Rating: 
Summary: Much Worse than the Midshipman's Hope
Review: This is a real stinker. Not the worst book I have read, but definitely on the list of "not to recommend or ever read again".The only reason I read it was I was on vacation and spent a lot of time waiting around (with nothing else to read).
Enter the evil, cowardly, admiral who causes all the dislikes the new captin. If you are going to create a villain, then make the villian at least interesting. In a good book (which this is NOT), the villains tend to be much more interesting than the "good guys". You need to understand the motivations for the villain. The book provides no motivation for Admiral Tremaine, other than he immediately, and with no cause, dislikes the main character.
I thought the age of the BEM (Bug-Eyed-Monster) was gone. I must have been mistaken. We are introduced to one of the worst BEM in thirty years: big, nasty, interstellar, goldfish.
This book should have been written as a parody. There is ample room to laugh at this book.
Don't waste your time or money on this book, instead read something by Forrester or Webber.
Rating:
Summary: Much Worse than the Midshipman's Hope
Review: This is a real stinker. Not the worst book I have read, but definitely on the list of "not to recommend or ever read again".
The only reason I read it was I was on vacation and spent a lot of time waiting around (with nothing else to read).
Enter the evil, cowardly, admiral who causes all the dislikes the new captin. If you are going to create a villain, then make the villian at least interesting. In a good book (which this is NOT), the villains tend to be much more interesting than the "good guys". You need to understand the motivations for the villain. The book provides no motivation for Admiral Tremaine, other than he immediately, and with no cause, dislikes the main character.
I thought the age of the BEM (Bug-Eyed-Monster) was gone. I must have been mistaken. We are introduced to one of the worst BEM in thirty years: big, nasty, interstellar, goldfish.
This book should have been written as a parody. There is ample room to laugh at this book.
Don't waste your time or money on this book, instead read something by Forrester or Webber.
Rating: 
Summary: An overall excellent story... with a couple of problems!
Review: This is the second novel in this series which I have read. I greatly enjoy the well-written hard S-F.... it kept my attention and I will read the remaining books in the series soon. Two features of this "universe"(Feintuch's setting for Seafort's adventures) I find difficult to accept as credible: the first is that the Navy would accept common, uneducated "scummy" characters as crew-members for interstellar spaceships. The other is the absolute religous faith that Seafort and apparently most other "educated" characters seem to maintain. The bit about being dammned to hell for "breaking his oath" seems unrealistic... I find it unlikely that a civilization so technologically advanced would have this....19th century? view of religion and God. I also get tired of Seafort's unbending allegiance to "Navy regulations" in so many instances... and being so hard-nosed regarding courtmartialing friends, hanging crew-members, etc. etc. I suppose this makes the character more interesting, and perhaps with maturity he is becoming confident enough to loosen up a bit. I suppose that Feintuch is trying to maintain as much of the flavor of British Naval tradition (the reviewers mention the Horatio Hornblower character....) as is possible. I for one do not really appreciate that approach, but perhaps readers who are fans of that genre' (historical traditions of the British Navy) like it. Even with my criticisms, I do greatly enjoy the series, and hope Feintuch writes many more works of fiction
Rating:
Summary: Military SF
Review: This volume, the second of ist series, shows its hero Nick Seafort first as commander of a starship bound for Hope Nation, which planet he does not reach this time, and then as commander of another starship, or wreck of a starship, on its way back to earth. Characters of the first volume appear again.
At first reading, the story was completely gripping. As said by other readers on this page: You can not put the book down. Now, about a year after my first reading and after having since then read the whole series, I read the book again. My comments are to be seen on this basis.
In my opinion the series lives on the particular social, political and military environment it is unfolding. I do not share the opinion expressed on this page that the environment would be unrealistic or hard to believe. Given that the history of man shows a great diversity of types of societies, it would on the contrary be unrealistic to assume that society of the year 2197 would be a mere continuation of the US in 2000, i.e. a today with just further liberalism, more education and more wealth. In any event, the reaction towards rigid standards in religion, politics and military is explained in a plausible way in the series' several remarks on mankind's history between today and then.
However, the book is of course not high literature. It gives us an admiral (Tremaine) who acts malicious and cowardly from the start of the book, without this disposition being in any way explained. And of course it gives us big bad monsters, that are simply big bad monsters.
There are some things which the reader does not usually like. The author's emphasis on his young characters being caned is surely one of them. However, at no point would the author become explicit or would he cross the borders good taste dictates. Still, if one thinks the whole thing over, the hero's feelings of guilt might have a more convincing source here than wherever the author allocates it. Besides, I know of no army where young officers were subject to such treatment and doubt that there were any, so the author's strive to authentically create a militaristic environment does not dictate this.
Another thing is the author's readiness to treat his (young) characters badly. The fate of Philpp Tyre should be mentioned here, who after having a generally miserable life (caned particularly often), dies in a suicide attack on a monster. For the reader who knows the following books, this incident gives a forewarning of the fate the author condemns a group of cadetts to in „Fisherman's Hope".
I compare Feintuch's series with the work of another SF author, Jack Vance. Although the style is completely different, there are some similarities. Both create societies with rigid tendencies, although Jack Vance has, I think, never written so plain military SF, and Jack Vance has, of course, created in his works many different worlds, whereas Feintuch has as yet created only the Seafort universe and an unconvincing medieval fantasy world in „The Still".- Both create heros which the reader has problems to like. Seafort is clearly not a likable character. Jack Vance's heros, whilst usually not being that nasty, nevertheless show a determination and are strangely unmoved by their exterior, which makes them quite similar to Seafort. One may think of Kirth Gersen in the Demon Princes series, or of Glawen Clattuc in the Cadwal Chronicles. All in all, Jack Vance is the better author.
When I read the above, this contribution may appear more critical than intended. As it is common, I dwelt upon the aspects I had to criticize. All in all, the book is really very good reading, as is the whole series, and is completely worth each of the four stars I do herewith award.
Rating: 
Summary: Could not put this book down!
Review: Very often the first book in a series is great but the sequels fall flat. Not so with "Challenger's Hope." the strength of Feintuch's character, Seaforth, is in his ability to inspire others as well as to survive and thrive against all odds. In the first novel of this series, the very young Seaforth saved the day through quality leadership, in this sequel we see a more human Seaforth, the insecure man behind the uniform. A more intimate look at Seaforth's background is here as well. His rigid, emotionally-deprived childhood with a fanatically-religious father explains more clearly Seaforth's own fanatical loyalty to the "Navy" and to the theocracy he serves. Don't start reading unless you are prepared to sit up all night till you finish the book. That's just what I did!
Rating: 
Summary: Not bad, but not for the depressed
Review: What do you say about a book where the hero looses his entire family, and it makes no noticable change in his behavior? Because he's so depressive anyway?
I find the Nick Seafort books oddly appealing. I loathe Nick Seafort, who's desperate persistance in a black and white view of the world persists. But I want to read more.
Fenituch has created a future dystopia under the guise of Military SF. And it's some of the underlying ideas of the series that lend interest.
But if you are depressed? Go read Bujold. Because Miles Naismith Vorkosigan is a vastly more engaging, and cheerful character.
