit beyond it. (Weber has the cheek to admit in an Authorial Note that he had planned to kill off Honor in #11! He'd better keep her on...if only because she deserves it!)
Mike learns something about herself and...thank god...we finally got to the action the whole story was leading up to. I thought I would expire with impatience!! Hah!! Felt good.
I am so looking forward to Torch of Freedom coming out next month.
Mike learns something about herself and...thank god...we finally got to the action the whole story was leading up to. I thought I would expire with impatience!! Hah!! Felt good.
I am so looking forward to Torch of Freedom coming out next month.
September 3, 2020
This book felt like a very different style from the other books.
Starship battles were long range and dull. It lost all the drama from book 3 of the Honor series. Politics were constant with lots of actors with vague goals that were just not interesting.
So very long. So very slow.
Starship battles were long range and dull. It lost all the drama from book 3 of the Honor series. Politics were constant with lots of actors with vague goals that were just not interesting.
So very long. So very slow.
February 6, 2013
Have to admit I lost patience with this sci-fi novel. It is too slow, too detailed, too long, too distructive and too depressing. 2 of 10 stars
January 5, 2018
Storm from the Shadows is a heavily flawed continuation of the Saganami Island series and Honorverse. Weber effectively sets up the next big conflict of the Honorverse and sews the seeds for the end of the Manticore/Havenite war. The focus on Michelle Henke was a welcome change from the first Saganami Island book. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the development of Abigail Herns and Helen Zilwiki from the first book of this sub-series, and I liked the new characters that were introduced there (especially Terekhov and Van Dort), but it was long past time for Henke to be the focus instead of just being Honors friend and confidant.
Where the book fails is in the pacing. Some of the issues come from the events of this book overlapping significant events in the main and Crown of Slaves series. While the events in the Talbot Cluster are going on you have the attempted assassination on Torch, the assassination of Manticores Ambassador on Earth, resumption of the Manticore/Havenite war and the Battle of Manticore. Due to the impact of these events the book spends a lot of time having the characters reacting to, and analyzing where it leaves their plans. Often times these segments are back to back which leads to a lot of repetition. You will move from Michelle talking to her people about said event, then the next part has the Mesan operatives having the same conversation from their point of view and then you have the same conversation from ANOTHER groups point of view.
Then their is the tedious discussion of the military technology. This would be hard to read as it is if it didn't also fall into the same category as above where you have the same conversation from multiple points of view. You have one party discussing the missile ranges and capacity (the pod contains 20 mark 6 missiles which have a speed of x kps squared and and effective range of x kps which is an improvement on the Mark 5 because the mark 5 has a range of blah blah blah. ) That was not an exact quote but that type of conversation can go on for a long time. At one point in the middle of the book there was an entire chapter dedicated to this type of conversation. Then the next chapter was the same conversation from Mesa's point of view. But they were saying how they couldn't believe the reports that the Mark 6 missiles had a speed of blah blah blah.
These issues make large portions of the book tedious at best. I'm hoping the next Honorverse books avoid these traps but I don't see that as likely. Weber has always been detailed when it comes to writing about the tactics and technology which is one of his strengths as a writer. But what used to be window dressing now seems to be the meat of his books. The early Honorverse books were 400-500 pages. The later ones are 600+ pages and a lot of that is taken up by the technical specifications and redundant conversations described above.
I will continue reading this series even if these trends dont improve because I enjoy the characters and story. If it gets any worse though I may call it quits on the Honorverse .
Where the book fails is in the pacing. Some of the issues come from the events of this book overlapping significant events in the main and Crown of Slaves series. While the events in the Talbot Cluster are going on you have the attempted assassination on Torch, the assassination of Manticores Ambassador on Earth, resumption of the Manticore/Havenite war and the Battle of Manticore. Due to the impact of these events the book spends a lot of time having the characters reacting to, and analyzing where it leaves their plans. Often times these segments are back to back which leads to a lot of repetition. You will move from Michelle talking to her people about said event, then the next part has the Mesan operatives having the same conversation from their point of view and then you have the same conversation from ANOTHER groups point of view.
Then their is the tedious discussion of the military technology. This would be hard to read as it is if it didn't also fall into the same category as above where you have the same conversation from multiple points of view. You have one party discussing the missile ranges and capacity (the pod contains 20 mark 6 missiles which have a speed of x kps squared and and effective range of x kps which is an improvement on the Mark 5 because the mark 5 has a range of blah blah blah. ) That was not an exact quote but that type of conversation can go on for a long time. At one point in the middle of the book there was an entire chapter dedicated to this type of conversation. Then the next chapter was the same conversation from Mesa's point of view. But they were saying how they couldn't believe the reports that the Mark 6 missiles had a speed of blah blah blah.
These issues make large portions of the book tedious at best. I'm hoping the next Honorverse books avoid these traps but I don't see that as likely. Weber has always been detailed when it comes to writing about the tactics and technology which is one of his strengths as a writer. But what used to be window dressing now seems to be the meat of his books. The early Honorverse books were 400-500 pages. The later ones are 600+ pages and a lot of that is taken up by the technical specifications and redundant conversations described above.
I will continue reading this series even if these trends dont improve because I enjoy the characters and story. If it gets any worse though I may call it quits on the Honorverse .
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 1, 2020
In general, I have enjoyed this entire series of Weber's books. The stories are coherent and consistent. The characters are well developed. While there is some physical description of characters, the extended descriptions of their thought and internal dialog is the source of that depth. Biases and personal background are woven into the stories and characters. The plot of each story has many aspects and many stories tie together in each of the books. Some of the aspects are economic, technological, political and social, each being addressed extensively. Differences among those aspects in relations to different subplots are explored and provide logic to the overall themes, particularly the wars. As various societies are described across the duration of the story, each society becomes another character, and just like the characters, the societies change in ways that add a moral dimension that provides a purpose for the story. Plus, there is lots of action as war unfold through battles, supported by scientific and technology advances.
I would rate the entire series higher than any individual book. The more recent books have some repetition in text from early books, although some of that is explained by differing perspectives.
Separately, either I am getting better at noticing minor editing issues or the editors and proof readers are allowing more problems to end up in the final text.
I would rate the entire series higher than any individual book. The more recent books have some repetition in text from early books, although some of that is explained by differing perspectives.
Separately, either I am getting better at noticing minor editing issues or the editors and proof readers are allowing more problems to end up in the final text.
July 6, 2018
3.75 stars really. While this was a very good book, there were way too many BOPSAT's (bunch of people sitting around talking a'la exposition). The nominal protagonist of the story is Admiral Gold Peak Michelle Henke, fifth in line for the throne, but really she doesn't appear in most of the book. Mostly this book is about what the bad guys were doing behind the scenes during the book "At All Costs".
The last time I'd read a book in this series was probably seven or eight years ago, when I binge listened to first 11 Harrington novels and the two of Crown of Slaves books and I burned out on it, coming back to the series after so long one of the first I realized is that there is are hundreds of characters... each with their own particular back-story. People used to go on about how Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time had a huge cast but David Weber has him beat by a country mile. Which makes for a lot of flipping back and forth in the book trying to remember where did I see this character, whose side are they on, what were they the last time we saw them? There's a character glossary in the back but it's of very limited value, imho.
So very good book if you're a fan, but definitely not a good place to jump on to the series.
The last time I'd read a book in this series was probably seven or eight years ago, when I binge listened to first 11 Harrington novels and the two of Crown of Slaves books and I burned out on it, coming back to the series after so long one of the first I realized is that there is are hundreds of characters... each with their own particular back-story. People used to go on about how Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time had a huge cast but David Weber has him beat by a country mile. Which makes for a lot of flipping back and forth in the book trying to remember where did I see this character, whose side are they on, what were they the last time we saw them? There's a character glossary in the back but it's of very limited value, imho.
So very good book if you're a fan, but definitely not a good place to jump on to the series.
January 19, 2021
This one was something of a close call on the rating. On the one hand, it was better done than it's immediate predecessor in series; i wasn't seeing the sort of plot goofs that predecessor showed, and I liked some of the changes in focus and style. On the other hand, it was a bit difficult in that it felt too repetitive. Yes, he states in the forenote that some things are covered again from the perspectives of different characters, but several times I felt that this were dragging in excessive detail, since I already knew the framework.
I may also be having a bit of difficulty now with the series itself, because having read numerous books in the series, I'm seeing certain plot element overused, and that is how so many characters go into long dialogues (internal & external) to justify or explain either themselves or some actions or events, and it is just SOO obviously just self-delusion. Those sort of situations happen, but it seems to me that it's getting used too often.
Overall a better than average read, but not quite up to what I'd rate as excellent.
I may also be having a bit of difficulty now with the series itself, because having read numerous books in the series, I'm seeing certain plot element overused, and that is how so many characters go into long dialogues (internal & external) to justify or explain either themselves or some actions or events, and it is just SOO obviously just self-delusion. Those sort of situations happen, but it seems to me that it's getting used too often.
Overall a better than average read, but not quite up to what I'd rate as excellent.
March 8, 2017
this follow the events in the Talbert quadrant during the climax of the Havenite war and Mesa Trying to start a Solarian-Mantacore war.
The book does suffer from retelling a story that has already been told. Though we do get some interesting details from an area of the galaxy that doesn't really get covered as well in the main series, However it just isn't as good as the first series. Still if you read the Previous book this one may be worth your time, though i expect its value will depend more on the following books in this series(at this time two books follow in this sub series).
I feel generous giving this book 4 stars.
