The next book on the list is [The Dragon Rises] by [[Adrienne Martine-Barnes]]. I have no idea when or where I acquired this book, but it's been in my library for years and definitely counts as a favorite. I have never come across any other books by this author, though LT shows that she's written several books with Sword in the title, presumably a series. I believe they are inspired by early Celtic culture.

[The Dragon Rises] is a science fiction novel inspired by Celtic legends. Gilhame ur Fagon, the hero, is the admiral of a space fleet for the Kardus Temporal Empire who becomes, at the beginning of the story, the Dragon, an immortal personification of war. Martine-Barnes takes the common storytelling tropes of kingship, love, and betrayal (Camelot, anyone?) and makes them part of a cosmic pattern that eternally traps our hero and his fated love in this lifetime, Alvellaina Curly-Krispin.

It is space opera at its best (I think), exploring philosophy and metaphysics as much as intrigue and space battles. It is certainly interesting to see cultural elements that are more reminiscent of medieval feudal society in an interstellar civilization, which so often is portrayed in a more capitalistic, democratic, and humane (modern American?) model in many science fiction novels. There are dancing and dinner parties, imperial court etiquette and heraldry, tribunals and punishments that may fall upon the families in addition to the wrongdoers--becoming chattel in recompense for loss of life, say. This last in the mode of the great Irish mythological hero Cú Chulainn, who gained this name when he replaced Culann's guard dog after he killed it until a new one could be raised. Yes, it's light and fluffy without much actual science, but it's different and interesting and definitely a favorite.

The book with the most similar flavor to this novel is [The Silent Stars Go By], written by [[James White]] (of Sector General fame). This is an alternate history science fiction story about the first human colonization project spearheaded by the Hibernian Empire, but involving all of the great countries of the day. The underlying premise is that the Industrial Revolution occurred in the Celtic regions several hundred years before the actual historical period. From this, the first explorers to reach the New World were Celts who established trading relationships rather than seeking conquest. Thus, Native American cultures remain intact and powerful into the age of space exploration, along with various other marginalized traditional cultures of today. Also a nice read. ( )