Armageddon

by David Drake (Editor), Billie Sue Mosiman (Editor)

Twelve Armageddon stories follow such plotlines as a small African country's Yuletide preparations, a phone company's direct-dial service to the world of the dead, and a war between Pharaoh's army and the Peoples of the Sea. Original.

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Anthologies

304 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 1, 1998

About the author

David Drake is an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran who has worked as a lawyer, he is now one of the major authors of the military science fiction genre.

Reviews

[Ed Erwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only picked this up because I wanted to read the story by Esther M. Friesner, "Mrs. Lurie and the Rapture". I've enjoyed one other funny story by her before and wanted to see if she could strike gold a second time. Well, this time she struck silver. Not quite gold, but good enough.

The apocalypse comes. The water in the washing machine turns to blood. Trumpets blare annoyingly loudly. Demons are running amok. And Mrs. Lurie is NOT HAVING IT! She demands to speak to the manager! Hilarity ensues. 4 stars.

3 stars each for the humorous stories "The Last Battle" by Elizabeth Moon and "The Call" by Joel Rosenberg. I skipped all the more serious looking stories.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm giving it three and a half stars. Some stories I really liked and others I didn't care as much for. All were professionally written and I imagine other readers might well like different stories than I did. This is something of a kitchen sink collection in regards to the overall tone. Although all feature some doomsday scenario, some are deadly series while others are tongue in cheek. I tend to prefer the more serious ones and am a hard sell for humor, but others might like those stories.

Among my favorites were "Ils Ne Passeront Pas," by Harry Turtledove, in which Armageddon drops in on a WWI battlefield and it's not easy to tell the difference, "Leeward of Broken Jerusalem," by Carla Montgomery, "Riding Shotgun to Armageddon," by S. M. Stirling (my favorite), "A Watery Silence" by Billie Sue Mosiman, and "Basic Training," by Mark L. Van Name. A couple of stories seemed much longer than needed to me but they were--again--well written.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting collection of authors all writing their version of a final battle.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This an anthology of original stories, most of whom were most identified with Baen publishing. It's a little uneven in quality and unsure in theme; some introductory matter would have been beneficial. As the jacket proclaims, the world can end with a bang, a whimper, and a belly laugh.

[Cher · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked only 3 stories from this collection, but even those were not particularly compelling.

[Brett]

Science Fiction