The Pleidians were vastly more advanced than Earth. Yet, now they were tremendously indebted to the USS Hamilton and specifically, it’s commander, Captain Galvin Quintos. So, while the several battle damage USS Hamilton had been left in the Pleidian system since it was unable to make the trip to Earth, the Pleidians took it upon themselves to restore, improve and enhance this once aged ship. Now, upon Captin Quintos’ release from the hospital, he was presented with a brand new USS Hamilton that was more advanced than any other ship in Earth’s entire fleet! And there was a secret about this ship that he was soon to find out. You’ll have to read about this yourself.
Meanwhile the Grish hadn’t been setting idle. They have contacted the Varapin Empire asking for an alliance against pretty much everybody else. Now the Varapin aren’t people. They exist only by sucking the life-force from living entities and their thirst is almost insatiable. They have conquered most of the civilizations any where near their empire and are looking to expand outward. Earth, with its teeming billions, would be a very tempting target. And, as it appears with most of these star-faring empires, the Varapin are much more advanced than Earth. They have put together three armadas of huge battleships to go to Earth and start harvesting the life-forces. Someone has to stop them.
You guessed it, the USS Hamilton is part of that “someone”. Captain Quintos just barely got released from the hospital and back aboard his new ship when he’s given a mission by Fleet Admiral Block. The USS Hamilton is to join up with the 2nd Fleet and head to a meeting engagement with the Varapin’s fleet. Earth doesn’t know how large or advanced the Varapin really are. Captain Quintos also doesn’t know the full capabilities of his new ship. While he managed to retain most all of his former crew, some that he shouldn’t have, they haven’t really gotten all the “bugs” out of the new and alien systems. As the Pleidians did build a lot of their technology into the USS Hamilton, it has taken some time for the crew to get familiar with their new weapon system and their jobs. Still, they are to head out on this mission immediately.
Now, there are a few utterly ridiculous parts of this book. First, happens to be who the new XO of the USS Hamilton will be. That just wouldn’t happen. Second, two huge decks of the USS Hamilton have been joined and something has been created that would never, ever have a place on a battleship. It takes up so much space that could be used for much better war fighting capability, but it’s now part of the ship so we’ll have to live with it. Still, it’s kind of preposterous for this to be included in a battleship (I think I already said that, didn’t I?).
Ok, so will the Earth 2nd Fleet have any chance against this mighty Varapin Empire armada? It certainly doesn’t look to promising. In addition to all the other problems going on, Captain Quintos is also suffering from something called Delayed Onset Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (DOPTSD). In plain English, he freezes up at time when under taxing stress! Not good during a battle, but he and his crew will have to deal with it along with a whole bunch of other things. This book certainly isn’t dull with so many story lines going on at once. Surprisingly and to the credit of the author, it is actually pretty easy to keep up with everything. As improbably as some of the settings in the book, I really did enjoy reading about the USS Hamilton.
I’m curious how or if there will be any more stories in this series. I hope so and soon!
I’m curious how or if there will be any more stories in this series. I hope so and soon!