Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
How you can make interesting characters like the Diadect and the whole forerunner race; boring is beyond understanding.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
In Cryptum, we read from the Forerunner Bornstellar’s perspective. In Primordium, we read from the human Chakas’ perspective. Now here, Bear changes it up a bit as we read about the close to the Forerunner saga through “a translation of thirty-nine strings of Forerunner data,” which journeys us through the experiences of multiple characters—some new, some familiar. We finally find out who the Precursors are and the origin of the parasitic lifeforms called the Flood.
SPOILERS:
The Precursors say they are “legion”—a biblical reference to the demoniac in the Gerasenes. The Flood are what remains of the Precursors—legions of parasitic forms, arguably demonic in their behaviour as the mercilessly infect every living thing. The Forerunners wiped out the Precursors because they wanted to bequeath the Mantle to humans instead of Forerunners. The Flood is their recompense for such treachery, demons that have haunted the galaxy for tens of thousands of years. The way they fight and defeat these demons of the past leads to controversy, civil war, and conflicting desires of how to achieve victory. On one side of the Forerunner debate, some believe the Flood should be defeated through total annihilation at the risk of destroying all other sentient life in the galaxy. For others, Shield Worlds are the best option where organised, focused attacks can be administered while protecting all life in the galaxy.
How do we fight the demons of our past? How do we annihilate them and shield ourselves from them? Of course, this is not possible of our own power, but of the power of Christ. There is no space in this review for a full discussion on exorcism, but Lutheran orthodoxy has dealt with it in the past. Suffice to say that the defeating and the shielding are done by the power of Christ through His Word with a regular diet of the Gospel on the part of the former demoniac. Insofar as these demons are proverbial—past temptations and decisions that haunt us—again, the regular diet for the Christian is the Gospel, by which all guilt is driven out and shielded by the innocence of Christ.
My true rating is 4.5 stars.
SPOILERS:
The Precursors say they are “legion”—a biblical reference to the demoniac in the Gerasenes. The Flood are what remains of the Precursors—legions of parasitic forms, arguably demonic in their behaviour as the mercilessly infect every living thing. The Forerunners wiped out the Precursors because they wanted to bequeath the Mantle to humans instead of Forerunners. The Flood is their recompense for such treachery, demons that have haunted the galaxy for tens of thousands of years. The way they fight and defeat these demons of the past leads to controversy, civil war, and conflicting desires of how to achieve victory. On one side of the Forerunner debate, some believe the Flood should be defeated through total annihilation at the risk of destroying all other sentient life in the galaxy. For others, Shield Worlds are the best option where organised, focused attacks can be administered while protecting all life in the galaxy.
How do we fight the demons of our past? How do we annihilate them and shield ourselves from them? Of course, this is not possible of our own power, but of the power of Christ. There is no space in this review for a full discussion on exorcism, but Lutheran orthodoxy has dealt with it in the past. Suffice to say that the defeating and the shielding are done by the power of Christ through His Word with a regular diet of the Gospel on the part of the former demoniac. Insofar as these demons are proverbial—past temptations and decisions that haunt us—again, the regular diet for the Christian is the Gospel, by which all guilt is driven out and shielded by the innocence of Christ.
My true rating is 4.5 stars.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Not as bad as the 2nd book, not as good as the first. Like the other I read this only for the Endeavour Award and it was a chore to read. There is some clearly interesting material underneath this very thin story. And yet it wasn't the work of unearthing that material. Uninteresting characters, uninteresting plot. Slow and boring.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I'm writing this review months after finishing the Forerunner Saga and unfortunately I don't remember much. I do remember being extremely bored throughout these three books and I remember not thinking they're worth rereading. Maybe I'll reread these books in the future and come back with a more in depth review.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Makes absolutely no sense if you are not deep in the HALO lore but it does bring together a bunch of disparate threads about the HALO array, the end of the Forerunner Empire and the origin of the Flood in a satisfying way. Also addresses the whole Precursor thing for the Forerunners and the survival of human life after the Flood was destroyed.
adventurous
challenging
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated