A Confederation of Valor    by Tanya Huff Order:  USA  Can Daw, 2006 (2006) Paperback      Reviewed by Hilary Williamson A Confederation of Valor offers two great military SF reads in one - Valor's Choice and The Better Part of Valor. These episodes follow the adventures of a professional space marine, Staff Sergeant Torin Kerr, in a universe peopled with a fascinating variety of alien races - and plenty of conflict. In the first episode, Torin is sent in charge of her battle hardened (fifty strong) platoon of Marines as an honor guard for a diplomatic mission. Its objective is to persuade a recently discovered, very aggressive reptilian race, the Silsviss, to join the Confederation, which needs more cannon fodder in its life and death struggle against the Others. On planet, Staff Sergeant Kerr finds herself and her platoon surrounded by thousands of battle crazed fanatics. At the end of Valor's Choice, the Staff Sergeant made the mistake of telling two-star General Morris what she thought of him. As The Better Part of Valor opens, he's hand-picked her to lead a platoon aboard a gigantic derelict spaceship, protecting a group of scientists as they investigate it. It turns out that the bug-like enemy Others (reminiscent of Aliens) are also aboard, while the spaceship is awake enough to send all kinds of obstacles their way. If you enjoyed Ian Douglas' Heritage trilogy, or are a fan of David Weber's deservedly popular Honor Harrington series, then you must read Tanya Huff's Valor books. You won't regret it. This author also writes a highly entertaining (and witty) light fantasy series, Keeper's Chronicles. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more SF books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews