Reviews for When the Tide Rises (RCN Series #6)

The average rating for When the Tide Rises (RCN Series #6) based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2013-09-15 00:00:00 Rickie Scott "The business of When the Tide Rises is taken largely from real events in Chile, Peru, and Brazil. The major naval action, however, is based on the 1811 Battle of Lissa. I write to entertain readers, not to advance a personal or political philosophy (I don't have a political philosophy); nonetheless, my fiction is almost always based on historical models. When you read When the Tide Rises, you might occasionally think about today's news and remember that it'll be tomorrow's history." - David Drake There's a light cruiser that is briefly mentioned in this novel called the Bat Durston. It's perhaps telling that it's an Alliance ship. Anyway, is it Drake's way of poking a bit of fun at himself or just an Easter Egg? The RCN novels aren't, by definition, true Bat Durston stories (they're not Space Westerns). They are, however, Naval Stories transposed to a futuristic backdrop. Master and Commander in Space. Drake is a master at writing combat scenes on any level: strategic, tactical and personal. His pragmatic approach to action sequences makes everything so much more tangible. It's a dirty business, war. The 15-cm guns were firing at high rate, spewing plasma bolts before the barrels had properly cooled from the previous rounds. This was certain to erode the tubes and might well lead to an explosion that damaged the turret, but need outweighed the risk. Drake's RCN novels are neither Hard Sci-Fi, nor even particularly high tech as far as Space Opera / Military Science Fiction is concerned, but there are lots of technical details. The mechanics of "how things work" seems to be important to the author. It does indeed add something to the story. The pressed-steel barrel shroud had faded back to the dull gray of its phosphate coating, but heat still made air passing through the ventilation slots tremble. The novels are stand-alone to an extent, but I would recommend following the series. There are some developments, especially surrounding the core characters, which will pass you by if you don't. And there it is. I'm rather fond of this series, even though I don't think I can put into words exactly why, and despite the relative "sameness" of the books (consider: they're all based on real life military events and related politics). It's just good, not-so-clean, fun! "Deep in their hearts, they're afraid and they know we aren't. We're the RCN."

Review # 2 was written on 2014-01-22 00:00:00 Warren Radcliff Up Cinnabar! 4th reread 6/18/17. Very enjoyable read, great series.