The novel “Fleet of Knives” by Gareth L. Powell was published for the first time in 2019. It’s the second book in the Embers of War series and follows “Embers of War“.
The starship Lucy’s Ghost is traveling in the higher dimensions when she’s suddenly brought back to normal space. As the crew enters a long-abandoned alien starship, a distress call reaches the Trouble Dog, who is tasked with the rescue.
Ona Sudak was sentenced to death, the only scapegoat for crimes committed by her superiors too. Just before her execution, she’s set free and is offered command of the Marble Armada, which needs a living being as a leader. Her order is to prevent a new war from breaking out, whatever the cost.
In “Embers of War”, Gareth L. Powell introduced a future in which humanity is part of an interstellar civilization that includes various sentient species and starships. “Fleet of Knives” takes up the story linked to the Marble Armada, continuing the development of various themes related to the war and its consequences. For this reason, you need to have read the first book to understand the second.
This sequel is also divided into various subplots with different points of view, generally narrated in the first person. Like the first novel, it’s heavily character-oriented, but Ona Sudak, Trouble Dog, and Sal Konstanz’s past and motives are now known. Gareth L. Powell builds on those foundations to develop the protagonists’ new choices.
Regarding Ona Sudak’s choice, we know that the way to hell is paved with good intentions. The theme of redemption has been present since the beginning of the Embers of War series, and for Ona Sudak, the perfect opportunity seems to arrive. However, she soon realizes what it means to prevent new wars.
Ethical and moral problems are a strong point of “Fleet of Knives”, perhaps even more than in “Embers of war”. In part, there are reflections of characters with various introspections, in part, there are dialogues, such as those between Ona Sudak and Trouble Dog that highlight the contrast between the different choices they made. In fact, you can say Ona Sudak performs a single action throughout the entire book and then witness its consequences and talk to other characters.
My main problem in “Fleet of Knives” is that the moment Ona Sudak gives her command to the Marble Armada, the developments become quite predictable. When she’s set free, she’s in a state of mind that makes her desire for redemption understandable, but the consequences of her extreme choice seemed obvious.
The subplot about Lucy’s Ghost crew satisfied me even less. A story of characters facing monstrous creatures isn’t exactly original and I didn’t feel an attachment to them, so I didn’t care if they all died. In the end, the interesting part of this subplot is about what they find in the alien starship. I hope this leads to significant developments in the next book in the series, also because it expands even more the level of the story.
I liked some elements of “Fleet of Knives” but its fast pace in my opinion hasn’t covered its flaws. If “Embers of War” had an open ending for some parts of the story, this sequel seems in all respects a part of a bigger story, so if you intend to read it you have to keep in mind that you need to continue with the next book in this series.
