S. W. Davis

Logen Ninefingers, infamous barbarian, has finally run out of luck. Caught in one feud too many, he's on the verge of becoming a dead barbarian - leaving nothing behind him but bad songs, dead friends, and a lot of happy enemies. Nobleman, dashing officer, and paragon of selfishness, Captain Jezal dan Luthar has nothing more dangerous in mind than fleecing his friends at cards and dreaming of glory in the fencing circle. But war is brewing, and on the battlefields of the frozen North they fight by altogether bloodier rules.

As the slow machine of war starts to turn, allies and enemies alike move their pieces in a bid for victory. Territories are claimed and lost. Skirmishes in deep space determine ownership of the jump lanes that crisscross the galaxy. As Barton battles his way through selection for the Special Operations Group, his old friends from Odin Nine-Five are outside the wire, protecting a politician.