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Alarm of War #1
Alarm of War
Intrigue. Betrayal. A devastating surprise attack and a frantic fight to survive.
Gritty warfare in space as four young officers respond to the alarm of war.
Four officer cadets in the Victorian Fleet meet in training camp. Emily, the young woman who dreams of becoming a Fleet historian, but discovers her real talents lay elsewhere. Grant, the arrogant son of Victoria’s most famous admiral. Hiram, the nervous but brilliant strategist, and Cookie, intent on joining the Fleet Marines. Together, they survive the trials and hardships of training to join the Fleet, unaware that that their home is about to be plunged into a maelstrom.
For three hundred years, the Kingdom of Victoria has enforced peace across the galaxy. But it has grown complacent, and its enemies are ready to strike. The Tilleke Empire and the Dominion of Unified Citizenry have been waiting a long time, and now is their chance. As their web draws closed around Victoria, the band of new officers find themselves on the last line of defense. They’ve been well trained – but will it be enough to save the kingdom?
Gritty warfare in space as four young officers respond to the alarm of war.
Four officer cadets in the Victorian Fleet meet in training camp. Emily, the young woman who dreams of becoming a Fleet historian, but discovers her real talents lay elsewhere. Grant, the arrogant son of Victoria’s most famous admiral. Hiram, the nervous but brilliant strategist, and Cookie, intent on joining the Fleet Marines. Together, they survive the trials and hardships of training to join the Fleet, unaware that that their home is about to be plunged into a maelstrom.
For three hundred years, the Kingdom of Victoria has enforced peace across the galaxy. But it has grown complacent, and its enemies are ready to strike. The Tilleke Empire and the Dominion of Unified Citizenry have been waiting a long time, and now is their chance. As their web draws closed around Victoria, the band of new officers find themselves on the last line of defense. They’ve been well trained – but will it be enough to save the kingdom?
460 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 18, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
August 22, 2012
Fans of David Weber will appreciate this military space sci-fi (and see a lot of parallels).
I should start by saying that this book is clearly the first of several, and spends some time up front developing the world and the backgrounds of the main characters. You actually follow some of them through enlistment in the fleet, basic training, etc., which is pretty neat (not something most similar series do). But it does mean that the reader has to be a little patient. That patience will be rewarded with some well thought out, well paced, well written naval engagements in the latter half of the book.
Overall, the world isn't quite as developed as, say, the Honor Harrington universe, but the characters are more realistic and relatable. This may be because we, the readers, are meeting them when they're still fresh recruits, as opposed to once they've become superhuman naval officers (apparent superhuman qualities being my biggest complaint with Weber's characterizations).
Stories like Alarm of War tend to go down one of two paths: the threat faced is either an unknown alien menace, or an evil human empire/republic. This book takes the latter path, and does an excellent job describing a fairly believable, truly evil human adversary. This adds a moral quality to the conflict that's hard to find in stories where the threat is a 'force of nature evil alien horde' that the reader can't understand or relate to at all.
I'm trying not to spoil any of the plot here, but Alarm of War is a good read, especially if you're a fan of Weber, White, Ringo, etc. It comes to a nicely handled climax that leaves me waiting for the sequel.
I should start by saying that this book is clearly the first of several, and spends some time up front developing the world and the backgrounds of the main characters. You actually follow some of them through enlistment in the fleet, basic training, etc., which is pretty neat (not something most similar series do). But it does mean that the reader has to be a little patient. That patience will be rewarded with some well thought out, well paced, well written naval engagements in the latter half of the book.
Overall, the world isn't quite as developed as, say, the Honor Harrington universe, but the characters are more realistic and relatable. This may be because we, the readers, are meeting them when they're still fresh recruits, as opposed to once they've become superhuman naval officers (apparent superhuman qualities being my biggest complaint with Weber's characterizations).
Stories like Alarm of War tend to go down one of two paths: the threat faced is either an unknown alien menace, or an evil human empire/republic. This book takes the latter path, and does an excellent job describing a fairly believable, truly evil human adversary. This adds a moral quality to the conflict that's hard to find in stories where the threat is a 'force of nature evil alien horde' that the reader can't understand or relate to at all.
