Valiant Dust Is a Classic Military SF Voyage with a Few New Twists

Lieutenant Sikander North, fourth son of an aristocratic family of distant Kashmir, a society shaped by tragedy and civil unrest, works to prove himself in the Aquilan Commonwealth Navy and remain far, far away from his home planet, lest he become the target of an assassin. Assigned to the warship Hector, Sikander has his hands full, as everyone on board—from the captain, to the XO, to the ops officer—seems to have found reasons to doubt his pedigree and his record. Is it because they think he’s a rube from a distant planet, outside of the technological sphere of the Aquilan influence? Or because they find his religion baffling and his customs strange? Is it because he presents as an officer when hot-headed past tells another story? Figuring out how to navigate his new post is bad enough, but doing so while cruising into a war zone is even worse.
Even as the plot veers into conflict, Sikander North remains the focus of the tale, and the decision keeps it feeling fresh as it explores classic military SF territory. Baker captures the constant sense of dread and balance in Sikander’s behavior as he works to overcome the trap faced by many minorities in mixed company, as they are forced to work twice as hard for half the reward, while also tempering his urge to stand up for himself and his beliefs. Say nothing, and they’ll walk all over you. Say too much, and they’ll begin to hate you. Sikander walks that line because, out in the middle of hostile space, he has little choice not to. Watching him do so while staying true to himself results in the book’s best moments.
Likewise, Baker knows his way around writing a compelling ship-to-ship battle—a former US Naval officer with a background in game design, he displays has a love of technology, rank, measurements, missiles, propulsion drives, battle tactics, and more. Valiant Dust sails smoothest and sings loudest in those moments when Sikander and the Hector are in the thick of things, rearranging firing algorithms, changing coordinates on the fly, torpedoes exploding all around them. If you enjoy the tech-heavy aspects of The Expanse novels, than you’ll feel right at home here. Likewise, some spycraft intrigue lends the novel a fair bit of tension, as Sikander and his crew work to unravel the truth behind the brewing civil uprising.
The book feels classic in some less admirable ways, too—a romantic subplot fizzles a bit, and the dialogue has a tendency to sound a bit wooden on the page. The shorthand used to develop the various cultures on display is effective as keeping the story moving, but as a result, the worldbuilding comes off feeling thin in spots. And while the mysteries keep the pages turning, we’re let in on the solutions a little too early, diffusing some of the tension as Sikander works to figure puzzles out the answers we already know.
These quibbles do not diminish the pleasure of reading overmuch. Baker has crafted a pragmatic, charming, and roguish protagonist in Sikander North, who, despite his upbringing, his struggles with past trauma, and his fiery temper, never stops trying to be the hero he knows he can be. I’d happily follow him on another mission onboard the CSS Hector. There are still many stars left to explore.
Valiant Dust is available now.