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Janissaries #3
Storms of Victory
The adventure begun in Janissaries continues. Kidnapped from Earth as they were about to die in battle, Rick Galloway and his band of mercenaries, like the other human slaves on the planet Tran, will not be missed. Subjects of the Shalnuksi slave masters, they are forced to harvest the priceless drug surinomaz. Now, even as slaves, Earth's transplanted warriors are locked in battle - against one another. But an epoch is ending. As the Demon Star sweeps toward its devastating apex, the slave masters flee the planet to await its annihilation in safety. Soon all life on the planet will cease, leaving it ripe for repopulation.
314 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1987
9 people are currently reading
219 people want to read
About the author
Jerry Pournelle
263 books548 followersDr Jerry Eugene Pournelle was an American science fiction writer, engineer, essayist, and journalist, who contributed for many years to the computer magazine Byte, and from 1998 until his death maintained his own website and blog.
From the beginning, Pournelle's work centered around strong military themes. Several books describe the fictional mercenary infantry force known as Falkenberg's Legion. There are strong parallels between these stories and the Childe Cycle mercenary stories by Gordon R. Dickson, as well as Heinlein's Starship Troopers, although Pournelle's work takes far fewer technological leaps than either of these.
Pournelle spent years working in the aerospace industry, including at Boeing, on projects including studying heat tolerance for astronauts and their spacesuits. This side of his career also found him working on projections related to military tactics and probabilities. One report in which he had a hand became a basis for the Strategic Defense Initiative, the missile defense system proposed by President Ronald Reagan. A study he edited in 1964 involved projecting Air Force missile technology needs for 1975.
Dr. Pournelle would always tell would-be writers seeking advice that the key to becoming an author was to write — a lot.
“And finish what you write,” he added in a 2003 interview. “Don’t join a writers’ club and sit around having coffee reading pieces of your manuscript to people. Write it. Finish it.”
Pournelle served as President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1973.
From the beginning, Pournelle's work centered around strong military themes. Several books describe the fictional mercenary infantry force known as Falkenberg's Legion. There are strong parallels between these stories and the Childe Cycle mercenary stories by Gordon R. Dickson, as well as Heinlein's Starship Troopers, although Pournelle's work takes far fewer technological leaps than either of these.
Pournelle spent years working in the aerospace industry, including at Boeing, on projects including studying heat tolerance for astronauts and their spacesuits. This side of his career also found him working on projections related to military tactics and probabilities. One report in which he had a hand became a basis for the Strategic Defense Initiative, the missile defense system proposed by President Ronald Reagan. A study he edited in 1964 involved projecting Air Force missile technology needs for 1975.
Dr. Pournelle would always tell would-be writers seeking advice that the key to becoming an author was to write — a lot.
“And finish what you write,” he added in a 2003 interview. “Don’t join a writers’ club and sit around having coffee reading pieces of your manuscript to people. Write it. Finish it.”
Pournelle served as President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1973.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
October 28, 2014
Originally posted at Fantasy Literature. http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
Storms of Victory, the third book in Jerry Pournelle’s JANISSARIES series, begins with a wedding and a war council, two events that epitomize Rick Galloway’s interactions on the planet Tran so far — making allies and subduing enemies. Even as he solidifies one alliance with a marriage, the mood of the festive occasion is dampened by rumors of impending political and religious conflict. Besides his known allies and enemies, Rick is soon dealing with traitors, assassins, kidnappers, and teenage ninjas. Nobody can be trusted — not even his own wife. In fact, Rick’s marriage is on the rocks, a situation that provides much of the dramatic tension in Storms of Victory.
All of this drama and turmoil is preventing Rick et al from focusing on their most important job — harvesting the psychotropic plant for their alien overlords. After all, that’s what they’re on Tran for. But Rick also hopes to spark an industrial revolution which he’ll have to hide from the aliens, lest they bomb Tran back to the Stone Age. But not all of the men that came to Tran from Earth have Tran’s best interests in mind, even though it’s their new home. A fresh life in a new world where men can remake themselves as they wish shows their true natures as it brings out the best in some of them and the worst in others.
This installment of Pournelle’s JANISSARIES series (there are only three books, but I can’t call it a trilogy because it’s unfinished) is similar to the previous book, Clan and Crown. Much of the plot focuses on the military tactics Rick and his soldiers use to try to bring peace to the planet — the movements of the infantry, cavalry, pike men, and archers. Again we learn little about what’s going on with the aliens and what the fate of Earth (which is under discussion) might be.
