Out of the Dark

Description

---

Mission of Honor (Honor Harrington, Book 12)

Product Details

• Notes: BUY WITH Reliance, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and serve to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
• Environment: New
• ISBN13: 9781439133613

Description

            The Star Kingdom of Manticore and the Republic of Haven have been enemies for Honor Harrington's entire life, and she has paid a price for the victories she's achieved in that conflict. And now the unstoppable juggernaut of the mighty Solarian League is on a collision course with Manticore. The millions who have already died may have been only a foretaste of the billions of casualties just over the horizon, and Honor sees it coming.

            She's prepared to do anything, risk anything, to stop it, and she has a plan that may finally bring an end to the Havenite Wars and give even the Solarian League pause. But there are things not even Honor knows about. There are forces in play, hidden enemies in motion, all converging on the Star Kingdom of Manticore to crush the very life out of it, and Honor's worst nightmares fall short of the oncoming reality.

            But Manticore's enemies may not have thought of everything after all. Because if everything Honor Harrington loves is going down to destruction, it won't be going alone.

---

Customer Reviews

Poor start, gets better.
Reading the first two thirds of this book is a boring chore. It's all recap and exposition that could have been done MUCH better with a 30 page "Previously In The Honorverse" overview. I really can't think of ANYTHING before the Battle at Spindle that was not covered in previous books.

Obviously, writers can create a successful novel that re-presents a previous plot but from a different point of view. Unfortunately, this is at least the fourth Honorverse novel with an overlapping time-line, and the same characters. Things are not just moving ahead slowly, they are crawling. And to fill in the pages there is padding where minor characters do unimportant things. In one scene, we follow a team of marines through a captured ship, from the airlock to the bridge. Nothing happens. They don't even encounter any casualties. Why was this in the book?

Once we get to the execution of operation "Oyster Bay", an event that was first explicitly mentioned three novels ago, this book finally picks up its pace, and becomes worth reading. We finally get big revelations about the "Real Enemy" behind the war(s) of the series, and even a surprise resolution or two.

If you pick up this book, do yourself a favor and skip right to chapter Twenty-Two, (page 286 in the hardcover) you won't be missing anything.

2010-07-26 (S.F. Bay Area, CA USA) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 3

---

The Epic Continues

Yes,I am an avid David Weber fan. Mission of Honor is a continuation of one of my favorite sagas,and I liken it to Patrick O'Brians Jack Aubrey/Stephen Maturin novels,or perhaps Anne McCaffery's Dragonriders of Pern.I had thought that this novel may be a major turning pont or even a conclusion ,but thankfully,we can look forward to more from Mr.Weber. I do wonder why it was noted as much longer than it is,possibly too much to incorporate in one volume? Fervent hope that the story continues,and that Ms. Harrington survives the conclusion.

2010-07-24 | roowalker (SC Coast,USA) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

---

Mission of Honor - Latest in the Honor Harrington Series
I have always loved the Honor Harrington series - and not just because of the treecats - and have read them all. Weber's attention to detail, his carefully woven themes, and the quality and depth of his characters have been a constant joy to me. "Mission of Honor" ranks right up there with the best. I await the next in the series with great anticipation.

2010-07-20 | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

---

Mission of Honor
A great continuation of the Honor Harrington saga. I'm sorry I have to wait another year to get another in this series from David Weber.

2010-07-20 | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 5

---

Honorverse 16 pulls the storylines back together again

This is the 16th full length novel in the science fiction series set two thousand years in the future which David Weber initially created for his character Honor Harrington. Where the last six books in the series have been developing into three linked but distinct series which portrayed the unfolding events with the focus on three different perspectives of the developing crisis, Weber appears to have abandoned that approach with "Mission of Honor" and this book covers the whole picture.

Mission of Honor gives you at least the initial outcomes of the attacks launched but not resolved in "Storm from the Shadows" which gave that book a "cliff-hanger" ending. But only the initial outcomes, as it is appears that the galaxy is starting to collapse into a series of wars and chaos so vast and devastating as to make the series of wars which dominated most of the first eleven books look like a vicar's tea party.

