This book escalated way more than I thought it would. I don't know why I wasn't expecting so much war in a book with "war" in the title. So, it's heartbreaking while both the Wasps and the Beetles are developing new weapon technologies. It focuses on the development of fixed wings airplane fighters and a more efficient way to drop bombs from them. The parallels with the Second World War are inevitable. Taki, the Fly kinden pilot shines on this one. This series continues to be very entertaining.