New York Times bestselling author Jack Campbell delivers fast-paced,
"edge-of-your-seat combat"* in one of the most plausible visions of a
future military--with one of the most starkly portrayed heroes in modern
science fiction.
The Alliance woke Captain John "Black Jack" Geary after a century of
cryogenic sleep to take command of the fleet in the still-raging
conflict with the Syndicate Worlds. Now Admiral Geary's victory has
earned him the adoration of the people--and the enmity of politicians
convinced that a living hero can be a very inconvenient thing.
The war may be over, but Geary and his newly christened First Fleet have
been ordered back into action to investigate the aliens occupying the
far side of Syndic space and to determine just how much of a threat they
represent to the Alliance. And while the Syndicate Worlds are no longer
united, individually they may be more dangerous than ever before.
Geary knows that members of the military high command and the government
question his loyalty to the Alliance and fear his staging a coup--so he
can't help but wonder if the fleet is being deliberately sent on a
suicide mission....
*Elizabeth Moon, Nebula Award-winning author of the Vatta's War series
