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Four Horsemen Sagas #1
Gunboat Diplomacy
Before Hr’ent Golramm became a legendary Enforcer for the Peacemaker Guild, he was a mere candidate. Granted, he was a particularly unusual candidate—only six Oogar had ever successfully graduated from the Peacemaker Academy on Ocono, and Hr’ent would be the seventh. Every candidate must pass a commissioning mission in order to graduate, though, and Hr’ent’s is unsolvable.
The Pushtal of Vorrhurna were once one of the Mercenary Guild’s 37 races. After a series of disastrous contracts, the tiger-like aliens lost their status as mercenaries, and the MinSha seized their home world for defaulting on their debt. Eighty years later, the seven Great Clans are but a shadow of their former selves and have resorted to piracy to survive.
For his commissioning mission, Hr’ent and a small team of bounty hunters must find a way to put a stop to their predations. No one in the Union has figured out how to herd cats to this point, but Hr’ent is a particularly unusual Peacemaker candidate, who isn’t afraid to resort to a bit of gunboat diplomacy to get the Pushtal to listen to what he says, once and for all.
The Pushtal of Vorrhurna were once one of the Mercenary Guild’s 37 races. After a series of disastrous contracts, the tiger-like aliens lost their status as mercenaries, and the MinSha seized their home world for defaulting on their debt. Eighty years later, the seven Great Clans are but a shadow of their former selves and have resorted to piracy to survive.
For his commissioning mission, Hr’ent and a small team of bounty hunters must find a way to put a stop to their predations. No one in the Union has figured out how to herd cats to this point, but Hr’ent is a particularly unusual Peacemaker candidate, who isn’t afraid to resort to a bit of gunboat diplomacy to get the Pushtal to listen to what he says, once and for all.
- GenresScience Fiction
334 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 2020
224 people are currently reading
39 people want to read
About the author
Jason Córdova
75 books56 followersBestselling author Jason Cordova is both a John W. Campbell Award and Dragon Award finalist (though not in the same year). He is the author of Mountain of Fire and Monster Hunter Memoirs: Fever (w/ Larry Correia), and editor of Chicks in Tank Tops and Dancing with Destruction.
Along the way, he has had novels published in multiple languages around the world, been featured in over 40 anthologies, and has penned over two dozen novels across many genres, including YA, horror, science fiction, and urban fantasy.
A history nerd, he is a Navy veteran, former teacher, and is currently an Associate Editor at Baen Books.
Along the way, he has had novels published in multiple languages around the world, been featured in over 40 anthologies, and has penned over two dozen novels across many genres, including YA, horror, science fiction, and urban fantasy.
A history nerd, he is a Navy veteran, former teacher, and is currently an Associate Editor at Baen Books.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
January 2, 2020
Cordova and Ibsom give another quality 4 horseman tale
With a good mix of humor and action, Ibsom and Cordova delve into the the origins of the disgrace of the Pushtal and the commisoning of the greatest enforcer of the peacemaker's Guild
With a good mix of humor and action, Ibsom and Cordova delve into the the origins of the disgrace of the Pushtal and the commisoning of the greatest enforcer of the peacemaker's Guild
January 3, 2020
In "Enforcer" we saw Hr’ent Golramm become an Enforcer after graduating from the Peacemaker Academy. That book was sprinkled with references to Hr'ent's commissioning mission, a field test that every Peacemaker has to pass before graduation and commissioning. The sequel in the "Four Horsemen Sagas" series, "Gunboat Diplomacy," is actually a prequel that tells us about that mission, and unlike so many prequels it keeps the timeline and the details straight, with no hand-waving needed, and the character development logically leads to the individual that we meet in "Enforcer."
It would almost be worth reading the book to see the authors accomplish what so many other authors (not to mention film and TV writers) can't seem to do, but "Gunboat Diplomacy" has so much more. It's FUN. It has great characters, adventure, intrigue, all liberally sprinkled with humor. It kept this night owl up reading it till the Evil Daystar filled the sky. It's a great addition to the Four Horsemen Universe *aka "4HU") that tells us more about the Oogar (the alien race that Hr'ent is a member of,) and fills in background on how the Peacemakers operate. But while it adds another layer for those of us who are fans of the 4HU you don't have to have read anything else set in that universe to understand this book. Someone who has never heard of the Four Horsemen Universe can jump right in because "Gunboat Diplomacy" stands on its' own. All you need to provide is your brain and a sense of humor.
It would almost be worth reading the book to see the authors accomplish what so many other authors (not to mention film and TV writers) can't seem to do, but "Gunboat Diplomacy" has so much more. It's FUN. It has great characters, adventure, intrigue, all liberally sprinkled with humor. It kept this night owl up reading it till the Evil Daystar filled the sky. It's a great addition to the Four Horsemen Universe *aka "4HU") that tells us more about the Oogar (the alien race that Hr'ent is a member of,) and fills in background on how the Peacemakers operate. But while it adds another layer for those of us who are fans of the 4HU you don't have to have read anything else set in that universe to understand this book. Someone who has never heard of the Four Horsemen Universe can jump right in because "Gunboat Diplomacy" stands on its' own. All you need to provide is your brain and a sense of humor.
January 3, 2020
This is a prequel! i.e. if you already have read Enforcer, you will have some idea of what is going on in this book!
Here, Hrent is still a peacemaker candidate and has to undertake a simple task: reduce piracy in a sector where it is rife, in particular due to the Pushtal, a humanoid tiger-race which lost its mercenary status and is now reduced to a shadow of its former self.
Of course, not all is what it seems and Hrent tackles much more than what we would expect at the beginning.
The book shines for 3 reasons :
1 - excellent action scenes and pacing, making it a very enjoyable read,
2 - good characterization: Hrent is bad news for his enemies but is actually also complex and the same goes for his helpers.
3 - background information about the Pushtal, which gives us an in-depth introduction into a race which was widely thought of as garbage and reveals itself to be so much more! (And yes, other books mentions the Pushtal in a positive light, this one, written in the past (i.e. before the Revelation cycle but after the Alpha contracts), gives us more info about the pushtal civilization.
All in all, a very worthy addition to the 4HU.
Here, Hrent is still a peacemaker candidate and has to undertake a simple task: reduce piracy in a sector where it is rife, in particular due to the Pushtal, a humanoid tiger-race which lost its mercenary status and is now reduced to a shadow of its former self.
Of course, not all is what it seems and Hrent tackles much more than what we would expect at the beginning.
The book shines for 3 reasons :
1 - excellent action scenes and pacing, making it a very enjoyable read,
2 - good characterization: Hrent is bad news for his enemies but is actually also complex and the same goes for his helpers.
3 - background information about the Pushtal, which gives us an in-depth introduction into a race which was widely thought of as garbage and reveals itself to be so much more! (And yes, other books mentions the Pushtal in a positive light, this one, written in the past (i.e. before the Revelation cycle but after the Alpha contracts), gives us more info about the pushtal civilization.
All in all, a very worthy addition to the 4HU.
January 13, 2020
An excellent prequel to "Enforcer" .
Besides the authors' propensity to have the characters use American Hip-Hop slang in their everyday speech, I found this to be a really good story. The events in this story were referenced but never fully explained in the first novel of the series, "Enforcer" . We get to see the life and lore of the Pushtal people; a race that resembles our tigers. They were betrayed into subjugation under the control of the insectoid MinSha. Hr'ent , an Oogar Peacemaker candidate is assigned to investigate growing piracy in the area of the Pushstal homeworld but uncovers and vows to resolve, a far more insidious plot. Highly recommended.
Besides the authors' propensity to have the characters use American Hip-Hop slang in their everyday speech, I found this to be a really good story. The events in this story were referenced but never fully explained in the first novel of the series, "Enforcer" . We get to see the life and lore of the Pushtal people; a race that resembles our tigers. They were betrayed into subjugation under the control of the insectoid MinSha. Hr'ent , an Oogar Peacemaker candidate is assigned to investigate growing piracy in the area of the Pushstal homeworld but uncovers and vows to resolve, a far more insidious plot. Highly recommended.
August 23, 2021
Great Mil-scifi novel in 4 Horseman Universe
Well written, avoided triteness and was a gripping read. Only caveat is it probably helps to read several of of the main 4 Horseman Universe series first. This approach will keep you busy for a while - there are around 40 titles, ranging from solid, workmanlike prose to outstanding writing. As someone who grew up with Heinlein, Andre Norton & John Campbell of Astounding/Analog I love this genre. Cordova and Ibson both have talent and appear to in the ascending arc of their writing careers.
Well written, avoided triteness and was a gripping read. Only caveat is it probably helps to read several of of the main 4 Horseman Universe series first. This approach will keep you busy for a while - there are around 40 titles, ranging from solid, workmanlike prose to outstanding writing. As someone who grew up with Heinlein, Andre Norton & John Campbell of Astounding/Analog I love this genre. Cordova and Ibson both have talent and appear to in the ascending arc of their writing careers.
January 6, 2020
Good Book
I enjoyed this book it would have made more sense to put this out before “Enforcer” which while I read that book It kept referring to events laid out in this book. I still recommend this book and enforcer. I only have one real complaint and that is the cover. Really, the back of the main characters head? Has to be one of the laziest covers I have ever seen. I get what the artist was going for but this is a miss.
I enjoyed this book it would have made more sense to put this out before “Enforcer” which while I read that book It kept referring to events laid out in this book. I still recommend this book and enforcer. I only have one real complaint and that is the cover. Really, the back of the main characters head? Has to be one of the laziest covers I have ever seen. I get what the artist was going for but this is a miss.
April 1, 2021
This is one of those books that look into the morals of the groups and creatures involved. It is an interesting book for that alone. The main character is believable and the character is developed without interrupting the flow of the story. A novelty among the plethora of authors publishing today.
It also a well thought out way to look at long term racial/species genocide among "civilized" societies. A good read!
It also a well thought out way to look at long term racial/species genocide among "civilized" societies. A good read!
January 4, 2020
Try this one! Gunboat Diplomacy gives insight to the history of the Pushtal (tiger like species) and a look at the training process for the Peacemakers. H'rent (purple NoCare Bear) is on his commissioning mission when he encounters Pushtal pirates, his task becomes much more intricate.
This is a GREAT entry into the 4 Horsemen universe
This is a GREAT entry into the 4 Horsemen universe
April 12, 2020
I really like the Oogar character H'rent, a big break-things first kind of "guy" who doesn't mind mixing it up at all, but he also is more aware of the underlying dynamics of a situation than his kick-ass mentality would cause you to believe. His "team" was the weak part for me, it never felt like they were working for the cause at all. I look forward to reading more about H'rent at some point.
January 8, 2020
More H'rent please!
Really enjoyed this book despite not knowing who the Draaki were or what part they played in the story. I can only assume it will show up at a later date.
Really enjoyed this book despite not knowing who the Draaki were or what part they played in the story. I can only assume it will show up at a later date.
January 13, 2020
Great Read!
Peacemaker books are among the best of the 4 Horsemen Universe books. Lots of action, deeds of heroism, and unexpected plot turns in a real page turner.
Peacemaker books are among the best of the 4 Horsemen Universe books. Lots of action, deeds of heroism, and unexpected plot turns in a real page turner.
January 24, 2020
One hell of an Oogar
H'Rhent is one hell of an Oogar. I was happy to read this back story. Even happier to get more on the Pushtal. One great read!
H'Rhent is one hell of an Oogar. I was happy to read this back story. Even happier to get more on the Pushtal. One great read!
February 16, 2020
Superb
Secound book in the new peacekeeper series! Plenty of action and good charachter development that made this a joy to read!
Secound book in the new peacekeeper series! Plenty of action and good charachter development that made this a joy to read!
March 15, 2020
Fun story!
I like the stories that focus less on human mercs and more on the other races. Jason and Jamie have an instant hit here.
I like the stories that focus less on human mercs and more on the other races. Jason and Jamie have an instant hit here.
May 8, 2020
The tactics used at times did not make sense. But it was still entertaining.
May 27, 2020
Awesome Book
I loved this thing. It was an adventure from start to finish. I love getting tge alien point of view.
I loved this thing. It was an adventure from start to finish. I love getting tge alien point of view.
August 4, 2020
A steep learning curve for a Peacemaker candidate with the usual 4HU action.
August 16, 2020
In 'Enforcer', we heard about the unusual circumstances surrounding Peacemaker Candidate Hr'ent's commissioning mission.
This story tells the tale of that mission.
This story tells the tale of that mission.
October 22, 2020
The Oogar who breaks shit and kills people.
Great story about the great Peacemaker, H’rent’s first mission. Pushtal pirates, ice worms, space battles and lots of great action.
Great story about the great Peacemaker, H’rent’s first mission. Pushtal pirates, ice worms, space battles and lots of great action.
August 5, 2021
Great read!
I loved this book, tons of action, layers on layers of really cool new societies to explore, clan politics, this one checked a lot of boxes!
I loved this book, tons of action, layers on layers of really cool new societies to explore, clan politics, this one checked a lot of boxes!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews