CenterDigit

War of Honor is not so much the story of any battles as it is the story of how the war between Manticore and Haven, in a cease-fire at the end of the last book, overcomes various obstacles and gets people shooting at each other once again. It's become clear that Weber has no respect for socialists (which of course raises my respect for him), though he does fall a bit more into the conservative camp than I'd like. The High Ridge government in Manticore behaves with terminal stupidity in their negotiations with Haven, and the situation is exacerbated by the Machiavellian machinations of Haven's Secretary of State. As with all of Weber's books, you feel the sense of creeping doom very near the beginning, and can only watch in horrified fascination as everything goes to crap. Weber manages to reintroduce tension and suspense in a rather dramatic way, and you're left biting your fingernails off in anticipation of the next book.

Speaking of the next book, At All Costs is not yet out in paperback, but the hardback version is the single best deal I have ever gotten from a publisher. It includes a CD with -- get this -- all 10 of the previous novels in digital format, plus the short story anthologies to date. Holy freakin' crap! Sure, it costs $26, but the research value alone is worth it. Can't remember who so-and-so was? Do a text search. I'm completely stoked that I've got this on my computer now.