Armor

Rating:
Summary: Sucked me in...
Review: ...and spat me out. Many times.

It starts well. I enjoyed the description of the strategy and tactics of the armored units. Then it just turns into a long hard slog. By the end I was praying for it to be over.

So, like the parson's egg, this book was good in places.

Rating:
Summary: A heart-pounding beginning, and then.... disappointment.
Review:

I can see why some people gave this book a "10", since it starts out terrifically. But, then itfounders badly and I can't rate this book overall much higher than a "4", since I don't think Iwould buy it again.

The book is divided into five parts of different length and quality. The first part is a dark and thrilling action adventure, centered on the armored scout named Felix. It is reminiscent of the movie "Aliens", with the same violent kinetic energy and the terror of fighting against an implacable horde of giant alien monsters. The pace of the action mixed with the battlefield pathos and just the hint of humanization of its characters is a powerful combination and sweeps you along, making you forget to stop and ask that one simple nagging question (as in the movie "Aliens"): "why not just NUKE 'em all from orbit!!??"

Unfortunately, the book doesn't continue along the same path, and in the second and third parts, the author switches gears into the first person narrative (as a different character), and tries to get into more characterization, more chatty conversation, more human relationships, and other Writing 101 stuff like that, which he just doesn't seem to have a good grip on because he sure lost me there. He should have just stuck to what he was good at, which is writing about action adventure and the pure terror of battle on an alien planet.

So I skipped over to the fourth section, which returns to the tale of Felix. This part was decent, but got schmaltzy with the arrival of the Masao, and the partial explanation of Felix' past, which all had a false and tired ring to it. Maybe I've just read too many sci-fi and fantasy stories in which the central hero or anti-hero turns out in the end to be a prince or king or some other kind of Superior Being all along. Deja vu all over again.

The fifth and last section returns to the first person narrative and has a definite deux ex- machina, pasted together quality, as if the author ran out of ideas on to how to get everything to end while still keeping his first person narrator alive.

Too bad. This book had potential.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: A truly amazing book. I picked it at random from the shelves of my local bookstore, and was simply blown away. I found the change in pace and scenery in the middle of the book to be a shock, but a good one. And the ending? Simply marvelous, even if it is just a bit transparent. Felix is a great character, despite the (mostly) lack of background. I would recomend this book to anyone who likes the sci-fi genre, and many people that don't.

Rating:
Summary: Solid Military SciFi - with interruptions
Review: A very strong beginning will grab the attention of even the most skeptic. The development of the story of Felix's first battle is probably among the best I've ever read in military SciFi. Any comparison to Heinlein stops at the words "powered armor". The story relies more on its main character and less on its environment, as Heinlein does.
The storyline is interrupted, and another plot is dropped in, with the character Jack Crow. Felix's story is once again picked up, told after the fact by means particular to the story. Once again, your attention is riveted to Felix's story, and the new (secondary?) storyline becomes almost trivial. I don't consider the ending predictable as it is a very weak joining of both storylines. Even here, the second storyline seems unimportant.

Its an excellent short novel (the original plot and later revisits). It is a so-so book. Its an old book so used copies should be plentiful and inexpensive. Military SF fans will enjoy this one. New readers, looking for an attention-consuming action story, try Drake, Weber, or Ringo.

Rating:
Summary: I'll try to find something new to say...
Review: After reading all these reviews, I have to admit that I'm pleasantly surprised! I had no idea that "Armor" was such a cult novel with such a huge following.
It's revealing how many veterans gave the book positive reviews. It seems to confirm something that I've felt for a long time: Steakley himself may be a veteran, and this book was a way for him to put his experiences of war (whichever one it was) down on paper. Why sci-fi? Why not?
I have to agree with those who say that the book slows down during the Jack Crow sections. It's sad but true. At least J.C. seems to undergo some sort of character development (more than one could say for many SF novels) but the dialogue especially was only so-so. I would have to say, nonetheless, that the scenes with Felix more than make up for those sections.
Comparing "Armor" with "Starship Troopers" does neither book justice. Heinlein seems more concerned with the military mind than he is with the actual experience of combat. We are never told what Earth society is like in "Armor," or at least it's only broadly described. "Troopers" was about why we need a military (and, IMHO, is much more ambiguous concerning warfare than some unsophisticated readers would think); "Armor" is about the deleterious effects of warfare on the mind and spirit. (Except for the JAck Crow stuff.)
This book was recommended to me by a friend, and I would recommend it in turn, not as a great work of literature, or even great SF on the level of Poe, Wells, Clarke, Heinlein's best, Dick, Zelazny, Lem, etc. But it is a powerful book, with a lot to say, if we're willing to listen.


Rating:
Summary: Downright brilliant
Review: All my life I have hungered for good science fiction writing, and unfortunately, I have been continually disappointed by the so-called "classics," which exhibit poor prose, lackluster plot, and characters as flat as the page they're written on. Discovering "Armor" was like getting struck by a bolt of lightning...finally, I had found a piece of science fiction that's actually well written, and engaging! Many of the characters in this book are unforgettable...Felix, Jack Crow, Borglyn, Wice, The Misao. I also found myself laughing out loud at Steakley's witty and sarcastic observations concerning his characters' behavior. There are some reviewers here who have denounced the book as trash; I suppose they're entitled to their opinion, but the book is no more trash than Hemingway's "To Have And To Have Not"...both contain amoral characters who dabble in sex and violence. However, what ultimately makes both of these books so successful and enjoyable, and what sets "Armor" apart from every other science fiction book I have ever read, is that they have a canny understanding of human nature, and of all the variations which occur in the human character. It's rare to find a science fiction book that does that.

Rating:
Summary: Some of the best combat narrative ever.
Review: Armor is the tale of two extraordinary men, and how they converge in an epic tale. The combat sequences of Felix the scout, combined with the rogue Jack Crow's exploits in converging tales makes for a diverse and spellbinding book.
While the end becomes predictable just before the climax, it still leaves you breathless as it culminates. I suspect it was planned that way. You can see it coming, but it grabs you anyway when it does.
Read the whole book to get the full impact. Skipping over a section or two will certainly leave you missing the point.

Rating:
Summary: Underrated, but no masterpiece
Review: As military type SF goes, this is actually pretty decent and actually shows the author putting some thought into the concept beyond "Let's have lots and lots of fight scenes alternating with people saying how terrible war is" that most military SF novels tend to lean toward. Is it as good as Starship Troopers, the infamous Heinlein novel to which this is often unfairly compared? No, Heinlein's novel not only had, well, Heinlein writing it, but it also had that whole "The army makes a man of you" idealogy going on that, even if you didn't agree with it, at least provided a memorable subtext. This novel isn't execution with the same verve as Starship Troopers, but frankly, who cares? It's still an entertaining and fascinating read in its own right, starting off as a really really bleak war novel, with some of the most existential writing I've ever seen in SF, as Felix the scout is dropped on a planet and survives attack after attack by bugs, er, I mean, "ants". The action sequences aren't stunning but they're described with enough grit to resonate. And just when you're holding this fairly large book and thinking, "My God, is this what the entire book is about" the plot suddenly shifts to a totally different set of characters and perspective (from third to first person) centered around former pirate Jack Crow (though his exploits are rather vaguely alluded to, frustratingly enough) on a distant colony as he helps some scientists (and tries to scam them too) try to figure out what the hell is up with this weird suit of armor they just found. There's actually a point to this sudden shift, as jarring as it is, and it helps to keep the book moving. The plot tends to get a little more predictable as you get toward the end and a lot of the intensity that sustained the early portions of the book are gone but if you've made it that far, sheer momentum alone will carry you through. The author has some interesting things to say about the armor that we put around ourselves in our dealings with people, but that's not really the goal here, and he manages to tell an entertaining story about war that doesn't focus so much on the war as what it does to people. It's no masterpiece, but it's not terrible either and certainly doesn't deserve to be savaged like it has been. It may not change your life but it won't make you feel like you wasted your time either. And sometimes that's all you want.

Rating:
Summary: damn good book
Review: Damn good book, buy it, read it, like it, end of story.

Rating:
Summary: Very Good Read!
Review: Does anyone know if this is Steakley's first book? I can't find anything before it, and only Vampires that followed--what, about 20 years later? I think Armor is one of my favorite books. Sure, it's reused material from Starship Troopers and The Forever War, but a great book. Plenty of authors write about the same things. There are only so many original subjects left for plots. I love the Felix character. So tragic, but that's what makes him interesting. A man tortured by destiny. The Jack Crow plot-switch thing is also a fun diversion, and it ties in nicely at the end, though it's not a huge surprise. Now, can you say Captain Jack Sparrow ripoff? I think Pirates Of The Caribbean stole this guy right down to the lecherous swagger and aw-shucks evil hero persona. Anyway, it's too bad Steakley didn't do more books. I think Armor stands on its own as great sci-fi. A really fun read.