Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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56 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dashing, 31 Oct 2006
Lets start off by saying I'm tired. Major style. That is one negative side effect of this book: Staying up all night to read it.
When I got my copy of GoO early in the USA I was laughing hysterically. My friends in the UK could only dream...
I have to say that I am impressed. Again.
Firstly, the book is larger. Bigger than its predecessors. The cover is slightly different in terms of layout and design but still Uber.
Like many things in the book, the prologue hits you. Suddenly a massive new part of the storyline is opened. This happens throughout.
Like FoR and FS, the storyline is entirely unrelated to the story of its cousin video game. The story is spread over a time long before Halo 2 and Earth coming under attack, and a little after the end of Halo 2 to. If you are familiar with the Halo 2 story, then this will open up much for you, showing parts of the deliciously complex plot that were previously shrouded. If you are unfamiliar with the Halo 2 storyline, it's best you read up, but not crushing if you do not.
For Spartan-117, John fans, you might be disappointed. Apart from the first chapter long in the past, we do not see him. We do however, see other Spartans. Plenty.
There is a much more sober and personal tone to the book. Nylund does a good job of building emotional attachments between characters, and you. Because of this, the end and other parts will have you feeling emotionally drained. Somewhat sad.
The only possible problem is what it takes up. It is stretched to quite a lot. At the end you may feel like it was only half of the action that was in FS, but still about as many words. And sometimes, only sometimes, the book it unclear. In terms of action that is. At one or two points I found myself going over a chapter again to make sure I got what happened. It's only occasional though, and perhaps non-existent all together since I stayed up all night to read it in one go, not recommendable if you have school or other commitments the next morning. It drags you in.
Ultimately, the different tone, a fresh feel to the book serves well, and the ending is something to behold. Eric Nylund has done well. Borders also for releasing it early. As if that was not enough, there is more on the way. More books have been confirmed as 'On the way' by Bungie studios. I for one can't wait. Buy this book. Enjoy it.
I for one, am going to bed.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just when you think you have a handle on this writer...., 12 Mar 2007
If you've read my First Strike review, you'll know that I've rated Eric Nylund for taking the Halo franchise and making it his own. As he raises the bar yet again in this novel, I can only imagine that the game designers at Bungie are now awaiting his next instruction with sycophantic adoration.
It is a very different story to Last Strike and the Fall of Reach. Where as these two previous novels aim to flesh out the exiting Halo mythology whilst splicing the Halo game plots into a coherent, character-rich space opera, Ghosts of Onyx back tracks the story to a parallel plot line concerning the shadowy exploits of an ONI splinter cell and the emotional hardships spawned by the horrors of their actions on the Spartan commissioned to lead their cause. This is a story about people.
Only at the very end, the time-line somewhere shortly after the plot of Halo 2, does the story reach out to give the reader a glimpse at the shape of things to come in Halo 3.
Some people may be disappointed that this book doesn't reveal all the secrets of the Forerunner legacy within it. Personally, I think the point is that this should only be revealed when the final game is released, and not a moment earlier.
Of course, if you have played both games and read all the books published so far, you may well respond the conclusion of the forthcoming Halo 3 game with a knowing, smug little grin.
The end is near my friends.
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12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ghosts of Onyx, 19 Dec 2006
I could not wait to get my hands on this book when it came out. I've read the other 3 novels and found them brilliant. This book, however, left me slightly dissappointed. Don't get me wrong, if you like Halo games and you've read the other novels, get this book. Its a good read and it does expand on what has happened between the Covenant, where Dr. Halsey went and so on.
Even though the book is bigger, it took me only a couple of days to finish, and it felt like I has still hungry for more.
Plot-wise the book is OK, most action takes place on Onyx, but at times there is not much action, with the Spartans travelling a lot of the time, from place to place. In the previous novels, you are told about major plots, the plots are explained, and you can unerstand them. When you are finally told the purpose of Onyx, the book is almost over, and you are still none the wiser about the Forerunners and what happened to them. In the end you are left on a huge cliffhanger, just like the end of Halo 2, and you haven't actually gained much understanding of the whole plot.
Overall, I rate this book good, but not excellent like the previous ones. If you like the previous novels, then buy this one too. Especially when it going this cheap.
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