Ecologic Secession [Mass Market Paperback]

On Kansaw, Jimjoy avoided another attempted assassination, found the rebel hideout, discovered that the Imperial marines had got there first, and rescued two rebels from torture. He then stole a flitter and infiltrated Missou Base, set the base self-destruct sequence, stole the emergency shuttle, and escaped off-planet. In orbit, he badly damaged the orbital station, stole a courier ship, and escaped out-system. In the Accord system, he evaded detection by the orbital station and convinced an Ecolitan station on the moon to rescue the rebels and himself from the powerless ship. Although exhausted after over eighty hours of sleep deprivation, Jimjoy had once again beat the odds.

In this novel, Jimjoy is now Ecolitan Professor James Joyson Whaler II, Senior Fellow of the Institute, with an extensive body makeover. The Empire believes that he is dead and hopefully they will continue to do so. Jimjoy has created a new department within the Institute -- Applied Ecologic Management -- which is actually the new Special Operations branch. It is clear to Jimjoy and to the Ecolitan Prime that the Empire will be imposing more stringent controls on Accord and that the planet must rebel to keep its liberty. As a first step, Jimjoy single-handedly destroys the System Control station at Haversol.

After this operation, Jimjoy begins implementation of further steps to secure complete autonomy for Accord. His major problem is the attitude of his fellow Ecolitans. The Ecolitan Prime has been assassinated by Imperial agents and his replacement is a weak procrastinator. However, Jimjoy bypasses the Prime and works with Ecolitan Thelina Andruz and her roommate, Ecolitan Meryl Laubron, to recruit and train a force of special operatives.

The Institute already has a security branch in its Field Training department. There students receive training in armed and unarmed combat, field surveillance, and other security related subjects. Now Jimjoy is adding methods of entry, computer penetration, demolition, and other special ops methods. Moreover, his students are helping to build needle boats in the moon station and other Ecolitans are developing ecological weapons elsewhere off-planet.

Despite his distaste for politics, Jimjoy is chosen to announce the Institute's plans to the Accordan politicians. Among these plans are the ejection of the Imperial governor, the wholesale resignation of the current council, and elections for a new council with systemwide jurisdiction. Nevertheless, Jimjoy makes it clear that the Institute will not allow the new council to sellout the populace.

Jimjoy was born on White Mountain in the Hampshire system, a matriarchal society. He enlisted in the Imperial Marines at an early age to escape the strains of his family. He was a borderline sociopath during his days as an Imperial Special Operative.

One of the conditions for acceptance into the Institute is psychotherapy to work out his anger and distrust of women. He has a complex relationship with Thelina, a former Hand of the Matriarchy (the equivalent of an Imperial Special Operative), who has unresolved anger and distrust of men. When the two come together, sparks fly. Although Thelina comes to love him, she knows that his love for her is based only on superficial impressions and she expends a great deal of energy showing him how to know and trust those he loves.

While Jimjoy is a bundle of repressed angers, in other ways he is much like the other male protagonists created by the author. The interpersonal dynamics of love is a common theme in most works by this author, with the female characters usually much more aware of the situation than the males. In one respect, the male-female relationship is less complex in this novel since both protagonists come from matriarchal cultures, but the very egalitarian social background of the Institute tends to muddle the situation.

Highly recommended for Modesitt fans and for anyone who enjoys tales of political intrigue and special operations with a touch of romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin