Ashes of Victory

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Ashes of Victory
Honor Harrington Books

Author	David Weber
Genre	Military Science Fiction
Publisher	Baen Books
Release date	2000
ISBN 0-671-57854-5

Ashes of Victory is the ninth Honor Harrington novel by David Weber.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The book begins hours after the end of the previous novel. Honor Harrington and her "Elysian Space Navy" arrive at Manticoran-controlled space, only to discover that she was believed dead, that her mother had given birth to twins (partly to satisfy the Graysons' need for an heir to her Steading) and that the extent of her injuries will prevent her from returning to active naval duty for a couple of years, since she needs reconstructive surgery.

To put Honor to good use, the Royal Manticoran Navy promotes her to Admiral and places her at Saganami Island Naval Academy to teach future generations of naval officers. Queen Elizabeth III elevates Honor to Duchess Harrington. Meanwhile, Honor helps to prove that treecats are as intelligent as humans.

After the daring attacks featured in the previous novel, the People's Republic of Haven seems to have the initiative in this stage of the war. But this is only because the Manticorans are quietly assembling a new fleet armed with revolutionary new ships and weapons. Once "Operation Buttercup", the long-awaited Manticoran offensive, begins, the Havenites are doomed, since the People's Navy is incapable of standing up to the new Manticoran technology.

Chaos breaks up in the Havenite ranks, and the ambitious Admiral Esther McQueen stages a coup that succeeds in killing Robert S. Pierre and almost all the members of the Committee of Public Safety, except for Oscar Saint-Just who manages to crush the coup. With the Committee and the military High Command in ruins, Saint-Just becomes the dictator of the People's Republic, and orders Admiral Thomas Theisman to take over the local Havenite fleet...for the meantime.

Masadan terrorists in Saint-Just's service succeed in killing Manticoran Prime Minister Allen Summervale along with several major figures of the Manticoran and Grayson governments, despite the efforts of Honor Harrington. Fortunately, Honor's actions save Queen Elizabeth and Protector Benjamin Mayhew IX from dying in the same attack. A new government, controlled by the former Opposition, takes over in Manticore, and quickly accepts Oscar Saint-Just's truce proposal, thus saving the People's Republic from the edge of defeat.

Now secure from the possibility of a Manticoran attack on the Haven System itself, Saint-Just turns to internal matters and the consolidation of his grip on power, and orders the arrest of Admirals Lester Tourville and Javier Giscard. The arrest is foiled by Shannon Foraker's sabotage. Back on Haven, Admiral Theisman launches a coup of his own, succeeding where McQueen failed. Unwilling to take power and stage a show trial for the deposed Havenite Chairman, the Admiral personally shoots Saint-Just, thus bringing an end to the People's Republic