I’ll tell you it’s damn hard to finish a book when your wife is angrily asking you why your laughing so hard while she’s trying to sleep. Very, Very few sci-fi books have made me laugh outloud while reading them and this was definetly one of them, and it was intend in this book too! (unlike most of the others falling into that category). I’m going to try to not give away some of the more amusing points while trying to give a breif synopsis.

The main character is Harry Creek, decorated veteran of a botched military mission, now a low level functionary for the department of state. Earth has joined the common confederation, a ruling council for the universe. Our sponser is an alien race called the “nidu”, neither Earth nor the Nidu rank very highly in the global (actually universal) scheme of things. Creek stationed in D.C. has the uneviable task of telling alien governments bad news, of which he is spectaularly good at. When the nidu ruler dies a struggle for power will shortly ensure. Depending on the outcome of that struggle the Earth may face itself at war with the Nidu. The Nidu succession requires ritualistic precision and one ingredient only available on Earth. The state department issues Harry Creek the task of recovering this ingredient (before the many other faction on Nidu) and stopping interstellar war.

Where’s the humor you ask? The one ingredient is a genetically altered electric blue sheep.

I hate giving away too much plot line but the store also involves a religion eriely similar to the Scientoligists (oops, think I just got entered into their database), two artifical intelligence (ages 18 and 104), an alien who deal with people, well by eating them whole and a various sundry of other eclectic characters.

Pleasure to read and well done….Rocketships away…

John Scalzi’s website can be found at http://www.scalzi.com

Okay considering this series is going to be six books don’t expect too much originality… Here’s what the publisher has to say

“The alliance has been fighting a losing battle against the Syndicate Worlds for over a century. Now, Captain John “Black Jack” Geary, who has returned to the fleet after a 100-year suspended animation, must keep the Alliance one step ahead of its merciless foe.

After a series of deadly engagements, the Alliance fleet is severely damaged and its arsenal is running low. Forced to halt in the Baldur Star System to raid the Syndic mines for raw materials, Geary is anxious to get moving again. But what should the fleet’s next move be? The Syndics are starting to catch on to Geary’s tactics, and as the Alliance ships jump from system to system, it’s getting harder to keep one step ahead.

What’s more, Geary has started to piece fragments of intelligence together into a highly disturbing picture: The syndics have been keeping the existence of another potential player in the war a secret - and this unknown power may have the means to annihilate the human race…”

Since I’ve subjected you to reading the back of the book, I’ll give you a little nugget. Jack Campbell is a pseudonym the author has published other sci-fi books under the name John G. Hemry. He has a series with the books Stark’s War, Stark’s Command, Stark’s Crusade that sounds like it may be a good bit of sci-fi military fiction, unfortunately they are all out of print.

“The kind of hero Hornblower fans will love!” - William C. Dietz

I took the quote off of the cover as I thought it was so appropriate. This series is pure military fiction in a sci-fi setting. Outnumbered and outgunned (so cliche) Captain john “Black Jack” Perry is running with his fleet desperately trying to avoid syndicate forces. His bread and butter is doing the unexpected, his outdated methods and old fashioned style keep the enemy off balance. In this book he faces a serious challenge to his authority and must fight to keep the fleet under his control.  The old saying what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger comes into play time and time again for Perry.

I picked this book up at borders on the way to the airport for a 4 hour flight. When I got off the plane I immediately went to the local bookstore and bought books two and three.

This is a page turned in the grandest fashion. The Hero is found adrift in his ruined escape capsule with his lifesupport failing. When he is awoke form his hibernation he realizes that he is more that 100 years in the future. The war that was started with his heroic marytdom is still continuing and it has profoundly changed his people. Since that fateful day he has been made into a larger than life hero. Unfortunately for him he is thrust back into action way before he’s ready but what’s a hero to do… I won’t ruin any more of the story but lets just say his old fashioned values and the larger than life expectations of him make for entertaining character turmoil and the rest of the story is great also.