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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
I think this story might have benefitted from a flash-forward at the start... a promise that an impossible battle was destined to happen. Instead, we have to wait for more than a quarter of the book before the inciting incident kick-starts the narrative.
I also wasn't a fan of the way the author spoon-fed the reader. We weren't trusted to infer the subtext but had to be overtly told, again and again, that the Staff Sargeant was super competent and the new Second Lieutenant was promising but needed hand-holding. It also felt that the non-human characters were solely defined by their species characteristics, rather than having individual back-stories and psychologies.
Aside from that, the military action was decent, seemingly paying homage to the Zulu V. English battle of Isandlwana. The military action seemed to wrap itself up a little too neatly but this was more than made up for by the political violence that followed. That was a nice way to end things.
I also wasn't a fan of the way the author spoon-fed the reader. We weren't trusted to infer the subtext but had to be overtly told, again and again, that the Staff Sargeant was super competent and the new Second Lieutenant was promising but needed hand-holding. It also felt that the non-human characters were solely defined by their species characteristics, rather than having individual back-stories and psychologies.
Aside from that, the military action was decent, seemingly paying homage to the Zulu V. English battle of Isandlwana. The military action seemed to wrap itself up a little too neatly but this was more than made up for by the political violence that followed. That was a nice way to end things.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
3.5
it was fun I guess just a lot more military than SF (I visited the "marine ranks" page like 5 times)
I wish there was more politics and less uselessly fighting adolescent lizards
the aliens were cool tho
it was fun I guess just a lot more military than SF (I visited the "marine ranks" page like 5 times)
I wish there was more politics and less uselessly fighting adolescent lizards
the aliens were cool tho
This is the first book I've read by Huff and it was a great discovery. The writing is tight and very realistic - great dialogue, great characters, and excellent pacing with a gradual increase in tension that ends superbly. She is in the same league as David Drake when it comes to military sci-fi.
The main character (Torin Kerr) is a fantastic strong female character. She reminds me of other (and far too few) strong female characters like Honor Harrington. She has realistic relationships, an intelligent and intuitive approach to combat, and still manages to come across as sensitive and caring.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.
The main character (Torin Kerr) is a fantastic strong female character. She reminds me of other (and far too few) strong female characters like Honor Harrington. She has realistic relationships, an intelligent and intuitive approach to combat, and still manages to come across as sensitive and caring.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.
The opening drops the reader into a pile of personalities, names, alien species, and military ranks. Remembering the positive reviews, I waded through and am now hooked.
3.5 stars.
I've wanted to read this book for years. In fact, I started it a few years ago and put it back down. I'm glad to say that upon trying this book again, I enjoyed it.
The main character, Torin, was a staff sergeant in the Confederation Marines. The story takes place in a distant future where many races have come together as allies. The plot revolves around Torin and her platoon--as well as a new second lieutenant whom Torin had spent the night with without knowing his identity--to try and secure an alliance with another race. The pace was a bit erratic, where some parts dragged on and others were full of action and fighting. I loved the Marines that were with Torin, and I loved watching the lieutenant, Jarret, become more comfortable in his role. There was humor, darkness, and interesting alien races. All in all, this was enjoyable.
I've wanted to read this book for years. In fact, I started it a few years ago and put it back down. I'm glad to say that upon trying this book again, I enjoyed it.
The main character, Torin, was a staff sergeant in the Confederation Marines. The story takes place in a distant future where many races have come together as allies. The plot revolves around Torin and her platoon--as well as a new second lieutenant whom Torin had spent the night with without knowing his identity--to try and secure an alliance with another race. The pace was a bit erratic, where some parts dragged on and others were full of action and fighting. I loved the Marines that were with Torin, and I loved watching the lieutenant, Jarret, become more comfortable in his role. There was humor, darkness, and interesting alien races. All in all, this was enjoyable.
Loved this audiobook! Military scifi with just enough humor. A group of space marines with a brand new, shiny Lieutenant are assigned on a diplomatic mission. Seems easy (and boring) right? Hah!
I had previously read the author's vampire books and was intrigued to see what she could do with a military SF book instead. As it turned out, she could do quite a lot with it.
The story, ironically enough, is pretty much the same as the last book I read (The Left Hand of Darkness), in that it involves a diplomatic approach to a new species in an effort to get them to join a confederacy of other races. The differences are that there are a number of different species involved, there is a military application as the confederacy are under attack by another group (called the Others, rather tellingly), and the main part of the story involves a battle between the marines escorting the diplomats and a group of the natives (who ambush them when they crash land in a nature preserve designed to test their young in combat, rather like Predators in their titular stories)
It's rare to find military SF written from a female point of view, and the author does an excellent job here. The main protagonist is a tough-as-nails female staff sergeant who has to keep her inexperienced lieutenant alive, along with the diplomats and her marine squad. However, Sergeant Kerr does come across at times as almost too good to be true, as she (almost) never seems to make a mistake. Indeed, she nearly falls into Mary Sue territory, so I hope that future stories dials her back a little bit and allows her to be a bit more human in future (sleeping with her new lieutenant before she knows who he is could hardly be called a mistake a she never lets it interfere with her judgement).
My other caveat to this story is the sheer number of characters and species introduced here. There are over 40 marines and a dozen diplomats of several different species in the book, each of which is named and has its own story to tell. It becomes a bit too much trying to keep them all straight in the early parts of the story, and I felt like I needed to have a character list at times. This tends to fall away in the latter half of the book, when battle tends to wipe away those differences and just make them all marines.
The author makes no secret that this is a retelling of the Battle of Roarke's Drift from an alien point of view, and it certainly makes for thrilling reading. You really do get swept along by the whole thing, and it's as much as a shock to us as it is to them when they are rescued, though by then they had already accepted the surrender of their remaining enemies, who we are reminded here are just hormonally overcharged teenagers on a rite of passage.
It is what happens afterwards which makes this a 4 star story, as it is revealed that. This is pretty dark territory and not one we always get to see in this kind of book, and I enjoyed the face-off between the sergeant and the general who placed her in that position in the first place.
Highly recommended if you are a fan of military SF, and I am going to read the next book straight away.
The story, ironically enough, is pretty much the same as the last book I read (The Left Hand of Darkness), in that it involves a diplomatic approach to a new species in an effort to get them to join a confederacy of other races. The differences are that there are a number of different species involved, there is a military application as the confederacy are under attack by another group (called the Others, rather tellingly), and the main part of the story involves a battle between the marines escorting the diplomats and a group of the natives (who ambush them when they crash land in a nature preserve designed to test their young in combat, rather like Predators in their titular stories)
It's rare to find military SF written from a female point of view, and the author does an excellent job here. The main protagonist is a tough-as-nails female staff sergeant who has to keep her inexperienced lieutenant alive, along with the diplomats and her marine squad. However, Sergeant Kerr does come across at times as almost too good to be true, as she (almost) never seems to make a mistake. Indeed, she nearly falls into Mary Sue territory, so I hope that future stories dials her back a little bit and allows her to be a bit more human in future (sleeping with her new lieutenant before she knows who he is could hardly be called a mistake a she never lets it interfere with her judgement).
My other caveat to this story is the sheer number of characters and species introduced here. There are over 40 marines and a dozen diplomats of several different species in the book, each of which is named and has its own story to tell. It becomes a bit too much trying to keep them all straight in the early parts of the story, and I felt like I needed to have a character list at times. This tends to fall away in the latter half of the book, when battle tends to wipe away those differences and just make them all marines.
The author makes no secret that this is a retelling of the Battle of Roarke's Drift from an alien point of view, and it certainly makes for thrilling reading. You really do get swept along by the whole thing, and it's as much as a shock to us as it is to them when they are rescued, though by then they had already accepted the surrender of their remaining enemies, who we are reminded here are just hormonally overcharged teenagers on a rite of passage.
It is what happens afterwards which makes this a 4 star story, as it is revealed that
Spoiler
that this was just a test to prove to the natives that they were worthy opponents and therefore encourage them to sign the treatyHighly recommended if you are a fan of military SF, and I am going to read the next book straight away.
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