Rebels In Arms

Rating:
Summary: EVEN WORSE THAN THE FIRST
Review: Bad book, bad main character, bad idea, bad author. The book starts off with the ole' "I did not want to remember how I got here, but....." blah, blah, blah. The main character is old and telling his story to incoming soldiers, I hate it when a book starts off this way. The main character is mechanical and emotionless, but not in the Armor by John Steakley sort of way. Halitov, his best friend is a much better character. St Andrews is just boring with his "I won't break the code BS." Don't waste your time by reading this load of trash, its prequal, or its sequal, which I'm sure is due anytime soon. Gone are the days of non-series military sci-fi books. This one ...... just as much, if not more than Officer Cadet, Luitenant, etc..., which you are probably familiar with if you like military sci-fi. The Starfist series is atrocious also. Don't try any one of them. Just reread Starship Troopers, The Forever War, Armor, Halo: The Fall Of Reach(a wonderful new surprise in the military sci-fi world), Galactic Bounty, Imperial Bounty, Alien Bounty, McCade's Bounty, Legion Of The Damned, The Final Battle, By Blood Alone, By Force Of Arms, The Greatest Generation, Black Hawk Down, or To Hell And Back.

Rating:
Summary: A very good read
Review: Captain Scott St. Andrew is a traitor. He abandoned the military alliance that trained him, to join the rebellion of the Seventeen Worlds. St. Andrew had been physically altered with alien bacteria that gives him superhuman powers. But now that technology is breaking down, and the only thing that can save his life is to have his body reconditioned.

The story starts out as a flashback of St. Andrew telling a war story to a class of graduating cadets. St Andrews is trying to reach a reconditioning center on Kenndey-Centuari, but his commanding officer has other plans for him. Instead they are sent to the mood of Exeter to take back the South Point Academy. Halitov, St Andrews friend, is listed as MIA while battling the Alliance marines.

After their battle to take bake the Academy, St Andrew is given orders to locate Lieutenant Paul Beauregard, the missing son of Colonial J.D. Beauregard of the Colonial Wardens. He is believed to be where the first Racianian runes where found, the Minsalo Caves.

Overall this is a very entertaining read. The battle scenes are really engaging and I found myself not wanting to stop until they were over. One of the most interesting aspects is the way that St Andrew and Halitov control a force that gives them amazing powers. This force makes a lot of the battles very entertaining. I would highly recommend that you read the first book in the series Brother In Arms because it helps feel in a lot of the back-story. Whether you read the first book or not Brother In Arms is highly enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: A very good read
Review: Captain Scott St. Andrew is a traitor. He abandoned the military alliance that trained him, to join the rebellion of the Seventeen Worlds. St. Andrew had been physically altered with alien bacteria that gives him superhuman powers. But now that technology is breaking down, and the only thing that can save his life is to have his body reconditioned.

The story starts out as a flashback of St. Andrew telling a war story to a class of graduating cadets. St Andrews is trying to reach a reconditioning center on Kenndey-Centuari, but his commanding officer has other plans for him. Instead they are sent to the mood of Exeter to take back the South Point Academy. Halitov, St Andrews friend, is listed as MIA while battling the Alliance marines.

After their battle to take bake the Academy, St Andrew is given orders to locate Lieutenant Paul Beauregard, the missing son of Colonial J.D. Beauregard of the Colonial Wardens. He is believed to be where the first Racianian runes where found, the Minsalo Caves.

Overall this is a very entertaining read. The battle scenes are really engaging and I found myself not wanting to stop until they were over. One of the most interesting aspects is the way that St Andrew and Halitov control a force that gives them amazing powers. This force makes a lot of the battles very entertaining. I would highly recommend that you read the first book in the series Brother In Arms because it helps feel in a lot of the back-story. Whether you read the first book or not Brother In Arms is highly enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: Even better than the first!!
Review: Continuing the saga started in Brothers in Arms, Ben Weaver spins a masterful story telling more of the fascinating Scott St. Andrew and his fellow soldiers. St. Andrew continues to be the reluctant hero, torn by the events of a war stretching across many star systems. As the tale continues, it becomes more and more apparent that Weaver has spent a considerable period of time developing the setting/universe in which he has placed his stories. Many of the cliffhangers from the first novel are resolved in the second... but more arise to be answered in a third novel. My only regret was that I finished the novel in only one day -- I couldn't put it down! Mr. Weaver, please hurry the next one along!

Rating:
Summary: Even better than the first!!
Review: Continuing the saga started in Brothers in Arms, Ben Weaver spins a masterful story telling more of the fascinating Scott St. Andrew and his fellow soldiers. St. Andrew continues to be the reluctant hero, torn by the events of a war stretching across many star systems. As the tale continues, it becomes more and more apparent that Weaver has spent a considerable period of time developing the setting/universe in which he has placed his stories. Many of the cliffhangers from the first novel are resolved in the second... but more arise to be answered in a third novel. My only regret was that I finished the novel in only one day -- I couldn't put it down! Mr. Weaver, please hurry the next one along!

Rating:
Summary: Well done!
Review: I am a fan of R. Heinlein and Weaver writes a book in H's spirit. The underdog gets his/hers revenge and becomes a hero and an important player.

I truly like these two books, the only thing to complain about is that the superhero stuff becomes just a bit too much. Weaver could tune it down just a bit. But it makes for interesting reading and creates a plot that makes you wanna read more.

It's so hard to put down that you read it in one session *lol* and one can't wait until the next book comes.. it must, since he ends with a lot of questions open!

Read it and if you haven't read Heinlein yet, do it!! Read "Citizen of the Galaxy"

Rating:
Summary: A++!! Weaver is one of the best out there!
Review: Let me be clear: This book rocks.
Rebels in Arms is the second of a series by Ben Weaver, an author to watch. His mix of a soldier's view of war and futuristic battlefields has shades of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game and the Seafort Saga books by David Feintuch.
Three hundred years in the future Earth's mega-corporations and far-flung colonies are at odds - make that at war. Caught in the middle is military cadet-turned-officer, Scott St. Andrew. He's a colo, raised on a mining world, and he has problems. His academy is attacked and the cadets must choose sides: the colonial military forces, "The Seventeen," or Earth's Alliance. Sworn to protect the colonies, St. Andrew sides with the colonials and ships off to war.
Some authors would have made this a boring mishmash of battle scenes, but Weaver deftly gets inside the mind of his character and makes this story personal. We watch as St. Andrew balances his humanity with the horror of hand-to-hand combat.
To make things even more interesting, humans have an alien technology that, when applied to certain military officers, turns them into super-soldiers. These officers can change things to suit them: running up walls, super-speed, reversing bullets, etc.
St. Andrew's "conditioning" is screwy - he can't always do things right. To further complicate matters, he has a genetic mutation that gives him an extra - but erratic - edge.
He's a killing machine, taking out piles of Marines in one wild battle after another - while we watch the wheels turn in his head. We see his anguish at killing, made even more tortured because of his amplified memory. The choice to hold to his code puts him at odds with even his friends, and in this novel St. Andrew is a commander torn between his code and seeking his redemption in a war-torn galaxy.
Weaver supplies just the right amount of details. We don't get bogged down in exposition - he seamlessly explains his scientific theories and futuristic politics.
I also recommend the first of the series, Brothers In Arms. Weaver's galaxy has characters who THINK instead of woodenly shooting bad guys and making pithy comments. His characters are flawed. We see their self-discovery in the crucible of war.
Get this book.
Read it.
Re-read it.
War is hell, and we watch St. Andrew learn this the hard way, with the right mix of humor, loyalty and friendship to make this series worth a darn.

Rating:
Summary: Up In Arms
Review: Like the first book, this one leaves you with some questions. Prime among them are: Who is the mother of Scott's daughter, Joanna? Will there be a spin-off series with her experiences in war? And the carry-over from the first book, How does Scott get treatment for his conditioning problems? Overall, I found it a great book and will look forward to the third book, appearently called "Patriots In Arms".

Rating:
Summary: Best book ever.
Review: Rebels in Arms is the perfect end to a perfect series. My favorite part is how believable the characters are. When I read the book I was living it through Scott st Andrews eyes. Ben has certainly outdone himself with this one. It is the best book I have ever had the pleasure of reading and I recommend it to anyone who hasn't taken the time to go through it. It is the best thing to happen to literature since Lord of the Rings. His are the stories that I will remember for the rest of my life.

Rating:
Summary: Best book ever.
Review: Rebels in Arms is the perfect end to a perfect series. My favorite part is how believable the characters are. When I read the book I was living it through Scott st Andrews eyes. Ben has certainly outdone himself with this one. It is the best book I have ever had the pleasure of reading and I recommend it to anyone who hasn't taken the time to go through it. It is the best thing to happen to literature since Lord of the Rings. His are the stories that I will remember for the rest of my life.