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Halo #12
Halo: The Thursday War: Book Two of the Kilo-Five Trilogy
The second novel of the Kilo-Five Trilogy by #1 New York Times bestselling author Karen Traviss—part of the expanded universe based on the award-winning video game series Halo!
2553. Welcome to humanity’s new war: silent, high stakes, and unseen. This is a life-or-death mission for the Office of Naval Intelligence’s black-ops team, Kilo-Five, which is tasked with preventing the ruthless Sangheili, once the military leaders of the alien alliance known as the Covenant, from regrouping and threatening humankind again. What began as a routine dirty-tricks operation—keeping the Sangheili occupied with their own insurrection—turns into a desperate bid to extract one member of Kilo-Five from the seething heart of a brutal civil war. But troubles never come singly for Kilo-Five. Colonial terrorism is once again surfacing on one of the human worlds that survived the war against the Covenant, and the man behind it is much more than just a name to Spartan Naomi-010. Meanwhile, the treasure trove of Forerunner technology recovered from the Forerunner shield world of Onyx is being put to work, even as a kidnapped Sangheili plots vengeance on the humans he fears will bring his people to the brink of destruction…
2553. Welcome to humanity’s new war: silent, high stakes, and unseen. This is a life-or-death mission for the Office of Naval Intelligence’s black-ops team, Kilo-Five, which is tasked with preventing the ruthless Sangheili, once the military leaders of the alien alliance known as the Covenant, from regrouping and threatening humankind again. What began as a routine dirty-tricks operation—keeping the Sangheili occupied with their own insurrection—turns into a desperate bid to extract one member of Kilo-Five from the seething heart of a brutal civil war. But troubles never come singly for Kilo-Five. Colonial terrorism is once again surfacing on one of the human worlds that survived the war against the Covenant, and the man behind it is much more than just a name to Spartan Naomi-010. Meanwhile, the treasure trove of Forerunner technology recovered from the Forerunner shield world of Onyx is being put to work, even as a kidnapped Sangheili plots vengeance on the humans he fears will bring his people to the brink of destruction…
464 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2012
209 people are currently reading
3443 people want to read
About the author
Karen Traviss
130 books1,532 followers#1 New York Times best-selling novelist, scriptwriter and comics author Karen Traviss has received critical acclaim for her award-nominated Wess'har series, and her work on Halo, Gears of War, Batman, G.I. Joe, and other major franchises has earned her a broad range of fans. She's best known for military science fiction, but GOING GREY and BLACK RUN, the first books in her new techno-thriller series RINGER, are set in the real world of today. A former defence correspondent and TV and newspaper journalist, she lives in Wiltshire, England. She's currently working on SACRIFICIAL RED, the third book in the Ringer series, and HERE WE STAND, book three in the NOMAD series.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 191 reviews
October 31, 2012
I have read all of the Halo novelizations and re read them. Karen Traviss may be an accomplished writer but severely lacks a creative spark for writing in the Halo Universe. Her characters of Kilo-5 reflect a dark view of humanity after the Covenant war. The characters that she does not create, her interpretations of them are off the mark. Catherine Halsey in Glass Lands paints her as irrational, emotional and in some instances a bully, when for the longest time she has been collected, cold and calculating with a mint of desperation to wanting to preserve life. Admiral Parangosky to be put bluntly is portrayed as God, every character prostrating at her very mention is a constant annoyance, her only fault being arrogance and belief in her own omnipresence. I think she's way off on a lot of character development possibilities and has glossed over a lot of potential for development in others by bombarding too many character point of views; also "hing head," is grossly over used in context of the Elites to a point of near exasperation. I feel that when dealing with any franchise there is a certain way to go about telling your own story while still keeping true to the message of the over all story.
PS Even though we've received upgrades with Infinity and what not, how does that still pose us as a threat with fully shielded and fully armed Covenant crafts. Their worse for wear but I imagine a MAC round still would bounce off after only one hit.
PS Even though we've received upgrades with Infinity and what not, how does that still pose us as a threat with fully shielded and fully armed Covenant crafts. Their worse for wear but I imagine a MAC round still would bounce off after only one hit.
October 13, 2012
Kilo-Five returns for another story dictating the aftermath of Halo 3's political landscape while providing supplemental information for the events of Halo 4. The story focuses on Kilo-Five's rescue efforts of Professor Phillips from Sanghellios as Civil War erupts, while Jul'Mdama finds himself imprisoned on Onyx. I love Traviss' take on the political landscape, especially ONI's underhanded tactics to prevent the Sanghelli from returning to finish off humanity. Parangosky, the head of ONI, has got to be the coolest character in the entire series, and Kilo-Five is one of the best cast of characters in any Halo novel. Each character portrays a unique perspective of the world around them that I find extremely entertaining. If I had one critique, it's that if you are pro-Halsey or even a fan of the Arbiter, it might be tough to swallow how some of the characters perceive these staples of the Haloverse.
December 1, 2016
I read this two days ago, I can't remember what exactly I didn't like about it, but I didn't care for it. It was kind of slow for this genre and it made some wild leaps over reality, which is probably expected for this genre but it was too much for me. I was expecting it to be more in line with the other one in this series that I've read. I have one more in this series and will get to it someday. If it is like this one, it will be my last, but I'm hoping for the best.
December 20, 2012
Started off from where Glasslands left off. Has some interesting moments, but is very lacking in action, which is the core of the Halo books thus far. Canon is also being heavily modified to fit the new Halo 4 game which will be right after this book in the timeline.
Still worth a read for a hardcore fan but if you aren't then stop at Ghosts of Onyx, with this series.
