I skipped the Dreeson Incident book since its reviews were not good and I think it worked out. You do get that book spoiled by learning about the big events though I can not see how they could have taken as many pages as that book is.

There is one observation I have about this book. The series has
gone from being tentatively positive to predicting more doom and gloom in the scenario set up by 1632. I don't think I'm a fan of that.

The main events in this book centers around Mike Stearns, General in the USE Army, and conflicts between states as well as between groups inside states. This is a more action packed book than some of the others and I like that, but I don't like the writing technique of making a character into an imbecile to allow a certain mistake to be made, followed by the same character being a genius the next chapter. Or paragraph. It seems way to contrived.

So grading. I will give it three for the action and ease of read despite the characters' strange behaviour. ( )

This was better than its immediate predecessor by a very large margin, but is still not a great entry in the series. Other than the incident at the very end, not much happens - and that incident isn't explored at all in this book. It's basically a boring turn in a wargame where everyone maneuvers troops into position but no one actually engages. (Yeah, there are actual battles in this book, but they're pretty minor in the grand scheme of things.)

Not a huge fan, and I had higher hopes for this thread of the story. ( )

Lots of political development. I like how he develops the world they live in but doesn't lose sight of the characters -- and there are a lot of them, now! This one focuses on Kristina and Mike. Enjoyable, a little slow in places, but necessary developments in the storyline. ( )

Sterns has lost the election but has been appointed as a general in the Swedish army. During the invasion the king is badly wounded and an internal succession conflict looms. A better book then many in this series. ( )

The action moves to the east, with invasions of Saxony and Poland, and the military and political ramifications. The ending is a bit of a cliff-hanger.

Less engaging than many in the series, but if you've read the rest you'll want to read this as well. If you haven't read the rest, for heaven's sake don't start here. ( )