This book is much more disciplined in style than some of the recent books of the series, reminding me of Tom Clancy in the way it jumps between the perspectives of a very large cast while ruthlessly maintaining a clear storyline. Weber appears to be determined to eliminate the large-scale overlaps which was a consequence of the previous arrangement of the books: he does this by restoring a clear chronological sequence, so that all the events of "Mission of Honor" following on from the conclusions of all the recent books and you no longer find a battle or conversation which has already been described from the perspective of, say, Honor Harrington described again from the perspective of, say, Michelle Henke.


If you have not read any of these books and are interested in doing so, do not start with this one: these stories work best if read in sequence, so start with the first book, which is "On Basilisk Station (Honor Harrington)."

Despite the futuristic setting, there are strong parallels with Nelson's navy. Assumed technology in the stories up to this point has imposed constraints on space navy officers quite similar to those which the technology of fighting sail imposed on wet navy officers two hundred years ago. Similarly, the galactic situation in the novels up to the eleventh book. "At All Costs" had very marked similarities to the strategic and political situation in Europe at the time of the French revolutionary wars. However, after the gigantic battle at the end of that book, which roughly corresponds to Trafalgar, the story has started to go in a wholly different direction.

If you are trying to work out what order to read the "Honorverse" books in, here is a description of the sequence of the first 15 novels. The main sequence of 11 novels prior to this one which follow the career of Honor Harrington herself, consists of

1) On Basilisk Station
2) The Honor of the Queen
3) The Short Victorious War
4) Field of Dishonour
5) Flag in Exile
6) Honor among Enemies
7) In Enemy Hands
8) Echoes of Honor
9) Ashes of Victory
10) War of Honor
11) At All Costs

The "Torch" or anti-slavery sequence concentrates on the battle for freedom of people who have been held in slavery by "Manpower," which at first appeared to be a huge and corrupt company. The books with this focus are

(i) Crown of Slaves (set at about the same time as "War of Honor"), and
(ii) Torch of Freedom (set at about the same time as "At All Costs").

The "Shadow" or Talbot Quadrant sequence consists of two books which focus on that area of the Galaxy, and on a rapidly worsening crisis between Honor Harrington's home planet Manticore and the most powerful nation in the galaxy, the Solarian republic. This consists of

(a) The Shadow of Saganami (overlaps the 1st half of "At All Costs"), and
(b) Storm from the Shadows (overlaps "At All Costs" but starts and finishes later.)


This latest book, "Mission of Honor" begins shortly after the end of "Storm from the Shadows" and takes forward the characters and stories from that book, "At All Costs" and "Torch of Freedom."

As a sort of position check, David Weber builds into "Mission of Honor" at least a cameo mention of just about every major character in all six of the previous books, including those who were killed in those books. Those who are still alive get at least one scene from their perspective, telling you what they are up to at the time of this book, and whether they survive it. Those significant characters who were killed in the last few books also get a mention which covers how they died: for example through having a ship named after them or because surviving characters who were close to them discuss or remember them.

Having listed the other "Honorverse" books I ought for completeness to add that there are several collections in the "Worlds of Honor" series of short stories by Weber and co-authors set in the same universe, and featuring a range of characters, some from the main series of books, others new.


"Mission of Honor" is slightly shorter than some of the recent books in this series, and is probably a slightly better book for it. I noticed the humour a bit more than in most of David Weber's books - for example, at one point a character is seen to be reading a book about the psychic detective "Garrett Randall" by the author "Darcy Lord" (If you don't get the joke, look up Murder and Magic.)

The "Mesan Alignment" behind Manpower, who have been moving the other characters in the story around like chess pieces for the past few books, begin to act more openly with devastating consequences in this book. We already knew that the Mesans will accept the deaths of billions to create what they see as a better future for humanity, and in this book Weber begins to give us an idea of what that means. The best way I can think of to give a potentially interested reader a hint about these guys, without spoiling the story, is to say that their leader Albrecht Detweiler is what you might get by combining Dr Soong from Star Trek - Enterprise - Series 4 - Complete (Slimline Edition) [DVD] (but without the scruples), the rulers of Cetaganda (without the humour) and Ernst Stavro Blofeld (without the cat.)

Overall I can recommend this book. My biggest concern about David Weber is that with three series already on the go (The Honorverse, the Multiverse series which begins with Hell's Gate (Multiverse I), and the Safehold/Nimue Alban series which begins with Off Armageddon Reef) and a fourth about to start with Out of the Dark, he's really going to have his hands full!

2010-07-19 (Whitehaven, UK) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 4

---

A Mighty Fortress (Safehold Book 4)

Product Details

• Notes: BUY WITH Coolness, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and usage to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
• Up: New
• ISBN13: 9780765315052

Description

---

Customer Reviews

One of Weber's Writing Habits
This isn't Weber's best, but it's not a bad story. Unfortunately the constant shrugging gets annoying very quickly.

2010-07-26 (Washington, DC USA) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 3

---

Stick with it
A lot of other reviews have complained this book is long and tedious. My advice is to stick with it.
This is a series with a huge scope and lots of plot left to play out. You can afford a book like this that builds lots of parts of the plot without nail biting action every page. There is plenty of intrigue and action, just not on the scale of the previous books.
Some of the chief protagonists develop into more capable adversaries. The Earl of Thirsk is obviously going to be a key player. Even the group of four, develop from industrious idiots into industrious and clever adversaries with enourmous resources behind them.
On the Charis side, their allies increase and their industrial and research base are rapidly accelerating.
I think this book is the calm before the storm.
You may not feel compelled to stay up until dawn to finish it but an enjoyable read from start to finish.

2010-07-25 (Queensland Australia) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

---

Wordy, Wordy, Wordy
I liked the first books in the series, and wanted to find out what happened next. Gues Weber is like the 400 pound gorilla who can do whatever he wants. And what he wants to do is ramble on, and on, and on. By flipping through, I found a little plot, but no character development. Lots of detail on how people get killed, on every move of a battle, on how to build things, on retelling the first books. This book would have been improved by being 200 pages shorter. I want to read it, not bench press it. How long, O Lord, how long?

2010-07-23 | vbemis2 (Ashland, OH USA) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 2

---

Don't buy the Kindle version
Regardless of whether the book is long-winded or moves fast enough, the only that that is undeniable is that the kindle version (for Ipads) is crap. Whatever editing program the publisher used is awful with words and punctuation becoming totally gobbled (for example "decade" becomes "de cade"). Save yourself the grief of unscramblingly words and sentances and just buy a printed version.

2010-07-13 | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 2

---

Why bother, great book on sailing ships. Long and tendious.
The author is obviously fascinated by sailing ships and ocean battles. I often skipped several pages at a time to avoid a character reminiscing about their personal history that didn't have much if anything to do with the main story.

Wait for your local library to get it. I wasted my money but I felt I needed to read it because I'd already read the others in the series.

I'd be hard pressed to call this a sci-fi book.

2010-07-11 | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 1

---

By Heresies Distressed (Safehold)

Product Details

• Ready: New
• Notes: BUY WITH Trust, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and putting into play to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
• ISBN13: 9780765353993

Description

---

Customer Reviews

Alphabet Soup
This is a truly fine series but I have some niggles about characters names that have built up over the last three books, Weber seems to have bought up a job lot of `y' and `z' letters which he sprinkles liberally in characters names, he never uses an `i' where he can put in one or preferably two `y's. This drives me nuts. All the characters names now tend to sound and even look alike in print.

In this current book Weber has taken his eye off the ball a couple of times, for instance in the attack on the monastery in a violent thunderstorm he correctly notes that firearms would be useless, but the attackers used crossbows (arbalests) and he forgets that the crossbow cords would stretch in the rain and become unusable.

