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Galaxy's Edge #0.6
Forget Nothing
She Chose the Hardest Way
The daughter of a Legion war hero, fighting was in Andien Broxin's blood. But the battles Republic marines face on strange and alien worlds are a far cry from the vaunted, brutal, no-holds-barred conflicts fought at the edge of the galaxy by the elite legionnaires.
Until a devastating war erupts right in the Republic’s stellar backyard.
Newly stationed on a mid-core planet being harassed by terrorist revolutionaries, Andien and her fellow "hullbusters" find themselves right in the middle of a desperate fight for survival. All their training, standards, discipline—all the hard paths—have led to this. If she and her fellow marines are to come out of this alive, Andien will have to find out who she truly is...and what she can become.
Best-selling military science fiction author Jason Anspach and USMC/US Army veteran Michelle C. Meyers explore the rigors of combat, survival, and the human will in this edge-of-your-seat account set in the Galaxy’s Edge universe.
©2020 Galaxy's Edge, LLC (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.
The daughter of a Legion war hero, fighting was in Andien Broxin's blood. But the battles Republic marines face on strange and alien worlds are a far cry from the vaunted, brutal, no-holds-barred conflicts fought at the edge of the galaxy by the elite legionnaires.
Until a devastating war erupts right in the Republic’s stellar backyard.
Newly stationed on a mid-core planet being harassed by terrorist revolutionaries, Andien and her fellow "hullbusters" find themselves right in the middle of a desperate fight for survival. All their training, standards, discipline—all the hard paths—have led to this. If she and her fellow marines are to come out of this alive, Andien will have to find out who she truly is...and what she can become.
Best-selling military science fiction author Jason Anspach and USMC/US Army veteran Michelle C. Meyers explore the rigors of combat, survival, and the human will in this edge-of-your-seat account set in the Galaxy’s Edge universe.
©2020 Galaxy's Edge, LLC (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.
Audible Audio
Published June 4, 2020
165 people are currently reading
412 people want to read
About the author
Jason Anspach
187 books842 followersJASON ANSPACH is the author of Galaxy's Edge, Wayward Galaxy, Forgotten Ruin. and more.
He lives in Puyallup, WA with his wife and their seven (not a typo) children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 213 reviews
June 9, 2020
Not bad.
Forget Nothing was surprisingly pretty good. Sometimes I need to be in the mood to dive into anything military related but I just kind of went for it. Also, it didn't hurt that it was an audible original either. That being said, we get to see a lot of strange stuff going on while they are on this strange planet. The characters themselves were okay and a bit interesting.. but they didn't do a lot for me. Again, it was good but mostly okay.
Forget Nothing was surprisingly pretty good. Sometimes I need to be in the mood to dive into anything military related but I just kind of went for it. Also, it didn't hurt that it was an audible original either. That being said, we get to see a lot of strange stuff going on while they are on this strange planet. The characters themselves were okay and a bit interesting.. but they didn't do a lot for me. Again, it was good but mostly okay.
June 10, 2020
I got this free from Audible (they offer several Audible Originals free each month to members and I "think" that's how I got this one). It is a novella set in the Galaxy's Edge Series and it did here what it was meant to do. It got me interested in the series.
The situation here is the story of a female Republic Marine who is the daughter of a Legioner. it's the story of a fire base in the middle of what would be called "Indian Country". (Yes I know politically incorrect but it's still used). Referring back to some of the history of the series we are now involved in a rebellion against Union.
The book is a good one, very interesting it's also nonstop action from the time the first shot is fired. We lose neither plot, characterization nor action as it roles on. I decided to go 5 stars and buy the first tow novels in the series (a package deal) from Audible.
Recommended.
The situation here is the story of a female Republic Marine who is the daughter of a Legioner. it's the story of a fire base in the middle of what would be called "Indian Country". (Yes I know politically incorrect but it's still used). Referring back to some of the history of the series we are now involved in a rebellion against Union.
The book is a good one, very interesting it's also nonstop action from the time the first shot is fired. We lose neither plot, characterization nor action as it roles on. I decided to go 5 stars and buy the first tow novels in the series (a package deal) from Audible.
Recommended.
June 23, 2020
GI Jane in space. Or rather, a prequel to GI Jane in space.
The protagonist is a hoo-rah! Republic Marine stationed on some planet we don't care about fighting enemies we don't care about because politics war is hell space marines hoo-rah! But the real super-baddest of the bad asses are the Legion, who are a semi-autonomous military branch of the Republic for Reasons related to some a war a thousand years ago we also don't care about, which is why there's a short excerpt of politics where the Legion commander has to argue with civvies who are always trying to cut their budget and look down on them except when there's a big war and they need them, and also the Legion only allows humans (so speciesist!) and only males (so sexist!) So there's some political blah blah and the Legion has to allow women to apply for the first time ever.
Back to our protagonist, whose father, by the way, is an ex-Legion super-specialist of special forces badass who sits around watching 27th century Fox News and still freaks out every time "his little girl" is in battle. We literally get a flashback to that time he panicked because he lost track of her in a grocery store.
She finds out about the Legion dealio but doesn't even apply. Then she finds out she got submitted and accepted anyway. So after a battle where she and her marines fight side by side with Legion troops and there's death and war is hell, she decides she will accept the challenge and go to Legion Academy because that's the best way to protect her marines from an enemy we don't care about in a war we don't care about.
When AIs can write books, this will be what a military SF novella will look like. Insert tropes and character archetypes, toggle a few settings, and algorithmically generate a pleasing generic military SF story.
