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Janus: The Foundling War Book I
The Foundlings In the Year of Union 437, an armada of ships appeared on the borders of the CASS. Terrified of again being subjugated to an alien race, the CASS attacked the invaders. A century has passed and still the war drags on, without anyone in the CASS having seen the face of their enemy. Djaan Das The greatest strategic mind to come out of the Jandahl Academy in fifty-six years, Bah'dur Das brings victory wherever he goes. He is the hope of every system in the CASS to finally bring an end to this long war. Now he and his fellow Djaans have embarked on a daring plan to lure the Foundlings to the blasted hull of old Earth and draw a noose around the Foundling fleet. Janus But Djaan Das has a secret; a secret so big that if it is revealed it could destroy not only him, but the entire Confederacy as well.
516 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 1, 2020
Bah'dur Das is a child prodigy born to a cold-blooded salesman who values appearances above all else. This is the haunting story of the cost of maintaining them.
He is groomed from the start to be the Chosen One, the last hope of survival for billions facing extermination by a mysterious enemy. His incredible mind for strategy, mathematics, science, and any other subject he gets his hands on wins him the admiration of others, but also isolates him from them.
Only Bodie, his mentor, dares to come near and treat him like a friend and a person instead of an idol. So it is that much more devastating when Bodie, overreacting to a simple mistake on Das's part, attacks him with the word "loser".
It doesn't matter that Bodie was only speaking idly; it is enough to show the young Das that his worst fear of all is to be a Disappointment. And it is enough to send him on a manic, self-destructive path of doing whatever it takes to be the one person in existence who can never disappoint. Even if he must go to dangerous, illegal lengths to live that unsustainable lie.
The novel is constructed in a braided format, with the chapters alternating between the present and the past until the threads come together in the end, and written in the author's characteristically dark, smooth, deeply introverted, elegiac style.
He is groomed from the start to be the Chosen One, the last hope of survival for billions facing extermination by a mysterious enemy. His incredible mind for strategy, mathematics, science, and any other subject he gets his hands on wins him the admiration of others, but also isolates him from them.
Only Bodie, his mentor, dares to come near and treat him like a friend and a person instead of an idol. So it is that much more devastating when Bodie, overreacting to a simple mistake on Das's part, attacks him with the word "loser".
It doesn't matter that Bodie was only speaking idly; it is enough to show the young Das that his worst fear of all is to be a Disappointment. And it is enough to send him on a manic, self-destructive path of doing whatever it takes to be the one person in existence who can never disappoint. Even if he must go to dangerous, illegal lengths to live that unsustainable lie.
The novel is constructed in a braided format, with the chapters alternating between the present and the past until the threads come together in the end, and written in the author's characteristically dark, smooth, deeply introverted, elegiac style.
December 1, 2020
Bah'dur Das is a child prodigy born to a cold-blooded salesman who values appearances above all else. This is the haunting story of the cost of maintaining them.
He is groomed from the start to be the Chosen One, the last hope of survival for billions facing extermination by a mysterious enemy. His incredible mind for strategy, mathematics, science, and any other subject he gets his hands on wins him the admiration of others, but also isolates him from them.
Only Bodie, his mentor, dares to come near and treat him like a friend and a person instead of an idol. So it is that much more devastating when Bodie, overreacting to a simple mistake on Das's part, attacks him with the word "loser".
It doesn't matter that Bodie was only speaking idly; it is enough to show the young Das that his worst fear of all is to be a Disappointment. And it is enough to send him on a manic, self-destructive path of doing whatever it takes to be the one person in existence who can never disappoint. Even if he must go to dangerous, illegal lengths to live that unsustainable lie.
The novel is constructed in a braided format, with the chapters alternating between the present and the past until the threads come together in the end, and written in the author's characteristically dark, smooth, deeply introverted, elegiac style.
He is groomed from the start to be the Chosen One, the last hope of survival for billions facing extermination by a mysterious enemy. His incredible mind for strategy, mathematics, science, and any other subject he gets his hands on wins him the admiration of others, but also isolates him from them.
Only Bodie, his mentor, dares to come near and treat him like a friend and a person instead of an idol. So it is that much more devastating when Bodie, overreacting to a simple mistake on Das's part, attacks him with the word "loser".
It doesn't matter that Bodie was only speaking idly; it is enough to show the young Das that his worst fear of all is to be a Disappointment. And it is enough to send him on a manic, self-destructive path of doing whatever it takes to be the one person in existence who can never disappoint. Even if he must go to dangerous, illegal lengths to live that unsustainable lie.
The novel is constructed in a braided format, with the chapters alternating between the present and the past until the threads come together in the end, and written in the author's characteristically dark, smooth, deeply introverted, elegiac style.
September 21, 2009
I don't usually go in for military sci-fi so please excuse me if I am unfamiliar with its tropes.
This book follows the military career of Bah'dur Das, a brilliant young boy enrolled in a military academy of sorts. He is incredibly bright and the narrative jumps back and forth between his time in service and his time at school.
The first thing that struck me is that the main character is set up to be incredibly smart; intelligent to the point of alienation. This can be a dangerous character trait to write as it openly invites the ego of the writer to emerge. I was very pleasantly surprised with the humanity that Das is written with. He is separated by his mind and suffers for it. This childhood treatment is the real core of the story, slowly exposed as the narrative weaves in and out of the war he grows up to fight.
This was a solid lead with only a few slow parts. The battle scenes are a bit wordy but I assume that comes with the territory of military fiction. Bah'dur's arc is more than enough to pull the reader through the slower passages. The only part that I wasn't satisfied with was the ending which just sort of wanders off. I will give that a partial pass as this is a common issue in science fiction and also because this is the first book in a series. I will be picking up the next installment.
This book follows the military career of Bah'dur Das, a brilliant young boy enrolled in a military academy of sorts. He is incredibly bright and the narrative jumps back and forth between his time in service and his time at school.
The first thing that struck me is that the main character is set up to be incredibly smart; intelligent to the point of alienation. This can be a dangerous character trait to write as it openly invites the ego of the writer to emerge. I was very pleasantly surprised with the humanity that Das is written with. He is separated by his mind and suffers for it. This childhood treatment is the real core of the story, slowly exposed as the narrative weaves in and out of the war he grows up to fight.
This was a solid lead with only a few slow parts. The battle scenes are a bit wordy but I assume that comes with the territory of military fiction. Bah'dur's arc is more than enough to pull the reader through the slower passages. The only part that I wasn't satisfied with was the ending which just sort of wanders off. I will give that a partial pass as this is a common issue in science fiction and also because this is the first book in a series. I will be picking up the next installment.
February 26, 2010
Very much enjoyed it-- can't wait for the next one! Would give four stars because I liked it, but I think I gave a Shakespeare play four stars and am trying to be more judicious.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews