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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Political upheaval, and Honor Harrington's on the sharp end!, October 22, 1998
The third of the Honour Harrington series, and well worth the read. The only less-than-complimentary comment I can think of is that there is, for my taste, a little too much focus on the internal politics of the People's Republic of Haven. That said, however, I readily recognize that it is utterly necessary, not only to the plot of the story, but the on-going events that form the back story for the series.Honor Harrington, having proved her worth at Basilisk Station (On Basilisk Station) and in Grayson (The Honor Of The Queen), receives recognition of that worth as the Admiralty appoints her to be the CO of a spanking-new battlecruiser, HMS Nike. By tradition in the RMN, command of the Nike is a plum assignment, and given only to officers who are head and shoulders above their fellow officers. Honor is then paid the compliment of being appointed to be the flag captain for Admiral Sarnow, and being tasked to form part of the defensive forces at Hancock Station. The state of polite hostility between Manticore and the Peeps is heating up, and once again, Honor and her ship will be on the sharp end. We are also re-introduced to Captain Lord Pavel Young, who seems not terribly interested in redeeming himself. In fact, his conduct during the climactic battle is anything but what one expects of an officer in command of a warship. This is a tight, well-written story. Read it, and if you've not read the other Honor Harrington stories - run, do not walk, to your nearest bookstore and get them before someone else does.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not About Honor?, February 10, 2001
For those unfamiliar with David Weber series, this is the third book in the Honor Harrington series, which started with On Basilisk Station. While this book might be read apart from the others, one loses too much background. Better start at the beginning.For those who have read the first two books, on the other hand... Other reviewers seems to be of the opinion that this is a good book, but there is just something not quite right with it. I had to agree on my first read, but now, having re-read the first nine books a second time, I know what it is. In the first two books, we only saw Manticore (well, Manticore and Grayson). The sections told in from the point of view of the opposition were short and mostly to the point. Well, that stops here. There is a lot of Haven background here, and by the middle of the book you really wish now and then Weber had cut it shorter. Unfortunately, all this background is really important to the _series_, because you do get to see a lot of story told from Haven's point of view in later books, and this lays the groundwork for that. But perhaps the most disconcerting fact is that Honor is not really the main character at all in this book. She might get more pages and more development than anyone else, but the REAL story here is the battle fought between Admiral of the Green Sir Thomas Caparelli, First Space Lord of the Manticoran Admiralty, and Admiral Patricia Givens, Second Space Lord of the Manticoran Admiralty (Buraeu of Planning, which controls the Office of Naval Intelligence), against Fleet Admiral Amos Parnell, CNO of the People's Navy, in the skirmishes that will finally bring the Kingdom of Manticore and the People's Republic of Haven to war. Dozens of characters make small lone appearances, usually fighting one-sided battles or spying. Meanwhile, Honor Harrington is just a good officer doing a good job. She is actually in charge just in a small section of the book. _Her_ story is mostly about personal relationships, not the war. This is a good book, but one is likely to have different expectations after On Basilisk Station and Honor of the Queen.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"What this country needs is a short, victorious war...", October 20, 2005
The Short Victorious War, the third installment in David Weber's outstanding Honor Harrington series, is a very enjoyable read. Honor is an medical leave healing from injuries suffered in The Honor of the Queen when she thwarted the assassination attempt on Grayson Protector Benjamin Mayhew. Hostilities between the Star Kingdom of Manticore and the People's Republic of Haven erupt into an actual shooting war. The PRH is a cradle-to-the-grave welfare state whose economy has gone into the toilet, as the Republic struggles to continue to support the staggering number of Dolists among its population. The Peeps' ususal remedy for this problem is to invade planets or solar sytems that are stronger economically, but weaker militarily. But now they are left with only weak agricultural powers to contend with, or they could go after the extremely powerful Manticorans. Honor is eager to return to space, and gets to do so, this time in command of the HMS Nike. Her nemesis Captain Lord Pavel Young returns as well. The Short Victorious War is a worthwhile read, and the Honor Harrington series is becoming addictive for me, as I can't wait to read Book Four (Field of Dishonor).
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