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BattleTech Universe #94
A Bonfire Of Worlds
A GALAXY AFLAME... The universe has gone dark. Interstellar communications has been lost across the Inner Sphere, threatening the corporate giant ComStar—and maybe civilization itself. Risking everything on a last chance for survival, Comstar has kidnapped the engineering genius Tucker Harwell, hoping he can unravel the mystery of the blackout. But Tucker isn’t just working on why it happened...he’s also trying to figure out who’s behind it. Meanwhile, Khan Malvina Hazen solidifies her hold on a purified Clan Jade Falcon while hunting for the next enemy to crush under the talons of her brutal Mongol Doctrine. Hundreds of light-years away, Clan Wolf is carving out territory along the Lyran Commonwealth/Free Worlds League border—and Alaric Wolf is primed to make his moves in the halls of power. Plans years in the making begin to come together across hundreds of star systems, and secrets hidden for decades will finally be revealed while an empire goes up in flames…
- GenresScience FictionFiction
Audible Audio
First published April 30, 2010
28 people are currently reading
101 people want to read
About the author
Steven Mohan Jr.
91 books2 followersSteven Mohan, Jr. has professionally published more a half million words of military science fiction including the BattleTech novel A Bonfire of Worlds. He has sold original fiction to markets as diverse as INTERZONE, POLYPHONY, and PARADOX, as well as several DAW original anthologies. His short stories have won honorable mention in THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION and THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY AND HORROR and he has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 5, 2020
This book continues the Dark Age story line started in the Mech Warrior Dark Age series which was a continuation of the classic Battletech series. The Mech Warrior Dark Age series consisted of thirty books published by WizKids and ROC. This book is published by Catalyst Game Labs and Topps and is published as Battletech Dark Age. The books in this series, like the books in the original Battletech series, are by various authors. This one is by Steven Mohan, Jr.
The Republic of the Sphere has known a long period of peace and prosperity. Then the interstellar communications network a.k.a. the HPG net is destroyed by terrorists and many planets in the Republic find themselves cut off from the rest of the galaxy with communications taking weeks or even months. Unrest leads to several factions on several planets trying to overthrow the local governments and seize power for themselves.
In this onr the war for control of the Lyran Commonwealth and the Free Worlds League continues. The Lyran Commonwealth had employed Clan Wolf to aide in their war against the Free World League bur Clan Wolf turns against the Lyran Commonwealth and plans to take over the Free Worlds League as well as the Lyran Commonwealth. Meanwhile Malvina Hazen and the Jade Falcons take advantage of Clan Wolf's absence and start a taken over of star system after star system. Malvina Hazen doesn't want just conquest however, she wants to burn human civilization to the ground!
Against this background Comstar fanatics who secretly want a return of the Word of Blake, kidnap engineering genius Tucker Harwell, the only person who has ever been able to repair a HPG station. They are forcing him to work on the solution to repair more HPG stations so they can control stellar communications. This book is a great addition to the Dark Age story line.
The Republic of the Sphere has known a long period of peace and prosperity. Then the interstellar communications network a.k.a. the HPG net is destroyed by terrorists and many planets in the Republic find themselves cut off from the rest of the galaxy with communications taking weeks or even months. Unrest leads to several factions on several planets trying to overthrow the local governments and seize power for themselves.
In this onr the war for control of the Lyran Commonwealth and the Free Worlds League continues. The Lyran Commonwealth had employed Clan Wolf to aide in their war against the Free World League bur Clan Wolf turns against the Lyran Commonwealth and plans to take over the Free Worlds League as well as the Lyran Commonwealth. Meanwhile Malvina Hazen and the Jade Falcons take advantage of Clan Wolf's absence and start a taken over of star system after star system. Malvina Hazen doesn't want just conquest however, she wants to burn human civilization to the ground!
