Norton, Andre
STAR SOLDIERS
Andre Norton
Baen Books 2001
HB 434 pages
ISBN# 0-671-31827-6
Star Soldiers is a pair of original works from the Grand Mistress of science fiction. The first story is Star Guard, written in 1955; and the second story is Star Rangers written in 1953. Unlike other older sci-fi stories, these two have aged well. Though I guessed Star Rangers' secret half-way through, it's not because the story is cliché
but rather because other stories copied this one.
Star Guard is set in Earth's future, somewhere around the Forty-Second Century. Terrans have ventured into space only to find themselves at the bottom of galactic politics and relegated to mercenary work, battling for other worlds because that is the aptitude assigned them. The hero Arch Swordsman, Third Class, Kana Karr is just out from training where he did not ship out with his fellows because he took extra training in X-tee (he specializes in extra-terrestrials). In a service where men pair-up for their own safety, Kana is on his own when his first job ships him to a "police action" on the hostile world of Fronn. Several things aren't quite right. The buzz back at base told of whole legions of Terrans not coming back from missions. Many suspect Central Control, that arm of galactic politics that put Terrans in this mess in the first place, for wanting to suppress Earth even further. And when his own force turns out to be unusually off-balanced by combat veterans and rushed to Fronn without much explanation, Kana and his comrades are not surprised to find themselves next in line as CC's victims.
Star Rangers is set in the same universe, but nearly four thousand years later when the Galactic Empire breaks up. Humans are now part of the Central Control that pirates and revolutionaries are attacking. Hero Ranger Sergeant Kartr, a telepathic human from a barbarian planet, is serving Patrol duty with humans from other planets as well as a variety of X-tees. Sent to explore the far reaches of space by a rumbling government wishing to preserve it's hold, those aboard the ship Starfire crash-land on a habitable planet at the edge of the Galaxy, one not on any chart. They discover other refugees (some dangerous), an abandoned city, and a secret from out of the legends of time.
I liked these stories: they moved well and kept my attention with good characterization. Highly recommended.
Andre Norton
Baen Books 2001
HB 434 pages
ISBN# 0-671-31827-6
Star Soldiers is a pair of original works from the Grand Mistress of science fiction. The first story is Star Guard, written in 1955; and the second story is Star Rangers written in 1953. Unlike other older sci-fi stories, these two have aged well. Though I guessed Star Rangers' secret half-way through, it's not because the story is cliché
but rather because other stories copied this one.
Star Guard is set in Earth's future, somewhere around the Forty-Second Century. Terrans have ventured into space only to find themselves at the bottom of galactic politics and relegated to mercenary work, battling for other worlds because that is the aptitude assigned them. The hero Arch Swordsman, Third Class, Kana Karr is just out from training where he did not ship out with his fellows because he took extra training in X-tee (he specializes in extra-terrestrials). In a service where men pair-up for their own safety, Kana is on his own when his first job ships him to a "police action" on the hostile world of Fronn. Several things aren't quite right. The buzz back at base told of whole legions of Terrans not coming back from missions. Many suspect Central Control, that arm of galactic politics that put Terrans in this mess in the first place, for wanting to suppress Earth even further. And when his own force turns out to be unusually off-balanced by combat veterans and rushed to Fronn without much explanation, Kana and his comrades are not surprised to find themselves next in line as CC's victims.
Star Rangers is set in the same universe, but nearly four thousand years later when the Galactic Empire breaks up. Humans are now part of the Central Control that pirates and revolutionaries are attacking. Hero Ranger Sergeant Kartr, a telepathic human from a barbarian planet, is serving Patrol duty with humans from other planets as well as a variety of X-tees. Sent to explore the far reaches of space by a rumbling government wishing to preserve it's hold, those aboard the ship Starfire crash-land on a habitable planet at the edge of the Galaxy, one not on any chart. They discover other refugees (some dangerous), an abandoned city, and a secret from out of the legends of time.
I liked these stories: they moved well and kept my attention with good characterization. Highly recommended.
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