I can't quite give this 4 stars. I'd go for 3.5, but GR doesn't do halves, so it had to be 3. I did really enjoy it, but I felt it had some issues with pacing. There were some technical aspects of the battles that I didn't really follow, and I didn't want to put the effort in either, because it was a little boring. I had some problems focusing on the politics in the first part of the book as well, but at least I felt that paid off in the end because it was needed to understand the resolution. Aside from that, I also thought the ending was a bit easy, and maybe there are a few too many special things about Alicia deVries. Oh, and there were too many names, some of them difficult to remember, and often I didn't have to, because the associated character died a few pages later.

However, I did really like the characters. I'm glad I read the long book, so that I could get to know the background and the characters better. Without that I think it would have been too much at once. The overall story was good as well, world building quite ok, and somehow having a special ship and a magical whatever in her very special head was entertaining. ( )

not quite as complex and well rounded as the Honor Harrington novels, but it is pretty decent. This got an extra star for value... seems this kindle edition gave me four books merged into one for $7!
:>) I am a voracious reader, so I need a lot of material, but i am pretty darn picky about what I read also ( )

A very long, but largely accessible military science fiction novel and adventure story. In an age old trope, this centres around the loss of innocence and the madness and badness of the world. Intriguing characters are let down by the bizarre thought Of an Irish space Empire in the future, and when Emperor Seamus arrives, it’s almost laughable. It’s a pity, as it removes plausibility from it, and makes in tongue in cheek. This dichotomy between hard science fiction and humour, I found grating. ( )

Basic uncritical military SF. ( )

One of my favorite Weber novels, despite the occasional bouncing around. ( )