Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #952 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 384 pages

Customer Reviews

Great success for Scalzi
Following on from Old Mans War this tale continues in the futuristic world dreamed up by John Scalzi. Whilst to many a sci-fi book relies upon the sheer strength of the science within, Scalzi likes to let his characters do the talking and with each protagonist allowing the sheer strength of character to push the tale futher along. That's his key strength to my mind, the way that he allows them to grow and decide their own destiny within the book. Well written, cracking characters and above all a story where the spirit of man demonstrates what it can truly accomplish when pushed to the limits.

Good but grim at times.
This is a worthy semi-sequel to Old Man's war. It is set in the same universe a few years on from the events of its predecessor, with some of its characters, such as Jane Sagan, reappearing. However the story is centred on the "Ghost Brigades", the human elite special forces. There are action sequences to please the die-hard fans, but there are also thoughtful and well woven into the story segments on what drives solders at the bleeding edge of combat. It also provides a better overview of the nature of its universe and hints at interesting developments in the third book. Overall the mood is a tad more sombre than the first work, but is still enjoyable.

A tasty treat
Well, two of three is great. I am so relieved. So many times you read the first book in a series, and that is great, but the next one sucks, and the rest get worse. Yes Anne Macaffry i am talking about you, and everything you have written for twenty years, you hack.

I really liked "Old Mans War" and this one both builds upon its strengths, like good writting style and quality characters, and loses what i thought was its biggest flaw, its rushed ending. This book has a natural and balenced flow, it is full of intresting stuff and resolves itself at a decent pace at the end, which is why it gets 5 stars. I would say it is a more confident and better technical book than "OMW", and was left happy and wanting to see where the trilogy goes next.

Where next is probebly self evedent. But this book did not lead on conventionaly from the first, and that was the best thing about it. There is precedent for Scalzi doing some thing unexpected. By introducing new characters and a diffrent narrative point of view the series got richer, and our knowlage of its universe fuller. I do not mean just more detail, but more perspective, we see the familiar and the new, places and people, through new eyes and they gain complexity and reality from the diffrence.

I leave you with this last thought, i liked this enough to seriously consider getting the hardback of the next book. I have not done so though. Not yet anyhoo. enjoy