Member Review : 05-Mar-2007 09:26
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Product: The Sword and the Dagger
Rating: 3.00
Comment: A hard to find novel as it is out of print and said not to be coming back.

The main selling point of this novel is probably it is the first BT novel. The story line is good for the overall BT universe but I found some the flow of events disjointed. Also the 'mech combat scenes were awkward for those of us more familiar with the capacities of the 'mech. None the less, a first of many books of a great game.
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Member Review : 02-Mar-2004 00:00
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Product: By Blood Betrayed
Rating: 4.00
Comment: Another book of the Mechwarrior series and again, not at all related to the previous Mechwarrior series novels.

One thing that I really like about this book was the main characters use of physical combat in a mech. I don’t know of another book where one character does both DFA and charge attacks to take out heavier opponents (with various degrees of success).

A good book but I had the bad feeling the author was trying to imply a pirate group pulled a clan Mad Cat out of an old Star League cache. He, the author, clears things up near the end of the book, but it didn’t sit well with me for a long time.

This book is more of a fun read of the BT universe.
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Member Review : 02-Mar-2004 00:00
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Product: Dagger Point
Rating: 3.50
Comment: If you like the Eridani Light Horse, then this is a must read for you. If you want hate Sun-Tzu Liao, then this would be a good read. Another good BT book over all.

The mech on mech battles are fewer compared to other books. In exchange you get more personal type interaction. You get to see how the media controls the population, regardless who are the good guys and who are the bad.

One plot hole I came across – I could have missed some detail somewhere – was what happened to the resistance fighters allied with St. Ives? They were operating close to 2 lances and just dropped out one third of the way into the book.

Decent book but not Gressman’s better works.
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Member Review : 02-Mar-2004 00:00
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Product: Illusions of Victory
Rating: 4.50
Comment: Excellent book of gaming world (in my opinion). Better than Main Event but it has been a few years since I read that one. You get an in depth look at the stable owners, the champions, and the workings of Solaris VII.

The big deal here is that you have individuals who choose to better themselves in status or power at the expense of anyone else. Lots of secret plots and scheming. Then finally the main character figures out the meaning of life and tries to set things right.

As before with other books, I had problems keeping track of all the names. You have champions in the different stables and the stables aligned with the great houses. It turns into a lot of people and places to keep track of.

The overall atmosphere of the book is a prelude to what is going to happen with houses Steiner and Davion and an IS level. None of the main characters are major IS players, but that does seem to matter.
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Member Review : 02-Mar-2004 00:00
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Product: Measure of a Hero
Rating: 3.50
Comment: This book illustrates the beginning of the Fed Com civil war if I may be so bold in that statement. You see how the overall political situation is deteriorating all over the Fed Com but in particular on Thorin.

One of the major characters is a noble’s son. This kid’s arrogance basically starred the rebellion on Thorin. But also you see how such power back in the royal courts is become tainted.

In the book are some significant political events that occur outside the main story line. I would like to read more about these events but I have yet to read the novel that details them. (Also I think I am out of order this reading this book.)

Some battles at the end seem far fetched. How did that company take out a whole battalion? And of course these are in parts of the story where little is written. Oh well, a decent read anyhow.

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Member Review : 30-Dec-2003 00:00
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Product: Ghost of Winter
Rating: 3.50
Comment: This book was a good BT read. It read fast, either because of the larger print and fewer pages or because I had more sitting time at the airport (or both).

I was involved in the story right of the start even though there is not major house or clan involvement in the story. By the fourth of fifth chapter, you just knew the dropship was hijacked. Why else would the author be writing about a seemingly ordinary event?

The battles would generally good. The environment of the planet added a twist to the mech battles; for better or worse, I can not say. The only hooky thing was the hidden, abandoned Steel Viper base with HPG but it was needed to advance the story so what can you do?

At the end I felt like I just got watch a Seinfeld episode – a whole lot about nothing. There is no major house or clan involvement. No major IS or Clan players. Just some lonely world on the edge of the sphere near clan territories. The characters and even the mercenary group are all new. However this is the first book of the Mechwarrior series so maybe more is to come.
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Member Review : 30-Dec-2003 00:00
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Product: Roar of Honor
Rating: 4.00
Comment: Another good battletech read. This book is considered the second of the Mechwarrior series (I am not yet aware of any official designation). One thing I like most about this book was more the use of tactics in combat. When up against more experienced troops and at times superior numbers, Angela used tactics to pull out victories. It made for more interesting battle sequences.

In the end you have a conflict between Wolf and Ghost Bear and a few worlds changing hands. The characters are not major characters in terms of the happenings of the IS, but who knows, we may see them again.
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Member Review : 11-Nov-2003 00:00
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Product: The Killing Fields
Rating: 4.00
Comment: This book was really for the Capellan fan and those just interested in the BT universe. The civil war of the Capellan Confederation and the Saint Ives Compact continues. Sun-Tzu is nor longer the First Lord and Candace does not want to turn to the Star League for help. If the St. Ives can’t stand on it own, then it shall not stand.

You get to experience the blind hate some warriors have toward the other side. You also see the internal struggles of other warriors as they realize they are fighting their own countrymen (even if wayward).

How much will Sun-Tzu spend to win this war? How much will Candace spend to protect her realm?

Again, as in book one of the Capellan Solution, I felt this one too had a slow start. Also, I almost needed to maintain a list of officers, units and locations. I get lost with that many names. Still in the end, it was a good read.
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Member Review : 13-Sep-2003 00:00
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Product: Threads of Ambition
Rating: 4.00
Comment: For you Capellan fans, this novel is a must read. For those of you enjoy following the political struggle of the Inner Sphere, again a must read novel.

We pick up with Sun-Tzu Liao as the First Lord of the New Star League and his greatest personal enemy, Victor Davion, out of the Inner Sphere fighting the clans. Sun-Tzu’s overall goal in this book is to reunite the St. Ives Compact with the Capellan Confederation. His plots and his power as First Lord will attract attention as you watch (read) everything unfold and come together throughout the book. At the end of the book, the goal still unreached and we will continue the Capellan Solution in book two, “The Killing Fields”.

The novel has characters from “Blinding Force” so you may want read that novel before starting here. You do not need to, but it will provide deeper character depth when those characters are involved.

This book had a slow start for me. I had to get in about 70 or 80 pages before I felt involved. Also, there were several units involved in the many combat scenes that at times I felt lost; “Who are they again? Where were they before?”; that kind of stuff. The battlemech scenes were done well; not too simple and not over done. In my opinion, just right.
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