Brothers in Valor

Man of War, Book 3

De: H. Paul Honsinger

Narrado por: Ray Chase

Sometimes Captain Max Robichaux fights by the book—and sometimes he throws the book away. This makes him one of the Union Space Navy's rising stars. It's also what has kept him and his green crew alive...thus far.

When Max and his ship—the twenty-fourth-century space destroyer USS Cumberland—are boxed in by eight enemy battleships, the odds are against them at a million to one. It takes all their skill and guts just to escape...and surviving won't get easier. Sent on a covert mission behind enemy lines, Max and his crew are poised to strike a blow so hard that, if successful, it could turn the tide of the war. But if they fail, it will cost them their lives...and the lives of every human in the galaxy.

©2015 H. Paul Honsinger (P)2015 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

Not the best of the series

I loved the 1st two books in the series. This one felt short and rushed. I'll definitely listen to the next book when and if it comes out. This one just wasn't my favorite.

Truly enjoyable

I've enjoyed listening to all three books in this series I'm hoping for many more.

Great entertainment.

Max Robichaux is a young space Captain on the space destroyer USS Cumberland, a ship that was previously mocked for its losses. The crew knew more about polishing the rivets than fighting the enemy of the Union until Max became their Captain. Since then they have faced danger and come out alive through Max’s quick, sometimes out of the box thinking.

The action starts as Max has to help the ship and crew escape from overwhelming odds. He will have to pull a rabbit out his hat – or try a trick that has never been done- to succeed.

Next the Cumberland is sent on a covert mission that takes them into the heart of the enemy. There is initial conflict as the other Captain he is paired with is a seasoned man who doesn’t want to take orders from Max. Once that conflict is resolved, they proceed with a daring plan. Although it means they may end up stranded with the enemy they have to take the risk to capture a key leader to have a chance of stopping the war.

I loved the non-stop action and danger in this story. Max is a great character who comes up with ingenious tactical solutions and is willing to trust his crew to know their jobs and make effective suggestions. Dr. Sahin, chief medical officer and special ambassador, adds good humor with his side comments and views from a nonmilitary aspect. I like the other crew ‘family’ and shared in their emotions.

I am only sorry that Mr. Honsinger has no other books for me to get. I do recommend this series to readers who enjoy action packed military space battles.

Audio Notes: As with Book 2, Ray Chase does a great job with the narration. He captures the intensity, the dry wit and the quirks of the characters. The listening experience enhanced the entertainment of the story.

My Rating: Entertainment/Story 4.5 of 5.0; Performance 5.0 of 5.0.

UGGGG It ended there?

This may well be my favorite of the series this far. I will be grabbing the next one ASAP.

What's with Max

I liked the story well enough, and I'm really hoping for more books in the series as I not a fan of cliffhanger endings.

That said, some things have changed and the first book is still my favorite. Max for example isn't the same Max we all know and love by the end of the story and he suddenly becomes a fan of fairly linear tactics because deus ex machinima.

(An example: he gets a jolly bag of treats in the form of various munitions that cause Max to salivate with celerity about all the outstanding tactical mischief he can cause with them... and then just uses 2 missiles from the new arsenal in the most bland fashion.)

Dr. Sahim also continues to to lose character as well. It's as if all of his intelligence and identity was sacrificed for comic relief. In the beginning of the series, his character had depth, motivations, experiences, and purpose. Now his character is limited to petting cats, humoring the CIC, and questioning Max's about his past.

On the bright side, we get to see more into Max's past, a brief look into Krag psychology, more sci-fi technical stuff, and exposition of the Union Navy's customs thereby expanding and ameliorating the overall universe.

Overall, it's still a pretty good book, just noticeably less satisfying than the previous entries.