Paying The Piper
 David Drake
 (Sr. Staff Reviewer - D. H. BROWN)
 2002 Baen Books
  ISBN: 0743435478


The tariff dispute on Plattner's World can't been settled by arbitration. As war breaks out, the United Cities hires the best mercenaries money can buy, the legendary Hammer's Slammers.

Into this war comes Lt. Arne Huber, who commands a platoon of combat cars. He is old enough to be a veteran & young enough to still have principles. From his first minutes on Plattner's World, this Slammers leader is in the middle of a hot, flaming battle, & he knows it's not going change until either the Slammers have left the planet or he's sent home in a coffin.

Sr. Staff Review D. H. BROWN writes:

David Drake is a Vietnam Era contemporary of mine. I have always enjoyed his “take” on war, even if, in these PC times, that's not cool. Still, with so many of our men & women at war against terrorism, it is, once again, refreshing to get my hands on a book that is an unashamed war story, albeit, a future planetary war.

To say that David Drake is the undisputed master of military sci-fi, carries with it shades of redundancy. I have been on the battlefield & find that his writing takes me back there, time & time again. I suppose one could ask, having experienced battle, why I should want to return to it?

The answer lies in the type of war of which I was a part, & the honor that Mr. Drake gives his warriors. America says the war I was in was a “dirty” one, & that discounts all the honor we warriors of Vietnam accrued, medals notwithstanding.

Also, being a history buff allows me to see the metaphors & analogies used, & their pertinence, even far into the future. If you haven't read a Hammer's Slammers book, you have yet to experience the sheer reading joy & the writing skills of this one-of-a-kind sci-fi writer.

I find David Drake's writing like eating potato chips, impossible just to read only one!

More from David Drake: Dogs of War, Editor; with Eric Flint Fortune's Stroke; Hammer's Slammers series: The Tank Lords, Caught in the Crossfire,The Butcher's Bill, The Sharp end, Cross the Star; RCN series; The Dragon Lord; Birds of Prey; Redliners; Starliner & many, many more.
(09/29/02)

D. H. BROWN
A RebeccasReads.Com Sr. Staff Reviewer

Reviewer's Bio:
D. H. BROWN is the author of the critically acclaimed HONOR DUE and the Citizens Warrior Series. The son of missionary parents and with the help his Uncle Sam, he has touched base in more than 40 countries.  In 1986 he produced the independent children's film Lessie's Rainbow.  During the late 80s and early 90s, he wrote the book Common Sense and delivered the seminars of the same name for the Community Action Network of Seattle (CAN).  While doing his early Vietnam recovery work, he counseled Veterans and spoke widely to men's groups in Washington state, and was a founder of The Lodge of the Wolf.

D. H. BROWN has worked as a Logistics and Weapons Specialist in Viet Nam; day laborer; Director of Security; Armored Car Driver; Police Officer; Professional Hunting Guide; Trapper; Dog Sledder; Homesteader; Truck Driver; General Contractor; Minister; Editor; Writer; Speaker; Restaurateur; Movie Producer; Antique Restoration Specialist; Personal Care Worker; PC Repair Specialist; Computer Instructor; Webmaster and Web Designer. "I write about what I know."

He lives deep in the Pacific Northwest rainforest with his wife, author and editor Rebecca and Buddy Dog, working on his next book.
Visit him at: www.dhbrownbooks.com