The Legacy of the Aldenata - 01 - A Hymn Before Battle

✍ Scribed by Ringo, John

• Book ID: 109236290
• Publisher: Baen
• Year: 2000
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 226 KB
• Series: Legacy of the Aldenata 1
• Category: Fiction
• ISBN: 0671319418

✦ Synopsis

From Booklist

Michael O'Shea, a fireplug of an iron-pumping ex-soldier, leaves game design behind to train and then lead power-armored infantry in a merciless battle against the equally merciless, centauroid Posleen for the sake of Earth's allies. Several subplots show Ringo's fondness for special ops types and marines, and his experience as a paratrooper shows in the way he handles military small-group politics and disciplinary problems. The subplots point up the potential grimness of Earth finding itself under siege, if not actually under assault. (Don't worry, that will probably come; this book has series written between all the lines.) The interstellar skulduggery is thick, and the final action sequence, occupying a third of the book, juxtaposes power armor, aliens, lasers, and leopard tanks, and is practically impossible not to read in one sitting. An exceedingly impressive first novel is what we have here. Standard military sf based on a standard premise--humans as the desperately needed warrior allies of alien pacifists--it may be, but it is executed with skill, verve, and wit. Roland Green
Copyright � American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

John Ringo is author of the New York Times best-selling Legacy of Aldenata (Posleen War) series, which so far includes A Hymn Before Battle and nine sequels, the technothriller series starting with Ghost, a dark fantasy titled Princess of Wands, and many other novels for Baen. A veteran of the 82nd Airborne, Ringo brings first-hand knowledge of military operations to his fiction.