Eric Nylund, we miss you.
Still worth a read for a hardcore fan but if you aren't then stop at Ghosts of Onyx, with this series.
Eric Nylund, we miss you.
January 24, 2013
As a longtime fan of the Halo series, this book not only gave me an entertaining experience, but also a new outlook at the storyline. I read this book because there were so many questions asked in Halo 4 that I needed answers to. After reading this, not only did I get a few answers to said questions, but I also looked at things differently in the Halo universe. Seeing the humans trying to keep the former Covenant races from regaining power and the methods they used made me think of them as no better than the aliens who originally tried to commit genocide on them. One of the most influential books thanks to my all-time favorite author.
May 21, 2019
Listened to the audiobook of this one, FANTASTIC narrator- Euan Morton.
Story- Wonderful characterization, amazing attention to detail! This is my second Halo book (I've never played the games) and while I wouldn't necessarily recommend this series as a jumping in place for the world, I have a 'tour guide' listening with me and I'm thoroughly enjoying this author.
Story- Wonderful characterization, amazing attention to detail! This is my second Halo book (I've never played the games) and while I wouldn't necessarily recommend this series as a jumping in place for the world, I have a 'tour guide' listening with me and I'm thoroughly enjoying this author.
January 16, 2013
Halo: The Thursday War is the sequel to Halo: Glasslands. In Glasslands, a team of ODSTs, a Spartan II, an AI, a scientist skilled in Sangheili language and lifestyle, and the Office of Naval Intelligence’s (ONI) successor is formed. They are called Kilo-5. The year is 2553, not even a full year after the Human-Covenant War ended in November or December of 2552. The humans and a shattered Covenant are trying to mend a fragile alliance. However, the Elites (Sangheili), are also having a civil dispute over their future. The Arbiter, a highly ranked Sangheili warrior who worked with Master Chief when the Elites and humans formed a temporary alliance, believes in peace with the humans, and reconstruction. A radical group of ancient monks called “The Servants of the Abiding Truth” believe in eradicating humans. They see humans as a parasite, and not worthy of life.
When ONI learns that the Elites are having difficulty deciding what to do, they act. They send three ODSTs (Orbital Drop Shock Troopers), a Spartan II (one of the few remaining original biologically augmented children), an AI from ONI’s headquarters on Earth, a scientist who’s skilled in Sangheili language, and the successor to ONI’s current leader (this successor just happens to be a rejected Spartan II. Not all Spartan II candidates came through the augments cleanly). Their mission is to supply the Elites with stolen Covenant weapons, and aid the radicals in their coup. That way, the Elites will be weak, and the humans can kill them all, and show who’s stronger. They must also stay under the radar of the UNSC (United Nations Space Command). The head admiral of the UNSC is pretty good friends with the Arbiter.
But, a human colony that wasn't affected by the war at all, Venezia, is a hot bed for human insurrectionists. Plus, to make things weirder, humans are living hand-in-hand with Kig-yar (Jackals), Jiralhanae (Brutes), and Unggoy (Grunts) on this planet. All three aliens species listed were part of the Covenant. The book doesn't say anything about these aliens being a part of the insurrection.
Anyways, at the end of Glasslands, the Spartan’s father happens to be on Venezia. Coincidentally, he’s the leader of the insurrection. The Spartan was kidnapped from her parents at when she was about 5 or 6 years old. So, she has no recollection of who her parents are, where she comes from, or anything else from her past life. The Spartan program, though effective, still causes some controversy among a few of the characters in the story.
Speaking of the Spartan program, the person who started the program, Dr. Catherine Halsey, is lost in a Forerunner Dyson Sphere. She made an appearance in Halo: First Strike, then she ran away with another Spartan II who was injured. She makes a second appearance in Halo: Ghosts of Onyx. In that story, a Spartan II is training the new Spartan IIIs. The Spartan IIIs are upgraded Spartan IIs and instead of being kidnapped by ONI, their orphans who want revenge for their planet, and fallen parents/friends/etc. The Spartan IIIs are also being trained by the man who trained the Spartan IIs. Halsey and the training officer, Chief Mendez, are constantly bickering. Halsey feels that Mendez has betrayed her. Mendez believes the Spartan III program to be better than the Spartan II program in many ways. Morality mostly.
At the end of Ghosts of Onyx, the Spartan II who was training the Spartan IIIs sacrifices himself to save Halsey, Mendez, the second Spartan II, and two teams of Spartan IIIs. The planet happens to be a shield world built by Forerunners, an ancient species of aliens who created the Halo Arrays with many other marvels the humans have yet to discover. The Forerunners died millions of years ago, so there aren’t any Forerunners in any of the stories. The planet of Onyx itself blows up, and Halsey and company are lost in a slip space bubble. Time is slower, and they have no contact with the outside world.
So, in Halo: Glasslands, they are finally found, and most return to Earth. Except Halsey. She is classified as KIA/MIA, and is under ONI’s custody.
And now we move into Halo: The Thursday War. In this story, the original plan to supply the Elite insurrection starts biting back. The professor, Professor Phillips, gets caught in the middle of the fighting. He was invited to visit Sangheili’s many marvels by the Arbiter, and he got stuck in a major city. So, the rest of Kilo-5 gets permission from the UNSC to rescue him. The Arbiter also appears to be losing his battle against the radical Elites. The admiral of the UNSC, Lord Hood, offers to help the Arbiter. The Arbiter accepts, and Lord Hood, Kilo-5, and the head of ONI (Admiral Margaret Parangosky) travel to Sangheilios. During the Human-Covenant War, and even in peacetime, the UNSC was building a new ship with Forerunner technology they've collected through the war. Though much of the ship is still under construction, it’s weapons and shields are up and working, and it becomes a unanimous decision for the UNSC to flex its muscles and show the Elites what they've been up to.
