Stone Dogs

Draka, Book 3

By: S.M. Stirling

Narrated by: David Colacci

Length: 19 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

A cold war between the American-led Alliance and the Domination, rivals in the Draka conquest, erupts in a space confrontation that will decide the freedom or slavery of humankind.

©1990 S.M. Stirling (P)2021 Recorded Books Inc.

A poignant end to the original Draka trilogy.

Even in what is probably the darkest of dystopian story I’ve ever come across; I’m struck by the flame of hope that endures. Don’t listen to this book if you don’t like to think about what it means to be human or what it means to do the right thing.

Better than book 2 but still no great.

This is basically an ok science fiction novel but the author has once again lowered to quality of his story by a fixation torture and graphic sex. I understand he wants to convey how foreign the Draka culture is but at some point it becomes unnecessary. We get they are cruel, amoral nihilists and don't need the constant reminder. I was glad to see the return of Eric and call backs to the previous book. I enjoyed some of the characters but maybe I'm not supposed to enjoy others.

Another good rendering of the Draka series

This is the third in the Draka series, if you're on this book you almost certainly already have a fair grasp on the exact nature of the Draka and some of the other differences between our timeline and the setting for this alternate history series. It is in this book, which spans roughly the 1960s through the Final War in 1998, that the series goes from alternate history to more traditional science fiction here.  That said the first two books (Marching Through Georgia and Under The Yoke) are key to setting up both the broader struggle between the Domination of the Draka and the Alliance for Democracy as well as the more intimate struggle between the LaFarge and the von Shrakenburg families.  In any case, the divergence and radical advancement of technology is such that intrastellar space flight (and conflict throughout the Solar System between what are the only two powers over human society at this point), energy weapons, genetic engineering, and a computer architecture that has evolved in an entirely different direction all are commonplace by the late 80s. The main story revolves around the run up to the Final War which ultimately sees the Domination fully in control of the Solar System and a portion of the Alliance escaping to Alpha Centauri (with the story ultimately having its end told in Drakon, the final book of the series). The broader events are told mostly through the viewpoint of Marya and Frederick LaFarge on the Alliance side and Yolande Ingolfsson and Eric von Shrakenburg on the Draka viewpoint.


So, all that said, the narrator does a very good job throughout.  He particularly manages to do a good job of what the Draka drawl would sound like (somewhat similar to American Southern accent but a bit different).  His tone and emotions are well done throughout as well.


The only complaint I have is not with the narrator but that they chose not to include the rather extensive glossary and appendices that were found at the back of the original paper book (both in this particular one and in the case of the prior two books).  While I can understand why this decision was made, it is helpful to fully understand where and how many of the technologies branched and changed.  Though that said, not everyone might find such material interesting in an audio format so if you are interested in some of this background to the timeline I would suggest picking up an original paperback somewhere. They can be found used in decent shape quite cheaply and plentifully, it is a few dollars well spent to add some good context to the stories.