''With the Lightnings'' is a 1998

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

novel by

David Drake David A. Drake (born September 24, 1945) is an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran who has worked as a lawyer, he is now a writer in the military science fiction genre. Biography Drake graduated Phi ...

. It is the first part of the military space opera

RCN Series The RCN SeriesBaen.com"The Roads to the RCN Series", David Drake, 2012 (accessed March 22, 2012) (also known as the Lt. Leary series) is a sequence of stand-alone science fiction novels by David Drake. They center around Daniel Leary, an Officer (a ...

Development

The style and character dynamics trace their lineage back to ''A Grand Tour'' by

from '' More Than Honor'', a story in the

Honorverse The Honorverse is a military science fiction book series, its two subseries, two prequel series, and anthologies created by David Weber and published by Baen Books. They are centered on the space navy career of the principal protagonist Honor ...

setting. Although the setting universe is entirely separate, careful reading may reveal similarities to the first novel in this series. Both were published in 1998. Indeed, Drake confirms that ''A Grand Tour'' is the conceptual antecedent of ''With the Lightnings''.

Plot

During a war between a Republic of Cinnabar and the Alliance of Free Stars, a coup d'état takes place on a neutral planet of Kostroma, with both factions becoming involved. Two Cinnabarian protagonists – a navy lieutenant and émigré librarian – find themselves in the center of the unfolding events.

Reception

The book has received several reviews. * Review by Don D'Ammassa (1998) in Science Fiction Chronicle, #197 May-June 1998 * Review by Peter D. Tillman (1998) in SF Site * Review by Donna McMahon (2002) in SF Site * Review by David Mandeville (1998) in CNN * Review by Thomas M. Wagner (1998) at SFReviews

References

External links

Author's note

Official free ebook release
1998 American novels 1998 science fiction novels Military science fiction novels Space opera novels {{1990s-mil-sf-novel-stub