Against the Odds

December 4, 2000
Members of the Familias Regnant's interstellar military service, Fleet, have mutinied, jeopardizing the fragile peace the Familias holds with its hulking neighbor state, the Benignity, in Moon's entertaining sequel to Change of Command. The Familias Regnant is a centuries-old, mafia-type political consortium built around families, territories, loyalty and protection, governing a vast collection of solar systems for the purpose of protecting trade. Returning hero Lt. Esmay Suiza is suddenly discharged from Fleet after her elopement with another officer and revelations about her religious status. Suiza hitches a ride with a cargo ship to reach Castle Rock, it is the seat of the Familias' governing body, the Grand Council, and the residence of an aristocratic council member Suiza had previously rescued. That council member is Brun Meager, who is consolidating her own power within the council amid heated debates over the effects the near-immortality of the "rejuvenated" rich will have on opportunities for the young. Fans of Moon's series (Once a Hero, etc.) will find the number of returning characters and plot threads satisfyingly complex; however, newcomers will likely be bewildered. Moon's description of a deeply layered political and military culture provides an engaging touchstone for the far-flung skirmishes taking place therein. Absent, however, is a similar attention to contextual details such as scenery, geography and dates. Still, SF readers will delight in the twisting, thorny adventure in the compelling continuation to this popular series.

December 20, 2000
After rescuing the daughter of a member of the Familias Regnant from a colony of religious fanatics, Fleet Lieutenant Esmay Suiza-Serrano finds herself inexplicably discharged from the Regular Space Service without recourse to appeal. Forced to cast her lot with a civilian trader in the remote hope of winning back her place in the Fleet, Esmay confronts both external obstacles and her own doubts as she battles her way back to her rightful place. Fans of David Weber's "Honor Harrington" series will appreciate Moon's space opera of high politics and military adventure.

Copyright 2000 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2000
Moon wraps up the Familias Regnant saga with a triumphant coda in which Esmay Suiza and Barin Serrano figure vitally in defeating a mutiny of the late Admiral Livadhhi's Nazilike supporters. Her role is that of ship captain, and his that of a jack-of-all-problems. Every other character in the saga also has a turn at bat, which occasionally makes the book more than a trifle confusing, at least to saga newcomers. Faithful followers, however, will find their favorite characters all there: Brun Meagher, turning into statesman after her mother dies while covering an escape from the mutineers; Lady Cecelia, riding high disguised as a "special operations admiral"; Heris Serrano, losing her lover in the mutineers' last stand, and so on. The epilogue will make strong military-sf lovers cry and leave them feeling that Moon could now rest on her laurels, though it would be a great loss to good reading if she did.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2000, American Library Association.)