The ship is called The Infinity, and is the largest ship ever constructed. It’s so massive, there isn't a single dry dock big enough to support it! It can even hold UNSC frigates and carriers! Not only does the UNSC have a plethora of Forerunner technology, but they also have an alien species known as Huragok (Engineers). The Covenant utilized these aliens during the Human-Covenant War. These aliens are virtually harmless, and master tinkerers. They can fix any form of technology and make it look easy. They have tentacles, and float around like balloons. Their names correspond with how they float around when born. Even the Forerunners used these aliens when they still existed. As a matter of fact, they apparently created them. When Halsey was in the Dyson Sphere, they met a few Huragok who survived millions of years. Their mission was to wait for the return of Forerunners, and the Spartan IIIs tell them it’s been millions of years since the Forerunners went extinct. The Huragok opened the Dyson Sphere up, and ONI rescued Dr. Halsey, Chief Mendez, Kelly (Spartan II), and the Spartan IIIs. They also set up research facilities and learned the Huragok sign language. Huragok don’t speak, instead they use the sicilia on their tentacles as a form of sign language.
The Huragok played a crucial role in the construction of The Infinity, and also made improvements to Kilo-5’s frigate, Port Stanley. Lord Hood, and Admiral Parangosky attack the radicals, however, before the attack, Parangosky told Kilo-5 to secretly attack the Arbiter’s forces as well. That way, the radicals didn't get suspicious. Port Stanley is a stealth ship, and they were able to cloak themselves, and fire a few nukes at the Arbiter’s ships. When a few of the Arbiter’s ships go down, Kilo-5 blames it on a Kig-yar vessel. Kig-yar are notorious pirates, and they love to trade and make money. So, the UNSC left it at that, and were none the wiser.
Meanwhile, on Sangheilios, Kilo-5 (minus ONI’s successor, Captain Osman) save professor Phillips, and they have to recover the radical leader, Avu Med ‘Telcam. ‘Telcam is reluctant to go with them, but he couldn't protest, because Kilo-5 forced him to.
But wait there’s more! Another radical, Jul ‘Mdama, was kidnapped by Kilo-5, and sent to ONIRF Trevelyn (Dyson Sphere named after the Spartan II who saved it, Kurt Ambrose (Trevelyn was his real name)). Jul escapes through a series of portals, and finds himself on a planet with Sangheili populating it. Jul tells them of his mission, learns his wife died in the fighting, and gathers up an army to travel to Requiem. Another Shield World built by the Forerunners. However, this one contains the Didact. The Didact was an ancient Forerunner who despised humans and wants them all dead. Do you think Jul’s and the Didact’s view on humans jives?
Personally, I liked Halo: The Thursday War. Although the author seemed to ramble on, and on, and on, and on, and on, I liked it. The story is supposed to bridge the gap between the video game Halo 3, and the recently released blockbuster, Halo 4. Halo 4 takes place in 2557, and to anybody reading this who saw the end of Halo 3 or saw the headlines and TV commercials, yes Master Chief is still alive. Though, the UNSC doesn't know this until the events on Requiem (where Chief lands).
The book explained where The Infinity came from, and certain characters were, who would play a vital role in Halo 4. It also gave a little hint to the newly created Spartan IVs. Spartan IVs are marines who voluntarily chose to be a Spartan. No more kids. However, it’s unclear whether the soldiers are augmented or not. But overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the epic, legendary story line of Halo.
When ONI learns that the Elites are having difficulty deciding what to do, they act. They send three ODSTs (Orbital Drop Shock Troopers), a Spartan II (one of the few remaining original biologically augmented children), an AI from ONI’s headquarters on Earth, a scientist who’s skilled in Sangheili language, and the successor to ONI’s current leader (this successor just happens to be a rejected Spartan II. Not all Spartan II candidates came through the augments cleanly). Their mission is to supply the Elites with stolen Covenant weapons, and aid the radicals in their coup. That way, the Elites will be weak, and the humans can kill them all, and show who’s stronger. They must also stay under the radar of the UNSC (United Nations Space Command). The head admiral of the UNSC is pretty good friends with the Arbiter.
But, a human colony that wasn't affected by the war at all, Venezia, is a hot bed for human insurrectionists. Plus, to make things weirder, humans are living hand-in-hand with Kig-yar (Jackals), Jiralhanae (Brutes), and Unggoy (Grunts) on this planet. All three aliens species listed were part of the Covenant. The book doesn't say anything about these aliens being a part of the insurrection.
Anyways, at the end of Glasslands, the Spartan’s father happens to be on Venezia. Coincidentally, he’s the leader of the insurrection. The Spartan was kidnapped from her parents at when she was about 5 or 6 years old. So, she has no recollection of who her parents are, where she comes from, or anything else from her past life. The Spartan program, though effective, still causes some controversy among a few of the characters in the story.
Speaking of the Spartan program, the person who started the program, Dr. Catherine Halsey, is lost in a Forerunner Dyson Sphere. She made an appearance in Halo: First Strike, then she ran away with another Spartan II who was injured. She makes a second appearance in Halo: Ghosts of Onyx. In that story, a Spartan II is training the new Spartan IIIs. The Spartan IIIs are upgraded Spartan IIs and instead of being kidnapped by ONI, their orphans who want revenge for their planet, and fallen parents/friends/etc. The Spartan IIIs are also being trained by the man who trained the Spartan IIs. Halsey and the training officer, Chief Mendez, are constantly bickering. Halsey feels that Mendez has betrayed her. Mendez believes the Spartan III program to be better than the Spartan II program in many ways. Morality mostly.
