Change of Command

While Esmay Suiza and Barin Serrano struggle to convince their families that their marriage is good for everyone, rumors that the Space Service was unwittingly given bad drugs cause violent reactions.

Continuing her epic, intergalactic series set in the distant future (Rules of Engagement, etc.), Moon's latest novel follows the tumultuous romance of Esmay Suiza and offworlder Barin Serrano while tracking a bevy of new political intrigues among the Familias Regnant. When Bunny Thornbuckle, head of the dynastic Family, is assassinated, slimy Hobart Conselline maneuvers into power as the new council speaker and solidifies his position with harsh new laws aimed at isolating Thornbuckle's widow, Miranda, and his daughter, Brun. As a suitable new home is found for the bastard children Brun was forced to bear in Rules of Engagement, Miranda allies herself with a former aide of Thornbuckle's who has survived the assassination and is now battling opposing elements within the Family. Meanwhile, young lovers Esmay and Barin are betrothed, despite some difficulties with their military posts and the bad feeling between their families. Even with the proliferation of subplots, the novel moves slowly at times and may appeal more to readers who appreciate romance than space opera. Still, series fans should enjoy it and, with so many plot threads left unresolved--who will assume leadership of the Family? what waits in battle for the young lovers?--there's little doubt that epic will continue into the next millennium. (Dec.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A disappointing addition to Moon's once-gripping military-family space saga (Rules of Engagement, 1998, etc.). This time, the assassination of Lord Thornbuckle, the Familias Regnant's head honcho, precipitates a series of disastrous events. First, whodunit, and why? Well, Hobart Conselline didn't arrange the murder, but he takes full advantage of it by seizing power and introducing repressive measures to cement his totalitarian grip. Elsewhere, political maneuvers (but very little action) preoccupy the Familias's powerful women. Heroine Esmay Suiza and her beloved Barin Serrano want to marry, but their families demur because of an ancient blood feud. The space navy, weakened by the withdrawal of key personnel due to problems with a rejuvenation drug, finds that Conselline's toadies now give the orders. A bad situation on a prison planet develops into a full-blown mutiny. Battle looms. End of story. Your move. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

The assassination of Speaker Thornbuckle throws the Grand Council of the Familias Regnant into chaos as ambition, revenge, and greed threaten to upset the delicate political balance of the galaxy. Moon's sequel to Rules of Engagement follows the fortunes of Regular Space Service officers Esmay Suiza and Barin Serrano as they attempt to overcome the obstacles of their marriage while coping with the greater problems that beset their home worlds. Political intrigue, mutiny in space, and ideological battles of war and weapons lend variety to this fast-moving space opera set in the distant future. For most sf collections.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.