Also, after the assassination of the Prince there is great speculation in the book about the identity of the person who hired the twelve assassins who used crossbows for the job, but these assassins are never mentioned in the book again. Weber forgets the once a man has fired his crossbow he has literally `shot his bolt' and would need time to reload it so one would expect that the Prince's guard who were surrounding him would have captured at least one or two alive.

Lastly it would be nice if the baddies could win at least one battle,

2010-07-08 (Ashford, Middlesex United Kingdom) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

---

Worth continuing the series.
By Heresies Distresses is the third book in the Armageddon Reef series. This book continues Weber's tradition of long, thorough descriptions and glacial plot advancement, although that's probably not going to matter to anyone who made it through By Schism Rent Asunder and chose to continue with the series! The book is still short of the quality of Armageddon Reef by a good measure, but represents a quality continuation of a good science fiction series.

The series's writing flaws continue in this book. The entire cast seems to be made of characters that are witty, capable, and smarter than they look. You'll still read about (slightly!) different characters analyzing the same event in the same way three or four times before the plot is allowed to advance. You'll still be introduced to minor characters in pairs that "might as well be physical opposites". But these are pretty much minor nitpicks.

If you've made it through By Schism Rent Asunder and you're on the fence about continuing into the series, I do recommend you get this book (and possibly A Mighty Fortress). You've demonstrated that you can handle the writing style, and the series is definitely interesting enough to keep reading. This book is quite a bit less painful than Schism, and A Mighty Fortress is better yet. On the other hand, if you haven't read Schism yet, you'll really want to wait before buying this book; Weber followed his fast-paced, interesting opener with the slowest, worst book of the series, so don't pre-buy this third book unless you know you'll get through the second.

Then again, the used hardcover of this book sit around $4, so you might even just skip Schism, read its plot summary on wikipedia (it really has only 2 actual events), and move straight on to this.

2010-07-06 | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 3

---

Just a chapter in the Safehold series
I very much like the premise of the Safehold series. The book is very good in moving that story line along. But, it is draggy in places and more seems to be a setup for a future story. That future story might the ending story also. I also think that David Weber works better with a partner in order to keep him on track (like John Ringo, etc).

2010-06-26 | mmcguire (Sugar Land, TX United States) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

---

Safehold in Real Time?
The third book of this series is my third Webber read. I've already read the available parts twice.
I found the premise - a world in the future filled with humans who live in a past when Earth had little technology - to be fascinating. The PICA merlin is more human than the human's at 1000 years of existence and the complete knowledge of technologically advance Earth at his command. This makes him a superman or God for all practical purposes who happens to be the Anti-Christ to the reigning Church of God Awaiting.
This convoluted set of circumstances has filled four long novels as Merlin builds his chosen people into a force that is going toe to toe with the world dominating religious and political power of the planet.
It could be too detailed and slow for many but I'm savoring every minute twice while I wait for Webber to churn out the next installment.
The pace slowed in part two but that is not a problem for me. I believe the power of this work is in the details and the political and religious machinations of the characters.
It's all good with me.

This series has it all in detail and at this pace I could still be wanting more after Webber is gone - unless he happens to be a PICA

2010-05-27 | aurabass2 (Knoxville, Tennessee) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

---

I'd rather give it all 5 stars - and just 1 star
Weber, as he did all through the later Honor Harrington books, alternates between wonderful action writing and the worst kind of drivel. Endless, endless mind-numbing drivel. This book would be MUCH better at half the length. The guy is truly prolific, but he just doesn't seem to grasp how soporific his ponderous speeches and meditations and musings become, page after weary page. Great stuff, if you can stay awake through the long, long, long tedium that ties the gripping parts together.

2010-05-10 | Helpful Votes: 2 | Rating: 3

---

By Schism Rent Asunder (Safehold)

Description

---

Customer Reviews

Excellent !
Very refreshing after too much of Honorverse. But I still love you honor :-)
Reminded me about Pern by Anne Mccaffrey The Dragonriders of Pern but with deeper characters and a nice plot.

