On Thursday night, Baen Books celebrated its thirtieth anniversary with the help of Dragon Con fans. The savory appetizers and multiple balloon installations in the Baen colors, this reporter felt as though she’d stumbled into a New York cocktail party.

The host for the evening, James Minz, was as sharply dressed as he was witty, keeping the evening moving from one highlight to the next.

The entertainment began with a Filk concert by Baen Books slushmaster general Gray Rinehart. His songs were musically entertaining, and included classic folk and comic songs that parodied everything from fandom to Baen itself.

Next up, John Ringo took center stage, speaking about many of his series published by Baen. Then he introduced one the big books being launched that evening: Islands of Rage and Hope. As always, Ringo pleased the fans with a great reading from this August release.

Escorted by the Honor Guard, David Weber, Timothy Zahn, and Thomas Pope brought enthusiasm and insight to the evening, premiering book one of their new series that takes place in the Honor Harrington universe: A Call to Duty. Weber spoke about the Honor books that have so many loyal fans. While working on this new series, both Weber and Zahn consulted extensively with Pope who maintains detailed reference material for the Honorverse “canon.”

Overall, the party helped to begin the convention with a fabulous dose of fiction fun.