Grand Admiral Sandy Santiago is a woman with a whole lot of problems. She's ordered to take over command of the Alwa system from Kris Longknife. Can a mere human replace a Longknife! She's got alien birds. She's got alien cats. She's even got alien monsters that Kris beat but now want a rematch.
Oh, and if all that wsn't enough, she's got Rita Nuu Longknife to boot. How can a gal get so lucky!