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f41c0n1337's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
As a Halo fan, particularly of Halo 4, I was excited to dive into the Forerunner lore. However, I found the prose dry, slow, and generally unengaging. While it’s arguable more of a soft sci-fi narrative with a hard sci-fi shell, I suspect if you are into more technical approaches to storytelling you might find more enjoyment in it.
jmoses's review against another edition
5.0
An excellent book by Bear. Fantastic look at the Forerunner story.
ultimatumman's review against another edition
3.0
It was good but a little confusing. The book is in the 1st person, and the main character never knows what is going on, so therefore, the reader doesn't either. Everything that happens we only figure out after the fact throughout the whole book. This story went a completely different way than I was expecting and I am waiting to see how the next two turn out.
jasonbatt's review against another edition
4.0
ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND YEARS AGO, the galaxy was populated by a great variety of beings. But one species—eons beyond all the others in both technology and knowledge—achieved dominance. They ruled in peace but met opposition with quick and brutal effectiveness. They were the Forerunners—the keepers of the Mantle, the next stage of life in the Universe’s Living Time. And then they vanished.This is their story.” – from the back cover of Halo: Cryptum
This book has started me on a great reading journey. The embarrassing fact is that I picked this up simply because it was a Halo book by a major science fiction writer. I’ve ever read any Greg Bear material until this book. I knew of his work and knew that he was widely read. Halo Cryptum was a great entry work into a a great writer.
Greg Bear’s ability to frame cosmic level events and actions into a tangible form is stunning. Halo: Cryptum has the forerunners as its primary characters. If you’re not a Halo fan, you should know that the Forerunners presence is ubiquitous in the Halo games but that none of the characters in the games are of that race . . . the Forerunners died out millennium ago and we are just discovering their impact and technology. Halo: Cryptum is the start of this back story. The Forerunners are characters that are nearly immortal and their reach is galactic in scope. Creating a book that has humans as only peripheral elements and that the main characters are immortal and almost god-like makes a major difficulty in establishing story. Story is usually defined around the limits and dangers of humanity . . . death and our inability to actually do much beyond our physical bodies. Greg Bear does a phenomenal effort in bridging this gap and creating a god-like creature of a god-like race and making you care about him. The story is told from a young Forerunner (only a few centuries have passed). Like most youngsters, he’s brash and unsure of his future.
There are significant plot elements that happen early on in the book and it is difficult to discuss the various points of the story without giving away too much. If you want a plot review (full of spoilers), visit Halo Nation’s review. Simply to say, the scope of the story is vast . . . crossing galactic spaces with ease. The events that happen are excellent. Only rarely does Bear seem to falter in explaining such cosmic concepts. He does a remarkable job overall and those few areas with the technical detail begins to build too much are rare.
My one primary issue is the length of the book and the ending point. It is stated early on that this is the first novel of a series. When I put the book down, I was sure that Greg Bear submitted his original manuscript, the publisher wanting some additional income, said, “Hmmm. tell you what — let’s make this three novels, make the font bigger, and make three times as much money. Good job, Mr. Bear.” This book starts and the last page appears before the book has even developed. This isn’t even a first act– it’s the first three scenes of the first act. I’m seeing this trend more and more in books and it concerns me. It’s harder to find the large tomes of Rowling and King length. Instead, publishers are providing the big tomes into multiple novels, creating a serial type reading effect. It’s irritating at the least. I doubt it’s Bear’s fault– the plotting feels distinctly as if it was cut off mid-action and a chopped paragraph to summarize and link to the next novel was inserted at the end as a last second thought.
Knowing this now, I would’ve purchased this as an e-book instead of in the store. It’s a great book but I’m not sure that it’s length justifies the hardcover price. A $9.99 Kindle price seems much more favorable and justifiable. This book was definitely engaging enough that I turned around and picked up Eon by Greg Bear and read that cover to cover in two days. And the journey rolled out from there.
This book has started me on a great reading journey. The embarrassing fact is that I picked this up simply because it was a Halo book by a major science fiction writer. I’ve ever read any Greg Bear material until this book. I knew of his work and knew that he was widely read. Halo Cryptum was a great entry work into a a great writer.
Greg Bear’s ability to frame cosmic level events and actions into a tangible form is stunning. Halo: Cryptum has the forerunners as its primary characters. If you’re not a Halo fan, you should know that the Forerunners presence is ubiquitous in the Halo games but that none of the characters in the games are of that race . . . the Forerunners died out millennium ago and we are just discovering their impact and technology. Halo: Cryptum is the start of this back story. The Forerunners are characters that are nearly immortal and their reach is galactic in scope. Creating a book that has humans as only peripheral elements and that the main characters are immortal and almost god-like makes a major difficulty in establishing story. Story is usually defined around the limits and dangers of humanity . . . death and our inability to actually do much beyond our physical bodies. Greg Bear does a phenomenal effort in bridging this gap and creating a god-like creature of a god-like race and making you care about him. The story is told from a young Forerunner (only a few centuries have passed). Like most youngsters, he’s brash and unsure of his future.
There are significant plot elements that happen early on in the book and it is difficult to discuss the various points of the story without giving away too much. If you want a plot review (full of spoilers), visit Halo Nation’s review. Simply to say, the scope of the story is vast . . . crossing galactic spaces with ease. The events that happen are excellent. Only rarely does Bear seem to falter in explaining such cosmic concepts. He does a remarkable job overall and those few areas with the technical detail begins to build too much are rare.
My one primary issue is the length of the book and the ending point. It is stated early on that this is the first novel of a series. When I put the book down, I was sure that Greg Bear submitted his original manuscript, the publisher wanting some additional income, said, “Hmmm. tell you what — let’s make this three novels, make the font bigger, and make three times as much money. Good job, Mr. Bear.” This book starts and the last page appears before the book has even developed. This isn’t even a first act– it’s the first three scenes of the first act. I’m seeing this trend more and more in books and it concerns me. It’s harder to find the large tomes of Rowling and King length. Instead, publishers are providing the big tomes into multiple novels, creating a serial type reading effect. It’s irritating at the least. I doubt it’s Bear’s fault– the plotting feels distinctly as if it was cut off mid-action and a chopped paragraph to summarize and link to the next novel was inserted at the end as a last second thought.
Knowing this now, I would’ve purchased this as an e-book instead of in the store. It’s a great book but I’m not sure that it’s length justifies the hardcover price. A $9.99 Kindle price seems much more favorable and justifiable. This book was definitely engaging enough that I turned around and picked up Eon by Greg Bear and read that cover to cover in two days. And the journey rolled out from there.
scopique's review against another edition
3.0
I picked this up because reviews on the upcoming Halo 4 mentioned that the narrative was a little dense if one wasn't well versed in the particular back story of the Forerunners. The Forerunner Saga (trilogy) was mentioned specifically.
The Forerunners were one of the many species created by the Precursors (along with the humans), but at some point, the Forerunners wiped out the Precursor civilization. When the story opens, we learn that 10,000 years prior, the humans lost a war with the Forerunners, and had been "devolved" into two different species, sharing a sort of aboriginal lifestyle on what will later be known as Earth. Two of these proto-humans are hired by a Forerunner named Bornstellar (who's "seeking himself" through adventure) to guide him to some Precursor ruins on Earth, which turns out to be an ancient isolation chamber called a cryptum. Inside is a suspended Forerunner called the Didact, who was responsible for the defeat of the human race.
The story is actually about the introduction of the Halos when they were "new", as Forerunner weapons built to defend against the Flood. The humans had initially encountered the Flood, and had actually defeated it during their war with the Forerunners, but the remaining humans refused to give up their secrets to their conquerors out of spite, and in the hopes that the Flood infection would wipe out the Forerunner race. The two humans, Bornstellar, and the Didact, are lead across the universe by a mysterious purpose, which eventually leads to the downfall of the Forerunners.
This is a very "un-Halo" series. If a Halo fan is looking for a lot of shooting and bro-fisting action like in the games, they'll be sorely disappointed. The style is rather dense, evoking a different way of thinking that's fairly alien...which is perfect for a story told from the perspective of the Forerunner Bornstellar. We get a look at the civilization of the Forerunners, which I found to be very alien in itself. Although it falls into some typical sci-fi traps (society organized by caste, with each caste dedicated to s single task in society), a lot of the technology seemed to be a little on the deux ex machina side: star ships that form themselves, chairs and control panels that just form out of the ground...a lot of conveniently present materials. Considering how this advanced technology belonged to the Forerunners, who lived for thousands of each, who created the Halos, and who could devolve living beings, I gave it a pass. The Forerunner culture was presented as very powerful, very old, and as one might expect, very conflicted.
