The Service of the Sword (Worlds of Honor #4) [Hardcover]

David Weber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 25, 2003

Readers can't get enough of Honor Harrington and her world, and here David Weber is again, accompanied by some of the top science fiction writers in the field - including John Ringo, Eric Flint, Timothy Zahn and Weber himself - with new adventures of the best starship commander in the galaxy, and explorations of previously uncharted corners of her universe. It's a party - and you're invited!

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In the fourth World of Honor volume, other military sf specialists visit the universe Weber created for female astronaut Honor Harrington. In the title story, Weber places Honor, the first midshipwoman graduated from Grayson, the astronautical academy, aboard her first Manticoran warship and has her win out in a situation for which she wasn't trained. Jane Lindskjold's contribution confronts Manticoran royalty with female refugees from a planet whose sexism beggars the word barbaric. In Timothy Zahn's "With One Stone," the kind of futuristic thriller of which he is a master, Honor isn't the only one who can detect a booby trap and detonate it safely. John Ringo contributes twice, collaboratively with Victor Mitchell in "A Ship Named Francis" and solo in "Let's Go to Prague"; light but not frivolous, these stories show his flair for military absurdity. Finally, in "The Fanatic," the semi-ubiquitous Eric Flint thinks and writes well about secret policemen and their possibilities. If Honor's audience hasn't yet expanded beyond its military sf core, this book should make it do so. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 496 pages
• Publisher: Baen; First Edition edition (March 25, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743435990
• ISBN-13: 978-0743435994
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #297,338 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great anthology!, May 23, 2003

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Service of the Sword (Worlds of Honor #4) (Hardcover)

There are six stories in this anthology of Honor's famous universe (created by author David Weber). This will have to be a long review because I want to give a synopsis of each story, as well as a rating. The book's total rating, from me, should be considered as 4.5 stars!

The first story is Promised Land by Jane Lindskold. Judith was Grayson-born. As a child she was kidnapped when the merchant vessel she and her parents were traveling on was attacked by Masadan pirates. Judith's parents were killed, but her dying mother told Judith to never let the Masadans know she could read! Judith suffered much abuse as one of Ephraim's wives. However, an elite secret organization, made of females, plotted, planned, and got ready for the day of their salvation. They would get only one chance. They would all escape or be captured and executed as example to others.

**** If you love stories by David Weber then THIS author is one to watch! Very well done indeed. ****

The second story is With One Stone by Timothy Zahn. We zip back to the days when SHE was "Captain" Honor Harrington of the heavy cruiser HMS Fearless. Lieutenant (Senior Grade) Rafael "Rafe" Cardones was Honor's tac officer. These two are the main characters of this awesome story!

Someone in Silesia space had gotten hold of an advanced form of the grav lance. Since Rafe was the only RMN tac officer who's ever used a grav lance in combat, he was temporarily assigned to an elite group and a top secret ONI mission. Honor was on an escort mission but ordered to abandon the ships she escorted if she came across the pirate ship with the advanced grav lance and pursue it. The two missions, of course, would end up in one huge climatic battle.

***** Oh yes! Author Timothy Zahn did especially well on this story. It was great to read one of Honor's early battles. So well done I could have sworn Weber, himself, wrote it! *****

The third story is A Ship Named Francis by John Ringo & Victor Mitchell. Sick Berth Attendant Third Class Sean Tyler was beginning his second hitch with the Manticoran Navy. He thought transferring to the Grayson service and working with other Alliance forces was a good move in his career. He could never have imagined what Fate had in store for him.

The first day Tyler set foot on the Francis Mueller he knew the transfer had been a bad move. The entire ship was held together by sweat and prayer ... literally! Every day began with a prayer that always sounded more like an eulogy and by the end of the day at least one crew member had to be tranked due to stress. And those were the GOOD days!

***** This is an extremely short story, about twenty pages total. Out of this entire novel though, this is my FAVORITE! I laughed myself silly during the whole thing! Pure Sci-Fi bliss! *****

The fourth story is Let's Go To Prague by John Ringo. Major John Mullins and his partner, Major Charles Gonzalves decided to take some leave on Prague disguised as StateSec officers. A little blackmail later, they were vacationing among the enemy. When a Manti covert operation went bad, John and Charles was (unluckily) there to pick up the ball. Now they must get themselves, a defecting admiral, and a soiled dove off the planet - FAST! Hard to do when the entire planet was hunting you.

**** That is the gist of it. To tell more would ruin it for the reader. Suffice it to say that fans of author John Ringo will not be disappointed in this fast paced adventure. Terrific reading. ****

The fifth story is Fanatic by Eric Flint. Esther McQueen had failed her coup attempt in Nouveau Paris. StateSec is in chaos. Citizen Rear Admiral Genevieve Chin, Citizen Commodore Jean-Pierre Ogilve, and Yuri Radamacher (the People's Commissioner FOR Ogilve) are fretting over the fact that the People's Commissioner, Jamka, had gotten himself murdered - not that anyone cared since Jamka was an embarrassment in many ways. The problem now is that Oscar Saint-Just the head of Haven's State Security, is sending Citizen Captain Cachat to their sector of La Martine to investigate the murder and execute all who are guilty of anything!

**** In a sentence, Cachat is to persuade the personnel to admit any crimes and kill the ones guilty of the major crimes. Cachat has a license to kill and really is the fanatic people claim him to be! The story is riddled with a few twists as well. The readers are kept guessing and the ending is unexpected. An interesting glimpse into the Peeps' military. ****

The last story is The Service Of The Sword by David Weber. Midshipwoman Abigail Hearns was in an awkward position. She was not only a steadholder's daughter, but also the very first midshipwoman in the Grayson Space Navy. In fact, Abigail was the first Grayson-born woman EVER sworn into the service of the Sword. During her training on Saganami Island, people considered her to be Lady Honor Harrington's protégée.

Abigail became part of Snotty Row upon a Manti heavy cruiser called Gauntlet. The ship was ordered to investigate the disappearance of ships, possible space pirates, in the Tiberian System. It was an independent system that had few inhabitants and those few were not advanced tech-wise. They lived simply and preferred little or no contact with Outsiders. Abigail would face much friction in her new post and some hoped she would fail. However, Abigail was about to prove to everyone just how Harrington-like she was!

***** This one reminded me of Honor's first mission. Abigail thinks differently just like Honor does. Any fan of Weber's Honor Harrington series will be fascinated with this tale! Another winner by Weber!

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Even More From the Worlds of Honor, June 10, 2003

By 

Arthur W. Jordin (Smyrna, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Service of the Sword (Worlds of Honor #4) (Hardcover)

The Service of the Sword is the fourth anthology in thr Worlds of Honor series. This volume contains six stories in the Honor Harrington universe, only one of which directly involves Honor.

Promised Land by Jane Lindskold is the story of a Grayson girl who is captured by a Masadan privateer and incorporated into his family. Unfortunately for the Masadan, she can read and is computer literate.

With One Stone by Timothy Zahn recounts an incident where a Peep warship live tests a new weapon system on Manty merchanters, so ONI gathers information and Honor Harrington provides a warm reception with a little help from her friends.

A Ship Named Francis by John Ringo & Victor Mitchell tells about a madhouse of a ship where the odds and sods in the Grayson Navy are sent to keep them away from real sailors. There are real world precedents for this story, but none so surreal as the events herein.

Let's Go to Prague by John Ringo is a yarn about two Manty covert ops agents who decide to go for drinks on Prague, a Peep planet, and find plenty of fun and games there. Personally, I believe this story to be not totally fictitious; a goodly number of the covert ops types are adrenaline junkies, not quite sane by normal standards (somewhat like fighter pilots).

Fanatic by Eric Flint is the tale of a man who believes in his oath of office and confounds the normal run of hypocrites while purifying the Security service.

The Service of the Sword by David Weber describes the middy cruise of the first Grayson Midshipwoman, the unexpected expenditure of munitions involved, and the example she sets for her successors.

Although I enjoyed the first story the most, this opinion is subject to change without notice. I believe that most of these stories will meet with your approval, for they are excellent reading by great writers. Enjoy.

Recommended for Honor Harrington fans and anyone else who enjoys tales of naval/marine life, combat and frolics in a SF setting.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Expanding Honorverse, March 25, 2003

By 

Geoffrey Kidd (Berkeley, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Service of the Sword (Worlds of Honor #4) (Hardcover)

I can't say I am anything but completely blown away by the stories in this book. There are courage, adventure, challenges, humor both high and low, joy, sorrow, wisdom and folly in each of the stories.

You don't necessarily need to have read any of the other books in the Honor Harrington collection, either the four previous multi-author anthologies or the (so far) ten novels by David Weber, to appreciate these stories, either. Each could stand proudly alone, but together, they form a splendid show of lights, each one illuminating events only hinted at elsewhere in the other books.

In Jane Lindskskold's "Promised Land", we find out that the Manticorean Royal Family is truly *royal*, as the Crown Prince fights to keep innocents alive in the heat of his first battle.

Timothy Zahn's "With One Stone" shows the gift that being in the right place at the right time can be, and change forever the course of history.

John Ringo and Victor Mitchell show us the military equivalent of Siberia, where wit and grace are as much survival tools as discipline.

Ringo then returns with "Let's Go to Prague," which had me both laughing like hell and scared likewise, sometimes both at the same time. Warning: do NOT read this story in public, or when you break out into laughter, you may find people edging away from you and eyeballing you for sharp objects. :)

Then we see, in Eric Flint's "The Fanatic", both the price AND the cost of duty and power, and the toll each can exact on even the most honorable of men and women.

And last, Honor's creator himself gives us the title story "The Service of the Sword," as we watch a young Grayson woman, determined to follow in Honor's footsteps, find out just how BIG the boots that made those tracks must be.

Any ONE of the stories in this volume make it worth buying. This is a book that will have an honored place in my collection for as long as I breathe.