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Title: Ender's Game

Subtitle: Special 20th Anniversary Edition

Author: Orson Scott Card

Narrator: Stefan Rudnicki, Harlan Ellison, Gabrielle de Cuir

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 57 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-23-02

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 32727 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Is Ender the general Earth so desperately needs? The only way to find out is to throw him into ever-harsher training at Battle School, to chip away and find the diamond inside, or destroy him utterly. Ender Wiggin is six years old when his training begins. He will grow up fast.

But Ender is not the only result of the experiment. His two older siblings, Peter and Valentine, are every bit as unusual as he is, but in very different ways. Among the three of them lie the abilities to remake a world. If, that is, the world survives.

This Special 20th Anniversary Edition of the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning classic is now digitally remastered with a full cast production. It also contains an exclusive bonus: an original postscript written and recorded by the author himself, Orson Scott Card!

Critic Reviews:

"Intense' is the word for Ender's Game." (The New York Times)

Members Reviews:

6 titles in the series so far

Ender's Game is one of the best sci-fi books written.

However, I'm mainly writing this review to make others

aware that there are actually 6 books (so far) in the

series:

Ender's Game

Speaker for the Dead

Xenocide

Children of the Mind

Ender's Shadow

Shadow of the Hegemon

The last two books don't actually feature Ender at all -

they're about the character of Bean and the story of

what happened on Earth after Ender's Game.

All 6 books are fantastic. I've bought them all on

audiobook, but for some reason I can only seem to

find 4 of these titles using Audible's search engine

(and "Shadow of the Hegemon" seems to have been

renamed for some reason?).

The Best Science Fiction Book Of All Time

All other Science Fiction is measured by Orson Scott Card's masterpiece. Decades before Ready Player One, we had Ender Wiggins. The plot is superior, the characters deep, the twists are pre RR Martin. Since I read this in the 80's, I have told everyone I know about it and I lost count of how many times I have read the hard copy and listened on CD and download.

Rudnicki is to Card, as Muller was to King, Porter to Mayberry and Runnette to Tufo.

Captivating

Based on an Audible.com recommendation I looked into obtaining Enders Game. Admittedly I was reluctant to listen to this. Primarily - I enjoy political thrillers, history and biography titles. I did not see a science fiction novel fitting in there. On reading other reviews I decided to give this a try. Was I in for a surprise. This is one of the most entertaining audiobooks I have ever listened to. Hang on, because you are in for a warp speed ride through Andrew Wiggins world. Incredibly entertaining, intellectually challenging, and very mature. Sharp dialogue, great pace, non-stop action. As with most truly great reads (listens??) you do not want it to end. Well, Enders game is part of a trilogy: Enders Shadow and Shadow of the Hedgemon. I just finished Enders Shadow, another excellent audiobook. I have purchased 'Hedgemon' but I need to catch my breath before I start it. Listen to Enders Game you will not regret it.

Nice Surprise

I have to admit, this audio book totally took me by surprise. Except for the Harry Potter books, performed by the incredible Jim Dale, Enders Game is the first audio book that I've listened to that I hadn't first read. All I can say is, WOW.

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Title: Snow Crash

Author: Neal Stephenson

Narrator: Jonathan Davis

Format: Unabridged

Length: 17 hrs and 3 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-30-01

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 12261 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

In reality, Hiro Protagonist delivers pizza for Uncle Enzo's CosaNostra Pizza Inc., but in the Metaverse he's a warrior prince. Plunging headlong into the enigma of a new computer virus that's striking down hackers everywhere, he races along the neon-lit streets on a search-and-destroy mission for the shadowy virtual villain threatening to bring about Infocalypse. Snow Crash is a mind-altering romp through a future America so bizarre, so outrageous...you'll recognize it immediately.

