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Without warning, the Ishaq and twenty-seven Fed merchant ships are blown apart in a horrific ambush, the first step in the Hammer’s master strategy to destroy the hated Federated Worlds. Michael and a pitiful remnant of the Ishaq’s crew escape the inferno. The Feds have no idea who’s behind the heinous attack, and the Hammer are determined to keep it that way, consigning the Ishaq’s survivors to a prison camp deep in the wilderness of the Hammer’s home planet.
No one’s getting out alive to derail the Hammer’s lethal master plan–especially not the FedWorlds hero who so humiliated them on the battlefield. It’s payback time, and the Hammers intend to throw their entire space fleet into destroying Michael Helfort and the Federated Worlds.
Too bad it won’t be enough.
Xiucoatzin
Posted January 19, 2009
Mr. Paul has written what is, in my humble opinion, an engaging piece of military sci-fi. Good books of this sort are hard to come by these days. What I find interesting about this book is that the adventures and evolution of the main character are not overblown, which makes the story realistic in the sense that Helfort, the main character, seems to evolve and grow at a realistic pace. What I found interesting is that one could draw parallels in today's world geo-political situation and the governmental bodies that are represented in the books. In many ways, the "Federated Worlds" seem to be very similar to "The West," and the "Hammer of Kraa" seems to be somewhat similar to modern day Iran. I only have two criticisms. The first is that the Hammer of Kraa, the religious totalarian state which is the protagonist in this book, seems far too brutal to actually be realistic. The Hammer of Kraa society described in the book seems like it should be completely paralized with fear at every turn. As a reader, I had to ask myself how such a society could realistically exist. The second criticism I have is with the Federated Worlds analogy. I don't recall anywhere within the books a mention of a philosophy or religious belief that was present in Federated Worlds society. Although it makes for great contrast with the "evil empire," it seems a bit unrealistic that the Federated Worlds would have absolutely no belief system, other than that of the Gods of Technology, which is a contradiction in that the books emphasize the human element working with technology -- and not slaves of that same technology. Even a society who does not believe in a creator -- and I find it hard to believe that the Federated Worlds would be so closed minded -- would have some sort of philosophic principle, or basic belief system, that would provide the framework of how that society operates. Once again, just my opinion...but I would like to once again say that this is a good read, and if you like military space science fiction, this is a series of books you will enjoy.
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Overview
He was wrong.
Back from tangling with the Hammer of Kraa, the most brutal, trigger-happy tyrants in humanspace, Junior Lieutenant Michael Helfort is assigned to the Federated Worlds heavy cruiser Ishaq, which is struggling to rise to the threat posed by a newly resurgent Hammer. Aboard the floundering ship, Helfort is ...