Against the Tide

This excellent book is the third in the Council Wars series. These books are best read in the correct sequence, which is There will be Dragons Emerald Sea Against the Tide East of the Sun, West of the Moon Arthur C Clarke once wrote that any sufficiently advanced tecnhology is indistinguishable from magic. This story is set several thousand years from now in a world where that is literally true. Just about every creature or artifact ever imaged in human myths or legends, from Avatars to Wyverns, Elves to Orcs, and mermaids to winged humans has been created by technology. (I choose the word "creature" very precisely - the story does not include Gods but by definition Gods are not creatures.) Unfortunately in an earthly paradise of almost perfect luxury most people could not be bothered with the hard work of raising children and so the human race was dying out. Arguments between members of the ruling council over what to do about this eventually resulted in the outbreak of war in the first book of the series, "There will be Dragons." Within moments millions of people were doomed and for most of the rest of humanity their safe and luxurious life was replaced by a cruel, exhausting struggle for existence straight out of the middle ages. At the start of this book the war rages on between the neo fascist "New Destiny" faction based in "Ropasa" (Europe and Asia) and the the Freedom Coalition's main stronghold in the United Free States (America of course) and "New Destiny" is planning a transatlantic invasion which looks like a real threat. Following on from "Emerald Sea" both sides now deploy Dragon carriers, but it is not clear that the Freedom Coalition's admirals really know how to use them. Meanwhile however, New Destiny's leader Paul Bowman has overlooked the fact that his actions have created a threat to his position which is much closer to home. Ringo's recent books have varied from indifferent to excellent, but the Council Wars series is shaping up to be the best thing he has written. Bottom line: if you liked any of the other books in this series, or any of Ringo's "Roger McLintock" books with Dave Weber ("March Upcountry" et seq.) then you will almost certainly like this one.

Not long into it, I decided that this book was my favorite of the series thus far. That is an impression I retained right up until the last page. Then I had second thoughts. I still like it immensely. It still probably my favorite of the series but I was let down by the cliffhanger ending. The story picks up as the bad guys are planning for an invasion. If they manage to pull it off, its all over for the forces of freedom. What stands in the way of the New Destiny (bad guy) forces is Duke Edmund Talbot and his aide, Herzer Herrick. The duke is given command of the naval forces in an attempt to hold off what seems inevitable. As Wellington said, it was a near run thing. Ringo again does a superb job of taking the fantastic and making it seem plausible. The background of his world is a highly advanced society that falls into chaos through a civil war. Before the anarchy, genetic manipulation could let people assume almost any form they wished. Teleportation was literally a wish away. Energy was a problem for no one. After the fall, energy is in short supply and people fall back to a pseudo-medieval state. A few people still have access to high tech but most are stuck with a low tech life. They make due brilliantly. I can almost believe carriers propelled by sails and launching dragons instead of F-14s. The elves and dwarves make sense in this tableau. It's a lot of fun. The only letdown came after the climax. It is a cliffhanger and we are set up for another book. That would not ordinarily be a problem except that I don't want to have to wait for the next book to come out.

John Ringo is having a lot of fun with this series and so is are his readers. This series is an excellent blend of Hard SF, fantasy and military fiction. The author continues to provide groaner puns (such as the SEAL team...), but leaves out the almost traditional Sluggy Freelance reference.

In the distant future, the United Free States felt safe inside its paradise. The UFS avoided war for centuries but spent a fortune on a military deterrent leading to a collective national ego believing that the country had military superiority over everyone. Thus a terrible defeat at sea to the tyrannical enemy New Destiny is a major shock though it should not have been since the UFS was using untrained dragons with sportsmen on a lark against skilled Dragon Carriers. The New Destiny invading force contained more than just Dragon Carrier superiority; other legendary warriors out of myth attacked a shocked nation turning it from a place of waste and plenty to a place of starvation and waste. Desperate to stem a tide that seems heading to certain defeat, the UFS names military genius Edmund Talbot to head the Navy. Stomping on Naval egos (not that defeat to the enemy would ever do that), foot soldier Herzer Herrick is selected to command a critical Dragon Fleet consisting of inexperienced dragons, untrained pilots, and unqualified combat support to go up against a superior in number, highly skilled war tested military machine. This novel is a sequel to THERE WILL BE DRAGONS and EMERALD SEA. AGAINST THE TIDE is military science fiction tale (with fantasy elements) that is well written and the plot can stand alone or follow the previous well written tales. The strong story line hooks the audience with plenty of action (much more than described above), terrific characters including a neat romance, and a fascinating differing historical perspective on real events. John Ringo provides a fantastic tale that will elate sub-genre readers, but also fascinate historiographers with the thought provoking look at history. Harriet Klausner

I really think Ringo has matured as a writer. His last two solo books, Emerald Seas and Against the Tide, have been multi-dimensional, subtle, deep, and ... FUN! The book's initial premise is that now the nano-tech modified strong-but-dumb forces of the tyrannical council faction headed by Paul Bowman have a real admiral, a real fleet, and real dragon-carriers. And now Duke Edmund and Herzer Herrick are in a bit of a tight spot, after the yacht-club-trained new aristocratic admiralty has lost most of the fleet, and all of the sea advantage, Edmund built up in Emerald Seas. Hmmm, there might be some parallels with certain current politico-military establishments in recent history *grin*. Along the way of attempting to deal with this little crisis, we get to see what happens to Paul Bowman in his relationship with his beautiful "slave" Megan ... and meet silkies ... and fly with a "fallen angel" ... and meet true highlanders ... and so many other great and beautiful things that I must refrain from speaking so as to avoid spoiling things for the reader. A new depth of political satire, particular of "political admirals and generals", a great and novel space-twisting invasion, more great characters, and Ringo's uniquely visceral battles, all combine to make this book what I predict will be one of the best novels of 2005.