Baen Books "1st hardcover printing" June 2002 (paperback was 1994.) Although the credits list the cover artist as Lawrence Schwinger; he was the artist for the orginal paperback - this cover is the work of David Mattingly (his signature appears in the lower right quadrant.) 343 pages, $14.00 cover price (on back cover.) Condition is VG+ to near-Fine: tight and almost square with light bumping to bottom of spine; age-tanning is very mild and uniform (better paper than some of these reprints); trace of rubbing wear - mostly on (blank) back cover. No stamps, marks or writing.

The Short Victorious War - third in Weber's "Honor Harrington" series. The families who rule the People's Republic of Haven are in trouble. The treasury's empty, the Proles are restless, and civil war is imminent. But the ruling class knows what they need to keep in power: another short, victorious war to unite the people and fill the treasury once more. It's card they've played often in the last half-century, always successfully, and all that stands in their way is the Star Kingdom of Manticore and its threadbare allies. Only this time the Peeps face something different. This time they're up against Captain Honor Harrington and a Royal Manticoran Navy that's prepared to give them a war that's far from short... and anything but victorious.

I find Weber's books to be compulsively readable, and he has been a consistent exception to the rule that "sequels are bad" - coming up with new directions to go that are worth exploring. Weber is firmly in the military-SF camp, but I like the thinking that he brings to matters of organization - while writing action or "Space Opera." The first 5 books in this series were paperback originals (1993-95.) Starting with #6 in 1996, all subsequent books came out in hardcover first, and apparently there was enough clamor or demand for hardcovers of the first 5 that Baen did hardcover reprints, with #1 and #4 in 1999, #2 in 2000, #5 in 2001, and finally #3 in 2002. While I might have preferred a more lavish production with cloth boards and a dustjacket, these "printed-cover" hardcovers will certainly stand up much better to multiple readings than your average paperbacks - and Weber is definitely worth re-reading. I bought my copies new as soon as they came out, and didn't see copies linger very long on the bookstore shelves - I don't think the print run was big enough for the eventual demand. I consider the titles reprinted in hardcover to be Weber at his finest - and I'll be happy to sell as many nice copies as I can find.