- Paperback: 289 pages
- Publisher: Del Rey Books (31 Dec 1990)
- ISBN-10: 0099439417
- ISBN-13: 978-0099439417
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,521,414 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This was the first book of Robert Frezza's that I read, and I loved it so much I hunted down all the rest of his books. This book is a premier example of the new-ish genre of military-hard-sci-fi, as poineered by Robert Heinlein and more recently, David Drake.
It introduces an infantry battalion fighting low-intensity warfare on a colonial planet set in the near-to-mid future (a century or so in the future). FTL Space travel is now possible but expensive, and governments and corporations have colonised several planets around the galaxy. Earth is still recognisably the same, with the same nations and problems as we face today. There are a changes to technology, but guns still use gunpowder, tanks still have wheels, and soldiers are still soldiers.
Robert Frezza has a gift for writing about the soldiers' experiences in a cynical yet humorous way; wry and understated but also exciting and cinematic at times. I love his combat scenes, which are told from the soldiers' level, and bring the reader into the action. He is also able to make his characters very real and human, with personal motivations, strengths and weaknesses. Overall, this is a story of the triumph of the human spirit and comradeship over impersonal political and technological forces.
This story is continued in Fire in a Faraway Place, and if you liked this, you'll want to know what happened to the characters. Highly recommended.
It introduces an infantry battalion fighting low-intensity warfare on a colonial planet set in the near-to-mid future (a century or so in the future). FTL Space travel is now possible but expensive, and governments and corporations have colonised several planets around the galaxy. Earth is still recognisably the same, with the same nations and problems as we face today. There are a changes to technology, but guns still use gunpowder, tanks still have wheels, and soldiers are still soldiers.
Robert Frezza has a gift for writing about the soldiers' experiences in a cynical yet humorous way; wry and understated but also exciting and cinematic at times. I love his combat scenes, which are told from the soldiers' level, and bring the reader into the action. He is also able to make his characters very real and human, with personal motivations, strengths and weaknesses. Overall, this is a story of the triumph of the human spirit and comradeship over impersonal political and technological forces.
This story is continued in Fire in a Faraway Place, and if you liked this, you'll want to know what happened to the characters. Highly recommended.
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Frezza's soldiers fight very a twentieth century style of warfare, but the book is still utterly original and compelling SF because of the way Frezza handles the materials in his books. His people, his future history, the strategies each side use are fascinating and believable in a way that possibly no other military SF series has managed. The obvious comparison is to the already good Pournelle/Stirling Sparta books, but Frezza leaves them in his dust.
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Excellent Hard SF war novel, as if the author was writing a normal war story that just happens to be set in the far future on another planet. Great understanding of the snafus and usual problems that occur in war. Fast paced, logical storyline, gripping writing style, characters that come alive in the imagination. I like the way each of them has their own voice, and I can practically hear their accents and speech rhythms in the writing.
The story is full of little things that happen in everyday life, some vital to the plot, others that serve no purpose whatever except to really bring the story to life. My favourite bit is the "bros", "cos" and "stills". Cracks me up each time I read it.
If you enjoy the Hammer's Slammers series by David Drake, you'll enjoy this one. Pity Mr Frezza only wrote 3 in this series, it is easily one of the best I ever read. Worth reading & re-reading.
The story is full of little things that happen in everyday life, some vital to the plot, others that serve no purpose whatever except to really bring the story to life. My favourite bit is the "bros", "cos" and "stills". Cracks me up each time I read it.
If you enjoy the Hammer's Slammers series by David Drake, you'll enjoy this one. Pity Mr Frezza only wrote 3 in this series, it is easily one of the best I ever read. Worth reading & re-reading.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Superior military SF, A must read
Superior military SF with characters and situations much more real that Pornell or Drake. All of the books in the series are must reads for fans of military SF.
Published on 1 Jun 1999
Intelligent and Cynical look at future wars, True to life
From the start this is a book that doesnt let you put it down.Sanmartin,Matti the Varig et al become believable, Humane funny characters,who take you from one situation to another... Read more
Published on 12 Jan 1999
Hard SF at it's best
One of the best Hard SF books ever written. As Drake or Dietz is to tactical warfare, Frezza is the master of strategy. The only other author at this level of complexity was I.M. Read more
Published on 22 July 1998
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