Book Review: Off Armageddon Reef

Posted By Laughing_Wolf

A joke of sorts: How do you tell the difference between a Weber novel and a Ringo novel? David kills off humanity in large cataclysmic events. Ringo hunts them down and kills them individually.

The basic concept of the joke is stolen (thanks David!), but is in some ways not far off the mark. The question to my mind is who is the more devious about it and has the most fun with it...

That said, David Weber has outdone himself on that and other areas in Off Armageddon Reef. The book in some ways goes back to some of the plot and underlying concepts in his Empire from the Ashes series. Indeed, one will find enough similarities that it can cause concern; yet, those would be misplaced. While part of the plot is very similar to the series, and many names and considerations are similar to the last book in particular, it is not simply a rehash. Rather, many of the characters have similar names because of historic and philosophical issues and people that underlie the concepts.

What has been done is the creation of a new universe and a new series that explores a variety of concepts in a new and novel fashion, from religious and military history to gender identity, from the rights of individuals to ways in which power is so often abused by those who find themselves with what appears to be absolute power. By the end of the book, the major characters are fully fleshed and any concerns about rehash are out with the trash.

The read is compelling, informative, and fun. It is still in the bookstores as a hardcover, and I do recommend it -- and not just for Weber fans. As with most Weber books, though it is well grounded in history and philosophy, it also echos the events of today on a level that reminds me very much of the Honor series. Go check it out.

LW
Who also says "Thanks David! Sorry it took so long!!"

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Comments

[Sapper Mike]

C'mon guy, I know you read the eARC at least two months ago...

[Laughing Wolf]

The sad thing truly is that David gave me e-copies in late July... I took out the mea culpa for being a bad friend and reviewer.

[74]

I grabbed the hardcover off the shelf as soon as the clerks unboxed 'em. Now I just have to wait for the next one in the series. Sigh. Why can't David be more like his protagonist and do without sleep so we can get them sooner?

[Ymarsakar]

How do you tell the difference between a Weber novel and a Ringo novel? David kills off humanity in large cataclysmic events. Ringo hunts them down and kills them individually.

My personal answer. David makes you care for his characters before he kills them. Ringo introduces them fast and kills them off fast. David introduces them short, kills them with an asteroid short. But if character is given attention and time, time until death is longer.

And Ringo also likes pop culture references, and so he likes writing in real life authors and their allusions (David Weber being the author) into his universes.

Indeed, one will find enough similarities that it can cause concern

It is more like it is reversed Wolf. First Muty's Moon had an avatar and cool gizmos after the prologue, but aside from that Arma Off was more like the third and final book in the series, ground pound combat. So it is like reversed. First the prologue, then the ground pounding, then the other stuff. I say "more like" because that's why the similarities didn't cause any concern for me. I really really really liked the Asian/Eastern references. Like some anime, mystical thing. After that,being reminded of Empire and March Upcountry was just plus points. In a sense, the science of Muty's Moon introduced to a 21st century mind complex is expansive, yes, but it isn't the same as the mystical world view of Arma Off back in 800 something year of God. I could really put myself into the eyes of the people back then, and see the "magic" the way they would. Since I like multiple perspectives on the same event, it was interesting being able to see it through 3 or more lenses. My own, the main character's, as well as the targets'. Muty was expansionary and up scale, but I could easily see how Arma Off's people would see the "tech" as earth shaking, society rupturing, and global warming makeover. Weber really took his past experiences with Empire from the Ashes and March Upcountry, and made a new world that was even more complex and enriching based off his prior experiences.

Rather, many of the characters have similar names because of historic and philosophical issues and people that underlie the concepts.

Except for Cay ;) Remember that small raid on the ship? It is just almost as if it is hinting at the "other" Prince.

By the end of the book, the major characters are fully fleshed and any concerns about rehash are out with the trash.

It's hard to say what the ending reminds me of without giving perhaps away a key character plot. But the ending was quite dramatic, and I think it explained things in a way that only Weber and the book media could do so.

I picked it up from the library, and read it over a few times.

[Ymarsakar]

David makes you care for his characters before he kills them. Ringo introduces them fast and kills them off fast.

Some elaboration now that I've had some more time to think about it. I think in a sense the time/plot length is about the same for both Weber and Ringo. Meaning, the time before a character dies. But the reason why I say that about Weber is that Weber tends to give you the internal thoughts of various characters. This makes it easier to empathize with them and feel their pain. Ringo doesn't exactly do that, tell you the stories of the people and then do the Greek tragedy thing. Ringo has a attitude of almost "people die, deal with it". It is harder to feel sadness and regret just because of how Ringo tells the tale.

The one emotion that Ringo, I think, transmits really well is anger and rage. A sort of combat fury, controlled. I also tend to think Ringo tends to put his characters into very dangerous and horrible circumstances, especially his spies. Whereas Weber constructs a less... well expendable group of spies and spy operations. His spies are actually major components of coups and deception and what not, and they are moderately successful. Also why I liked Arma Off, because it's fun to see these spy networks and you're like the master comptroller. Instead of being in the dark, you more or less know what is going on, but unlike other stories, the characters also know what is going on. So it isn't like Empire from the Ashes where you know the deal, but the people in the book are like clueless, helpless victims to the conspirators.

Weber using this kind of conspiratorial technique, increases the drama and suspense. Combine it with the carnage and horrendous violence of a John Ringo, and you got something that inspires emotion.

Weber seemed to have refined this since Empire from the Ashes. Because it tends to be a lot less frustrating, he just doesn't come out and tell you the entire plot, without bringing the characters in the book up to a similar level of knowledge. Knowing who was behind what and how they did it, and then watching the good guys stumble around like blind folks was perhaps not very enjoyable.

[Retief]

Yeah that, and with Ringo we have to listen to him rehash his tired, wierd psychosexual theories ever other freakin' chapter. Could we just get through a couple of sections without having to hear about who is a homo-dom and who is a bi-dom and who makes a great "top"? Please.

Oh and I could do without the characters supposedly from thousands of years in the future soliliquizing on the minutia of today's politics. He might as well just have them turn to the camera and address the audience. Hopefully he'll get over that or he might as well just go the Ayn Rand route and have his characters give rambling lectures expounding his philosophy and bag the plot.

[warren90-93]

OAR was the best book I've read so far this year.Mr. Weber really gets you to invest emotionaly with his charactors.

In the next book I'm looking forward to seeing how the Church reacts to news of the battle and who Cayleb ends up marrying.

[Jason B]

I'm waiting until I have more time to read Off Armageddon Reef, just too many books to read at the time.

But I'd drop all of that to read the next Honorverse book!

[David Maxwell]

This latest by Dave Weber has been one of the best reads of the year for me, as are most of his works. I too can barely wait for the rest of this saga to appear. I really envy you folks that know and talk to both of these writers.

[yak]

My older son and I met John Ringo at his booksigning for Cally's War. He was there with his co-author, Julie Cochrane and we didn't get there until about 30 minutes before the end. Afterwards we all went over to the TGIF's at the Mall for burgers and beer. He warned us about Ghost - said he just KNEW that it would probably be what he was remembered for - which he was less than amused by. Julie Cochrane was a very soft-spoken, intelligent young lady - who was an engineer by trade, if I remember correctly.

JR's a real good guy - great storyteller - but then we already knew that. Real fun to throw down beers with. All in all, it was a very enjoyable 3 hours. And to top it off, RIngo picked up the tab.

[MegaTroopX]

You linked to Amazon for a Baen book?! Shame on you! They have a site for a reason. If there's a person left who doesn't know about Webscriptions, they must be informed.

Do two links, if need be. They're free.