By Force of Arms (Legion of the Damned)

By Force of Arms, in my opinion, brings a return of vitality to the Legion of the Damned series - a series, I might add, that is not officially identified as a series. I think that is an important point to keep in mind, for this fourth novel (following Legion of the Damned, The Final Battle, and By Blood Alone) does continue a shift in focus from the original concept of "dead" men and women being resuscitated in the form of bimetallic cyborgs to a more political, diplomatic, yet still military foundation. I think this novel is almost as good as Legion of the Damned, but I'm not sure the two should even be compared. That being said, there are a few minor issues that keep me from giving the book five stars, but Dietz provides some masterful futuristic warfare in this exciting exploration of the future of the Confederacy of Sentient Beings.For the first time in the "series," the action follows quickly on the heels of the previous novel (By Blood Alone), and William Booley III rather than a next generation Booley retains his position of leadership in the new crisis facing the Confederacy. In the last novel, a new race of aliens, the Thraki, entered Confederate space, and thanks to a constant state of duplicity and posturing in the Confederate ranks, took up residence on a planet under the protection of the Clone Hegemony. The Hegemony originally hoped to use the Thraki, with its immense fleet, as an ace in the hole protecting their flank as they conspired to topple the Earth government and gain power for the secret interplanetary cabal they had secretly joined. The Thraki, in turn, hoped to use the Hegemony and, indeed, the whole Confederacy, as a massive shield against their pursuing enemies, the Sheen. The mutiny now put down and the balance of power restored in the Confederacy, the league of alien planets finds itself between a rock and a hard place, as both the Thraki and the technological Sheen boast military resources they cannot match on their own. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and former President Sergei Chien-Chu has a plan many view as reckless and more than desperate. The Hudathans, who killed untold numbers of beings among Confederacy planets, have been "imprisoned" on their own home world ever since the end of the second Hudathan war, yet their military assets and significant population of renowned warriors could serve to aid the Confederacy in its current crisis. All of this eventually leads to an almost unrecognizable military force led by now-General Bill Booley III and made up of disparate, oftentimes antagonistic soldiers working together for the first time.The Thraki - Sheen side of the story has its weaknesses and, at times, seems downright silly, and the eventual conclusion of the novel does leave something to be desired, but the bulk of the story is fresh and exciting, and the descriptions of the new Confederate military in action make for some of the most exhilarating (and sometimes quite humorous) acco

The first two books about the legion was very heavy on the cyborgs. I liked the style in which Dietz told the transformation from human to cyborg. Now the last two books have been more political than HC-scfi fi!

Dietz's Legionnaire series is top notch, and By Force of Arms is a great addition to the series. His writing is effective and captivating. But one thing...gotta get a proof reader! There are dozens of grammatical and surface errors that occasionally detract from the reading. Other than that and the tidy ending, it's a great book. Bring on the Ramanthians!