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Halo #34
Halo: Outcasts
An original novel set in the Halo universe—based on the New York Times bestselling video game series!
2559. Formerly one of the Covenant’s greatest and most fearsome warriors, Arbiter Thel ‘Vadam is now allied with his former human enemies while deeply entrenched in leading the Sangheili people to a new era of unification. But his aspirations are under constant threat, whether by the dangerous, warring factions of rival Sangheili keeps, or the relentless shadow of oppression spread by the renegade artificial intelligence Cortana.
An opportunity to break Cortana’s chains has suddenly presented itself through the rumored existence of an ancient artifact located on the hostile world of Netherop. Spartan Olympia Vale, trained with the skills to live and thrive among the Sangheili, also recognizes this alien prize as an essential means to aid humanity in reaching the same goal of freedom. But behind the scenes, both ‘Vadam and Vale are being manipulated by a mysterious figure with their own agenda. And to make matters worse, all involved are unknowingly placing themselves at perilous odds with forces beyond their comprehension…
2559. Formerly one of the Covenant’s greatest and most fearsome warriors, Arbiter Thel ‘Vadam is now allied with his former human enemies while deeply entrenched in leading the Sangheili people to a new era of unification. But his aspirations are under constant threat, whether by the dangerous, warring factions of rival Sangheili keeps, or the relentless shadow of oppression spread by the renegade artificial intelligence Cortana.
An opportunity to break Cortana’s chains has suddenly presented itself through the rumored existence of an ancient artifact located on the hostile world of Netherop. Spartan Olympia Vale, trained with the skills to live and thrive among the Sangheili, also recognizes this alien prize as an essential means to aid humanity in reaching the same goal of freedom. But behind the scenes, both ‘Vadam and Vale are being manipulated by a mysterious figure with their own agenda. And to make matters worse, all involved are unknowingly placing themselves at perilous odds with forces beyond their comprehension…
384 pages, Paperback
First published August 8, 2023
65 people are currently reading
649 people want to read
About the author
Troy Denning
186 books669 followersAlso known as Richard Awlinson.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Den...
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Den...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
September 2, 2023
I read the paperback of this, but cannot find that version on Goodreads for some reason.
This was great. It's very disappointing that 343 does not make better use of Arbiter. The fact that he hasn't had his own spinoff game yet should be considered a crime
This was great. It's very disappointing that 343 does not make better use of Arbiter. The fact that he hasn't had his own spinoff game yet should be considered a crime
November 3, 2023
So disappointing that Halo fiction has reached this state of stagnation. Denning and Kelly Gay, while talented writers, have such a similar writing style that every book that comes out lately feels like the same exposition-heavy and stale story dressed up in a different skin.
I used to come to Halo novels to extend my understanding of the mythos and learn more about the timeline but lately it just feels like all the stories are inconsequential, teasing another huge plot point that ultimately is never raised again. Some better stories told by more expressive writers are needed in this space.
I used to come to Halo novels to extend my understanding of the mythos and learn more about the timeline but lately it just feels like all the stories are inconsequential, teasing another huge plot point that ultimately is never raised again. Some better stories told by more expressive writers are needed in this space.
August 24, 2023
Halo: Outcasts By Troy Denning, is a media tie-in novel based on the Halo video game franchise.
Set in 2559, a year after the rouge AI Cortana betrayed the Master Chief and the UNSC, and used the Forerunner constructs known as Guardians to impose marital law on key interstellar civilizations across the galaxy. During this chaotic time various factions throughout the galaxy try to resist Cortana’s rule anyway they can. When Arbiter Thel ‘Vadam and Spartan Olympia Vale see an opportunity to turn the tide by chasing a rumored ancient weapon, they begin a race both with and against allies, discovering a plot of intrigue and danger and a new threat to them all.
Author Troy Denning is no stranger to the Halo Universe. Outcasts is the seventh book he has written for the Halo franchise, along with a short story in Halo: Fractures. Although Halo: Outcasts indeed expounds on characters and locations that Denning has explored in previous novels, this is a standalone story that is designed to be easy for any fan to pick up and engage with even if they haven’t read prior Halo books.
As Outcasts begins, Cortana’s tyranny hangs over everything. To even speak of fighting back is dangerous, as her eyes and ears are everywhere. The Arbiter is driven by the desire to create a better world for Sanghelios, and when he learns of an artifact that might help them break free of Cortana’s oppression, it is too much to pass up. Separately, Thel ‘Vadam and Spartan Vale travel to the mysterious planet Netherop in search of the artifact. They are not only in a race against each other they must reach Netherop without Cortana and her Created realizing what they are doing. Over the course of the journey, they face both new threats and a reckoning of their past.
The planet Netherop is a location that Troy Denning is highly familiar with, and it is very fitting that he continues the planet’s lore in a story that unites what came before and what will come next. The secrets of the location take center stage throughout the novel, and the planet itself is essentially a character in the story. As the cast of characters nears the artifact, the danger grows. Both Olympia Vale and Thel ‘Vadam must decide who to trust and who the greater enemies are. As two characters who have been outcasts themselves, they must each acknowledge the past while fighting for the future.
The dynamic between Vale and The Arbiter is fantastic in Outcasts. Troy Denning knows the Halo characters well, and it is apparent throughout the novel. The two have a history together, and since Vale is stationed on Sanghelios, they must work together in the post-war era. While there is trust and respect between the two, they each know they will have competing motives when pursuing the artifact.
The artifact isn’t the only revelation The Arbiter and Vale experience along the way in Halo: Outcasts. When they encounter Rosa Fuentes and Petrov, they are reminded that the peace they have achieved is fragile at best. For characters like Rosa Fuentes, whose life changed on Netherop years ago, and Amalea Petrov, who physically and emotionally never could leave the battlefield, the conflict and hatred rage on. Vale and Thel “Vadam must contend with these characters who are still trying to fight the last war while trying to find a way to overcome the current oppression from Cortana.
That element is the best part of Troy Denning’s storytelling in Halo: Outcasts. The story in Outcasts is so game-changing that it could alter the future of Halo storytelling in a colossal way. It’s important to note that 343 has already squashed rumors that that would be the case, but there will undoubtedly be a shift in the future of Halo narratives due to Halo: Outcasts. A new evil is revealed in the book’s third act, and it is something that The Arbiter, Vale, the UNSC, and everyone else will have to contend with in the future.
I’m a sucker for excellent character development and dialogue inside a layered narrative with some intrigue when reading a novel. Troy Denning as he typically does delivers in a big way with Halo: Outcasts. He is the perfect author for this story and these characters. The formula is simple: take established characters like Vale and The Arbiter, insert a planet that we’ve seen before but still holds mystery, and expand on stories we’ve seen in other novels, notably Halo: Oblivion. Denning has both the experience and skill to do these elements justice. In Outcasts, he is in his element, and it shows with a beautiful narrative.
As outcasts, both The Arbiter and Vale seek their own form of redemption and a way forward. That narrative isn’t exclusive to them, though. Rosa Fuentes carries long-held animosity and guilt from her actions on Netherop, which drives her motivations here. Commander Amalea Petrov has been abandoned on Netherop for years with her troops, some of whom have never known anywhere else. They are reluctant to move on from the war and hatred that has consumed them. These threads weave together to create a fascinating problem for our heroes, and they raise the stakes as they pursue the artifact.
A new evil is manipulating Vale and The Arbiter throughout Halo: Outcasts. It’s this element of the story where Denning opens the doors to new possibilities. Cortana is a fascinating villain—especially as AI increasingly surges into our lives in 2023. However, a new threat acting in a sort of puppet master capacity provides so many possibilities. When I finished the story, I was excited about the possible directions Halo expanded universe could go after Halo: Outcasts.
There are over 30 Halo novels at this point, so it can be intimidating for someone new to the books. The best thing about Halo: Outcasts is that it’s written as much for someone brand-new to the books as it is a hardcore fan. Denning is a great Halo author, as he has much love for the lore and the characters within it. For seasoned fans who have read all the novels, Halo: Outcasts will be a really rewarding experience.
Ultimately, it’s a must-read novel for Halo fans. It’s one of the best Halo books and more than just a fun adventure. It paves the way forward for a storied franchise.
Set in 2559, a year after the rouge AI Cortana betrayed the Master Chief and the UNSC, and used the Forerunner constructs known as Guardians to impose marital law on key interstellar civilizations across the galaxy. During this chaotic time various factions throughout the galaxy try to resist Cortana’s rule anyway they can. When Arbiter Thel ‘Vadam and Spartan Olympia Vale see an opportunity to turn the tide by chasing a rumored ancient weapon, they begin a race both with and against allies, discovering a plot of intrigue and danger and a new threat to them all.
Author Troy Denning is no stranger to the Halo Universe. Outcasts is the seventh book he has written for the Halo franchise, along with a short story in Halo: Fractures. Although Halo: Outcasts indeed expounds on characters and locations that Denning has explored in previous novels, this is a standalone story that is designed to be easy for any fan to pick up and engage with even if they haven’t read prior Halo books.
As Outcasts begins, Cortana’s tyranny hangs over everything. To even speak of fighting back is dangerous, as her eyes and ears are everywhere. The Arbiter is driven by the desire to create a better world for Sanghelios, and when he learns of an artifact that might help them break free of Cortana’s oppression, it is too much to pass up. Separately, Thel ‘Vadam and Spartan Vale travel to the mysterious planet Netherop in search of the artifact. They are not only in a race against each other they must reach Netherop without Cortana and her Created realizing what they are doing. Over the course of the journey, they face both new threats and a reckoning of their past.
The planet Netherop is a location that Troy Denning is highly familiar with, and it is very fitting that he continues the planet’s lore in a story that unites what came before and what will come next. The secrets of the location take center stage throughout the novel, and the planet itself is essentially a character in the story. As the cast of characters nears the artifact, the danger grows. Both Olympia Vale and Thel ‘Vadam must decide who to trust and who the greater enemies are. As two characters who have been outcasts themselves, they must each acknowledge the past while fighting for the future.
The dynamic between Vale and The Arbiter is fantastic in Outcasts. Troy Denning knows the Halo characters well, and it is apparent throughout the novel. The two have a history together, and since Vale is stationed on Sanghelios, they must work together in the post-war era. While there is trust and respect between the two, they each know they will have competing motives when pursuing the artifact.
The artifact isn’t the only revelation The Arbiter and Vale experience along the way in Halo: Outcasts. When they encounter Rosa Fuentes and Petrov, they are reminded that the peace they have achieved is fragile at best. For characters like Rosa Fuentes, whose life changed on Netherop years ago, and Amalea Petrov, who physically and emotionally never could leave the battlefield, the conflict and hatred rage on. Vale and Thel “Vadam must contend with these characters who are still trying to fight the last war while trying to find a way to overcome the current oppression from Cortana.
That element is the best part of Troy Denning’s storytelling in Halo: Outcasts. The story in Outcasts is so game-changing that it could alter the future of Halo storytelling in a colossal way. It’s important to note that 343 has already squashed rumors that that would be the case, but there will undoubtedly be a shift in the future of Halo narratives due to Halo: Outcasts. A new evil is revealed in the book’s third act, and it is something that The Arbiter, Vale, the UNSC, and everyone else will have to contend with in the future.
I’m a sucker for excellent character development and dialogue inside a layered narrative with some intrigue when reading a novel. Troy Denning as he typically does delivers in a big way with Halo: Outcasts. He is the perfect author for this story and these characters. The formula is simple: take established characters like Vale and The Arbiter, insert a planet that we’ve seen before but still holds mystery, and expand on stories we’ve seen in other novels, notably Halo: Oblivion. Denning has both the experience and skill to do these elements justice. In Outcasts, he is in his element, and it shows with a beautiful narrative.
As outcasts, both The Arbiter and Vale seek their own form of redemption and a way forward. That narrative isn’t exclusive to them, though. Rosa Fuentes carries long-held animosity and guilt from her actions on Netherop, which drives her motivations here. Commander Amalea Petrov has been abandoned on Netherop for years with her troops, some of whom have never known anywhere else. They are reluctant to move on from the war and hatred that has consumed them. These threads weave together to create a fascinating problem for our heroes, and they raise the stakes as they pursue the artifact.
A new evil is manipulating Vale and The Arbiter throughout Halo: Outcasts. It’s this element of the story where Denning opens the doors to new possibilities. Cortana is a fascinating villain—especially as AI increasingly surges into our lives in 2023. However, a new threat acting in a sort of puppet master capacity provides so many possibilities. When I finished the story, I was excited about the possible directions Halo expanded universe could go after Halo: Outcasts.
There are over 30 Halo novels at this point, so it can be intimidating for someone new to the books. The best thing about Halo: Outcasts is that it’s written as much for someone brand-new to the books as it is a hardcore fan. Denning is a great Halo author, as he has much love for the lore and the characters within it. For seasoned fans who have read all the novels, Halo: Outcasts will be a really rewarding experience.
Ultimately, it’s a must-read novel for Halo fans. It’s one of the best Halo books and more than just a fun adventure. It paves the way forward for a storied franchise.
September 10, 2023
Some really fun stuff in here, great exploration of pre-forerunner civilisation with some genuinely spooky and existential concepts. Also great to be back with The Arbiter. But a little too reliant on Dennin’s other Halo books and lots of time spent arguing over in tunnels. Vale is a bit of a bland character and the action is a bit lacklustre. And on a less serious note… no dual between Atriox and Vadam :(
September 16, 2023
Really struggled to connect with anyone here. Not sure if I wasn't in the mood for it or if it simply wasn't the best of the Halosphere.
March 11, 2024
I am at odds with some other reviewers, which I find disconcerting. But I could not get enough of this story - in degrees menacing, thrilling, perplexing; the twists in the narrative are almost worthy of Hitchcock. Almost.
I realise only the most hardened Halo fans are going to read this novel but there truly is something for everyone in this offshoot of the greater Halo narrative. The author makes the reader’s job easy through the deft descriptions of The Arbiter and his “alien” mindset, aligning us with the main character, and surely to have an audience empathising with the foreign rather than the human is a triumph of writing. And then there’s the action! Exciting and unpredictable outcomes in well-described locales and sequencing; this is satisfying stuff for sci-fi lovers. All the intricacies of the narrative are framed against the dark machinations of Cortana, the rogue and “rampant” AI, and I just can’t wait to see how this all plays out.
I realise only the most hardened Halo fans are going to read this novel but there truly is something for everyone in this offshoot of the greater Halo narrative. The author makes the reader’s job easy through the deft descriptions of The Arbiter and his “alien” mindset, aligning us with the main character, and surely to have an audience empathising with the foreign rather than the human is a triumph of writing. And then there’s the action! Exciting and unpredictable outcomes in well-described locales and sequencing; this is satisfying stuff for sci-fi lovers. All the intricacies of the narrative are framed against the dark machinations of Cortana, the rogue and “rampant” AI, and I just can’t wait to see how this all plays out.
June 10, 2025
A lot of important things happen between Halo 5 and Infinite that aren’t talked about in the games making you wonder what you missed. You probably missed nothing from the games and a lot of what you want to know is here. The mysterious planet of Netherop has a lot of interesting things going on discussed in this book. Spartan Vale was not it in the games, but shines in her novels. Mystery, alien tech, good characters, and action I got 5 stars for that.
January 25, 2026
This was a nice read, and follow up to Oblivion. I enjoyed learning more about the Arbiter and what he has dealt with post Halo-3, and also seeing his decision making and honor come through during this whole novel. It would be fascinating to have more stories or games focused on him, as he is a charismatic and magnetic character.
The factional rifting came to full light in this book - civil war of Sangheili, humans, banished, created, and then the outcast elites and humans left on Netherop for years. I enjoyed experiencing the reactions of the outcasts and the attempts to explain all that has happened and changed in the last 30 years (end of war of annihilation, created take over, alliance with humans and Sangheili, etc). The return of characters like Petrov, Rosa, and Tam and Nizat was fun to see. I thought everything connected nicely with prior stories, with even AI Sloan making a brief appearance in this book.
Recent games and stories haven’t addressed if Atriox does anything with the weapon components, so I’m curious to see how this comes up in future stories. Even the “Nothing” represent possibly another lost precursor race that might make an appearance, similar to the endless. Great book of action and political warring, and looking forward to the continuation.
Halo Outcasts Plot Notes
Thel Vadam is introduced with a few of his loyalists. He explains the war continues with his own kind, and he struggles to unite the Sangheili. Cortana’s guardians are everywhere, and he knows they just destroyed Doisac. Armigers, forerunner warriors, line the streets with checkpoints and are looking for someone that caused a large battle to happen. They take the weapons from Thel and his guys, and while normally they wouldn’t let this happen, Thel is fearful of the guardians and in not knowing how to stop them, so they comply.
At Thel’s keep, a contract Sangheili arrives. He informs Thel that a human researcher has been contracted by his client to investigate Netherop (or N’ba) for something that may be known to take down guardians. Thel is intrigued.
Olympia Vale reflects on some things in her camp on Sanheilios. How she never felt right pursuing Blue Team, that they should have trusted master chief in his plan to retrieve Cortana, even helped him (maybe the studio also admitting the premise of halo 5 was kind of insane from a fan’s viewpoint). Also how her mom was an intelligence person, dad was a slipspace technician. They separated when she was 11, and she found out he was conscripted into the Spartan II program when he was 6 but escaped. Her mom didn’t survive the war on earth. Vale remains curious on where her dad was. Explains how her messages to Arbiter were not being returned, which is strange for him. She notices 5 of his ships taking off, presumably getting something off planet without Cortana noticing. Vale also mentions a stealth dropship project they are working on, and how Admiral Hood felt it was good to share technology with Arbiter if they hope to keep peace. Vale hopes she never has to confront how ONI was funding the other side of the Sangheili civil war to keep their race weak, as they may not ever recover the relationship with Arbiter if he found out. Vale receives a delivered message from a Sangheili, directing her to a location to meet Iyuska, the research person Arbiter was talking about. Iyuska and Vale had been friends, interrupted by the Cortana event. Iyuska was studying pre forerunner theories, and came across Netherop/N’ba/Neska in the forerunner language translated as “Ghost Makers”, suggesting a race there had inflicted great damage on the forerunners. They only had reports of the brief UNSC excursion there (halo oblivion which is cool to see that tied in), and Iyuska had to accept funding from a Sangheili collector to proceed. The collector wants first grab of any artifact there, which complicates things. Keely Iyuska also says she has a partner researching San Shyuum whereabouts as well with the same funding. She suggests going to Netherop to investigate, but to go to Gao first for some intelligence (where the survivors on Netherop had asked to be taken to in Halo Oblivion).
Arbiter meets with Tal and Varo, two kaidons from other planets. Varo female, but viscous. They are in orbit over Netherop. Tal’s team is scanning the surface, Varo’s is clearing orbital mines. Not working together. Ayomuu is the Oath Taker along for the ride that encouraged the whole expedition. He is relatively neutral in the conversation, but posing good questions about Keepy, Vale, and how much they know versus Cortana. Arbiter settles the dispute between Tal and Varo, saying they must come together if they aim to unify Sangheili. Arbiter also mentions his good friend Rtas Vadum out there somewhere, commanding the shadow of intent (ally elite from Halo 2/3 timeline). Time to find the guardian killing weapon.
Keely and Vale go to Gao. They recruit Rosa Fuertes to go back to Netherop. She is sick, but says she will not perish before her purpose is done. Samson was incarcerated in 2556, or she would have recommended him, but Rosa said she won’t let anyone else go.
Atriox is over Netherop with a small cloaked fleet. He was led there from what he learned on the Ark from a hologram, that a pre forerunner weapon was used to effectively kill Guardians. They observe Arbiter and his small fleet taking out mines, and wait for Keely to come back to guide them to the place to search. An elite on Atriox’s crew, Saljhoo, advises Atriox this is the best plan, as he is revealed to have hired the Oath Master to oversee Keely’s mission.
Arbiter lands on the surface in a hurry after seeing the slipspace particles in orbit. He rushes down with Talot, Varo and Ayomuu. They are attacked as two dropship pilots are killed, and ghosts abducted. He orders his crew to stand down as they appear to be human. He pins three down in a cave, and meets Petrov who has been on the planet since 2526. Arbiter tries to explain the war is over, and the whole covenant great journey was a lie. Petrov doesn’t believe him and tries to attack. Ayomuu sprays her with a disorienting spray, which is disgraceful to arbiter. Arbiter asks about the mirage, and a giant figure that seems to have legs and moves with the mirage. He also asks about the Citadel and doesn’t get much information. They see dropships/pods coming from the sky not from the Arbiter.
Vale takes an Owl stealth ship to the surface with others, and 40 ODSTs in pods. A bright lancing light shoots in the air from the surface, enveloping everyone. Knocks power out of her ship, and from what I understand, evaporated the ODSTs. Vale seems optimistic they just found what they are looking for.
Arbiter talks to Petrov a long while about what just happened. Petrov describes it as a claw like beam in the sky, possibly splintering multiple times, possibly wiping out ships in orbit as well. They go back and forth. Petrov makes a comment about the beauty of Reach to which arbiter obviously makes no comment. Arbiter compliments Earth which shocks Petrov. Petrov shares that elites are in the citadel, using the derogatory term of hinge heads which the arbiter calls out. It seems they didn’t fire at arbiters ships thinking they were allies, but they fired at all the drop pods coming down. They didn’t shoot or detect the OWL. Ayomuu keeps interrupting arbiter in Sangheili language which disrupts Petrov’s trust, but Arbiter holds firm not to lie and maintains his honor. Petrov ends which should she has 4 runners, mechanized machines, and arbiter compliments her on potentially ambushing them. She agrees to load them up to go to the citadel after being convinced they were her best option out.
Vale lands with a team of 18 after losing 40 dropships and 800 ODSTs to the weapon. They locate an entrance tunnel, and encounter Tal, Nizat and a few other elites including a blademaster Rishhai. Rosa gets taken in the fight after helping them locate the tunnel, and realize that they are seeing a subterranean city. It strikes Vale as odd, as most technological advanced species (capable of making a weapon like that) usually live above surface to see the stars.
Vale and her team encounter the elites in the tel. They have armor that shapes to their skin and is extremely efficient. It looks like the tel mimics the needs and comfort of its inhabitants, mimicking the morning on Sanghelios. There is a battle, and Rosa is taken. Vale meets up with Arbiter, and they agree finders keepers for the weapon, with Arbiter going first to attempt to describe the human Sangheili peace. Petrov is more convinced after speaking with Vale about the end of the war, and the Arbiters honesty.
Arbiter meets Nizat Kvarosee and team. Tries to explain end of war. Nizat resists the answer. Varo defends arbiter after Nizat hurls insults. Nizat makes the ground disappear under her feet. Says helping humans and female Kaidons has lost his way.
Vale heads down with her team. They discuss the nanodust being a molecular technology, possibly reading minds and responding to real thoughts.
Arbiter and team engage Nizat and Rashai (silent shadow). Ayomuu, the Oath Warden, unleashes a poison that is seen as disrespectful. Arbiter out duels the silent shadow, but is interrupted with an explosion in the tunnel. He finds his seal unlocked, by the oath warden, and Rashai saying Nizat was furious to learn arbiter was the decoy. Arbiter passes out.
Atriox on the hammer of fate deduces that covenant refugees on the surface fired the weapon, or the trikala. Two forerunner harriers slip into system. Atriox determines the best path to the surface is by using the hammer of fate ship as a distraction as the landing party launches, sacrificing the ship.
Rosa awakens in a chamber. She is in a state of confusion, not knowing if she exists or not. A voice speaks to her, then two, claiming the be the Veiled Ones, then the Lost Ones, then the Nothing. They say it is time for Rosa to choose. She gets enveloped by the dust, and gains a skin armor and feels healthier than she has in years. She finds Legowski, ODST, and observes she may have had the same experience.
Vale and Iyuska talk about possibility of Tier 0 civilization, transcendence, still existing. They both know classified information about the gravemind, and ponder if there is a link there.
Arbiter awakens to Varo, Rashai, and Ayomuu. They explain the world master, Nizat, used the dust to unlock their seals and kill Talot and his team. Only they remain. Rashai says the sanctum hide suit grows directly on skin and is necessary to control the dust. They say there is no time and must pursue the inner sanctum immediately.
Vale finds a sanctuary of sorts, food, beds, provisions, tables with plates. They are ambushed. Several die and Vale takes down 3 Sangheili. Iyuska goes on ahead in the skirmish. Vale meets up with Arbiter, Ayomuu, and Varo. They find Tam Lakosee dragging a wounded Nizat away. Tam still doesn’t believe arbiter, but assists.
Iyuska opens the inner sanctum to the rest. They enter. Tam explains to arbiter to remove armor and allow the sanctum hide to cover him to control the weapon. Tam says by thinking of your enemies, it will target them. They have a view of all craft in space, seeing the Sangheili flotilla under attack, along with UNSC. They even see a banished ship. Arbiter is furious at Ayomuu, and Ayomuu claims ignorance and thought his client was a Sangheili. Tam tackles arbiter as the armor is forming on him and a forerunner ship comes into view, but it appears arbiter was able to fire the weapon destroying the enemies.
Iyuska extracts an energy condenser, as well as collects samples of the nanomachines. They conclude it won’t work without replicating the inner sanctum structure. Arbiter and Vale agree it is best to separate the components and research independently, as neither wants the functional weapon on their planet to wreak havoc. It already destroyed Netherop, as it used to be a thriving, jungled planet. They make Tam and Nizat swear on their faith to let them leave in peace, and will have no more conflict with them, in exchange for their lives. They begrudgingly agree.
Rosa and Legs make it out and meet with Bear. Rosa explains how she feels better, but hides her conversation with the “Voices”. They see many drop pods heading their way, and keep the cave open either for cover, or for Vale and Arbiter to escape out of as well while they wait for the Owl.
AI Sloan is watching this part of the galaxy. 3 harriers deployed to watch Netherop. Sloan is looping and falling into rampancy, seemingly not having been cured in the Domain the way Cortana hoped or intended. One harrier arrived to share that the harriers fell under attack by Sangheili and the guardian killer is active. Sloan then gets another AI to agree to send a larger ship as response.
Atriox approaches arbiter and group on the surface in a parley formation, to maintain his honor. A bodyguard and an advisor. Arbiter and Vale come up with a quick plan to deceivingly give Atriox the nanomachines and energy condenser and make it look convincing. Rosa throws the bags over to Atriox. His advisor is content, revealing himself to be the client to Ayomuu. They consider the contract now closed. Atriox says arbiter would never let the dissent occur within his ranks, as they want him to have it to take on Cortana himself. Arbiter denies this, but it works for them if it keeps them alive. Iyuska keeps a few jars of the nanomachines dust for themselves. Vale highly recommends not sharing with ONI or anyone else. Atriox departs, and the OWL arrives to start shuttling the survivors.
Tam and Nizat mend their wounds, as their armor disappears outside the sanctum and they struggle. Tam goes to find food and drink, but is in dismay when the previously rich and growing room of food and drink was decaying and rotting. He feels the gods have left them, and it was his fault, not Nizat’s, for leading the infidels in the inner sanctum. He delivers food to Nizat, and as Nizat looks down, Tam does his duty to end his life mercifully.
On the flight out, Petrov looks at a sleeping Rashai and thinks of how many humans he must have killed. Rosa catches her gaze, and tells her not to do it, not to think of killing him. Rosa apologizes for what she did to trick leaving Petrov and crew on the surface 30 years ago. Petrov forgives her, and says she would have done the same thing. Rosa gives advice on protecting her children and acclimating to the new world. Petrov appreciates it.