The protagonist is a hoo-rah! Republic Marine stationed on some planet we don't care about fighting enemies we don't care about because politics war is hell space marines hoo-rah! But the real super-baddest of the bad asses are the Legion, who are a semi-autonomous military branch of the Republic for Reasons related to some a war a thousand years ago we also don't care about, which is why there's a short excerpt of politics where the Legion commander has to argue with civvies who are always trying to cut their budget and look down on them except when there's a big war and they need them, and also the Legion only allows humans (so speciesist!) and only males (so sexist!) So there's some political blah blah and the Legion has to allow women to apply for the first time ever.
Back to our protagonist, whose father, by the way, is an ex-Legion super-specialist of special forces badass who sits around watching 27th century Fox News and still freaks out every time "his little girl" is in battle. We literally get a flashback to that time he panicked because he lost track of her in a grocery store.
She finds out about the Legion dealio but doesn't even apply. Then she finds out she got submitted and accepted anyway. So after a battle where she and her marines fight side by side with Legion troops and there's death and war is hell, she decides she will accept the challenge and go to Legion Academy because that's the best way to protect her marines from an enemy we don't care about in a war we don't care about.
When AIs can write books, this will be what a military SF novella will look like. Insert tropes and character archetypes, toggle a few settings, and algorithmically generate a pleasing generic military SF story.
June 17, 2020
In Space, No One Can Hear You Fall Asleep... Zzzz... snore
Review of the Audible Original audiobook (June 2020)
Jason Anspach's Galaxy's Edge series is an extended fantasy/sci-fi saga of 9 books + a prequel, with recurring characters centering around Captain Chhun of the elite Legion Dark Ops squad and a big bad named Goth Sullus. Forget Nothing takes place in that universe but doesn't share characters or a story-line with that main plot.
Instead we have Major Andien Broxin and her group of "hullbuster" space marines battling some sort of outer space terrorists. The Legion does show up in the persons of a fire team led by a Scottish accent speaking leader named Owen (A pause here, to wonder why there would still be people speaking with Scottish accents in outer space on the edge of the galaxy presumably hundreds of light years from earth).
Although some other alien species appear, some bots are in place, the soldiers use "blasters" and ride "combat sleds" instead of guns and vehicles, the whole story reads like it could have been written on current day earth with soldiers battling something like the Taliban in Afghanistan. All the cliches and stereotypes are in place. The concerned veteran father, the tough gunnery sergeant, the slackers on guard duty, the protagonist looking to advance but still protective of their former colleagues etc. There was really nothing that made this stand out as doing anything special for the genre or for the greater story of the saga.
The narration by Kristine Hvam was fine in all voices, her Scottish accent for Owen was perhaps a bit weak.
Forget Nothing was one of 10 Audible Original audiobooks available free for Audible members in the month of June 2020. It is available to everyone for a standard price.
Review of the Audible Original audiobook (June 2020)
Jason Anspach's Galaxy's Edge series is an extended fantasy/sci-fi saga of 9 books + a prequel, with recurring characters centering around Captain Chhun of the elite Legion Dark Ops squad and a big bad named Goth Sullus. Forget Nothing takes place in that universe but doesn't share characters or a story-line with that main plot.
Instead we have Major Andien Broxin and her group of "hullbuster" space marines battling some sort of outer space terrorists. The Legion does show up in the persons of a fire team led by a Scottish accent speaking leader named Owen (A pause here, to wonder why there would still be people speaking with Scottish accents in outer space on the edge of the galaxy presumably hundreds of light years from earth).
Although some other alien species appear, some bots are in place, the soldiers use "blasters" and ride "combat sleds" instead of guns and vehicles, the whole story reads like it could have been written on current day earth with soldiers battling something like the Taliban in Afghanistan. All the cliches and stereotypes are in place. The concerned veteran father, the tough gunnery sergeant, the slackers on guard duty, the protagonist looking to advance but still protective of their former colleagues etc. There was really nothing that made this stand out as doing anything special for the genre or for the greater story of the saga.
The narration by Kristine Hvam was fine in all voices, her Scottish accent for Owen was perhaps a bit weak.
Forget Nothing was one of 10 Audible Original audiobooks available free for Audible members in the month of June 2020. It is available to everyone for a standard price.
June 23, 2020
Wow...wow! About 20% into this Audible original, I came on Goodreads and added this full series to my "To-Read" list. I didn't necessarily have high expectations coming into this story, but whatever I had got blew out of the water.
I guess this is classified as sci-fi, what with the galaxy's edge and robots and aliens. But it felt completely military. The ebb and flow of the battle, the burn of the training ground, the understated grit of the barracks- this had so many similarities to reading a military memoir. And what do you know- could be because the author has first-hand experience.
I loved the dynamic between the main character and her dad. Loved it. That hit home for me being the kid of a veteran myself. Also, I loved how the author was able to create a thoroughly badass and gritty female lead in a military setting without turning it into a political, feminism tirade. It was perfectly executed.
In regards to the narrator, this is the second original I've listened to and, personally, I like her narrating style a lot.
I would say don't listen to this if you're looking for something heavy on sci-fi; this is pretty sparse in the sci-fi department. But if you like military reads, this might be for you.
I'd rate this a PG-13 for battle scenes including gore and violence in addition to some mild swearing.
I guess this is classified as sci-fi, what with the galaxy's edge and robots and aliens. But it felt completely military. The ebb and flow of the battle, the burn of the training ground, the understated grit of the barracks- this had so many similarities to reading a military memoir. And what do you know- could be because the author has first-hand experience.
I loved the dynamic between the main character and her dad. Loved it. That hit home for me being the kid of a veteran myself. Also, I loved how the author was able to create a thoroughly badass and gritty female lead in a military setting without turning it into a political, feminism tirade. It was perfectly executed.
