What Price Victory?Edited
by
David Weber
(Baen, February 7, 2023, hc, 320 pp.)
“Traitor” by Timothy Zahn and Thomas Pope
“Deception on Gryphon” by Jane Lindskold
“The Silesian Command” by Jan Kotouč
“If Wishes Were Space Cutters” by Joelle Presby
“First Victory” by David Weber
Reviewed by Kevin P Hallett
This is the latest entry in famed author David Weber’s Honorverse, the 7th in his best-selling military SF series. This anthology contains five original stories that take place over a half-century in the Manticore binary star system’s history and the solar systems around it. Though set in the same Manticore universe, each story is independent of the others. One story was a novelette, while the rest were novellas. In total, the anthology was the size of a novel.
“Traitor” by Timothy Zahn and Thomas Pope
In this SF novella, Cutler has been loyal throughout his life to his uncle Gustav, the emperor. His mother is an influential admiral in the space navy that helps expand the empire, and Cutler follows in her footsteps, quickly rising to a lower admiral rank. He is both fearless and hasty. However, his recklessness eventually leads to a demotion by his uncle.
Feeling hard done by, Cutler works relentlessly to get back into the emperor’s good graces. But when rebels ask Cutler to support their cause against the emperor, he neither joins them nor denounces them.
When the insurrectionists strike, they find a crafty emperor who takes advantage of their ignorant arrogance. And when the rebels play their last chance to win, Cutler is there to intervene. But will it be enough for his uncle to overlook his earlier lack of total loyalty?
The prose and plot read like an old pulp fiction story. That is to say, it was entertaining but the main storyline lacked depth.
“Deception on Gryphon” by Jane Lindskold
In this SF novelette, Stephanie and Karl are with their parents, who are called to Gryphon to provide guidance on terraforming the dry planet. The teenagers are bonded to two tree-cats that travel with them. A geologist offers to take them to a secret site, but before he can, he commits suicide.
Steph and Karl turn into sleuths because they believe someone killed the geologist. So when their parents attend an all-day conference, they begin their investigation. First, they find where the dead geologist was planning to take them; then search that area. But it takes the special senses of the tree-cats to find the proof the geologist was killed.
However, the geologist’s murderer is out there watching. And when the teenagers return with their evidence, they find themselves in a neatly sprung trap.
This interesting story included switching the POV between the teenagers and the tree-cats. However, the story was slow in several places, and the ending was too predictable.
“The Silesian Command” by Jan Kotouč
The Manticore empire annexes the Silesian system in this novella length tale. Commodore Eve Chandler’s commander sends her to decommission any Silesian naval spaceships before pirates take them.
The Commodore hasn’t recaptured her naval moxie since losing her daughter two years ago. When she arrives, she finds a superdreadnought coming to take possession of the Silesian ships. At first, she goes through the motions without the vigor needed to win a complex naval situation, and the superdreadnought ship escapes with several captured ships.
Still, the Commodore cannot muster the spark needed to make critical decisions. Then an obnoxious junior officer confronts her about letting her mourning control her attitude. Can the insufferable officer help her find her vitality again?
The story’s plot was convoluted, but the author kept it straight enough to make it enjoyable.
“If Wishes Were Space Cutters” by Joelle Presby
Noah is the only son in a dirt-poor family in this SF novella. He constantly moves between temporary homes with one of his three mothers, who tries to pass them off as part of the honest poor. But life remains a hand-to-mouth struggle for them both.
Meanwhile, Suleia comes from a well-off family with no sons, which leaves them vulnerable to the laws requiring all family wealth to be managed by a male. Suleia’s supervisor says that the young woman suffers from arrogant ineptitude.
By coincidence, Noah and Suleia are assigned to a new project to set up a space station around a gas giant in their system. For Noah, it’s a chance to earn real money for his family. For Suleia, it’s a chance to impose herself on others. She tries her caustic charm on Noah, who ignores her because he’s afraid he’ll get demoted back to the planet-side slums.
For Suleia, getting Noah’s attention poses a new challenge. One that requires her to improve her social skills. Then the project leader takes them out to collect space salvage in an old cutter.
The first half of this story was confusing as the author tried to reveal the nature of the two characters. Taking half the story to set the stage before any purpose for the story was apparent, made for a dull opening. The faster-paced second half didn’t make up for the initial impression.
“First Victory” by David Weber
In this SF novella, Allison is the very determined daughter of an equally stubborn mother, so when the mother says Allison is ‘throwing away’ her heritage to marry Alfred, the man she loves, it creates an unbridgeable chasm between daughter and mother.
Allison goes to live with Alfred on the Manticoran planet Sphinx where the tree-cats live. In short order, she becomes a prominent doctor, while Alfred rises in the marine ranks. Through it all, the two women become more entrenched in their determination to never admit fault or weakness with the other.
Jacques, Allison’s brother, and Alfred can only watch as the two women twist their feelings into knots, threatening to destroy their humanity. Even the birth of Allison’s first daughter cannot repair the thirty-year gulf, leaving them both despondent. Then Jacques is seriously injured during a battle with slavers. Now the two women must at least meet across a hospital bed.
Despite the plot being a little obvious at times, the story made for a pleasant read.
In sum, this was an engaging mixture of science fiction. The overall quality was good.
You can follow Kevin P Hallett’s writing on www.kevinphallett.com. There are links there to join his mailing list for a weekly newsletter on the recent release of his second novel, The Fifth Kingdom.