The Ghost Brigades product reviews

After reading Old Man's War and being introduced to the concept of the Special Forces clone with an AI mind, I was quite keen to read more about them, especially after the way John Perry interacted with the clone body of his dead wife, when he discovered, through her, what it meant to be a Ghost, a Special Forces soldier. In this book, that side of the Human battlefront is explored in far greater depth, and I have to admit I enjoyed it a lot.

A little predictable in places, because of the background of certain key characters, this book still manages to throw a surprise or two at you, but don't expect a cliffhanger every chapter... it's just not that style of book. It shows the nature of growth, rather than the element of surprise, and though it is a sci-fi war story, it has a deeper side, a more thoughtful undercurrent that I found quite appealing. Scalzi has an intriguing style of writing that combines an almost romantic element with bloody battlegrounds and alien nasties... it's a bit like a lime-&-banana thickshake really, quite an acquired taste, but if you give it a try and like it, you'll love it. If not, it still carries itself well and is a good casual read.

Overall, a great way to blow away a lazy afternoon, soaking up a bit of sun, or wrapped up warm against the chill. If you enjoy the classic authors, you'll find this style of writing a bit like the Sector General series of books by James White. If that doesn't mean anything to you... then I'm showing my age a bit here.