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fieldofhats's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book sets out to bridge the gap between Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, and it does so brilliantly. Character moments (like Cortana’s rampancy and John’s determination) and plot points (like the Covenant finding Earth ) are foreshadowed and/or explained in a way that seamlessly flows into this specific gap in the Halo timeline.
Unlike The Fall of Reach, this book is almost solely focused on John and his arc. There are plenty of other characters, but our main focus is with John. I loved the split perspectives of The Fall of Reach, but I also love that Nylund takes a slower view of the narrative with this novel. Chief has a very specific character arc wherehe learns about the value of life , and while it’s very subtle, it makes his arc in Halo 2 and 3 all the more poignant.
Eric Nylund does a great job with characterization. For a novel that takes place between the first two games, Nylund synthesizes the stony, blank-slate character of The Master Chief of Combat Evolved with John 117 of his previous book. Unlike that book, however, we see more of John’s moment-to-moment thoughts and feelings. He’s still a hardened warrior who hardly showsemotion, but we see his how the stress of the Battle of Halo gets to him, how heartbroken he feels when faced with Linda’s cryotube, his worry for Cortana, his contemplations about the value of life, etc.
I really like how this book expands on the relationship among the Spartan II’s; we see more of their backstory, more characterization for each individual Spartan on Blue Team (like Linda and Fred, specifically), and we get a better understanding of why they work so well as a team. While The Fall of Reach did a respectable job of introducing and fleshing out John and the Spartan program, Nylund also had to juggle other storylines and characters to make it a proper introduction to the first game. With First Strike, however, he’s free to hone in on one aspect of the story (John and the Spartans) and how they react to the glassing of Reach and the Battle of Halo.
I also love that we get a bit of Cortana’s perspective in this book. We got a little of that in The Fall of Reach, but this is the first time in canon that we witness her thorough thought processes and feelings. Her musings and worries about death are especially interesting, and it also serves to demonstrate the strain that the events of Combat Evolved had on everyone involved, including an advanced, sentient computer program.
Death and sacrifice are the major themes of this novel. Halsey’s past finally catches up to her, and the weight of the lives she’s sacrificed for “the greater good” is beginning to be too much.When she gives John the choice of either killing Johnson to save millions, or risking millions to save Johnson, we see John struggle with the meaning of life.
There are a few things I didn’t like, though, which brought down the rating. I have mixed feelings about how Nylund handled the insurrectionists in this book. I hate that Whitcomb took on this domineering imperialist persona to force them to cooperate. It makes sense for his character, but it felt very one-sided in the narrative since they didn’t switch to Jiles’ point of view. On the other hand, I liked that they worked together to fight the Covenant.
And on that note, I just didn’t like Whitcomb’s character at all. He seems to represent a very nationalistic figure of the UNSC, and I think that Nylund is hinting at a parallel between the UNSC and the United States with the references that he makes. He references the Alamo battle when their crew is surrounded by Covenant forces, and it kind of just leaves a bad taste in my mouth comparing the Covenant to the Mexicans, especially when they weren’t the bad guys of that war. Texas was. And then he just left Jiles and the insurrectionists to die… On the one hand, he’s a well-written character. Nylund successfully portrays a very specific archetype in an authentic way — on the other, he has no narrative foil so it feels as though Nylund wants the audience to side with him.
As for the action and battle scenes, they were about the same as in The Fall of Reach. I skimmed and skipped most of the battle scenes, except for some; the stand-out for me was John’s struggle with the stealth Elite when they first took Ascendant Justice. Other than that, if you like how Nylund writes action, you’ll probably like it.
Overall, this was a very solid book! The military sci-fi side of the Halo universe is always hit or miss for me, but Nylund is very skilled at creating complex themes and using characterization strategically, so this one was a hit for me!
Unlike The Fall of Reach, this book is almost solely focused on John and his arc. There are plenty of other characters, but our main focus is with John. I loved the split perspectives of The Fall of Reach, but I also love that Nylund takes a slower view of the narrative with this novel. Chief has a very specific character arc where
Eric Nylund does a great job with characterization. For a novel that takes place between the first two games, Nylund synthesizes the stony, blank-slate character of The Master Chief of Combat Evolved with John 117 of his previous book. Unlike that book, however, we see more of John’s moment-to-moment thoughts and feelings. He’s still a hardened warrior who hardly showsemotion, but we see his how the stress of the Battle of Halo gets to him, how heartbroken he feels when faced with Linda’s cryotube, his worry for Cortana, his contemplations about the value of life, etc.
I really like how this book expands on the relationship among the Spartan II’s; we see more of their backstory, more characterization for each individual Spartan on Blue Team (like Linda and Fred, specifically), and we get a better understanding of why they work so well as a team. While The Fall of Reach did a respectable job of introducing and fleshing out John and the Spartan program, Nylund also had to juggle other storylines and characters to make it a proper introduction to the first game. With First Strike, however, he’s free to hone in on one aspect of the story (John and the Spartans) and how they react to the glassing of Reach and the Battle of Halo.
I also love that we get a bit of Cortana’s perspective in this book. We got a little of that in The Fall of Reach, but this is the first time in canon that we witness her thorough thought processes and feelings. Her musings and worries about death are especially interesting, and it also serves to demonstrate the strain that the events of Combat Evolved had on everyone involved, including an advanced, sentient computer program.
Death and sacrifice are the major themes of this novel. Halsey’s past finally catches up to her, and the weight of the lives she’s sacrificed for “the greater good” is beginning to be too much.
