To me, a good book that keeps one's interest all the way through and ends with a contented glow for the reader is a treasure beyond par. Master Author David Drake provides that in spades. This is the second book of the Leary series (With the Lightnings precedes it) where Lt. Leary retains command of his vessel and is assigned a mission which would daught many of his superiors. With his crack crew, Adele Mundy, Hogg and Tovera he proceeds to accomplish his mission in ways that the Commodore he is assigned to would never imagine. This, as referenced above, is a good book well worth reading.