HVT-027 Beginnings

Beginnings is the sixth (and second to last) book in the Worlds of Honor anthology set.  It contains five short stories, penned by four talented authors:  David Weber, Charles E. Gannon, Timothy Zahn, and Joelle Presby.  Each of these stories brings us to interesting and important beginnings for many events that we’ve become familiar with in the Honorverse but have often gone with little or no explanation.

This collection of writings comes in at 377 pages and was first published by Baen in June 2013.

Charles E. Gannon brings the first story to us:  By the Book.

In this story we join the crew of Earth Union Customs Patrol ship Venerated Gaia commanded by Lieutenant Lee Strong in 250 PD.  Their mission:  board and recover a hijacked ship named Fragrant Blossom, a ship they’ve located and seized near the Sol System asteroid belt.  Once the ship is captured and under their control, a series of non-standard events results in Lieutenant Strong coming into contact with an administrator working for the Outbound Operations Administration, a somewhat quiet and shadowy man named Perlenmann.  Mr. Perlenmann seems to have been effectively benched professionally and is sent to his current post on Jupiter’s moon Callisto, primarily due to what those holding (somewhat authoritarian) political power deemed to be his radical views.  It’s from this position of relative obscurity we learn that Mr. Perlenmann is an influential member of an organization plotting to bring the current political elite and their parties to their knees by causing an economic collapse across the Earth Union and Sol system.  He recruits Lieutenant Strong to deliver the necessary computer program, causing a catastrophic collapse, which results in the related loss of power of the controlling political parties and the disintegration of the Earth Union.  With the passage of time, the collapse is eventually referred to as the Economic Winter of 252 PD.  When the economy recovered as a much freer and open economic system, it spawned powerful growth that enabled the remarkable beginning of the movement of humanity out of the Sol system and into the stars.

Your hosts gave this story two ‘thumbs-up” and one “neutral” vote.

Next we discussed Timothy Zahn’s short story A Call to Arms.  

We move forward in time now, over a thousand years, to 1543 PD.  Following the recovery from the Economic Winter of 252 and the subsequent expansion, we see a Solarian Axelrod Corporation plan unfolding to attack the Manticore System through the use of mercenaries.  At the same time, we join a young Lieutenant Travis Long onboard the HMS Phoenix.  When he writes up a subordinate for substandard performance, he finds himself the one who’s in trouble and he’s transferred to a different ship, the HMS Casey.  It turns out the poor performer is from a politically and militarily powerful family.  What appears to be bad news for Lieutenant Long turns into a blessing as the mercenaries arrive in the Manticoran system.  Now confronting the enemy, his strength as a tactician shines as he’s key in defeating the threat.  The “misstep” while onboard the Phoenix quickly and quietly moves to the background as his new captain nominates him for the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal.  He also learns a powerful lesson from Captain Heissman about being aware of and getting used to the existence of internal politics within the RMN.

Of note, this story is the beginning of more time we’ll spend with Lieutenant Travis Long.  Our introduction to him here sets up seeing a lot more of him in the “Manticore Ascendant” series of novels, by the dynamic writing duo of David Weber and Timothy Zahn.

This one received “thumbs-ups” from each of your hosts, with a bonus “two thumbs up” from Raul.

Beauty and the Beast is the third story in the set, this one written by David Weber.  

Taking place in 1842 PD, we see the beginning of Honor Harrington’s immediate family as we get to enjoy learning about how her parents Alfred and Allison met and fell in love.  This is definitely a significant beginning!

After arriving on Beowulf to begin his medical education, previously a Royal Manticoran Marine Corps NCO, Alfred Harrington received a commission, requested a transfer to the RMN, and is now pursuing a new career as a physician.  Upon arrival, Lieutenant Alfred Harrington fights a few battles of perception as he doesn’t quite fit what many believe is the necessary and appropriately prestigious background for medical students attending the school.  He weathers the attitudes without issue but has what turns out to be a significant encounter with a member of Beowulf’s somewhat secretive Biological Survey Corps, Captain Jacques Benton-Ramirez y Chou.  A day later, Alfred meets another student and his companion, Allison.  Not known to Alfred at the time, Allison is Captain Benton-Ramirez y Chou’s sister.  An initial friendship forms, followed quickly by an emerging relationship.  Unknown to each other, both are strongly attracted to one another in a way that defies their scientific mindset.

In an attempt to pressure Captain Benton-Ramirez y Chou into divulging BSC secrets, Mesan operatives kidnap Allison.  For the Mesans, the unknown factor now in play is Lieutenant Harrington, who has a compulsion to come to the aid of Allison.  A short, tense and violent time later, Alfred has freed Allison—perhaps demonstrating the adage:  once a Marine, always a Marine.  This shared trial firmly forges what both Allison and Alfred realize is an almost unexplainable love between them, and the rest is history.

So many beginnings here:  as mentioned earlier, the beginning of Honor’s immediate family; but also, the earliest manipulations we’ve seen Mesa attempt on a universal scale; and just as significant, the beginning of what may very well be the reason why Nimitz / Laughs Brightly and Honor form a bond.  It’s also apparently an insight into why the very first treecat-human bond was with a Harrington so long ago on Sphynx when Stephanie met Lionheart / Climbs Quickly.

Your hosts scored this one with a “thumbs-up”, a “neutral” and another double “thumbs-up”.

The fourth story, also by David Weber, is entitled Best Laid Plans.

The date is 1871 PD and we join a young (12 year old) Honor Harrington, scheming of ways to enjoy some independence by justifying traveling into a remote area to gather a bouquet of specific flowers to give to her mother as a birthday gift.  As if the previous short story might have been a tactical set-up, we quickly see the events occurring that resulted in Honor and Laughs Brightly meeting.  Laughs Brightly and a younger brother named Sharp Nose are gathering provisions when they see/sense/taste Honor’s mind glow.  Shortly after, the treecats encounter a pair of peak bears which are moving toward an unaware Stephanie.  As the treecats move to try and warn Honor, Sharp Nose steps on a bad branch and is badly injured when he falls to the ground.  That sound attracts the bears, Laughs Brightly moved to defend his brother and is wounded by a bear in the subsequent fight.  The sound of the fight attracts Honor to the scene and she ends up saving the treecats by shooting the bears.  As Laughs Brightly wakes up in Honor’s arms, their eyes meet and their bond is formed.

While Honor and Laughs Brightly’s (Nimitz’s) bond isn’t a first, this bond sets up the beginning of what we can call the treecats’ regular (or perhaps permanent) movement off of Sphynx as Nimitz eventually leaves Sphynx with honor as she begins her Naval career and subsequent life off world.

Three easy “thumbs-up” from your hosts for Best Laid Plans.

The fifth and final story in the anthology is Obligated Service by Joelle Presby.

This final story moves us back into “modern” times relative to the central Honorverse story arc, with events occurring in 1921-1922 PD.

In this interesting story, we see Claire Lecroix, a Grayson woman belonging to the Burdette Steading, shortly after her graduation from the Manticoran Naval Academy at Saganami Island.  Keep in mind two key pieces of history related to these events.  First, Honor was admitted to the Grayson Conclave of Steadholders in 1904 or 1905.  Just a year or two later, she killed the previous Burdette Steadholder (William Fitzclarence) in a duel and the key was passed to Nathan Fitzclarence.  Nathan is the one who nominated Claire and two other women to attend Saganami Island, believing that it would make him look good, however he also didn’t think any of them would graduate.  While Claire is working on a GSN ship as an officer candidate, her steading revokes her permit to work outside the home, presumably irritated by her emerging success.  While the Burdette Steading is still clinging to a more “traditional” past, Michael Mayhew and most of the rest of Grayson are steadily moving forward regarding normalizing the rights of women.  One of Mayhew’s legal councils, the wife of Claire’s commanding officer Commander Greentree, uses Burdette law to free Claire from her obligations to her steading.  Along with that new independence based on her status as a Naval Officer (and therefore a “gentleman”), that same law is used to allow her to gain legal guardianship over her younger brother.

There are a number of beginnings in this story, including the beginning of what can genuinely be called women’s independence within the Grayson society, at a much lower level than within the government itself.  We also see related practical rights and authority appearing for ladies who aren’t Honor Harrington.  Honor was an outsider who found a place within the Grayson government.  She was a commissioned officer with all the respect and authority in place for anyone holding her rank.  That didn’t go away when she became a steadholder.  Claire is a Grayson from the start, and from a much more traditional steading.  She’s one of the first female Grayson officers to serve directly on a GSN vessel, setting up the beginning of the more “tactical” changes to Grayson society at levels far below where we find Honor Harrington.

Obligated Service garnered a “thumbs-up” from two of your hosts, and a “neutral” from the third.

Overall, we rated the anthology Beginnings with a 5, a 4 and a 3.5 (out of 5) for an overall rating of 4.16.

Next time we’ll discuss Treecat Wars, the third of four novels in the Star Kingdom story arc.

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You can find us, and all our episodes at http://honorverse.net, and email us at honorverse@tpenetwork.com.  We look forward to hearing from you.

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