In the Stormy Red Sky by David Drake

Daniel Leary is awarded the position of Captain in the Royal Cinnabar Navy for his efforts in his last battle, which has made him the most celebrated and winningest officer in the Navy. He's left the Princess Cecile behind for a newer, larger, ship, the RCS Milton, and brought his crew with him, now augmented with spacers from other commands.

But his first mission aboard his new ship is diplomatic, not military. The Hegemony of the Veil has just changed leaders, and while the old leader was a friend of Cinnabar and her military, the new leader appears to have quite a different attitude towards Cinnabar, and Cinnabar would rather try to persuade him that it is in his best interests to stick with them.

To that end, they have sent Senator Bev Forbes, newly voted out of her post as Minister of Finance, as Ambassdor to convince the new headman of Cinnabar's friendship, and of the benefits of staying loyal. But on their way to the world of Karst, they discover that on prominent Cinnabarran merchant is using slaves to bring in cargoes of a very expensive wood, and that the entire planet is poisonous, leading the slaves to have very short, very painful and difficult lives.

For the moment, they can't do anything about it, but after the Headman of the Veil Hegemony makes it very clear that he prefers the friendship of the Alliance to that of Cinnabar, Daniel Leary and his friend Adele hear that the Cinnabarran fleet sent to keep peace in the area has been attacked by the Alliance and holed up in a small system that is now under siege.

But what can one ship do? Plenty, if you're Captain Daniel Leary, and have a top spy like Adele Mundy on your side. But first, Daniel has an idea that will not only show the Alliance why the Cinnabarran Navy is no push-over, but he requires the slave labor on Forthill as part of his plan. But all on their own in the depths of space, can the crew of the Milton pull it off? Time for Daniel Leary to show why he's the best commander in the history of Cinnabar once again!

This book feels shorter than it really is, probably because the events take place in a relatively short span of time. This book shows why Daniel Leary deserves all those awards and promotions he's been getting from the Cinnabar Royal Navy- most of which he wouldn't be able to pull off without the assistance of Adele Mundy, his loyal signals officer and also spy.

I rather like, also, that neither one are interested in each other as anything other than friends. Daniel prefers lovely, brainless women, and while Adele might be good-looking, she's anything but brainless. She's also rather damaged when it comes to her emotions, and I honestly doubt she's able to be attracted to anyone in that way- she is able to mimic human emotions, but they are more intellectual rather than real emotions. Her servant Tovera, an assassin, is worse in that respect, but is also mimicking real emotions, because she is a psychopath. I don't think Adele is that bad, but she's close to that.

Her feeling for Daniel she calls friendship, but it comes down to loyalty. He sticks by her, so she will defend and help him to her last breath. Even though they are kept apart by lack of passionate feelings for each other, it also makes them seem more professional. Daniel is also Adele's superior officer, and lack of fraternization between them would be a given. In any armed service today, one of them would have to leave, and that would make them both less effective.

This story is less tense, except for the actual battle at the end, but there is a slow but subtle thread of tension that ratchets up. Readers are left in suspense of what Daniel has in mind until nearly the very end, and the not knowing adds to the build-up. But there is no doubt that once again, Captain Leary will triumph. Or will he? Another excellent foray into military SF. Recommended.