Scan barcode
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
Third in the Emberverse science fiction dystopian series of an alternative history for the world and revolving around the survivors of an EMP.
It's 2008, and it's been seven months since The Protector's War, 2.
My Take
Oh. My. God. Make sure you have a TON of tissues before you finish this. I cried great gulping buckets. Even now, just thinking about it has me breaking into tears. A neighbor showed up at my door and was surprised by how much I was crying. Fortunately, she's a reader, so she understood completely. And I really don't see why Stirling had to end it like this. Maybe it'll make more sense in the next story, The Sunrise Lands.
Jesus, after what the Protector planned for the Lorings and company and what he did do to the Pride of St. Helens captain, he's got a nerve thinking he's entitled to the ship.
It's a world where someone who knows basic skills like farming, gardening, hunting, crafts, engineering, working with mechanical wonders is a treasure. It's a world where most people work for someone else in exchange for food, shelter, and protection. Many hope to save up a small stake so they can afford to stock their own farms. When someone like Sam comes along, the situation makes you appreciate a good teacher (and lord) as he explains how and why he's doing what he's doing for the farm. Which reminds me of a curious thought I've had: how do you determine how much wheat, vegetables, meats, etc., a family needs when you have to produce it all yourself and not rely on driving to the store?
I am surprised that the Mackenzies don't have scouts out around Dun Juniper after events in The Protector's War. If ever there was a lesson in ambushes on friendly territory!
Oh, lol, I did like Mike's summing up of Jeff Wereton's parental origins. Then he sums up Arminger and the whole Association set-up. You'll laugh. Then there's Nigel and how sweet was the task that kept him at Dun Juniper!
I like the surprises Mount Angel has in store. I've always coveted my own hidden passage after growing up with Nancy Drew and The Hidden Staircase. Then there are the plans Stirling has in store for young Rudi as well, the way he's going on about him. And how much his enemies are admiring him. A Meeting at Corvallis provides a number of useful experiences for Rudi in how to govern a people and comparing the ruling styles of the Protectorate with his mother's and Uncle Mike's.
It's rather funny how the Protectorate Church demonizes the Mackenzies and brings back the "old" prejudices against gays and people not of the state religion.
Jesus. Juney talks about loosing 130,000 arrows in one 10-minute attack, and that the Mackenzies have more. Enough more that those 130k arrows are nothing.
For obvious reasons, I've hated Tiphaine. And, I've had to revise that hate when I see the changes she makes in her new demense. If only more of the so-called lords had behaved this way… It also seems that she doesn't like the Lord Protector's policies, although she is loyal to Sandra. Well, no one said Tiphaine was a stupid woman.
Oh, boy. Books must be in worse shape than I thought as Rudi talks about how much he loves Donan Coyle.
There are some major battles in this: plenty of action with good tactics, handy weapons, and some useful ambushes. The one at the end is quite decisive and had damn well better be worth it!
The Story
The Protector has been having a bad spring with too many setbacks, and it's all the fault of those Englishmen, the Bearkillers, and the Mackenzies.
Juney, on the other hand, is ticked that people are impugning the honor of the Clan by mistreating Matti.
Pro-Protectorate Corvallans are about to sell the city out to the enemy in exchange for being a charter city. How long that would last is anyone's guess. They're also much too supportive of this new concept of a "select militia". It says something that Mike is against it as he's so angry about constantly being the buffer for Corvallis.
The Characters
This is a very abbreviated list due to space constraints. For a full list, see my review which is scheduled to be posted on February 25, 2015, on my blog at KD Did It Takes on Books.
CLAN MACKENZIE
Dun Juniper is…
…HQ for the Mackenzies and home to Juniper Mackenzie, the Wiccan Priestess of the Goddess and the Chief of Clan Mackenzie. The core group of the Clan were friends and/or fellow members of the Singing Moon coven. Rudi Mackenzie is her heir, her son, and the now-acknowledged son of Mike Havel. He's also Matti's friend. Epona is the wild horse who took to Rudi in The Protector's War. Saladin is Matti's unfriendly cat. Old Cuchulain sired puppies: Ulf and Fenra.
Chuck Barstow is the Clan's Second Armsman, the High Priest for the Dun, and Lord of the Harvest. Judy Barstow is his wife, a registered nurse, and High Priestess. And she hates Matti. Aoife Barstow (the former Mary) and Daniel Barstow are what's left of their fostered children, the ones rescued from the schoolbus; they are Rudi and Matti's bodyguards. The third one, Sanjay Barstow, died in the raid in The Protector's War. Liath Dunling (she used to be Jeanette and is Melissa's niece) is Aoife's romantic partner.