2010-07-28 (Paris) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

---

Tedious political discussion occasionally punctuated by brief awesomeness
Wife: "Did you ready every page?"
Me: "Uhh, yes. Er, well, not exactly."

I am a huge fan of Mr. Weber. However, I noticed the farther I get in his works, the more long-winded and boring he gets with all of the politics and myriads of minor characters. These books are becoming less sci-fi and more political triller - sans the thrill.

The plot of the Safehold series is fine, even if not particularly new or original. I am OK with it... there's so much potential for awesomeness. That said, you *really* have to WORK for it - It's like watching a "monster of the week" episode of Fringe... wishing and hoping for some movement of the big story arc, but it never comes.

The tediousness that Weber is building in his career really comes to a head in this book. I found myself skipping whole pages looking for a glimpse of the overall grand plot, or even just scanning for a characters' name that I recognized. Often... VERY often I found that I read a whole page and didn't know what I read, so, in an effort to be good, I would re-read the thing, trying to hold all of the minor characters in my limited short-term wetware memory slots.

I am a fan of Weber's work, but I am losing faith. I will keep reading his stuff (from the library) but I'm going to have to stop beating myself up for skimming and page-skipping.

Mr Weber, start dumping the long political dialog... PLEASE!

2010-07-06 | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 2

---

Time Passes Slowly
The second book of this series is my second Webber read. I've already read the available parts twice.
I found the premise - a world in the future filled with humans who live in a past when Earth had little technology - to be fascinating. The PICA merlin is more human than the human's at 1000 years of existence and the complete knowledge of technologically advance Earth at his command. This makes him a superman or God for all practical purposes who happens to be the Anti-Christ to the reigning Church of God Awaiting.
This convoluted set of circumstances has filled four long novels as Merlin builds his chosen people into a force that is going toe to toe with the world dominating religious and political power of the planet.
It could be too detailed and slow for many but I'm savoring every minute twice while I wait for Webber to churn out the next installment.
The pace slowed in part two but that is not a problem for me. I believe the power of this work is in the details and the political and religious machinations of the characters.
It's all good with me.

This series has it all in detail and at this pace I could still be wanting more after Webber is gone - unless he happens to be a PICA

2010-05-27 | aurabass2 (Knoxville, Tennessee) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

---

Let down a little
Afrter reading Armageddon Reef, I expected a faster paced book. I realize that is is a series, but if I had read this one first, I may not have been tempted to read the other books in the series. There just wasn't enough swashbuckling. The shipper was prompt and the book arrived as promised-new.

2010-04-19 | tslf (Cheyenne, WY USA) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

---

I just can't take it.
There are few books I can't finish. I have dragged myself through this glacially paced and ornately written book for so long... but I just can't take the rest of it. A person will think something, there will be a page or two of digression about the state of the economy, or how these cannons are better than those, or who's politics are stepping on which toes... and then the very next line of the thought happens. It's... drudgery.

And the names... oh, the names. They hurt. I suppose there was some point to replacing half the letters with Y, and mangling them around to sound unique, but when all the rest of the language is so common, it just looks goofy. Nahrmahn (Norman), Styvyn (Steven), Ahnzhelyk (?), Bynzhamyn (Benjamin) Ohlyvya (Olivia)... it just goes on and on.

And when, on page 526, I encountered this line, I was done.

It had not, Prince Nahrmahn reflected as he gazed out of the window of his family's sumptuous suite at the clouds welling up above the Styvyn Mountains to the west, lit with the crimson and gold fire of sunset, been the sort of day he'd once looked forward to spending in Tellsberg.

This was not the sort of book I had once looked forward to reading.

