Dog Soldier
Review
Dog Soldier, by , is the fourth book in the War Horses series. It concludes the Cinto DaSelva campaign and further develops the setting’s backstory.
While similar in length to previous books in the series, Dog Soldier feels much faster-paced. The story is divided into three main sections:
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The first part takes place on Cinto DaSelva, where the rebellion and Chevaliers launch an ill-advised attack at union-leader Helene DeChile’s command. Despite warnings from the mercenaries, the advance stretches their supply lines and ends in disaster.
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The second part moves to a Paladin Devils ship, where the Chevaliers conspire with their employer to remove the power-hungry and increasingly unstable Helene from command.
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The third part returns to Cinto DaSelva, as the Chevaliers put their assassination plot into motion. Using wormholes to bypass the front line, they assault the capital and end up in a brutal fight against the paranoid Helene and her remaining loyalists.
The transitions between these three parts aren’t as smooth as in Serpent Valley, but they’re still more polished than Ymir.
The mech battles are well written, with some unique twists, and feel like they have high stakes. has done a good job of scaling up the mimic threat, making it pivotal to both taking the capital and covering up Helene’s assassination.
The book plants several seeds for future storylines: Vandel’s developing relationship with Duri; Duri’s company’s work on revolutionary power-armor that could shake up the balance of power in the region; the introduction of the Romans as a mysteriously vanished advanced civilization; and deeper exploration of the Paladin Devils from Chevalier, with old rivalries reignited.
With the Cinto DaSelva plot-line wrapped up, I’m excited to see where Grand Melee will take the series next.