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Traveller: The New Era #3
The Backwards Mask
The TNE Novels. GDW commissioned a novel trilogy in support of Traveller: The New Era, and published two of the three before they closed their doors in 1996. Regretably, the third novel lay forgotten and unpublished in the GDW archives for more than fifteen years. In that time, Traveller designer Marc Miller searched for a conclusion to the story arc. Ultimately, he teamed up with writer Matthew Carson to create from whole cloth a new final novel.
- GenresScience Fiction
882 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2011
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11 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 2, 2023
A pretty good book that showed the potential of the TNE setting. A bit long though.
March 10, 2017
This novel was the best of the trilogy. The author really brought the characters alive and provided some insights to their motivations that is far different that the typical characterizations found in sci-fi novels.
The plot also included several twists that made for a very entertaining read.
The plot also included several twists that made for a very entertaining read.
January 8, 2017
Reviewed using the Magrs Method! No spoilers, so feel free to read with relish.
* Encapsulate the plot of this book in one sentence.
The crew of the RCS Hornet are called upon to save the Reformation Coalition from threats far above their pay grade.
* When and where did you get this book?
From Amazon, way back in 2011.
* What year or edition?
It's the first Kindle edition.
* Did you finish it?
Yes! Once I actually got into it, I read very steadily.
* What's your verdict?
4 stars. I more than liked it, but it wasn't on the same scale as "A Mote In God's Eye."
One of the great things about the book wound up being distracting as well. Reading this book, I didn't have to read the other two books in the series to get a great feel for what was going on. However, the author felt the need to provide context for every character that emerged, especially ones from earlier in the series. This made the book longer than it probably needed to be. Given the sheer number of characters that wound up emerging through the book (and yes, you're still meeting new characters well into the last part of the book), and that almost every character had a name AND a taccode, and there were a *lot* of labels floating around. Some of the characters were really similar in mannerism and operation (marines are marines, after all), so it was a challenge.
* What surprises did it hold, if any?
It did have a couple of surprises for me, the largest of which was the meaning of Backwards Mask.
* Which scenes will stay with you?
The opening scene with August Delporo and Orit Takagawa (Physic) is fantastic! Beyond that, the space battle scenes are all very vivid, but the scenes that are most memorable for me feature individual heroism, especially Crowbar near the end.
* Which characters will stay with you?
Raven mostly, for reasons I can't tell you because spoilers! Alright, I'll tell you a little. Raven is ridiculously smart, beautiful, and completely out of place at the beginning. She grows into her role though.
* What genre would you say it is?
Sci-Fi (mostly military sci-fi) all the way.
* Have you read anything else by this author?
Yes. Have a look at http://thesectorm.com/works.html
* Is it available today?
Yes! https://smile.amazon.com/Backwards-Ma...
* Give me a good quote.
They are going to call us traitors, each and every one of us – and they’ll be right – we are. No matter the outcome, they will remember the battles, the dates, the names, the orders of battle and all the endless minutiae that goes along with it. But I have to wonder if any of them will remember that even a bunch of traitors, whose fates were still uncertain, could still find the time to laugh among friends.
Carson, Matthew (2011-03-01). The Backwards Mask (TNE Trilogy) (Kindle Locations 8277-8280). Far Future Enterprises. Kindle Edition.
* Encapsulate the plot of this book in one sentence.
The crew of the RCS Hornet are called upon to save the Reformation Coalition from threats far above their pay grade.
* When and where did you get this book?
From Amazon, way back in 2011.
* What year or edition?
It's the first Kindle edition.
* Did you finish it?
Yes! Once I actually got into it, I read very steadily.
* What's your verdict?
4 stars. I more than liked it, but it wasn't on the same scale as "A Mote In God's Eye."
One of the great things about the book wound up being distracting as well. Reading this book, I didn't have to read the other two books in the series to get a great feel for what was going on. However, the author felt the need to provide context for every character that emerged, especially ones from earlier in the series. This made the book longer than it probably needed to be. Given the sheer number of characters that wound up emerging through the book (and yes, you're still meeting new characters well into the last part of the book), and that almost every character had a name AND a taccode, and there were a *lot* of labels floating around. Some of the characters were really similar in mannerism and operation (marines are marines, after all), so it was a challenge.
* What surprises did it hold, if any?
It did have a couple of surprises for me, the largest of which was the meaning of Backwards Mask.
* Which scenes will stay with you?
The opening scene with August Delporo and Orit Takagawa (Physic) is fantastic! Beyond that, the space battle scenes are all very vivid, but the scenes that are most memorable for me feature individual heroism, especially Crowbar near the end.
* Which characters will stay with you?
Raven mostly, for reasons I can't tell you because spoilers! Alright, I'll tell you a little. Raven is ridiculously smart, beautiful, and completely out of place at the beginning. She grows into her role though.
* What genre would you say it is?
Sci-Fi (mostly military sci-fi) all the way.
* Have you read anything else by this author?
Yes. Have a look at http://thesectorm.com/works.html
* Is it available today?
Yes! https://smile.amazon.com/Backwards-Ma...
* Give me a good quote.
They are going to call us traitors, each and every one of us – and they’ll be right – we are. No matter the outcome, they will remember the battles, the dates, the names, the orders of battle and all the endless minutiae that goes along with it. But I have to wonder if any of them will remember that even a bunch of traitors, whose fates were still uncertain, could still find the time to laugh among friends.
Carson, Matthew (2011-03-01). The Backwards Mask (TNE Trilogy) (Kindle Locations 8277-8280). Far Future Enterprises. Kindle Edition.
October 26, 2019
This long and mostly enjoyable book does an amazing job of turning the dry and overly detailed rules of the Traveller science fiction role playing game into a lively and plausible space opera. There are passages with style, but overall, it's held back by clunky writing. More a matter of taste than quality, the story also fetishizes military weaponry, duty and sacrifice, but that's kind of standard for military science fiction. The descriptions of spaceship battles are impressively clear and full of tension. The author has a fascination with spaceships blowing up and killing everyone aboard, 'brighter than the stars' for a few seconds; it's a little like a playwright forcing each of his ill-fated characters to declare dramatically, 'now, I die!' when their unfortunate moment arrives.
February 7, 2017
Simply put, Matthew Carson is a hidden gem - his absolute attention to detail and his methods of drawing one into his Universe are profound. I know I will catch looks for this, but he manages to make one actually think, absorb details - kind of like a Tom Clancy approach, but Science Fiction. The book does a fantastic job of drawing one in - almost too good - Mr. Carson has that unspoken gift of sucking you in to the book, rather than being an outsider watching from a distance. He also obviously has great regard for Military Procedures, Etiquette etc, that as a Retired Army Officer I picked up immediately and loved.
The Author managed to help those who may have missed the earlier books in the series (Hard to find for some) by using much appreciated flashbacks. It's obviously a great book on it's own merits, but the added touches that seemed to be aimed at fans of the Universe also made it even deeper for me. Great pace and a forgiving learning curve for even readers just stepping into Traveller - Mr. Carson not only met the incredible challenge given to him, but he managed to set the bar even higher. Kudos - mark my words, we will be hearing great things from Matthew Carson...count on it.
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
A RARE TREAT.
The Author managed to help those who may have missed the earlier books in the series (Hard to find for some) by using much appreciated flashbacks. It's obviously a great book on it's own merits, but the added touches that seemed to be aimed at fans of the Universe also made it even deeper for me. Great pace and a forgiving learning curve for even readers just stepping into Traveller - Mr. Carson not only met the incredible challenge given to him, but he managed to set the bar even higher. Kudos - mark my words, we will be hearing great things from Matthew Carson...count on it.
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
A RARE TREAT.
November 19, 2016
Solid & full of action
A cracking tale of interstellar intrigue set in the universe of the Traveller roleplaying game. Solid characterization and good, flowing action pieces mark Mr Carson's writing, drawing the reader along in the wake of the plot.
I came to this as the third in a trilogy, having not bread the other two. Although thus was the case, and the book refers to some earlier events, it functions well as a standalone novel.
In think I will look out for more of Carson's work.
A cracking tale of interstellar intrigue set in the universe of the Traveller roleplaying game. Solid characterization and good, flowing action pieces mark Mr Carson's writing, drawing the reader along in the wake of the plot.
I came to this as the third in a trilogy, having not bread the other two. Although thus was the case, and the book refers to some earlier events, it functions well as a standalone novel.
In think I will look out for more of Carson's work.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews