An evil Empire rules the north of Hafardine's single great continent.The task of saving the planet comes down to two men; if either man succeeds, it will have to be through the other's ruin.
The Tyrant (Raj Whitehall)
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From Publishers Weekly
Veteran Drake (Mistress of the Catacombs) and relative newcomer Flint (1632) manage to instruct as well as entertain in this latest volume in their popular... series. Human space has fallen into anarchy and barbarism after the collapse of the Galactic Federation. On the planet Bellview, an artifact of the past a sentient battle computer called Center selects a young officer, Raj Whitehall, to be the father of the future in a revived Federation. After accomplishing their mission on Bellview, Raj and Center have their personalities downloaded into thousands of probes and sent into space. On the planet Hafardine, one of these probes merges with scholar Adrian Gellert, who holds a position roughly equivalent to a Greek in the authors' retelling of the Roman Civil War. Center and Raj's sociopolitical insights prove to be of critical importance to Gellert's father-in-law, the Justicar Verice Demansk, in his attempts to save Vanbert from itself. Most of the narrative excitement derives from the introduction of gunpowder and steam technologies to ancient warfare, while thorough knowledge of the underlying causes and conditions that shaped Rome's destiny lends authority. There's a sense of inevitability to the success of the progressive forces, and more than a little deus ex machina in the device of the omniscient cybernetic advisers. Because the opposition is uniformly incompetent and cupidinous, the story reads at times as if it were a didactic Soviet science-fiction novel, but most military SF fans won't mind.
From Library Journal
The Confederacy of Vanbert, once the world's mightiest realm, has fallen to decay and internal corruption. Justiciar Verice Demansk, one of its rulers, embarks on a bold course of action to rectify the condition of the land that he loves even if his actions mark him as a traitor and transform him into a tyrant. The authors of the "Belisarius" series (The Tide of Victory, etc.) join forces to continue a second series (formerly coauthored by Drake and S.M. Sterling) depicting the fall of a society much like the Roman Empire. Set in an alternate universe with connections to the world of the Belisarius series, this exercise in historical and military sf should appeal to fans of alternate history. Recommended, along with other titles in the series (e.g., The Forge, The Chosen), for most sf collections.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Hardcover
Flint and Drake tell a tale that has some interesting technical and historical elements. What it lacks, however, is character and texture. The Rome-like empire of this book is kick-started into feudalism and industrialism by the machinations of one of its highest ranking members. The people doing so, however, are mere props to the tale; interchangeable cogs with little to distinguish them from each other. The lead character's daughter appears to be nothing more than her father in drag, apart from a few remembrances which appear to be flashbacks to earlier books in the series. The villains of the book are rarely seen at all, often appearing as no more than severed heads that appear from "off stage" after they have been vanquished, or making short speeches before they are summarily dispatched a few pages later. The authors are reasonably clever in their work (I particularly like the homages to Shakespeare) and very good at describing the new technology introduced to this Rome-like setting. They simply have not provided interesting characters to carry out the action of the novel.
By J. Okerlund
Format:Hardcover
I love the premis for this series, and I really like the authors, but this particular book just wasn't very good. The storyline shifted away from the main character so much that he couldn't even be considered the main character any longer. The "Raj/Center" characters, which are the basis for everything in this series hardly even make an appearance. The story was very predictable as were the little events that were used to fill pages.
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Ok, I waited for the paperback on this one, but would not have been unhappy if I had bought it hardcover. David Drake had Eric Flint rather than S.M. Stirling as co-author, and it represents an interesting departure from the tone of the rest of the series. While it had it's fair share of blody battles, they were not the primary foccus. Rather the book followed the politics and fealings of the the main character and his family as they try to aviod the fall of Rome and skip the dark ages.
This plot basis is fully in line with the idea of Center trying to create an industrial base to rebuild the old federation that created it, so I was not thrown by it's placement in the series. It also had some nicely done historical events thrown in that fit neatly into the story.
I have to agree with other reviewers that there is never any doubt of the outcome of any of the events, so it is hard to be as engrossed in the battles as one usually would be, but I could not put the book down, so I have to recomend it. I don't think fans of 1633 will be disapointed in the charecter and plot development, and there is enough action to keep the 1632 crowd involved.
This is a great business travel book to pick up at the gift shop, start on the plane, and use to wind down in the evening. It may keep you up reading later than planned, but that's what a good read does.
This plot basis is fully in line with the idea of Center trying to create an industrial base to rebuild the old federation that created it, so I was not thrown by it's placement in the series. It also had some nicely done historical events thrown in that fit neatly into the story.
I have to agree with other reviewers that there is never any doubt of the outcome of any of the events, so it is hard to be as engrossed in the battles as one usually would be, but I could not put the book down, so I have to recomend it. I don't think fans of 1633 will be disapointed in the charecter and plot development, and there is enough action to keep the 1632 crowd involved.
This is a great business travel book to pick up at the gift shop, start on the plane, and use to wind down in the evening. It may keep you up reading later than planned, but that's what a good read does.
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3.3 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Good, different from their Other Books
I read this sucker in 1.5 days, and for me, that's fast...
A real page turner, with some nice surprises, and really nice changes in the same series... Read more
Published on Mar 25 2003 by Jean Gauthier
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wrong series
This book is the 8th book in the Raj Whitehall Series a.k.a. The General Series. It has nothing to do with the Belisarius Series Universe. Read more
Published on Sep 30 2002 by "sunkitty"
2.0 out of 5 stars
It just bombs! - A sad ending for a great series
What is it about the covers of the Drake/Flint books? After the absolutely stupid and misleading cover of the latest installment of the Bellisarius-series the people at Baen Books... Read more
Published on July 2 2002 by WFK
4.0 out of 5 stars
Roman Republic in Space--interesting
Justicar Demansk knows that the ancient Confederation of Vanbert is rotten. Too many aristocrats cling to the privileges of their office, oppress the people their ancestors... Read more
Published on May 10 2002 by booksforabuck
1.0 out of 5 stars
PLEASE CORRECT YOUR EDITORIAL REVIEW.
Despite having the same authors, this book is NOT a continuation of the Belisaurius series, but of a completely different series (the General series, with Raj Whitehall). Read more
Published on May 9 2002 by a_compulsive_reader
1.0 out of 5 stars
A series gone awry
In this eighth book in David Drake's universe of shattered human worlds struggling to regain civilization, something has gone off track. Read more
Published on April 6 2002 by JSuros
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good continuation for the series
This book is a great combination of Flint and Drake. I love the strong characters fighting for the salvation of civilization. Read more
Published on April 1 2002 by J. Palmer
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Tyrant, a novel of Center and Raj Whitehall
Finishing the story of the Gellert brothers begun in "The Reformer", the book develops the character of Verice Demansk, the father of Adrian Gellert's lover and commander... Read more
Published on Mar 31 2002 by "bobm4360"
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Tyrant
Along the same format as the General and Chosen series with a Roman Flavor. Adrian Gellert is the intellectual brother of the "Perfect Warrior" who using the info provided by a... Read more
Published on Mar 29 2002 by Matthew W. Mcconville
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you liked the Redemer, you'll LOVE this
A really great sequel that is, perhaps, even better than the first in the series. Fabulous. No more need be said.
Published on Mar 27 2002
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