The Alliance has been fighting the Syndic for a century—and losing badly. Now its fleet is crippled and stranded in enemy territory. Their only hope is a man who’s emerged from a century-long hibernation to find he has been heroically idealized beyond belief...
Captain John “Black Jack” Geary’s legendary exploits are known to every schoolchild. Revered for his heroic “last stand” in the early days of the war, he was presumed dead. But a century later, Geary miraculously returns from survival hibernation and reluctantly takes command of the Alliance Fleet as it faces annihilation by the Syndic.
Appalled by the hero-worship around him, Geary is nevertheless a man who will do his duty. And he knows that bringing the stolen Syndic hypernet key safely home is the Alliance’s one chance to win the war. But to do that, Geary will have to live up to the impossibly heroic “Black Jack” legend...
“Captain Geary, I wouldn’t blame you for wondering if you’d have been better off if we hadn’t found you. ‘Black Jack’ Geary, back from the dead to accompany the Alliance Fleet to its greatest victory.” Bloch closed his eyes for a moment. “Now I need to leave the fleet in the hands of someone I can trust.”
Geary grimaced, wanting to yell at Bloch, tell the admiral that the man he wanted to leave in charge of the fleet wasn’t the man actually standing here, that such a person had never existed.
He finally just nodded slowly. “Aye, aye, sir.”
“We’re trapped. This fleet is the Alliance’s last hope.” Bloch leaned close, speaking more softly. “Dauntless has the key onboard. Do you understand? This ship must get home. Somehow. The hypernet key must get back to the Alliance. If we can do that there’ll still be a chance.”
It wasn’t like Geary would be in charge forever. Bloch would negotiate with the Syndics, then return and be back in command. Geary would never have to learn any details about some “key” on the Dauntless that somehow related to a method of traveling between the stars, which was much more rapid than even the system-jump faster-than-light transportation used in Geary’s time.
“Yes, sir . . . ”
“A slam-bang good read that kept me up at night.”—Elizabeth Moon
“A rousing adventure…the kind of hero Hornblower fans will love!”—William C.
“The best novel of its type that I’ve read.”—David Sherman, coauthor of the Starfist series
“Military science fiction at its best.”—Catherine Asaro