In regards to the narrator, this is the second original I've listened to and, personally, I like her narrating style a lot.
I would say don't listen to this if you're looking for something heavy on sci-fi; this is pretty sparse in the sci-fi department. But if you like military reads, this might be for you.
I'd rate this a PG-13 for battle scenes including gore and violence in addition to some mild swearing.
June 8, 2020
A bunch of standard issue mil-fic scenes tacked together, with different standard issue pov characters ranging from the tougher-than-thou daughter marine and her tough but tender hearted vet dad to the tough brass tacks negotiator dealing with oily politicians who want (horrors) to let women try out for the Special Forces. The main setting is basically Afghanistan-on-another-planet, the marines have blasters instead of rifles so you know its the future, and they blast away at hordes of equally faceless "rebels" just like in the movie Zulu. Oh, and lest there be too much action in the plot, there are extended ruminations about military food, exercise routines, the stupidity of politicians who want to reduce military budgets, and like distractions. There is a gunny who has a wonderful way with imprecations--I wish he were in more scenes. This is the first Audible Original I've tried out that wasn't a pleasant surprise.
June 13, 2020
Straight up adventure war story, set on other worlds
July 1, 2020
Actionpacked military sci-fi with a tough, likable female protagonist - not really anything out of the ordinary, but an engrossing introduction to the series that kept me well entertained nonetheless. I'll be checking out more books from this universe at some point, in the hopes that they'll prove equally entertaining as this Audible freebie.
July 22, 2020
I really loved this story and wanted more of it. The audio was a tad wonky, what with some glaring mispronunciations, but you'll love overlooking it because the story sucks you in. This was the usual Galaxy's Edge mix of food porn with Michelle Meyer adding in some exercise porn for a fun bit of added flavor. It was fun seeing several characters that were established in the GE lore and canon get fleshed out in this story. The action was fun and set up what was to come in book two, which I can't wait to buy and read/listen.
June 21, 2020
This was just ok for me, I had trouble keeping interested in it.
June 20, 2020
The selection of Audible Originals this month is lacking. There were three that I deleted from my device after listening for only a few minutes. I finished this one though and thought it was okay. A little bit like a Star Wars story.
December 31, 2022
Solid intro to what I assume will be a good series!
My rating: 4.4*
My rating: 4.4*
November 27, 2022
This is not my usual fare but once I started it I found that I really liked the character and the world she lived in. While it is said to be military science fiction I found it more military with a dose of science fiction to make it different from the rest. So far not very much sci-fi except to say they are on an alien world.
The daughter of a Legion hero, Andien Broxin is a born fighter. Though as a Marine who faces battles on strange and alien worlds it's a far cry from the no holds barred conflicts faced by the elite legionnaires.
This is more a military story than sci-fi. It only is called science fiction because they name a planet, not Earth, and the name of the aliens that occupy the planet. In this instance, it is humans that they are fighting.
The daughter of a Legion hero, Andien Broxin is a born fighter. Though as a Marine who faces battles on strange and alien worlds it's a far cry from the no holds barred conflicts faced by the elite legionnaires.
This is more a military story than sci-fi. It only is called science fiction because they name a planet, not Earth, and the name of the aliens that occupy the planet. In this instance, it is humans that they are fighting.
August 7, 2020
See the galaxy's battle through a heroine's eyes
As an avid reader of the Galaxy's Edge series, I've pondered whether or not The Legion would ever be placed, politically, into a situation of 'wokeness' like real life militaries have been. I've long understood the stance that Anspach and Cole have made regarding The Legion being the most grueling (physically and mentally) branch of military in their book world; that while there were good men able and willing to face the toughest moments of warfare, they should. In real life I imagine they feel strongly that women shouldn't be expected to be the tip of the spear, the elite special forces, or placed into the hell that is up-close, dirty, warfare that breaks a human down; that brave, dutiful men would - perhaps should - stand up and take that role and burden. This story is about a Republic Marine who is on her way up in a career where she has pushed herself beyond expectation and continually thinks, not of glory, about being better to save the Marines she commands. The House of Reason wants The Legion to be more progressive and inclusive, in spite of the unexpected consequences and potentially serious complications so that the politicos can be viewed in a more modern light. Dini Broxin, daughter of a former Legionnaire, wants nothing more than to offer the best service possible, with honor and diligence to duty. Her invitation to enter Legion training wasn't a request she made. Helping a group of Dark Ops Leejs and the Iron Wolves defend the Marine firebase, however, presents a difficult decision for a very intelligent, well-trained soldier; should she leave the duty she is already doing well at the risk of becoming broken and scarred by the operational intensity expected of Legionnaires or can she remain with the Marines and still serve the Republic in protecting it from a rising insurgency (the Mid Core Rebellion, or MCR) while forgetting nothing her father, training, and her experience have already given her? Glad to read a GE book from the perspective of a female protagonist and very much enjoyed high detail given related to military action written in this story. It was a very well-paced story I was sad to finish so quickly as I was drawn into the characters and events taking place but looking forward to seeing where this heroine may end up has me in anxious anticipation. Great job to bring Michelle Meyers into the GE world because she nailed it. Admittedly my second-favorite book in the entire series, including the side series, stand-alones, and season books (1 and 2). Just. Awesome.
