Scan barcode
naomiysl's review
1.0
The characters have no motivation or inner lives, and the alien life-forms seem to exist only so that our characters can kill them. Frankly, I identify more with the poor aliens than with the precious prince with mommy issues.
jtone's review
5.0
This book is comfort reading for me. Nothing groundbreaking - a coming of age story with a tour through military history in a science fiction setting. It's a fun, fast read.
gryffyntea's review
5.0
The first chapter made it a bit difficult for me to get to the actual story. So I read that chapter, put the book down for three months, and then tore through the rest in two days, from bookmark.
I am not impressed with the Empress of Man. I can't wait to see what happens with Roger and his mother through the series.
Both Ringo and Weber are not shy about killing characters who I've just gotten to know a tiny bit.
My favorite part is the humorous one-liners (or what I interpreted as one-liners): Lord Helmut, Prince of the Sixth, or something like that, was the first one that had my cats scared of the bed by my outrageous laughing spell.
I am not impressed with the Empress of Man. I can't wait to see what happens with Roger and his mother through the series.
Both Ringo and Weber are not shy about killing characters who I've just gotten to know a tiny bit.
My favorite part is the humorous one-liners (or what I interpreted as one-liners): Lord Helmut, Prince of the Sixth, or something like that, was the first one that had my cats scared of the bed by my outrageous laughing spell.
agirlushouldknow's review
4.0
The score is probably closer to 3.5 but I don't mind rounding up.
There is some good and some bad when it comes to the book. More good though.
The book is fairly well written with what feels like a good stopping point. I know they have multiple books out, and both Webber and Ringo are experienced enough they knew when a good time was. The characters are fairly well rounded, and the fact they implemented female marines alongside the male marines and didn't even make a point of it is a definite positive.
You do grow to like the main character and all of his supporting characters. I haven't read ahead, but I do home his possible romance works out as well. The plot twists are not too trope defined, and it is enjoyable overall.
The negatives are all interrelated but I don't think it should turn you off. The book is almost 20 years old, and it does feel a little dated. There is a feeling of white savior/local savage to it, or maybe it is closer to the Tonto/Lone Ranger inequalities. It isn't as bad as pulp fiction from earlier and I don't think it rests on the white savior trope too much since it is more about survival of the white boy among all the local tribal populations and less trying to save that population.
It also could be that the narrator of the book has a tendency to give Kord the whole "Tonto" accent and maybe that just throws me off. There isn't a lot of new territory in this book but it is enjoyable. There are a few parts where you can see Ringo wrote something versus Webber and when the transition happens it feels choppy since their styles are slightly different.
Overall though I do recommend the book though, well enough I am going to get the second one this weekend.
There is some good and some bad when it comes to the book. More good though.
The book is fairly well written with what feels like a good stopping point. I know they have multiple books out, and both Webber and Ringo are experienced enough they knew when a good time was. The characters are fairly well rounded, and the fact they implemented female marines alongside the male marines and didn't even make a point of it is a definite positive.
You do grow to like the main character and all of his supporting characters. I haven't read ahead, but I do home his possible romance works out as well. The plot twists are not too trope defined, and it is enjoyable overall.
The negatives are all interrelated but I don't think it should turn you off. The book is almost 20 years old, and it does feel a little dated. There is a feeling of white savior/local savage to it, or maybe it is closer to the Tonto/Lone Ranger inequalities. It isn't as bad as pulp fiction from earlier and I don't think it rests on the white savior trope too much since it is more about survival of the white boy among all the local tribal populations and less trying to save that population.
It also could be that the narrator of the book has a tendency to give Kord the whole "Tonto" accent and maybe that just throws me off. There isn't a lot of new territory in this book but it is enjoyable. There are a few parts where you can see Ringo wrote something versus Webber and when the transition happens it feels choppy since their styles are slightly different.
Overall though I do recommend the book though, well enough I am going to get the second one this weekend.
jambery's review
3.0
Audiobook.
I'm not a huge fan of John Ringo, but I like David Weber so I thought I'd give this series a try. Entertaining, though sometimes they wax a little too rhapsodic about alien culture or how much of a spoiled brat on the outside tortured man with FEELINGS on the inside the main character is. Still, I liked it enough that I will listen to the other two.
I'm not a huge fan of John Ringo, but I like David Weber so I thought I'd give this series a try. Entertaining, though sometimes they wax a little too rhapsodic about alien culture or how much of a spoiled brat on the outside tortured man with FEELINGS on the inside the main character is. Still, I liked it enough that I will listen to the other two.