War Maid’s Choice

War God, Book 4

By: David Weber

Narrated by: Nick Sullivan

Length: 23 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

In Wind Rider’s Oath, Bahzell became a wind rider - the first hradani wind rider in history. And, even if Bahzell is the War God’s champion, because the wind riders are the elite of the elite among the Sothoii, Bahzell’s ascension is as likely to stir resentment as respect. What’s more, Baron Tellian’s daughter, the heir to the realm, seems to be thinking that he is the only man - or hradani - for her. Now, War Maid’s Choice continues the story - and things really get complicated.

©2012 Words of Weber, Inc. (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

“... irresistibly entertaining....” (Publishers Weekly)

“...fun adventure full of noble steeds, fierce female fighters, dark sorcery, serious swordplay, and plenty of tongue-in-cheek banter.” (Locus)

“...when Weber gets down to action, he’s hard to beat... a rollicking adventure that kept me turning the pages.” (SF Review Central)

Too much talking not enough doing

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Have you ever been in a meeting at work and felt like it was a waste of time? That's how a good portion of War Maid's Choice feels. You listen in on characters having meetings about doing "important stuff". You listen in on characters listening in on other characters have meetings about doing "important stuff". Unfortunately a lot of that stuff isn't so important, and you get the feeling that these characters just like to hear themselves talk.

If you’ve listened to books by David Weber before, how does this one compare?

This book is similar to other Weber books in that it is more about the planing than the doing. While that's been a minor complaint of mine for the most part, starting with the last book Wind Rider's Oath, it's become increasingly distracting to the point where now I find it difficult to finish War Maid's Choice.

No I haven't finished it yet. I think maybe this because the stakes seem so small. Some people want a canal built while others don't. Yes I know there are larger implications but it really doesn't feel like it.

Have you listened to any of Nick Sullivan’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I've listened to prior books in the series and he does an excellent job as usual. Too many of of the characters sound overly smug and stuck on themselves, but that's the fault of the story not him.

Any additional comments?

Maybe I'm getting burnt out on Weber's style of writing but I think I'm done with him for now. However if you like this series I can also recommend the Prince Roger series Weber coauthored with John Ringo. Although I'd suggest that you stop at book 3 in that 4 book series as the last book suffers a drop in quality and isn't really needed.

Too Slow Too Wordy

Rarely do I stop in the middle of a book but i couldn't get though this one. I have the rest of the series and several other books by David Weber so I bought this one thinking it would be just as good. I listen while I drive and this is one where my mined just kept wondering off. My mind would just wonder off on all the small trivial things your mind takes you to when your bored and I would miss whole chapters, rewind and miss it again. After several stops starts and books in between I gave up.

I'm not so sure ... you should spend a credit.

I quite enjoy Weber's books and his series. I read the first books in this series quite some time ago and enjoyed the world he created and the characters who inhabit it. Restrained use of magic. Hooray for horse-stealers and gods who are NOT all-knowing.

That said, this book is a slog to listen to. There are many bit players with names that sound confusingly similar. Without the ability to flip back to remind myself if this is the same person who did x in chapter n, the story line gets lost.

I usually enjoy Weber's rather slow plot developments and savor the details that give his worlds their depth. Here the pace plods. The numerous refresher courses on the economic of building a canal are and why those who will lose revenue are mad is ... boring. I've even taken to skipping the bad guys' dialogues.

Surely Weber must be rich enough to hire a good editor. Wait until this one comes out in paperback or borrow a copy from the library.

I couldn't get through it.

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The plot is just too slow to develop, endless, irrelevant character descriptions, lack of surprises, and overall a too perfect hero.

I listened through about the first third of the book and gave up.

Has War Maid’s Choice turned you off from other books in this genre?

No. I think I am done with Weber however.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The performance was fine, perhaps a little campy with an overdone accent, but it was the slow plot development not the narration that I had problems with.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment. It is rare that I just give up on a series or author, but it is clear to me Weber just can't get to the point.

Double crosses galore and lots of battle scenes

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

A good David Weber book with lots of battles with detailed blood and guts scenes. A game of thrones kinda story. Everyone, maybe a few too many, are double and triple crossing everyone. At times i thought it a bit too much. Otherwise, a well told story and the narrator did a good job. If you like action books, you will probably like this.

Would you ever listen to anything by David Weber again?

Yes, starting the 3rd in this series now.

Great story dragged down by poor narration

I've really enjoyed the previous books in this series as ebooks, so I was looking forward to this continuation. Nick Sullivan's narrative style almost made me give up on it, though. His stop-start clipped enunciation sounds more like a movie trailer than someone reading a book aloud. After a time, I almost got used to his phrasing, but never quite.

The performance is amazing as always, but...

I struggled to finish this one. I have been firmly rooted by the story so far, but in this go around... "Well... it's after being a bit repetitive, isn't it?"

I found myself skipping the repetitive and frankly boring antagonist monologs. I don't need to be reminded seemingly every chapter of the stakes and ambitions of each character.

Having said all of that, I wasn't upset by the direction of the story or anything. In fact, I was very satisfied by the resolution; everything I was anxious about from the previous books was satisfyingly resolved, and what wasn't resolved makes sense.

I will probably give myself a break from the series however, although I freely admit it's only because the synopsis from the sequel introduces yet another protagonist, arguably the most important yet; I just like all of the current characters, and find myself already missing their screen time.

tl:Dr If you have been following the series so far, it's worth continuing. Be warned, however, that it gets very repetitive in parts.

To be continued

In regular David Weber fashion this series has moved away from the action adventure it was in the first book towards some sort of pseudo political drama. There are factions, plots and mischievous villains meet in dark rooms for (lengthy) discussions of dastardly plans. There is even a touch of romance as the tile suggests. But what David Weber does best is still action, so what if you have to fast forward past some bits, the action and the scaffolding surrounding it is still good.
This is the fourth book in this series so yeah, you should all know what tis all about by now.

A Long Drawn out Listen

I've read almost all of David Weber's books and this is the first I've ever wanted an abridged version of. The first 4 hours or so were a real slog to get through, after that there were some moments of excitement but they were few and far between.

As Jonathan mentioned in the previous review the constant repetitive discussions on the economic impacts of the canal, along with the awful dialogue of the bad guys made it a real struggle to stay awake.

Nick Sullivan did a great job with what he had to work with and was probably the only reason I managed to make it through the entire book. I'll certainly be waiting for some detailed reviews before purchasing any subsequent books in the series.

good for value

it's good when book is long and you feel your money are not wasted but david weber has tendency to make first two parts of book tedious and incosequential, but make third part outshine everything else. i can cope with that, but i read fourth book and his style is same in all the books and it gets boring. also romance in this book feels forced and not natural, just because author needs to write about something.
i don't feel like reading 5th book for some time not because its bad but for its repetitevnes.