As an avid reader of the Galaxy's Edge series, I've pondered whether or not The Legion would ever be placed, politically, into a situation of 'wokeness' like real life militaries have been. I've long understood the stance that Anspach and Cole have made regarding The Legion being the most grueling (physically and mentally) branch of military in their book world; that while there were good men able and willing to face the toughest moments of warfare, they should. In real life I imagine they feel strongly that women shouldn't be expected to be the tip of the spear, the elite special forces, or placed into the hell that is up-close, dirty, warfare that breaks a human down; that brave, dutiful men would - perhaps should - stand up and take that role and burden. This story is about a Republic Marine who is on her way up in a career where she has pushed herself beyond expectation and continually thinks, not of glory, about being better to save the Marines she commands. The House of Reason wants The Legion to be more progressive and inclusive, in spite of the unexpected consequences and potentially serious complications so that the politicos can be viewed in a more modern light. Dini Broxin, daughter of a former Legionnaire, wants nothing more than to offer the best service possible, with honor and diligence to duty. Her invitation to enter Legion training wasn't a request she made. Helping a group of Dark Ops Leejs and the Iron Wolves defend the Marine firebase, however, presents a difficult decision for a very intelligent, well-trained soldier; should she leave the duty she is already doing well at the risk of becoming broken and scarred by the operational intensity expected of Legionnaires or can she remain with the Marines and still serve the Republic in protecting it from a rising insurgency (the Mid Core Rebellion, or MCR) while forgetting nothing her father, training, and her experience have already given her? Glad to read a GE book from the perspective of a female protagonist and very much enjoyed high detail given related to military action written in this story. It was a very well-paced story I was sad to finish so quickly as I was drawn into the characters and events taking place but looking forward to seeing where this heroine may end up has me in anxious anticipation. Great job to bring Michelle Meyers into the GE world because she nailed it. Admittedly my second-favorite book in the entire series, including the side series, stand-alones, and season books (1 and 2). Just. Awesome.
June 14, 2020
Daily life and grind in the Republic marines takes a deadly turn when the battle hits home. The story concentrates on the story of one female marine Major Broxin, with lots of detailed ground fighting in a galactic universe. She's tough and dedicated, which opens up a new career path for her with the elite special forces, known as the Legionnaires.
This was a free audible this month, so thought I'd give it a try. It's a well written starter story to try out the Galaxy's Edge Universe, which I would be sure to continue with, if I was more inclined to read military sci fi.
Warning on the audible: I love Kristine Hvam's narration skills with the Jane Yellowrock series. I think she did a good job on this audio also in relating the no nonsense character of Major Broxin, with the exception of mispronouncing corpsman. So take in consideration before going with the audio version.
This was a free audible this month, so thought I'd give it a try. It's a well written starter story to try out the Galaxy's Edge Universe, which I would be sure to continue with, if I was more inclined to read military sci fi.
Warning on the audible: I love Kristine Hvam's narration skills with the Jane Yellowrock series. I think she did a good job on this audio also in relating the no nonsense character of Major Broxin, with the exception of mispronouncing corpsman. So take in consideration before going with the audio version.
June 11, 2020
I decided to give this and the series Galaxy's Edge another try, having read the first book The Legionnaire, and its prequel, Tin Man, despite at the time having decided that MilScifi, especially that which involved a ground based war, isn't really my thing. Up until now, I've never really looked back... but hey, this book was offered up free from Audible for the month of June, soooooo...
So I grabbed it, and surprisingly, Jason and Michelle C Meyers managed to pull off a good ending, and even though there was boku ground fighting, they got me to give 'em a thumbs up inspite of myself!
Oh yeah, I really need to mention that I loved Khristine Hvam's narration! Great job overall, by everybody involved!😊
So I grabbed it, and surprisingly, Jason and Michelle C Meyers managed to pull off a good ending, and even though there was boku ground fighting, they got me to give 'em a thumbs up inspite of myself!
Oh yeah, I really need to mention that I loved Khristine Hvam's narration! Great job overall, by everybody involved!😊
June 25, 2020
I have problems with it coming from a former US colony and understanding of history. It was an audible original and free so i gave it a shot. I didn't know it was a Scifi retelling of Iraq Occupation and the biases of the time. It felt more like the past than the present.
The Factions like the House of Reason and the mindset is quiet interesting because it plays out the biases of the time and doesnt deal with the emergence of divergent perspectives. It plays heavily on the stereotype and the heroine is really more of a man - than a woman. The problem people have voiced about Honor Harrington.
The Factions like the House of Reason and the mindset is quiet interesting because it plays out the biases of the time and doesnt deal with the emergence of divergent perspectives. It plays heavily on the stereotype and the heroine is really more of a man - than a woman. The problem people have voiced about Honor Harrington.
August 26, 2021
This is a prequel novella for the Galaxy's Edge series. I would rate it a 3.5. No real flaws in the writing and the story was somewhat interesting. The main character's impression of the Legionnaires was intriguing.
Since I have not had the pleasure of reading the series yet, I was not a harsh critique and don't think it would have been of value to rate lower. I was just in the mood for some more space warfare after finishing book 4 of the Beyond the Frontier series by Jack Campbell and this is what was already in my audible library. It hit the spot and has interested in the series.
Since I have not had the pleasure of reading the series yet, I was not a harsh critique and don't think it would have been of value to rate lower. I was just in the mood for some more space warfare after finishing book 4 of the Beyond the Frontier series by Jack Campbell and this is what was already in my audible library. It hit the spot and has interested in the series.
June 12, 2020
This was very interesting and I very much enjoyed it, but then it just...stopped. It was like a few chapters out of a larger book. If you are going to do such a short book, you have to develop things quicker and give some resolution.
Read
November 9, 2020rating this DNF for now. I normally love this style of book but I couldn't get into this one... so going to shelve it again for now.
November 9, 2020
This was a pretty good science fiction audiobook with a strong, female lead. I was pleasantly surprised how into the story I was.
