Winds of Wrath

Anderson’s world-spanning Destroyermen saga comes to a tense and well-crafted climax in the thoroughly satisfying 15th and final entry (after Pass of Fire), which continues the adventure of the USS Walker, a WWII destroyer translocated to an alternate Earth populated by dinosaurs and cat people. Capt. Matt Reddy, commander of the armed forces of a Grand Alliance of humans, humanoid Lemurians, and reptilian Grik, their former enemies, faces the final resistance of rebel Grik in Africa while also directing an invasion of South America to topple the Dominion, a group of bloodthirsty religious fanatics. But the biggest threat to the Alliance remains the fascist League of Tripoli, who greatly outgun the Alliance and its scrappy flagship. Anderson successfully juggles the various fronts and the large cast while also providing the best battle sequences in the series. Readers following the adventures of this “rusty old ship” will be pleased to find that its success is due less to its armament and more to the honor and loyalty of its displaced destroyermen and women. Anderson sends the series out with a bang. Agent: Russell Galen, Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary. (June)