I mentioned in the review of Taylor Anderson’s first book, Destroyermen: Into the Storm, that I thought the work defied easy categorization. With its mix of science and military fiction, fantasy, and history, there’s a little something for everyone in this book. After reading Destroyermen: Cusade, I think I “get” what the series is about.

Honor.

If you’re not steeped in the military culture (or not a resident of Texas) this concept may be a little foreign. Honor, as Taylor has portrayed it in this book, is doing what’s right no matter the cost. There is really only one right choice at each branching point in the book–that is sticking by your allies, doing your best to accomplish your goals, and remaining loyal to your men no matter the circumstances. Doing so makes the overall goal of defeating a terrible enemy a reality. Taylor teaches some excellent lessons about what it means to be a man in this series, showcasing this with several of his characters “growing up” during the course of the plot. Young men at high school age could learn a great deal by giving these books a once over.

Setting is just a crucible in which writers place characters to watch them do interesting things. By definition, a crucible is piece of laboratory equipment which is generally used as a container for reactions at high temperatures. Taylor has put the crew of the Walker, a WWI era four stacker destroyer, in a brilliantly designed crucible just to see what would happen. Men of disparate backgrounds, education, and work ethics come together to defend the Lemurian people who facing annihilation at the hands of the reptilian Grik. They don’t face simple domination; their people will be broken, harried, and eaten until they are extinct. The Grik are not a pretty enemy, nor is there anything redeeming about their character or culture (at least so far).

Lt. Commander Matt Reddy, now Admiral Reddy at the behest of his Lemurian allies, welds an alliance of many different tribes together, spearheads a logistics drive to outfit them with rudimentary cannon, and uses a paroled Japanese officer and an older Marine sergeant to outfit a company of soldiers based on Roman infantry tactics. As you might guess, being an intrepid reader, all of this preparedness results in a huge battle at the climax of the book. The payoff is well worth it.

Taylor’s sense of timing, comprehensible prose, and spot-on characterizations keep the narrative moving at a brisk pace to the inevitable conclusion. There are a few surprises along the way (even one that I totally called), but nothing feels like a deus ex machina. If you like action-packed adventure that hearkens back to the time when heroes were black and white and larger than life, then you cannot miss the novel.

This entry was posted on Friday, October 24th, 2008 at 8:02 pm and is filed under Book Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.