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The Guardians #1
The Guardians
Freedom's Last Unknown to most American's, there is a plan for the day after. Before the dust of World War III has settled, Project Guardian moves into action. America's secret weapon is a four-man elite survival team, armed with awesome combat skills, equipped with the most devastating personal weaponry ever devised, trained to hair-trigger tautness, and entrusted with freedom's last the top secret Blueprint for Renewal. First get the new President safely out of ravaged Washington, across a thousand miles of chaos, and into the impregnable midwestern fortress known as Heartland. A tall order, even for a bunch of hardcore heroes.
232 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 31, 2015
Nuclear war fiction was the YA dystopian novel of the 1980s - everybody and their brother was writing them and they naturally varied greatly in quality.
The Guardians, if the first book is any indication, might not quite be The Hunger Games of the genre, but it's the fan closest I've found so far.
The book plot is somewhat standard fair: a grip of super commandos survive the initial exchange with Russia, though with some good explanation of what happens in the rest of the world thrown in, and are tasked with bringing the new president to a secret bunker in the Midwest. Asking the way they run into some nasty characters and discover a plot to kidnap their new leader.
Where The Guardians pulls away from the pack is the details. It's pretty well written for the genre and makes good use of description and dialogue beyond what you would expect to find. The characters are so so, a lot of square jawed dudes like you'd expect, though they have more grit and texture to them than the heroes of these takes usually have. They're far from perfect - in fact the book starts off with a mob of sick Washingtonians trying to storm the White House. Instead if an impassioned speech about their duty to their country as sine books might script out, these guys repel invaders with extreme prejudice. Obviously they don't feel real good about it, but oft makes them a hell of a lot more realistic than most heroes.
The world building is surprisingly good. The book is set in the then-near future and introduced some generally believable future tech and hints at things like the rise of Brazil as a quasi power. The characters back stories also hint at a changed world where the U.S. has been fighting a prolonged shadow war/insurgency in the middle east (which was pretty believable even back then.) All these details flavor the book and give it color far beyond what one of these books normally have.
There are shortfalls. Many of the characters serve as little mute than bland fodder for the journey, and even the main characters aren't that richly developed. Bit that you read these kinds of books as character studies, but sine more personality would have been welcome. There's some elements that people may find a bit dated. The man characters are all white males, with sine monitors and a women or two thrown in. As a white make, I can handle this, but others might find it a bit annoying. To it's credit, there's none of the usual latent racism or hands at the other side of the political spectrum. The war is portrayed realistically as a conventional conflict run out of control, which is a lack of grandstanding that a lot of modern books could serve to learn from.
Ultimately, not a perfect book, but a damn sight closer than most of it's ilk.
The Guardians, if the first book is any indication, might not quite be The Hunger Games of the genre, but it's the fan closest I've found so far.
The book plot is somewhat standard fair: a grip of super commandos survive the initial exchange with Russia, though with some good explanation of what happens in the rest of the world thrown in, and are tasked with bringing the new president to a secret bunker in the Midwest. Asking the way they run into some nasty characters and discover a plot to kidnap their new leader.
Where The Guardians pulls away from the pack is the details. It's pretty well written for the genre and makes good use of description and dialogue beyond what you would expect to find. The characters are so so, a lot of square jawed dudes like you'd expect, though they have more grit and texture to them than the heroes of these takes usually have. They're far from perfect - in fact the book starts off with a mob of sick Washingtonians trying to storm the White House. Instead if an impassioned speech about their duty to their country as sine books might script out, these guys repel invaders with extreme prejudice. Obviously they don't feel real good about it, but oft makes them a hell of a lot more realistic than most heroes.
The world building is surprisingly good. The book is set in the then-near future and introduced some generally believable future tech and hints at things like the rise of Brazil as a quasi power. The characters back stories also hint at a changed world where the U.S. has been fighting a prolonged shadow war/insurgency in the middle east (which was pretty believable even back then.) All these details flavor the book and give it color far beyond what one of these books normally have.
There are shortfalls. Many of the characters serve as little mute than bland fodder for the journey, and even the main characters aren't that richly developed. Bit that you read these kinds of books as character studies, but sine more personality would have been welcome. There's some elements that people may find a bit dated. The man characters are all white males, with sine monitors and a women or two thrown in. As a white make, I can handle this, but others might find it a bit annoying. To it's credit, there's none of the usual latent racism or hands at the other side of the political spectrum. The war is portrayed realistically as a conventional conflict run out of control, which is a lack of grandstanding that a lot of modern books could serve to learn from.
Ultimately, not a perfect book, but a damn sight closer than most of it's ilk.
April 7, 2014
Better than it should be. No doubt thanks to the author Richard Austin aka Victor Milán. Milan is a career novelist, but his primary area is science fiction and that background comes through in this series. A little more intelligent and a little more effort put into making this post World War III America seem plausible.
The first three books were the best and then the series went down the same path that so many serial novels do and became repetitive and predictable. The characters were developed and even believable. Their actions and choices seemed like what an ordinary person might do in a similar situation. Of course the Guardians are the heroes so they're above average, but they are a team. They have to work together to survive in post-apocalyptic America.That has the effect of limiting the superhuman antics that are so common in these types of books.
I read most of this series when I was stationed in Germany. I was in a training unit and I spent much of my time in the field. I found the first nine book for sale at the local thrift shop on post. If I remember correctly I spent five dollars for all of them. I purchased them because I knew they would be the perfect companions for radio watch duty at 3:00 A.M. and they were.
The first three books were the best and then the series went down the same path that so many serial novels do and became repetitive and predictable. The characters were developed and even believable. Their actions and choices seemed like what an ordinary person might do in a similar situation. Of course the Guardians are the heroes so they're above average, but they are a team. They have to work together to survive in post-apocalyptic America.That has the effect of limiting the superhuman antics that are so common in these types of books.
I read most of this series when I was stationed in Germany. I was in a training unit and I spent much of my time in the field. I found the first nine book for sale at the local thrift shop on post. If I remember correctly I spent five dollars for all of them. I purchased them because I knew they would be the perfect companions for radio watch duty at 3:00 A.M. and they were.
January 22, 2022
I stumbled onto this series a few years ago at a flea market when I came across book #5 at a vendors table. They said I could have it for a quarter so I picked it up. I forgot about the book until recently, and decided to pick up book 1 and see how it is.
I have to say, this book is very boring and repetitive. On top of that, it is very hard to follow the action at times, and there are way too many characters all at once. The story takes place in a post apocalyptic United States, and a special group of agents are set with the goal of protecting the president.
So their mission is to escort the president to a secret base i Iowa. So they take two armored vehicles to get there. You will spend the majority of the time in these two vehicles. There are three big action scenes, two of them being pretty much identical.
The final scene, seems rushed and unnecessary to the actual plot. Without giving spoilers, we are lead to believe this team of four is the best of the best, but almost get wiped out by a group of rag tag teenagers and a local hometown girl who dropped out of law school.
The main villain was probably the most interesting part of the book, and I THOUGHT that his role was going to have a major role in the end, but nope. We get very little of him, and his plans. The four main characters are pretty boring and bland and not much to them.
The book does show flashes of being something much better but falls flat. However; I’m hoping the next book improves where this book fell flat. I have read funny enough that by book #5 (the one I bought at the flea market) is where the series starts getting into the over the top 80s action movie genre. So people say that’s when the series starts to flop, but from reading book one, I feel the series could use that rambo style action asap.
Not the worst, certainly not the best. I will eventually read book #2, but after struggling to finish this one, I don’t think it will be anytime soon.
I have to say, this book is very boring and repetitive. On top of that, it is very hard to follow the action at times, and there are way too many characters all at once. The story takes place in a post apocalyptic United States, and a special group of agents are set with the goal of protecting the president.
So their mission is to escort the president to a secret base i Iowa. So they take two armored vehicles to get there. You will spend the majority of the time in these two vehicles. There are three big action scenes, two of them being pretty much identical.
The final scene, seems rushed and unnecessary to the actual plot. Without giving spoilers, we are lead to believe this team of four is the best of the best, but almost get wiped out by a group of rag tag teenagers and a local hometown girl who dropped out of law school.
The main villain was probably the most interesting part of the book, and I THOUGHT that his role was going to have a major role in the end, but nope. We get very little of him, and his plans. The four main characters are pretty boring and bland and not much to them.
The book does show flashes of being something much better but falls flat. However; I’m hoping the next book improves where this book fell flat. I have read funny enough that by book #5 (the one I bought at the flea market) is where the series starts getting into the over the top 80s action movie genre. So people say that’s when the series starts to flop, but from reading book one, I feel the series could use that rambo style action asap.
Not the worst, certainly not the best. I will eventually read book #2, but after struggling to finish this one, I don’t think it will be anytime soon.
July 7, 2023
Great Post-apoc mil fiction story.
September 10, 2024
Great Pulpy goodness from days gone by!
March 5, 2019
Back in the day, this was one of those fun reads about a handful of super elite commandoes capable of taking down anyone or anything foolish to get in their way.
Set in the late '80s, The Guardians are based on a military bodyguard unit trained and equipped to extract the President from Washington DC in the event of World War III. There is one from each service (Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines), and their commander reminds me of Hannibal from the A-Team, a fun but somewhat unbelievable '80s action TV show. Equipped with the latest weapons and the best training, this unit springs into action after a limited nuclear war erupts after years of conflict in the Middle East.
Almost immediately, traitors appear and try to abduct the President and wipe out the Guardians. Thus begins a novel version of any great '80s actioner you can think of (Rambo 2 and Commando come to mind).
The writing will be familiar to anyone who has read Mack Bolan or Stony Man or any of those similar style of action novel. While it is a bit dated, it is a fun read for anyone looking for some non-stop action. And if, after reading this, you can't get enough - don't worry, the series spans 16 books to whet your appetite!
Set in the late '80s, The Guardians are based on a military bodyguard unit trained and equipped to extract the President from Washington DC in the event of World War III. There is one from each service (Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines), and their commander reminds me of Hannibal from the A-Team, a fun but somewhat unbelievable '80s action TV show. Equipped with the latest weapons and the best training, this unit springs into action after a limited nuclear war erupts after years of conflict in the Middle East.
Almost immediately, traitors appear and try to abduct the President and wipe out the Guardians. Thus begins a novel version of any great '80s actioner you can think of (Rambo 2 and Commando come to mind).
The writing will be familiar to anyone who has read Mack Bolan or Stony Man or any of those similar style of action novel. While it is a bit dated, it is a fun read for anyone looking for some non-stop action. And if, after reading this, you can't get enough - don't worry, the series spans 16 books to whet your appetite!
September 23, 2008
I read this book for the first time years ago when I was 15 years old. I enjoyed it then and read it several times as a young person. If I could find it in my boxes of old stuff and books, I would read it again. Exciting.
January 12, 2015
Originally read in mid eighties? Pretty good story line and plot.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews