New York Times bestselling author David Weber invites David Drake and S.M. Stirling, two of today's top writers of military science fiction, to join him in an exploration of Honor Harrington's universe. Here is the first entry in the Worlds of Honor anthology series, stories set in David Weber's New York TImes best-selling Honorverse. Contents: \*A Beautiful Friendship \[Star Kingdom (Honor Harrington)\] (1998) / novella by David Weber \*A Grand Tour \[Honor Harrington Universe Short Fiction\] (1998) / novella by David Drake \*A Whiff of Grapeshot \[Honor Harrington Universe Short Fiction\] (1998) / novelette by S. M. Stirling \*The Universe of Honor Harrington \[Honor Harrington Universe Nonfiction\] (1998) • essay by David Weber .

WELCOME AGAIN TO THE MANY WORLDS OF HONOR Lady Dame Honor Harrington—starship captain, admiral, Steadholder, and Duchess—has spent decades defending the Star Kingdom of Manticore against all comers. Along the way, she has become the legend known as "the Salamander" from her habit of always being where the fire is hottest . . . and also a national bestseller (Ashes of Victory: #7, The Wall Street Journal). But it's a big universe, and Honor's actions affect a lot of lives, not all of them human. And their actions affect her—a lesson "Ms. Midshipwoman Harrington" learns years before rising to command rank when a desperate battle against "pirates" who aren't quite what they seem begins her brilliant career. Closer to home, in "Changer of Worlds," a secret that the alien treecats have kept from their human friends for hundreds of years is about to come out . . . and completely change the relationship between the two species forever. Meanwhile, Eric Flint weighs in with "From the Highlands." Honor can't be everywhere, so when the People's Republic of Haven tries to stage a political assassination on Earth, Anton Zilwicki—husband of one of the Star Kingdom's most revered military martyrs, and father of a young woman who is clearly a chip off the old block—steps into the breach . . . and takes the opportunity to settle some old scores along the way. And finally, Esther McQueen and Oscar Saint-Just square off for their final confrontation in Noveau Paris in "Nightfall."

A NEW SOLO NOVEL IN DAVID WEBER'S NYT BEST-SELLING HONORVERSE “It is our duty to pay for our liberty with our own blood. The freedom that we shall win through our sacrifice and exertions, we shall be able to preserve with our own strength.” —Subhas Chandra Bose Lieutenant Brandy Bolgeo has come home from the Battle of Hancock station wounded in both body and spirit. She will need months to regenerate her lost leg, but how long will it take to heal her heart? She’s come home to find that her wounds, her ship’s brutal damage, the deaths of so many friends, were the fault of an arrogant, aristocratic coward who broke and ran in the face of the enemy. Who left her ship to pay the price for his craven desertion under fire. And whose powerful political allies are determined to protect and preserve him at any price. They have held hostage the declaration of war until Lord Pavel Young escaped the consequences of his cowardice. They didn’t care what it cost the Navy. They didn’t care what it cost the entire Star Kingdom of Manticore. Their tactics have cost the Royal Navy the priceless initiative as revolution and military purges wrack the People’s Republic of Haven, and that lost window of opportunity will cost the Star Kingdom seventeen years of bloody warfare and hundreds of thousands of deaths. Now Young is free to seek vengeance on the people he feels have “wronged” him. People like Paul Tankersley and Honor Harrington. Paid duelists, smear tactics, hired assassins in public restaurants . . . nothing is beneath Pavel Young. But Captain Harrington can look after herself, and Pavel Young is about to face the fury of the woman the newsies call the “Salamander.” Yet who will save the Star Kingdom from the repercussions of his actions? Women and men like Brandy Bolgeo are about to pay the toll for the Star Kingdom of Manticore’s honor. At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management). Praise for David Weber and the Honor Harrington “ . . . everything you could want in a heroine... Excellent . . . plenty of action.” —Science Fiction Age “Brilliant! Brilliant! Brilliant!” —Anne McCaffrey “Compelling combat combined with engaging characters for a great space opera adventure.” —Locus “Weber combines realistic, engaging characters with intelligent technological projection . . . Fans of this venerable space opera will rejoice . . . ” —Publishers Weekly Praise for Uncompromising “ . . . a balanced mix of interstellar intrigue, counterespionage, and epic fleet action . . . with all the hard- and software details and tactical proficiency that Weber delivers like no one else; along with a large cast of well-developed, believable characters, giving each clash of fleets emotional weight.” —Booklist Praise for Shadow of “ . . . a fast-paced and action-packed story that follows \[our characters\] as they move from reaction to command of the situation. Weber builds Shadow of Freedom to an exciting and unexpected climax.” —Daily News of Galveston County Praise for Mission of “Weber combines realistic, engaging characters with intelligent technological projection and a

Short Story in the Honor Harrington Universe.