BattleTech Legends: A Rending of Falcons

BattleTech Universe #89

by Victor Milán

The epic science fiction action saga continues

She has found her vision-and it is of doom...

Jade Falcon Galaxy Commander Malvina Hazen and her warriors are encamped on the planet Skye in their Occupation Zone, overseeing the consolidation of power on the worlds they've wrested from The Republic. When a ship appears at Skye's jump point and its commander declares a Trial of Possession for the wartime doctrine he claims Malvina stole from Clan Hell's Horses, Malvina sees her vision unfolding: she agrees to single BattleMech combat.

Malvina emerges from the fray victorious-and inspired to ride her growing reputation into Clan Jade Falcon's halls of power. But her bold actions may herald the beginning of a civil war that could unmake not simply her own Clan, but the entire Clan way of life.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

341 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 5, 2007

About the author

Victor Woodward Milán was an American writer known for libertarian science fiction and an interest in cybernetics. In 1986 he won the Prometheus Award for Cybernetic Samurai. He has also written several shared universe works for the Forgotten Realms, Star Trek, and Wild Cards Universes. He has also written books under the pseudonyms Keith Jarrod, Richard Austin (Jove Books The Guardians series), Robert Baron (Jove Books Stormrider series), and S. L. Hunter (Steele series with Simon Hawke, who used the pen name J. D. Masters). He also wrote at least 9 novels under the "house name" of James Axler for the Harlequin Press/Gold Eagle Books Deathlands series & Outlanders series.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the twenty sixth book in the Mech Warrior Dark Age series. This series is a continuation of the Battletech series. The books in this series, like the books in the original Battletech series, are by various authors. This one is by Victor Milan. 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 one Jade Falcon Galaxy Commander Malvina Hazen has taken the Republic planet of Skye and is awaiting reinforcements and supplies from Khan Jana Pryde and the Jade Falcon planet of Sudeten in the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone. It soon becomes apparent that no help is coming and that Malvina Hazen and her loyal Falcons have been abandoned to their own devices. Malvina Hazen decides that this will not stand and returns to Sudeten and challenges Khan Jana Pryde for the leadership of the Jade Falcon Clan. Her actions ignite a civil war among the Jade Falcons and the whole of humanity may suffer form this rending of Falcons. Another great read in this series.

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the better written MechWarrior Darkage novels. That being said, this book still suffers from the failures of this series as a whole, namely the lack of a coherent overarching plot line. What effect do the various actions in this novel have on the greater plotline of the universe it is set in? Also, the characters are very dark, but do not seem to develop. They are placed in various scenes in which they show how disturbing they are, but they fail to develop as characters. The additional story line of the "likable" good-guys was a nice balance to the disturbing bad-guys, but had no point other than to keep the reader from falling into morbid despair.

[J Murdock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good story line except....

For the again ridiculously long and beaten to the ground filler banter.

One of the best parts of Battletech is its "to the point" story telling. The amount of pages filled with Lyran merchant deivel could have made for a much fuller and exciting story.

[Walter Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Great read about deadly Jade Falcon politics and the rise of Malvina Hazen to Khan no Genghis Khan of Clan Jade Falcon and a great foundation for the end of the Dark Age and the New ilclan era to follow. Great sub characters which I hope make future appearances in the Battletech universe.

[Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This doesn't feel like a Dark Ages book. Galaxy Commander Malvina Hazel is completely Froot Loops in her attempt to overthrow the Jade Falcon Khan

[Vez'Roth · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it's not the worst of the DarkAge series, it's definitely not the best. This said though, it's a story that involves Mad Malvina and surprisingly it lends something a bit deeper to her as a character. It explores some of her motivations a bit more, but there's starts and stops throughout to the story that are just so completely out of context and frankly insane that it's a bit baffling.

It takes 3/4's of the book before we even find out what the bloody hell a Rending is. Then it takes forever before we find out why it's bad, then it takes even longer before anything at all is explained. When it is? It's all stuffed into a box, sat on, and tied up with a bow. It's not well done, which is a bit surprising from a writer like Victor. I'll grant that he's done what he could with what he had to work with, and the universe itself is... lost feeling. This book kind of helps embody that sensation in it's own way.

[Kavinay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I sincerely wish that all the dark ages books could be like this. I don't care about backwater inner sphere nonsense. High stakes clan plotlines and action make up for everything that makes dark age otherwise a frustrating era.