Critic Reviews:

"Brilliantly realized...Stephenson turns out to be an engaging guide to an onrushing tomorrow." (The New York Times Book Review)

"Fast-forward free-style mall mythology for the 21st century." (William Gibson)

Members Reviews:

Cool, but complicated

After reading the first two chapters, I thought Wow, I have found a new favorite author. The action was great and the characters interesting. Stephenson's metaphors and use of language are genius. I soon got lost in the complicated plot and what little I understood sounded extremely far fetched. If you are a layman of average intelligence like me you may find this a hard read, but the educated tech heads may love this book. I do want to read more of Stephenson.

Classic Stephenson

It's been several years since I read this book, so thought it'd be fun to give the audiobook a listen. I do have to say that I think it's one of those books that is better read than listened to via audio. That said, I think the narrator did a good job capturing the book and it is a fun story. First released in 1992, the same year "www" was coined, it's interesting to see how many of his "predictions" have come true and how much sounds dated. Stephenson is someone who explains tech in detail - all of his books are that way - which I find fascinating. But, if in-depth explanations bore you, he's not the author for you.

A solid sci-fi novel

This book has a lot going for it. For starters the plot is great. A lot of twists and turns and you're never quite sure what's going to happen (or even what's going on). The characters are wonderfully crafted and the dialog is well written and entertaining. A wonderfully dry humor is mixed in well with the action. Also, major kudos to the narrator. He does such a great job that the audio book may very well be better then paper edition.

Part of the plot revolves around the study of biblical era documents, including the bible itself. I did sometimes find this part of the plot somewhat frustrating. But that's probably due to the fact that I know something about biblical exegesis, and the conclusions drawn by the characters in the book are wildly inaccurate. I suppose this frustration would be similar to the frustration felt by a physicist as he watched Star Trek. Or by a military tactician as he watched a Rambo film. It can just be frustrating to have a subject that you know about used as a plot device. Let's just say that you'll learn about as much about biblical study after reading Snow Crash as you'd learn about physics by watching Captain Picard use "and inverted tachyon beam to scan the wormhole."

Don't get this book if you'll be offended by the use of Christian and biblical events as a plot device. Also be aware that there is some profanity.

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Title: Scanners II

Subtitle: The New Order

Author: Janus Kimball

Narrator: Roddy McDowall

Format: Abridged

Length: 2 hrs and 50 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-99

Publisher: Phoenix Books

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Part 2 of the 3-part Scanners trilogy, Scanners II continues the gory action! Special renegades, known as "scanners", with telekinetic and telepathic abilities, have terrorized humanity before - will they do so again?

Members Reviews:

world is now a better place

love that I live in a world that this is a thing. yab dab doo.

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Title: Children of Time

Author: Adrian Tchaikovsky

Narrator: Mel Hudson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 16 hrs and 30 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-02-17

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 7152 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Adrian Tchaikovksy's critically acclaimed stand-alone novel Children of Time is the epic story of humanity's battle for survival on a terraformed planet.

Who will inherit this new Earth?

The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age - a world terraformed and prepared for human life.

But all is not right in this new Eden. In the long years since the planet was abandoned, the work of its architects has borne disastrous fruit. The planet is not waiting for them pristine and unoccupied. New masters have turned it from a refuge into mankind's worst nightmare.

Now two civilizations are on a collision course, both testing the boundaries of what they will do to survive. As the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, who are the true heirs of this new Earth?

Critic Reviews:

"Children of Time is a joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human." (Patrick Ness)

Members Reviews:

A unique take on the alien

This was a very nice surprise. I read a lot of science fiction, and it's rare to come across a take on an alien society that is unique, and as well fleshed out as the author has achieved here.

The story concept is great, and the execution does not disappoint.

The start of the book didn't leave me expecting much - I found the main character in that early part pretty... cliche. Very glad to say that quickly got better though, much better.

A very pleasant surprise

What a pleasant surprise. I had never heard of this author and have become very hesitant to download books by authors new to me. In a time where the traditional barriers to publishing have crumbled, I tend to start with listening to the narrator in the sample on the premise that a talentless self publisher probably cannot afford a professional.

This is a well written and expertly narrated book. The premise interesting and the science believable. The characters are engaging and the storyline moves along at a nice pace.

Sorry for not giving away any of the storyline. Let's just say it's a story of humanity, survival, and some really intelligent mistakes. I enjoyed it and hope ypu will too.

