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dakkster's review against another edition
4.0
Lots of action and fast-paced, exciting drama. I thought the main character was wonderfully realized, with a nice mix of character traits. He's got flaws and is certainly no Mary Sue character. It's a gritty world. The audio book narration is done well and I look forward to the next part in the series.
jefffrane's review
4.0
Terrific military science fiction story that moves at a breakneck pace and that was precisely what I wanted at the moment. I had a strange sensation of deja vu initially, because the entire setup of location, technology and even the ruling premise felt like something I'd just read. The first chapters have an uncanny resemblance to Joe Haldeman's 1997 award-winning novel, Forever Peace although Nagata takes her story in a completely different direction.
The Red: First Light is non-stop action and if that's your cup of tea, you'll love it. It does a terrific job of creating a near-future world colored by search engines, social media and the defense industry.
The Red: First Light is non-stop action and if that's your cup of tea, you'll love it. It does a terrific job of creating a near-future world colored by search engines, social media and the defense industry.
readerxxx's review against another edition
4.0
I would have rated his five stars but it really rambled in search of a story in the middle. Still loved it though.
mjfmjfmjf's review against another edition
4.0
As always a bit of a twist with this author, though this is comparatively more normal than her other books. Basically a near future technology book disguised as a military sf. A bit more realistic than say [b:Starship Troopers|17214|Starship Troopers|Robert A. Heinlein|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1406457252s/17214.jpg|2534973] or [b:Old Man's War|51964|Old Man's War (Old Man's War, #1)|John Scalzi|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1402867788s/51964.jpg|50700], but mostly because the tech is not as far out. There was a lot going on in this one, including an emerging AI, or perhaps not. And yet it was not a quick read. Perhaps a little less military. Or perhaps if this was told from a different pov. 3.5 of 5.
yvannastar's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
carolynf's review against another edition
4.0
Very early on I realized that this book was aimed much more at people who like first person shooters (i.e. not me) but I stuck with it and it turned out to be an excellent read. The protagonist, Shelley, is four years into a ten year military contract, that he was forced to take in lieu of prison after broadcasting police brutality against protesters. He is 23. He and his crew are policing a fort in the middle of nowhere North Africa, equipped with exoskeletons and internet-enabled skullcaps. The skullcaps enable them to communicate sub-vocally with each other, the command center, and overhead drones, and to also get their brain flooded with whatever chemicals they need to sleep, fight, or cope with about that fighting that just happened. Shelley is special because he gets these feelings that no one can explain, which enable him to pull off impossible missions. All of this is in the first few chapters. The main part of the books is able trying to bring a war monger to justice who has already paid her way to immunity, and answering the question of who is controlling Shelley's special feelings. I don't know if I'll read the other books in the series. Not until after I take a break anyway. But this book was a lot more captivating than I had thought it would be.
shonatiger's review against another edition
4.0
Began to drag towards the end, but still a very fun read. Love that there are so many non-white characters.
patrick6367's review against another edition
5.0
This was an excellent, excellent book. I rarely do reviews for books any longer because I am so busy elsewhere, but I felt this book needed a SOLID recommendation from me. This is near future Sci-fi, and is action-packed, compelling, with great characters, and a plot that is thoughtful, intelligent and which intricately explores issues that are arising today. It's well done indeed; depressing, because I can't say I like the world in this book too much, but it's not only plausible, but very likely the world we will be living in shortly. Actually, it's the world we already live in, the tech just isn't quite as advanced as it is in this book.
trike's review against another edition
4.0
As the saying goes, you don't get a second chance to make a first impression. The first impression I had from this book was not good. As you can see from the 4-star rating, I changed my mind.
Honestly, I'm not sure why I kept reading after the opening pages. The main character was speaking in polemic infodumps which felt clumsy and out of place, it was about a war in Africa somewhere which is not a topic that interests me, and Nagata killed all the dogs. (That last one is a biggie. Before I go see a movie, I always check the website Does The Dog Die? I've been in animal rescue for 34 years and I've seen things that give me nightmares, so I prefer my dogs unharmed.)
So why I kept reading, I don't know.
Which is sort of what this story is about. US Army Lieutenant James Shelley somehow "knows" things before they happen. One of his squad mates believes it to be the voice of God, keeping them out of harm's way. Shelley himself doesn't know what to make of it, but it turns out the likeliest culprit is an autonomous program existing in the Internet, distributed throughout the cloud.
Soldiers wear skullcaps which monitor and control their emotions, making them more effective in combat. (Nagata first used this idea in a short story in the collection [b:War Stories: New Military Science Fiction|22704234|War Stories New Military Science Fiction|Jaym Gates|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1405012553s/22704234.jpg|42136377], and develops more fully here.) Problem is, this rogue program might be manipulating soldiers and equipment for its own mysterious ends.
If I have a primary complaint, it's that we never get a resolution as to what this program might be. Is it an AI? Is it simpler than that? We just get a lot of speculation by different characters. I presume this is something to be answered in sequels.
Turns out that perpetual small wars in the future are good for business, and they're basically managed by defense contractors in order to prop up the bottom line. It doesn't matter what the human cost is, so long as the bank account stays full. In order to popularize these efforts, the skullcaps and Google Glass-type headgear the soldiers wear -- combined with security camera footage -- is being edited into a reality TV show showing actual combat.
I'm not too clear on how this works or why the Army would think it's a good idea, but it does add another layer of both weirdness to the situation and motivation for the various characters. It's entirely possible that the rogue program, dubbed "The Red", is influencing people in charge to let this happen for its own reasons. That would be an interesting wrinkle, and it would certainly fit the facts as presented.
That would also be scary, because it would mean that the program is both more pervasive and insidious than even the most paranoid characters believe it to be. We would essentially all be puppets.
This is a pretty dark story. It's grim and nasty and full of sadness. But to balance it out, it's also intriguing, offering interesting ideas to ponder about the future of war and being plugged in all the time.
Honestly, I'm not sure why I kept reading after the opening pages. The main character was speaking in polemic infodumps which felt clumsy and out of place, it was about a war in Africa somewhere which is not a topic that interests me, and Nagata killed all the dogs. (That last one is a biggie. Before I go see a movie, I always check the website Does The Dog Die? I've been in animal rescue for 34 years and I've seen things that give me nightmares, so I prefer my dogs unharmed.)
So why I kept reading, I don't know.
Which is sort of what this story is about. US Army Lieutenant James Shelley somehow "knows" things before they happen. One of his squad mates believes it to be the voice of God, keeping them out of harm's way. Shelley himself doesn't know what to make of it, but it turns out the likeliest culprit is an autonomous program existing in the Internet, distributed throughout the cloud.
Soldiers wear skullcaps which monitor and control their emotions, making them more effective in combat. (Nagata first used this idea in a short story in the collection [b:War Stories: New Military Science Fiction|22704234|War Stories New Military Science Fiction|Jaym Gates|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1405012553s/22704234.jpg|42136377], and develops more fully here.) Problem is, this rogue program might be manipulating soldiers and equipment for its own mysterious ends.
If I have a primary complaint, it's that we never get a resolution as to what this program might be. Is it an AI? Is it simpler than that? We just get a lot of speculation by different characters. I presume this is something to be answered in sequels.
Turns out that perpetual small wars in the future are good for business, and they're basically managed by defense contractors in order to prop up the bottom line. It doesn't matter what the human cost is, so long as the bank account stays full. In order to popularize these efforts, the skullcaps and Google Glass-type headgear the soldiers wear -- combined with security camera footage -- is being edited into a reality TV show showing actual combat.
I'm not too clear on how this works or why the Army would think it's a good idea, but it does add another layer of both weirdness to the situation and motivation for the various characters. It's entirely possible that the rogue program, dubbed "The Red", is influencing people in charge to let this happen for its own reasons. That would be an interesting wrinkle, and it would certainly fit the facts as presented.
That would also be scary, because it would mean that the program is both more pervasive and insidious than even the most paranoid characters believe it to be. We would essentially all be puppets.
This is a pretty dark story. It's grim and nasty and full of sadness. But to balance it out, it's also intriguing, offering interesting ideas to ponder about the future of war and being plugged in all the time.
corrompido's review against another edition
3.0
I read this book because I was sick, it was on an end of year best science fiction of 2015 list, and it was $2 on Amazon. I preface my review of the book with those facts because I found the book really enjoyable but it was definitely trashy enough to warrant a "2$ and stuck inside with a fever" mindset.
The story itself is somewhat recycled near-future soldier drama, but the first half especially has a really good mystery unwinding that kept me hooked. I'll continue in the trilogy, but suspect the wheels may come off of the story somewhat given where this book ends.
The story itself is somewhat recycled near-future soldier drama, but the first half especially has a really good mystery unwinding that kept me hooked. I'll continue in the trilogy, but suspect the wheels may come off of the story somewhat given where this book ends.