Against this background Comstar fanatics who secretly want a return of the Word of Blake, kidnap engineering genius Tucker Harwell, the only person who has ever been able to repair a HPG station. They are forcing him to work on the solution to repair more HPG stations so they can control stellar communications. This book is a great addition to the Dark Age story line.
March 6, 2013
This is a Battletech novel that gets things done. Lots of characters. Lots of locations. Lots of events. Mohan weaves together a lot of the threads of the MW:DA storyline and does it pretty well. Alaric Wolf. Tucker Harwell. Malvina Hazen. Trillian Steiner. Anastasia Kerensky. Julian Davion. Calamity Kell. The Lyran & Wolf invasion of the FWL. Jade Falcons in Lyran Space. The push for Earth. Just what the heck happened to the HPG network. They're all here (sorry, Liao and Kurita fans).
It moves fast and Mohan's writing is pretty crisp and efficient. Like all of the best Battletech books, this is less about the fighting on the field and more about the motivations and machinations of the major players of the BT Universe, but it doesn't skimp on the action for those that want it. So much happens, in fact, that some could see this as a flaw. The events of this book could have been given greater detail and with a few extra twists and turns been spread out into a trilogy. I don't see that as a problem though. Much like Stackpole's Bred For War, this is one of those single volumes that pulls things together and launches them forward, leaving the BT Universe in a new status quo. I really hope that Catalyst follows up on this and gives us more novels in the 3140's as what's been set up here is pretty interesting.
It moves fast and Mohan's writing is pretty crisp and efficient. Like all of the best Battletech books, this is less about the fighting on the field and more about the motivations and machinations of the major players of the BT Universe, but it doesn't skimp on the action for those that want it. So much happens, in fact, that some could see this as a flaw. The events of this book could have been given greater detail and with a few extra twists and turns been spread out into a trilogy. I don't see that as a problem though. Much like Stackpole's Bred For War, this is one of those single volumes that pulls things together and launches them forward, leaving the BT Universe in a new status quo. I really hope that Catalyst follows up on this and gives us more novels in the 3140's as what's been set up here is pretty interesting.
July 25, 2022
A little much for one book
Could have been 2 great books. Way to much for one. With all the important plot and storyline changes would have Bern better as 2.
Good action but there could have been twice as much considering who was involved and the literally hundreds if not thousands of warriors lost.
Still 100% better than any book with Lao or references to Japanese culture
Could have been 2 great books. Way to much for one. With all the important plot and storyline changes would have Bern better as 2.
Good action but there could have been twice as much considering who was involved and the literally hundreds if not thousands of warriors lost.
Still 100% better than any book with Lao or references to Japanese culture
June 23, 2020
There's a real repetition in the writing style of A Bonfire of Worlds that I came to dislike as I read it.
Every main character, and several less important ones, will be described with their eyes as the window to their soul. Each pair is ascribed with deep significance, that became quite tiresome after about the fifth time this happened.
Virtually every battle is a series of gambits. Characters have a plan, and then a counterplan. When major characters fight there can be several layers of this. Again, it happens virtually every time, which makes the "initial" phase of most battles pretty tiresome as the real picture is always concealed. Like with a magician, we're meant to marvel at the final accomplishment - but in military sci fi it becomes annoying to be lead around by the nose to this degree.
Finally, this is a book written in the Battletech universe, hundreds of years into a fictional history. I understand that this was in part meant to be an introduction to the "current" setting of the world, but it's frequent explanations of various aspects of the setting really tried my patience by the end.
Every main character, and several less important ones, will be described with their eyes as the window to their soul. Each pair is ascribed with deep significance, that became quite tiresome after about the fifth time this happened.
Virtually every battle is a series of gambits. Characters have a plan, and then a counterplan. When major characters fight there can be several layers of this. Again, it happens virtually every time, which makes the "initial" phase of most battles pretty tiresome as the real picture is always concealed. Like with a magician, we're meant to marvel at the final accomplishment - but in military sci fi it becomes annoying to be lead around by the nose to this degree.
Finally, this is a book written in the Battletech universe, hundreds of years into a fictional history. I understand that this was in part meant to be an introduction to the "current" setting of the world, but it's frequent explanations of various aspects of the setting really tried my patience by the end.
October 7, 2023
It compares favorably to other BT novels I've read. The action moved along and most importantly gave me stakes I cared about. There was a good amount of politicking, scheming, backstabbing, and "GASP! What a reveal!" moments, which are all my favorite parts of BT lore. Some of the characterizations are inconsistent from previous books, but that's par for the course with the Dark Age era. Anastasia in particular has been all over the map with her personality and motivations. Not a knock on this author, though, as I found the characters' personalities in this book more enjoyable than most of their previous iterations. Force levels felt arbitrary and in service to the plot rather than based on any sort of "realism." But nobody is coming to BT fiction for realism, so it gets a pass from me.
I give this book a 3.8/5. Quite enjoyable.
I give this book a 3.8/5. Quite enjoyable.
October 4, 2021
This reminds me of the older Battletech books. It moves the lore of the Inner Sphere along. We have politics and warfare happening constantly. The Clans and Inner Sphere states are all fighting each other with some mercenaries thrown in too.
I really enjoyed getting back to this level of novel length, universal plot moving fiction for the Battletech universe.
The part at the very end really marks an end to an era. It strikes home hard with me because I entered the Battletech fiction with Exodus Road.
I really enjoyed getting back to this level of novel length, universal plot moving fiction for the Battletech universe.
The part at the very end really marks an end to an era. It strikes home hard with me because I entered the Battletech fiction with Exodus Road.
July 18, 2025
The main plot with Alaric is pretty good and engaging. various subplots around it are weak and bring down the rest of the pacing. I want to know what is going on with the primary plot and then all of a sudden we are spending the next 2 chapters dealing with other characters and story threads I am not engaged in!
September 23, 2019
Another fine novel - for those who like Battletech.
July 2, 2021
All over the place for the first 60% of the book with not a single likeable character.
It pulled together after that to bump up to the third star
It pulled together after that to bump up to the third star
November 26, 2016
The book that finally answers some questions about the Dark Age Timeline
December 9, 2024
This is my first BattleTech: Dark Ages novel. For me, it is a major jump forward in the story. The last event I read was the end of the FedCom Civil War. I missed the Jihad and the sudden loss of the HPG network. I was hoping that this book would resolve the HPG/ COMStar thread. Instead, the author just described the truth and a possible solution.
Meanwhile, the Lyrans, the Wolves, the Jade Falcons are fighting in a nearly endless war. Is this the real end of the Lyran Commonwealth? However, the Dark Ages era just isn't as compelling as the Clan Wars plus all the random FedCom Civil War side stories.
Nevertheless, this was a good start for this author's first foray into the BattleTech universe.
Meanwhile, the Lyrans, the Wolves, the Jade Falcons are fighting in a nearly endless war. Is this the real end of the Lyran Commonwealth? However, the Dark Ages era just isn't as compelling as the Clan Wars plus all the random FedCom Civil War side stories.
Nevertheless, this was a good start for this author's first foray into the BattleTech universe.
March 24, 2022
A refreshing contrast to the rest of the Dark Age novels. Much like Stackpole's earlier novels, this book moves great chunks of the timeline forward.
Alaric is just as annoying as Victor though... Obviously he's going to end up IlKhan and that's just repeating the sins of BT past with Victor simply being the greatest and most privileged product of divine right in the galaxy. Blergh.
It's a shame the fiction and timeline died or went fallow shortly after this book.
Alaric is just as annoying as Victor though... Obviously he's going to end up IlKhan and that's just repeating the sins of BT past with Victor simply being the greatest and most privileged product of divine right in the galaxy. Blergh.
It's a shame the fiction and timeline died or went fallow shortly after this book.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews