This was a Weber book. His personal story thumbprints were all over it. And it was totally hypnotic and I lost a ton of sleep to it, because the story just zips along. The characterization is about par. The story, well... I think if it occurrs on a planet far far away, we could maybe FILE THE DAMN SERIAL NUMBER OFF. Earlier in the book I said it was O HAI REFORMATION? Yeah, it is, and the Big Bad Evil church is not even disguised. They have priests and bishops and mass and all the things a person expects from the actual historical Holy Mother Church. Which was irritating, because although there were bones thrown to the good guys in the church, there weren't a lot, and it ended up feeling like an anti-Catholic polemic, even if it wasn't meant as such.

If you liked the empire-building in the Belisaurius books, you may enjoy this (different authors, similar feel). If you are interested in war-by-trade, it's not bad. If you wanted more Heirs of Empire, this is the series for you.
Avoid if you are allergic to anything that looks like religion, if you are bored by empire-building, or if you are vulnerable to losing sleep to books that are gripping but not great.

Will be buy the next one? Yup. But I wish I found Tor as easy to buy ebooks from as Baen. I buy ebooks, I buy paper books, I buy the same book twice, and everyone wins.

Spoiler alerts. Read at your own risk.

This book feels incomplete, full of useless details the reader doesn't really need, and too neat for my tastes.

First, there is no romance to Merlin. If the man is as handsome and as commanding as he is, someone must be attracted, at some level, to the man. Nothing of the sort anywhere.

Second. The beauty of the character Merlin is the magic, the mystery, the burden of truth he carries, and the weight of secrets surrounding the character. In this novel, Merlin is stripped of the mystery surrounding him. His mechanical body is explained and discussed openly between significant characters, the amazing impossibility of his existence is accepted without a flinch, and the burden of secrecy Merlin bore alone, is now shared among many, to the -detriment- of the character. No longer is Merlin an object of hidden awe, he is now an impressive work of forbidden technology though not completely understood by those in the know.
I ... hated ... the revelation of a secret society dedicated to the truth of safehold and that such a society not only understood, in part, what Nimue was, but that it could so easily accept such a marvel without fear.
And that's the cusp of it. There is no fear from those who learn Merlin's truth. There is no reverence either. There is nothing except blind acceptance. The lack of wonder, the simple lack of anything resembling logical apprehension at the thought that across from them sat a marionette created by Forbidden Technology in the age of Angels and Demons, is not only unbelievable but downright unpalatable.

A prudent reaction would be fear; to wonder what the -real- agenda of this creature is and how far it could be trusted. Its simple self-preservation and understanding that such doubts must exist not only in wording but in a manner that affects the characters actions.

The minutia of explanations drowns the overall story from an epic saga to the .. preamble.. of an epic saga. Nothing much of importance happens on this book (as so far as the overall picture) except marriage (something easily seen coming from the first book and no surprise), the acquisition of an unexpected a reluctant ally (probably best char in the book) and a tightening of sanctions by the church (expected as well). Even the remarkable revelations of Merlin have no real impact in the story. They're made irrelevant by inaction.

There is a huge lack in the characters.

Most of the main characters talk, act, and think the same way. Its like watching 10 different version of the same character fighting each other, talking to each other, hating, or respecting each other. That's it, the same char over and over and over in different "dresses" ... as if Nimue Alba had split into 100 different people and been reprogrammed with a different background for each.

The book is disappointing, yet, is a must read because it sets the stage for the next book. Hopefully with all the explanations in this novel, the next one will get to the point.

David Weber is my favorite writer, and while I don't read ALL of his stuff, I've read most of his works. The Honor Harrington series, The Dahak series, etc., and this series seems to have taken all of those and modeled this one. It starts off so much stronger and cleaner than others, and actually, the series seems to be a RECASTED continuation of the Dahak series, which ended with Heirs of the Empire. I really loved that book, as a great what-if, and I think this is where he re-imagined the tale. Humanity has a chance to do it all over again, but this time with a sentient guardian. The book has a right mixture of intrigue and action, and the characters are all "believable", which has been some problems I've had with previous Weber books on occasion. Overall, I'm REALLY looking forward to reading these books for years and years to come. This storyline has massive potential, since he's got to take humanity all the way back to the stars, and victory!

Mr. Weber has taken a bit of a left turn in producing this series but I have really enjoyed it so far. He has moved away from the space opera format that served him well in the Honor Harrington and Bug Wars but I have really enjoyed his character development and plot twists that he has in this series. I sat down and read book two in about 1 1/2 days and came away convinced that it is one of the best books I have read this year. I am eagerly awaiting #3

For someone looking at this series to read it is a combination of revolt in 2100 meets the day after tomorrow by Heinlein in a lot more detail. I think if you come into this series without any preconceptions of what a Weber book is you will enjoy the series

i was introduced to the genre of science fiction by the master of all time, robert a. heinlein. unfortunately, in his later years, the dean got caught up in extolling endless, wrangling debates about nonsensical points of view or miniscule, scientific errata. a darned shame really, but i did develop the ability to skim through multiple pages of drivvle until the story was reintroduced.

this skill has stood me in good stead with a great deal of david weber's stuff. the man has a terrible case of heinlein's disease.

"by schism rent asunder" is an obvious expansion of the co-plot from "heirs of empire" right down to the substitution of the five-day for a week. by itself this is not a downcheck. "heirs" was great fun and could stand revisiting.

the sad part is that both volumes of this series to date, if written in the style of the earlier honor harrington yarns, could be distilled down to half a dozen chapters. this isn't helped by the cast of thousands weber's employed. (i had to create a chart of characters to keep them all straight.)

the tale, by and large, is still enticing. i just wish he'd get on with it and cease indulging himself in the endless committee meetings. i'll probably read the next one that comes along, but my expectations are no longer very high.

This book starts out slow and goes downhill from there. I really wonder what happened to the Weber who wrote the early Honor Harrington books.

Gone forever I fear. Starting with the last few Harrington books and continuing with his current work he seems to have forgotten the cardinal rule of the fiction writer--show don't tell. This current book could easily be cut in half without losing a single important plot element or bit of action. I forced myself to get through it (don't ask me why) by skimming over the endless and repetitive and repetitive and repetitive (well you get the point) explanations of the various weapons, characters, situations, motivations, etc.

I have no idea how many books in this series Weber plans, but if he continues as he has been it will need to be a few dozen just to get Safehold to a mid-twentieth century level of technology. And he will lose quite a few reader along the way (me for one).

Do yourself a favor, if you think you must suffer through this book check a copy out of the library.

Classic Weber. I believe i stayed up till 4am to finish this book. the mixing of classic era warfare with futuristic technology. I am eagerly awaiting the next books in this new and upcoming series.

I don't want to give any of the story line away (unlike others!), so I'll remain vague. The focus in this book moves away from Merlin and toward the developing schism between Charis and Zion. It reads like the midgame in chess in which the pieces are being moved around in order to set up the endgame. Although some in the Church (read: Clyntyn) seems to take the occasional shot with his queen deep into enemy territory, these moves don't pay off just like they rarely do in a chess game.

Cayleb is astutely arranging for the future which means that the story can appear a bit slow at times (as others have noted). But, I appreciated the growth of the characters from caricatures to full-blown individuals. It all has me wondering where this is all going to end up. I hope that David eventually takes us forward to the inevitable conflict with the Gbaba!

The second book in the series is more based on political intrigue rather than action (though there are some intense action pieces too). You can see that David Weber is building up for the next book which I can almost guarantee will be action packed. I wonder how many books are going to be in the series as there is a long way to go.

writing style is good as you can expect from David. Some times the names can get confusing trying to keep who's who in the political maneuvering.

I hope you enjoy this book as much as I have.

My title pretty much says it. I would sometimes listen to Weber's books in audible format, but you can't skim an audio book. How about this? Weber "highlights" paragraphs: green for action, yellow for sections with vital plot points within ten pages, and red for vast pages and chapters of dissertation that involve zero plot advance.
Those of us who are shallow can make our selections accordingly.

Not a bad follow up to the first book, but a lot of stuff left hanging. As many have said (myself included), this series is an expansion on a theme from one of the books from the Dahak series. I am enjoying it because Weber has had the time to develop some of the things that I feel he glossed over very quickly in that book. While others may have found some of the book tedious, I have always enjoyed Weber's character development, so I liked that in this book. Also some of the revelations were very interesting. Anyway, I await the next book in the series, and I do not expect it to end at a trilogy.

If you've read the Honor Harrington series, then you will recognize the long exposition about politics and all the political maneuvering. I stilled enjoyed it but it was definitely short on action compared to the first book. I understand that he is laying the foundation for the next volume in the epic but I was looking for a little more before the book ended.

I enjoyed getting to know old characters better and learning (a great deal) about the new characters, but just as I do when I re-read the Honor Harrington books, I'll be skimming a lot of this (politcal-foundational stuff) the next time around.

Finally though, it left me anxiously awaiting the next volume.

I read other reviewers comments and wonder what book the negative reviewers were commenting upon? David Weber gets better and better, if that is possible, with each new book. This second of his new series with Merlin/Nimue is just plain great, IMO. Each turn of events is fascinating, the exploration of the characters' personalities and character, particularly the lack thereof within the vile and utterly corrupt Vicars (particularly Clyntahn) is amazing. The author's insight into the politics of religion is dead on.

It was refreshing and uplifting to have King Caleb marry Queen Sharleyan which added a bit of softening and humanity to this hard story full of war and inhumanity dished out by the Church's representatives. I liked that Prince Nahrmahn Baytz (love the play on the name) of Emerald was forced to come to heel to Caleb and the Kingdom of Charis.

I look forward to more of Merlin's interfacing with his spaceship and data base in future stories and the re-education of the population of Charis and Chisholm as to what and who they really are. And, most of all the fall of the Church of God Awaiting.

Well, it is a good story (David Weber doesn't write poor ones) but it is a small bite of what I assume will be a long, involved plot spread over many more books. By contrst, the most recent Honor Harrington novel had much more content. If you like Weber's stuff in general, you'll like this one. Just be prepared for the literery equivalent of a BLT rather than a four-course dinner.

I am a David Weber fan, especially of his Honor Harrington series, and throughly enjoyed the first novel of this new series (even if he ripped off some ideas from his earlier novels).

Unfortunately, this book, while a fun read, is sloppy in places, especially with a revelation that was not set up in any way, the consquences of which was treated quite glibly.

I would suggest waiting for the paperback.

David Weber's latest volume concerning Safehold is another good read. Compelling story lines are continued and he sets the stage for books later on in the series. I'd rate this one higher, but this book spends a lot of time setting up events that will occur later on. Nonetheless a good book to read - especially if you are a fan of his writing.

Almost as good as the first book, Off Armaggeddon Reef.

This is not the beginning of the End, but it is the end of the Beginning.
WC

By Schism Rent Asunder is a fine second book in this trilogy. Weber's character development continues to be excellent. I enjoy so many of the characters, including the "bad" ones. I anxiously await the next book.

The novel adds much to this new world line... though I felt some of the 'shocking twists' were an easy out for a few characters and not really all that unanticipated. Also while I would've liked more action, the pacing works for the 'shortened' format which brings me to my main complaint with the novel... I WANT THE REST OF IT!! Just seems that there should have been more to help round the story out. I will stick with the storyline, but doubt I will re-read/listen (also have audio format) to this 'episode' as often as I do to Off Armageddon Reef....

I realize that David Weber has a thing about religion, and how it fits into society. But a robot copy of a human being from a highly advanced technological society should not be fretting over whether God will be upset that what's left of the entire human race is trying to worship him under a made-up religion! Every religion is a made-up religion!

It was tough working through the many unpronouncable names of characters who seemed to have 3 or 4 names and titles that were used interchangably discussing their inner thoughts and political mechinations... But.... The Weber of Honor Harrington comes through with a thouroughly engaging story that leaves me eager for the next installment.

This is a solid book continuing the series and is a worthy sequel to the last book. This one has less action but still moves at a good pace and the writing is even stronger. I think you would miss a lot of nuance and storylines if reading this book as a stand alone rather than as part of the series so I highly recommend reading the prior books first.

David Weber is one of the brighter stars writing today. He does a great job creating interesting characters and getting the reader to care about them.

This book is weaker than the first in the series mainly because Merlin, the chief character, has gotten lost in the crowd.

And they screwed up the maps: Delferahk, a key site of the action, isn't on the world map. (It's hard to see even where it could be.) And the maps of Chisolm and Corisande aren't needed at all -- the action hasn't reached there yet.

Still, it's a good story.

Awesome story, great story line. The action is intensive, I cant wait to see what happens next.

I've been a fan of David Weber's for some time now and was excited to start this new series. Unfortunately, the second book fails to live up the first book's promise. Where the first book had it's fair share of action and intrigue, this one fails on both levels. It doesn't advance the plot much, but instead focuses on the political fallout resulting from Charis' overwhelming naval victory.

More annoying than anything is the sudden dearth of nefarious, scheming characters. Kings and princes who in the last book were eager to lend a hand in the destruction of Charis are suddenly remorseful and contemplating the morality of it all. Add the fairly-tale wedding of two ruling houses and the secret society struggling to preserve forbidden knowledge (including the obligatory reference to the U.S. Declaration of Independence) and I fear the series is in grave danger of becoming cliched.

Before "Off Armageddon Reef" I had never read David Weber - Now after "By Schism Rent Asunder" - I am a fan. David writes in a easy to read fashion with all the little facts that make a story so compelling. I have gone back and begun acquiring his earlier books. He makes his characters come alive whether you like them or not. If you don't read anything else this year grab these two books and inhale. Can't wait for another book along this story line. Science fiction meets the buckaneers.

David Weber is what I would consider a Science Fiction writer, or even a Space Opera writer as many of his works span enormous worlds and are epic in scope. However, Weber is extremely flexible and has excellent Fantasy books out there as well. In "By Schism Rent Asunder" he manages to write an excellent follow on to "Off Armagedon Reef". It continues the story of Merlin (Niume), Cayleb and the whole cast of characters as they fight for the very survival of Charis and their immortal souls. If you have read "Off Armagedon Reef" then I highly suggest you pickup and read a copy of "By Schism Rent Asunder", if you haven not read "...Reef" you then I suggest you get a copy and read it first. "By Schism Rent Asunder" is another strong argument to read this series and for David Weber being one of the best Science Fiction writers today.

I am a David Weber fan. I loved the Honor Harrington series and I thought the first book in this series was pretty good. My problem with this book, By Schism Rent Asunder, is it does too little in my mind to progress the technology of Safehold. The one invention of the Industrial Revolution was the steam engine and I kept expecting David Weber to introduce it. Oh well, maybe the next book in the series...

These two books are taking too long to boost the tech level of Safehold and David Weber is too long winded in his dialog with little action. I think you could edit the first two books into a decent single volume if much of the dialog was shortened.

I'll probably wait in the future for the local library to acquire the next volume in the series and donate the first two I already have.

I have been a fan of Weber for a long time, but it is getting difficult to hang in there. This book is OK, but does not expand the story all that much. Also, it is hard to get into the characters, let alone remember their names. He must like "y's" My biggest gripe is "the story" Between the political discussions ad nauseum, and the military discussions, ditto, the story gets lost in the shuffle. Honor Harrington set everything out by example and told a hell of a story. Once Weber started explaining every little thing, things deteriorated and he needed an editor with a very large blue pencil which noone ever provided. Too bad. However, if you skip the rambling, there is a story there somewhere and it is readable, when you don't care to take your time. It sure doesn't grab you though, which some of the previous books did.

As other here have already stated, 'By Schism Rent Asunder' is the followup to 'Off Armageddon Reef' and book two of three in the Safehold Series. Compared to Armageddon Reef, this book moves forward at a much slower pace with relatively little action except for a few naval battles. The battles themselves are often told from one brief point in the battle (i.e., beginning, middle or end) instead of an overview of the entire conflict. However even with the reduced action the novel does engage the reader with several interesting revelations and sets the stage for the conclusion of trilogy.

My only issues with the book were that I was extremely disappointed in the role Merlin played. Whereas in Armageddon Reef Merlin played a key role and we were presented with numerous insights into his thoughts, use of technology, physical abilities, etc, in Schism he was reduced to little more than an advisor and mentor. Also, I felt Weber spent way too much time detailing the the process the Charisians and others went through to create new and effective guns/artillery. I found myself skimming or skipping several pages that could have been summed up as 'They invented a new artillery piece using iron.' Those passages felt more like they belonged in a non-fiction book detailing the history of modern weaponry.

It will be interesting to see how Weber concludes this trilogy in the next book as given his current pace it doesn't seem he will be able to resolve the larger plot of humanity's rise back to the stars. Unless of course he pulls out a Deus Ex Machina solution which would be extremely disappointing.

I read the second book in this series with great anticipation. I consider the first book of the series some of Mr. Weber's finest work.

The pace of this book is much, much slower than the first book. In fact, once I reached the halfway point, I realized that not a single truly significant event had occurred. The second half at first seemed like it was going to be better, but reverted back to the same glacial pace. In fact, I don't believe the story has progressed significantly with this book.

The structure of the book seemed very disjointed as well. The story jumped from subplot to subplot with very little transition, especially in the first half of the book. In fact, there did not seem to be a coherent story line from start to finish. What I mean is in other serial books by this author, such as the Harrington novels, each book though fitting into a grand scheme, has a story of its own. This book did not seem to do this. It simply rearranged a few allies, introduced a couple of secret societies and discussed what would be done in the future.

Bottom line, while I do think this book was worth reading, it was not my favorite work by this author. It seems like its only purpose is to set the stage for the next book in the series. If I had it to do over, I would wait for the paperback.

I am a long time David Weber fan and this is perhaps the novel that I enjoyed the most. I love the characters. They all, both the good and the bad seem very real. One of the most interesting things is how some of the "bad" characters are transformed into "good". And those on the wrong side of the conflict are not really evil. There is plenty of action but the book is not just one big battle scene. Plenty of surprises as well. Also many passages that made you think. My only disappointment was that it ended rather suddenly (To be continued...).

Most of us would be given to think that after all the books that David Weber has written over the years, both alone and in concert with other writers, that he would have lost the edge a bit. The Safehold Series is proof positive that that is not the case. He has taken the best of his other novels, dusted them off, tossed out the trash, and made something that stands alone as a great work by itself. This book brings the reader in and takes them for a great ride. Weber is at the top of his game. Bravo. Keep them coming!

Once again David Weber has taken a different society, and made it understandable, and interesting. This is the second in the series, and we all wish David would write faster. Although I'm sure his (or somebody's) meticulous editing takes time, waiting another year for the next one is going to be trying! Weber is one of the best at writing dialog (apparently not a common skill), battle scenes, descriptions of hardware, and how foreign societies work. For those who like the Honor Harrington series, and it's associated "Honorverse", this is a worthy addition.

Now, if we could just get David to get on with adding to the "Hell's Gate", "Shadow of Saganami", and "Honor Harrington" series, in addition to the next book in this series, we'd all be much happier.

The other reviews have covered the ground well, leaving me only to mention the sappy romantic element Weber introduces in "Schism", perhaps with the intention of making the series more popular with women. Who knows, if this succeeds, he may get his female readership into double figures.

David Weber's first book in this series "Off Armageddon Reef" was better written. There is too much discussion type background and less action that makes the book just 'Good' rather than 'Great'. Take out the 'padding' and the substance of the story is only about a third of the book. The rest is just the Author being lazy and passing the time. It's not up to his usual standard - but still good.

Ron Livingstone Off Armageddon Reef

By Schism Rent Asunder is the second book in a new series by David Weber. This book follows up on "Off Armageddon Reef," which established that the world called "Safehold" is a colony of humans that were brainwashed into scientific backwardsness to defend them from the attacks of a genocidal alien race. Set in a time where Safehold has the infrastructure of 17th century Europe and is controlled by a rigid overarching theocracy, "Schism" follows the political machinations in the aftermath of the failed attack by the Church's allies on the island nation of Charis int he first book. Assisted by Merlin, an android with the memories of a woman who died 800 years earlier after a mutiny on the colony ship that brought the people there, Charis prepares for all-out war by seeking allies to defend herself. Much of the content involves meetings, discusions and the like of the various factions involved in the conflict.

I picked up By Schism Rent Asunder recently and finished it today. As a long-time fan of David Weber, I've read most of what he's written over the years. Strangely enough, I didn't realize this was the second book in the Armageddon Reef series and never read the first book. To this book's credit, it does provide enough information in the books early pages to be read without reading the first book.

Weber's story takes a lot of influence from European history, and indeed, his writing shows that he has a lot of depth of knowledge in that subject both with period technology and politics, while throwing a in a dash of sci-fi as well. As always, his political plots are complex and somewhat thoughtful, and his characters black and white in philosophy.

The Safehold series is not particularly original. Other authors have done the theme of a futuristic wizard bringing the dark-ages into technological advancement, including fellow Baen author David Drake in the Bellisarius series. I read another novel like this back in the early 90's. Weber himself did this theme in his Heirs of Empire novel some years back. He even had a monolithic corrupted church as part of the story. Apparently Weber liked the idea so much he decided to expand it. This new series even has a genocidal race of aliens, much like the Heirs of Empire series.

I've made the observation that as he has become more popular and the editors have lifted their length restrictions, Weber's books have become longer, more plodding and filled with political discourse between characters.

Weber has a great ability to make interesting settings for his stories, but as he's progressed in his writing, I've found it more and more boring. It's not that his later books don't have action, or that I crave action, it's just that the expositionary politics ends up dragging down the story pace and overshadowing character development, sometimes almost unbearably. His earlier books, such as the Honor Harrington debut novels and the like were better edited story-wise and have far better pacing.

By Schism Rent Asunder is not a bad book, and it certainly has better story composition than some of the later Honor Harrington novels, but it has very little action and a glacial pace (the book's time frame is about 4 months, hardly any time at all considering the overarching story). I still liked it, but if one's reason for reading this book is because they like the action of Weber's novels, this one is going to surely disappoint. It's almost purely political and probably intended as a major bit of exposition between Off "Armageddon Reef" and his next book.

Still, despite the fact that reading this novel made me feel like I was reading a revised version of Heirs of Empire, I rather liked it. I look forward to see where the series goes. It's probably going to fill a lot of books at this rate. For fans of Honor, this could be bad news... It looks like a new subject has Weber's attention now.

This series is a good take on the (familiar) Arthurian theme.

By Schism Rent Asunder has all the characteristics of a middle series book which follows nicely on from the fast paced constant action of the first book in the series, setting the stage for more action in the next installment. It is full of character development, about which I have only one criticism - its that some of the characters (particularly the baddies) are seen only from a distance. I look forward to the pace picking up again in the next installment. David Weber is easily one of my favourite authors whose books consistently impress.

I have enjoyed Mr. Weber's work for years, and own every solo book he has ever written (and most of his collaborative efforts), having read many of them several times over. "Off Armageddon Reef" was superb, and left me eagerly anticipating the next episode. Perhaps therein lies the problem.

I was so excited that I didn't realize until about three-fourths of the way through "By Schism Rent Asunder" (delightfully lyrical title, btw) that nothing - nothing - was HAPPENING! The storyline's pace is positively glacial, and you would need calipers to measure the plot's progress in the first three HUNDRED pages. Instead, the reader is treated to an interminable series of meetings. Call them councils if you like, but they are MEETINGS nonetheless. The characters talk - ad nauseum - about what they're GOING to do and WHY they plan on doing it. Unfortunately, nobody ever gets around to - you know - actually doing anything. Just like meetings in the real world.

Now don't get me wrong: expositive narrative is quite valuable as a literary tool, and I respect Mr. Weber's stupendous imagination, to have crafted such a detailed and finely-honed fictional universe. Nor do I have sophomoric expectations of "non-stop" action, or action for its own sake. But this book is, sadly, lacking, or perhaps lackluster. It feels ... incomplete, and I get the feeling that the next book will move the storyline forward much more rapidly. Perhaps he was rushed to a deadline? Regardless, it might have been better to restructure the plot during the editing process, or perhaps wait and release both this volume and the next simultaneously.

Digression: Those similarly familiar with Mr. Weber's body of work will easily recognize the conceptual similarities between the Safehold series and the (much shorter, but highly recommended) Heirs of Empire. Does Mr. Weber anticipate tying the two together? Could Safehold be a - very - remote prequel?

I had high hopes for this book after reading the first book in this series. However, it has little internal plot and doesn't do much more to advance the overall storyline. Instead, it's full of banal, repetitive conversation and mind-numbing dull descriptive text that one has to endure while searching for the widely spaced portions where something actually happens.

Reading some other reviews, there seems to be an opinion that By Schism ... is only the 2nd of an 8 book series.

Hmm. I enjoy Weber's books but the other series are science fiction. The first two in this series are barely science fiction and at the pace of the timeline there won't be much above the atmosphere until maybe book 5.

I rather wonder why Weber has suddenly chosen to write historical naval fiction against a context of a religious war.

He may have created a problem for himself in that his usual and large following may be expecting the occasional epic space battle and equally are prepared to spend time absorbing the specifics of the impeller drive and a capital missile design but are rather less interested in canvas sail plans and carronade design.

I could guess how the next few novels develop and technolgical development will doubtless be accelerated by Merlin's presence and input but then again I don't see much space combat until Merlin has to take down the surveillance system just prior to the development of electricity/radio communication and that, at best, is several hundred years away in the series timeline.

I suspect this series will develop toward the premise of Weber's 'Heirs of Empire' series with the same form of technologically capable but culturally frozen adversary race.

Shame there looks to be several hundred years worth of planet bound conflict before the remnnants of humanity form an 'Empire from the Ashes' and go hunting Gbaba.

It may be (just) Science Fiction, but not really as we know it, Jim.

It's going to take a long time before this series is back in space.

I thoroughly enjoyed "Off Armegeddon Reef," for the concept, the characters, and the battle scenes. While "By Schism..." offers no major battles, it sets the stage for the upcoming confrontations and gives us an opportunity to get to know the inhabitants a little better. I found it an enjoyable read and had a sense of loss as the book neared its end.

His naming conventions are my least favorite part of this story. While I understand 800 years might bring a shift in spelling and pronounciation, skewing the spelling of character names while keeping the common pronounciation is tiring (and almost an exercise in humorless puns).

I look forward to the next book.

Off Armageddon Reef, the first book in this series, was the first David Weber book I had ever read. It was great. I loved it so much that I preordered the second book when I heard it was coming out. What a disappointment. I almost gave up on it about 100 pages in. When characters weren't sitting around talking to each other, they were sitting around thinking to themselves.

The two things I loved in the first book were (1) how the main character, Merlin, made new innovation possible without it being obvious that it was his idea, and (2) the great sea battles. The second book had little, if any, of either. Sorry, David, I have second thoughts about your writing abilities now. It's going to take some convincing to get me to buy the third book in this series.

I have been a fan of David Weber for years but his books have gone down hill since the last Honor Harrington book...the concept in this new series is excellent but Weber gets bogged down in a long drawn out story line...to many characters with convoluted names and places...

Book 2 is a good continuation of a great premis begun in "Off Armageddon Reef": a remnant of humanity has fled to a remote corner of the galaxy to hide from an implacablly hostile race that exterminates any intelligent species it finds. To avoid detection by electronic emissions, the colony establishes an 18th century society and a 15th century religion that borrows heavily from old time Catholicism. The memories of the colonists are selectively wiped of any traces of technology and human history. After 800 years of pastoral existence, an android that carries the total intelligence and personality of one of the original humans awakes and sets about secretly lifting humanity out of its torpor without revealing too much too soon. Much of the first book is about naval battles that will appeal to fans of Patrick O'Brian (like me).
The second book continues the story without really acquainting the reader with the prologue -- if you haven't read the first one, you will not get much of the second. Unfortunately, "Asunder" is close to becoming what finally turned me off the Honor Harrington series: FAR too much behind-the-scenes political intrigue. Weber is fascinated with Macchiavellian maneuvering by kings and princes, to the extent that it becomes tedious. Pages and pages of it. I don't read these books for geopolitical intrigue. If the next one continues this trend I will drop it as fast as I dropped Honor Harrington. It would be too bad, because the underlying story is fascinating.

I loved the first book (off Armagedon's reef). However this book is a big let down after that. This book is mostly about discussions and planning with very little action taking place. And then, the number of characters in this book appears to have tripled since the first book. It was hard enough remembering who was who from the first book written 18 months ago, to have to now remember a "million" other characters.

Anyway, I hope that the next book is more gripping and fast paced and not as boring as this one.

The second in what Mr. Weber has announced as an eight book series. It is riveting. BSRA widens and deepens our understanding of many of the characters introduced in Off Armageddon Reef. This book held my attention for the three days it took me to finish it.

Not as much combat as OAR, but much more discussion of the political background and characters' motivations. I liked it.

The second in what Mr. Weber has announced as an eight book series. It is riveting. BSRA widens and deepens our understanding of many of the characters introduced in Off Armageddon Reef. This book held my attention for the three days it took me to finish it.

Not as much combat as OAR, but much more discussion of the political background and characters' motivations. I liked it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first novel of this new series, which blends an early Renaissance setting with space opera. But this is too obviously a transitional novel, a very long tranitional novel at that. The characters are interesting, and their development is quite carefully crafted, but there is little action compared to the first volume. I am more attached to the many great characters than ever, but frustrated that we will have to wait for one and possibly several long sequels to see what happens to them.

I am almost through the second book. I've enjoyed it but would like to see a more active role and action taken by Merlin. I hope I live long enough to read the whole series because I think the premise is fascinating.