Take a photo of a barcode or cover
kengou56's review against another edition
4.0
A rare Battletech novel that does not focus overly on the battles. This one follows the Wolf's Dragoons and their tenure as mercenaries to the Draconis Combine. Our protagonist, Minobu Tetsuhara, is a samurai of african descent, under House Kurita, working as the liaison for Wolf's Dragoon's. The Dragoons find themselves under the thumb of a vicious warlord who wants to ensure they don't work for anyone other than House Kurita ever again.
While many Battletech novels focus on the 'mechs themselves and the battles players love to enact in the tabletop game, this one only has a few notable battles. A lot of time is spent on Jamie Wolf and Minobu Tetsuhara and their friendship. The characters are well realized and likeable. The plot is tense although the motives of the villains were a bit confusing or convoluted to me. And the final battle was excellently written.
I quite liked this book in comparison to other Battletech novels I've read. It is steeped in the Kurita Samurai culture, and its clash with the mysterious Dragoons mercenaries, so if you dislike these aspects this might not be for you. This book is also nicely focused on these few characters without ever really jumping around to big galactic events or major players. I wish more Battletech novels did that.
While many Battletech novels focus on the 'mechs themselves and the battles players love to enact in the tabletop game, this one only has a few notable battles. A lot of time is spent on Jamie Wolf and Minobu Tetsuhara and their friendship. The characters are well realized and likeable. The plot is tense although the motives of the villains were a bit confusing or convoluted to me. And the final battle was excellently written.
I quite liked this book in comparison to other Battletech novels I've read. It is steeped in the Kurita Samurai culture, and its clash with the mysterious Dragoons mercenaries, so if you dislike these aspects this might not be for you. This book is also nicely focused on these few characters without ever really jumping around to big galactic events or major players. I wish more Battletech novels did that.
pinkjas's review
adventurous
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? It's complicated
4.0
sparkeyg's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
painterz's review against another edition
3.0
One of the better Battletech novels, from the golden age of Battletech novels.
hank_moody's review
3.0
As far as the books based on a board game goes, I think this one as good as it gets. Unlike the abysmal [b:Dragons of Autumn Twilight|259836|Dragons of Autumn Twilight (Dragonlance Chronicles, #1)|Margaret Weis|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1390668127l/259836._SY75_.jpg|251833] which I wouldn't find entertaining even if I was 20 years younger when I read it, Wolves on the Border has its qualities. For one, Charrette is a better writer and he tries to carry the story as best he can. Main problem of this novel is time span which makes it hard for Charrette to assemble cohesive story, but he has to cut it into chapters which are months apart in a way that it reminds of cutscenes in a video game. Second problems which only enhances the first one is a large assembly of characters who have their POV.
Set those aside, story is good. Minobu Tetsuhara is a black samurai from 31. century who serves House Kurita and rides his 70 tons Mech. Dishonored, he has to be liaison to Wolfe's Dragoon, mercenary company who started working for House Kurita having been on the opposite side earlier. Soon, friendship between Minobu and Jaime Wolf, commander of Dragoons starts to flourish as Minobu discovers that Jaimes and his Dragoons are more honorable that previously thought.
But what will happen when duty and honor stand in the way of friendship? Will two friends go against each other?
Parts with Minobu are the one that are best written and his and Jaime's characters are most fleshed out. Others are just carboard cutouts used to fill the gaps. Last two chapters are great, especially the ending.
Set those aside, story is good. Minobu Tetsuhara is a black samurai from 31. century who serves House Kurita and rides his 70 tons Mech. Dishonored, he has to be liaison to Wolfe's Dragoon, mercenary company who started working for House Kurita having been on the opposite side earlier. Soon, friendship between Minobu and Jaime Wolf, commander of Dragoons starts to flourish as Minobu discovers that Jaimes and his Dragoons are more honorable that previously thought.
But what will happen when duty and honor stand in the way of friendship? Will two friends go against each other?
Parts with Minobu are the one that are best written and his and Jaime's characters are most fleshed out. Others are just carboard cutouts used to fill the gaps. Last two chapters are great, especially the ending.
lkedzie's review
5.0
It's like duty vs. desire story about the love between a member of the Wu-Tang Clan and a crypto-fascist spy. Or the Healing of the Centurion's Servant but with giant robots.
Wolves on the Border is operatic. I do not mean space opera, as Battletech books occupy more of the mil sci-fi side of things; I mean that, when thinking about how this would be adapted, it would require a libretto.
It is also, technically, the first Clan book, as all the clues that Wolf's Dragoons are actually the Clan are there, usually as less as clues and more as unanswered nonsense and dangling plot.
The Dragoons, who, at this point, have worked for every house but Kurita, are hired by Kurita. This is a source of trouble within Kurita, as they seem to detest mercenaries so much that they'd never hire them, but I think that the plot contrivance is that Kurita is looking to get the better of the situation by cracking the secret sauce of the Dragoons. Minobu, a mechwarrior without a mech, is made the primary liaison, intended as a throwaway position, but things happen.
Calling Minobu and Jamie in a bromance feels insulting. The way to characterize it is to not characterize it, because how you choose to characterize is the question of the text.
There are some stellar moments here because Charrette knows exactly how to employ PoV. Like my eyes rolled at Jamie's test of Minobu at his walking into their staff meeting, but not only does its explication of Minobu's process do a lot for his and Jamie's characters, but the reprisal of the scene with other commanders, under their PoV, makes both scenes more meaningful as you see those commanders falling for the traps set, and gives more weight to what otherwise might be missed subtly different treatment by Jamie.
The text seems at or near the limit of fetish about honor in Kurita, and I cringe a bit every time they're referred to as "snakes," which feels too on the nose and somehow not comparable to something like 'fed rat' but it is not a uniquely Japanese ideal, and it is expressly one that classical Japanese narrative dwells in, as well as military and war narrative in general. You don't need to advance further in the Western corpus than the Iliad to find western versions of the conflict, so I am a little curious as to how it might be perceived, or at least perceived now, not in the 80s. And the invocations of Ki are just too much.
But Minobu being a black man takes some of the sting out, I think, of that trite presentation of bushido. Sometimes it feels like there is some order of racial essentialism, particularly with Liao, but here I take the emphasis as being on the adapted versions of things. All the houses are engaging in some sort of historical cosplay, be in the Teutonic one of Stenier or the...er....slightly different Teutonic eras of Davion, or the other other Teutonic one of Marik Look, basically, I want to think that this is lampshading all of that.
Because, as someone on record as not liking either faction that the main characters are from, this was a pretty darn good book. I found myself emotionally invested in their problems, because the authors gave the characters impossible problems, or ends with only sad solutions, and did a decent job as to convincing the reader that these people are good military commanders. Maybe it is a bit too stereotyped, but from beginning to end you have memorable scenes, from Minobu's home life on the edge to Jamie's Shakespearean moment with Takashi at the wedding reception.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I sometimes feel like I'm being overly critical of these pulp sci-fi novels made to sell cardboard and lead, but even with some lingering hesitations about the racism or whatever you want to call it, I think that this book proves you can take what is a sort of one-off irrelevance in the plot arc and deliver a five-star text, through what amounts to landing single after single with classic stories and hookable characters.
Wolves on the Border is operatic. I do not mean space opera, as Battletech books occupy more of the mil sci-fi side of things; I mean that, when thinking about how this would be adapted, it would require a libretto.
It is also, technically, the first Clan book, as all the clues that Wolf's Dragoons are actually the Clan are there, usually as less as clues and more as unanswered nonsense and dangling plot.
The Dragoons, who, at this point, have worked for every house but Kurita, are hired by Kurita. This is a source of trouble within Kurita, as they seem to detest mercenaries so much that they'd never hire them, but I think that the plot contrivance is that Kurita is looking to get the better of the situation by cracking the secret sauce of the Dragoons. Minobu, a mechwarrior without a mech, is made the primary liaison, intended as a throwaway position, but things happen.
Calling Minobu and Jamie in a bromance feels insulting. The way to characterize it is to not characterize it, because how you choose to characterize is the question of the text.
There are some stellar moments here because Charrette knows exactly how to employ PoV. Like my eyes rolled at Jamie's test of Minobu at his walking into their staff meeting, but not only does its explication of Minobu's process do a lot for his and Jamie's characters, but the reprisal of the scene with other commanders, under their PoV, makes both scenes more meaningful as you see those commanders falling for the traps set, and gives more weight to what otherwise might be missed subtly different treatment by Jamie.
The text seems at or near the limit of fetish about honor in Kurita, and I cringe a bit every time they're referred to as "snakes," which feels too on the nose and somehow not comparable to something like 'fed rat' but it is not a uniquely Japanese ideal, and it is expressly one that classical Japanese narrative dwells in, as well as military and war narrative in general. You don't need to advance further in the Western corpus than the Iliad to find western versions of the conflict, so I am a little curious as to how it might be perceived, or at least perceived now, not in the 80s. And the invocations of Ki are just too much.
But Minobu being a black man takes some of the sting out, I think, of that trite presentation of bushido. Sometimes it feels like there is some order of racial essentialism, particularly with Liao, but here I take the emphasis as being on the adapted versions of things. All the houses are engaging in some sort of historical cosplay, be in the Teutonic one of Stenier or the...er....slightly different Teutonic eras of Davion, or the other other Teutonic one of Marik Look, basically, I want to think that this is lampshading all of that.
Because, as someone on record as not liking either faction that the main characters are from, this was a pretty darn good book. I found myself emotionally invested in their problems, because the authors gave the characters impossible problems, or ends with only sad solutions, and did a decent job as to convincing the reader that these people are good military commanders. Maybe it is a bit too stereotyped, but from beginning to end you have memorable scenes, from Minobu's home life on the edge to Jamie's Shakespearean moment with Takashi at the wedding reception.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I sometimes feel like I'm being overly critical of these pulp sci-fi novels made to sell cardboard and lead, but even with some lingering hesitations about the racism or whatever you want to call it, I think that this book proves you can take what is a sort of one-off irrelevance in the plot arc and deliver a five-star text, through what amounts to landing single after single with classic stories and hookable characters.
elahrairah's review against another edition
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nedpatrick's review
3.0
Wolves on the Border is a sci-book written in the Battetech tabletop game universe. Battletech features wars fought with giant robots, and if that is what you are looking for this book will not disappoint. Things this book was good at was providing great descriptions of giant robot combat and showing the politics and combat etiquette of the Battletech universe. There were chunks of the book that felt as though nothing was happening. Also, one critical event in the book is never fully explained. If you want to know more about the Battletech universe this is worth a read.
kharior's review against another edition
4.0
Reasonably paced, solid piece of BattleTech writing. Glad they went back and explained the scene from the wedding in the Warrior trilogy.
doler12's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0