Ringo, John
THERE
WILL BE DRAGONS
John Ringo
BAEN Books 2003
Pb 746 pgs
ISBN#
0-7434-8859-8
Cool science-fiction with a Medieval twist. Imagine a far future where
everything on Earth is controlled by the Web: nannites in your body give you
longer life and even enable you to shape-change if you want. Go swimming in the
Pacific during the day and have dinner later in Paris? Say “Genie” and in
the blink of an eye you are on the other side of the world. So how does all of
this cool science fail? Power-hungry greed, of course. So the Web falls and
humans are left to rediscover the meaning of life. Women fear menstruation and
pregnancy—losing the uterine replicator is quite a shock! Men have to re-learn
what war is, for the strong are taking from the weak and starvation is rampant.
Hero Edmond Talbot has spent his life studying the Medieval arts of
blacksmithing and warfare, though up until now it’s only been a hobby. But when
thugs gang-rape his wife, Edmond
turns out to be a force no one wants to cross. He builds a town, a new
civilization, and around that an army. But will it be enough against a world
gone mad? You’ll have to read to find out.
Why is the book named THERE WILL BE DRAGONS? I’m not entirely sure. On page 81 author John Ringo tells us that the species of dragons, elves, etc. were genegineered earlier when human DNA changes kindled to all kinds of new forms. But dragons do not play a roll in this story. Rather, I think it’s a kind of metaphor for the great social changes represented in this story. Survivors of the Fall of civilization are thrust from luxury to base survival in an instant. And there’s no going back, no rescue, no where to run. They are scared and helpless. There are many more ways to die than most of them could ever have imagined. I believe this is what Ringo means when he says There Will Be Dragons: monsters come in many forms [famine is an example, as is medical ignorance, etc.]—all deadly, though the monsters the enemy creates fills the true definition of the word.
Ringo excels in world-building, so if you are into war-game strategy you’ll love his style, for he doesn’t stint on the details. And even this hard-to-please reader was charmed by his occasional stabs at humor. So, if you have patience for all of those logistics, then this is a rewarding read.Return to Reviews