nicholas ewing seafort is such an interesting character study, and i suppose that's why i keep coming back to it every few years. literature has enough stories about gallant captains, swashbuckling their way through space, in either military science fiction or in more regular science fiction, or morally grey protagonists who upend the entire world in which they live in. seafort does this, especially the latter point in some way, but at the end of the day, he is unflinching, unchanging. the evolution over the four books is marked, and while some others may be sick of his self-flagellation, it's a part and parcel of seafort. he ruminates that he wishes he could and would retire on so many occasions, and if he truly wanted to, given how set he can be, im sure he would. but he doesn't, he persists. he continues to go onwards, despite his actions, absolution or not. forswearence of an oath or not. when i read this initially for the first time, i was simply astonished at the ending - while nick definitely had his moments of cunning and strategy, i never thought that he would have it in him for the Trafalgar and Fuser mission. i don't know if there's any other character i've read in literature who would have the fortitude. parts of the story, mostly world building, are dated, but we can say that about many a great novel. the set dressing isn't the novel - the novel is whether or not nick seafort can do it. i'll be taking a break from going back to the final three books of the seafort saga, but if you haven't, the first four books are worth the read. there's the saying that good times create soft people, weak people create hard times, and hard times create strong people. there's no one stronger than nicholas ewing seafort.