At the end of Ghosts of Onyx, the Spartan II who was training the Spartan IIIs sacrifices himself to save Halsey, Mendez, the second Spartan II, and two teams of Spartan IIIs. The planet happens to be a shield world built by Forerunners, an ancient species of aliens who created the Halo Arrays with many other marvels the humans have yet to discover. The Forerunners died millions of years ago, so there aren’t any Forerunners in any of the stories. The planet of Onyx itself blows up, and Halsey and company are lost in a slip space bubble. Time is slower, and they have no contact with the outside world.
So, in Halo: Glasslands, they are finally found, and most return to Earth. Except Halsey. She is classified as KIA/MIA, and is under ONI’s custody.
And now we move into Halo: The Thursday War. In this story, the original plan to supply the Elite insurrection starts biting back. The professor, Professor Phillips, gets caught in the middle of the fighting. He was invited to visit Sangheili’s many marvels by the Arbiter, and he got stuck in a major city. So, the rest of Kilo-5 gets permission from the UNSC to rescue him. The Arbiter also appears to be losing his battle against the radical Elites. The admiral of the UNSC, Lord Hood, offers to help the Arbiter. The Arbiter accepts, and Lord Hood, Kilo-5, and the head of ONI (Admiral Margaret Parangosky) travel to Sangheilios. During the Human-Covenant War, and even in peacetime, the UNSC was building a new ship with Forerunner technology they've collected through the war. Though much of the ship is still under construction, it’s weapons and shields are up and working, and it becomes a unanimous decision for the UNSC to flex its muscles and show the Elites what they've been up to.
The ship is called The Infinity, and is the largest ship ever constructed. It’s so massive, there isn't a single dry dock big enough to support it! It can even hold UNSC frigates and carriers! Not only does the UNSC have a plethora of Forerunner technology, but they also have an alien species known as Huragok (Engineers). The Covenant utilized these aliens during the Human-Covenant War. These aliens are virtually harmless, and master tinkerers. They can fix any form of technology and make it look easy. They have tentacles, and float around like balloons. Their names correspond with how they float around when born. Even the Forerunners used these aliens when they still existed. As a matter of fact, they apparently created them. When Halsey was in the Dyson Sphere, they met a few Huragok who survived millions of years. Their mission was to wait for the return of Forerunners, and the Spartan IIIs tell them it’s been millions of years since the Forerunners went extinct. The Huragok opened the Dyson Sphere up, and ONI rescued Dr. Halsey, Chief Mendez, Kelly (Spartan II), and the Spartan IIIs. They also set up research facilities and learned the Huragok sign language. Huragok don’t speak, instead they use the sicilia on their tentacles as a form of sign language.
The Huragok played a crucial role in the construction of The Infinity, and also made improvements to Kilo-5’s frigate, Port Stanley. Lord Hood, and Admiral Parangosky attack the radicals, however, before the attack, Parangosky told Kilo-5 to secretly attack the Arbiter’s forces as well. That way, the radicals didn't get suspicious. Port Stanley is a stealth ship, and they were able to cloak themselves, and fire a few nukes at the Arbiter’s ships. When a few of the Arbiter’s ships go down, Kilo-5 blames it on a Kig-yar vessel. Kig-yar are notorious pirates, and they love to trade and make money. So, the UNSC left it at that, and were none the wiser.
Meanwhile, on Sangheilios, Kilo-5 (minus ONI’s successor, Captain Osman) save professor Phillips, and they have to recover the radical leader, Avu Med ‘Telcam. ‘Telcam is reluctant to go with them, but he couldn't protest, because Kilo-5 forced him to.
But wait there’s more! Another radical, Jul ‘Mdama, was kidnapped by Kilo-5, and sent to ONIRF Trevelyn (Dyson Sphere named after the Spartan II who saved it, Kurt Ambrose (Trevelyn was his real name)). Jul escapes through a series of portals, and finds himself on a planet with Sangheili populating it. Jul tells them of his mission, learns his wife died in the fighting, and gathers up an army to travel to Requiem. Another Shield World built by the Forerunners. However, this one contains the Didact. The Didact was an ancient Forerunner who despised humans and wants them all dead. Do you think Jul’s and the Didact’s view on humans jives?
Personally, I liked Halo: The Thursday War. Although the author seemed to ramble on, and on, and on, and on, and on, I liked it. The story is supposed to bridge the gap between the video game Halo 3, and the recently released blockbuster, Halo 4. Halo 4 takes place in 2557, and to anybody reading this who saw the end of Halo 3 or saw the headlines and TV commercials, yes Master Chief is still alive. Though, the UNSC doesn't know this until the events on Requiem (where Chief lands).
The book explained where The Infinity came from, and certain characters were, who would play a vital role in Halo 4. It also gave a little hint to the newly created Spartan IVs. Spartan IVs are marines who voluntarily chose to be a Spartan. No more kids. However, it’s unclear whether the soldiers are augmented or not. But overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the epic, legendary story line of Halo.
Read
January 17, 2025It had been a few years since I’d read the first book, but Halo Wikipedia helped me well enough to pick up where I left off. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the story when I first started! Traviss is a good writer. I was able to get back into the Kilo-Five dynamic fairly well. And I surprisingly enjoyed the new POV of Parangosky, with her unique perspective as an older woman in the military (as well as being a very devious character to say the least).
But when I got to the end of the first quarter or third of the book, it started to feel a bit…same-old? And I think I had a bit of disappointment that what I was expecting to delve into in this book—Naomi’s past—was being sidelined until the next book!
Also can everyone please leave the Arbiter alone, he doesn’t deserve this 😭 Relatedly, it IS interesting (if not sometimes a little frustrating even while understandable) reading a story from the perspective of humans that have a deep seated distrust/hatred of the Sangheili. Playing the Halo games (especially growing up with Halo 2 and 3), you think about how cool (at least some of) the Sangheili are, such as the Arbiter—with their ridiculous but cool ship names, their quotable dialogue, and the Arbiter teaming up with Master Chief to save the galaxy and all that. A book like this reminds you how most/a lot of humans would have understandably viewed these world-glassing aliens. Still doesn’t excuse ONI though.
Anyways, I have hopes for the last book so I’m going to get started on that one and NOT wait four years to read it lol.
But when I got to the end of the first quarter or third of the book, it started to feel a bit…same-old? And I think I had a bit of disappointment that what I was expecting to delve into in this book—Naomi’s past—was being sidelined until the next book!
Also can everyone please leave the Arbiter alone, he doesn’t deserve this 😭 Relatedly, it IS interesting (if not sometimes a little frustrating even while understandable) reading a story from the perspective of humans that have a deep seated distrust/hatred of the Sangheili. Playing the Halo games (especially growing up with Halo 2 and 3), you think about how cool (at least some of) the Sangheili are, such as the Arbiter—with their ridiculous but cool ship names, their quotable dialogue, and the Arbiter teaming up with Master Chief to save the galaxy and all that. A book like this reminds you how most/a lot of humans would have understandably viewed these world-glassing aliens. Still doesn’t excuse ONI though.
Anyways, I have hopes for the last book so I’m going to get started on that one and NOT wait four years to read it lol.
October 8, 2012
Well, this book has 10 ratings, now 11 (with mine). Nobody has reviewed here on Goodreads yet, so I'll take a moment to be the first.
First of all... The Thursday War was an incredible 2nd part of the Kilo-Five Trilogy. The book moves at a good pace, and it's action packed. You feel for the characters, even the Huragok and the Sangheili.
The book focuses on 3 plot lines:
1. The captured Sangheili Jun Mdama who is stuck on Onyx for study by the humans.
2. The extraction of the scholar, Phillips from Sanghelios, and his findings amongst the Forerunner structures there. Also, the AI BB's story is heavily involved here. I'd like to see BB and Cortana debate a bit. Could turn out quite interesting...
3. The first look at the UNSC battle cruiser Infinity, the most massive spaceship ever constructed in the Halo series, as well as most Sci-Fi. (I bet it would have given the Death Star in Star Wars a run for it's money).
The characters are phenomenol. Naomi, a Spartan II, has a significant role in the story. We even get to see Dr. Halsey a bit!
My favorite part of the entire book was all the Forerunner stuff. From the beginning of Halo, the Forerunners have seemed so... fantastic? Magical? I don't quite know how to phrase my thoughts about them. The focus, especially surrounding Phillips and Jun's studies of the symbols found within Onyx and the temple on Sanghelios was awesome. And the Forerunner technology additions to the Infinity were a blast to read about.
This book is a primer for Halo 4. If you're not already excited for the next game coming out in a month, by the end of The Thursday War, I guarantee you will be.
An ancient evil awakens...
First of all... The Thursday War was an incredible 2nd part of the Kilo-Five Trilogy. The book moves at a good pace, and it's action packed. You feel for the characters, even the Huragok and the Sangheili.
The book focuses on 3 plot lines:
1. The captured Sangheili Jun Mdama who is stuck on Onyx for study by the humans.
2. The extraction of the scholar, Phillips from Sanghelios, and his findings amongst the Forerunner structures there. Also, the AI BB's story is heavily involved here. I'd like to see BB and Cortana debate a bit. Could turn out quite interesting...
3. The first look at the UNSC battle cruiser Infinity, the most massive spaceship ever constructed in the Halo series, as well as most Sci-Fi. (I bet it would have given the Death Star in Star Wars a run for it's money).
The characters are phenomenol. Naomi, a Spartan II, has a significant role in the story. We even get to see Dr. Halsey a bit!
My favorite part of the entire book was all the Forerunner stuff. From the beginning of Halo, the Forerunners have seemed so... fantastic? Magical? I don't quite know how to phrase my thoughts about them. The focus, especially surrounding Phillips and Jun's studies of the symbols found within Onyx and the temple on Sanghelios was awesome. And the Forerunner technology additions to the Infinity were a blast to read about.
This book is a primer for Halo 4. If you're not already excited for the next game coming out in a month, by the end of The Thursday War, I guarantee you will be.
An ancient evil awakens...
January 23, 2013
To be honest, this one gets a three simply because I love the Halo universe. The Thursday War brings together many threads of the story line that result in the circumstances of Halo 4. However, I am still not a fan of Traviss' science fiction writing. This story lacks imagination and lacks follow-through on many of the interesting character developing conflicts. Also, I feel like there was a lot of opportunity to develop the culture of Sanghelios which ended up being squandered on unimaginative analogy with feudal Europe. The Thursday War describes pivotal developments for the Halo storyline but overall flops on the delivery.
March 7, 2022
Full disclosure: at the time of writing this review I’ve already gotten through both this book and the final novel in Karen Traviss’ Kilo-5 trilogy (Halo: Mortal Dictata). This novel doesn’t really have an ending because it leads directly into Mortal Dictata but what is here is excellent, Karen Traviss really nailed it again.
This novel really hits the ground running because you (presumably) are already familiar with Kilo-5, Jul ‘Mdama and Parangovsky so there’s no need to really spend a lot of time introducing them.
I liked this book a lot because it really gets into the psyche of the Sanghelios post-war with them having to come to terms with both their schism from the covenant and the new, more confident version of humanity compared to how they viewed us beforehand. Jul ‘Mdama and his wife are explored in very compelling ways - Raia specifically is fleshed out really nicely, I loved her storyline.
The parts of the novel involving Phillips on Sanghelios were excellent as well - I particularly the dichotomy of the two fragments of BB, kilo-5’s AI.
Overall great book. I would have REALLY liked to hear more from Lucy and the rest of the Spartan IIIs from Glasslands but once I realized that this story was meant to involve different characters i got over it. Here’s hoping they show up again in future novels!
The next book I’ll be reading (well, already read) is the final book in the trilogy, Halo: Mortal Dictata. After that I’ll go back to Halo: Primordium.
This novel really hits the ground running because you (presumably) are already familiar with Kilo-5, Jul ‘Mdama and Parangovsky so there’s no need to really spend a lot of time introducing them.
I liked this book a lot because it really gets into the psyche of the Sanghelios post-war with them having to come to terms with both their schism from the covenant and the new, more confident version of humanity compared to how they viewed us beforehand. Jul ‘Mdama and his wife are explored in very compelling ways - Raia specifically is fleshed out really nicely, I loved her storyline.
The parts of the novel involving Phillips on Sanghelios were excellent as well - I particularly the dichotomy of the two fragments of BB, kilo-5’s AI.
Overall great book. I would have REALLY liked to hear more from Lucy and the rest of the Spartan IIIs from Glasslands but once I realized that this story was meant to involve different characters i got over it. Here’s hoping they show up again in future novels!
The next book I’ll be reading (well, already read) is the final book in the trilogy, Halo: Mortal Dictata. After that I’ll go back to Halo: Primordium.
July 9, 2023
Something that started off incredibly strong, I actually found myself enjoying it more at first then most of my time spent with the first book, BUT that train sadly didn't continue and I was stuck with boring talking with nothing much happening with a team of spartans and odsts that i should like and care about but not really, the only parts that where interesting where, (how the infinity was made, who the villan of halo 4 spec ops and halo 5 was and why they went against humanity, and the planet with Huragok looking after an old forerunner temple waiting for the return of there old masters) the rest was a lot of boring politics that i couldn't much enjoy as hindsight being what it is, I knew 343 would change the lore and eventually kill jewl so i couldn't invest myself. And to be honest im kinda of glad i read this books now not before i played halo 4 or 5 as I'd be pissed if i found out they lead me on in a charecter only to kill him off 😅 like i laugh now but in an alternate reality im not happy! But despite all that im still a karen traviss fan she's a really good writer, BUT I've come to terms with the fact she can't write halo, gears of war she's perfect i love her work, but here in this universe it sadly doesn't translate. But hey ho im invested now so i will read the final book eventually and then it will be over, so until then.
June 20, 2023
originally I was going to give this 3/5 stars mainly as to it didn't hit as hard (because I lacked the context of the previous novel)
HOWEVER
reading this as a standalone, it really holds up
the pacing and the dense plot lines, while at some points tiring, kept me engaged. on an emotional level I didn't really connect to the protagonists kilo-five at first yet as the story progressed, as the reader, i eventually got wound up in the characters growing inner conflicts and anxieties. the main body of the work was good, as said before some of it was tiring to read through but the constant influx of 'something more' in the form of inner conflict and consequences gave dimensionality to the characters. The cruel ways the human characters use black and white thinking to rule out their position in this war and what the consequences of both the conditioning these characters have gone through and the violence they are partaking in was masterfully explored and I hope it develops further into the next novel. BB's thoughts about his own mortality and his place in both Kilo-Five and ONI and Jul'Mdama's entire plotline, I would say are also of one the major highlights of this novel for me.
HOWEVER
reading this as a standalone, it really holds up
the pacing and the dense plot lines, while at some points tiring, kept me engaged. on an emotional level I didn't really connect to the protagonists kilo-five at first yet as the story progressed, as the reader, i eventually got wound up in the characters growing inner conflicts and anxieties. the main body of the work was good, as said before some of it was tiring to read through but the constant influx of 'something more' in the form of inner conflict and consequences gave dimensionality to the characters. The cruel ways the human characters use black and white thinking to rule out their position in this war and what the consequences of both the conditioning these characters have gone through and the violence they are partaking in was masterfully explored and I hope it develops further into the next novel. BB's thoughts about his own mortality and his place in both Kilo-Five and ONI and Jul'Mdama's entire plotline, I would say are also of one the major highlights of this novel for me.
January 24, 2019
It felt like a lackluster ending to an otherwise fun trilogy. The events for the most part "sizzled," rather than "boiled," over. The part with Naomi's father in general I feel like should never have happened, just a strange storyline. Further, what happened to Jul M'dama? He had t escapes? And their whole civil war is not touched on at all. It just left me questioning.
The writing, too, was annoying. Sooooo repetitious. Like every chapter she's reminding us who the Spartans are, as if that isn't common knowledge to every Halo fan. Honestly could've cut out 100 pages by excluding unnecessary clarifications.
I mean overall I enjoyed the series, but I just expected so much more to unfold, and it didn't. However I will give Traviss that she's quite good at writing internal dialogue. That was always fun to read.
The writing, too, was annoying. Sooooo repetitious. Like every chapter she's reminding us who the Spartans are, as if that isn't common knowledge to every Halo fan. Honestly could've cut out 100 pages by excluding unnecessary clarifications.
I mean overall I enjoyed the series, but I just expected so much more to unfold, and it didn't. However I will give Traviss that she's quite good at writing internal dialogue. That was always fun to read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2022
Again very cool to experience the inner thought processed of the various characters, and see both good and bad guys in the making in a chaotic post-war space (and trying to figure out who the good and bad guys are, or if everyone is in a messy grey zone).
July 11, 2021
Yeah it was a real solid go. Traviss's Kilo 5 Sega is probably the best these books have (and likely, the best they will) get.
August 13, 2023
Traviss knocks it out of the park again. A brilliant and tense adventure that sets up what’s sure to be a firecracker of a finale.
October 19, 2024
If you want Tom Clancy level espionage in the Halo universe, look no further than the Kilo-Five trilogy.
March 6, 2025
Jul 'Mdama mi querido siento todo tú sufrimiento
September 1, 2013
The tale follows two stories, that of Kilo-Five and ONI, and that of Jul ‘Mdama and the Sangheili (Elites). Kilo-Five is stationed on the rebel planet of Venezia, although the war with the Covenant is over the Insurrection is still alive and kicking. However things have changed, one of the members, Evan Phillips is on Sanghelios and there has been an explosion. This sparks the Sangheili into action and their civil war against the Arbiter (Thel ‘Vadam) begins. Fearing for his safety Captain Serin Osman pulls Kilo-Five out of Venezia and makes haste to Sanghelios. Things start to get hectic at this point, the Jiralhanae (Brutes) rebel, the Sangheili rebels gather and launch an assault on the Arbiter, who accepts the offer of aid from Fleet Admiral Lord Terrence Hood who uses this to test out the UNSC’s newest vessel, Infinity.
Kilo-Five lands on Sanghelios and manage to track Philips down, although it isn’t so easy to get him out as they are attacked by the Sangheili. But in the end they escape and just in time to bear witness to the awesome power displayed by Infinity which easily cripples the Sangheili rebel fleet. Humanity is no longer the bugs in the galaxy. However while on Sanghelios, with the help of BB (Black Box, a smart A.I.), Phillips learns something very important. While searching for locations of other Halo Arrays he learns of the Didact, who is located in a place called Requiem, all they know is that he is locked away and the Forerunners want him to remain so.
Meanwhile on the shield Onyx, now called Trevelyan by ONI, Jul ‘Mdama is being kept captive. He is unsure why he is there but he is determined to escape and get back to Sanghelios. He slowly gains the trust of a Huragok (Engineer) and finds out about the Forerunners. To his disappointment they are very much like humans, but one in particular despised humanity; the Didact. He tricks the Huragok into removing the explosive harness he is wearing, ironic as the Huragok were forced to wear such devices during the war, and escapes. With one goal Jul ‘Mdama sets out to acquire Forerunner tech to help in the war to exterminate the humans, he is now the Didact’s Hand.
I can say that this novel was better than the last one, Glasslands; I was able to enjoy this book more as I knew what was going on. Overall another good book by Traviss and I can’t wait for the third book in the Kilo-Five Trilogy. This Halo book was good as it one delved into the psych of the aliens and even those in ONI, with little action from the Spartans. The cast were brilliant, from the ODST’s to BB, who is the best A.I. out there, he is so funny. This book also does a nice job of filling in the plot holes left between Halo 3 and Halo 4, and it was nice to have the cameo of Captain Lasky and even Jul ‘Mdama who leads the Covenant forces in Halo 4 on Requiem. I would recommend this novel to any who love the universe of Halo or fans of science fiction in general. I give The Thursday War 5 stars.
Kilo-Five lands on Sanghelios and manage to track Philips down, although it isn’t so easy to get him out as they are attacked by the Sangheili. But in the end they escape and just in time to bear witness to the awesome power displayed by Infinity which easily cripples the Sangheili rebel fleet. Humanity is no longer the bugs in the galaxy. However while on Sanghelios, with the help of BB (Black Box, a smart A.I.), Phillips learns something very important. While searching for locations of other Halo Arrays he learns of the Didact, who is located in a place called Requiem, all they know is that he is locked away and the Forerunners want him to remain so.
Meanwhile on the shield Onyx, now called Trevelyan by ONI, Jul ‘Mdama is being kept captive. He is unsure why he is there but he is determined to escape and get back to Sanghelios. He slowly gains the trust of a Huragok (Engineer) and finds out about the Forerunners. To his disappointment they are very much like humans, but one in particular despised humanity; the Didact. He tricks the Huragok into removing the explosive harness he is wearing, ironic as the Huragok were forced to wear such devices during the war, and escapes. With one goal Jul ‘Mdama sets out to acquire Forerunner tech to help in the war to exterminate the humans, he is now the Didact’s Hand.
I can say that this novel was better than the last one, Glasslands; I was able to enjoy this book more as I knew what was going on. Overall another good book by Traviss and I can’t wait for the third book in the Kilo-Five Trilogy. This Halo book was good as it one delved into the psych of the aliens and even those in ONI, with little action from the Spartans. The cast were brilliant, from the ODST’s to BB, who is the best A.I. out there, he is so funny. This book also does a nice job of filling in the plot holes left between Halo 3 and Halo 4, and it was nice to have the cameo of Captain Lasky and even Jul ‘Mdama who leads the Covenant forces in Halo 4 on Requiem. I would recommend this novel to any who love the universe of Halo or fans of science fiction in general. I give The Thursday War 5 stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 20, 2012
The Thursday War is the followup to Glasslands and the second book in the Kilo 5 trilogy. It picks up pretty much where the first left off and continues the story of Captain Osman and her ONI team. It's a worthy followup but not as enjoyable to me as the original, perhaps because of the lack of the other Spartan 2s and 3s (Naomi is still there). I can see where Karen Traviss would want to develop her own characters as opposed to the ones that have come before, but we like them because they we've shared in their adventures for so long.
Anyway, minor rant aside, I did like how the characters were developed during the story. They definitely grow on you; I was most intrigued by Naomi, who seems like the most human Spartan so far, likely because of the downtime spent with her ODST comrades.
The story continues ONI's attempt to spark a civil war between the differing factions of the Sanheili from several perspectives. We get to find out happens to Phillips and see what he learns during his time among the Elites. Jul 'Mdama is once again a main character, now in captivity on the Forerunner shield world. And we finally get to see the UNSC Infinity in action; in fact there's a bunch of nice little nods and foreshadowing to the Forward Unto Dawn series and Halo 4, and some clues that might tell us what we can expect from the game.
Overall it's a good story, with a lot of action to keep you turning the page. There's plenty of new tidbits for all the fans of the Halo lore to theorize about. But I didn't feel like it was as deep as the first.
I still definitely recommend it, especially if you enjoyed the first book or are looking for something to do until Halo 4 comes out.
Anyway, minor rant aside, I did like how the characters were developed during the story. They definitely grow on you; I was most intrigued by Naomi, who seems like the most human Spartan so far, likely because of the downtime spent with her ODST comrades.
The story continues ONI's attempt to spark a civil war between the differing factions of the Sanheili from several perspectives. We get to find out happens to Phillips and see what he learns during his time among the Elites. Jul 'Mdama is once again a main character, now in captivity on the Forerunner shield world. And we finally get to see the UNSC Infinity in action; in fact there's a bunch of nice little nods and foreshadowing to the Forward Unto Dawn series and Halo 4, and some clues that might tell us what we can expect from the game.
Overall it's a good story, with a lot of action to keep you turning the page. There's plenty of new tidbits for all the fans of the Halo lore to theorize about. But I didn't feel like it was as deep as the first.
I still definitely recommend it, especially if you enjoyed the first book or are looking for something to do until Halo 4 comes out.
January 16, 2021
A lot of the time, the second installment of a trilogy sags in comparison to the first and last. Less bombastic because you're not being propelled via rocketship blasters strapped to your ass into a brand new world with brand new characters, nor are you arriving at a momentous climax that three books have led to. But there is no shortage of tension and fighting, and Traviss uses the opportunities in between the battles to flesh out some really cool military politics as well as some badass ideas for biological warfare (then again, I am a biased dorky scientist), and there is a ton of very personal characterization going on. I really do care about Jul, Raia, Naomi, and the others, even if they do hate each other.
April 17, 2015
"This book is a book you have to read for any halo fans and new people that just got introduced to the series. It is based after Halo 3 and probably before Halo 4. It introduces mostly everything in Halo 4 and also the UNSC vessel the Infinity. Reading this will really help you understand how everything lead to Halo 4. so this is a book you should read as this book talks about Kilo squad and how they went to rescue one of their own. So get ready to know about this epic book which will really help you understand the story of halo. Get this book and know about the kilo squad rescuing one of their members during a alien civil war."-Christian Jesus-kim
February 15, 2013
Wow you can tell this was written by a woman and that she has issues with men. All of the male characters are subordinates and they are all week, indecisive or cowardly. All in all a very poor addition to the Halo series. I am sorry I actually spent money on this (even though it was an ebook). Calling the main characters anti-heroes ia putting it mildly as none of them had any redeeming qualities. For the first time I actually found myself rooting for the covenant.
June 30, 2021
So, I read this years ago and therefor don't have much to say except that this was a great detour from other Halo books, which were military science fiction and involved ground and space combat, this however was space espionage which was really something; still within the realms of science fiction but a completely new and refreshing take!
It was great to see the Halo universe and mythos from this perspective!
It was great to see the Halo universe and mythos from this perspective!
October 11, 2012
Traviss continues to be the one tie-in writer whose work I regularly look forward to. She toes the line well here, setting up some franchise-mandated lead in to Halo 4 while also continuing to develop her own series plot lines. I have a hard time telling Mal and Vaz apart as characters, but otherwise her cast is pretty well developed - Phillips and Jul in particular get a lot of time to shine.
March 21, 2013
Incorrect canon, and sloppy storyline.
Not much to say about this novel, but giving Karen Traviss then rights to make a series on Halo was a mistake. The additive of new and idiotic expansions to the universe is unnecessary and a lot of them go against canon.
Not much to say about this novel, but giving Karen Traviss then rights to make a series on Halo was a mistake. The additive of new and idiotic expansions to the universe is unnecessary and a lot of them go against canon.
May 7, 2018
So early I was surprised about the Fall of Reach Halo novel and how good it was. Now I have finished this book and was quite a bit more ambivalent. A good read, nothing spectacular. It's average with some interesting background on the world of Halo.
February 22, 2019
Great continuation, wish I could have read this series more closely to when they came out / when the games came out, they really do a great job of adding depth to the characters we hear references to in the main video games.
April 3, 2020
Thursday War is fun pulpy character drama that deepens the setting of the games.
If you felt like the unprompted arrival of the Infinity was jarring in Halo 4, or your understanding of Halo’s lore is hazy, this is a great crash course.
If you felt like the unprompted arrival of the Infinity was jarring in Halo 4, or your understanding of Halo’s lore is hazy, this is a great crash course.
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