There are a few things I didn’t like, though, which brought down the rating. I have mixed feelings about how Nylund handled the insurrectionists in this book. I hate that Whitcomb took on this domineering imperialist persona to force them to cooperate. It makes sense for his character, but it felt very one-sided in the narrative since they didn’t switch to Jiles’ point of view. On the other hand, I liked that they worked together to fight the Covenant.
And on that note, I just didn’t like Whitcomb’s character at all. He seems to represent a very nationalistic figure of the UNSC, and I think that Nylund is hinting at a parallel between the UNSC and the United States with the references that he makes. He references the Alamo battle when their crew is surrounded by Covenant forces, and it kind of just leaves a bad taste in my mouth comparing the Covenant to the Mexicans, especially when they weren’t the bad guys of that war. Texas was. And then he just left Jiles and the insurrectionists to die… On the one hand, he’s a well-written character. Nylund successfully portrays a very specific archetype in an authentic way — on the other, he has no narrative foil so it feels as though Nylund wants the audience to side with him.
As for the action and battle scenes, they were about the same as in The Fall of Reach. I skimmed and skipped most of the battle scenes, except for some; the stand-out for me was John’s struggle with the stealth Elite when they first took Ascendant Justice. Other than that, if you like how Nylund writes action, you’ll probably like it.
Overall, this was a very solid book! The military sci-fi side of the Halo universe is always hit or miss for me, but Nylund is very skilled at creating complex themes and using characterization strategically, so this one was a hit for me!
ktitus25's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
amiewg's review against another edition
4.0
Sensational! I mean it. I'm a little speechless, tbh. That ending and epilogue were so beautiful. Especially after the loss and sacrifice experienced, how can that epilogue come with that amount of piping-hot tea?? I have no thoughts except to say:
I hate Dr. Halsey. She triggers me by her mere existence. If she breathes one more time, I'm plotting her demise.
I hate Dr. Halsey. She triggers me by her mere existence. If she breathes one more time, I'm plotting her demise.
carli096's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
cjcardosa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
codaria's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
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? No
4.0
Great to connect the timeline between Halo: CE and Halo 2
thecurseofchris's review against another edition
4.0
This isn't as good as The Fall of Reach, but it serves as a great sequel to the original Halo game (prior to Halo 2).
bhall237's review
4.0
“And I'II take this plan to Admiral Whitcomb---make him see that it's the only way. We're going to take this fight to the Covenant. We're going to launch a first strike.”
Oh to be able to love a Halo book again after the abhorrent endeavor into The Flood killed any momentum in future books. This book was luckily written by the immensely talented Eric Nylund, who previously helmed The Fall of Reach. His talents are on full display once again, and I could tell from the first sentence of this book how much stronger and descriptive Nylund is compared to Dietz in The Flood.
Once again, Nylund captures the camaraderie of the Spartan soldiers better than any of the Halo games are able to accomplish, let alone any of the books. Nylund’s tight knit group of a skeleton crew felt like Halo’s version of “The Empire Strikes Back.” Following Master Chief and his crew, along with Blue Team on Reach after the planet was glassed was phenomenally executed. Returning characters were a delight to be able to follow again, and I felt that a hindrance of the games that the books excel at is having a group of Spartans as opposed to Chief being the only Spartan. Giving him a full crew and more than just Cortana to interact with and care for is something I’m realizing very much limits the games in retrospect.
I think this book is damn near perfect, I think The Fall of Reach blew me away with the limitations imposed on Nylund and how well he was able to deliver despite that. In quite a similar manner here, how Nylund sets up the events of Halo 2 is perfectly illustrated here, and how seamlessly the story flows from book to game format is impressive to say the least. Highly recommended, especially if you suffered through the drag that was The Flood.
Oh to be able to love a Halo book again after the abhorrent endeavor into The Flood killed any momentum in future books. This book was luckily written by the immensely talented Eric Nylund, who previously helmed The Fall of Reach. His talents are on full display once again, and I could tell from the first sentence of this book how much stronger and descriptive Nylund is compared to Dietz in The Flood.
Once again, Nylund captures the camaraderie of the Spartan soldiers better than any of the Halo games are able to accomplish, let alone any of the books. Nylund’s tight knit group of a skeleton crew felt like Halo’s version of “The Empire Strikes Back.” Following Master Chief and his crew, along with Blue Team on Reach after the planet was glassed was phenomenally executed. Returning characters were a delight to be able to follow again, and I felt that a hindrance of the games that the books excel at is having a group of Spartans as opposed to Chief being the only Spartan. Giving him a full crew and more than just Cortana to interact with and care for is something I’m realizing very much limits the games in retrospect.
I think this book is damn near perfect, I think The Fall of Reach blew me away with the limitations imposed on Nylund and how well he was able to deliver despite that. In quite a similar manner here, how Nylund sets up the events of Halo 2 is perfectly illustrated here, and how seamlessly the story flows from book to game format is impressive to say the least. Highly recommended, especially if you suffered through the drag that was The Flood.
bruinrocks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
drblockbooks's review against another edition
5.0
Another good book set in the Halo universe. This is by the same author as FALL OF REACH, which was also very good. (See my review of that book here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5544876358.) This one wasn't quite as good as FALL, but it was still awesome. Author Nylund does a great job of imbuing all his characters with personal motives and emotions--especially Master Chief and Cortana.
Highly recommended if you like the Halo games.
Highly recommended if you like the Halo games.