Help...Sandcasters, Ice Armor

[BlueDuke]

so this was years ago....and i bought it on a whim i think any way the only details of the books i remember were as follows:
Split Space/Marine ground combat
the Ships fighting were merchant ships being forced to fight because of loses i -think- and they used Sand casters to counter laser weapons as well as having their hulls coated in ice as a form of armor.
on the ground i think the main marine character was a woman and most of the marines with her were former Miners conscripted because the war wasn't going well.....i think the whole thing ended on a cliffhanger after the main characters get trapped behind enemy lines.

err also hello and thank you in advance to any one who happens to know the name is this one.

[JimF]

so this was years ago....and i bought it on a whim i think any way the only details of the books i remember were as follows:
Split Space/Marine ground combat
the Ships fighting were merchant ships being forced to fight because of loses i -think- and they used Sand casters to counter laser weapons as well as having their hulls coated in ice as a form of armor.
on the ground i think the main marine character was a woman and most of the marines with her were former Miners conscripted because the war wasn't going well.....i think the whole thing ended on a cliffhanger after the main characters get trapped behind enemy lines.

err also hello and thank you in advance to any one who happens to know the name is this one.

Sandcasters to counter lasers is something straight out of the Traveller SF role-playing game. I think the book in Question is "The Death of Wisdom" by Paul Brunette. Or maybe Diaspora Phoenix by Martin J Dougherty

http://www.amazon.com/The-Death-Wisd...isdom+brunette

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/15/15095.phtml

Jim

[BlueDuke]

it wasn't traveler sadly.

[JimF]

it wasn't traveler sadly.

Well that leaves me stumped. Your whole description screams Traveller. I hope some one else knows what this is.