At All Costs

Honor Harrington, Book 11

By: David Weber

Narrated by: Allyson Johnson

Length: 32 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

What price victory? The war with the Republic of Haven has resumed... disastrously for the Star Kingdom of Manticore. Admiral Lady Dame Honor Harrington, Steadholder and Duchess Harrington, the single victorious Allied commander of the opening phase of the new war, has been recalled from the Sidemore System to command Eighth Fleet. Everyone knows Eighth Fleet is the Alliance's primary offensive command, which makes it the natural assignment for the woman the media calls "the Salamander." But what most of the public DOESN'T know is that not only are the Star Kingdom and its Allies badly outnumbered by the Republic's new fleet, but that the odds are going to get steadily worse.

Eighth Fleet's job is to somehow prevent those odds from crushing the Alliance before the Star Kingdom can regain its strategic balance. It's a job which won't be done cheaply. Honor Harrington must meet her formidable responsibilities with inferior forces even as she copes with tumultuous changes in her personal and public life. The alternative to victory is total defeat, yet this time the COST of victory will be agonizingly high.

A Note from Author David Weber
There's been some confusion—not to say, um, energetic debate, readers and fans being readers and fans—about the correct pronunciation of "Manticoran." The truth, alas, is that a stitch was dropped. An error occurred. A mistake was made… and it wasn't Audible's fault. It was mine. Before Audible recorded the very first Honor Harrington book, narrator Allyson Johnson and I not only corresponded by e-mail but actually spoke to one another by phone. She wanted to make absolutely certain she had the correct pronunciations for names, places, star nations, etc., and I tried to make certain all of her questions were answered. And so they were. Unfortunately, at some point in the process, I replied to one of her e-mails by telling her that "Man-ti-core-ahn" was pronounced "Man-tik-er-ahn." Exactly how this happened is more than I can say at this point, except to blushingly disclose that the original e-mail remains intact, confirming to all the world that it was, indeed, my fault. I can ascribe it only to a temporary mental hiccup on my part and crave your forgiveness. If, however, you must blame someone for the mix-up, that someone should be me and not Audible, who have done everything they could to get it right.

Listen to another Honor Harrington adventure.

©2007 David Weber (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

Great series

A short review.

I had a wonderful time listening to the entire series. It was a wonderful listen, and was very pleased. Allyson Johnson did a wonderful job with the voice. So much so that I could rely on the voices to keep track of busy scenes. The tone and feeling were there.

All together, a great series and narrated very well.

STUNNING!

This has been by far the most enjoyable book of the series. There is literally something interesting happening every other chapter and compared to War of Honor which was a lot of setup, the payoff was incredible. I can’t wait to see where things go next!

best space naval battle every!

I skipped ahead and read this out of order by mistake. going back now to see how we got here!

A great step up from the last

Back to what we enjoy about the Honor Harrington series. Still a bit of politics, unavoidably, but more action oriented and directly involved than the previous book.

To Avid Harrington Readers...

If, like me, you have enjoyed the series tremendously; if, like me, you have enjoyed the depth of the background stories in which surrounds even the minor characters; and if, like me, you wouldn't mind adding a few more books to the series if it will give you a greater depth and a fuller experience into the Honorverse; then I have some good news for you.

Before you start At All Costs, there are two other spinoff series you should be aware of. Each of these series consists of two books: Crown of Slaves and Torch of Freedom; and The Shadow of Saganami and Storm from the Shadows. While these two series do not deal directly with Honor Harrington, they do explain a lot of the back stories you will encounter in the primary series. And, to be honest, it is a bit refreshing to focus on someone besides the honorable Countess Harrington for a while.

The chronological order of the books is as follows: Crown of Slaves -> The Shadow of Saganami -> At All Costs -> Storm from the Shadows -> Torch of Freedom -> Mission of Honor -> A Rising Thunder.

It isn't a big deal with Crown of Slaves and The Shadow of Saganami, because both are somewhat separate from the main storyline of At All Costs, so the order isn't extremely crucial. But you will want to listen to Storm from the Shadows, Torch of Freedom, and Mission of Honor in that order, as there are some major revelations you will want to learn about in order.

I hope this will help you as you make your way through the series. Good listening.

Another great book in the series, great narrator.

If you like Honor (and I do) you'll like this. Allyson Johnson brings a much appreciated consistency to this series. I agree with Jason's review that her distinctive characterizations helps to keep track of the action when things get busy. Enjoyable and recommended to fans of the genre and/or the series.

Great enjoyment

I have really enjoyed this series so far and look foreward to the next book. I would recommend it to all who love a good epic. I am 68 and the actions of the characters allow me to revisit the ideals of my younger years. I love them in the audible edition. I started reading SF in the mid 50's and I include David Weber in the family of classical SF writers. Sometimes it does get somewhat confusing due to the multitude of characters and plots but then again I don't want the story to end and I look forward to the next book in the series.

Back on track

the balance between the story line and personal relationships is considerably better than it was in the last book and seems to be back on track.

Great and could be better!

I became distracted by the breathing of the high, French accents. Otherwise, it was well performed. The story, as usual, was great. I hope he doesn't get bored writting the same characters over and over, because I want him to keep writting this story line.

Another Great Book in the Honor Harrington Series

A great story and amazing performance by Allyson Johnson. I found it hard to stop listening. I am amazed by how many voices Allyson has created.