June 8, 2020
Call it a 4.5. A good tale. It sounds exactly what a story about today's armed conflicts and politics would sound like if told from a deployed marine's perspective, which is what I suspect this is. Think a grunt outpost in the middle of a strange land, politicians that meddle when they shouldn't, and an insurgent foe. Put all of that on a distant planet and there you have it. That said, it is enjoyable. I would tag with Andien anywhere in the galaxy. Hoorah!
March 11, 2021
Forget Nothing by Michelle C. Meyers and Jason Anspach tells the backstory of Andien Broxin, a character introduced in in the very first Galaxy’s Edge novel, Legionnaire. This book has military geekery, desperate firefights, and dirty politics. You absolutely do not need to have to read all of the rest of the now extensive Galaxy’s Edge universe to enjoy what is going on here, but there are treasures hidden here for those who have. I loved it. If you are interested in military science fiction, you should check it out.
In Forget Nothing, Andien is a Marine officer who is going places. She is good at what she does, and has checked all the right boxes in her military career. Her only regret is getting promoted out of leading Marines in the field. Or it was, until she saw the Legion in action during her latest deployment.
Like many women who choose to enter male-dominated fields, Andien is following in the steps of her father, a Legionnaire and a veteran of Psydon, the Galaxy’s Edge equivalent of Vietnam. In principle, her father’s stories and her own service should have prepared her for what she sees when her Marines support a Dark Ops team, the best of the best in the Legion. But it did not.
The Dark Ops team deals out death and destruction at least equivalent to the company of Marines Andien was responsible for. And honestly better. For someone as driven and competent as Andien, that makes an impression. Andien is used to comparing herself to the Republic Marines that she leads, but the standards of the Legion mean that Legionnaires are on another level entirely. And while the Republic Army and Navy are gender-neutral, the Legion very much is not.
As is the way with Galaxy’s Edge, this book is as much about our world as the fictional one. The Legion is heavily based on the 75th Ranger Regiment. The Rangers are elite soldiers within the US military, and the gateway to it is RASP, the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program. Only a relative handful of women have completed it since it became possible for women to apply for it. If I had to guess, book 2 will be Andien’s time in RASP, I mean Legionnaire training.
Andien’s experiences as a Marine are of course not mine, being neither a woman nor a veteran, but what I read reminds me very much of things I have heard from women who are veterans, especially those of the post 9/11 era, when the theoretical prohibition on women in combat began to break down in practice long before policy changed. Andien sounds like women I have met.
Perhaps one of the funniest things I read when I perused comments on this book were complaints that Andien was portrayed as masculine. Well, yes, women who like activities that mostly appeal to men often have at least some aspects of their personality that are pretty masculine. You see this in super competitive sports and among high-intensity workout enthusiasts too, which is a world that increasingly overlaps with the US military. We get a pretty heavy dose of workout pr0n in Forget Nothing, which is another note in favor of its verisimilitude. I find Andien a believable character because I think I’ve met her.
I find that my idea of a well-written character is someone who seems like a real person to me, who reacts in the way that a person with that collection of traits and wants would react in a given situation. This seems to differ from what other people mean when they use that phrase. If it seems like military characters in books are often similar, I think that is because the military attracts specific kinds of people, and the experiences you have in the military push your personality in specific directions. A job well done is is when you vividly illustrate the walking collections of stereotypes that people are.
I also find the interplay between Andien and her father interesting. Andien’s father likely pushed her into the military, in both subtle and not-so-subtle ways. He did this because he loves her and he loves the military, but doing such a thing is not without regret, as the global war on terror style military that Galaxy’s Edge is based on is intensely destructive of mind and body both, quite aside from the risk of getting shot or blown up. Just trying out for the Legion could destroy Andien’s body, as women are built less robustly than men. Thus, her father is both intensely proud and horrified at what could happen.
I don’t think Galaxy’s Edge gets enough credit for telling interesting adventure stories while still providing a vehicle for authors to speculate about our world. But now I’ve done my part to make it more clear. I think this is a fine book of its style, and I enjoyed it, even as it gives me interesting things to ponder.
I did not receive an advanced readers copy of Forget Nothing. I bought it fair and square with my own money.
In Forget Nothing, Andien is a Marine officer who is going places. She is good at what she does, and has checked all the right boxes in her military career. Her only regret is getting promoted out of leading Marines in the field. Or it was, until she saw the Legion in action during her latest deployment.
Like many women who choose to enter male-dominated fields, Andien is following in the steps of her father, a Legionnaire and a veteran of Psydon, the Galaxy’s Edge equivalent of Vietnam. In principle, her father’s stories and her own service should have prepared her for what she sees when her Marines support a Dark Ops team, the best of the best in the Legion. But it did not.
The Dark Ops team deals out death and destruction at least equivalent to the company of Marines Andien was responsible for. And honestly better. For someone as driven and competent as Andien, that makes an impression. Andien is used to comparing herself to the Republic Marines that she leads, but the standards of the Legion mean that Legionnaires are on another level entirely. And while the Republic Army and Navy are gender-neutral, the Legion very much is not.
As is the way with Galaxy’s Edge, this book is as much about our world as the fictional one. The Legion is heavily based on the 75th Ranger Regiment. The Rangers are elite soldiers within the US military, and the gateway to it is RASP, the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program. Only a relative handful of women have completed it since it became possible for women to apply for it. If I had to guess, book 2 will be Andien’s time in RASP, I mean Legionnaire training.
Andien’s experiences as a Marine are of course not mine, being neither a woman nor a veteran, but what I read reminds me very much of things I have heard from women who are veterans, especially those of the post 9/11 era, when the theoretical prohibition on women in combat began to break down in practice long before policy changed. Andien sounds like women I have met.
Perhaps one of the funniest things I read when I perused comments on this book were complaints that Andien was portrayed as masculine. Well, yes, women who like activities that mostly appeal to men often have at least some aspects of their personality that are pretty masculine. You see this in super competitive sports and among high-intensity workout enthusiasts too, which is a world that increasingly overlaps with the US military. We get a pretty heavy dose of workout pr0n in Forget Nothing, which is another note in favor of its verisimilitude. I find Andien a believable character because I think I’ve met her.
I find that my idea of a well-written character is someone who seems like a real person to me, who reacts in the way that a person with that collection of traits and wants would react in a given situation. This seems to differ from what other people mean when they use that phrase. If it seems like military characters in books are often similar, I think that is because the military attracts specific kinds of people, and the experiences you have in the military push your personality in specific directions. A job well done is is when you vividly illustrate the walking collections of stereotypes that people are.
I also find the interplay between Andien and her father interesting. Andien’s father likely pushed her into the military, in both subtle and not-so-subtle ways. He did this because he loves her and he loves the military, but doing such a thing is not without regret, as the global war on terror style military that Galaxy’s Edge is based on is intensely destructive of mind and body both, quite aside from the risk of getting shot or blown up. Just trying out for the Legion could destroy Andien’s body, as women are built less robustly than men. Thus, her father is both intensely proud and horrified at what could happen.
I don’t think Galaxy’s Edge gets enough credit for telling interesting adventure stories while still providing a vehicle for authors to speculate about our world. But now I’ve done my part to make it more clear. I think this is a fine book of its style, and I enjoyed it, even as it gives me interesting things to ponder.
I did not receive an advanced readers copy of Forget Nothing. I bought it fair and square with my own money.
August 18, 2021
Pretty good for military science fiction, though there is little character development and no real overlying story. But I guess that’s sort or what you get when a book sort of works as an advertisement for the series that you can listen to without extra cost on your audible subscription.
On one hand it’s a little generic, but it’s also very well written and never boring. It’s a really good teaser for the universe and the actual combat bits are better than most military fiction.
I think my one issue is that the female protagonist sort of falls into the category of men writing women though maybe it’s women writing men? Don’t get me wrong, she is a bad ass character and I actually don’t think it’s ever described how she looks, but every time the character reflects herself or women in general in the men around her it’s always about sex. It doesn’t ruin the book by any means, but it’s basically in every single out of combat description of the men around her.
On one hand it’s a little generic, but it’s also very well written and never boring. It’s a really good teaser for the universe and the actual combat bits are better than most military fiction.
I think my one issue is that the female protagonist sort of falls into the category of men writing women though maybe it’s women writing men? Don’t get me wrong, she is a bad ass character and I actually don’t think it’s ever described how she looks, but every time the character reflects herself or women in general in the men around her it’s always about sex. It doesn’t ruin the book by any means, but it’s basically in every single out of combat description of the men around her.
September 18, 2020
Lots of the standard military sci-fi themes and clichés, but still a fun, short listen. Khristine Hvam does well with the narration of the audiobook.
July 31, 2020
Series Info/Source: I got this as a free Audible Originals audiobook through my Audible membership. This story takes place in the Galaxy’s Edge universe which I am not familiar with.
Audiobook Quality (4/5): The narration for this audiobook was fine. It was easy to listen to and I didn’t have any complaints.
Story (3/5): This was okay. This is basically a prequel explaining to the reader how Andien got into Legionnaire training as a woman (women are just newly being allowed into that training). It's very GI Jane, Andi is super badass and always "almost" able to upstage the Legionnaire men. This is a very predictable story interspersed with a lot of "deep" thinking from our heroine about her place in humanity and the good soldiers can do. These thoughtful meanderings are interrupted by sudden attacks and intense action scenes.
Characters (2/5): Andi is a bit too rah-rah for me and the other characters are pretty stereotypical. Of course Andi has an ex-military father and of course, most of the other military men try to turn Andi into some fantasy object. This is okay though because Andi is just one of the guys and expects this. As I said, typical male written military fantasy. There are strong female characters but this is undercut by the idea that it’s okay for the guys to mock them, expect them to work harder, or fantasize about them.
Setting (3/5): The setting is on an alien planet that we never learn a lot about. It seems fairly Earth-like although the denizens have a somewhat avian look to them. There is quite a bit of info dumping and sci-fi terminology thrown at the reader, but it wasn't too bad. It's written as an intro to this world so I never felt lost. However, I never really felt like I could quite picture this world either.
Writing/Drawing Style (3/5): This was a pretty typical military sci-fi. I felt like it was very predictable and the transitions between character story and action scenes were really choppy. There was also a pattern here, we’d get some character development and Andi would feel sentimental and then an attack would happen...then repeat that pattern over and over.
My Summary (3/5): Overall this is exactly what I would have expected of a military sci-fi and is the reason I am not a big fan of the genre. Characters are over-characterized, the story is predictable, huge infodump on the world and sci-fi terms, and male-centric attitude towards women. I personally won't be picking up more of this series because of these issues.
Audiobook Quality (4/5): The narration for this audiobook was fine. It was easy to listen to and I didn’t have any complaints.
Story (3/5): This was okay. This is basically a prequel explaining to the reader how Andien got into Legionnaire training as a woman (women are just newly being allowed into that training). It's very GI Jane, Andi is super badass and always "almost" able to upstage the Legionnaire men. This is a very predictable story interspersed with a lot of "deep" thinking from our heroine about her place in humanity and the good soldiers can do. These thoughtful meanderings are interrupted by sudden attacks and intense action scenes.
