thearbiter89's review against another edition
4.0
The Accidental War is a promising start to a new trilogy of Walter Jon William's criminally underrated Praxis series of sf space operas.
A little nostalgic bias here - The Praxis novels were a big part of my teenage years and were seminal books in development as a science fiction fan. They hinged on an interesting premise - military sf told from the perspective of aristocrats who rule over a galactic empire established by blood and ruled by an unshakeable, hierarchical political system known as the Praxis.
But, far from being a simple, evil-empire-decrying morality tale, the original Praxis novels told a story of two brilliant military heroes - Gareth Martinez and Caroline Sula - fighting for survival and glory in the midst of a succession crisis brought about by the demise of the empire's alien masters. Thrilling, unexpectedly comic, yet suffused with a subtle cynicism, the books constructed an implicit thesis for the shortcomings of an inflexible, tradition-bound system of power, while not condemning its ethical shortcomings.
Years after the conclusion of that saga, The Accidental War came along, to my great surprise and pleasure. Reading it brought back memories of fictitious events that I was surprised to have retained so strongly in the back of my mind, yet The Accidental War seeks to update the Praxis for a post-2008 universe. If the first series was about the succession crisis in the aftermath of a power vacuum, the second seems to be shaping up to be a story of in-out species tribalism arising from an economic collapse, with humanity as the out-group - a kind of combination of post-depression Weimar Germany and post-2016 US politics, if you will. In this series, it is the backwardness and ossification arising from the long incumbency of extant power structures that leads to the whole edifice toppling down, rigid and unable to bend to the winds of changing times.
For the reader who is in this for the series' signature gritty, realistic (sounding) space battles full of g-forces and tricks of orbital mechanics, the beginning of the book can seem rather slow, as Williams slowly assembles and arranges the component pieces to set up the crisis that will lead to the emerging civil war. Much of it has to do with political and economic posturing in the halls of power, punctuated by the kind of snobbish class-based politics of inclusion and exclusion that would not seem out of place in a Regency novel - slow as they might be, they are fascinating insofar as they represent William's effort to create a science-fictional allegory of our times.
But then, near the end-third of the book, the space battles start to come to the fore and Martinez, whom I had rooted for so hard in the first series, starts to display his unique brand of tactical brilliance, and in so doing helps usher in the unfolding conflict between humanity and the rest of the empire.
Given the quality of this first entry, I have every confidence that the next few books will continue, in typical stellar fashion, the stories of Martinez and Sula for a more cynical age.
I give this: 4 out of 5 congratulation rounds from "Lord Fizz Takes A Holiday'
A little nostalgic bias here - The Praxis novels were a big part of my teenage years and were seminal books in development as a science fiction fan. They hinged on an interesting premise - military sf told from the perspective of aristocrats who rule over a galactic empire established by blood and ruled by an unshakeable, hierarchical political system known as the Praxis.
But, far from being a simple, evil-empire-decrying morality tale, the original Praxis novels told a story of two brilliant military heroes - Gareth Martinez and Caroline Sula - fighting for survival and glory in the midst of a succession crisis brought about by the demise of the empire's alien masters. Thrilling, unexpectedly comic, yet suffused with a subtle cynicism, the books constructed an implicit thesis for the shortcomings of an inflexible, tradition-bound system of power, while not condemning its ethical shortcomings.
Years after the conclusion of that saga, The Accidental War came along, to my great surprise and pleasure. Reading it brought back memories of fictitious events that I was surprised to have retained so strongly in the back of my mind, yet The Accidental War seeks to update the Praxis for a post-2008 universe. If the first series was about the succession crisis in the aftermath of a power vacuum, the second seems to be shaping up to be a story of in-out species tribalism arising from an economic collapse, with humanity as the out-group - a kind of combination of post-depression Weimar Germany and post-2016 US politics, if you will. In this series, it is the backwardness and ossification arising from the long incumbency of extant power structures that leads to the whole edifice toppling down, rigid and unable to bend to the winds of changing times.
For the reader who is in this for the series' signature gritty, realistic (sounding) space battles full of g-forces and tricks of orbital mechanics, the beginning of the book can seem rather slow, as Williams slowly assembles and arranges the component pieces to set up the crisis that will lead to the emerging civil war. Much of it has to do with political and economic posturing in the halls of power, punctuated by the kind of snobbish class-based politics of inclusion and exclusion that would not seem out of place in a Regency novel - slow as they might be, they are fascinating insofar as they represent William's effort to create a science-fictional allegory of our times.
But then, near the end-third of the book, the space battles start to come to the fore and Martinez, whom I had rooted for so hard in the first series, starts to display his unique brand of tactical brilliance, and in so doing helps usher in the unfolding conflict between humanity and the rest of the empire.
Given the quality of this first entry, I have every confidence that the next few books will continue, in typical stellar fashion, the stories of Martinez and Sula for a more cynical age.
I give this: 4 out of 5 congratulation rounds from "Lord Fizz Takes A Holiday'
duehok's review against another edition
4.0
The covers lies, this is not mil-SF. Some economics, short enough for those who don't like it, long enough for the others (and the parallels with the real worlds are unsettling). Interesting secondary characters. Subtext about how normalising and incentivizing war crimes done on others might end up with war crimes done to yourself.
The Sula character would have been too much of an hypercompetent author's pet if her hypercompetence did not screw everything up. But it did, so that's Ok I guess?
I might add a fifth star if the sequel is good too.
The Sula character would have been too much of an hypercompetent author's pet if her hypercompetence did not screw everything up. But it did, so that's Ok I guess?
I might add a fifth star if the sequel is good too.
jontia's review against another edition
3.0
Not fantastic. But will see how rest of this second series goes.
tasadion's review against another edition
3.0
This series is space opera, with all the trimmings. This book however gets a bit caught up with a setup work for a new war, putting the piece in the right places, and so becomes a little caught up in the heavy lifting of plot, with not enough space battles, where the real strengths lie.
The characters are morally ambiguous, which is nice, but all too often they seem to find quick technical solutions to every problem, which can get a little repetitive.
Certainly my favourite offering from WJW (not a fan of the Dagmar series) and will definitely read the next book.
The characters are morally ambiguous, which is nice, but all too often they seem to find quick technical solutions to every problem, which can get a little repetitive.
Certainly my favourite offering from WJW (not a fan of the Dagmar series) and will definitely read the next book.
tome15's review against another edition
4.0
Williams, Walter Jon. Accidental War. Dread Empire’s Fall No. 4. Harper, 2018.
Like Peter F. Hamilton, Walter Jon Williams is a science fiction writer whose forte is world-building. I missed the first trilogy and short fiction in this series, which began in 2002 and has not had a major addition since 2005. The Dread Empire World reminds me somewhat of the world in the Vorkosigan saga that has defined the career of Lois McMaster Bujold; it also resembles the monarchy in David Weber’s Honor Harrington series. It describes a complex space-faring society of multiple cultures and species that are kept in uneasy equilibrium by strict social hierarchies and codes of honor. Caught in the middle of all this are two frenemies, a warship captain, Caroline Sula, and Gareth Martinez, a merchant prince. They are fiercely competitive with each other but thrown together to fight common enemies. Williams does a good job of describing the tactics and technologies of his space battles, and he keeps the action bubbling along. I look forward to the next installment.
Like Peter F. Hamilton, Walter Jon Williams is a science fiction writer whose forte is world-building. I missed the first trilogy and short fiction in this series, which began in 2002 and has not had a major addition since 2005. The Dread Empire World reminds me somewhat of the world in the Vorkosigan saga that has defined the career of Lois McMaster Bujold; it also resembles the monarchy in David Weber’s Honor Harrington series. It describes a complex space-faring society of multiple cultures and species that are kept in uneasy equilibrium by strict social hierarchies and codes of honor. Caught in the middle of all this are two frenemies, a warship captain, Caroline Sula, and Gareth Martinez, a merchant prince. They are fiercely competitive with each other but thrown together to fight common enemies. Williams does a good job of describing the tactics and technologies of his space battles, and he keeps the action bubbling along. I look forward to the next installment.
jvilches's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Pure space opera - happy to be back in this series.
eisn's review against another edition
2.0
This really shouldn't be marketed as a military SF book because those elements are very very in the minority.
Seriously. Compared to the previous trilogy so far there has been no fleet engagement.
It brings no new things to the world of Praxis with the exception of a bunch of very two dimensional characters. The villains have become caricature villains with a Supreme Fleet Commander that whines about innovation and progress 7 years after he won his big battle. The only way the author can make him more of a caricature is to make him kick a puppy. He probably saved that for the next book.
It's a shame because the world at large in the Praxis universe is entertaining and has really lots of potential in exploring.
Seriously. Compared to the previous trilogy so far there has been no fleet engagement.
It brings no new things to the world of Praxis with the exception of a bunch of very two dimensional characters. The villains have become caricature villains with a Supreme Fleet Commander that whines about innovation and progress 7 years after he won his big battle. The only way the author can make him more of a caricature is to make him kick a puppy. He probably saved that for the next book.
It's a shame because the world at large in the Praxis universe is entertaining and has really lots of potential in exploring.
shl1980's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
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