The book does suffer from retelling a story that has already been told. Though we do get some interesting details from an area of the galaxy that doesn't really get covered as well in the main series, However it just isn't as good as the first series. Still if you read the Previous book this one may be worth your time, though i expect its value will depend more on the following books in this series(at this time two books follow in this sub series).
I feel generous giving this book 4 stars.
December 31, 2018
In the long and convoluted “Honorverse” it is easy to lose your way and get distracted by the intrigue and characters, yet it is this complexity that draws you into the book and the plot line. The outside world vanishes and you are in the plot line for hours.
Thoroughly enjoyable as a book and the way it is organized, the perfect multi-day read, since each chapter is a mini-story.
A pleasant change is that the treecats are not front and center but rather part of the scenery or environment.
I was juggling reading this with about a dozen plus technical papers on nutritional chemistry and this slowed me down a lot. Learning a new computer language.
On to the next Harrington book!
Thoroughly enjoyable as a book and the way it is organized, the perfect multi-day read, since each chapter is a mini-story.
A pleasant change is that the treecats are not front and center but rather part of the scenery or environment.
I was juggling reading this with about a dozen plus technical papers on nutritional chemistry and this slowed me down a lot. Learning a new computer language.
On to the next Harrington book!
February 14, 2020
This was another excellent book. There isn't as much in the way of military science fiction, but there is a good amount of political intrigue. I particularly enjoyed Mike Henke's role in this book and hope to see more of it.
I strongly suggest that At All Costs be read prior to this book. There is a huge amount of overlap in the books. Some may see that as a problem, but I enjoyed the different viewpoints.
Recommended for people who have read the other Honor Harrington books and still enjoy the books later in the series.
I strongly suggest that At All Costs be read prior to this book. There is a huge amount of overlap in the books. Some may see that as a problem, but I enjoyed the different viewpoints.
Recommended for people who have read the other Honor Harrington books and still enjoy the books later in the series.
July 26, 2021
A dense offering (even by Weber’s standard) that serves as somewhat of a turning point for the series. The shift away from the long-standing confrontation with the “Peeps” towards the newly established Talbot Quadrant required a hefty dose of political setup as well as the introduction of a bevy of new characters. There is some action to help the plot along, but overall it’s a ponderously slow transition book. Hopefully future installments will pay dividends on all the prep work presented here.
May 13, 2018
A while ago, I stopped reading this series, half way through this book.
I forgot why.
This book devolves the entire universe into about five people with functioning IQ's.
Every national leader, and almost every admiral, even those who weren't fucking morons in the past are completely incompetent.
I powered through, several years later when I picked it up again, but...man, what a let down.
I forgot why.
This book devolves the entire universe into about five people with functioning IQ's.
Every national leader, and almost every admiral, even those who weren't fucking morons in the past are completely incompetent.
I powered through, several years later when I picked it up again, but...man, what a let down.
September 12, 2020
I like the Characters, though some seem to be featured ore than others, and some from the previous volume don't get mentioned more than in passing. The actions scenes were pretty good. It was all the other behind the scenes politics that kind of bogged down the story. Having read at all costs and Mission of Honor befoe this one, I was familar with most of what happened. Still I will finish the series.
May 18, 2024
Catching up on the Storm series before I reward myself with the newest stand alone book in the series.
While a good reminder of the story arc, I did not get sustained character development or activities in other areas not already included in the main series. Felt more like a bit of stuff that hit the editing floor revived, as well as a repeat of major sequences that must have been covered in the main books.
While a good reminder of the story arc, I did not get sustained character development or activities in other areas not already included in the main series. Felt more like a bit of stuff that hit the editing floor revived, as well as a repeat of major sequences that must have been covered in the main books.
August 14, 2025
Oh my goodness, this series in particular is playing for keeps, and I hope my heart can cope. Since I read these out of order, I'm delighted events of the before and after are now matching up in my head. The action picked up from the first page, and while some of the information dumping did get tiresome, some of it was absolutely fascinating. The plot twists were mostly by the book, with no great shocks, but the climax was still delicious, and I can't wait to continue this series.
December 18, 2018
Good in parts. Very repetitive in others. Really stretched credibility in others. Basic things that were screwed up - unbelievable lack of reaction from everyone about the Battle of Manticore. Unbelievable sudden shift to "the Solarian League" is unstoppable to talk from Honour about "let a little star nation break it up" garbage.
August 17, 2022
After reading the last Honorverse book, I didn't think the casualties and stakes could get higher, or the political manipulations more complex, but they have. There are a lot of moving parts and I see why everything is spread over three concurrent series (even with some overlap). I couldn't put this book down and I can't wait to see where this all goes next.
July 28, 2017
Lost a star because of the increasing incidence of POOR EDITING. It's not punctuation, but the occurrence of incorrect homonyms, missing and/or extra words. There have always been a few, but in this volume it's become many, enough to be distracting!
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