Publication
Amherst, NY : Pyr, 2005.
Description
The starship Theodore Roosevelt is fighting on the far outskirts of a galactic war, its crew made up of retreads and raw recruits. A new first officer reports, Wilson Cole, a man with a reputation for exceeding his orders (but getting results). He's been banished to the Teddy R. for his actions, but once there he again ignores his orders. ... This is the first of five novels about the starship Theodore Roosevelt. The next four will be, in order, Pirate, Mercenary, Rebel, and Flagship.
User reviews
LibraryThing member geordicalrissian
While I found the story very up tempo, I had to struggle to finish the book. Besides the pace, something was just off about the whole thing. Maybe I was just not up to speed on the entire Birthright universe.
Many of the characters were like puppets in a marionette show. You pretty much knew what
PS to Mr. Resnick: Please host your site somewhere where we don't get bombarded with advertisements.
Many of the characters were like puppets in a marionette show. You pretty much knew what
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was going to go down the entire time. So don't expect any deep thinking here. I don't expect I'll be picking up any more books in this series. Not worth the reading time. I would recommend this book for the YA audience. PS to Mr. Resnick: Please host your site somewhere where we don't get bombarded with advertisements.
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LibraryThing member crazybatcow
He's such a hero!
It's amazing how he knows so much more and performs so much better than every single person in the universe. Just amazing.
He's like Superman, in space... jumping from one dilemma to the next and only he can save the ship/planet/people because he is faster and smarter and more
There are a lot of "aliens" with detailed descriptions, even though it seems like they were added in for no purpose other than to show that the author was creative enough to think of decent aliens.
Anyway... the story is fast paced and interesting. The sci-fi is good. Overall, it's average-to-good - but it's way too smug a story to be worth more than 2.5 stars.
It's amazing how he knows so much more and performs so much better than every single person in the universe. Just amazing.
He's like Superman, in space... jumping from one dilemma to the next and only he can save the ship/planet/people because he is faster and smarter and more
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skilled than anyone else. And the only reason he isn't King of the Universe is because those in power are too stupid to see how smart he is. There are a lot of "aliens" with detailed descriptions, even though it seems like they were added in for no purpose other than to show that the author was creative enough to think of decent aliens.
Anyway... the story is fast paced and interesting. The sci-fi is good. Overall, it's average-to-good - but it's way too smug a story to be worth more than 2.5 stars.
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LibraryThing member timothyl33
Somewhat of a very light and spare book that attempts to come off as military sci-fi but is more of a series of events that justifies the title at the very end. While the main protagonist, Wilson Core, is likable enough, we're give little to no information about the character other than to treat
Based on the appendix at the end (which I was not aware of until finishing the book), this is all part of a grand series (a la Azimov's Robot/Foundation), of which the Starship series seems to chronicle the end of what is called the Age of the Republic (that of which in itself is the first of five Ages of Man). Perhaps, if the reader was to read all the stories that lead up to this series, maybe it would have contributed to a more richer experience. But I doubt it.
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him as the weary hero just because the author says so. Overall this book probably would have been fine if it was published during the 1960s, but as something that was published in 2005 and billed as the author's "very first military SF," it overall came to feel somewhat shallow instead.Based on the appendix at the end (which I was not aware of until finishing the book), this is all part of a grand series (a la Azimov's Robot/Foundation), of which the Starship series seems to chronicle the end of what is called the Age of the Republic (that of which in itself is the first of five Ages of Man). Perhaps, if the reader was to read all the stories that lead up to this series, maybe it would have contributed to a more richer experience. But I doubt it.
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LibraryThing member Cataloger623
288 pages Have your local library buy this book for you. Fun breezy light military scfi book. Part of a larger 48 book universe called the Birthright universe. This story is the 1st of 5 books in that universe. The story is mildly creative. The characters are not complex but the dialog keeps the
Resnick the author is writing the history of mankind from its gaining of FTL to its end 15 centuries later. He sees mankind politically starting out as a Republic evolving to Democracy ,Oligarchy ,Monarchy and ending in Anarchy, This set of stories is set in the era of the Republic.
I
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stry moving. Hyper compentent hero and side kick against a dumber officers. I wish someone would write a story where the hero falls on his face and has to admit that institutional wisdom has its merits. This is not that story. But its a fun read none the less.Resnick the author is writing the history of mankind from its gaining of FTL to its end 15 centuries later. He sees mankind politically starting out as a Republic evolving to Democracy ,Oligarchy ,Monarchy and ending in Anarchy, This set of stories is set in the era of the Republic.
I
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LibraryThing member Ailinel
Above all else, this is a fun read. Resnick manages to insult governments, bureaucracy, upper military brass, and the press all without taking himself too seriously. With the feel of a science fiction Catch-22 and reminiscent of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Resnick draws readers into the
Cole is a hero of the war and the most decorated soldier alive. He is also regularly demoted due to his tendency to save millions of lives by ignoring stupid orders and acting in a rational manner. His perspective is fun and witty, as Resnick describes the Theodore Roosevelt, Cole's latest ship assignment, and its rag tag group of misfits. After he turns this ship full of addicts and disillusioned veterans into a functioning crew, a superior officer who takes orders far too literally forces Cole choose between all out mutiny and watching her destroy a planet and its colony of millions of civilians.
The characters are not particularly deep, stories are not poignant, and, yes, the heroes are far too lucky/clever/etc. This is sci-fi military comedy in the tradition of Joseph Heller and Douglas Adams and should be taken as such. If it is, readers can expect an exciting adventure aboard the Theodore Roosevelt.
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world of Commander Wilson Cole.Cole is a hero of the war and the most decorated soldier alive. He is also regularly demoted due to his tendency to save millions of lives by ignoring stupid orders and acting in a rational manner. His perspective is fun and witty, as Resnick describes the Theodore Roosevelt, Cole's latest ship assignment, and its rag tag group of misfits. After he turns this ship full of addicts and disillusioned veterans into a functioning crew, a superior officer who takes orders far too literally forces Cole choose between all out mutiny and watching her destroy a planet and its colony of millions of civilians.
The characters are not particularly deep, stories are not poignant, and, yes, the heroes are far too lucky/clever/etc. This is sci-fi military comedy in the tradition of Joseph Heller and Douglas Adams and should be taken as such. If it is, readers can expect an exciting adventure aboard the Theodore Roosevelt.
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LibraryThing member Ailinel
Above all else, this is a fun read. Resnick manages to insult governments, bureaucracy, upper military brass, and the press all without taking himself too seriously. With the feel of a science fiction Catch-22 and reminiscent of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Resnick draws readers into the
Cole is a hero of the war and the most decorated soldier alive. He is also regularly demoted due to his tendency to save millions of lives by ignoring stupid orders and acting in a rational manner. His perspective is fun and witty, as Resnick describes the Theodore Roosevelt, Cole's latest ship assignment, and its rag tag group of misfits. After he turns this ship full of addicts and disillusioned veterans into a functioning crew, a superior officer who takes orders far too literally forces Cole choose between all out mutiny and watching her destroy a planet and its colony of millions of civilians.
The characters are not particularly deep, stories are not poignant, and, yes, the heroes are far too lucky/clever/etc. This is sci-fi military comedy in the tradition of Joseph Heller and Douglas Adams and should be taken as such. If it is, readers can expect an exciting adventure aboard the Theodore Roosevelt.
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world of Commander Wilson Cole.Cole is a hero of the war and the most decorated soldier alive. He is also regularly demoted due to his tendency to save millions of lives by ignoring stupid orders and acting in a rational manner. His perspective is fun and witty, as Resnick describes the Theodore Roosevelt, Cole's latest ship assignment, and its rag tag group of misfits. After he turns this ship full of addicts and disillusioned veterans into a functioning crew, a superior officer who takes orders far too literally forces Cole choose between all out mutiny and watching her destroy a planet and its colony of millions of civilians.
The characters are not particularly deep, stories are not poignant, and, yes, the heroes are far too lucky/clever/etc. This is sci-fi military comedy in the tradition of Joseph Heller and Douglas Adams and should be taken as such. If it is, readers can expect an exciting adventure aboard the Theodore Roosevelt.
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LibraryThing member ConalO
A decent story but nothing to write home about. This one is not breaking any new ground that I could illicit from reading but it did have some enjoyable characters and is not short on action. Still undecided on continuing further in this series.
3 stars for a decent story.
3 stars for a decent story.
Subjects
Language
Physical description
286 p.; 24 cm
ISBN
9781591023371