Fascinating Premise Within an Excellent Story

This is everything you expect from good Science Fiction. I love it when an author can take a potentially hokey storyline and turn it into a stunning work of believable fiction. A work of this type takes detailed knowledge and superior writing ability. Mostly this is a book about the known characteristics and behavior of a certain species, and how that species would hyper evolve with the right catalyst. But it also has some awesome hard science fiction involving terraforming, long distance space travel, and an number of other more common sci-fi themes. The science was logical throughout while the story remained unpredictable - a great combination. Sometimes female narrators struggle with male voices, but Mel Hudson does an excellent job. This book is at the top of my list so far for 2017, so it gets 5 stars across the board.

All we need is enough time

Adrian Tchaikovsky's Children of Time presents an interesting take on intelligence development among insect species (mainly spiders) due to unintended human intervention.

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Title: Angles of Attack

Subtitle: Frontlines, Book 3

Author: Marko Kloos

Narrator: Luke Daniels

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 58 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-21-15

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 4165 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

The alien forces known as the Lankies are gathering on the solar system's edge, consolidating their conquest of Mars and setting their sights on Earth. The far-off colony of New Svalbard, cut off from the rest of the galaxy by the Lanky blockade, teeters on the verge of starvation and collapse. The forces of the two Earth alliances have won minor skirmishes but are in danger of losing the war. For battle-weary staff sergeant Andrew Grayson and the ragged forces of the North American Commonwealth, the fight for survival is entering a catastrophic new phase.

Forging an uneasy alliance with their Sino-Russian enemies, the NAC launches a hybrid task force on a long shot: a stealth mission to breach the Lanky blockade and reestablish supply lines with Earth. Plunging into combat against a merciless alien species that outguns, outmaneuvers, and outfights them at every turn, Andrew and his fellow troopers could end up cornered on their home turf, with no way out and no hope for reinforcement. And this time the struggle for humanity's future can end only in either victory or annihilation.

Members Reviews:

New twist on great military SF

The third book in this no-longer-a-trilogy (it was originally supposed to be three books, now it will be at least four) is the strongest yet. Kloos pulls off a neat trick for a military science fiction series. He first gives us the usual satisfying tropes with a likeable hero who progresses up the ranks, political machinations, propulsive action, and ever-increasing-in-scale conflict. All of this is delivered at least as well as any classic Hornblower knock-off (Honor Harrington, Lost Fleet, etc) and is worth it in its own right.

But, there is a twist, which is that, unlike these other heroes, Kloos's characters remain cogs in the machine: the death of the captain does not suddenly place them in charge, they do not come up with the amazing idea to slay the aliens, they are not the ones to turn every battle. Kloos plays with this idea in interesting ways as the book (and series) progress, creating shifting sympathies and continual surprises.

On top of that, and the thrilling military scenes, the book is held together by terrific characters who actually feel human, witty, and meaningful. The reading is terrific as well. You obviously should start with the first book, but this is a great addition, and I am glad there are more books to come.

Another instalment in Kloos' world

I liked it almost as much as book 2 which I liked almost as much as book 1. Of the 3 books, this one has the most "moralizing" in it, but I think Kloos still managed to avoid being overly annoying as he made his social commentary point. Do I think the world would stay at war (even for only 5 years) among the different human factions when the entire race is being destroyed by alien forces... no, I don't. This required a suspension of disbelief -in a sci-fi novel no less - that I think was a bit of a stretch. The sci-fi itself, however, is completely realistic, even if the social/political underpinnings might not be.

But, essentially, if you liked books 1-2, you should like this one just as much (and, while the story itself stands alone, you really should read the books in order to fully appreciate where the world is at). It's the same tone and characterization, and pretty much the same activities (guy goes to war, stuff blows up, guy comes home).

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Title: Shaman's Revenge

Subtitle: Way of the Shaman, Book 6

Author: Vasily Mahanenko

Narrator: Jonathan Yen

Format: Unabridged

Length: 16 hrs and 51 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-21-17

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 1002 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

The adventures of the Shaman continue!

Daniel Mahan, the legendary Shaman of the Barliona game world, has served his sentence in virtual reality. Eleven months of adventures and battles in exchange for eight years in prison isn't a bad trade-off. And yet Barliona refuses to relinquish its grip on the Shaman so easily, erasing the boundary between his two realities. It turns out that it's not so simple to leave the capsule - the Way must be completed....

Members Reviews:

Totally Redeemed!

The end of the last book left me disgusted by betrayal. It evoked enough emotion in me to make me pissed off at the characters as if I was the one betrayed. This book totally redeems the series by giving it a proper ending! Way to go Vasily Mahanenko! I have also enjoyed the narration by Jonathan Yen which has been top notch. Thanks for a great series.

Quite surprised!

After the last books ending, I had no love for the idea of another one. But the author pulled it off, It's great! I'm loving every minute of this new book! Definitely worth getting.

Dam!!!!!!

Now that was one hell of a ride the last book I was so pissed I wasn't sure I was going to listen to this book now that I have listen to this book I really enjoyed it I don't know how to express my feelings but it was one emotional ride thanks for the the best book I've listened to in a very long time

Good but not enough.

After the way book 5 ended the author had a big task to bring the story back to something great. Just as it looked like I was hooked again it ended abruptly. He resolved the plot, but l felt that we needed a lot more about what happened afterwards. So many unanswered questions....

Good finish to a great story.

Would you listen to Shaman's Revenge again? Why?

Possible, this book like many different titles are great because of the suspense and uncertainty, so knowing the ending would take away a lot of what makes these books great.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Shaman's Revenge?

Id rather not spoil it for those on the fence. Its a great addition to the story and with the way Book 5 ended, you owe it to yourself to finish the book and find out what happens.

What does Jonathan Yen bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

Jonathan brings alot of life to these characters as well as personality. Did a great job as always.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It had its ups and downs. During the book you could definitely feel the anxiety building in Mahan.

Any additional comments?

The ending closed up a lot of story arcs, however it seemed a little rushed. I felt that some parts of the ending could have been fleshed out alot more and there were some plot points that were ignored from the prior installments making them seem a bit wasted.

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Title: Parable of the Sower

Author: Octavia E. Butler

Narrator: Lynne Thigpen

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-16-09

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1451 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

God is change. That is the central truth of the Earthseed movement, whose unlikely prophet is 18-year-old Lauren Olamina. The young woman's diary entries tell the story of her life amid a violent 21st-century hell of walled neighborhoods and drug-crazed pyromaniacs - and reveal her evolving Earthseed philosophy. Against a backdrop of horror emerges a message of hope: if we are willing to embrace divine change, we will survive to fulfill our destiny among the stars.

For her elegant, literate works of science fiction, Octavia E. Butler has been compared to Toni Morrison and Ursula K. LeGuin. Narrator Lynne Thigpen's melodious voice will hold you spellbound throughout this compelling parable of modern society.

Members Reviews:

Dystopia before dystopia was cool...

Love, love narrator Lynne Thigpen. LOVE HER. While hers is plainly the voice of a mature woman and not a teenager, she perfectly channels Laurens old soul persona. A few reviewers have complained that shes too slow, but poetry is not improved by speeding it up, and Thigpens reading is just thatpure poetry. Her voice is raw silk, and her pacing and inflections are perfection, adding layers of meaning to a single word of dialog. I hung on every sentence, every word, and was happy to be carried along at the storys natural pace. Hungry for more of her work, I looked her up. Its clear that she has been pigeonholed into only reading audiobooks with black protagonists, and a small number of those, which I think is a gross under-appreciation of her talents.

On its face, theres nothing that extraordinary about the plotits a classic dystopian/post-apocalyptic future story, in which a band of survivors travels a ruined country, fending off bandits and natural disasters, searching for a safe haven in which to build a secure new home. If any of it seems clichéd, bear in mind it was first published in 1993, before dystopia became trendy and the genre became so glutted.

Butler first sets the scene, in a grim near-future thats all too easy to imagine- Americas (and perhaps the worlds--that is left purposely vague) economy and government have become moribund, leaving thousands unemployed, homeless and desperate. While familiar institutions like police and fire departments and federal and state governments still exist, they are ineffectual, and violence and vigilante justice have become the law of the land in most places. Lauren Olamina is one of the relatively lucky onesa member of a shrinking middle class, living in an armed, walled neighborhood in the outskirts of Los Angeles, drifting closer to poverty every year as the times grow leaner, the climate grows drier, and the thieves outside grow more desperate. Blessed with a dream and a gift for oratory, Lauren leaves the smoking ruins of her home and sets forth with a gun, a few hundred dollars, two traveling companions, and little else but her own determination to survive. Adventure ensues.

Its Laurens philosophical ideas, not the plot, that captivated me. Lauren, a young woman of passing vision and resolve, daughter of the neighborhoods Baptist minister, has been observing the decline of society her whole life, and concluded at the tender age of 15 that the religion of her father has no place in this tempestuous new world.

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Title: Home World

Subtitle: Undying Mercenaries, Book 6

Author: B. V. Larson

Narrator: Mark Boyett

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-24-16

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 4173 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

The Galactics arrived with their Battle Fleet in 2052. Rather than being exterminated under a barrage of hell-burners, Earth joined a vast empire that spanned the Milky Way.

When the Earth is invaded by a rival empire, James McGill's legion must defend the Home World. The top brass has complex plans, but none of that matters much to McGill, who chooses his own unique path. Traveling to star systems no human has ever visited, he searches for a technological edge to beat the enemy before it's too late. Along the way he unleashes new terrors, triggering the biggest battles in human history.

Home World is the sixth book of the Undying Mercenaries Series, a novel of military science fiction by best-selling author B. V. Larson.

Members Reviews:

Obstinate to the Core

In Home world, James McGill is still as obstinate and stubbornly determined to do what he thinks is right no matter what anyone else has to say; and he now has rank, as in Adjunct. He seems to have become somewhat more mature and diplomatic given his new positon, but deep down hes still the same old James McGill, and thats what makes this series fun.

As the title suggests, the setting of the six book in the Undying Mercenaries, series is earth. It is under attack by the Squids, and their superior force seems destined to destroy the planet; but for better or worse earth has James McGill. To try and save mankind James will travel to the core of the Galactics universe to retrieve some high tech weaponry that could turn the tide of the war and piss off a lot of aliens.

His usual gang of mercenaries is present and accounted for along with Imperator Turov, and Claver of course. In my opinion this is the best of the series and listening to Mark Boyett play James McGill is the only way to enjoy it.

Great story! Action, invasion, and introspection!

This is a wonderful series! The tech is awesome, the battles are exciting, and the plots are thick and twisting. The universe is interesting and believable. The people are real. Few other authors can juggle all these aspects as well as Larson does here.

I read (listen) a lot. I have been a reader all my life (well since about 4). I read and write academic analyses and criticisms. In my book (yuk yuk), Larson has created a perfect set of characters in this series. They are distinct and well-rounded, with their flaws as well as their strengths. And they fill necessary roles. There are no superfluous characters. Harris, Graves and Carlos are real and vital. Kivi, Natasha, and Della are different from each other. Even the ones we love to hate-- Winslow, Claver, and Turov-- have their important places. These are people we wish we knew, even if we want to perm them sometimes.

And McGill, ah McGill. Irreverent, insubordinate, lying, conniving, loyal, philandering, seat-of-the-pants McGill, ya gotta love him even when you slap his face. He'll quote his mama's rules as he disobeys them, explain the universe with hog farm philosophy, and scheme and plot on a dime to save his friends or all humanity. He is so real, you will miss him when the story ends.

Despite McGill's seeming superficial flirtation and rutting, he does get himself into some practical self-evaluation and realistic, honorable contemplation of the future. Deep down he has a good sense of right and wrong, fairness, and commitment. This saves him from just being a total jerk.

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Title: False Gods

Subtitle: The Horus Heresy, Book 2

Author: Graham McNeill

Narrator: Toby Longworth

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 18 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-04-17

Publisher: Black Library

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 283 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

The Great Crusade that has taken humanity into the stars continues. The Emperor of Mankind has handed the reins of command to his favoured son, the Warmaster Horus. Yet all is not well in the armies of the Imperium.

Horus is still battling against the jealousy and resentment of his brother primarchs, and when he is injured in combat on the planet Davin, he must also battle his inner daemon. With all the temptations that Chaos has to offer, can the weakened Horus resist?

Members Reviews:

Simply amazing

Amazingly written and perfectly narrated. the tale of Horus before the heresy. an excellent place to start if you want to start learning about the warhammer 40k universe.

highly recommended 10/10

so so good

it was everything I wanted it to be. it was amazing and so shockingly well written. I highly recommend it.

LUPERCAL!!

Such a good book! It gave me goosebumps in a few areas! I recommend it !

superb narration, exquisite story

The book had me enthralled, plain and simple. I kept thinking about it, pondering how someone like the war master could do such things. the book answered so many questions... and left me with so many more! on to the next!

Great follow up

picked up well where the first book left off, perfect continuation. can't wait for the next book

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Title: The Last Colony

Subtitle: Old Man's War, Book 3

Author: John Scalzi

Narrator: William Dufris

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 51 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-14-08

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 5126 votes

Genres: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sci-Fi: Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

That is, until his and Jane's past reaches out to bring them back into the game - as leaders of a new human colony, to be peopled by settlers from all the major human worlds, for a deep political purpose that will put Perry and Sagan back in the thick of interstellar politics, betrayal, and war.

Critic Reviews:

"Scalzi's captivating blend of off-world adventure and political intrigue remains consistently engaging." (Booklist)

"The sequel to Old Man's War combines taut military action with keen insights into the moral issues revolving around developing technologies. Scalzi has a finely tuned sense of balance between personal drama and the 'big picture'....Highly recommended." (Library Journal)

Members Reviews:

Excellent But Different

Any additional comments?

I loved this book. it was an excellent way to tie up the series.I know there is also another book from Zoe's point of view but for the story as a whole i really enjoyed the way Scalzi brought it together.The Last Colony is somewhat diferent that Old Man's War or The Ghost Bigrades...same Scalzi, MUCH less action. If you are expecting big battles (or even a lot of small skirmishes) this is not your book. This book could stand apart fror the Sci Fi genre & be set anywhere in history; I think that is testament to Scalizi's talent!.Once again William Dufris does a wonderful job. I think he really captures the different personalities and tells great story.

3.5 stars

Originally published at FanLit.

The Last Colony, the third book in John Scalzis OLD MANS WAR series, returns us to the perspective of John Perry, the old man hero of the first novel in the series, Old Mans War. John Perry is only mentioned in the second novel, The Ghost Brigades, which told the story of how the cyborg Special Forces soldiers found and defeated the scientist Charles Boutin, a traitor to the Colonial Union. On that mission they also found Zoe, Boutins young daughter. Zoe has been adopted by Jane Sagan and John Perry and the little family has been farming on one of Earths colonies where John and Jane are the leaders.

Life is easy for them until the Colonial Union comes calling they need leaders for a new colonization effort and John and Jane have been selected. This new colony (named Roanoke. hmmmm I think I wouldnt have signed up for that) will be comprised of people from several different human worlds and John and Jane are responsible for its success. However, the Colonial Union hasnt been completely honest with them. It will be a lot more dangerous than the members of Roanoke have been led to believe. They are being played as political pawns and they dont realize it until its too late. And its not just Roanoke thats in danger, but the entire human race.

The Last Colony (I keep wanting to write The Lost Colony) has a different tone than Old Mans War and The Ghost Brigades. It takes place mainly on a planet, rather than in space, and deals mostly with domestic and political matters rather than space battles and espionage. Some of the political dialogue between characters we dont know is dull, especially if youre hoping for lasers and explosions, but Scalzi continues to explore the interesting theme of access to information and the problems that occur when the government controls the press.