2010-04-17 | Stormdancer (Tijeras, NM USA) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 2

---

Storm from the Shadows (Disciples of Honor)

Product Details

• ISBN13: 9781439133545
• Notes: BUY WITH Reliance, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and maintenance to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
• Get: New

Description

Rear Admiral Michelle Henke was commanding one of the ships in a force ledy by Honor Harrington in all-out space battle. The odds were against the Star Kingdom forces, and they had to run. But Michelle's ship was crippled, and had to be destroyed to prevent superior Manticoran technology from falling into Havenite hands, and she and her surviving crew were taken prisoner. Much to her surprise, she was repatriated to Manticore, carrying a request for a summit conference between the leaders of the two sides which might end the war. But a condition of her return was that she gave her parole not to fight against the forces of the Republic of Haven until she had been offically exchanged for a Havenite prisoner of war, so she was given a command far away from the war's battle lines. What she didn't realize was that she would find herself on a collison course, not with a hostile government, but with the interstellar syndicate of criminals known as Manpower. And Manpower had its own plans for elimating Manticore as a possible threat to its lucrative slave trade, deadly plans which remain hidden in the shadows.

---

Customer Reviews

Another success in this fine series
I loved this book and my only complaint is the ending which I feel puts this book into the catagory of hucksterism (if such a word exists).

2010-07-12 | Si Fi Nut (SOCAL) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

---

Few books manage to be over a thousand pages too long...
Oh dear. I remember the earlier Honor books as being inventive, as the worlds and their navies were set out, and Honor herself fought her way through Manticore's struggles. Has Weber run out of ideas of does it just feel that way, as what content there is is diluted by the ridiculous page count?

The previous Saganami tale in the Talbott Cluster was actually ok I thought, so I went into this one with expectations of at least an adequate read. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Endless, endless text of absolutely no interest at all leads up to well, nothing. It's not the cliff-hanger ending that's the issue, although that is annoying after 1000 pages, it's the fact that nothing happens on the way there. The events should be interesting - fleets are duly shuffled along gravity waves, politicians are duly manipulated by shady puppet-masters - but Weber utterly fails to attach any drama at all to any of this, while spending s...o... l...o...n...g... moving his pieces back, forth and around and around and back and forth... And how many times must his cardboard characters repeat the same 'I believe they have really super missiles Sir/I don't believe they have really super missiles Fool' conversation?

Avoid, avoid, avoid.

2010-07-05 | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 1

---

Find a snort, take a snort!
What a boring horror of self-indulgent exposition. Author... who are you really, and what have you done with David Weber?! Nothing happens in this book. The characters think about things, they talk about things, they reminisce about things, and by the end of the book, even the CHARACTERS are sick of it! In Chapter 52, Queen Elizabeth finally says "We've discussed the Sollies almost to death". From your mouth to God's ear your Majesty, but apparently not to Mr. Weber's. Please David, we love you, but have mercy on us.

Anyone who has read the dozen or so Honor Harrington books Weber has already written doesn't need this ponderous monster, and any poor soul who picks up this book as his or her first exposure to the Honorverse will probably never read any of those other crackling good tales. What a shame.

The only thing that earned this effort(?) a second star from me was the amusement I took in noting how many of the characters "snort". Henke snorts. White Haven snorts. Terekhov snorts. EVERYBODY snorts. I gave up counting the snorts somewhere in the mid-teens, but if you must read this book, make a game of it...

When you start reading, have a shot glass and a bottle of your favorite spirits nearby. Then, every time you find a snort, take a snort! It won't make this dreary misfire any easier to read, but after a while you just won't care.

Salud! :-)

2010-07-02 (Carmichael, CA) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 2

---

I love the Honor universe
However, this one is a little weak and the story line advances very little, in fact all of the needed action could have been done in a couple of short chapters and perhaps all of the digression in subplots should have stayed seperate.

2010-06-24 | publicinterest (Wisconsin) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 3

---

You should know David Weber's style by now
Basically by now you either love david weber's style or you hate it. Personally I love that he spends time on certain details that flesh out his story. His entire HH series is one long story with books being chapter breaks. I love the series as a whole and like his writing style though i think he writes villians poorly. If you like battle centered space opera where you can actually understand the tactics and strategy the characters take. there is no better series.

2010-06-21 (NYC) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

---