A Dark and Dirty War

By Eric Thomson

A Dark and Dirty War - Eric Thomson
  • Release Date: 2021-07-10
  • Genre: Adventure Sci-Fi
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 101 Ratings

Description

Life hasn't been easy for Siobhan Dunmoore and many of her fellow veterans since the Shrehari War ended.

The Fleet's quick return to a mundane peacetime footing left them unmoored and incapable of fully readapting after years engulfed in an existential struggle. Meanwhile, the memories of all those hard-won lessons, paid for with humanity's dearest blood, are fading as careerists, bureaucrats, and politicians in uniform replace the leaders who brought about the war's end.

Yet an increasing number of senior officers understand true peace is illusory. Without an external threat to unify them as a species, humans have resumed their favorite activity — fighting each other in dark and dirty wars for power, profit, or glory. And this despite the risk of eroding the Commonwealth's delicate social and political balance and triggering violent unrest. Ironically, those best suited for stopping nasty, albeit minor conflicts before they escalate, are the very veterans on which the Fleet turned its back.

Will Siobhan Dunmoore and her comrades find a new role in halting what could become fatal to human unity, or will they fade away, unwanted, while the Commonwealth begins a long slide into civil discord?

Reviews

  • An Excellent Reunion

    5
    By Nicknameless Guy
    Eric Thompson has been my favorite military fiction/space opera writer ever since I was fortunate enough to read the first book in this series for free, courtesy of Apple. In the previous six books of this series the crew of the Stingray and Iolanthe became more than just the supporting characters of Siobhan, they became family, with growth, hopes and dreams of their own, united in their esprit de corps; their fierce loyalty to their beloved skipper. If you, dear reader, have also fallen under the spell of the Dunnmore magic then your heart was undoubtedly as heavy as Siobhan’s knowing that the end of the war also meant the end of her last command. Thankfully for those of us who hoped for more, our wish has been granted. The same corruption that prolonged the Shrehari war is alive and thriving in the peacetime Commonwealth. Her powerful patrons long since retired, Siobahn has been frozen out by the Navy’s leadership and just as it seems her time in uniform is running out a crisis sees her back in action once more. You will see many familiar faces as characters you have come to know and love, dear reader, are reunited to stem the tide of corruption and intrigue that threatens to eventually drag the Commonwealth into “a bloody war and a sickly season”. May you enjoy the ride as much as I. (Review edited for typos because I compulsively re-read my reviews. Sadly there are always typos.)