Colonel Sir Nigel Loring (he was with the SAS for 22 years) wears a kilt these days. Makes sense since he's engaged to Juniper. His son, Alleyne, who had been a re-creationist before the Change, is keeping company with Astrid, and Sergeant "Little" John Hordle, who's keeping company with Eilir, are the Englishmen who escaped King Charles III and thwarted the Protector in The Protector's War.
Dun Fairfax was…
…the Fairfaxes' farm before they died when their insulin ran out. Now Sam Aylward, a.k.a., Aylward the Archer, a former SAS who was hiking through Oregon when the EMP hit, is its lord. He's also the Clan's First Armsman due to his archery skill and his greater skill at building bows.
THE BEARKILLERS IN LARSDALEN ARE…
…a mercenary group, a.k.a., the Outfit, that Mike Havel, a former Force Recon Marine who was a pilot when the EMP hit, assembled, protected, and taught until they got to the Larssons' farm. Now he's Lord Bear and married to Signe. They have two twin daughters, Mary and Ritva, and Mike Jr., their son. Eric Larsson and Luanne Hutton are married. Billy is their oldest; Ken is another son. Ken Larsson, their father, was a CEO and engineer back in the day. Today he's re-inventing the wheel and married to Pam, a vet and the swordmistress. They have two children as well. Will Hutton was a horse wrangler pre-Change, and now he's Mike's left-hand man; Angelica is his wife and handles logistics.
Dúnedain Rangers are…
…a newly formed troop of the younger ones (each Ranger must know Sign and Sindarin) and led by the very skilled and virginal Astrid Larsson, Ken's youngest daughter, along with her soul-sister, Eilir, Juniper's deaf daughter. Astrid has an obsession with everything Lord of the Ring. Asfaloth is Astrid's horse and Celebroch is Eilir's.
MOUNT ANGEL IS…
…the Benedictine abbey where Abbot-Bishop Dmwoski leads. His horse is Sobieski. The Bearkillers follow him for their religious leanings. Father Andrew is one of his. Father Plank is the prior. Sister Antonia is geared up for war.
CORVALLIS IS…
…Oregon State University with their Faculty of Economics the steering committee. They're split between those wanting to placate the Protectorate and those who don't trust 'em. Their primary goal is to maintain the school's teaching functions and not let knowledge die out. Thomas Franks is their president.
Major Peter Jones leads their militia and is inclined toward the Bearkillers and Mackenzies. Pre-Change, he'd been a Society fighter and teaching assistant in the Faculty of Agriculture. Nancy is his wife, and they have kids as well. He'll end up leading the First Corvallis Volunteers with Edward Finney. Seems there's a loophole in the Corvallis charter.
THE PORTLAND PROTECTORATE ASSOCIATION ENCOMPASSES…
…Portland and its surrounding area. But it's not enough for The Protector, the former history professor, Norman Arminger, who has been influenced by the Norman duchy and its offshoots from Ireland to Sicily and the Crusaders. He's absorbed many of the members of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA), now called the Society (his Society name was Blackthorn of Malmsey), and many gang members. Princess Mathilda, a.k.a., Matti, is his and Lady Sandra's daughter currently held hostage by the Mackenzies. Conrad Renfrew is the Grand Constable, Count of Odell, and Marchwarden of the East. His wife is the Lady Tina. Sir Buzz Akers is one of the Constable's own vassals. Sir Richard Furness had been a combat engineer in the National Guard. Sir Malcolm, Baron Timmins' son, seems intelligent and ambitious.
Domain of Ath is…
…the reward Tiphaine receives at the end of her successful mission.
The Cover and Title
The cover features Michael Havel in his chainmail holding his war ax, standing front and center with the battered skyline of Portland behind him. A team of horses is pulling a converted vehicle behind him on the left.
The title is a term in the treaty: A Meeting at Corvallis.
It's 2008, and it's been seven months since The Protector's War, 2.
My Take
Oh. My. God. Make sure you have a TON of tissues before you finish this. I cried great gulping buckets. Even now, just thinking about it has me breaking into tears. A neighbor showed up at my door and was surprised by how much I was crying. Fortunately, she's a reader, so she understood completely. And I really don't see why Stirling had to end it like this. Maybe it'll make more sense in the next story, The Sunrise Lands.