Characters (2/5): Andi is a bit too rah-rah for me and the other characters are pretty stereotypical. Of course Andi has an ex-military father and of course, most of the other military men try to turn Andi into some fantasy object. This is okay though because Andi is just one of the guys and expects this. As I said, typical male written military fantasy. There are strong female characters but this is undercut by the idea that it’s okay for the guys to mock them, expect them to work harder, or fantasize about them.
Setting (3/5): The setting is on an alien planet that we never learn a lot about. It seems fairly Earth-like although the denizens have a somewhat avian look to them. There is quite a bit of info dumping and sci-fi terminology thrown at the reader, but it wasn't too bad. It's written as an intro to this world so I never felt lost. However, I never really felt like I could quite picture this world either.
Writing/Drawing Style (3/5): This was a pretty typical military sci-fi. I felt like it was very predictable and the transitions between character story and action scenes were really choppy. There was also a pattern here, we’d get some character development and Andi would feel sentimental and then an attack would happen...then repeat that pattern over and over.
My Summary (3/5): Overall this is exactly what I would have expected of a military sci-fi and is the reason I am not a big fan of the genre. Characters are over-characterized, the story is predictable, huge infodump on the world and sci-fi terms, and male-centric attitude towards women. I personally won't be picking up more of this series because of these issues.
July 22, 2020
This was an audiobook which I choose with my Audible membership. I enjoyed listening to it. The voice artist is fantastic. I had issues with the story. I had not previously been introduced to the Galaxy Edge world and it is clearly well created though male dominated. It was a good war story with a woman hero. This story was clearly written by a man. The problems with the story line included there was no attempt to tell what a woman commander could bring to the team. The hero could have been any underrepresented or marginalized group. I wonder if Anspach was forced to include a woman lead like the Legionaires in the book were forced to add woman soldiers. I felt it was very flat and disappointing story of breaking barriers. There was comments about sex and marines leaving because they got pregnant. Yikes! No birth control?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 14, 2021
This is a quick and entertaining novel about a highly capable officer having to decide if she will remain with her beloved marines or accept an opportunity to join the legion—the elite human military force in the galaxy. It’s real purpose is apparently to give backstory to two characters in the Galaxy’s Edge series. I haven’t read that series yet, but the story still worked for me.
July 22, 2020
**As per all of my reviews, I like to preface by saying that I listened to this book in audiobook format. This does indeed slightly skew my rating. I have found that audiobooks, give me a better "relationship" with the characters if done well, but also kills the book for me if narrated poorly. Also due to the nature of listening to the text, names and places may be spelled incorrectly here as I often do not have the physical volume in front of me.
Also, I have written this review in a "rolling updates" style. In that I basically chronicle my reading as I progress. This may make for a jarring and spoilery review so be warned.**
So...this is one of Audible's free books that you get as a subscriber. It's 4 hours and it's actually part of a larger science fiction military story series called "Galaxy's Edge". (Sound familiar Star Wars fans?) Boy...um... hope first let me say that this book's dialogue is well done....? There's nothing in this book that makes me want to ever explore what the Galaxy's Edge series is. I think the highlight of this book comes in the form of a political budget hearing where they're talking about letting other races into the 'marines' and how it would be morally a good decision, but strategically, practically not so much... umm yea, this book is just as generic as a science fiction combat book as you can find. A cliche group of marines on a cliche remote planet, fighting a cliche group of rebels. I didn't care what was happening, it offered nothing different that makes me want to explore this series any further. It's dime a dozen sci fi, big tanks, guns, outnumbered troops, and really just feels like they're trying to be Warhammer 40k and Starship trooeprs wrapped into a hilariously thin veil. The characters who have no interest or caring about all perform stereotypical combat roles, all saying the proper generic military things. "Gunny's down, covering fire..."
This book, if supposed to be an entry way into this Galaxy's Edge series does a piss poor job in separating itself from the must generic and tired guns and glory story. If you like hearing random words about guns, and blowing stuff up and the military lifestyle..sure...go for it...
Alright, so I still stand by everything I've said above...*but* I will admit there is a tiny sliver of extra to the narrative here...They do seem to make a thin attempt at atleast broaching the subject of fair rights to men/women and other races. The "legion" as it were was all men and supposedly the elite most bad ass people in the galaxy. I do like how it's described that the normal rank and file marines, train in the gym and look at girls, talk to each other, joke around, and BS. But the Legions training regime is dedicated self punishment. They're in tune with their own bodies over any woman's who would come in.
So the 'social stratification' of the corps is kinda cool I'll admit...but that's about it, everything else here is pretty dull. I have no idea who they're fighting, they don't make any effort to build up interest as to what and why they're being attacked, just hoping that showing military actions and cliche 'out numbered' scenarios is good enough to satiate the power hungry war gamers this is targeted towards.
There is what is supposed to be a touching emotional scene between her and her father who is frantic about hearing of this battle that she's in, and she comes home and they share in the 'joy' of her becoming some elite killer military unit....
Yea there isn't much that this book leaves in wanting me to return to the series. There is no sense of actual narrative as to what the world is, and frankly doesn't do anything to make me care. This book will satisfy if you like to see explosions and hear cool military battles with surface level depth.
Also, I have written this review in a "rolling updates" style. In that I basically chronicle my reading as I progress. This may make for a jarring and spoilery review so be warned.**
So...this is one of Audible's free books that you get as a subscriber. It's 4 hours and it's actually part of a larger science fiction military story series called "Galaxy's Edge". (Sound familiar Star Wars fans?) Boy...um... hope first let me say that this book's dialogue is well done....? There's nothing in this book that makes me want to ever explore what the Galaxy's Edge series is. I think the highlight of this book comes in the form of a political budget hearing where they're talking about letting other races into the 'marines' and how it would be morally a good decision, but strategically, practically not so much... umm yea, this book is just as generic as a science fiction combat book as you can find. A cliche group of marines on a cliche remote planet, fighting a cliche group of rebels. I didn't care what was happening, it offered nothing different that makes me want to explore this series any further. It's dime a dozen sci fi, big tanks, guns, outnumbered troops, and really just feels like they're trying to be Warhammer 40k and Starship trooeprs wrapped into a hilariously thin veil. The characters who have no interest or caring about all perform stereotypical combat roles, all saying the proper generic military things. "Gunny's down, covering fire..."
This book, if supposed to be an entry way into this Galaxy's Edge series does a piss poor job in separating itself from the must generic and tired guns and glory story. If you like hearing random words about guns, and blowing stuff up and the military lifestyle..sure...go for it...
Alright, so I still stand by everything I've said above...*but* I will admit there is a tiny sliver of extra to the narrative here...They do seem to make a thin attempt at atleast broaching the subject of fair rights to men/women and other races. The "legion" as it were was all men and supposedly the elite most bad ass people in the galaxy. I do like how it's described that the normal rank and file marines, train in the gym and look at girls, talk to each other, joke around, and BS. But the Legions training regime is dedicated self punishment. They're in tune with their own bodies over any woman's who would come in.
So the 'social stratification' of the corps is kinda cool I'll admit...but that's about it, everything else here is pretty dull. I have no idea who they're fighting, they don't make any effort to build up interest as to what and why they're being attacked, just hoping that showing military actions and cliche 'out numbered' scenarios is good enough to satiate the power hungry war gamers this is targeted towards.
There is what is supposed to be a touching emotional scene between her and her father who is frantic about hearing of this battle that she's in, and she comes home and they share in the 'joy' of her becoming some elite killer military unit....
Yea there isn't much that this book leaves in wanting me to return to the series. There is no sense of actual narrative as to what the world is, and frankly doesn't do anything to make me care. This book will satisfy if you like to see explosions and hear cool military battles with surface level depth.
April 27, 2022
I was optimistic about this book at first. It started off strong with some interesting thoughts and scenes, but didn't pay off at all. I think with some restructuring and some more emphasis on worldbuilding, this could have been much more engaging. As it is though, we get a lot of haphazard details and the plot is weak with relatively uninteresting characters. The narrator is fine, but there is barely any development. I think the book does effectively portray a sexist environment for the narrator, showing how she changes her routine because of this and is generally uninterested in interacting with the other soldiers because she doesn’t want them to get the wrong idea. We learn some interesting things about the other species, but we’re pretty much just dealing with humans or bots that humans have the entire time. Luckily this is a pretty quick read, so I was able to get through it quickly.
**SPOILERS**
The casual/passive worldbuilding is generally effective, except for some reason a lot of the important things that should probably be explained are not. The Rebels exist, but we're not given any particular reason or debate about their existence. Then there's the mysterious and elite Legion which is human-only and also male-only because of a thousand-year tradition that gets mentioned one time and is not expanded on at all. Also there are the Dark Ops which are the even more mysterious and elite legionnaires which Andien interacts with a lot because their leader takes an interest in her because she ran with them one time at the beginning of the book. But she's not allowed to join the Legionnaires because she’s a woman. BUT WAIT there was a diplomatic meeting and now women (but only human women) are allowed to join. Andien seems supremely uninterested in applying, but gets accepted anyways because some anonymous person submitted her application. I think it would have been a lot more interesting if she decided to submit the application herself given how she comes to her decision at the end of the book to go.
There are also a couple scenes or details that feel pointless to me? Like when Andeine makes the marines at the watchposts plank because they were being irresponsible. Maybe this is to illustrate how bored and secure they've come to feel, but it just felt out of place and unnecessarily long-windedly described. Also her Silvene Star recommendation - it is mentioned a couple times, but it is treated as pretty much irrelevant even though both Andien and her dad talk about it as a big thing.
Overall the whole thing just felt a bit lackluster and didn’t get me interested in the rest of the series. I think there is untapped potential that is maybe explored more in the other books, but as of now I don’t have a particular desire to find out.
**SPOILERS**
The casual/passive worldbuilding is generally effective, except for some reason a lot of the important things that should probably be explained are not. The Rebels exist, but we're not given any particular reason or debate about their existence. Then there's the mysterious and elite Legion which is human-only and also male-only because of a thousand-year tradition that gets mentioned one time and is not expanded on at all. Also there are the Dark Ops which are the even more mysterious and elite legionnaires which Andien interacts with a lot because their leader takes an interest in her because she ran with them one time at the beginning of the book. But she's not allowed to join the Legionnaires because she’s a woman. BUT WAIT there was a diplomatic meeting and now women (but only human women) are allowed to join. Andien seems supremely uninterested in applying, but gets accepted anyways because some anonymous person submitted her application. I think it would have been a lot more interesting if she decided to submit the application herself given how she comes to her decision at the end of the book to go.
There are also a couple scenes or details that feel pointless to me? Like when Andeine makes the marines at the watchposts plank because they were being irresponsible. Maybe this is to illustrate how bored and secure they've come to feel, but it just felt out of place and unnecessarily long-windedly described. Also her Silvene Star recommendation - it is mentioned a couple times, but it is treated as pretty much irrelevant even though both Andien and her dad talk about it as a big thing.
Overall the whole thing just felt a bit lackluster and didn’t get me interested in the rest of the series. I think there is untapped potential that is maybe explored more in the other books, but as of now I don’t have a particular desire to find out.
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