What’s different in Storms of Victory is the subplot with Rick’s wife, Tylara. She is struggling with guilt over something she did in the previous book and this is affecting her relationship with Rick. She has to work through her guilt, realize that what she did affects more people than she realizes, and decide what she’s going to do to make things right. Perhaps she can turn her evil deeds into good and have a chance to redeem herself. Although I thought this subplot went on too long, it was nice to see some development from Tylara and others associated with this part of the story.
At the end of Storms of Victory, some of the problems have been solved, but there is so much left to do. I’m waiting for the humans to turn on the aliens, or at least to start advancing enough technologically that they have to begin hiding their progress from the aliens. That’s what I want to see — it would be much more interesting than back-to-back military campaigns — but we’re not there yet. Book four, Mamelukes, has been in progress for at least eight years. (You can read the first three chapters at Jerry Pournelle’s website.)
It’s hard to know whether to recommend JANISARRIES. As it stands now, I have to say no because even though the premise is exciting and it’s intelligent and well written, it has become bogged down with the minutia of militarily subduing a planet. The overarching story has advanced very little and the next book is nowhere in sight.
If you do decide to pick up JANISSARIES, I recommend the audio version produced by Blackstone Audio. It’s just over 11 hours long and Keith Szarabajka does a nice job with the narration.
Storms of Victory, the third book in Jerry Pournelle’s JANISSARIES series, begins with a wedding and a war council, two events that epitomize Rick Galloway’s interactions on the planet Tran so far — making allies and subduing enemies. Even as he solidifies one alliance with a marriage, the mood of the festive occasion is dampened by rumors of impending political and religious conflict. Besides his known allies and enemies, Rick is soon dealing with traitors, assassins, kidnappers, and teenage ninjas. Nobody can be trusted — not even his own wife. In fact, Rick’s marriage is on the rocks, a situation that provides much of the dramatic tension in Storms of Victory.
All of this drama and turmoil is preventing Rick et al from focusing on their most important job — harvesting the psychotropic plant for their alien overlords. After all, that’s what they’re on Tran for. But Rick also hopes to spark an industrial revolution which he’ll have to hide from the aliens, lest they bomb Tran back to the Stone Age. But not all of the men that came to Tran from Earth have Tran’s best interests in mind, even though it’s their new home. A fresh life in a new world where men can remake themselves as they wish shows their true natures as it brings out the best in some of them and the worst in others.
This installment of Pournelle’s JANISSARIES series (there are only three books, but I can’t call it a trilogy because it’s unfinished) is similar to the previous book, Clan and Crown. Much of the plot focuses on the military tactics Rick and his soldiers use to try to bring peace to the planet — the movements of the infantry, cavalry, pike men, and archers. Again we learn little about what’s going on with the aliens and what the fate of Earth (which is under discussion) might be.
What’s different in Storms of Victory is the subplot with Rick’s wife, Tylara. She is struggling with guilt over something she did in the previous book and this is affecting her relationship with Rick. She has to work through her guilt, realize that what she did affects more people than she realizes, and decide what she’s going to do to make things right. Perhaps she can turn her evil deeds into good and have a chance to redeem herself. Although I thought this subplot went on too long, it was nice to see some development from Tylara and others associated with this part of the story.
At the end of Storms of Victory, some of the problems have been solved, but there is so much left to do. I’m waiting for the humans to turn on the aliens, or at least to start advancing enough technologically that they have to begin hiding their progress from the aliens. That’s what I want to see — it would be much more interesting than back-to-back military campaigns — but we’re not there yet. Book four, Mamelukes, has been in progress for at least eight years. (You can read the first three chapters at Jerry Pournelle’s website.)
It’s hard to know whether to recommend JANISARRIES. As it stands now, I have to say no because even though the premise is exciting and it’s intelligent and well written, it has become bogged down with the minutia of militarily subduing a planet. The overarching story has advanced very little and the next book is nowhere in sight.
If you do decide to pick up JANISSARIES, I recommend the audio version produced by Blackstone Audio. It’s just over 11 hours long and Keith Szarabajka does a nice job with the narration.
February 21, 2021
Excellent portal fantasy
November 28, 2020
Janissaries: Storms of Victory by Roland Green and Jerry Pournelle is the third volume in the Janissaries series. At least until this year, it was also the last. I think Jerry and Roland did a pretty good job wrapping things up in the original three, but clearly there is more to be sung in the ballad of Rick Galloway.
My physical volume isn’t Storms of Victory itself, but rather the Baen combination volume Tran that unites Clan and Crown and Storms of Victory into one. The last Ace paperback is a mass market paperback, and not Massively Illustrated! like the previous two volumes. I guess Ace was done with that program by 1987. I imagine it was expensive. If you are getting into Janissaries now, I would recommend the Lord of Janissaries omnibus ebook [Amazon link], which has the first three volumes collected as one, unless you just love that sweet sweet smell of slowly oxidizing paper. I certainly do.
Storms of Victory is not going to offer anyone any surprises who has read Janissaries and Clan and Crown. Sure, we get new plots and conspiracies, and the fortunes of war will bring some men to halls of Vothan while sparing others, but this is very much more of the same thing. But what a thing it is! Battle, intrigue, and adventure await.
There are a couple elements of Storms of Victory that stand out to me. First is the unification of the dominant faiths of Drantos and Rome, a kind of pan-European paganism mostly minus human sacrifice that merges with pre-Constantinian Christianity. Jerry certainly mused about the re-unification of Christianity in his Co-Dominium novels, but this is a common enough thing in science fiction stories of this era. In this case it partly recapitulates the process by which Christianity became inculturated in Western Europe. It seems likely the New Christianity fostered by Rick Galloway will forever alter Tran. Although we haven’t seen an Investiture Controversy yet.
Second is the painful estrangement of Rick and Tylara throughout the book, the bitter fruit of habitual conspiracies, dynastic politics, and infidelity. It is hard to read, but even here, you can see the Hand of Providence working. The Sacrament of Penance figures prominently in the story, which is less common than stories about the reunification of Christianity, at least in my experience. The resolution of this thread of the story is what makes me feel that the story was reasonably wrapped up by the end of volume three.
Unfortunately I don’t know which real-world battles were used as inspiration for this book. Jerry’s general strategy across his whole career was to borrow real-world conflicts and use them in his books, but I just have no idea which ones got picked here. Perhaps an astute reader will provide the answer.
While some attempt was made to wrap up the story, clearly both readers and Jerry himself felt that enough was left unresolved to merit another book. Coming up soon, I’ll see how that turned out. At least for now, I can still recommend Storms of Victory for anyone who likes this kind of thing.
My physical volume isn’t Storms of Victory itself, but rather the Baen combination volume Tran that unites Clan and Crown and Storms of Victory into one. The last Ace paperback is a mass market paperback, and not Massively Illustrated! like the previous two volumes. I guess Ace was done with that program by 1987. I imagine it was expensive. If you are getting into Janissaries now, I would recommend the Lord of Janissaries omnibus ebook [Amazon link], which has the first three volumes collected as one, unless you just love that sweet sweet smell of slowly oxidizing paper. I certainly do.
Storms of Victory is not going to offer anyone any surprises who has read Janissaries and Clan and Crown. Sure, we get new plots and conspiracies, and the fortunes of war will bring some men to halls of Vothan while sparing others, but this is very much more of the same thing. But what a thing it is! Battle, intrigue, and adventure await.
There are a couple elements of Storms of Victory that stand out to me. First is the unification of the dominant faiths of Drantos and Rome, a kind of pan-European paganism mostly minus human sacrifice that merges with pre-Constantinian Christianity. Jerry certainly mused about the re-unification of Christianity in his Co-Dominium novels, but this is a common enough thing in science fiction stories of this era. In this case it partly recapitulates the process by which Christianity became inculturated in Western Europe. It seems likely the New Christianity fostered by Rick Galloway will forever alter Tran. Although we haven’t seen an Investiture Controversy yet.
Second is the painful estrangement of Rick and Tylara throughout the book, the bitter fruit of habitual conspiracies, dynastic politics, and infidelity. It is hard to read, but even here, you can see the Hand of Providence working. The Sacrament of Penance figures prominently in the story, which is less common than stories about the reunification of Christianity, at least in my experience. The resolution of this thread of the story is what makes me feel that the story was reasonably wrapped up by the end of volume three.
Unfortunately I don’t know which real-world battles were used as inspiration for this book. Jerry’s general strategy across his whole career was to borrow real-world conflicts and use them in his books, but I just have no idea which ones got picked here. Perhaps an astute reader will provide the answer.