Jesus, after what the Protector planned for the Lorings and company and what he did do to the Pride of St. Helens captain, he's got a nerve thinking he's entitled to the ship.
It's a world where someone who knows basic skills like farming, gardening, hunting, crafts, engineering, working with mechanical wonders is a treasure. It's a world where most people work for someone else in exchange for food, shelter, and protection. Many hope to save up a small stake so they can afford to stock their own farms. When someone like Sam comes along, the situation makes you appreciate a good teacher (and lord) as he explains how and why he's doing what he's doing for the farm. Which reminds me of a curious thought I've had: how do you determine how much wheat, vegetables, meats, etc., a family needs when you have to produce it all yourself and not rely on driving to the store?
I am surprised that the Mackenzies don't have scouts out around Dun Juniper after events in The Protector's War. If ever there was a lesson in ambushes on friendly territory!
Oh, lol, I did like Mike's summing up of Jeff Wereton's parental origins. Then he sums up Arminger and the whole Association set-up. You'll laugh. Then there's Nigel and how sweet was the task that kept him at Dun Juniper!
I like the surprises Mount Angel has in store. I've always coveted my own hidden passage after growing up with Nancy Drew and The Hidden Staircase. Then there are the plans Stirling has in store for young Rudi as well, the way he's going on about him. And how much his enemies are admiring him. A Meeting at Corvallis provides a number of useful experiences for Rudi in how to govern a people and comparing the ruling styles of the Protectorate with his mother's and Uncle Mike's.
It's rather funny how the Protectorate Church demonizes the Mackenzies and brings back the "old" prejudices against gays and people not of the state religion.
Jesus. Juney talks about loosing 130,000 arrows in one 10-minute attack, and that the Mackenzies have more. Enough more that those 130k arrows are nothing.
For obvious reasons, I've hated Tiphaine. And, I've had to revise that hate when I see the changes she makes in her new demense. If only more of the so-called lords had behaved this way… It also seems that she doesn't like the Lord Protector's policies, although she is loyal to Sandra. Well, no one said Tiphaine was a stupid woman.
Oh, boy. Books must be in worse shape than I thought as Rudi talks about how much he loves Donan Coyle.
There are some major battles in this: plenty of action with good tactics, handy weapons, and some useful ambushes. The one at the end is quite decisive and had damn well better be worth it!
The Story
The Protector has been having a bad spring with too many setbacks, and it's all the fault of those Englishmen, the Bearkillers, and the Mackenzies.
Juney, on the other hand, is ticked that people are impugning the honor of the Clan by mistreating Matti.
Pro-Protectorate Corvallans are about to sell the city out to the enemy in exchange for being a charter city. How long that would last is anyone's guess. They're also much too supportive of this new concept of a "select militia". It says something that Mike is against it as he's so angry about constantly being the buffer for Corvallis.
The Characters
This is a very abbreviated list due to space constraints. For a full list, see my review which is scheduled to be posted on February 25, 2015, on my blog at KD Did It Takes on Books.
CLAN MACKENZIE
Dun Juniper is…
…HQ for the Mackenzies and home to Juniper Mackenzie, the Wiccan Priestess of the Goddess and the Chief of Clan Mackenzie. The core group of the Clan were friends and/or fellow members of the Singing Moon coven. Rudi Mackenzie is her heir, her son, and the now-acknowledged son of Mike Havel. He's also Matti's friend. Epona is the wild horse who took to Rudi in The Protector's War. Saladin is Matti's unfriendly cat. Old Cuchulain sired puppies: Ulf and Fenra.
Chuck Barstow is the Clan's Second Armsman, the High Priest for the Dun, and Lord of the Harvest. Judy Barstow is his wife, a registered nurse, and High Priestess. And she hates Matti. Aoife Barstow (the former Mary) and Daniel Barstow are what's left of their fostered children, the ones rescued from the schoolbus; they are Rudi and Matti's bodyguards. The third one, Sanjay Barstow, died in the raid in The Protector's War. Liath Dunling (she used to be Jeanette and is Melissa's niece) is Aoife's romantic partner.
Colonel Sir Nigel Loring (he was with the SAS for 22 years) wears a kilt these days. Makes sense since he's engaged to Juniper. His son, Alleyne, who had been a re-creationist before the Change, is keeping company with Astrid, and Sergeant "Little" John Hordle, who's keeping company with Eilir, are the Englishmen who escaped King Charles III and thwarted the Protector in The Protector's War.
Dun Fairfax was…
…the Fairfaxes' farm before they died when their insulin ran out. Now Sam Aylward, a.k.a., Aylward the Archer, a former SAS who was hiking through Oregon when the EMP hit, is its lord. He's also the Clan's First Armsman due to his archery skill and his greater skill at building bows.
THE BEARKILLERS IN LARSDALEN ARE…
…a mercenary group, a.k.a., the Outfit, that Mike Havel, a former Force Recon Marine who was a pilot when the EMP hit, assembled, protected, and taught until they got to the Larssons' farm. Now he's Lord Bear and married to Signe. They have two twin daughters, Mary and Ritva, and Mike Jr., their son. Eric Larsson and Luanne Hutton are married. Billy is their oldest; Ken is another son. Ken Larsson, their father, was a CEO and engineer back in the day. Today he's re-inventing the wheel and married to Pam, a vet and the swordmistress. They have two children as well. Will Hutton was a horse wrangler pre-Change, and now he's Mike's left-hand man; Angelica is his wife and handles logistics.
Dúnedain Rangers are…
…a newly formed troop of the younger ones (each Ranger must know Sign and Sindarin) and led by the very skilled and virginal Astrid Larsson, Ken's youngest daughter, along with her soul-sister, Eilir, Juniper's deaf daughter. Astrid has an obsession with everything Lord of the Ring. Asfaloth is Astrid's horse and Celebroch is Eilir's.
MOUNT ANGEL IS…
…the Benedictine abbey where Abbot-Bishop Dmwoski leads. His horse is Sobieski. The Bearkillers follow him for their religious leanings. Father Andrew is one of his. Father Plank is the prior. Sister Antonia is geared up for war.
CORVALLIS IS…
…Oregon State University with their Faculty of Economics the steering committee. They're split between those wanting to placate the Protectorate and those who don't trust 'em. Their primary goal is to maintain the school's teaching functions and not let knowledge die out. Thomas Franks is their president.
Major Peter Jones leads their militia and is inclined toward the Bearkillers and Mackenzies. Pre-Change, he'd been a Society fighter and teaching assistant in the Faculty of Agriculture. Nancy is his wife, and they have kids as well. He'll end up leading the First Corvallis Volunteers with Edward Finney. Seems there's a loophole in the Corvallis charter.
THE PORTLAND PROTECTORATE ASSOCIATION ENCOMPASSES…
…Portland and its surrounding area. But it's not enough for The Protector, the former history professor, Norman Arminger, who has been influenced by the Norman duchy and its offshoots from Ireland to Sicily and the Crusaders. He's absorbed many of the members of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA), now called the Society (his Society name was Blackthorn of Malmsey), and many gang members. Princess Mathilda, a.k.a., Matti, is his and Lady Sandra's daughter currently held hostage by the Mackenzies. Conrad Renfrew is the Grand Constable, Count of Odell, and Marchwarden of the East. His wife is the Lady Tina. Sir Buzz Akers is one of the Constable's own vassals. Sir Richard Furness had been a combat engineer in the National Guard. Sir Malcolm, Baron Timmins' son, seems intelligent and ambitious.
Domain of Ath is…
…the reward Tiphaine receives at the end of her successful mission.
The Cover and Title
The cover features Michael Havel in his chainmail holding his war ax, standing front and center with the battered skyline of Portland behind him. A team of horses is pulling a converted vehicle behind him on the left.
The title is a term in the treaty: A Meeting at Corvallis.
badseedgirl's review against another edition
4.0
Mr. S.M. Stirling, has finally with his third novel in the “Emberverse” series A Meeting At Corvallis, written a novel of the apocalyptic end of the world that no longer holds the faint roasted turkey leg whiff of a Medieval Renaissance festival gone horribly wrong. The setting of this current novel occurs almost 10 years after “The Change”.
Mr. Stirling finally delivered the war promised by his second novel The Protector’s War. He handles this war with a tone much more serious and with a tone much more focused, and it works somehow. The Almost unnatural luck of the characters from this series finally comes to an end with the death of two of the major characters. But beyond that, this novel truly feels like the end of the story for the survivors of “The Change”. I suspect that from this point on the focus of the novels will be on the younger generations, those born after the change or who were too young to remember life from before.
