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A review by pjonsson
Admiral's Oath by Glynn Stewart
4.0
This is a series from Glynn Stewart that had kind of fallen under my radar. I have previously read several book series from this author, For example Castle Federation and the Duchy of Terra Universe to mention a few and there have been many four star and quite a few five star books in these series.
This is a very good book. Not quite five stars but a solid four.
It is classic military space opera in the Castle Federation universe. This time we are given the view from the Terran Commonwealth’s perspective. At least at first.
It is a somewhat apocalyptic beginning with the Commonwealth being sucker punched and their entire FTL communications network being destroyed in one swift go. One gripe that I had right from the start is that although the authors depiction of FTL communications (quantum entanglement) is very realistic, that these communication switchboards would not be better defended is highly unrealistic. I think that this annoying start, and the deja vu feeling of yet another star empire beats the dust, is the primary reason why I could not bring myself to give this book five stars.
Apart from that I really enjoyed the book. The main protagonist, Rear Admiral James Tecumseh, is great. Just the kind of highly competent hero, with a working moral compass, that I want. The rest of the characters around James are very likable as well and, surprisingly enough, one of my favorite characters, apart from James, are the extremely competent spy and assassin that made a surprise appearance as the story evolved.
Of course, the Commonwealth starts to fall apart when various more or less corrupt Admirals tries to carve out their own little domains with other Admiral’s trying to keep the Commonwealth together with dictatorial methods. Add to this the circling vultures in the form of the Commonwealth’s existing enemies and our Rear Admiral has his work cut out for him.
The book has a nice balance between the military parts and the, unfortunately obligatory, political bullshit. Of course, there can be no military science fiction without some military action and, as usual, the author does not disappoint in this area. It is well written and enjoyable to read.
I am quite happy that I found this series that, as I wrote, seemed to have fallen under my radar.
This is a very good book. Not quite five stars but a solid four.
It is classic military space opera in the Castle Federation universe. This time we are given the view from the Terran Commonwealth’s perspective. At least at first.
It is a somewhat apocalyptic beginning with the Commonwealth being sucker punched and their entire FTL communications network being destroyed in one swift go. One gripe that I had right from the start is that although the authors depiction of FTL communications (quantum entanglement) is very realistic, that these communication switchboards would not be better defended is highly unrealistic. I think that this annoying start, and the deja vu feeling of yet another star empire beats the dust, is the primary reason why I could not bring myself to give this book five stars.
Apart from that I really enjoyed the book. The main protagonist, Rear Admiral James Tecumseh, is great. Just the kind of highly competent hero, with a working moral compass, that I want. The rest of the characters around James are very likable as well and, surprisingly enough, one of my favorite characters, apart from James, are the extremely competent spy and assassin that made a surprise appearance as the story evolved.
Of course, the Commonwealth starts to fall apart when various more or less corrupt Admirals tries to carve out their own little domains with other Admiral’s trying to keep the Commonwealth together with dictatorial methods. Add to this the circling vultures in the form of the Commonwealth’s existing enemies and our Rear Admiral has his work cut out for him.
The book has a nice balance between the military parts and the, unfortunately obligatory, political bullshit. Of course, there can be no military science fiction without some military action and, as usual, the author does not disappoint in this area. It is well written and enjoyable to read.
I am quite happy that I found this series that, as I wrote, seemed to have fallen under my radar.