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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
It's been a while since I took a stroll in the Halo universe. My first contact with the Halo was [b:The Fall of Reach|60229|The Fall of Reach (Halo, #1)|Eric S. Nylund|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1301556099s/60229.jpg|1881174], which came out before the original Xbox game was released. Since then I've been more interested in watching a science-fictional universe grow up with me than, say, playing Halo multiplayer death matches and shouting obscenities at 11 year old opponents. I'm into Halo for the story, not just for the FPS.
My fondest memories of the Halo games come from the first one released, playing through the night with my cousin mostly, exploring the virtual environs of Installation 04. Now, 10 years later, I'm just getting a glimpse at the story of those who built it.
My reunion was very nearly everything I had hoped it would be, aside from only one annoyance: the visual appearance of a Forerunner is never described in much detail. This is the most reliable image I could find, but its just armor:
My fondest memories of the Halo games come from the first one released, playing through the night with my cousin mostly, exploring the virtual environs of Installation 04. Now, 10 years later, I'm just getting a glimpse at the story of those who built it.
My reunion was very nearly everything I had hoped it would be, aside from only one annoyance: the visual appearance of a Forerunner is never described in much detail. This is the most reliable image I could find, but its just armor:
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
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:
Yes
A dizzying monolith of high science fiction, detailing the coolest point in history for the halo universe and showcases Greg's incredible prowess for bringing worlds like this to life. Front to back kino
Such a solid start to a great trilogy. Shows a whole new side to halo that I've never seen before and definitely needs to be expanded on
Man, I really thought I'd enjoy this more, but the master chief books were just much more engaging.
The forerunners are alien enough to be unrelatable but not so alien as to explore interesting ideas.
The forerunners are alien enough to be unrelatable but not so alien as to explore interesting ideas.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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:
Complicated
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book was way better than I expected!! I'm not a big sci fi fan when it comes to books- it's usually a bit too complicated and technological for me. However, I really enjoyed this book. It definitely helped having a background in the Halo universe. My boyfriend is a huge Halo fan, comparable to how I feel about Harry Potter, and he was the one that told me to read this. I've also played all the games with him and really enjoyed them. This book is set thousands of years before the games, but it helped having the background of that world and universe. I recognized some names and concepts, which was cool. The writing was also much more accessible that I expected, and very interesting. It was a great story and excitingly paced. I'm glad that it's the beginning of a trilogy! I also like the fact that it is a "history". I always love learning the origins of things, or just more information about them. I love all-encompassing worlds like Harry Potter, but Halo is closer to Star Wars just in the fact that there is one canon encompassing the whole universe. The books, games and all supplemental material support each other. There hadn't been much history of the Forerunners before, but this book becomes canon because of that fact. I love that. I love official things. Greg Bear is a great writer, and I was excited to learn that he has a big part in designing the story of Halo 4 and beyond. I think that is great. Halo fans would definitely enjoy this book most and find it easier to read, but any sci fi fan would enjoy it in my opinion. The ending especially was awesome!
I picked this one up to meet a prompt for a bingo readathon (based on a video game). I’ve been leaning towards more sci-fi lately so I thought this would be fun to try out. Sadly, while having some intriguing parts to the story, overall it didn’t quite work for me. If you are a fan of the games though, this could potentially work much better for you. I myself am not a gamer so I didn’t have that investment beforehand. I do have to say though that I did enjoy the narrator.
I really wish Microsoft left the mystery and mythos of the Forerunners alone, rather than doing a cash-grab with more games and novels like this one.
The author had a difficult job with having to create an entire universe from scarce in-game universe clues and assumptions. I would guess that they were then allowed to fill in all the plot holes. And for me, I don't think the task was fulfilled. The world building was odd and lackluster, a garbled mess. The author tried to include cool, fantastical, and interestimg cultural revelations that cemented the Forerunners' mythos and awe viewed in-game, but I feel it removed the aspect that made the ancient species spectacular.
This story made the Forerunners appear more pompous and self-inflated, rather than a species rallied together in an effort to stop an undead threat of cosmic proportion. They seemed too human in many aspects; all the negative ones. And at the same time it left gaps in how the culture works.
The tale was glacially slow aside from all the world building. The plot blossomed at the speed of smell and did not grab me on any level until the 21st chapter. I only kept reading because I like the halo games and novels (minus this one). Then the plot fizzled out quickly after 23rd chapter. And right at the end, literraly in the final 2 chapters, it tried to ensnare me again. But not enough that I am looking forward to any of the sequels. I doubt I will read them. I gave it an extra star simply because it was a Halo tale.
The author had a difficult job with having to create an entire universe from scarce in-game universe clues and assumptions. I would guess that they were then allowed to fill in all the plot holes. And for me, I don't think the task was fulfilled. The world building was odd and lackluster, a garbled mess. The author tried to include cool, fantastical, and interestimg cultural revelations that cemented the Forerunners' mythos and awe viewed in-game, but I feel it removed the aspect that made the ancient species spectacular.
This story made the Forerunners appear more pompous and self-inflated, rather than a species rallied together in an effort to stop an undead threat of cosmic proportion. They seemed too human in many aspects; all the negative ones. And at the same time it left gaps in how the culture works.
The tale was glacially slow aside from all the world building. The plot blossomed at the speed of smell and did not grab me on any level until the 21st chapter. I only kept reading because I like the halo games and novels (minus this one). Then the plot fizzled out quickly after 23rd chapter. And right at the end, literraly in the final 2 chapters, it tried to ensnare me again. But not enough that I am looking forward to any of the sequels. I doubt I will read them. I gave it an extra star simply because it was a Halo tale.
Attempts to introduce novel elements to the Halo-verse by explaining long lost history, but leaves more questions unanswered that it solves