A Very Impressive and Fun Omnibus

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	• Empire from the Ashes David Weber Baen, 2006 - 784 pages average customer review:based on 32 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Depends on the Reader

Indeed I don't understand why so many readers praise this volume that much. Once you've read a book, you've read all three because you quickly understand how DW ticks and nothing surprises you any longer.

First, the protagonists are all true genius. When they get knowledge of 10% of the background, they are immediately able to rightly infer the remaining 90%. On the contrary, villains are rather dull-witted and you keep wondering how they were ever able to carry their clout. This is so preposterous that the story goes down from there. In fact, I just had the feeling I read about DW's fantasy.

Secondly, the protagonists are so altruistic, so good-natured, so compassionate, so self-sacrificing, so well-meaning, so considerate that all those traits made them pretty naïve. And when the good guys try to be tough, you just can't believe it.

Thirdly, everything is so transparent and sometimes so futile that you can skip chapters without missing anything, specially the battles in the last novel. For example, when some bad guy wields a terrifying weapon, DW will make (or discover on a forgotten planet once peopled with a forgotten race) another one even more terrifying to be wielded by the good guys in no time.

Finally, all this is really too much to take in. It quickly wearies the reader, even more so because all is often dissolved in a lot of endless considerations or explanations. DW is a good storyteller but more suitable for teenagers than for advanced readers who will often outguess him. My marks are 4 stars for beginners and 2 stars for adults, which makes 3 stars on average.

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Great book

I first read this book having checked it out from the library. Every now and then I read one so good, I have to have it for myself. This was one of those...I intend to read it again and again as time passes. The book was in excellent condition and with the discount price plus shipping I paid $5 for a $15 book.

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Ashes

I've been reading SciFi/Fantasy for 50+ years and have thousands of books in my library. Over the years, I've encountered many good authors and a handful of outstanding ones who rise head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. David Weber falls into this latter category. There were moments that I felt as though I had an inkling of what God underwent in the creation of the universe for Weber, with surprising depth considering he took vastly fewer paint strokes, creates a believable and vivid universe of his own. Although he paints with a broad brush, he does so with surprising clarity. Exciting. Riveting. Spell binding. These are but a few of the words that apply to this book.

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A Very Impressive and Fun Omnibus

This is an omnibus of three novels covering the Dahak novels by David Weber. I knew nothing about Weber, but thought three novels for one price was a bargain, so I gave it a try. I am incredibly happy I did so.

Although the three novels cover the same universe, they are immensely different in flavor, yielding a wonderful reading experience, because the novels in no way feel repetitive.

In this universe, Earth becomes aware that it is part of a much larger galactic empire and that the empire is threatened by an implacable enemy bent on destroying all life. The first novel opens this grand stage, yet still tells an interesting story. The second novel deals with the implacable enemy and ends with incredible twists and thought-provoking ideas. The third novel, which I enjoyed the most, resurrects the threat from the first novel and intertwines its story with an incredibly interesting war story on a feudal planet.

There is no fizzling of captivation with these novels. In fact, they get better and better. The one gripe I have is that the third novel ends so well and with such promise that I wanted a fourth novel to continue my journey through this wonderful universe.

This book is a great collection of space opera.

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Grand Scale Space Opera

Empire From the Ashes is the complete Dahak series in one book, produced during Weber's early writing career.

Mutineer's Moon (Dahak Series) p 1 -203 ***1/2
The Armageddon Inheritance p 205 - 423 ****
Heirs of Empire (Dahak Series) p 425 - 774 **

The first novel is about an astronaut who discovers the moon is a sentient computer leftover from an alien civilization of immense technology sophistication, and must defeat the remnants of the crew who mutinied, who are essentially responsible for the human race being on Earth.

The second book is my favorite, as Colin and Dahak must repel an alien invasion which wants to destroy humanity. Grand space battles with high technology and heroism.

The third novel drags out, and is basically a bad novella that reveals the villain's plans (Mr. X storyline is one star) stacked ontop a mediocre planetary expedition (***). (Later Weber would redo the 'stranded planetary empire's heir' idea right with March Upcountry and sequels.) Scenes are constantly cut off at the good parts, giving the reader a feeling Weber had to hit a deadline and slapped everything together. Basically the third novel is fragmented and slapdash, but you do see more of the characters from the first books.

Overall, I liked the first couple enough to say I liked the collection. It's a good deal despite a lackluster book three, especially if you ignore/skim the Mr. X content.

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