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Updated Sunday 15 May, 2011 12:18 PM |
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This Day in Alternate History Blog
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Against The Tide (Council Wars Book 3) -John Ringo I read Against the Tide
and finished it with very mixed feelings. For
once, I am almost speechless about writing a review.
Good books I can praise. Bad
books I can curse. The problem with
Against the Tide is that I have Views about it, I just can’t think of the
words. It’s far more complex than good book, bad book. The book is far stronger
than it’s predecessor, Emerald Seas. The
military details and planning are first-rate; Ringo clearly has an understanding
of what makes a military function that many writers are denied.
The super-technology/magic adds an interesting dimension to the book,
which is an almost unique universe. I
do have problems with that collection of screw-ups leading the UFS navy (and if
some of the states have slaves, ‘free’ is a false moniker), without anyone
noticing. Now, I understand that
they only had a few years to learn, but they had one expert commander, who had
served in battle. Why not assign him? The book, by and large,
is a joy to read. There are puns
galore – but no bun-bun, alas – and some good character development.
I’m sorry to see the end of one of the enemy leaders, even if it does
give Herzer Herrick a much needed love interest.
Ringo’s developing skill is such that I know Herzer and I would not get
on, should we ever meet. Three-quarters of the way through the book, I understood what was
bugging me about it. There’s
nothing really new! Sure, there are
dragons, and elves, and ‘angels’ (oh, my), but all of that covers a
retelling of the east-vs.-west conflict. The
battles in the ocean seem to be a repeat of Midway.
All the interesting new problems of TWBD have been boiled down to a
super-size game of risk. One major nit – it strikes me that, by and large, women are
second-class citizens within many of the UFS states. In a society that’s been used to female equality for
generations, would they regress so quickly? To conclude, ATT is a good book.
It’s fun and easy to read; minor problems do not detract from the plot.
It could have been more…strategic, but you can’t have everything.
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