Format: Hardcover: 806 pages.Publisher: Baen Books (08/01/2004)
ISBN: 0743488415
List price: $25.00
Stars at War
David Weber, Steve White
Sample chapters available at:
http://www.baen.com/chapters/W200408/0743488415.htm?blurb
Format: Hardcover: 806 pages.
Publisher: Baen Books (08/01/2004)
ISBN: 0743488415
List price: $25.00
I love a good space opera. And that is what “Crusade”, the first book in this huge two part hard-cover is at its heart. It deals with love, death, tragedy and even the fact that sometimes the best of intentions can lead to the worst possible outcome.
The peace between the Terran Federation and “Tabbies” as the cat-like species humans called the "Orions” came about through a need to fight side by side against a genocidal race known as the Rigelians remains, but as is normal on both sides there are those who continue to hate and mistrust the other side.
In the area of space known only as Charon's Ferry a massive battle took place there in the year 2206. An Orion war ship chased a doomed Human colonization ship into this warp point, with all hands on the human ship believed lost and dead.
Now, a century later with man and Orion at a delicate peace a ship emerges from the Ferry, and using ancient Human codes and signals, meet an Orion ship on patrol, then opens fire killing all aboard.
Holy war, Jihad, has finally reached space and when you read the reasons behind it, and the ideology preached, you will see definite allusions to current world affairs. And I am sure the authors intended this to happen.
Most of the characters are interesting even though they never seem to gel as someone we can really like or understand.
In fact, often I found myself understand the villains better then I did the Human/Orions.
The book deals with the space battles in general, quite well. But, it is still not as good as Robert Heinlein’s “Starship Troopers”, even though it tries.
But by itself, this is a very good story that you will find hard to put down once you start. Seeing humanity forced to defend their worlds, as well as their honor is always an amazing story idea. It is just done well so seldom.
Here, it was done quite well, even with some very slow character development in places and not a few rather ‘dry’ pages where you found yourself skipping over parts of the text.
But, don’t let that hold you back; a few times I had to rush back to find out what something meant.
In Death Ground:
As soon as I got about 50 pages into IN DEATH GROUND, the second half of Stars at War, I wondered where I had seen these characters before? And suddenly I felt that I was reading a knock off of STARSHIP TROOPERS, by Heinlein (notice how I cleverly mention RAH twice in one review?).
I mean, with “Bugs” and “Arachnids” what else could I think? Then I started to get into the book. And while some might still think of it as a ‘knock off’ I prefer to think of it as a “Homage” to one of the greatest Sci-Fi books of all time.
This book is excellent, with fast paced action, vivid descriptions of massive space battles, futurist technology that actually works in the readers mind and makes sense, and a ruthless villain out to destroy everything in it’s path.
The characters were first rate, with the brilliant military leaders, the various ships fighting an enemy that outnumbers them and seems to not care how many of their own warriors die in battle but just keep attacking,
This sucker kept me pretty much glued to the pages from start to finish; lucky for me, I had taken it on a two week trip to Oregon so I had plenty of time to read at night
This is first rate, rip-snorting space adventure at its best and with almost non-stop action is done with real such realistic description that you will be able to create your own movie in your head as you read.
The Shiva Option:
I understand that sometimes a book will be quite different in different sections. Honest, I really do. And I also understand that if you don’t want you gallant heroes to be totally wiped out you have to have them start to win eventually.
But sometimes too much of anything is just not good.
The Shiva Option is the second and final part of the story began in In Death Ground, where we last saw the Grand Alliance hanging on by their fingernails and claws. Mankind and his allies were fighting a massive last-stand battle at Alpha Centauri, the last warp point between the aliens and Sol -- and Earth.
THE SHIVA OPTION is somehow less then the first book. I don’t know what it is, maybe the feeling that the ending is going to be pretty much exactly how you start figuring it will be about a fourth of the way into the story. The story becomes repetitious, with almost the same situation at every battle.
One new element is the introduction of an entirely new species that seem as determined as the Grand Alliance to destroy the pestilence called ‘The Bugs’
Like I said, about a quarter into the book you realize that the story will only end one way. Even with that, I still more or less enjoyed the story. The space battles were well done, some of the characters very interesting, and the emotions that one of two of the characters display made them almost human.
I like that in a book.
Insurrection:
"Insurrection" tells the story of a war of secession in the Terran Federation. It is easy to see comparisons to the American Revolution even without certain references in the book. While I love good space opera, I usually want the story to be about people as well as keen space battles. I don’t feel I got that here, with most of the story following only a few characters as they fight battle after battle. While that is not usually a bad thing, the characters were simply never developed or were not anyone I could feel any ‘touch’ with.
Yes, the space fights show that Weber is very good at this sort of thing. But the pacing of the story just never seemed to come together; it never ‘felt right’.