While some attempt was made to wrap up the story, clearly both readers and Jerry himself felt that enough was left unresolved to merit another book. Coming up soon, I’ll see how that turned out. At least for now, I can still recommend Storms of Victory for anyone who likes this kind of thing.
January 9, 2023
Summary
Excellent character development, storytelling, combat description, and worldbuilding delivered from a slightly judgmental perspective.
Plot
The polity of Dranton on the planet Tran faces a series of crises driven by periodic climate change resulting from a trinary star system's orbits. Resolving the crises takes a fascinating mix of statesmanship and military action by the characters, most of whom are simultaneously dealing with various personal problems.
Plot Holes
Advanced space aliens somehow "need" human slaves for agricultural production of a cash crop that would quite obviously be more efficiently and cost effectively grown via mechanization. The space alien situation seems set up entirely to enable the plot setting of Romans, medieval Europeans, and Mongols living in the same geographical area at the same time. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but then again real history is rarely logical. The aliens also seem to be surprisingly hands off for a population whose technological advance they're supposedly afraid of, as well as surprisingly willing to nuke production and inventory.
The Good
The combat is furious, visceral, and described in tactical and strategic detail with accompanying historical references. It reads like the authors either had military experience/training, did a LOT of research, did a lot of consulting, or all of the above. The characters are well written and developed. The plot is page turning.
The marital tension between the protagonist and his wife is stunningly realistic and easily recognizable. The book concludes with the couple tacitly realizing they're far stronger together than apart, regardless of what else has transpired.
The Bad
Rick Galloway's only flaw seems to be occasional self-doubt. Although very capable and admirable, he's almost too perfect.
Quite a few of the young hereditary nobles show wisdom and maturity beyond their years, at least by 2023 standards.
Though probably reflective of the sensibilities of the era in which the book was written or its intended setting, there's a bit of hypocrisy in the constant slut shaming of academic Gwen in the same story the marriage of a younger than AOC (by 2023 standards) girl is celebrated.
There are almost too many characters and locations to keep track of, but the map and dramatis personae help.
Conclusion
The plot holes and shortcomings don't overcome the book's solid entertainment delivery. 4 stars.
Excellent character development, storytelling, combat description, and worldbuilding delivered from a slightly judgmental perspective.
Plot
The polity of Dranton on the planet Tran faces a series of crises driven by periodic climate change resulting from a trinary star system's orbits. Resolving the crises takes a fascinating mix of statesmanship and military action by the characters, most of whom are simultaneously dealing with various personal problems.
Plot Holes
Advanced space aliens somehow "need" human slaves for agricultural production of a cash crop that would quite obviously be more efficiently and cost effectively grown via mechanization. The space alien situation seems set up entirely to enable the plot setting of Romans, medieval Europeans, and Mongols living in the same geographical area at the same time. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but then again real history is rarely logical. The aliens also seem to be surprisingly hands off for a population whose technological advance they're supposedly afraid of, as well as surprisingly willing to nuke production and inventory.
The Good
The combat is furious, visceral, and described in tactical and strategic detail with accompanying historical references. It reads like the authors either had military experience/training, did a LOT of research, did a lot of consulting, or all of the above. The characters are well written and developed. The plot is page turning.
The marital tension between the protagonist and his wife is stunningly realistic and easily recognizable. The book concludes with the couple tacitly realizing they're far stronger together than apart, regardless of what else has transpired.
The Bad
Rick Galloway's only flaw seems to be occasional self-doubt. Although very capable and admirable, he's almost too perfect.
Quite a few of the young hereditary nobles show wisdom and maturity beyond their years, at least by 2023 standards.
Though probably reflective of the sensibilities of the era in which the book was written or its intended setting, there's a bit of hypocrisy in the constant slut shaming of academic Gwen in the same story the marriage of a younger than AOC (by 2023 standards) girl is celebrated.
There are almost too many characters and locations to keep track of, but the map and dramatis personae help.
Conclusion
The plot holes and shortcomings don't overcome the book's solid entertainment delivery. 4 stars.
June 17, 2020
It's not that this is a bad book compared to the first two, but it stops at an odd point...at the end of a key battle, but with major issues not resolved, especially a key discussion between two of the main characters that would have happened sooner if they'd both been from the same cultural background. Because they really didn't understand each other's actions and reactions, a bad situation was made worse. The relatively light conversation between the two at the end of this volume thus doesn't quite feel right. The gap between this book and the publication of the rest of the story, which turns out to be over 30 years, is sort of appalling for anyone who read this book when it came out. Luckily, I'm only reading it now, so the wait will be months, rather than decades.
The best parts of this volume were the battle descriptions, since there were some doozies. I'm still not sure about the subplot with the light machine gun...it was lost, but showed up in the final battle, or was there a second one we weren't told about? That seemed very strange.
The best parts of this volume were the battle descriptions, since there were some doozies. I'm still not sure about the subplot with the light machine gun...it was lost, but showed up in the final battle, or was there a second one we weren't told about? That seemed very strange.
June 2, 2017
Another good, action-packed adventure novel that continues the story of mercenaries rescued from certain death in Africa and transplanted on a distant planet. I've enjoyed this series, the premise, and the characters.
Now for the bad news. This book culminates for a major battle that is abruptly chopped off into an unsatisfying conclusion. Full of action and suddenly the book ends...what the heck?
As far as I know, this was the final book in the series and that really sucks because the storyline was far from finished; it just leaves everything hanging up in the air. Very disappointed.
Now for the bad news. This book culminates for a major battle that is abruptly chopped off into an unsatisfying conclusion. Full of action and suddenly the book ends...what the heck?
As far as I know, this was the final book in the series and that really sucks because the storyline was far from finished; it just leaves everything hanging up in the air. Very disappointed.
February 19, 2024
For Galloway the dilemma escalates. Would he have been better off consolidating a defensible small area to grow the madweed; against the altruistic course that he has pursed to save try and save all humanity on Tran? It gets harder and harder to control, defend or coordinate a bigger and bigger empire. Connected to all this personal differences and difficulties that mount up.
The series thus builds in complexity and sophistication. It remains exciting but regrettably the co writing may have broken down a little here, where the very complexity of various nation states and personnel, along with the geography of all the above gets pretty confusing. There are maps, and a 'Dramatis Personae' which the editor must have suggested as a help, but actually none of these really do justice to the confusion created. In the end it all kind of falls into place with some sort of semblance of order but was most difficult getting there.
The series thus builds in complexity and sophistication. It remains exciting but regrettably the co writing may have broken down a little here, where the very complexity of various nation states and personnel, along with the geography of all the above gets pretty confusing. There are maps, and a 'Dramatis Personae' which the editor must have suggested as a help, but actually none of these really do justice to the confusion created. In the end it all kind of falls into place with some sort of semblance of order but was most difficult getting there.
May 23, 2020
After the first two volumes, this was a real disappointment. Nothing gets resolved here, just find more new tribes and defeat them. It felt like the groundwork was being laid for one of the never-ending series, and then the author just ran out of gas.
September 2, 2022
Alien abduction and medieval war. Good solid science fiction with fantasy overtones. Great concept. The audible narration is top notch. Too bad the series doesn't really end but don't skip it because of that. Book 3
August 18, 2012
This is the third book of the Jannisaries series, about a group of CIA Mercenaries who are sent on what turns out to be a suicide mission, and and get "rescued" by some aliens in a flying saucer just before they would have been killed. As part of the deal to get rescued, they are sent to another planet, Tran, to take advantage of a once every 600 year condition where a specific plant, Surinomaz, can be grown for a few years. The plant can be grown nowhere else in the universe as well as it does on Tran during this once every 600 year event, and as a result, is quite valuable to the aliens.
Tran is actually already inhabited by humans. These are the ancestors of other groups of soldiers the aliens have brought to Tran every 600 years over the last 5,000 years to cultivate this plant for them. Greeks, Romans, Celts, Barbarians, groups from all through history have been brought to Tran to perform this job. Oh, and did I mention the aliens don't tell the human soldiers they rescue that they usually nuke the planet back to the stone-age once this special growing season is over?
This book picks up not long after the second book ends. The "Demon Star" is quickly approaching and "The Time" is drawing ever closer. Rick Galloway's plan for avoiding the loss of civilization when the Aliens eventually nuke the planet are progressing, as is the cultivation of Surinomaz. But with the water levels rapidly rising, with refugees streaming inland trying to survive, and the political landscape still a quagmire, Rick still has some battles to win.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I guess my one complaint is that it's the last one. Dr Pournelle never finished the Series beyond this volume, so we never get to see if Rick's plans succeed or not. But other than that, I enjoyed reading this one as much as the previous two, and actually reading this one in just a single day. It's a fast page turner that keeps the action going from beginning to end, so it's hard to put down. I definitely recommend the series to anyone that enjoys some SciFi action with a historical twist.
I've long been a fan of Dr. Pournelle, having read most of the books he co-authored with Larry Niven, as well. If you've never read anything from either of them, I suggest you do. They've written some of the best SciFi I've ever read. Happy reading!
Tran is actually already inhabited by humans. These are the ancestors of other groups of soldiers the aliens have brought to Tran every 600 years over the last 5,000 years to cultivate this plant for them. Greeks, Romans, Celts, Barbarians, groups from all through history have been brought to Tran to perform this job. Oh, and did I mention the aliens don't tell the human soldiers they rescue that they usually nuke the planet back to the stone-age once this special growing season is over?
This book picks up not long after the second book ends. The "Demon Star" is quickly approaching and "The Time" is drawing ever closer. Rick Galloway's plan for avoiding the loss of civilization when the Aliens eventually nuke the planet are progressing, as is the cultivation of Surinomaz. But with the water levels rapidly rising, with refugees streaming inland trying to survive, and the political landscape still a quagmire, Rick still has some battles to win.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I guess my one complaint is that it's the last one. Dr Pournelle never finished the Series beyond this volume, so we never get to see if Rick's plans succeed or not. But other than that, I enjoyed reading this one as much as the previous two, and actually reading this one in just a single day. It's a fast page turner that keeps the action going from beginning to end, so it's hard to put down. I definitely recommend the series to anyone that enjoys some SciFi action with a historical twist.
I've long been a fan of Dr. Pournelle, having read most of the books he co-authored with Larry Niven, as well. If you've never read anything from either of them, I suggest you do. They've written some of the best SciFi I've ever read. Happy reading!
December 29, 2014
Storms of Victory, the third book in Jerry Pournelle’s JANISSARIES series, begins with a wedding and a war council, two events that epitomize Rick Galloway’s interactions on the planet Tran so far — making allies and subduing enemies. Even as he solidifies one alliance with a marriage, the mood of the festive occasion is dampened by rumors of impending political and religious conflict. Besides his known allies and enemies, Rick is soon dealing with traitors, assassins, kidnappers, and teenage ninjas. Nobody can be trusted — not even his own wife. In fact, Rick’s marriage is on the rocks, a situation that provides much of the dramatic tension in Storms of Victory.
All of this drama and turmoil is preventing Rick et al from focusing on their most important job — harvesting the psychotropic plant for their ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
All of this drama and turmoil is preventing Rick et al from focusing on their most important job — harvesting the psychotropic plant for their ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
March 3, 2016
Very similar to the previous one which is no bad thing. The set piece battles are a bit less interesting but the intrigue is dialed up. The most disappointing thing about this novel is the abrupt ending. There was a lot of set up for interplanetary intrigue and danger and it is simply never resolved. The format is solid enough but it just doesn't resolve.
Read
January 25, 2017More Janissaries action. Trouble in paradise as Tylara and Rick try to resolve the tension in their marriage. Lots of good action sequences as the climate sends groups of people searching for more favorable living conditions, and a few behind the scenes glimpses into galactic politics, though as usual, not enough to be really satisfying.
March 11, 2020
Another reread in anticipation of the last book, and just as good as I remember. While admittedly not as good as the first book, it nevertheless pushed the narrative forward in interesting ways, world building with the best of them. The characters are always interesting and three-dimensional, believable and real. All of which is to say: it's Jerry Pournelle.
July 29, 2021
I love this book. It's not as good as I remember, to be honest, but still. The main issue is that it...just stops. And I waited twenty years, give or take, for the sequel, Mamelukes, which I'm now going to be reading. Booyah.
September 15, 2012
Fun book to read. Really enjoyed it.
April 28, 2015
Jerry Pournelle and Roland Green
1988 grade C-
series book J3
1988 grade C-
series book J3
April 22, 2015
Read the first on so long ago, I didn't remember the story.
February 16, 2023
I liked the earlier books in the series, but this one felt more like narration of a series of wargaming scenarios.
May 12, 2012
Good series -
April 17, 2018
For the Audiobook version. Third and final? book in the series. Transplanted modern era soldiers rescued by aliens and forced to tame a planet of ancient transplanted humans stuck at Roman empire era and survive a cyclic event that plunges the world back into the dark ages.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews