Series: Honor Harrington, Book 7

Author: David Weber

Genre: Science Fiction

Just when Honor seemed to be back on track in the RMN, resuming her illustrious career there, the universe seems to turn against her. Caught in a surprise ambush, she manages to save the rest of her convoy, but the ship she is on is captured.

Now the Peeps have her, and and their queen of propaganda, Cordelia Ransom, has specific designs on Harrington’s fate – and those plans don’t include longevity of life.

In several of the more exceptional books of this series, the pace has gone from steady to urgent and then a climatic rush to the end. Here, it is more of a very long crash landing. The pace is pretty quick to start with, and then the initial military engagements are excellently written with a fast pace. As Honor’s circumstances spiral out of control, Weber does an exceptional job switching viewpoints so the reader knows everything he/she needs to about what is going on, but he does not cross the line of coherency where the various viewpoints become more confusing than intricate.

This book delves even more deeply into Honor’s character, specifically how her imprisonment (and treatment therein) affects her psyche. Her internal struggle is done pretty well, though Weber might have overdone the climax of her internal battle against hopelessness. Just a tad over the top…

I do highly recommend this book, though if you’ve never read any of the other Harrington novels, they would provide a great foundation for understanding many of the characters and the political setting Harrington is maneuvering within. I would also recommend getting your hands on a copy of Echoes of Honor, which is the novel which follows this one.

All in all I would call this one of the better Harrington novels, especially if you read this and Echoes of Honor back to back. Very well done.

Worldview: Secular

Age Recommendation: Mainly due to the violence and language, High School age.