Flash Gordon: War of the Citadels by David Hagberg

The second book in the Flash Gordon: Citadels series picks up right after the events of the first book (Flash Gordon: Massacre in the 22nd Century).  Flash, Dale and Dr Zarkov find themselves caught up in a war between two super-advanced machine worlds that have been at war with each other for many thousands of years.  When they acquire knowledge of a weapon named “Ultimus” that seems likely to tip the balance, the trio travel to a communications center planet to retrieve it.

David Hagberg once again pens this entry in the series.  He’s known for his techno-thrillers featuring super-spy Kirk McGarvey and has also written numerous thrillers under the pseudonym Sean Flannery.  That writing style is on full display here, combining lots of technical detail with a plot that leads the main characters through one harrowing escape after another.  In fact, the middle two thirds of this novel is practically nothing but running and escaping various pitfalls as they fight their way through enemy androids. 

I was pleased to see Dale briefly leave her damsel-in-distress role for a moment when she assumed a warrior persona and bravely sliced two androids in two.  Unfortunately, she immediately resumed her former approach to life by bursting into tears and throwing herself into Flash’s arms.  Oh well.  This was published in 1980 but perhaps the author felt this was one area in which he could emulate the more traditional story from the 1930s. 

Once again, the book spends the final few paragraphs setting up the next volume.  It’s one long hi-tech adventure throughout the series so don’t expect much resolution to the plot elements in each book.  One can't help but wonder if our heroes are truly fighting for the right side or if that might be a revelation still to come. I'm enjoying these books so far though, in spite of minor annoyances.  It's not exactly a traditional take on the Flash Gordon mythos but as long as readers can live with that, it's a decent action-oriented space opera story.