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Summary: Excellent, Cant wait for the next one
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I liked the gritty descriptions of the battles. The only anoting thing is now I have to wait for the next one.
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Summary: Wonderful!
Review: I really liked everything about this novel. Fast paced with enough action and humor to keep the pages turning. If yo like alternate history or just want a good read this is it!
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Summary: Another fine book in a great series
Review: The long expected Malwa invasion of Persia has finally struck and the Persians turn to their ancient enemies, the Byzantine Romans, for help. The ex-Emperor Justinian convinces Theodora to send Constantinople's greatest general--perhaps the greatest general in the history of the world--Belesarius to help. With only ten thousand soldiers, Belisarius will have to work a miracle to survive, let alone defeat the hordes of Malwa arriving from India. Fortunately, Belisarius has been planning a miracle for some time now. The stakes are high. The Malwa are led by Link--an intelligent artifact sent from the future with the goal of eliminating any notion of talent or freedom from the planet. Belisarius defeats a raiding Malwa cavalry force as he approaches ancient Babylon where the Persian Emperor is beseiged. In the meantime, his Indian ally, Shakuntala, has begun her own campaign against the Malwa occupation of most of India. Belisarius's wife, Antonia is sent to Alexandria to reassert Roman Imperial authority (as was often the case in historical Byzantine Egypt, religious disputes threaten Roman rule) and to create an arsenal for her husband and Shakuntala--and the nucleus for a new front against the huge Malwa armies. Authors Eric Flint and David Drake again combine in this third novel in the Belisarius series. Flint and Drake deliver a powerful mix of military fantasy (what would Belisarius have done if he had access to effective gunpowder-based weapons), pure tactics, and touches of real historical research. Even with the greatest general of history, the defeat of a super-intelligent artifact seems a little too easy and occasional modern themes creep in (would holy men like Michael really have been quite so broad-minded about the various Christian faiths at war with one another, and would Anthonia really have so actively worked to protect the Jews of Alexandria?) but that is largely quibbling. DESTINY'S SHIELD makes for a compelling and page-turning (or scroll-bar clicking) read.
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Summary: I wish this pair would write school history texts...
Review: They do a good job of making history much more personable and interesting. Granted, they are writing fiction, but relying on history for a general basis. A lot more folks might like history class more if we could put them to work.
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Summary: One step closer to denouement.
Review: This book was great fun and a fast read. Like the first two in the series, it centers around the Roman general Belisarius and his fight against the evil supercomputer-from-the-future Link and its Malwa minions. In this installment, the war has moved into Persia, making uneasy allies of the Romans and their former foes. More than one story line wends its way through the narrative. The focus is alternately on Belisarius in Persia, Antonina in Egypt, and Shakuntala in India. Various Malwa schemes are thwarted as the Great Lady Holi and her cybernetic cargo spearhead the assault into Mesopotamia. The only real quibble I have with this book is the ease with which the good guys win every battle. Granted, Belisarius is supposed to be a genius general, but one would think a supercomputer might have *some* ability to outwit him. Instead, Link so far steadily plods two steps behind the Roman alliance. Despite that, this is an enjoyable book. Once again Belisarius is at the forefront of the action with his oh-so-clever battle plans, but the supporting characters are not neglected. Readers will be swept along by the steadily building conflict, and are sure to eagerly await the next installment.
Rating:
Summary: One step closer to denouement.
Review: This book was great fun and a fast read. Like the first two in the series, it centers around the Roman general Belisarius and his fight against the evil supercomputer-from-the-future Link and its Malwa minions. In this installment, the war has moved into Persia, making uneasy allies of the Romans and their former foes. More than one story line wends its way through the narrative. The focus is alternately on Belisarius in Persia, Antonina in Egypt, and Shakuntala in India. Various Malwa schemes are thwarted as the Great Lady Holi and her cybernetic cargo spearhead the assault into Mesopotamia. The only real quibble I have with this book is the ease with which the good guys win every battle. Granted, Belisarius is supposed to be a genius general, but one would think a supercomputer might have *some* ability to outwit him. Instead, Link so far steadily plods two steps behind the Roman alliance. Despite that, this is an enjoyable book. Once again Belisarius is at the forefront of the action with his oh-so-clever battle plans, but the supporting characters are not neglected. Readers will be swept along by the steadily building conflict, and are sure to eagerly await the next installment.
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Summary: Belisarius delivers!!!!
Review: This excellent third book to the series leaves the reader desperately panting for more. When will the fourth book come out. I especially relish the overarching theme that Belisarius' greatest qualities are: Honor and Loyalty. For in the end: It is the soul that really matters. As de Saint- Exupery put it: What is esssential is invisible to the eye. As Gen. MacArthur put it: Hit 'em where they ain't.
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Summary: 3rd book in the Belisariad
Review: This is really a novel of alternate history, with a few alien SF or before-their-time inventions added to create plot situations for eastern Romans in A.D 531. It's a light page-turner, with something exciting, clever, or anachronistic in every chapter to make it fun. It is written in three parallel streams-General Belisarius allied with Persians to defend Babylon against an overwhelming alien-led Malwa invasion, his wife Antonina attempting to recover Egypt as the foundry of empire, and a rebel empress subverting the Malwa powerbase in the Ghats of India. There's a good balance between plot, lead characters, and military affairs here.
A number of basic cusswords are tipped in for flavor, but battle is fairly bloodless as military fiction goes, with a wry sense of (military) humor throughout. I'm afraid the authors give no organized backstory (what has happened in the previous two books) so this is not the place to discover how history was diverted from its "true" course into this alternate world. And of course there's no closure to the story. The characters have not learned something new but are simply farther along their courses to their destinys in later volumes. Most everyone seems to be a competent, tough, moral, and resourceful soldier to admire. Killers they may be, but you feel they are OUR killers. For Belisarius in particular everything always falls out right. Indeed, it had better if the overwhelming numbers and gunpowder weapons of the Malwa are to be overcome.
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Summary: the series is growing entertaining..
Review: This is the third book in the series and one in which Belisarius really comes into his own as the main protagonist. The first two books are really forerunners, outlining the territory in which the Malwa will confront Byzantine Rome. By the time Destiny's Shield takes place all the main figures in the story have been introduced, their back story filled out, and we begin to see Belisarius' careful planning have an effect. In general, a well-crafted read although I would encourage the reader to purchase all three books (now four) at once. Because the story is so spread out over the four it can be quite frustrating to read one alone. You won't get as much out of it because the novels don't stand up that well on their own. Much of the support that could have been given to the reader jumping into the middle of the story (such as a review of what had gone on before) has been neglected by the authors. I think this definitely lessens the value of the series to anyone who hasn't read it from book one. Also missing is a glossary of terms to describe the often-confusing military terminology. An order of battle or description of the Byzantine army's structure would have contributed a lot to the tale as well. Finally, better maps would definitely be a big help. It's quite a sweeping epic (from the Indian subcontinent to Constantinople) and most of the cities will be unfamiliar to any but the most ardent history buffs. That being said, it's a pretty good read with a good blend of strategy, action, and story that will reward the persistent reader.
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Summary: Belisarius comes alive for me...
Review: When Drake and Stirling did their "General" seriesof the early 1990's, it appeared that was the best example of past warfare combined with high tech influence ever written. I may have been wrong... there's something magical about taking what I consider one of the ten best generals in human history, a true historical figure and build a series around him where tech changes are happening faster than the 20th century. I can almost believe that the Belisarius would have been equal to the task that the series places his fictional counterpart. And what a task! The first two books in this series were but a calm prelude to the fireworks that go off in Destiny's Shield (although they were excellent in their own way). Drake and Flint really hit their stride with Shield, with battles and politics happening on multiple fronts, all critical to the the final defeat of the Malwas. I knew that Belisarius was an extremely important historical figure to Mr. Drake, this series borders on a labor of love. Thank you for making Belisarius seem so incredibly real to me!
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