Honor Among Enemies
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| Author | David Weber |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Honor Harrington series |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Baen Books |
| Released | 1996 |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) & e-books |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-671-87723-2 |
Honor Among Enemies is the sixth Honor Harrington novel by David Weber. In the book, Honor returns to active duty from her political exile on Grayson to command a Q-ship and fight space pirates.
[edit] Plot summary
After more than three years exiled on Grayson, Honor is recalled to Manticoran service. However, the Royal Manticoran Navy feels there is still resentment against Honor among some politicians, so they give her a less "sensitive" command; the prototype Q-ship HMAMC Wayfarer. The Q-ship includes space for carrying a squadron of light attack craft (LACs), a number of missile pods, and heavy energy weaponry for the ship's size and intended role.
Honor's orders are to lead a squadron of four Q-ships to fight piracy in the Silesian Confederacy. Although piracy is a chronic problem in Silesia, the Royal Navy managed to keep it somewhat in check until the war began; with the fleet needed elsewhere piracy has gone completely out of control and the powerful Manticoran merchant cartels demand that the Navy do something. There are other considerations: Silesia is something of a disputed territory between the Star Kingdom of Manticore and the Andermani Empire.
While Honor leads her crew in battles against various pirates, the Havenites are conducting covert operations in Silesia, in an attempt to destabilize Manticoran trade in the region and present themselves in a more favorable light to the Andermani.
The Havenite light cruiser PNS Vaubon, under Commander Warner Caslet, had been pursuing a particularly loathsome group of raiders whose actions were repugnant to most of the Havenite officers involved. Together, Honor and the Havenite captain, Commander Caslet, fight the pirates led by the terrorist Andre Warnecke and liberate the planet Sidemore, which had been occupied by the pirates.
This leads to a larger-scale conflict with Havenite forces in which Wayfarer is ultimately destroyed, but Honor's crew survives and returns to Manticoran space.
Honor Among Enemies also depicts life in the lower ranks of the Royal Manticoran Navy, following young crewman Aubrey Wanderman through his adaptation to life onboard Wayfarer and his troubles with and eventual victory over a band of thug-like crewmen. The novel also plays out Honor Harrington's similarities with Horatio Hornblower, as one chapter shows Captain Harrington reading one of C.S. Forester's Hornblower novels and commenting on it.
Like previous books in the series, part of the plot is revealed by looking into the thoughts and actions of several People's Navy officers, including the aforementioned Warner Caslet and his tactical officer Shannon Foraker, introduced in the preceding Flag in Exile, and explores their motivations and characters more fully, including Caslet's determination to pursue raiders whose actions have gone beyond the pale, far outside acceptable practice under the laws of war. It also introduced Admiral Javier Giscard, commander of the Havenite raiders, and his political watchog (and lover) Eloise Pritchart.
| Preceded by Flag in Exile |
Honor Harrington books {{{years}}} |
Succeeded by In Enemy Hands |
