Scan barcode
A review by carolinethereader
Warriors by George R.R. Martin
3.0
SOME excellent stories in here and some authors I'll definitely be reading again. But as with Dangerous Women, I found it a little underwhelming overall. Individual ratings below.
The King of Norway by Cecelia Holland - 2.5/5
A heroic Viking story. The combat was fun but I found the characters quite lacking which was a real bummer.
Forever Bound by Joe Haldeman - 3.5/5
Futuristic, enhanced soldiers form team units with a mental bond. Interesting, clever concept that packs an emotional punch.
Triumph by Robin Hobb - 4.5/5
An escaped slave watches the death of a childhood friend/ military leader and reflects on their lives together. Brilliantly told! I was so invested in this story and surprisingly sad at the end.
Clean Slate by Lawrence Block - 1/5
WARNING for rape
As with his story in Dangerous Women, this probably deserves a zero. It's probably his style to write 'fucked up' characters but I just find them disturbing. This story follows a woman who is strong because of assault in her past (bleugh) and it fits with the 'warrior' theme because her father used to call her his little warrior when he raped her (BLEUGH!) She kills men she sleeps with now and honestly, just whyyyy.
And Ministers of Grace by Tad Williams - 3/5
Religious war and an intriguing main character. Solid ending.
Soldierin' by Joe R. Lansdale - 2/5
Some soldiers caught in an Apache attack. A little forgettable amongst the other stories but not really poorly written, just meh.
Dirae by Peter s. Beagle - 5/5
Bizarre in the beginning but ended up becoming one of my favourites in the book. Interested to read more by this author!
Custom of the Army by Diana Gabaldon - DNF
Tried to give it a go but just couldn't get into it.
Seven Years From Home by Naomi Novik - 4.5/5
Loved it. A government that wants to colonise a new planet is doing some political maneuvering. Really entertaining story in a clever, well-developed world.
The Eagle and the Rabbit by Steven Saylor - 3.5/5
A captain plays cruel mental games with a group of slaves. Liked the concept and the ending was good, if a little predictable.
The Pit by James Rollins - DNF
A story about pit fighting dogs told from the perspective of one of the dogs. Not for me.
Out of the Dark by David Weber - 3/5
Aliens expect an easy time invading earth but are surprised by the tenacity of humans. This was on its way to being one of my favourites but the ending is a bizarre twist that I did not enjoy (some will) because I felt it was a genre shift from the rest of the story and kind of undermined things. It was an interesting choice.
The Girls from Avenger by Carrie Vaughan - 3/5
A female WASP pilot during WWI is investigating the crash of one of her fellow pilots. I liked the characters and the conspiracy, it was very entertaining.
Ancient Ways by S.M. Stirling - 2.5/5
I only remember bits and pieces of this story. It's an adventure story and I had fun while reading it but I feel like I forgot it the second I finished.
Ninieslando by Howard Waldrop - 3/5
A bunch of secret soldiers/ revolutionaries hiding beneath the trenches in WWI waiting for the right moment. This was a cool enough story but I feel like it didn't do enough.
Recidivist by Gardner Dozois - 2.5/5
Post-apocalyptic world run by robots, a small group of people plot to take them out. I enjoyed the world in this story but everything else (characters, ending, writing) was lacking.
My Name is Legion by David Morrell - 3.5/5
The Foreign Legion clashes in a sad WWII story. I enjoyed the narration a lot, it was quite introspective and elevated the story from a regular military one.
Defenders of the Frontier by Robert Silverberg - 2.5/5
A small force of military men are left defending a fort long after communication from higher-ups stops. They have to make the decision to leave or stay. This was an okay story that I think would've benefited from more depth to some of the characters.
Scrolls by David Ball - 5/5
Another favourite in the collection! An engineer is enslaved and forced to kill each day in order to save lives (he kills one person or three people will be killed) in a brutal game played by the Emperor (wait, was he Emperor? It's a depressing story but it was written wonderfully. The pacing was excellent, the characters were great and that ending!
The Mystery Knight by George RR. Martin - 4/5
I feel I would've enjoyed this a little more if it wasn't my first Dunk & Egg story (I think there is one before this). I always like GRRM stories though- there's politicking, food, fights and friendship. All the good stuff in a world I love.
This will probably be the last of the GRRM/ Gardner Dozois collections I read and review. I think Rogues was the best of the three I've read and it was the first one. There's some authors I've found through these books I'll be sure to check out and there's others I'll be staying away from but overall it's been good fun.
The King of Norway by Cecelia Holland - 2.5/5
A heroic Viking story. The combat was fun but I found the characters quite lacking which was a real bummer.
Forever Bound by Joe Haldeman - 3.5/5
Futuristic, enhanced soldiers form team units with a mental bond. Interesting, clever concept that packs an emotional punch.
Triumph by Robin Hobb - 4.5/5
An escaped slave watches the death of a childhood friend/ military leader and reflects on their lives together. Brilliantly told! I was so invested in this story and surprisingly sad at the end.
Clean Slate by Lawrence Block - 1/5
WARNING for rape
As with his story in Dangerous Women, this probably deserves a zero. It's probably his style to write 'fucked up' characters but I just find them disturbing. This story follows a woman who is strong because of assault in her past (bleugh) and it fits with the 'warrior' theme because her father used to call her his little warrior when he raped her (BLEUGH!) She kills men she sleeps with now and honestly, just whyyyy.
And Ministers of Grace by Tad Williams - 3/5
Religious war and an intriguing main character. Solid ending.
Soldierin' by Joe R. Lansdale - 2/5
Some soldiers caught in an Apache attack. A little forgettable amongst the other stories but not really poorly written, just meh.
Dirae by Peter s. Beagle - 5/5
Bizarre in the beginning but ended up becoming one of my favourites in the book. Interested to read more by this author!
Custom of the Army by Diana Gabaldon - DNF
Tried to give it a go but just couldn't get into it.
Seven Years From Home by Naomi Novik - 4.5/5
Loved it. A government that wants to colonise a new planet is doing some political maneuvering. Really entertaining story in a clever, well-developed world.
The Eagle and the Rabbit by Steven Saylor - 3.5/5
A captain plays cruel mental games with a group of slaves. Liked the concept and the ending was good, if a little predictable.
The Pit by James Rollins - DNF
A story about pit fighting dogs told from the perspective of one of the dogs. Not for me.
Out of the Dark by David Weber - 3/5
Aliens expect an easy time invading earth but are surprised by the tenacity of humans. This was on its way to being one of my favourites but the ending is a bizarre twist that I did not enjoy (some will) because I felt it was a genre shift from the rest of the story and kind of undermined things. It was an interesting choice.
The Girls from Avenger by Carrie Vaughan - 3/5
A female WASP pilot during WWI is investigating the crash of one of her fellow pilots. I liked the characters and the conspiracy, it was very entertaining.
Ancient Ways by S.M. Stirling - 2.5/5
I only remember bits and pieces of this story. It's an adventure story and I had fun while reading it but I feel like I forgot it the second I finished.
Ninieslando by Howard Waldrop - 3/5
A bunch of secret soldiers/ revolutionaries hiding beneath the trenches in WWI waiting for the right moment. This was a cool enough story but I feel like it didn't do enough.
Recidivist by Gardner Dozois - 2.5/5
Post-apocalyptic world run by robots, a small group of people plot to take them out. I enjoyed the world in this story but everything else (characters, ending, writing) was lacking.
My Name is Legion by David Morrell - 3.5/5
The Foreign Legion clashes in a sad WWII story. I enjoyed the narration a lot, it was quite introspective and elevated the story from a regular military one.
Defenders of the Frontier by Robert Silverberg - 2.5/5
A small force of military men are left defending a fort long after communication from higher-ups stops. They have to make the decision to leave or stay. This was an okay story that I think would've benefited from more depth to some of the characters.
Scrolls by David Ball - 5/5
Another favourite in the collection! An engineer is enslaved and forced to kill each day in order to save lives (he kills one person or three people will be killed) in a brutal game played by the Emperor (wait, was he Emperor? It's a depressing story but it was written wonderfully. The pacing was excellent, the characters were great and that ending!
The Mystery Knight by George RR. Martin - 4/5
I feel I would've enjoyed this a little more if it wasn't my first Dunk & Egg story (I think there is one before this). I always like GRRM stories though- there's politicking, food, fights and friendship. All the good stuff in a world I love.
This will probably be the last of the GRRM/ Gardner Dozois collections I read and review. I think Rogues was the best of the three I've read and it was the first one. There's some authors I've found through these books I'll be sure to check out and there's others I'll be staying away from but overall it's been good fun.