I'm trying not to spoil any of the plot here, but Alarm of War is a good read, especially if you're a fan of Weber, White, Ringo, etc. It comes to a nicely handled climax that leaves me waiting for the sequel.
April 10, 2013
Great for a first book. There are, however, areas that the author can make improvements that will greatly enhance his work.
I have only a few complaints, which this review will focus on. Otherwise it was a very good book for those who enjoy authors like David Weber.
Complaints:
The author, like most self-published writers, needs a good proof read. There were a lot of errors.
Second, the author seems to ignore the rank of "ensign" throughout most of the book, only mentioning it once, in passing. No character holds the rank.
The main characters seem to be perfect, with little opportunity for learning or growth.
There is one part of the book that the characters take way too long to figure something out. Granted, as a reader, I know what was going on, but it still seemed like it should have taken them a lot less than the ten hours it took them to realize they were heading into trouble.
Lastly, the time it takes to travel distances seems to vary based on the story's need, and not steadfast rules.
Praise
There story seems reasonable. There is no "I am going to kill everybody because I want to." The motivations of all there characters seem reasonable, if sometime cliche.
The main characters are diverse and likeable.
There is a body count of characters that makes the events seem believable.
I have only a few complaints, which this review will focus on. Otherwise it was a very good book for those who enjoy authors like David Weber.
Complaints:
The author, like most self-published writers, needs a good proof read. There were a lot of errors.
Second, the author seems to ignore the rank of "ensign" throughout most of the book, only mentioning it once, in passing. No character holds the rank.
The main characters seem to be perfect, with little opportunity for learning or growth.
There is one part of the book that the characters take way too long to figure something out. Granted, as a reader, I know what was going on, but it still seemed like it should have taken them a lot less than the ten hours it took them to realize they were heading into trouble.
Lastly, the time it takes to travel distances seems to vary based on the story's need, and not steadfast rules.
Praise
There story seems reasonable. There is no "I am going to kill everybody because I want to." The motivations of all there characters seem reasonable, if sometime cliche.
The main characters are diverse and likeable.
There is a body count of characters that makes the events seem believable.
November 12, 2012
an interesting Weberian series debut; read the sample and all the stuff (from wormholes to the interspersed meetings of the bad guys) is there, so got the book and plan to read it soon despite having lots of other stuff to read
after a very promising beginning, the series becomes very old style pulpy mil-sf; I turned fast the pages to see what happens but it was more of a duty thing to be able to say that I "read" the book as I did not really care that much about the action or the characters; there were some scenes with power - when Princess Anne appears or the ending sequence, but way, way too much B-grade sf I've read tons of in the 90's
after a very promising beginning, the series becomes very old style pulpy mil-sf; I turned fast the pages to see what happens but it was more of a duty thing to be able to say that I "read" the book as I did not really care that much about the action or the characters; there were some scenes with power - when Princess Anne appears or the ending sequence, but way, way too much B-grade sf I've read tons of in the 90's
January 28, 2023
So this one was kind of a surprise. I was not expecting it to be as interesting and time consuming as it turned out to be. I really enjoyed it.
Space survivors from old earth have colonized different parts of the universe. But they discovered wormholes and this has made the Victoria sector the most influential. Other sectors jealous or just annoyed at the Victorians have decided that its time to change things and ally to invade Victoria. Our characters are cadets or recruits that will now play a part on this intergalactic war.
I already bought the next one so I am committed to reading more.
The action and politics are great. I can't wait to read the next one in the series.
Space survivors from old earth have colonized different parts of the universe. But they discovered wormholes and this has made the Victoria sector the most influential. Other sectors jealous or just annoyed at the Victorians have decided that its time to change things and ally to invade Victoria. Our characters are cadets or recruits that will now play a part on this intergalactic war.
I already bought the next one so I am committed to reading more.
The action and politics are great. I can't wait to read the next one in the series.
February 26, 2022
love this book! slow start but worth it!
love this book! slow start but worth it!
The characters take time to build but like a hoot pot roast, it takes time but oh the wait was good!
love this book! slow start but worth it!
The characters take time to build but like a hoot pot roast, it takes time but oh the wait was good!
May 16, 2018
Great read
This is a good book and a great read you will not be able to put it down.
