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wedgelovespizza's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
titleistmuffin's review
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
jmoses's review against another edition
5.0
Well then, that was a thing.
So, the easy bits. This was typical Scalzi, and I say that in a good way. This was amusing, interesting and engrossing sci-fi in a universe that I already love, by and author I also already love. If you like Scalzi, you'll like this. If you don't, you won't.
There. Now that that's out of the way.
This was, as Scalzi has said in several places, somewhat of an experiment. The individual "episodes" (chapters) were released weekly, and the intention was for them to stand alone as stories, but also combine into a cohesive whole. I have no idea how he convinced Tor to go for it, other than he's a talented writer, and Tor is a cutting edge sci-fi publishing house.
Well, it works. I didn't read the episodes as they came out. While I like short stories, I prefer to get a bunch of them at once. I got the book, uh, yesterday, and finished it today. I have no idea how much work went into the mechanics of this book, but it sure was worth it. The individual episodes are uniformly excellent, and they combine into a book that is, to be trite, more than the sum of its parts.
Each episode truly does work on its own as a story, and yet they come together (slowly and almost coquettishly) to give an unified whole that leaves you feeling like you got more for your money than you expected.
I expected this book to be good, and worth the price of admission. I was curious as to how all the episodes fit together, and if Scalzi could make this odd sort of semi-episodic book work.
They fit great. I'm more than please. If there's a follow-up in the same format, I will certainly buy and read it with much eagerness.
So, the easy bits. This was typical Scalzi, and I say that in a good way. This was amusing, interesting and engrossing sci-fi in a universe that I already love, by and author I also already love. If you like Scalzi, you'll like this. If you don't, you won't.
There. Now that that's out of the way.
This was, as Scalzi has said in several places, somewhat of an experiment. The individual "episodes" (chapters) were released weekly, and the intention was for them to stand alone as stories, but also combine into a cohesive whole. I have no idea how he convinced Tor to go for it, other than he's a talented writer, and Tor is a cutting edge sci-fi publishing house.
Well, it works. I didn't read the episodes as they came out. While I like short stories, I prefer to get a bunch of them at once. I got the book, uh, yesterday, and finished it today. I have no idea how much work went into the mechanics of this book, but it sure was worth it. The individual episodes are uniformly excellent, and they combine into a book that is, to be trite, more than the sum of its parts.
Each episode truly does work on its own as a story, and yet they come together (slowly and almost coquettishly) to give an unified whole that leaves you feeling like you got more for your money than you expected.
I expected this book to be good, and worth the price of admission. I was curious as to how all the episodes fit together, and if Scalzi could make this odd sort of semi-episodic book work.
They fit great. I'm more than please. If there's a follow-up in the same format, I will certainly buy and read it with much eagerness.
dodgson's review against another edition
4.0
As an episodic work, it’s a bit more meandering than the others in the series, but also more intriguing in the balance, with more of an opportunity to focus on character. There’s an interlude with Hart Schmidt (an interstellar diplomat) spending some time among family that creates an interesting slice of life. The larger universe has been established so thoroughly that it provides this sort of opportunity for a deeper exploration of certain facets farther from the spaceships and laser battles.
thewallflower00's review against another edition
4.0
I really want Scalzi to branch out into new intellectual property. He did so with Redshirts, which has now won the Best Novel Hugo. But then he went back to the OMW universe with a semi-serialized e-Book experiment.
It's... I'm not sure what to say about it. It's still "Old Man's War", it's still Scalzi. It still feels like a novel, although it rests on a much more inconclusive cliffhanger than "The Last Colony" did. If you liked any of the other Old Man's War books, you'll like this too. Maybe a little bit less. I don't know, maybe it's because I like novels, and not a series of short stories. That's just me.
It's... I'm not sure what to say about it. It's still "Old Man's War", it's still Scalzi. It still feels like a novel, although it rests on a much more inconclusive cliffhanger than "The Last Colony" did. If you liked any of the other Old Man's War books, you'll like this too. Maybe a little bit less. I don't know, maybe it's because I like novels, and not a series of short stories. That's just me.
humanignorance's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars. Standard Scalzi fare: somewhere between good and great. The incessant sarcasm was fun and the characters interacted in interesting ways. Despite originally being published in short story episodes, the plot was certainly connected enough to count as a novel. I did not like the massive loose thread left almost completely unexplored: the driving force behind most of the events is mysterious. I guess that’s left for the final installment.
pages_n_puzzles's review against another edition
4.0
Listened to the audiobook... it took me awhile to get into but by halfway I was really into the characters and small stories.
bkp's review against another edition
4.0
After the somewhat slower pacing of the last two books in this series, Book #5 left me a little breathless, as I whipped through the pages to see what happened next.
The structure of the book itself is anthological, and for good reason: it was originally released as a set if serial chapters. This lent to a somewhat disjointed feel to the overall story, but in the end it all came together.
The frustrating thing about this work was that it is clearly a transition to another point in a larger story. Which means we'll have to wait for more. But it will be worth it.
The structure of the book itself is anthological, and for good reason: it was originally released as a set if serial chapters. This lent to a somewhat disjointed feel to the overall story, but in the end it all came together.
The frustrating thing about this work was that it is clearly a transition to another point in a larger story. Which means we'll have to wait for more. But it will be worth it.
shoosha's review against another edition
3.0
Was in a little reading rut. I was forcing myself to read something (which is against my rules) just because I knew I SHOULD have loved it but I couldn't get in a stride with it.
I went to the library for a tried but true author that I always zip right along, loving every second. That's John Scalzi for me!
Man, do I enjoy his Old Man's War series! So smart and funny. Just pops right along. If you haven't given him a shot - his collapsing empire trilogy is fantastic!
I went to the library for a tried but true author that I always zip right along, loving every second. That's John Scalzi for me!
Man, do I enjoy his Old Man's War series! So smart and funny. Just pops right along. If you haven't given him a shot - his collapsing empire trilogy is fantastic!
kennethtcox's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75