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The Serrano Legacy #5
Rules of Engagement
Esmay Suiza, one of Fleet's most gifted young officers, and Brun Meager, daughter of the Speaker of the Grand Council, have a lot in common - they're both bright, brave, likeable and adventurous. But far from becoming the best of friends, a string of misunderstandings leads to a very public argument, and their enmity is soon the talk of Copper Mountain training base. When Brun falls into the hands of a fanatical religious militia movement Esmay finds herself in disgrace, suspected of conniving in Brun's abduction. Far from hating her, however, Esmay understands Brun better than anyone else, and knows that she has the best chance of coming up with a plan to save her. But will anyone in Fleet listen long enough to give her a second chance? RULES OF ENGAGEMENT is the fifth volume of The Serrano Legacy, an action-packed science fiction series from this highly acclaimed author. More information on this book and others can be found on the Orbit website at www.orbitbooks.co.uk
512 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
79 people are currently reading
672 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Moon
138 books2,632 followersElizabeth Moon was born March 7, 1945, and grew up in McAllen, Texas, graduating from McAllen High School in 1963. She has a B.A. in History from Rice University (1968) and another in Biology from the University of Texas at Austin (1975) with graduate work in Biology at the University of Texas, San Antonio.
She served in the USMC from 1968 to 1971, first at MCB Quantico and then at HQMC. She married Richard Moon, a Rice classmate and Army officer, in 1969; they moved to the small central Texas town where they still live in 1979. They have one son, born in 1983.
She started writing stories and poems as a small child; attempted first book (an illustrated biography of the family dog) at age six. Started writing science fiction in high school, but considered writing merely a sideline. First got serious about writing (as in, submitting things and actually getting money...) in the 1980s. Made first fiction sale at age forty--"Bargains" to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword & Sorceress III and "ABCs in Zero G" to Analog. Her first novel, Sheepfarmer's Daughter, sold in 1987 and came out in 1988; it won the Compton Crook Award in 1989. Remnant Population was a Hugo nominee in 1997, and The Speed of Dark was a finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and won the Nebula in 2004.
She served in the USMC from 1968 to 1971, first at MCB Quantico and then at HQMC. She married Richard Moon, a Rice classmate and Army officer, in 1969; they moved to the small central Texas town where they still live in 1979. They have one son, born in 1983.
She started writing stories and poems as a small child; attempted first book (an illustrated biography of the family dog) at age six. Started writing science fiction in high school, but considered writing merely a sideline. First got serious about writing (as in, submitting things and actually getting money...) in the 1980s. Made first fiction sale at age forty--"Bargains" to Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword & Sorceress III and "ABCs in Zero G" to Analog. Her first novel, Sheepfarmer's Daughter, sold in 1987 and came out in 1988; it won the Compton Crook Award in 1989. Remnant Population was a Hugo nominee in 1997, and The Speed of Dark was a finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and won the Nebula in 2004.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 91 reviews
June 22, 2020
Rules of Engagement is the sequel to Once a Hero (1997), and shares some supporting characters with the Heris Serrano trilogy (1993-95). It's reasonably self-contained, though you'll enjoy it more if you've read some of the preceding books, all of which I've liked.
Esmay Suiza is a likeably nerdy young officer. Her heroic exploits overshadow her difficult childhood, her love life is terrible, she's had a bad-hair *life*... When Brun, rich, spoiled and beautiful, breezes into her life with hairdressing tips, and then goes after Esmay's secret beau... Well!
My colleague Christina Schulman once remarked that "these confident, decisive people behave like insecure teenagers when they're thrown together at Command School..." Ah, but I think that was precisely Moon's point -- Cupid's tardy arrow will turn someone like Esmay, a seriously repressed over-achiever, into instant mush. Ms. Moon and I were classmates at Rice in the mid-60s (though I don't think we ever met), and I'm willing to bet she was another earnest, nerdy, bad hair, socially-awkward, sexually-repressed... oh god, it's excruciating just to think about those times!
Anyway, Moon's delightfully Wodehousian aunts-in-space arrive just in time to save Esmay's butt (and career), and young love prevails. As usual, Moon's fast-&-furious action, meticulous military-medical backgrounding, and formidable storytelling skills carry the day.
Rules of Engagement is Ms. Moon's fifth book set in her Familias Regnant universe -- an implausible interstellar constitutional aristocracy with corruption/kleptocracy/rejuvenation problems -- which was threatened by the Bloodhorde barbs-in-space (Once a Hero) and the NuTexas God-fearing Militia (Rules of Engagement). This background was light entertainment for the Heris Serrano books, but Moon seems to have deeper hopes for the Esmay Suiza books, and the backstory creaks under the load. After this Obligatory Critical Carp, I should note that she is carrying on an historic space-opera convention, and the scratchy backstory will interfere little (if at all) with your reading pleasure.
My 1999 review: https://www.sfsite.com/04b/rule55.htm
Slightly revised 2020.
Esmay Suiza is a likeably nerdy young officer. Her heroic exploits overshadow her difficult childhood, her love life is terrible, she's had a bad-hair *life*... When Brun, rich, spoiled and beautiful, breezes into her life with hairdressing tips, and then goes after Esmay's secret beau... Well!
My colleague Christina Schulman once remarked that "these confident, decisive people behave like insecure teenagers when they're thrown together at Command School..." Ah, but I think that was precisely Moon's point -- Cupid's tardy arrow will turn someone like Esmay, a seriously repressed over-achiever, into instant mush. Ms. Moon and I were classmates at Rice in the mid-60s (though I don't think we ever met), and I'm willing to bet she was another earnest, nerdy, bad hair, socially-awkward, sexually-repressed... oh god, it's excruciating just to think about those times!
Anyway, Moon's delightfully Wodehousian aunts-in-space arrive just in time to save Esmay's butt (and career), and young love prevails. As usual, Moon's fast-&-furious action, meticulous military-medical backgrounding, and formidable storytelling skills carry the day.
Rules of Engagement is Ms. Moon's fifth book set in her Familias Regnant universe -- an implausible interstellar constitutional aristocracy with corruption/kleptocracy/rejuvenation problems -- which was threatened by the Bloodhorde barbs-in-space (Once a Hero) and the NuTexas God-fearing Militia (Rules of Engagement). This background was light entertainment for the Heris Serrano books, but Moon seems to have deeper hopes for the Esmay Suiza books, and the backstory creaks under the load. After this Obligatory Critical Carp, I should note that she is carrying on an historic space-opera convention, and the scratchy backstory will interfere little (if at all) with your reading pleasure.
My 1999 review: https://www.sfsite.com/04b/rule55.htm
Slightly revised 2020.
November 29, 2014
I want to say this was simply a bad book but I think that's just my disappointment with Elizabeth Moon for basically phoning it in. She adheres to the rather annoying trope of RAPE IS DRAMA that so turned me off Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series. Which to me is just a sign of laziness. I also found it really annoying to have the author keep throwing in lines about the various rapes that are supposed to leave it up to our imaginations as to what happened, as lets be honest, there are only so many ways a woman or anyone for that matter can be sexually assaulted. And I really doubt a culture in which the discussion of sex is not any form of taboo would have people of any age think a line like "she didn't even know the words for what had been done to them". Either fade to black and skip to afterwards or be explicit. This 12a certificate non-sense is just insulting.
The absurd bad guys, who are straight out of a cartoon except for all the rape and breeding of women, don't belong in this series that has been fairly realistic with it's setting so far. The space barbarians where are least a credible societal model rather than a bad joke at the expense of Texas.
The thing that really did it for me though was her rewriting of Brun's character to something that only barely fit within the believable given how she developed over the first trilogy. I could hear Brun being stretched and twisted to fit into a shape that was more appropriate for her Bubbles persona.
All in all I think I'm done with this series. Vatta Wars is a better series from the word go. The Familias Regnant series is so obviously a trial run that just went out of control.
The absurd bad guys, who are straight out of a cartoon except for all the rape and breeding of women, don't belong in this series that has been fairly realistic with it's setting so far. The space barbarians where are least a credible societal model rather than a bad joke at the expense of Texas.
The thing that really did it for me though was her rewriting of Brun's character to something that only barely fit within the believable given how she developed over the first trilogy. I could hear Brun being stretched and twisted to fit into a shape that was more appropriate for her Bubbles persona.
All in all I think I'm done with this series. Vatta Wars is a better series from the word go. The Familias Regnant series is so obviously a trial run that just went out of control.
January 5, 2016
Reread.
September 28, 2018
A pair of friendly rivals are having a run of bad luck. Everybody's turned against them, and one of them is captured by a repressive planet.
Then we get some high tech Handmaid's Tale type stuff.
I felt like the book whipsawed between two extremes.
Then we get some high tech Handmaid's Tale type stuff.
I felt like the book whipsawed between two extremes.
November 22, 2025
It’s those darn Texans again! This is the second book recently where “New Texans” are the bad guys, heres the other one Beyond the Fringe: An Arcana Imperii Collection
Both are very good books. This one is very well written and also first, so it gets a five rating.
It seems that all space heroes have a bad patch around the third book, and Esmay Suiza is no exception, she also has love problems. Her boyfriend does well in this book which will presumably make for a better relationship going forward. He’s a nice guy too, so I approve.
There are various wise old ladies, horses, and some really nasty villains as usual. The mix as before I suppose, but so well done, that it really doesn’t matter.
Definitely one of the best space opera series you can find.
Both are very good books. This one is very well written and also first, so it gets a five rating.
It seems that all space heroes have a bad patch around the third book, and Esmay Suiza is no exception, she also has love problems. Her boyfriend does well in this book which will presumably make for a better relationship going forward. He’s a nice guy too, so I approve.
There are various wise old ladies, horses, and some really nasty villains as usual. The mix as before I suppose, but so well done, that it really doesn’t matter.
Definitely one of the best space opera series you can find.
September 17, 2022
Not as guy-friendly as I prefer my sci-fi to be. Too much talk of pregnancy, giving birth, and breastfeeding.
March 10, 2014
Enjoyed this; working my way through the series again, though I think this was the last one, last time I went through.
Solid 3d characters. Interesting world. Action and politics. My one problem with this book is that the central conceit, around which everything else is based, feels so contrived. Brun, who we like from previous books, is the rich girl taking classes at the elite military academy - without enlisting - to try and gain some real world skills. And we like that about her... but she's still a dilettante. She doesn't get what she wants at one point and throws a major spoiled-brat temper tantrum. Esmay, who we also like from previous books, walked away from a privileged life to devote herself to the military. She's taking two sets of classes, so she's overworked and stressed, so when Brun drops the tantrum - including calling Esmay herself a "cold fish", and more-or-less lying to say that she's slept with Esmay's boyfriend - Esmay tells her she's behaving like a spoiled brat, and should grow up. Which she is, and should.
After which incident everyone in the book, including a lot of Esmay's friends, treat her like she has tortured kittens in public. People make comments like "Wow; I'm glad _I'm_ not your enemy." She gets threatened with discharge from the military for goodness sake. And this isn't one person's reaction, its the universal reaction of every single person who sees the video of the confrontation (which gets out.) It was weird. I actually went back and re-read the section describing the confrontation again, because I was sure I must have missed something. Nope; she pretty much tells the kid behaving like a spoiled brat that she's behaving like a spoiled brat. And for this, everyone brands her as the Flanders Pigeon Murderer, and tries to drum her out of the corps. Its possible their society has different rules, and what she said really was quite awful to them, but we don't really get that from the book. Later, circumstances and backstabbing machinations make everyone's reaction worse, but it just rang a bit hollow because I knew they'd all seen the video of the actual confrontation, which really wasn't bad at all.
However, despite my grumbling, it doesn't take much away from a good tale. It'd be like not liking Lord of the Rings because you thought Sauron putting so much of his power in the ring was silly; all right, maybe the premise feels weak, but the story is good. We get Moon's usual touch for gritty realism informing forensics and battles and rescues in space, with an interesting cast and a deep, well-fleshed-out world.
A word of warning; there are some scenes and topics in this book I found disturbing. Not graphic, nor gratuitous, but skin-crawling all the same. Kidnapping, rape, and slavery all make an appearance.
Solid 3d characters. Interesting world. Action and politics. My one problem with this book is that the central conceit, around which everything else is based, feels so contrived. Brun, who we like from previous books, is the rich girl taking classes at the elite military academy - without enlisting - to try and gain some real world skills. And we like that about her... but she's still a dilettante. She doesn't get what she wants at one point and throws a major spoiled-brat temper tantrum. Esmay, who we also like from previous books, walked away from a privileged life to devote herself to the military. She's taking two sets of classes, so she's overworked and stressed, so when Brun drops the tantrum - including calling Esmay herself a "cold fish", and more-or-less lying to say that she's slept with Esmay's boyfriend - Esmay tells her she's behaving like a spoiled brat, and should grow up. Which she is, and should.
After which incident everyone in the book, including a lot of Esmay's friends, treat her like she has tortured kittens in public. People make comments like "Wow; I'm glad _I'm_ not your enemy." She gets threatened with discharge from the military for goodness sake. And this isn't one person's reaction, its the universal reaction of every single person who sees the video of the confrontation (which gets out.) It was weird. I actually went back and re-read the section describing the confrontation again, because I was sure I must have missed something. Nope; she pretty much tells the kid behaving like a spoiled brat that she's behaving like a spoiled brat. And for this, everyone brands her as the Flanders Pigeon Murderer, and tries to drum her out of the corps. Its possible their society has different rules, and what she said really was quite awful to them, but we don't really get that from the book. Later, circumstances and backstabbing machinations make everyone's reaction worse, but it just rang a bit hollow because I knew they'd all seen the video of the actual confrontation, which really wasn't bad at all.
However, despite my grumbling, it doesn't take much away from a good tale. It'd be like not liking Lord of the Rings because you thought Sauron putting so much of his power in the ring was silly; all right, maybe the premise feels weak, but the story is good. We get Moon's usual touch for gritty realism informing forensics and battles and rescues in space, with an interesting cast and a deep, well-fleshed-out world.
A word of warning; there are some scenes and topics in this book I found disturbing. Not graphic, nor gratuitous, but skin-crawling all the same. Kidnapping, rape, and slavery all make an appearance.
August 22, 2015
This is my least favorite of the Serrano books so far.
Why?
* Brun's character suddenly changes from what it was in the earlier books, becoming very unlikeable in many ways, so that she can be used as a foil for Esmay and argue with her, setting in motion many of the events of the novel.
* I don't believe that Esmay would have let the initial situation () drag on like she did, or that she would have confronted Brun the way she did.
* The "patriarchal religion world" has been done in a lot of books, and done better. This one was uncomfortable without being interesting or novel.
* Trigger warning:
Why?
* Brun's character suddenly changes from what it was in the earlier books, becoming very unlikeable in many ways, so that she can be used as a foil for Esmay and argue with her, setting in motion many of the events of the novel.
* I don't believe that Esmay would have let the initial situation () drag on like she did, or that she would have confronted Brun the way she did.
* The "patriarchal religion world" has been done in a lot of books, and done better. This one was uncomfortable without being interesting or novel.
* Trigger warning:
December 15, 2012
This is the only Serrano book that I consistently skip. It has too many disturbing events for me to stomach. The main character, Brun,
April 10, 2012
Continuing with the Serrano Legacy series. This is the second book following Esmay Suiza.[return][return]After surviving and and refuting a hostile takeover of a spaceship, Esmay is excited to return to school on a command track. It looks like the worst is behind her, and she can become a better officer as a result. She doesn't count on the arrival of the Speaker's daughter, the vibrant and spoiled Brun. Brun latches onto Esmay--just what the overbooked student wants the least--and then starts making moves on Esmay's man. The situation spirals out of control, and after Brun leaves she ends up captive in an impossible situation... one that leaves Esmay disgraced, but ready to come to the rescue yet again.[return][return]I didn't like this book as much as the previous one. The drama wasn't of the space opera variety (not until the end), but more psychological. It was very difficult to read about Brun's situation as captive of a sort of super-future Texan polygamist cult. Esmay's travails were also of a more personal nature, and rather frustrating at times. Most importantly, the major inciting incident of the book didn't feel that horrible to me, because I felt Esmay's sentiments on Brun were quite true.[return][return]In all, an uneven read, but I'm continuing with the next two books in the series.
June 14, 2016
Lower rating than usual because Moon shows her uneducated bias in placing her male brutality religious cult in Old Earth Texas as some offshoot of Christianity - when the real-world reality is that her fictional cult's beliefs and actions match Sharia Law Islam to the letter. Would she dared have placed her men-abusing-women cult in Old Earth Saudi Arabia or Iran?
In general, as a science fiction reader it is always disappointing when otherwise great, intelligent writers show their extreme bias and ignorance regarding Christianity. It really takes this reader completely out of their stories.
I've gone on to the next in the series, "Change of Command," based on Moon's other fine writing qualities of character and plot. I hope she sticks to what she does best - and stays away from what she doesn't know anything about.
In general, as a science fiction reader it is always disappointing when otherwise great, intelligent writers show their extreme bias and ignorance regarding Christianity. It really takes this reader completely out of their stories.
I've gone on to the next in the series, "Change of Command," based on Moon's other fine writing qualities of character and plot. I hope she sticks to what she does best - and stays away from what she doesn't know anything about.
September 15, 2023
This book… I didn’t quit it, but I came damn close after multiple off-page gang rapes, mutilation, torture, etc. Another reviewer described it as “Handsmaid’s Tale meets Branch Davidians” and that seems about right.
There’s also the deeply problematic slut-shaming of two of the three young female characters. And the yucky “oh she took off her glasses and now she’s beautiful!” (Okay it was a new haircut, but still…) in order to “fight for her man” (who liked her just fine as she was before). And the way a bunch of men in power planning a rescue kept ignoring the (theoretically equally powered women) going, “our rescue target will demand agency, not just passive rescue”.
Things redeeming this book from being one star: Esme’s trip home and reconciliation with her (appropriately apologetic) father and the land from which she came, and the final self-rescue by several of the characters.
There’s also the deeply problematic slut-shaming of two of the three young female characters. And the yucky “oh she took off her glasses and now she’s beautiful!” (Okay it was a new haircut, but still…) in order to “fight for her man” (who liked her just fine as she was before). And the way a bunch of men in power planning a rescue kept ignoring the (theoretically equally powered women) going, “our rescue target will demand agency, not just passive rescue”.
Things redeeming this book from being one star: Esme’s trip home and reconciliation with her (appropriately apologetic) father and the land from which she came, and the final self-rescue by several of the characters.
October 14, 2022
Really good, lots of misunderstanding. There are horrors that are sad because they could happen. Loved it, can't wait to read the next book.
October 15, 2022
Review Really good, lots of misunderstanding. There are horrors that are sad because they could happen. Loved it, can't wait to read the next book.
April 18, 2023
I enjoyed this book. Although this is the fifth book in this series, it is the second one telling Esmay's story, and in it we come face to face with some of her flaws and failings. She's not a perfect hero, and her bad judgement call at the start of the story resonates through the book. But we see her face her errors, revise her judgements, and come out of the story a better person.
I generally dislike romance, and when it started to become clear that there was a solid romantic subplot in this book I was a bit disappointed. By the time I was deep into the story, however, I realized that Esmay's love story may actually be the most relatable one I've ever read. "Strong, smart, woman has no clue how to handle falling in love" is apparently my kind of love story.
I have mixed feelings about the antagonists in this book. Elizabeth Moon has a knack for writing horrific bad guys, and it was easy to root against them and everything they stood for. I also appreciate how deeply feminist this book is. Seeing the perspective of characters who believe women can do anything, and who are legitimately confused about people who think differently, is wonderfully refreshing. On the other hand, various women in this series have already gone through a lot of gender based violence and I wasn't really keen to read about more. Rape isn't the only way to develop character, and Moon's other series show she knows this.
I generally dislike romance, and when it started to become clear that there was a solid romantic subplot in this book I was a bit disappointed. By the time I was deep into the story, however, I realized that Esmay's love story may actually be the most relatable one I've ever read. "Strong, smart, woman has no clue how to handle falling in love" is apparently my kind of love story.
I have mixed feelings about the antagonists in this book. Elizabeth Moon has a knack for writing horrific bad guys, and it was easy to root against them and everything they stood for. I also appreciate how deeply feminist this book is. Seeing the perspective of characters who believe women can do anything, and who are legitimately confused about people who think differently, is wonderfully refreshing. On the other hand, various women in this series have already gone through a lot of gender based violence and I wasn't really keen to read about more. Rape isn't the only way to develop character, and Moon's other series show she knows this.
October 1, 2017
I really struggled with this story. Either the author is a Southern bigot, except of course for Texas where she lives, or she couldn't make up her mind which one of the many ethnicities or sects through out the world that are known for raping and impregnating unwilling women to use in this book. There are a lot of these sub human men in the news what with the middle east conflict and the sexual proclivities and anti feminism of many European migrants. I did manage to finish the book but it is far and away the most repulsive book of hers that I have read. The other issue she pounds on is natural birth versus genetically modified humans and she definitely is in favor of playing God and genetically modifying humans probably to weed out those raping Southerners. I gave it a 1 to write this review but it was a waste of time. I don't like to read stories where bigotry is on the main theme.
February 22, 2018
trigger warning: sexual assault, slavery, physical assault
basically i stopped reading this. why would i want to read this? i’m quite angry at the way Moon has destroyed unique unusual women almost systematically throughout this series as though to make a point. it’s not appreciated.
i wanted to read sci fi with female protagonists. i read fiction, science fiction to exercise my imagination and escape the stress of reality. if i wanted to read about sexual slavery i’d have gotten a non-fiction book on the topic. i would not be reading science fiction with female protagonists.
i won’t touch the rest of this series, and may not read any more Moon. wishing i could get a refund.
basically i stopped reading this. why would i want to read this? i’m quite angry at the way Moon has destroyed unique unusual women almost systematically throughout this series as though to make a point. it’s not appreciated.
i wanted to read sci fi with female protagonists. i read fiction, science fiction to exercise my imagination and escape the stress of reality. if i wanted to read about sexual slavery i’d have gotten a non-fiction book on the topic. i would not be reading science fiction with female protagonists.
i won’t touch the rest of this series, and may not read any more Moon. wishing i could get a refund.
November 4, 2014
Esmay and Brun are opposites that could have been the same given different circumstances. I liked the world-building in this one, I liked the kind of young-adult angst that developed between the characters, I liked the escapes and survival techniques. Did not so much like the rapes. Rape rape rape. So much effing rape. Super gratuitous. I flipped past the rape scenes and think most could have been left out.
May 19, 2011
It was this book plus the previous one that made me think that this setting was rape-culture-tastic. It's actually not that bad, but it was a major focus of this book and the one before it.
This one was a bit heavy-handed with the moralizing, plus there was a subplot involving an antagonist that was just ... completely embarrassing/high school/love triangle yuck.
This one was a bit heavy-handed with the moralizing, plus there was a subplot involving an antagonist that was just ... completely embarrassing/high school/love triangle yuck.
November 9, 2014
I enjoyed this book and found it hard to put down. This was an easy read that got me solidly beginning to ask myself what I would do in the character's place. It is a hard one to review without giving away spoilers but I am beginning to see how the author is pushing back against gender stereotypes with these characters. This was a good read.
Mr. Joe
Mr. Joe
December 28, 2017
The first 100 pages were rather boring, but after that things started to happen and then I could not put the book down. Most gripping!
January 5, 2011
This was my intro to Elizabeth Moon's engaging, fast-paced, believable style -- I was hooked! Had to buy the ones that came before, and the ones after. Then Vatta's War ... I want The Speed of Dark. What IS the speed of dark, anyway?
July 15, 2014
A good book that keeps you interested. I enjoyed it and Elizabeth Moon does a good job of sucking you into the story. I found the whole capture and imprisonment hard to read in parts although I couldn't put it down. I'm looking forward to reading the next one.
August 10, 2014
Well, the author redeemed herself with a fine story. She never really answered my previous questions, but the results were more than satisfying, anyway.
January 4, 2015
More rape tropes!!! And the bad guys were absurd stereotypes... Not believable. Yet I kept reading so obviously there's something to this series still.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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February 3, 2021review written 2010
Elizabeth Moon is an author who has successfully managed the transition between being a noted fantasy author and being a noted science fiction author. She joins the ranks of what I consider to be the military sf cadre with her last several novels, the latest and greatest of which is Rules of Engagement. This book is the sequel to Once a Hero, which falls loosely into the same series as Sporting Chance, Hunting Party, etc.
This tale centers around the lives of two young women, Esmay Suiza and Brun Seira. Esmay is a career space navy officer, while Brun is a rather talented, though headstrong, scion of the idle rich. Actually calling all of them idle rich might be a little unfair, as many of their fortunes were acquired the hard way, and some do actually do a little work, in Moon's universe, anyway.
Esmay and Brun could probably learn to be friends, but a misunderstanding sets them at each other's throats. In a fairly predictable fashion, Brun is kidnapped by the space militia and Esmay is the only one who can possibly rescue her, against all odds.
Well, anything Moon writes is a pretty fun read, so I can't complain too much, but I really couldn't get myself too worked up over any of the conflicts in this novel. There was one interesting part, towards the end of the book, when one of the villains of the piece gets his comeuppance and in the process reveals more depth than we'd have ever expected given the characterization of most of the rest of the participants in this space soap opera. Interestingly enough, the only other character to show any real depth was a character "imported" from a previous novel.
Elizabeth Moon is an author who has successfully managed the transition between being a noted fantasy author and being a noted science fiction author. She joins the ranks of what I consider to be the military sf cadre with her last several novels, the latest and greatest of which is Rules of Engagement. This book is the sequel to Once a Hero, which falls loosely into the same series as Sporting Chance, Hunting Party, etc.
This tale centers around the lives of two young women, Esmay Suiza and Brun Seira. Esmay is a career space navy officer, while Brun is a rather talented, though headstrong, scion of the idle rich. Actually calling all of them idle rich might be a little unfair, as many of their fortunes were acquired the hard way, and some do actually do a little work, in Moon's universe, anyway.
Esmay and Brun could probably learn to be friends, but a misunderstanding sets them at each other's throats. In a fairly predictable fashion, Brun is kidnapped by the space militia and Esmay is the only one who can possibly rescue her, against all odds.
Well, anything Moon writes is a pretty fun read, so I can't complain too much, but I really couldn't get myself too worked up over any of the conflicts in this novel. There was one interesting part, towards the end of the book, when one of the villains of the piece gets his comeuppance and in the process reveals more depth than we'd have ever expected given the characterization of most of the rest of the participants in this space soap opera. Interestingly enough, the only other character to show any real depth was a character "imported" from a previous novel.
July 11, 2019
This is the fifth book in the Serrano Legacy by Elizabeth Moon. In this one things seem to finally be going good for Esmay Suiza. Esmay has been convinced of her worth and enters training to be in Command Track and finally in charge of a starship. Esmay may be a fine leader and tactician, but she doesn't know how to handle falling in love with Ensign Barin Serrano, a man she outranks. Frictions in command training school worsen when well-born beauty Brun, daughter of the Speaker of the Familias Regnant, makes a play for Serrano. Esmay's explosion of temper and her secretly recorded spat with Brun blights her career when Brun falls into the hands of the New Texas Godfearing Militia a.k.a. "The Nutex", a murderous, Bible-thumping militia that controls several planets where women are kept down and if they protest are surgically deprived of their voices. The "Nutex" have also grabbed a number of nuclear arms which were stolen from the Regular Space Service of the Familias Regnant and are willing to use them to against anyone they consider a "Heathen", which is pretty much anyone not from their worlds. Multiple storylines cover Esmay's wrestle with her public and private life, Brun's sufferings and determination, the ups and downs of the unwritten rules of command, and eventually a risky rescue mission into a Nutex solar system to save Brun. This book is action packed with many plot twists and turns. Another great read in this series.
April 10, 2019
Esmay has transferred to a command track and goes to Copper Mountain training facility to catch up with all the classes she has not taken. There she meets Brun Maeger, who is taking a few classes as well, but against her father's wishes as there has been an assassination attempt on her. Brun is eager to become friends with Esmay whom she has hero-worshipped, but Esmay's schedule keeps her mostly away from her classmates, including Barin Serrano, whom she is in love with. When Esmay insults Brun after a quarrel, Brun decides to leave. Unfortunately, en route to her destination she makes a bad choice and is captured by religious fanatics. Her father, enraged, blames Brun's predicament on Esmay, and Esmay's command career is in danger of being destroyed before it has even begun.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book - lots of action, good pacing, interesting revelations, and we see Esmay's more vulnerable side as she clumsily attempts to sort out her feelings for Barin while dealing with the sabotage attempts of those who envy her. We also see more of her in the setting of her home planet, dealing with her family, before she is thrown back into action in the rescue of Brun. Esmay's character develops quite a bit here, and it's a treat to watch.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book - lots of action, good pacing, interesting revelations, and we see Esmay's more vulnerable side as she clumsily attempts to sort out her feelings for Barin while dealing with the sabotage attempts of those who envy her. We also see more of her in the setting of her home planet, dealing with her family, before she is thrown back into action in the rescue of Brun. Esmay's character develops quite a bit here, and it's a treat to watch.
May 7, 2021
At first, I thought this tale was confusing with the jumping between characters and locations. But, eventually, it all began to come together. From then on, the pages just flew by.
What begins as a military training school tale and jealousy, etc., eventually turns in to a massacre of a ship's crew and passengers, kidnapping of several individuals, and the fallout of several viewpoints of all previous events.
Meanwhile, our kidnapped folks end up on a planet where men are the final word, and women are definitely second class citizens, pretty much slaves. All this is based on their religious heritage. The powers that be where our main characters are from plan a rescue once they find out where all their citizens are.
People who worry about trigger points may want to avoid this one; rape, kidnapping, widely varying religious viewpoints, mutilation, etc. It's all in context and makes readers think about the issues involved. The title is appropriate when you consider that much of the book is really about rules of all types: military, relationships, religious, traditions, social concourse, etc.
Recommended. Ebook downloadable from Internet Archive, if you have trouble finding a copy.
What begins as a military training school tale and jealousy, etc., eventually turns in to a massacre of a ship's crew and passengers, kidnapping of several individuals, and the fallout of several viewpoints of all previous events.
Meanwhile, our kidnapped folks end up on a planet where men are the final word, and women are definitely second class citizens, pretty much slaves. All this is based on their religious heritage. The powers that be where our main characters are from plan a rescue once they find out where all their citizens are.
People who worry about trigger points may want to avoid this one; rape, kidnapping, widely varying religious viewpoints, mutilation, etc. It's all in context and makes readers think about the issues involved. The title is appropriate when you consider that much of the book is really about rules of all types: military, relationships, religious, traditions, social concourse, etc.
Recommended. Ebook downloadable from Internet Archive, if you have trouble finding a copy.
September 23, 2022
Read straight after once a hero (special 2007 omnibus edition) and it did follow along almost seamlessly, the one miss i would say would be understanding how it was that Barin and Esmay didn’t clarify their relationship prior to her leaving for command school. The author tries to play this off as simply a symptom of Esmay’s inexperience but this doesn’t make sense even from a pure logical standpoint.
My first introduction to Brun who I found to be rather a contradictory character, she was introduced as rather self conscious around Esmay but then became a prickly nuisance. By the end of it I did like her although again I felt her character development wasn’t clearly shown unless these were aspects we had learned about her previously.
I also feel like they walked back Barin’s character as someone that had really understood Esmay to this forced misunderstanding which basically drove the plot.
Still a solid sci fi novel however I don’t feel compelled to read any more of the series
My first introduction to Brun who I found to be rather a contradictory character, she was introduced as rather self conscious around Esmay but then became a prickly nuisance. By the end of it I did like her although again I felt her character development wasn’t clearly shown unless these were aspects we had learned about her previously.
I also feel like they walked back Barin’s character as someone that had really understood Esmay to this forced misunderstanding which basically drove the plot.
Still a solid sci fi novel however I don’t feel compelled to read any more of the series
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