Sword of Sedition (Mechwarrior: Dark Age, No. 15) [Paperback]

Loren Coleman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 5, 2005

Newly elected Exarch Jonah Levin is facing censure from the senators of The Republic. Wary even of his own Paladins, Levin agrees to a summit of Inner Sphere leaders on Terra-praying his enemies won't use the gathering for an assassination attempt.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Roc; First Thus edition (April 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451460227
• ISBN-13: 978-0451460226
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,503,477 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Predictable, but fun!, April 27, 2005

By 

Michael J. Wood "Flight Surgeon" (Kaneohe, HI) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Sword of Sedition (Mechwarrior: Dark Age, No. 15) (Paperback)

This book is the 15th in the MechWarrior: Dark Age series of books. As noted by other reviewers, it centers around various factions of the inner sphere going to the funeral of one of the great leaders, and while getting to a slow start, it picks up in the last third. It is not a masterpiece of English literature.

However, it was a great deal of fun to read. While slow at first, it kept interest with showing at least a little bit of most of the major factions and introducing some new players. The political intrigue is also pretty well written for a book that is trying to attract and keep a base of readers that include at least two divergent groups -- those interested in the WizKids toys that have come out in the past few years, and those interested in the Battletech universe that has been around for decades. Some of the themes in this book (and the series) may seem to be...recycled, but that's part of what makes most pop culture fiction so fun -- the hero is good and noble, struggles with some issue, and wins in the end. Bad guys have their reasons for being bad, and might be ahead in the game for a while, but eventually "get what's coming to them." Everyone is beautiful (except the evil ones, of course), the good eventually triumph, a lesson is learned, and we all live happily ever after. More or less, at least. And in this series, more often than not, that's what you get.

So, if you're looking for something original, thought provoking, profound, etc....look somewhere else. If you like stories about heroes, giant robots, interstellar travel, spies, and the like, and want something to take your mind off school, work, or other things going on in the world, this series might just be what you're looking for! I've had fun reading the past 15 books, and looking forward already to the next one in the series.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Becoming Predictable, April 26, 2005

By 

J. Chovan "bronx" (San Bernardino, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sword of Sedition (Mechwarrior: Dark Age, No. 15) (Paperback)

I really wanted to give this book a higher rating. I've been a fan of the Battletech/Mechwarrior universe for some time, now, and really enjoy Loren Coleman's contributions to the Mechwarrior Universe. First off, the good. ROC seems to be providing an editor (finally) who catches typos and grammatical mistakes. I think I only caught one in this book. Style-wise, Sword of Sedition is done well, like most Coleman Mechwarrior novels. The book centers around the leaders of the Inner Sphere trekking to Terra for the funeral of Victor Steiner-Davion. The story seems to be used primarily to set up the new characters who will (hopefully) carry the story arc into the future. Action is minimal until the latter third of the book, but the set-up is nice. The story arc, such as it is, continues to advance.

*minor spoilers ahead*

Unfortunately, this novel seems to be almost a rehash of the previous Battletech world. And while I miss the good ol' days of Victor, Kai, and the crazy Capellans, I was hoping that Mechwarrior would try to branch out and diversify itself from its predecessor. Instead, I find that I am reading about the noble Federated Suns led by their prince, Harrison aka the Bear (Hanse, the fox, Harrison, the Bear...original) who stand firm with the Republic that Victor died to protect. Yawn. Harrison, of course, has a Prince's Champion named Julian who seems to be the spiritual reincarnation of Victor. The token "wild girl," 'Calamity' Kell is introduced as well as Yori Kurita. The Kuritans, of course, manage to be rude to the Davions who graciously overlook the insults given them because they are Davions and that's what Davions do best. I won't spoil the ending, but for people familiar with the story of Victor from the previous series, Sword of Sedition seems to read like same story, different characters.

I hope that the future brings some surprises for the MechWarrior universe. I would greatly like to see Katana Tormak and the Dragon's Fury written about and the Kuritans given more print. Ditto with the Capellan Confederation. Please, WizKids, give us fans something new and different to enjoy. While I'll continue to support the series, I find that I don't pay as much attention to the stories as I used to....maybe because I read them all 10 years ago.

4.0 out of 5 stars High-level political mayhem, July 9, 2007

By 

Plague11 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sword of Sedition (Mechwarrior: Dark Age, No. 15) (Paperback)

I was happy to see the Mechwarrior series get back to its roots. Although the focus is, obviously, on the Republic, when the series started, it alsmost seemed as if the great houses of the Inner Sphere didn't even exist. After some ups and downs in the new Dark Age saga, I've been pleasantly surprised by the last few books and was excited to learn that this was a continuation of "The Scorpion Jar". It's been quite a while since Battletech/Mechwarrior found its focus back on Earth and I'm glad to see a return to the roots of the series. Predictable? Yeah, somewhat. Wrapped up too quickly in the end again? Yep (does every novel have to climax in the last 10-15 pages?), but a fun read that opened the doors for a lot more.