The battle description are great. Can’t wait for book 2.
This is a good book and a great read you will not be able to put it down.
The battle description are great. Can’t wait for book 2.
February 8, 2019
Stirring!
Great for those who love action and heroics! What dilemmas, what choices, what decisions! Read it, bet you’ll like it!
Great for those who love action and heroics! What dilemmas, what choices, what decisions! Read it, bet you’ll like it!
November 29, 2020
It's a bit hard to rate this. I usually use three stars for completely average books that are somewhat good, but not great. Two stars is too low for this when I look at other books I gave two stars, but there are also too many things that drag it down to achieve three. So maybe 2.5 would be appropriate.
Compared to much other self published space opera I've read the writing style is above average. Yes, there are typos and as usual an editor would be have been great, but I've read a lot worse. I'm not a huge fan of the constant POV shifts, as they sometimes prevent immersion into one character, but they also serve to show the plot from all perspectives. The prose itself reads nicely.
The world is clearly inspired by Honor Harrington, which isn't isn't a bad thing. The space combat is very similar, but with clearly reduced complexity. Which is fine. There is still a lot of maneuvering, deception and tactics. All in all far superior to the usual random shooting. There are some diagrams now and then to illustrate ship positioning and movement, which is very helpful.
The biggest problem the book has is with the character development. The main characters start as new junior officers. Then a war breaks out and three of them are put into positions where they command far above their actual rank. This happening once would have been perfectly fine, but the way it is done is way, way too contrived. It's obviously only done to have the main characters be the drivers of the story instead of being spectators. Which is understandable, but the way it is done destroys much of the believability. There are fleets of dozens of ships with crews in the hundreds. There should be plenty of other officers around to take over before junior lieutenants. Maybe if the bridge crew is incapacitated one has to take over temporarily (Honor Harrington for example has a very good short story about that). But not only do they end up commanding ships, but entire fleets. Worse, this persists when the immediate crisis is over. In several instances other officers eventually show up, but the main characters are contrived to stay in command. Either because they are said to have some experience with the current situation, because other officers are incompetent, or because they are just that good.
All characters at some point pretend to speak for superior officers when they are giving orders. One of them says that he speaks for the queen, when he is merely on her staff. At several points they casually threaten to arrest superiors disobeying their orders and kind of bully others into following along.
This all sounds worse than it actually is when reading it. Much of this actually makes sense in the context of the story, but it also leads to quite a bit of eyerolling. Eventually you just go with it, but it hurts the story and immersing yourself into it.
Then there are some other things here and there that somewhat drag the book down to pulp sci-fi level. There are a few scenes where the dialogue isn't all that believable. And the the main characters have a tendency to all cry during moments of extreme emotion.
Story-wise one the enemy empires are basically space Nazis, whereas the queen is literally descendant from Winston Churchill. That shows a severe lack of imagination.
This doesn't make it a bad book. It's still enjoyable in its own right, but it's a shame because it could have been more.
Compared to much other self published space opera I've read the writing style is above average. Yes, there are typos and as usual an editor would be have been great, but I've read a lot worse. I'm not a huge fan of the constant POV shifts, as they sometimes prevent immersion into one character, but they also serve to show the plot from all perspectives. The prose itself reads nicely.
The world is clearly inspired by Honor Harrington, which isn't isn't a bad thing. The space combat is very similar, but with clearly reduced complexity. Which is fine. There is still a lot of maneuvering, deception and tactics. All in all far superior to the usual random shooting. There are some diagrams now and then to illustrate ship positioning and movement, which is very helpful.
The biggest problem the book has is with the character development. The main characters start as new junior officers. Then a war breaks out and three of them are put into positions where they command far above their actual rank. This happening once would have been perfectly fine, but the way it is done is way, way too contrived. It's obviously only done to have the main characters be the drivers of the story instead of being spectators. Which is understandable, but the way it is done destroys much of the believability. There are fleets of dozens of ships with crews in the hundreds. There should be plenty of other officers around to take over before junior lieutenants. Maybe if the bridge crew is incapacitated one has to take over temporarily (Honor Harrington for example has a very good short story about that). But not only do they end up commanding ships, but entire fleets. Worse, this persists when the immediate crisis is over. In several instances other officers eventually show up, but the main characters are contrived to stay in command. Either because they are said to have some experience with the current situation, because other officers are incompetent, or because they are just that good.
All characters at some point pretend to speak for superior officers when they are giving orders. One of them says that he speaks for the queen, when he is merely on her staff. At several points they casually threaten to arrest superiors disobeying their orders and kind of bully others into following along.
This all sounds worse than it actually is when reading it. Much of this actually makes sense in the context of the story, but it also leads to quite a bit of eyerolling. Eventually you just go with it, but it hurts the story and immersing yourself into it.
Then there are some other things here and there that somewhat drag the book down to pulp sci-fi level. There are a few scenes where the dialogue isn't all that believable. And the the main characters have a tendency to all cry during moments of extreme emotion.
Story-wise one the enemy empires are basically space Nazis, whereas the queen is literally descendant from Winston Churchill. That shows a severe lack of imagination.
This doesn't make it a bad book. It's still enjoyable in its own right, but it's a shame because it could have been more.
May 13, 2015
read this book awhile back but failed to post a review. So, after re-reading the book, I’m going to correct that mistake.
This is a good science-fiction book. It’s got a lot of good story content. Initially, I was not sure which side I was supposed to be cheering for since the book starts out with a sinister plotting that will lead to war.
You get introduced to the Dominion of Unified Citizenry (D.U.C.s) and the Tilleke Empire. They and a few minor planetary systems are not pleased with the Victorians (Victoria).
Victoria is the dominating civilization residing in a system that just happens to lead to six others. Obviously, all trade has to go through Victoria and then through one of her six wormholes other wise the shipping lanes are extremely long.
Victoria hasn’t really taken advantage of this situation. They haven’t levied any kind of passage tax on any shipping going either way through any of the wormholes, but the trips between systems does require stops for fueling and minor repairs. Also, most goods are transported to Victoria’s home planet and then placed in warehouses so the customer can then come pick them up. Warehouse storage fees are becoming a problem or so the Dominion and Tilleke Empire believes.
Additionally, the Tilleke Empire needs a certain mineral which is mined in a system they do not control. Transportation of that mineral to Victoria does have to go through the Tilleke Empire and they do take a portion as transit taxes but they believe they are not getting enough. Unfortunately, the Victorian Fleet is quite large and they protect the shipping lanes.
So, with all this politicking going on, it’s a wonder a war doesn’t start. That’s the overall big picture. The book then switches to a small group of people, four to be exact, who are just now embarking on military careers with the Victorian Fleet. Their stories start with how they got to the point of joining the Victoria military and why. Then we read about their time in basic training. There is quite a lot of action during this part of the story.
From here we follow our main characters to the Victoria Fleet; the mightiest fleet in any system. Well, that’s what they thought. Unknown to the Victorian’s, the D.U.C.s and Tilleke’s were secretly building more ships and developing new technology. They come up with a pretty smart plan and spring it on the Victorian’s rapidly. Soon, Victoria’s mighty fleet is shredded and fleeing for it’s life to Refuge.
Our main characters come to fight. Although very junior officers, they get thrown into some very interesting situations. Lots of combat actions both Navy and Marine. I really liked all the space and Marines battles. The author did a nice job in describing the actions.
There is a lot more to this story so you’ll have to read it to see what I left out here. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. One thing in my favor is that although I read this sometime awhile ago, it allowed for the next book to be published. I can’t wait to read it.
This is a good science-fiction book. It’s got a lot of good story content. Initially, I was not sure which side I was supposed to be cheering for since the book starts out with a sinister plotting that will lead to war.
You get introduced to the Dominion of Unified Citizenry (D.U.C.s) and the Tilleke Empire. They and a few minor planetary systems are not pleased with the Victorians (Victoria).
Victoria is the dominating civilization residing in a system that just happens to lead to six others. Obviously, all trade has to go through Victoria and then through one of her six wormholes other wise the shipping lanes are extremely long.
Victoria hasn’t really taken advantage of this situation. They haven’t levied any kind of passage tax on any shipping going either way through any of the wormholes, but the trips between systems does require stops for fueling and minor repairs. Also, most goods are transported to Victoria’s home planet and then placed in warehouses so the customer can then come pick them up. Warehouse storage fees are becoming a problem or so the Dominion and Tilleke Empire believes.
Additionally, the Tilleke Empire needs a certain mineral which is mined in a system they do not control. Transportation of that mineral to Victoria does have to go through the Tilleke Empire and they do take a portion as transit taxes but they believe they are not getting enough. Unfortunately, the Victorian Fleet is quite large and they protect the shipping lanes.
So, with all this politicking going on, it’s a wonder a war doesn’t start. That’s the overall big picture. The book then switches to a small group of people, four to be exact, who are just now embarking on military careers with the Victorian Fleet. Their stories start with how they got to the point of joining the Victoria military and why. Then we read about their time in basic training. There is quite a lot of action during this part of the story.
From here we follow our main characters to the Victoria Fleet; the mightiest fleet in any system. Well, that’s what they thought. Unknown to the Victorian’s, the D.U.C.s and Tilleke’s were secretly building more ships and developing new technology. They come up with a pretty smart plan and spring it on the Victorian’s rapidly. Soon, Victoria’s mighty fleet is shredded and fleeing for it’s life to Refuge.
Our main characters come to fight. Although very junior officers, they get thrown into some very interesting situations. Lots of combat actions both Navy and Marine. I really liked all the space and Marines battles. The author did a nice job in describing the actions.
There is a lot more to this story so you’ll have to read it to see what I left out here. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. One thing in my favor is that although I read this sometime awhile ago, it allowed for the next book to be published. I can’t wait to read it.
March 2, 2017
Sooooooo boooooring!
November 10, 2014
This book is indeed a very promising start of what I assume will be a new book series. Quite a few people have been making references to David Weber when discussing this book and, for sure, there are quite a few similarities with his Harrington universe. There are quite a few similarities with other works as well but then it’s rather difficult to write something in this genre today without there being similarities to other work.
I would say that this is not a bad thing because I do like these kind of stories and this book is as good as the works of Weber & Co. Actually, in some sense I would consider it better than some of David Weber’s books in that it doesn’t dig itself down so much in the endless talk talk talk dialogues that Weber so often does in his later works. This one is mostly good action.
There’s not too much tech-stuff, at least not in the form of explanations but the fleet manoeuvres, weaponry and general physics seems fairly acceptable to me.
As is common in this genre of books it has its share of no-good, useless and unbelievably stupid high level fleet officers screwing things up. That’s one of the thing I find really annoying. Of course, our heroes are there to pick up the pieces…almost. Since this obviously is the first one in a series it, not very surprisingly, ends in an obvious cliff-hanger.
I’m definitely looking forward to the next book in this series. I just hope that the story actually progresses in the direction of whamming the bad guys and doesn’t bog down in yet another being-on-the-run-forever story.
I would say that this is not a bad thing because I do like these kind of stories and this book is as good as the works of Weber & Co. Actually, in some sense I would consider it better than some of David Weber’s books in that it doesn’t dig itself down so much in the endless talk talk talk dialogues that Weber so often does in his later works. This one is mostly good action.
There’s not too much tech-stuff, at least not in the form of explanations but the fleet manoeuvres, weaponry and general physics seems fairly acceptable to me.
As is common in this genre of books it has its share of no-good, useless and unbelievably stupid high level fleet officers screwing things up. That’s one of the thing I find really annoying. Of course, our heroes are there to pick up the pieces…almost. Since this obviously is the first one in a series it, not very surprisingly, ends in an obvious cliff-hanger.
I’m definitely looking forward to the next book in this series. I just hope that the story actually progresses in the direction of whamming the bad guys and doesn’t bog down in yet another being-on-the-run-forever story.
November 18, 2014
A very enjoyable story. I give 3 and a half stars. The only thing that kept it from getting 4 stars was that it ventured a little too far into the realm of implausible for me. While I really liked all of the characters, the 4 main characters became too mighty too quickly. The fact that they were all together in training and then all coincidentally ended up commanding on one level or another put it a little over the top. Even when Emily ended up taking command I kept wondering why once the situation was over, did an actual captain not take over. However, the action was great, the story was a nice start to the series, and I am looking forward to reading the next one in line!
January 28, 2013
This book is decent and entertaining for what it is: Battle-happy, pulpy military SF. There is an interesting set of regional powers in space, some of them have a pretext to be angry, and so a game of deception and ultimately war begins.
The space combat is well done, the characters are a little too perfect right out of basic training. That reminded me a bit of the Starship Troopers movie - a bunch of kids rising way too fast.
It's a popcorn action movie, basically. You won't take much away from it, but it is good, mindless entertainment.
The space combat is well done, the characters are a little too perfect right out of basic training. That reminded me a bit of the Starship Troopers movie - a bunch of kids rising way too fast.
It's a popcorn action movie, basically. You won't take much away from it, but it is good, mindless entertainment.
July 8, 2015
Enjoyed this scifi novel. Good writing. Good combat scenarios. Characters were well developed, and the storyline was fast paced. However, would have rated it 5-stars except for the grammatical errors, and ... the book jumps without explanation from the end of basic training to the main characters being officers. There was never any explanation during basic training that any of the characters were going on to become officers, in fact, I believed it was enlisted basic training. Could have had at least one chapter with at least a simple explanation.
October 6, 2012
Good characters, exciting battles, and a compelling world. There are one or two instances of bad science that I was more than willing to overlook in the creation of an interesting world. (Only acceleration should matter for "inertial compensation", not top speed, but it's more interesting to give manned ships a speed limit, so I don't care.) I recommend this book, and I'm looking forward to what comes next!
January 24, 2013
Alarm of War is an entertaining space opera with some interesting space combat sequences, a sprinkling of humor, and fairly good character development. Overall, it's a fun romp. Unfortunately, however, it lacks the philosophical weightiness and logistical richness of Jack Campbell's Lost Fleet series. It also could have used a good editor; it's riddled with spelling errors. I probably won't follow the rest of the series.
January 1, 2014
Straight up, 99.9% formulaic naval-war-in-space story--tautly plotted and featuring soldiers of both sexes. A fine example of the type, and enjoyable if one's expectations aren't set on something literary or imaginative----but wow, there are a lot of typos and, worse, really wretched physics in the battle choreography. I think there's enough steam left in the plotline for one more volume....hope the author doesn't opt to stretch it out further.
February 17, 2015
This story really needs a good edit; even a high-schooler paid $20 to proofread would be a BIG improvement! That being established, this was a fun story with lots of action, good pacing and fun characters. Yes, all the main characters where super-human, but still mostly human... It may have been a little too convenient at times, but didn't get in the way of a good tale.
March 18, 2015
A wonderful start to a Weber-esque space opera. Sure, it doesn't redefine the genre, but it is a competently plotted storyline. The setting and characters are all fleshed out comfortably and I'm very interested in what happens next.
January 29, 2016
I enjoyed this story. I have been reading a lot of space opera lately. This one got be back on track onto something I wanted to keep reading. The story had some improbably moments with characters wise beyond experience and trusted beyond their place but it worked for me as good entertainment.
April 12, 2013
It was a good book can't wait for the next one!
September 2, 2013
I couldn't put it down. The characters were great and lots of action. Can't wait to read the next one.
June 11, 2014
Awesome book
Excellent read.kept you reading and trying to figure out what was going to happen next.I would recommend this to anyone.
Excellent read.kept you reading and trying to figure out what was going to happen next.I would recommend this to anyone.
January 17, 2015
Excellent. Sound
Excellent action from start to finish. Sound military doctrine throughout. Couldn't put it down until finished! Looking forward to the sequel
Excellent action from start to finish. Sound military doctrine throughout. Couldn't put it down until finished! Looking forward to the sequel
February 10, 2015
Great series. I got really caught up in the characters and story. Will definitely read again
November 5, 2015
Loved it
Enjoyed seeing a strong female lead character. Wonderful character development as I feel I really know them and cheer for them. Great book looking for part 2 now.
Enjoyed seeing a strong female lead character. Wonderful character development as I feel I really know them and cheer for them. Great book looking for part 2 now.
October 25, 2016
Good start
A good start on a series. If you like your SiFi with a military bent, and a wicked pace, then you should enjoy this read.
A good start on a series. If you like your SiFi with a military bent, and a wicked pace, then you should enjoy this read.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews