The Shadow of Saganami (2004)

The Shadow of Saganami is a science fiction novel by American writer David Weber, published in 2004. Set in the Honorverse, it is the first in the Saganami Island series, spun off from the main Honor Harrington series. It debuted at No. 16 on The New York Times best seller list for hardcover fiction.

Honor appears in a cameo role. Other characters from the novels and several short stories take centre stage. These include Helen Zilwicki, introduced in "From the Highlands" (after a cameo in The Short Victorious War), and Abigail Hearns, introduced in Ashes of Victory and also seen in The Service of the Sword.

Plot summary

The events of the novel are simultaneous with those of the novel At All Costs, which belongs to the main novel series of the Honorverse.

The story focuses on the shakedown cruise of the Edward Saganami-C-class heavy cruiser HMS Hexapuma (nicknamed Nasty Kitty), commanded by Captain Aivars Terekhov, a war veteran and former prisoner of war who has only recently been cleared for return to active naval service. The Hexapuma is assigned to the Talbott Cluster, a group of star systems that is holding votes on whether to be annexed into the Star Kingdom of Manticore. With the renewal of the war with Haven as well as annexation of parts of the Silesian Confederacy, Manticore assigns the Hexapuma to lead a small naval force to guard the Cluster during its discussions of the terms of the Cluster's formal annexation.

However, the Solarian League's Office of Frontier Security (OFS), greedy interstellar corporations, and genetic slaving corporations of Mesa do not want the Talbott Cluster annexed by Manticore. To try to hinder the discussions, they send an agent to offer support to groups violently opposed to annexation with the goal of causing civil unrest and give OFS an excuse to intervene under the pretence of "preserving regional peace". The oligarchs of the various Talbott Cluster star systems are also tenuous in their support of the annexation as they worry that their power will be diminished under Manticore. Additionally, because the annexation is supported by a local merchant cartel with a history of strong-arm tactis and economic abuse, much of the population is wary of supporting the annexation for fear those tactics and abuses will continue.

Hexapuma and her crew embark on a goodwill patrol of the Cluster's systems, meant to "show the flag" and deal with issues of piracy and smuggling. One of the major systems is Montana, where Stephen Westman bombs multiple government facilities without causing a single casualty. On nearby Kornati, Agnes Nordbrant carries out multiple bombings that slaughter hundreds of civilians. Both groups are supplied and supported secretly by the OFS agent known as 'Firebrand'. After the Hexapuma accidentally discovers a Mesan freighter delivering weapons to Westman, the freighter destroys the inspection pinnace sent by Terekhov, and the freighter is severely damaged by Hexapuma in reposnse. The remaining Mesan crew quickly surrenders and eventually provides information on an OFS task force being secretly sent to settle the unrest in the Cluster.

Terekhov assembles a small squadron of ships and leads them to the Monica system (which is near the Talbott Cluster), where he demands the surrender of the local fleet as well as the OFS ships masquerading as part of Monica's fleet. After Monica refuses, the battle results in the destruction of almost all of the Monican ships and about half of Terekhov's squadron. After threatening to destroy all of the remaining military infrastructure in Monica, Terekhov is able to hold the system long enough for reinforcements to arrive from the Talbott Cluster.

After repairing his ships enough for them to get underway, Terekhov and the Hexapuma return to Manticore where Queen Elizabeth III and the Home Fleet welcome them and applaud their service in the Cluster.

Reception

The Shadow of Saganami debuted at No. 16 on The New York Times best seller list for hardcover fiction.

Reviews for the book were mostly positive. Publishers Weekly praised the narrative for demonstrating that "a hero can be anyone who does his or her job with honor, commitment and skill". John Joyce, reviewing for Scientific Computing & Instrumentation, stated "this book is very satisfying on several levels". The book was included in 2005 in the first volume of What Do I Read Next? A Reader's Guide to Current Genre Fiction from Gale.

The Midwest Book Review called it "[possibly] Weber's best tale in the Honorverse", stating that Weber "provides an action packed tale with a fully developed...cast". Alex Hormann, in reviewing the book for At Boundary's Edge, was disappointed with it. He said "[it didn't] add anything of its own" and "though as well-written as ever, really just retread[s] familiar ground".

Sequels

The Shadow of Saganami is followed by several sequels:

Storm from the Shadows

(March 2009, Baen, 755 pages, ISBN 978-1-4165-9147-4)

After Manticore's Eighth Fleet is destroyed in a Havenite attack that used a new missile control system, Admiral Michelle Henke is thought killed in action. In reality, she was severely injured and captured by the Havenite forces. Due to orders from Admiral Thomas Theisman, the head of Havenite military forces, Henke is treated well as a prisoner and even visited by the president of the Republic of Haven, Eloise Pritchart. The Republic of Haven seems to have changed how things were under the People's Republic of Haven, and Henke develops a grudging respect for Theisman's and Pritchart's efforts to treat all their prisoners well. After six months as a prisoner, Henke is paroled and sent back to the Star Kingdom of Manticore under the provision that she cannot participate in the war against Haven. After arriving in Manticore, she is assigned to become second in command (under Vice Admiral Khumalo) of the Manticoran forces in the Talbott Cluster.