Anyone familiar with the Halo universe will find some touchstones here, but a good portion of the book felt like "10,000 BC" mashed up with Halo. There was a distinct primal bent to the narrative, which I found was pretty necessary to set up the second book in the series.
I gave it 3 stars for being a Halo book (not necessarily accessible to everyone), and for being just alien enough in a lot of places that my eyes glazed over out of sheer overwhelming "alienness". I suspect that it'll pay off, though, once I get into Halo 4.
The Forerunners were one of the many species created by the Precursors (along with the humans), but at some point, the Forerunners wiped out the Precursor civilization. When the story opens, we learn that 10,000 years prior, the humans lost a war with the Forerunners, and had been "devolved" into two different species, sharing a sort of aboriginal lifestyle on what will later be known as Earth. Two of these proto-humans are hired by a Forerunner named Bornstellar (who's "seeking himself" through adventure) to guide him to some Precursor ruins on Earth, which turns out to be an ancient isolation chamber called a cryptum. Inside is a suspended Forerunner called the Didact, who was responsible for the defeat of the human race.
The story is actually about the introduction of the Halos when they were "new", as Forerunner weapons built to defend against the Flood. The humans had initially encountered the Flood, and had actually defeated it during their war with the Forerunners, but the remaining humans refused to give up their secrets to their conquerors out of spite, and in the hopes that the Flood infection would wipe out the Forerunner race. The two humans, Bornstellar, and the Didact, are lead across the universe by a mysterious purpose, which eventually leads to the downfall of the Forerunners.
This is a very "un-Halo" series. If a Halo fan is looking for a lot of shooting and bro-fisting action like in the games, they'll be sorely disappointed. The style is rather dense, evoking a different way of thinking that's fairly alien...which is perfect for a story told from the perspective of the Forerunner Bornstellar. We get a look at the civilization of the Forerunners, which I found to be very alien in itself. Although it falls into some typical sci-fi traps (society organized by caste, with each caste dedicated to s single task in society), a lot of the technology seemed to be a little on the deux ex machina side: star ships that form themselves, chairs and control panels that just form out of the ground...a lot of conveniently present materials. Considering how this advanced technology belonged to the Forerunners, who lived for thousands of each, who created the Halos, and who could devolve living beings, I gave it a pass. The Forerunner culture was presented as very powerful, very old, and as one might expect, very conflicted.
Anyone familiar with the Halo universe will find some touchstones here, but a good portion of the book felt like "10,000 BC" mashed up with Halo. There was a distinct primal bent to the narrative, which I found was pretty necessary to set up the second book in the series.
I gave it 3 stars for being a Halo book (not necessarily accessible to everyone), and for being just alien enough in a lot of places that my eyes glazed over out of sheer overwhelming "alienness". I suspect that it'll pay off, though, once I get into Halo 4.
deandingus1078's review against another edition
1.0
DNF at 66%. Technobabble exposition dump disguised as a science fiction novel. There's nothing to grab onto. Stuff just happens and we go along with it, which is fine up to a point, but I was dismayed when I noted I was only two-thirds through. Characters are either complete weirdos (not in a good way) or ciphers. I will not be reading Primordium or Silentium because life is too short.
warlore's review against another edition
4.0
Great read for Halo fans. I liked the worldbuilding quite a bit; Greg Bear has a lot of Big Ideas and Really Good Names.
Non-Halo fans, no need.
Non-Halo fans, no need.
thurminator's review against another edition
3.0
Better than I thought it was going to be after the first 50 pages. I originally felt this was going to be something of a slog to get through, but by the end I was very interested in where the story was going, and highly invested in the main character. Not sure if Greg Bear was the finest choice in the world, but his background helps him to create the massive scope that this kind of trilogy probably needed to land well, and I think he does a good job.
chogangoof's review against another edition
4.0
This is easily the best one so far. It's a lot more lower-based than the other ones, which were more character focused. This book expands the universe on a level I can't believe. This book is in a new trilogy that is trying to tell the story of the forerunners and the ancient history of the Halo universe. This is a lot more dense with info than any of the previous ones and if you aren't ready for that then maybe take a break before coming to this one. I loved this book and what it did for not only this book series but also Halo as a whole.