Insurrection

This is pretty standard scifi space opera. Massive space fleets, battleships, dreadnoughts, 'primary' beams, missiles, the whole space opera armory.
After centuries of economic exploitation, the 'Fringe' worlds finally revolt against the rest of the Terran Federation, pitting the Heart Worlds and the Corporate Worlds against the 'fringers'. Battle immediately results. The story follows military and political leaders on both sides at a personal and military level.
For me, this was mostly scifi reading candy. It did strike me as unlikely that after centuries, humans would be willing to slaughter each other in the 1000's for political reasons. It felt too much like 1800's politics plastered over a far future society.

For someone familiar with the game "Starfire", this is an interesting novelisation of what is obviously an actual gameplay experience. The book has a real sense of belong in a pre-existing story line. However, because the book attempts to cover so much ground, it is forced to approach things as a collection of short story lines. This reduces the overall cohesiveness of the book. The book does succeed at presenting and resolving a situation between two well matched powers and provides appropriate tension in wondering which side will triumph. 3/5

An Ugly Civil War: Insurrection takes place in the same universe as IN DEATH GROUND and THE SHIVA OPTION about a generation after the events of the latter. Humanity has been at peace but that doesn't stop nasty politicians from trying to do nasty things to people. Finally, a time comes when the people will take it no more and the result is civil war.

This book makes clear that there are honorable people on both sides of the conflict but the horrors of war are such that innocents are bound to suffer. Like the other books of this series, the action sequences are well though out and well written but the main lessons come from choices faced by the protagonists. Weber and White are good at writing about space battle. They are even better at show more writing about political issues and human choices. show less

I picked this up and put it down many times over three months. It wasn't until I was about three quarters through that I was emotionally invested enough in the story to continue reading for longer than half an hour.

This was not a novel, and not a short story collection, but rather a series of vignettes, and it was difficult to determine if the person whose thoughts you were following would play any importance at all in the great scheme of things.

There were many, many characters, and often they were only introduced to die a grisly death a few sentences later.

There was enough bouncing forward and backwards in time to leave me confused as to the order of some significant events.

The corporate worlds have a plan to disenfranchise the smaller colonies and their not going to stand for it. An enjoyable book of war between the stars.

Insurrection
Author: David Weber and Steve White
Publisher: Baen Books
Published In: Riverdale, NY
Date: 1990
Pgs: 408

REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

Summary:
The wars with the Khanate had shifted the balance of power. The Corporate Worlds used the Fringe and Rim Worlds to supply the raw material and the fighting men. Once the guns fell silent, the Corporate Worlds didn’t want to give back the power that they had amassed over the Fringers. They limited the governmental representation of the frontiers and the fringes with the assistance of the Heart Worlds. Forced by blood and to protect their homeworlds, the Fringers are going to take a stand.

Genre:
Fiction
Military
Science fiction
Space opera
War

Why this book:
Starfire. Love the game. Loved the show more books. This is a re-read for me.

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Favorite Character:
Ladislaw Skjorning of Beaufort is a great character. Well rounded. Fierce. 3 dimensional.

Least Favorite Character:

Character I Most Identified With:
Admiral / Governor General Trevayne. I understand his character. But he’s on the wrong side of this war having sided with the Federation out of duty despite what the government of the Federation did that triggered the eventual rebellion and the formation of the Republic, even with the huge manpain reason that the Republic gave him by their attack on the Galloway’s World shipyards and reservation.

The Feel:
Great science fiction.

Favorite Scene:
When Ladislaw challenges Oskar Dieter of New Zurich to a duel of honor after Dieter insults the leader of the Beaufort delegation at the Beaufort embassy/consulate. And Dieter shows his true colors and wusses out.

Fiona’s swan song tragedy is well done. As is Ladislaw’s challenge before the Chamber of Worlds when he tells them all that he knows it was an assassination plot orchestrated from that very chamber.

The scene where Ladislaw meets Dame Penelope MacTaggart, Fiona’s mother and leader of the MacTaggart Clan, at the spaceport on his return to Beaufort. It choked me up. Very well written.

When Rear Admiral Li Han stood down the pirates and destroyed them.

The Battle of Zapata is incredible military space opera sci fi.

Pacing:
The pace of this novel is great.

Casting call:
Ladislaw Skjorning would need to be a big guy to reflect his being from a high gravity world. Maybe Hafthor Julius Bjornsson. He was awesome as the Mountain on Game of Thrones. Not sure if he has the acting chops. Brando or Anthony Hopkins could invest Ladislaw with the necessary gravitas, but neither was a big enough man to do the character justice. Of course, one of them is dead and the other is too old for the role. Chris Hemsworth could do it.

Billy Bob Thornton as Oskar Dieter.

Admiral / Governor General Ian Trevayne would be great portrayed by Michael Fassbender.

Danny Trejo as Sergei Ortega.
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Last Page Sound:
That’s just good stuff.

Author Assessment:
I love David Weber and Steve White’s work in the Starfire series. David Weber is an awesome writer. He does military sci fi better than anyone.

Knee Jerk Reaction:
instant classic, real classic, real genre classic, really good book, glad I read it, it’s alright, meh!, why did I read this, not as good as I was lead to believe

Disposition of Book:
Paperback...keeper.

Would recommend to:
friends, family, kids, colleagues, everyone, genre fans, no one
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Errata:
The sublight space flight of this universe with the warp points/wormholes for extra system travel is a great gimmick. show less

Sample Chapters: http://webscriptions.net/chapters/0671720244/0671720244.htm