Shiva Option — David Weber; Steve White

DEFEAT WAS NOT AN OPTION!

The war wasn't going well. The "Bugs" had overrun planet after planet . . . and they regarded all sentient species as convenient protein sources. Defeat was not an option. The Grand Alliance of Humans, Orions, Ophiuchi, and Gorm, united in desperate self-defense, have been driven to the wall. Billions of civilians have been slaughtered and their most powerful offensive operation ended in shattering defeat. Despite all the glorious victories, the Bugs just keep coming.

But the Grand Alliance will never surrender--they will die first--and they will reactivate General Directive 18, however ' horrible it may be. Because when the only possible outcomes are victory or racial extermination, only one option is acceptable. The Shiva Option.