A Call to Duty

David Weber · Timothy Zahn

Sep 2014 · Manticore Ascendant Book 1 · Baen Publishing Enterprises

About this ebook

Growing up, Travis Uriah Long yearned for order and discipline in his life . . . the two things his neglectful mother couldnt or wouldnt provide. So when Travis enlisted in the Royal Manticoran Navy, he thought hed finally found the structure hed always wanted so desperately.

But life in the RMN isnt exactly what he expected. Boot camp is rough and frustrating; his first ship assignment lax and disorderly; and with the Star Kingdom of Manticore still recovering from a devastating plague, the Navy is possibly on the edge of budgetary extinction.

The Star Kingdom is a minor nation among the worlds of the Diaspora, its closest neighbors weeks or months away, with little in the way of resources. With only modest interstellar trade, no foreign contacts to speak of, a plague-ravaged economy to rebuild, and no enemies looming at the hyper limit, there are factions in Parliament who want nothing more than to scrap the Navy and shift its resources and manpower elsewhere.

But those factions are mistaken. The universe is not a safe place.

Travis Long is about to find that out.

At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).

About A Call to Duty:
"A new series set in the universe of Webers popular heroine Honor Harrington gets off to a solid start. . . . Cowriters Zahn and Weber do an excellent job alluding to events known to longtime fans. . . . [T]his astronautical adventure is filled with . . . intrigue and political drama."_Publishers Weekly

About the Honor Harrington series:
_Weber combines realistic, engaging characters with intelligent technological projection and a deep understanding of military bureaucracy in this long-awaited Honor Harrington novelãFans of this venerable space opera will rejoice to see Honor back in action.Ó_Publishers Weekly

_. . .everything you could want in a heroine ã. Excellent ã plenty of action.Ó_Science Fiction Age

_Brilliant! Brilliant! Brilliant!Ó_Anne McCaffrey

_Compelling combat combined with engaging characters for a great space opera adventure.Ó_Locus

_Weber combines realistic, engaging characters with intelligent technological projection . . . Fans of this venerable space opera will rejoice . . .Ó_Publishers Weekly

About Timothy Zahn:
_Zahn keeps the story moving at a breakneck pace, maintaining excitement.Ó¾Publishers Weekly

"[Y]ou can count on Timothy Zahn for three things: clean, sparse prose; good pacing; and great action scenes. The first book in the Cobra War series hits all those marks in admirable style and makes for a quick, entertaining sci-fi novel." ¾Blogcritics

_[Conquerors Heritage] is another finely wrought space adventure . . . [with] social, political and emotional complications, all of which Zahn treats with his usual skill.Ó¾Booklist

_Zahn paints every detail [in Angelmass] with gleamy realism . . . scientific dialogue that streams with starship hardware and military trooper talk . . . immensely appealing.Ó¾Kirkus Review

Ratings and reviews

Love both Zahn and Weber, but I must say this one took a hero a bit too far. I'm less interested in the character of a super-junior guy who always comes up with a brilliant plan using obscure physics ex machina. A little more imperfection would be nice.

easy to follow. Not bogged down with technical jargon

Good. Military sifi

About the author

With over seven million copies of his books in print and seventeen titles on the New York Times bestseller list, David Weber is the science fiction publishing phenomenon of the new millennium. In the hugely-popular Honor Harrington series, the spirit of C.S. Foresters Horatio Hornblower and Patrick OBrians Master and Commander lives on into the galactic future. Books in the Honor Harrington and Honoverse series have appeared on fourteen best seller lists, including those of The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and USA Today. While Weber is best known for his spirited, modern-minded space operas, he is also the creator of the Oath of Swords fantasy series and the Dahak saga, a science fiction and fantasy hybrid. Weber is has also engaged in a steady stream of bestselling collaborations including his Starfire Series with Steve White, which produced the New York Times bestseller The Shiva Option among others. Webers collaboration with alternate history master Eric Flint led to the bestselling 1634: The Baltic War, and his planetary adventure novels with military science fiction ace and multiple national best-seller John Ringo includes the blockbusters March to the Stars and We Few. Finally, Webers teaming with Linda Evans produced the bestselling Multiverse series. David Weber makes his home in South Carolina with his wife and children.

Timothy Zahn is a Hugo award winner, and author of the #1 New York Times best seller Heir to the Empire. Born in Chicago, Zahn earned a B.S. in physics from Michigan State University and an M.S. in physics from the University of Illinois. He sold his first story to Analog magazine in 1978, and immediately attracted attention as a new writer of science fiction based on real, cutting-edge science. Other Zahn creations include the Conqueror and Dragonback series. His books for Baen include his popular Cobra SF adventure series and now the Manticore Ascendant series, cowritten with David Weber. The Timothy Zahn author page on Facebook has received over 50,000 likes and can be visited at http://www.facebook.com/TimothyZahn.