Ends with the “Voices” speaking to an unknown species, about the forerunners and what they destroyed. From dust, many things can be created. This strongly implies precursor technology, as both the endless and the flood came from dust. This helps close the loop on who the Tier 0 technology species was.
The factional rifting came to full light in this book - civil war of Sangheili, humans, banished, created, and then the outcast elites and humans left on Netherop for years. I enjoyed experiencing the reactions of the outcasts and the attempts to explain all that has happened and changed in the last 30 years (end of war of annihilation, created take over, alliance with humans and Sangheili, etc). The return of characters like Petrov, Rosa, and Tam and Nizat was fun to see. I thought everything connected nicely with prior stories, with even AI Sloan making a brief appearance in this book.
Recent games and stories haven’t addressed if Atriox does anything with the weapon components, so I’m curious to see how this comes up in future stories. Even the “Nothing” represent possibly another lost precursor race that might make an appearance, similar to the endless. Great book of action and political warring, and looking forward to the continuation.
Halo Outcasts Plot Notes
Thel Vadam is introduced with a few of his loyalists. He explains the war continues with his own kind, and he struggles to unite the Sangheili. Cortana’s guardians are everywhere, and he knows they just destroyed Doisac. Armigers, forerunner warriors, line the streets with checkpoints and are looking for someone that caused a large battle to happen. They take the weapons from Thel and his guys, and while normally they wouldn’t let this happen, Thel is fearful of the guardians and in not knowing how to stop them, so they comply.
At Thel’s keep, a contract Sangheili arrives. He informs Thel that a human researcher has been contracted by his client to investigate Netherop (or N’ba) for something that may be known to take down guardians. Thel is intrigued.
Olympia Vale reflects on some things in her camp on Sanheilios. How she never felt right pursuing Blue Team, that they should have trusted master chief in his plan to retrieve Cortana, even helped him (maybe the studio also admitting the premise of halo 5 was kind of insane from a fan’s viewpoint). Also how her mom was an intelligence person, dad was a slipspace technician. They separated when she was 11, and she found out he was conscripted into the Spartan II program when he was 6 but escaped. Her mom didn’t survive the war on earth. Vale remains curious on where her dad was. Explains how her messages to Arbiter were not being returned, which is strange for him. She notices 5 of his ships taking off, presumably getting something off planet without Cortana noticing. Vale also mentions a stealth dropship project they are working on, and how Admiral Hood felt it was good to share technology with Arbiter if they hope to keep peace. Vale hopes she never has to confront how ONI was funding the other side of the Sangheili civil war to keep their race weak, as they may not ever recover the relationship with Arbiter if he found out. Vale receives a delivered message from a Sangheili, directing her to a location to meet Iyuska, the research person Arbiter was talking about. Iyuska and Vale had been friends, interrupted by the Cortana event. Iyuska was studying pre forerunner theories, and came across Netherop/N’ba/Neska in the forerunner language translated as “Ghost Makers”, suggesting a race there had inflicted great damage on the forerunners. They only had reports of the brief UNSC excursion there (halo oblivion which is cool to see that tied in), and Iyuska had to accept funding from a Sangheili collector to proceed. The collector wants first grab of any artifact there, which complicates things. Keely Iyuska also says she has a partner researching San Shyuum whereabouts as well with the same funding. She suggests going to Netherop to investigate, but to go to Gao first for some intelligence (where the survivors on Netherop had asked to be taken to in Halo Oblivion).
Arbiter meets with Tal and Varo, two kaidons from other planets. Varo female, but viscous. They are in orbit over Netherop. Tal’s team is scanning the surface, Varo’s is clearing orbital mines. Not working together. Ayomuu is the Oath Taker along for the ride that encouraged the whole expedition. He is relatively neutral in the conversation, but posing good questions about Keepy, Vale, and how much they know versus Cortana. Arbiter settles the dispute between Tal and Varo, saying they must come together if they aim to unify Sangheili. Arbiter also mentions his good friend Rtas Vadum out there somewhere, commanding the shadow of intent (ally elite from Halo 2/3 timeline). Time to find the guardian killing weapon.
Keely and Vale go to Gao. They recruit Rosa Fuertes to go back to Netherop. She is sick, but says she will not perish before her purpose is done. Samson was incarcerated in 2556, or she would have recommended him, but Rosa said she won’t let anyone else go.
Atriox is over Netherop with a small cloaked fleet. He was led there from what he learned on the Ark from a hologram, that a pre forerunner weapon was used to effectively kill Guardians. They observe Arbiter and his small fleet taking out mines, and wait for Keely to come back to guide them to the place to search. An elite on Atriox’s crew, Saljhoo, advises Atriox this is the best plan, as he is revealed to have hired the Oath Master to oversee Keely’s mission.
Arbiter lands on the surface in a hurry after seeing the slipspace particles in orbit. He rushes down with Talot, Varo and Ayomuu. They are attacked as two dropship pilots are killed, and ghosts abducted. He orders his crew to stand down as they appear to be human. He pins three down in a cave, and meets Petrov who has been on the planet since 2526. Arbiter tries to explain the war is over, and the whole covenant great journey was a lie. Petrov doesn’t believe him and tries to attack. Ayomuu sprays her with a disorienting spray, which is disgraceful to arbiter. Arbiter asks about the mirage, and a giant figure that seems to have legs and moves with the mirage. He also asks about the Citadel and doesn’t get much information. They see dropships/pods coming from the sky not from the Arbiter.
Vale takes an Owl stealth ship to the surface with others, and 40 ODSTs in pods. A bright lancing light shoots in the air from the surface, enveloping everyone. Knocks power out of her ship, and from what I understand, evaporated the ODSTs. Vale seems optimistic they just found what they are looking for.
Arbiter talks to Petrov a long while about what just happened. Petrov describes it as a claw like beam in the sky, possibly splintering multiple times, possibly wiping out ships in orbit as well. They go back and forth. Petrov makes a comment about the beauty of Reach to which arbiter obviously makes no comment. Arbiter compliments Earth which shocks Petrov. Petrov shares that elites are in the citadel, using the derogatory term of hinge heads which the arbiter calls out. It seems they didn’t fire at arbiters ships thinking they were allies, but they fired at all the drop pods coming down. They didn’t shoot or detect the OWL. Ayomuu keeps interrupting arbiter in Sangheili language which disrupts Petrov’s trust, but Arbiter holds firm not to lie and maintains his honor. Petrov ends which should she has 4 runners, mechanized machines, and arbiter compliments her on potentially ambushing them. She agrees to load them up to go to the citadel after being convinced they were her best option out.
Vale lands with a team of 18 after losing 40 dropships and 800 ODSTs to the weapon. They locate an entrance tunnel, and encounter Tal, Nizat and a few other elites including a blademaster Rishhai. Rosa gets taken in the fight after helping them locate the tunnel, and realize that they are seeing a subterranean city. It strikes Vale as odd, as most technological advanced species (capable of making a weapon like that) usually live above surface to see the stars.
Vale and her team encounter the elites in the tel. They have armor that shapes to their skin and is extremely efficient. It looks like the tel mimics the needs and comfort of its inhabitants, mimicking the morning on Sanghelios. There is a battle, and Rosa is taken. Vale meets up with Arbiter, and they agree finders keepers for the weapon, with Arbiter going first to attempt to describe the human Sangheili peace. Petrov is more convinced after speaking with Vale about the end of the war, and the Arbiters honesty.
Arbiter meets Nizat Kvarosee and team. Tries to explain end of war. Nizat resists the answer. Varo defends arbiter after Nizat hurls insults. Nizat makes the ground disappear under her feet. Says helping humans and female Kaidons has lost his way.
Vale heads down with her team. They discuss the nanodust being a molecular technology, possibly reading minds and responding to real thoughts.
Arbiter and team engage Nizat and Rashai (silent shadow). Ayomuu, the Oath Warden, unleashes a poison that is seen as disrespectful. Arbiter out duels the silent shadow, but is interrupted with an explosion in the tunnel. He finds his seal unlocked, by the oath warden, and Rashai saying Nizat was furious to learn arbiter was the decoy. Arbiter passes out.
Atriox on the hammer of fate deduces that covenant refugees on the surface fired the weapon, or the trikala. Two forerunner harriers slip into system. Atriox determines the best path to the surface is by using the hammer of fate ship as a distraction as the landing party launches, sacrificing the ship.
Rosa awakens in a chamber. She is in a state of confusion, not knowing if she exists or not. A voice speaks to her, then two, claiming the be the Veiled Ones, then the Lost Ones, then the Nothing. They say it is time for Rosa to choose. She gets enveloped by the dust, and gains a skin armor and feels healthier than she has in years. She finds Legowski, ODST, and observes she may have had the same experience.
Vale and Iyuska talk about possibility of Tier 0 civilization, transcendence, still existing. They both know classified information about the gravemind, and ponder if there is a link there.
Arbiter awakens to Varo, Rashai, and Ayomuu. They explain the world master, Nizat, used the dust to unlock their seals and kill Talot and his team. Only they remain. Rashai says the sanctum hide suit grows directly on skin and is necessary to control the dust. They say there is no time and must pursue the inner sanctum immediately.
Vale finds a sanctuary of sorts, food, beds, provisions, tables with plates. They are ambushed. Several die and Vale takes down 3 Sangheili. Iyuska goes on ahead in the skirmish. Vale meets up with Arbiter, Ayomuu, and Varo. They find Tam Lakosee dragging a wounded Nizat away. Tam still doesn’t believe arbiter, but assists.
Iyuska opens the inner sanctum to the rest. They enter. Tam explains to arbiter to remove armor and allow the sanctum hide to cover him to control the weapon. Tam says by thinking of your enemies, it will target them. They have a view of all craft in space, seeing the Sangheili flotilla under attack, along with UNSC. They even see a banished ship. Arbiter is furious at Ayomuu, and Ayomuu claims ignorance and thought his client was a Sangheili. Tam tackles arbiter as the armor is forming on him and a forerunner ship comes into view, but it appears arbiter was able to fire the weapon destroying the enemies.
Iyuska extracts an energy condenser, as well as collects samples of the nanomachines. They conclude it won’t work without replicating the inner sanctum structure. Arbiter and Vale agree it is best to separate the components and research independently, as neither wants the functional weapon on their planet to wreak havoc. It already destroyed Netherop, as it used to be a thriving, jungled planet. They make Tam and Nizat swear on their faith to let them leave in peace, and will have no more conflict with them, in exchange for their lives. They begrudgingly agree.
Rosa and Legs make it out and meet with Bear. Rosa explains how she feels better, but hides her conversation with the “Voices”. They see many drop pods heading their way, and keep the cave open either for cover, or for Vale and Arbiter to escape out of as well while they wait for the Owl.
AI Sloan is watching this part of the galaxy. 3 harriers deployed to watch Netherop. Sloan is looping and falling into rampancy, seemingly not having been cured in the Domain the way Cortana hoped or intended. One harrier arrived to share that the harriers fell under attack by Sangheili and the guardian killer is active. Sloan then gets another AI to agree to send a larger ship as response.
Atriox approaches arbiter and group on the surface in a parley formation, to maintain his honor. A bodyguard and an advisor. Arbiter and Vale come up with a quick plan to deceivingly give Atriox the nanomachines and energy condenser and make it look convincing. Rosa throws the bags over to Atriox. His advisor is content, revealing himself to be the client to Ayomuu. They consider the contract now closed. Atriox says arbiter would never let the dissent occur within his ranks, as they want him to have it to take on Cortana himself. Arbiter denies this, but it works for them if it keeps them alive. Iyuska keeps a few jars of the nanomachines dust for themselves. Vale highly recommends not sharing with ONI or anyone else. Atriox departs, and the OWL arrives to start shuttling the survivors.
Tam and Nizat mend their wounds, as their armor disappears outside the sanctum and they struggle. Tam goes to find food and drink, but is in dismay when the previously rich and growing room of food and drink was decaying and rotting. He feels the gods have left them, and it was his fault, not Nizat’s, for leading the infidels in the inner sanctum. He delivers food to Nizat, and as Nizat looks down, Tam does his duty to end his life mercifully.
On the flight out, Petrov looks at a sleeping Rashai and thinks of how many humans he must have killed. Rosa catches her gaze, and tells her not to do it, not to think of killing him. Rosa apologizes for what she did to trick leaving Petrov and crew on the surface 30 years ago. Petrov forgives her, and says she would have done the same thing. Rosa gives advice on protecting her children and acclimating to the new world. Petrov appreciates it.
Ends with the “Voices” speaking to an unknown species, about the forerunners and what they destroyed. From dust, many things can be created. This strongly implies precursor technology, as both the endless and the flood came from dust. This helps close the loop on who the Tier 0 technology species was.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 15, 2024
I kinda struggled with this one, not gonna lie but it's probably because centering the whole plot on a macguffin right from the get go, one that we've never ever ever ever heard anything about in mainline games or other lore drops, did seem to be uninteresting but the journey to that macguffin and the plot surrounding it with characters and ideas was interesting enough to keep me going.
Right off the bat though, the transition from Halo 5 to Infinite has been such a disastrous thing for this franchise that we still get books coming out bridging that gap, that even the great Kelly Gay had to weave her story of the Didact's redemption around Halo 5's events lol. This book does not really do justice to either Vale or the Arbiter and it does essentially nothing in bridging that gap too.
A disappointment to be very honest and at the very least.
Right off the bat though, the transition from Halo 5 to Infinite has been such a disastrous thing for this franchise that we still get books coming out bridging that gap, that even the great Kelly Gay had to weave her story of the Didact's redemption around Halo 5's events lol. This book does not really do justice to either Vale or the Arbiter and it does essentially nothing in bridging that gap too.
A disappointment to be very honest and at the very least.
August 23, 2024
It’s November 2559. Arbiter Thel ‘Vadam and Spartan Olympia Vale depart Sanghelios on a mission to acquire a weapon on a hellish planet called Netherop that is rumored to have the capacity to destroy Forerunner Guardians, hoping to use it against Cortana’s Guardians and her Created.
Before reading this book, I would recommend reading a Master Chief story first, ‘Halo: Oblivion,’ which takes place 33 years before this book. It’s vital to understanding the cast of characters and the environment of Netherop’s hellscape. One of the things I liked about this book is how Denning explores the fragile politics of the new alliance between humans and the Sangheili—needing to carefully navigate the infancy of this alliance lest they accidentally start another war between the species.
What I like most about this book is that it gets so sci-fi that it borders on the edge of becoming fantasy. It’s not exactly a blend of genres, but the technology the characters come across is so advanced that it might as well be magic. I won’t say why that is because of spoilers, but it does add more mystery to the Halo universe, and it makes me excited to possibly read more about it in any potentially future books to be published.
Before reading this book, I would recommend reading a Master Chief story first, ‘Halo: Oblivion,’ which takes place 33 years before this book. It’s vital to understanding the cast of characters and the environment of Netherop’s hellscape. One of the things I liked about this book is how Denning explores the fragile politics of the new alliance between humans and the Sangheili—needing to carefully navigate the infancy of this alliance lest they accidentally start another war between the species.
What I like most about this book is that it gets so sci-fi that it borders on the edge of becoming fantasy. It’s not exactly a blend of genres, but the technology the characters come across is so advanced that it might as well be magic. I won’t say why that is because of spoilers, but it does add more mystery to the Halo universe, and it makes me excited to possibly read more about it in any potentially future books to be published.
November 27, 2025
As one of the recent entries in the series of Halo books, this entry focused on the fragile relations between Humanity and the Elites well after the events of the main video game trilogy. Centre to this entry is the Arbiter and Spartan Olympia Vale working together to recover a fabled weapon lost on a distant world, one supposedly created an incredibly ancient and highly advanced species, and capable of being used to fight against the current threat to the galaxy: Cortana. This was a very enjoyable and strong entry from Troy Denning, a veteran writer of the series, who employed a wide range of characters we have previously met during the Halo books, as well as a number of new and interesting characters that fit in well to the current state of affairs in Halo's lore. New lore and features are always a welcome sight and expanded upon really well by Denning during this book, such as the Arbiter's alliances with other Kaidons, the lore surrounding Oath Wardens, humans affairs outside of the main factions we know, and more lore from amongst the Banished's ranks.
August 19, 2023
I listened to this book via Audible.
Halo: Outcasts takes place before the events of Halo Infinite but doesn't really tie into them much, making it a fairly standalone novel. Plenty of the characters have been encountered before, but this is an all-new adventure and one that may have some interesting implications for future Halo fiction.
Troy Denning crafts a well-plotted story that is paced perfectly to want to keep you reading. There's always something about to happen that you want to learn just a little more about. You never want put the book down just yet. There are plenty of clues about what will happen next, but only enough to give you hints, which keeps it exciting and full of surprises. If I can find any criticism, it would be that the large number of Sangheili names can be a bit difficult to keep track of, with at least eight main alien characters. Some are pretty distinguishable, but at times it was a little confusing.
Overall, this was a solid addition to the Halo canon that I thoroughly enjoyed. Even if you're not a fan of the games or the universe, sci-fi enthusiasts should find something they like here too!
Halo: Outcasts takes place before the events of Halo Infinite but doesn't really tie into them much, making it a fairly standalone novel. Plenty of the characters have been encountered before, but this is an all-new adventure and one that may have some interesting implications for future Halo fiction.
Troy Denning crafts a well-plotted story that is paced perfectly to want to keep you reading. There's always something about to happen that you want to learn just a little more about. You never want put the book down just yet. There are plenty of clues about what will happen next, but only enough to give you hints, which keeps it exciting and full of surprises. If I can find any criticism, it would be that the large number of Sangheili names can be a bit difficult to keep track of, with at least eight main alien characters. Some are pretty distinguishable, but at times it was a little confusing.
Overall, this was a solid addition to the Halo canon that I thoroughly enjoyed. Even if you're not a fan of the games or the universe, sci-fi enthusiasts should find something they like here too!
August 23, 2024
Not sure why this only shows up as an Audio book on this app?
This was fine. I was significantly more interested in the Sanghelli stuff than the human stuff, but the story felt sort of generic.
The older Halo books did a great job expanding the lore and filling in gaps between games. These newer books never feel like an important chapter in the universe, and you know the story will be fairly safe because they WONT have a major plot point in a book.
As such, this story feels sort of inconsequential. We know that the weapon they're looking for doesn't matter because we already know how the Created conflict is resolved. This wouldnt be a problem if it had anything major to do with the characters, but it's doesn't.
It's not a bad book, it's good some cool moments, it's always great to get more Arbiter, fight scenes are pretty well done, and while I don't think the Banished were necessary for the story I always enjoy an Atriox scene.
This was fine. I was significantly more interested in the Sanghelli stuff than the human stuff, but the story felt sort of generic.
The older Halo books did a great job expanding the lore and filling in gaps between games. These newer books never feel like an important chapter in the universe, and you know the story will be fairly safe because they WONT have a major plot point in a book.
As such, this story feels sort of inconsequential. We know that the weapon they're looking for doesn't matter because we already know how the Created conflict is resolved. This wouldnt be a problem if it had anything major to do with the characters, but it's doesn't.
It's not a bad book, it's good some cool moments, it's always great to get more Arbiter, fight scenes are pretty well done, and while I don't think the Banished were necessary for the story I always enjoy an Atriox scene.
August 16, 2023
I think one of my favorite elements Denning provides with his new novel is the uneasiness of the alliances in this post-Covenant War era. It feels like every chapter could end in bloodshed due to miscommunication but the cool heads of The Arbiter and Spartan Vale prevail. But that tension is felt and it’s important that not everyone is exactly friends - they just have a common goal. Even humans within the human groups have their own motives that they act on and create worse situations. I appreciate the lack of black and white when navigating around the morals and values of all parties involved. I mean, even the lunatic Atriox is admirable in his way and can we blame him after what Cortana did to his people?
August 18, 2024
I feel at times that Halo is stretching the lore to its limits with some of these novels but as usual I was consistently entertained throughout reading Halo Outcasts. Troy Denning did a great job of following up on threads he started in Silent Storm and Oblivion while bringing in Vale and Arbiter as main characters who worked great together and I hope to see both in a future game again. Outcasts, like many recent Halo novels, follows characters on a specific mission that is resolved at the end but still setting up many interesting threads to be pulled on in the future such as whatever was going on in the last 3 pages. Not my favorite Halo book nor even a favorite by Denning but I quite enjoyed it.
March 21, 2025
I joked with my brother that I couldn’t wait to watch a YouTube video explaining what I read LOL. The book is fine. The plot overall is solid and fill in the universe what happened with Arbiter after Halo 5.
But damn this book was boring and confusing. I can barely even remember the human names in this book, let alone the Sanghilli names as well! I’d have to look it up what everyone’s names were and what their purpose was. It’s just confusing to me. Even the book, Halo: Epitaph, was easier to understand. I think that books plot was more investing and the names were easier to remember. Forerunner names and ideas are easier to understand than Sanghilli.
Wish the book was better, especially since I saw a LOT of positive reviews from the Halo community on this one
But damn this book was boring and confusing. I can barely even remember the human names in this book, let alone the Sanghilli names as well! I’d have to look it up what everyone’s names were and what their purpose was. It’s just confusing to me. Even the book, Halo: Epitaph, was easier to understand. I think that books plot was more investing and the names were easier to remember. Forerunner names and ideas are easier to understand than Sanghilli.
Wish the book was better, especially since I saw a LOT of positive reviews from the Halo community on this one
November 1, 2025
It was nice to finally get a post Covenant-War perspective of the Arbiter in one of the Halo books. As one of the franchises main characters we really don't get a lot from him.
That being said, even though this was an Arbiter story, it really didn't do much. The whole hook of the plot was the Guardian killer weapon, and personally I felt it was a lackluster MacGuffin. The very brief and hypothesized theory we get from Vale and her scientist friend were not enough to strengthen how pointless the weapon ends up being. Perhaps if there had been a bit more exposition and back story given on the planet's history or the weapon it might have been a better book. But instead of adding to the lore it was really just a lot of nothing.
That being said, even though this was an Arbiter story, it really didn't do much. The whole hook of the plot was the Guardian killer weapon, and personally I felt it was a lackluster MacGuffin. The very brief and hypothesized theory we get from Vale and her scientist friend were not enough to strengthen how pointless the weapon ends up being. Perhaps if there had been a bit more exposition and back story given on the planet's history or the weapon it might have been a better book. But instead of adding to the lore it was really just a lot of nothing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 30, 2024
Given Goodread's idiomatic rating system, a 2-star is actually a bit generous, but there were parts of this book that did resonate-- few and far between.
I don't have time to write an extended review right now, but suffice to say, when it comes to a well-established universe like Halo, the devil is in the details; and the details were wrong a lot of times in this book.
As per usual for Denning, the characters felt heavily inconsistent with their presentations in earlier media.
As much as I love the Arbiter (I do), this book is one of the few in the Halo canon that is, imo, skippable.
I don't have time to write an extended review right now, but suffice to say, when it comes to a well-established universe like Halo, the devil is in the details; and the details were wrong a lot of times in this book.
As per usual for Denning, the characters felt heavily inconsistent with their presentations in earlier media.
As much as I love the Arbiter (I do), this book is one of the few in the Halo canon that is, imo, skippable.
November 29, 2025
I actually really liked this book, the prerequisites for this book are hunters in the dark and oblivion, for arbiter fans it more than delivers the arbiter is as usual shown to be the unbelievably level headed leader who consistently makes the right decision for his people even at personal cost. this book describes Olympia Vale now as a Spartan and the arbiter Thel Vadamee competing against each other to find a rumored weapon that can destroy one of Cortana's guardians. if you haven't read oblivion this book will leave plenty of things unexplained but having caught up on the source material it's an enjoyable read all around
April 21, 2024
Cortana still somewhat controls the known universe. Various groups are trying to break her grip. There may be a weapon left by someone even the forerunners feared, left on a little visited planet. Various groups travel there to try to reclaim it.
Since this is a stand alone novel, It will be interesting to see if the events of the story play out in future stories. Overall the story was alright. Lots of actions, but there are parts it, will things got confusing. Maybe if I played he Halo games it would have made more sense.
Since this is a stand alone novel, It will be interesting to see if the events of the story play out in future stories. Overall the story was alright. Lots of actions, but there are parts it, will things got confusing. Maybe if I played he Halo games it would have made more sense.
September 24, 2023
An interesting novel from Halo's canon expansion. However even after reading this I don't see how it fully influenced Halo Infinite. I do hope to see that soon though.
From an emotional/character POV book it's also a very nicely written one.
However, the plot in the beginning can be a bit meh. With a fair bit of exposition being in the way, and the Technobabble to explain it is quite cringy and annoying too.
From an emotional/character POV book it's also a very nicely written one.
However, the plot in the beginning can be a bit meh. With a fair bit of exposition being in the way, and the Technobabble to explain it is quite cringy and annoying too.
November 21, 2023
The book was worth it to get more about the Arbiter and the other Alien races of Halo, but otherwise it was just okay for me.
Olympia Vale is a boring character and I felt no reason to care about her. Her relationship with the Scientist in the book was odd and felt very forced.
Read this if you are desperate for more Halo content involving the Arbiter, otherwise, this falls well below the standard set by the Old Halo Trilogy (Fall of Reach, The Flood, First Strike).
Olympia Vale is a boring character and I felt no reason to care about her. Her relationship with the Scientist in the book was odd and felt very forced.
Read this if you are desperate for more Halo content involving the Arbiter, otherwise, this falls well below the standard set by the Old Halo Trilogy (Fall of Reach, The Flood, First Strike).
August 22, 2023
This was a lot of fun with a great cast of characters who are all smart enough to avoid the tropes that I was expecting.
Some of the tunnel fight scenes can be a bit disorientating to read at times and hard to envision but that was the goal of the scenes.
The Arbiter rocks, more Arbiter books please.
Some of the tunnel fight scenes can be a bit disorientating to read at times and hard to envision but that was the goal of the scenes.
The Arbiter rocks, more Arbiter books please.
June 3, 2025
Listening at work, I'm 5 hours in and next to nothing has happened, time spent on Sanghelios that could have been used to flesh out the lore of the elites was wasted, everything since has been worse. If was actively putting aside time to read this I'd have thrown the book in the fire by now. Will update review when finished.
November 28, 2023
Definitely some of Troy's better writing. Less unneeded, overly detailed fluff, and more character building and place setting.
The Oathkeeper is definitely one of the better characters in the Halo canon.
The Oathkeeper is definitely one of the better characters in the Halo canon.
January 16, 2024
When it comes to the Halo series I find all the actual novels to be very good reads, but Mr. Denning's have a different feel to them that just hooks you faster and keeps you there. His character development and story telling are hands done some of the best I have seen.
March 25, 2024
It was awesome through the entire book, action packed as soon as they touched ground on Netherop/N'ba/Neska(read the book to find out what those names mean) Lot's of arguing in the tunnels while the UNSC just landed on the tel. But other than that, Awesome!
April 10, 2024
Wow weee baby! I love me some arbiter! A very good book that just builds the world and takes us back to a familiar place :) . I love anytime we are on sanghelios and dealing with their politics. Also love a mysterious planet with a mysterious hidden power!
December 18, 2024
This story was a beautiful return to a piece of Halo history. Returning to Netherop and seeing what was left behind was so well done. The story did slow in the middle and became a little frustrating, but it was a very well written tale.
December 19, 2023
4.5 stars
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