I have to admit that I did not take the first couple of novels in this highly entertaining, but to be frank “light weight” series too seriously. The premise, that some unknown entity, be it aliens or God, both of which have been mentioned in the series as possible causes, in a flash of painful light caused all internal combustion to cease working. Now I am not a Physicist and I don’t need all the amateur and professional Physicists out there trying to explain to me why this premise is not possible. It is called “Suspension of Belief”. Get on board people! But even I found all the “Middle Earth”, Renaissance nonsense was just too much. How could anyone take seriously an evil villain who takes “The Littlest Eye” from The Lord Of The Rings as his symbol of power?
All that changed with this third book. The tone gets more serious, and with the onset of real war among the survivors the action feels more “real” and life-threatening. Not to say that these novels will ever win awards or be anything more than an entertaining distraction, but when I read A Meeting at Corvallis, I did not feel like I should be putting on my “One Ring to Rule Them” tee-shirt and my hobbit feet from four Halloweens ago!
A solid 3.5 stars of 5
Mr. Stirling finally delivered the war promised by his second novel The Protector’s War. He handles this war with a tone much more serious and with a tone much more focused, and it works somehow. The Almost unnatural luck of the characters from this series finally comes to an end with the death of two of the major characters. But beyond that, this novel truly feels like the end of the story for the survivors of “The Change”. I suspect that from this point on the focus of the novels will be on the younger generations, those born after the change or who were too young to remember life from before.
I have to admit that I did not take the first couple of novels in this highly entertaining, but to be frank “light weight” series too seriously. The premise, that some unknown entity, be it aliens or God, both of which have been mentioned in the series as possible causes, in a flash of painful light caused all internal combustion to cease working. Now I am not a Physicist and I don’t need all the amateur and professional Physicists out there trying to explain to me why this premise is not possible. It is called “Suspension of Belief”. Get on board people! But even I found all the “Middle Earth”, Renaissance nonsense was just too much. How could anyone take seriously an evil villain who takes “The Littlest Eye” from The Lord Of The Rings as his symbol of power?
All that changed with this third book. The tone gets more serious, and with the onset of real war among the survivors the action feels more “real” and life-threatening. Not to say that these novels will ever win awards or be anything more than an entertaining distraction, but when I read A Meeting at Corvallis, I did not feel like I should be putting on my “One Ring to Rule Them” tee-shirt and my hobbit feet from four Halloweens ago!
A solid 3.5 stars of 5
ogreart's review against another edition
5.0
I love the characters. Followed them from pre-Change tot "present day." I find them engaging and interesting. There is a bit of slippage into fantasy here and there, and I believe that is intentional. This was the climactic book of the original trilogy. What an ending!
orcaseatingstrawberries's review against another edition
2.0
I realized that, at least within the good guys, Mike and Juney are rather Gary Stu and Mary Sue. Rudi is being written the same way . . . Matti sort of as well, there's is token or slapped on veneer occasionally of flaw, but not really.
jmercury's review against another edition
5.0
Deliciously satisfying ending. Wonderful character development, smooth plot, tearjerker moments, and shock and awe.
raevynskyye's review against another edition
3.0
This book takes place almost immediately after The Protectors War, and deals with the consequences of decisions made by the characters in the previous book.
eishe's review against another edition
4.0
A fitting end to the first trilogy, S.M. Stirling has pulled out all the stops. It suffers from some initial pacing issues, just like The Protector's War did, but the second half of the book more than makes up for it.
netgyrl's review
4.0
Oct2021 - 2nd listen
Even though I know how it ends, it still made me tear up. Such a good book. Moving right on to the next one.
-----------------------
Oct2013 - 1st Listen
Wow. What an ending to this first trilogy! I admit I cried. I think the next 3 start 10 years after the end of book 3. I'm taking a breather for a bit to clear my palate but will definitely be reading/listening to the next 3.
Even though I know how it ends, it still made me tear up. Such a good book. Moving right on to the next one.
-----------------------
Oct2013 - 1st Listen
Wow. What an ending to this first trilogy! I admit I cried. I think the next 3 start 10 years after the end of book 3. I'm taking a breather for a bit to clear my palate but will definitely be reading/listening to the next 3.
shai3d's review against another edition
3.0
War has finally come between the Protectorate and the rest of the free people in the Willamette Valley. For my personal taste there was a bit too much about the battle plans. There was still quite a lot about the people involved however which redeemed this book in my eyes.
While this wasn't my favorite book in the trilogy, I am still looking forward to listening to the next trilogy.
While this wasn't my favorite book in the trilogy, I am still looking forward to listening to the next trilogy.