Admiral Harper: Book 2 (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798287082369)

Grant Harper didn't debate the morality of what he was about to unleash on the rebels that had cost the coalition so much in terms of human life, as he and Maxx and the Shepard left for the fleet. If the rebels had the chance, they would rape the coalition and the people of earth for temporary gain, while the Culmar would let them run amok for a while. He had dealt with pirates, cut-throats, and thieves before. His concern for the rebels and their leaders lay elsewhere. The present strain of scum was his immediate target, though.

There was something else that was behind this, he was sure. He couldn't help the feeling that the actual power behind this uprising was still pulling strings from within the government, some place. Who or whatever was controlling these pawns that he was about to assassinate was embedded so tightly that they would be very tough to root out. They were at the very core of the empire's government. Worse, while they worked to put themselves in as the new emperor of the 'Empire of Man', they were themselves dupes of the Culmar. He/She was paving the way for the extinction of mankind. The Culmar would tolerate no specie that could think and act independently.

Grant wondered, not for the first time, if man was really made in the image of the Gods as many religions professed. If we were, they must have been the Greek or Roman gods. They were sinners on par with our current strain. Only they were supposed to be immortal. Thank heaven they weren't! Laughing at himself at the irony of that thought, he and Maxx plunged through the darkness to the pirate fleet was the next challenge.

Grant has come a long way in the short time since his graduation from the academy. His leadership abilities have established him as one of the greatest commanders that the empire has ever known. Now he has to teach others his skills and keep the empire alive at the same time fighting off the Culmar as the wars on two fronts, i.e. the human home front and the war front as they try to blitz the empire using humans as pawns in their devious game.

Starting out with the base of officers and enlisted that were qualified on the 'Baldwin', Grant continues to build off the core of his old ship. For those that were exposed to his leadership style, they know what is expected of them. For their XOs and other new officers and enlisted, the learning curve is steep.

The pressure from both fronts mounts as the 'big three', of Grant, Emperor Robert Tillman, and Fleet-Admiral Fleming try to hold their beloved empire together.