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Halo #1
Halo: The Fall of Reach
As the bloody Human-Covenant War rages on Halo, the fate of humankind may rest with one warrior, the lone SPARTAN survivor of another legendary battle... the desperate, take-no-prisoners struggle that led humanity to Halo--the fall of the planet Reach. Now, brought to life for the first time, here is the full story of that glorious, doomed conflict.
While the brutal Covenant juggernaut sweeps inexorably through space, intent on wiping out humankind, only one stronghold remains--the planet Reach. Practically on Earth's doorstep, it is the last military fortress to defy the onslaught. But the personnel here have another, higher priority: to prevent the Covenant from discovering the location of Earth.
Outnumbered and outgunned, the soldiers seem to have little chance against the Covenant, but Reach holds a closely guarded secret. It is the training ground for the very first "super soldiers." Code-named SPARTANs, these highly advanced warriors, specially bioengineered and technologically augmented, are the best in the universe--quiet, professional, and deadly.
Now, as the ferocious Covenant attack begins, a handful of SPARTANs stand ready to wage ultimate war. They will kill, they will be destroyed, but they will never surrender. And at least one of them--the SPARTAN known as Master Chief--will live to fight another day on a mysterious and ancient, artificial world called Halo...
While the brutal Covenant juggernaut sweeps inexorably through space, intent on wiping out humankind, only one stronghold remains--the planet Reach. Practically on Earth's doorstep, it is the last military fortress to defy the onslaught. But the personnel here have another, higher priority: to prevent the Covenant from discovering the location of Earth.
Outnumbered and outgunned, the soldiers seem to have little chance against the Covenant, but Reach holds a closely guarded secret. It is the training ground for the very first "super soldiers." Code-named SPARTANs, these highly advanced warriors, specially bioengineered and technologically augmented, are the best in the universe--quiet, professional, and deadly.
Now, as the ferocious Covenant attack begins, a handful of SPARTANs stand ready to wage ultimate war. They will kill, they will be destroyed, but they will never surrender. And at least one of them--the SPARTAN known as Master Chief--will live to fight another day on a mysterious and ancient, artificial world called Halo...
352 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2001
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10.8k people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,880 reviews
November 5, 2007
it describes my training and how i become famous and brave.
May 9, 2014
Ha! A book about Halo?! ROFL.
I was wrong.
Expected this: "Grenade, headshot, headshot. Two grunts down. More grenades. 360 no scoped an Elite." etc. A book about mindlessly shooting things up.
Got this: A book that doesn't focus on wars or engagements, but the thoughts and emotions of the Spartan's (yes, they have emotions!). You place yourself in their shoes and they are no longer dudes who are just good at shooting things. You see the painful life of brainwashing and conditioning they've gone through. They are not dumb, they think and feel. Most of all, you see how conflicted they are.
The video game never showed this. You never "felt" what happens behind the mask. Eric Nylund did a great job of bringing these characters to life and making you "believe" in what the Spartan's believed. You feel their passion, you want them to win, and are pained by their loss.
Instead, it reminded me of Orson Scott Card's "Ender's Game" and the idea of how you *create*, rather than recruit, elite soldiers. The books were way better than the game. I bought Halo 3 and barely played it because of the Halo book trilogy!
To wrap up, the book also takes place before the events in the Halo video game and explains the origins of the character you play. The game made a lot more sense after reading this book. It used lots of Navy jargon and tried to sprinkle military tactics in to most of the battle situations.
Verdict: I loved Ender's Game, and I'd place this right along side it. Solid read with some great character development. You will be a Spartan when this is over.
Disclaimer: I played Halo 1 before reading this series which may have helped me develop a relationship with the general story and characters. Also, I didn't like the 2nd book as much (The Flood). It was written by a different author who seemed to be more of a scribe for a gamer just playing thru the game. Basically it sounded like he never played the games himself and just watched someone play them and wrote down what they did. I didn't feel the emotion nearly as much. I'd recommend playing the first Halo in place of reading The Flood as it is virtually the exact same story.
I was wrong.
Expected this: "Grenade, headshot, headshot. Two grunts down. More grenades. 360 no scoped an Elite." etc. A book about mindlessly shooting things up.
Got this: A book that doesn't focus on wars or engagements, but the thoughts and emotions of the Spartan's (yes, they have emotions!). You place yourself in their shoes and they are no longer dudes who are just good at shooting things. You see the painful life of brainwashing and conditioning they've gone through. They are not dumb, they think and feel. Most of all, you see how conflicted they are.
The video game never showed this. You never "felt" what happens behind the mask. Eric Nylund did a great job of bringing these characters to life and making you "believe" in what the Spartan's believed. You feel their passion, you want them to win, and are pained by their loss.
Instead, it reminded me of Orson Scott Card's "Ender's Game" and the idea of how you *create*, rather than recruit, elite soldiers. The books were way better than the game. I bought Halo 3 and barely played it because of the Halo book trilogy!
To wrap up, the book also takes place before the events in the Halo video game and explains the origins of the character you play. The game made a lot more sense after reading this book. It used lots of Navy jargon and tried to sprinkle military tactics in to most of the battle situations.
Verdict: I loved Ender's Game, and I'd place this right along side it. Solid read with some great character development. You will be a Spartan when this is over.
Disclaimer: I played Halo 1 before reading this series which may have helped me develop a relationship with the general story and characters. Also, I didn't like the 2nd book as much (The Flood). It was written by a different author who seemed to be more of a scribe for a gamer just playing thru the game. Basically it sounded like he never played the games himself and just watched someone play them and wrote down what they did. I didn't feel the emotion nearly as much. I'd recommend playing the first Halo in place of reading The Flood as it is virtually the exact same story.
September 1, 2018
Well, I’m doing it: I’m diving full on into the Halo universe. Games, novels, comics, web series, podcasts…I’m doing all of them, in the order that they were released. So, in other words, it was nice knowing ya’ll � I’ll see you in 20ish years.
I played the original Halo trilogy years ago, and distinctly remember reading the first three Halo novels that were published: “Halo: The Fall of Reach,� “Halo: The Flood,� and “Halo: First Strike.� Rereading “The Fall of Reach� almost 15 years later, I was impressed by just how well Eric Nylund sets up not only the events of the video game, but also the Halo universe at large: from the origins of the mankind’s war with the Covenant, to the creation of the Spartan program, to developing Master Chief into a real and distinct character, to laying out all of the ins and outs of Slipstream and humanity’s interstellar journeying…there’s a lot of ground that Nylund covers here, and he somehow does it all in a way that’s genuinely entertaining. Color me impressed.
Next up: the original Halo videogame, followed by “Halo: First Strike� (the one and only piece of Halo material I’ll be skipping is “Halo: The Flood�, because a.) if I recall correctly, it’s more or less a pretty straightforward retelling of the Halo story, and b.) I don’t remember it being all that great.
Onward!
I played the original Halo trilogy years ago, and distinctly remember reading the first three Halo novels that were published: “Halo: The Fall of Reach,� “Halo: The Flood,� and “Halo: First Strike.� Rereading “The Fall of Reach� almost 15 years later, I was impressed by just how well Eric Nylund sets up not only the events of the video game, but also the Halo universe at large: from the origins of the mankind’s war with the Covenant, to the creation of the Spartan program, to developing Master Chief into a real and distinct character, to laying out all of the ins and outs of Slipstream and humanity’s interstellar journeying…there’s a lot of ground that Nylund covers here, and he somehow does it all in a way that’s genuinely entertaining. Color me impressed.
Next up: the original Halo videogame, followed by “Halo: First Strike� (the one and only piece of Halo material I’ll be skipping is “Halo: The Flood�, because a.) if I recall correctly, it’s more or less a pretty straightforward retelling of the Halo story, and b.) I don’t remember it being all that great.
Onward!
June 24, 2010
Originally posted on:
First off, and foremost actually, I beg of you all to not believe the hype that this book has surrounded itself in. It is, by far, one of the worst Sci-Fi reads I've had in recent history and the few good things about it get eclipsed by the shoddy writing and the down right awfulness that are most of the characters.
Right, let's get some structure in here.
The plague of tie-in books
Tie-in books have been around for a long time now. They're that special kind of literature that bases itself more on the success of the media outlet, rather than the author's ability to weave something great. As such, whole libraries are full of 'Star Wars', 'Star Trek', 'The X-Files', 'Spider-Man', 'Men in black' and so on. And if original works were to get slapped any harder, these books are usually pushed up-front for their obvious hook. Fans will buy them, people that heard of the movies will buy them as well out of curiosity and here we go into that black hole of bad literature helped along by big names.
I had initially expected 'Halo - The fall of Reach' to be THAT book that actually shows there's some point in picking up such a book for other reasons rather than the fact that you've loved the game.
High and unfair expectations one might say. But, taken the source material, a game that has really married consoles and shooters, would it not be fair to expect the book to really marry games and literature?
But still, perhaps I went into this read with higher expectations than I was allowed for any other book. But, as my expectations are high for people like Frederik Pohl or Frank Herbert, Orson Scott Card and the illustrious Aldous Huxley, am I not to have the same expectations for a celebrated author like mr. Eric Nylund?
But no, this work proved once again that there is still little hope for a proper union between mediums. For myself, personally, it only cements that view that there is little hope for tie-in literature, despite the illusion of world expanded and characters built upon...there simply is too little here for such grand things.
The itty gritty of bad craftsmanship
Allow me to start off this bit of writing with the highs and lows of this book. It'll provide grounds to built upon.
The pros:
- good idea;
- fun to read space battles;
The cons:
- poor execution;
- bad, bi dimensional characters;
- forced attempt to tie into the game that it prequels;
- bad action scenes.
I won't be fair about this, I know. But then again, I don't need to be.
This is bad Sci-Fi here. And it's bad for quite a number of reasons that need mentioning.
First off, what you can't but notice as you read the first page, is the fact that this author can't write at a steady pace. He just can't. From the first page, to the last one, you need to put off with a constant barrage of character names being repeated every three phrases and the unequal pace of everything brought about by the choppy writing.
Now, what can it mean when you call writing 'choppy' for lack of a better term?
If a game stutters you can name the framerate 'choppy'...and that's a very good simile right there. 'The fall of Reach' is a bad framerate put into words and stretched on 340 pages. The action always moves either too fast or simply too slow and the flow of the phrases help worsen things.
Bla bla bla! he said moving his head.
He got out of the Warthog and walked to the barracks. The guard saluted. He returned the salute almost without thinking.
Yes, that's about it. You get used to it after fifty pages or so, but it still rears its ugly head each and every time you seem to get some real enjoyment out of the book.
There are no real characters here.
The super-genius unique scientist?
The children being trained, of which only just four or five actually get a voice or name?
The serious and level headed captain?
The tomboyish yet incredibly smart AI?
The tough general barking orders?
All non-characters! Bland, unexciting, uninteresting and BORING. That's what all the characters in this book have amounted to.
It's seen as the story of how the Spartans came to be yet, except for Master Chief, every other Spartan is there for cannon fodder or to force upon us the fact that the main character wasn't the strongest or fastest (tie-in to the multiplayer anyone?) but merely the bravest. Their dialogue is laughably bland and full of extreme cliches. There's so much emphasis on some of them (as the main cast in the game) that it's easy to get unnerved seeing how some, much more interesting ones, are swept aside in the attempt at humanizing the Master Chief.
Which attempt, I'm sad to report, doesn't do anything to his persona. Still a bland wind-up toy soldier he remains, no matter the back story now...the book made sure of hammering out all that could be remotely human in him.
Anywho, I'll stop hammering at this. This is simply an example of a rank amateur trying his hand at something well beyond him. I'm sure there are people out there that consider this as some sort of 'DUDE, BEST BOOK EVAH!' but seriously talking: this is rubbish. Unapologetic rubbish...
The George Lucas school of story-telling
If some of you have seen the entire 'Star Wars' series of films then the above title will be more than revealing for you.
As bad as some of the parts are, there is still some good in this thing. I won't lie...it gets tedious and annoying each time the action concentrated on a character; but when it went into space, it really could become something interesting to read. There was some serious gold here to be dug out if the plot would've concerned some of the space battles...but, sadly, wasn't to be.
The worst sin this books commits against itself is how badly it tries to fit before the first game. When the ending rolled about, it proved that most of the secondary characters were nothing more than sacrificial lambs on an altar of empowering the Master Chief even further, and the story of the sequels.
There is some geniality in the attempt at irony at the ending...but sadly, it's hamfisted and force fed to us. It doesn't shy away from it either, it's in our faces and the arms is driven deeply down our necks with the ham.
George Lucas would be envious of how this ties in. Even his disaster wasn't as bad.
Ending
What can I say in closing? Don't waste your time reading this, really, don't. There is far better Sci-Fi out there, far flashier, far more interesting. This is, at best, the equivalent of a pop-corn film: watchable but forgettable and, without the butter, quite bland.
I can't say the games deserved better than this...God knows, 'Halo' is not the most intriguing story-line out there...but fans deserved better than this attempt.
I was curious for the game. Now I know that everything that was interesting in this book will be absent from the game.
Screw it!
First off, and foremost actually, I beg of you all to not believe the hype that this book has surrounded itself in. It is, by far, one of the worst Sci-Fi reads I've had in recent history and the few good things about it get eclipsed by the shoddy writing and the down right awfulness that are most of the characters.
Right, let's get some structure in here.
The plague of tie-in books
Tie-in books have been around for a long time now. They're that special kind of literature that bases itself more on the success of the media outlet, rather than the author's ability to weave something great. As such, whole libraries are full of 'Star Wars', 'Star Trek', 'The X-Files', 'Spider-Man', 'Men in black' and so on. And if original works were to get slapped any harder, these books are usually pushed up-front for their obvious hook. Fans will buy them, people that heard of the movies will buy them as well out of curiosity and here we go into that black hole of bad literature helped along by big names.
I had initially expected 'Halo - The fall of Reach' to be THAT book that actually shows there's some point in picking up such a book for other reasons rather than the fact that you've loved the game.
High and unfair expectations one might say. But, taken the source material, a game that has really married consoles and shooters, would it not be fair to expect the book to really marry games and literature?
But still, perhaps I went into this read with higher expectations than I was allowed for any other book. But, as my expectations are high for people like Frederik Pohl or Frank Herbert, Orson Scott Card and the illustrious Aldous Huxley, am I not to have the same expectations for a celebrated author like mr. Eric Nylund?
But no, this work proved once again that there is still little hope for a proper union between mediums. For myself, personally, it only cements that view that there is little hope for tie-in literature, despite the illusion of world expanded and characters built upon...there simply is too little here for such grand things.
The itty gritty of bad craftsmanship
Allow me to start off this bit of writing with the highs and lows of this book. It'll provide grounds to built upon.
The pros:
- good idea;
- fun to read space battles;
The cons:
- poor execution;
- bad, bi dimensional characters;
- forced attempt to tie into the game that it prequels;
- bad action scenes.
I won't be fair about this, I know. But then again, I don't need to be.
This is bad Sci-Fi here. And it's bad for quite a number of reasons that need mentioning.
First off, what you can't but notice as you read the first page, is the fact that this author can't write at a steady pace. He just can't. From the first page, to the last one, you need to put off with a constant barrage of character names being repeated every three phrases and the unequal pace of everything brought about by the choppy writing.
Now, what can it mean when you call writing 'choppy' for lack of a better term?
If a game stutters you can name the framerate 'choppy'...and that's a very good simile right there. 'The fall of Reach' is a bad framerate put into words and stretched on 340 pages. The action always moves either too fast or simply too slow and the flow of the phrases help worsen things.
Bla bla bla! he said moving his head.
He got out of the Warthog and walked to the barracks. The guard saluted. He returned the salute almost without thinking.
Yes, that's about it. You get used to it after fifty pages or so, but it still rears its ugly head each and every time you seem to get some real enjoyment out of the book.
There are no real characters here.
The super-genius unique scientist?
The children being trained, of which only just four or five actually get a voice or name?
The serious and level headed captain?
The tomboyish yet incredibly smart AI?
The tough general barking orders?
All non-characters! Bland, unexciting, uninteresting and BORING. That's what all the characters in this book have amounted to.
It's seen as the story of how the Spartans came to be yet, except for Master Chief, every other Spartan is there for cannon fodder or to force upon us the fact that the main character wasn't the strongest or fastest (tie-in to the multiplayer anyone?) but merely the bravest. Their dialogue is laughably bland and full of extreme cliches. There's so much emphasis on some of them (as the main cast in the game) that it's easy to get unnerved seeing how some, much more interesting ones, are swept aside in the attempt at humanizing the Master Chief.
Which attempt, I'm sad to report, doesn't do anything to his persona. Still a bland wind-up toy soldier he remains, no matter the back story now...the book made sure of hammering out all that could be remotely human in him.
Anywho, I'll stop hammering at this. This is simply an example of a rank amateur trying his hand at something well beyond him. I'm sure there are people out there that consider this as some sort of 'DUDE, BEST BOOK EVAH!' but seriously talking: this is rubbish. Unapologetic rubbish...
The George Lucas school of story-telling
If some of you have seen the entire 'Star Wars' series of films then the above title will be more than revealing for you.
As bad as some of the parts are, there is still some good in this thing. I won't lie...it gets tedious and annoying each time the action concentrated on a character; but when it went into space, it really could become something interesting to read. There was some serious gold here to be dug out if the plot would've concerned some of the space battles...but, sadly, wasn't to be.
The worst sin this books commits against itself is how badly it tries to fit before the first game. When the ending rolled about, it proved that most of the secondary characters were nothing more than sacrificial lambs on an altar of empowering the Master Chief even further, and the story of the sequels.
There is some geniality in the attempt at irony at the ending...but sadly, it's hamfisted and force fed to us. It doesn't shy away from it either, it's in our faces and the arms is driven deeply down our necks with the ham.
George Lucas would be envious of how this ties in. Even his disaster wasn't as bad.
Ending
What can I say in closing? Don't waste your time reading this, really, don't. There is far better Sci-Fi out there, far flashier, far more interesting. This is, at best, the equivalent of a pop-corn film: watchable but forgettable and, without the butter, quite bland.
I can't say the games deserved better than this...God knows, 'Halo' is not the most intriguing story-line out there...but fans deserved better than this attempt.
I was curious for the game. Now I know that everything that was interesting in this book will be absent from the game.
Screw it!
April 2, 2022
If I were to just compare this book with the grand majority of MilSF titles out there, I'd probably rank it as one of the best for pure grit and against-all-odds heroism, with a solid background for Master Chief and all the plausible extra SF bits like bio-enhancement, super armor, AI assists, etc. It's really quite good and the story is classic alien invasion. In comparison, it's decent with story, better than most, and it plays to its strengths.
However, I must point out that this book has a rather big history. It came out the same year as the first Halo game, the game that really defined first-person shooters back in 2001 so much that everyone and their fat dogs wanted to copy it. This is a companion novel more than anything else and as such, I think it deserves just a tad bit more love than anything that was particularly stand-alone.
Why, you ask? I mean, I probably would have asked that myself, for the simple reason that I used to pride myself on staying away form franchise novels in general, be it Star Wars or Star Trek or whatnot.
And yet, now that I've played the games and I've read this first novel, I really get the sense of them all being rather complimentary. It all builds on each other very nicely.
So this is a successful case of a product being much greater than the sum of its parts. :)
However, I must point out that this book has a rather big history. It came out the same year as the first Halo game, the game that really defined first-person shooters back in 2001 so much that everyone and their fat dogs wanted to copy it. This is a companion novel more than anything else and as such, I think it deserves just a tad bit more love than anything that was particularly stand-alone.
Why, you ask? I mean, I probably would have asked that myself, for the simple reason that I used to pride myself on staying away form franchise novels in general, be it Star Wars or Star Trek or whatnot.
And yet, now that I've played the games and I've read this first novel, I really get the sense of them all being rather complimentary. It all builds on each other very nicely.
So this is a successful case of a product being much greater than the sum of its parts. :)
February 4, 2009
I have played all of the Halo games and followed the story in the games and thoroughly enjoyed them. I was given this book several years ago and never got around to reading them, until I got my hands on the audio book version!
This book was incredible. It was not predictable at all. It begins when Master Chief was selected as a child for the Spartan program. Putting the setting well before the first Halo game. The author does a great job describing Master Chief and getting the readers following his development as a strong, complex character.
This book is not a fun, light hearted read either. Master Chief experiences some terrible things and in the end, all he has is his orders and missions that keep him focused and determined.
I'm not much of a Sci-fi guy or a fantasy guy either, but I have to admit, this book was unlike any sci-fi book I have read. Simply awesome! A must read!!
This book was incredible. It was not predictable at all. It begins when Master Chief was selected as a child for the Spartan program. Putting the setting well before the first Halo game. The author does a great job describing Master Chief and getting the readers following his development as a strong, complex character.
This book is not a fun, light hearted read either. Master Chief experiences some terrible things and in the end, all he has is his orders and missions that keep him focused and determined.
I'm not much of a Sci-fi guy or a fantasy guy either, but I have to admit, this book was unlike any sci-fi book I have read. Simply awesome! A must read!!
August 10, 2011
This book is based on a video game...and it's pretty good. I was in the mood for a straight forward even simple story. Good guys vs bad guys, military space opera, aliens who want to conquer the universe, or burn it...
Cool.
Okay, so it's not Tolstoy or Dickens (not that Dickens is necessarily all that hot LOL). But these books (there is a series based on the game) are fun, action packed and really pretty well written.
We open with the "founding of" or "recruiting of" the Spartans. "Of course" our hero is "Master Chief" (anyone who's played the game would know that of course). At the beginning of the book we know little (or nothing) about "The Covenant". These are our "bad guys" and they'd rather destroy a planet than leave it in human hands!
So, enjoy, read, soak up all the wonderful mindless violence. You can read something "worthwhile" later.
Cool.
Okay, so it's not Tolstoy or Dickens (not that Dickens is necessarily all that hot LOL). But these books (there is a series based on the game) are fun, action packed and really pretty well written.
We open with the "founding of" or "recruiting of" the Spartans. "Of course" our hero is "Master Chief" (anyone who's played the game would know that of course). At the beginning of the book we know little (or nothing) about "The Covenant". These are our "bad guys" and they'd rather destroy a planet than leave it in human hands!
So, enjoy, read, soak up all the wonderful mindless violence. You can read something "worthwhile" later.
June 23, 2020
Maybe not totally deserved, but this book made me feel something, damn it. And I haven't felt things in MONTHS.
December 6, 2010
This is essentially a military Sci-Fi book with echoes of both and . I haven't played the Halo games as I don't own an XBox, although I did dip into Combat Evolved at some stage (the one Halo that came out on PC). I remain intrigued by the concept of the Halo (a -like structure - albeit much smaller). At this stage I would like to insert a comment on some of the negative reviews listed. This book is based on a video game franchise, yes, and is likely aimed at a younger market or niche market. In all fairness, it can not be compared to, for example, for complexity. This is the kind of book that is likely to turn younger readers onto reading, especially if they've played the game, and how can that be a bad thing?
The book itself is extremely readable. It is very well paced and I flew through it. So, no time wasted. It is also a lot of fun, and surprisingly well written, considering its roots. Like I said, I'm not a Halo-player and yet I really enjoyed this novel. Kudos to for taking the available back story info and crafting it into something rather promising. I'm continuing with the series, since it now has my attention.
I would certainly recommend The Fall Of Reach to readers who enjoy military science fiction, but who will appreciate something just for the heck of it too. If you're a fan of the game, this is required reading. Great stuff!
Edit: the edition I read (Del Rey) did have one or two grammatical errors / typos - let's hope the Tor edition coming out will have fixed that.
The book itself is extremely readable. It is very well paced and I flew through it. So, no time wasted. It is also a lot of fun, and surprisingly well written, considering its roots. Like I said, I'm not a Halo-player and yet I really enjoyed this novel. Kudos to for taking the available back story info and crafting it into something rather promising. I'm continuing with the series, since it now has my attention.
I would certainly recommend The Fall Of Reach to readers who enjoy military science fiction, but who will appreciate something just for the heck of it too. If you're a fan of the game, this is required reading. Great stuff!
Edit: the edition I read (Del Rey) did have one or two grammatical errors / typos - let's hope the Tor edition coming out will have fixed that.
December 3, 2024
If you are familiar with the Halo story I highly recommend reading this! I personally have not played the Halo games too much since I was never an Xbox fan, but I am familiar with some elements of the story. So even if you have not played much of the games, you can still enjoy this story! Although it does help having played or seen someone play the game for the purposes of being able to picture the various elements and characters of the story.
The book does not spend a lot of time describing things (which is nice) because you have the games to help get you the picture. It is easier to know what Grunts, Jackels, Banshees, Elites, Prophets, etc. look like if you just play the game rather than have them described in immense detail. Plus we all know how Master Chief is supposed to look in his armor as well as how Cortana looks.
This book gives a great backstory to the creation of the Master Chief and the Spartans. I loved reading about how John 117 grew to be the Master Chief that he is as well as the bond he has with the other Spartans. The story starts off with John as a little child being noticed by Dr. Halsey who enlists him into the new program. John grows to be immensely loyal to the ‘missions� he is given (no questions asked) and even if the mission feels impossible, he will get it done.
The book will switch point of views every once in while to give you a full picture of what is happening, but a lot of time is spent with John which I enjoyed all those scenes. My main complaint is that sometimes the language was not consistent and could sometimes be confusing on who was speaking or narrating (i.e. one sentence would John may be referred in narration as John and in the next he is referred in narration as Master Chief). It is a minor complaint but sometimes it felt it took me out of the story for a second.
Overall this is a great fan-fiction novelization of the Halo story and I enjoyed this even as a reread. I recommend if you enjoy the Halo games and are looking for a good backstory to the Master Chief.
The book does not spend a lot of time describing things (which is nice) because you have the games to help get you the picture. It is easier to know what Grunts, Jackels, Banshees, Elites, Prophets, etc. look like if you just play the game rather than have them described in immense detail. Plus we all know how Master Chief is supposed to look in his armor as well as how Cortana looks.
This book gives a great backstory to the creation of the Master Chief and the Spartans. I loved reading about how John 117 grew to be the Master Chief that he is as well as the bond he has with the other Spartans. The story starts off with John as a little child being noticed by Dr. Halsey who enlists him into the new program. John grows to be immensely loyal to the ‘missions� he is given (no questions asked) and even if the mission feels impossible, he will get it done.
The book will switch point of views every once in while to give you a full picture of what is happening, but a lot of time is spent with John which I enjoyed all those scenes. My main complaint is that sometimes the language was not consistent and could sometimes be confusing on who was speaking or narrating (i.e. one sentence would John may be referred in narration as John and in the next he is referred in narration as Master Chief). It is a minor complaint but sometimes it felt it took me out of the story for a second.
Overall this is a great fan-fiction novelization of the Halo story and I enjoyed this even as a reread. I recommend if you enjoy the Halo games and are looking for a good backstory to the Master Chief.
January 15, 2024
In my attempt to expand my media tie-in fiction, I’ve decided to read the Halo novels. I read one of the short novels, “New Blood�, and while I really enjoyed it, I don’t remember too much about it. I asked people where to start and they all suggested The Fall of Reach.
This book definitely has a military sci-fi feel to it. I really enjoyed the training sequence with John and Chief Mendez in the beginning of the book, and I also really enjoyed the background given to Dr. Halsey and the Spartan project.
I thought it was an odd choice to jump 30 years, as we don’t really see John 117 develop after completing his training. Perhaps there is another novel that can fill in that time, or perhaps it simply isn’t needed.
The whole action sequences were excellently written, and I usually do not care for action sequences. Eric Nylund didn’t make them too technical or difficult to understand.
I also loved reading about Captain Keyes, who is an interesting character to me.
The one thing I thought was odd was that the book is titled “The Fall of Reach�, but we don’t see the fall of reach until the last 60 pages. Just an odd choice for the title, which I think they could have saved and hidden the surprise.
Overall, I really enjoyed the novel. Not only was it an engaging story, but it makes me want to play the game now. So I’ll give the book a 9.3 out of 10! Well done Eric Nylund!
This book definitely has a military sci-fi feel to it. I really enjoyed the training sequence with John and Chief Mendez in the beginning of the book, and I also really enjoyed the background given to Dr. Halsey and the Spartan project.
I thought it was an odd choice to jump 30 years, as we don’t really see John 117 develop after completing his training. Perhaps there is another novel that can fill in that time, or perhaps it simply isn’t needed.
The whole action sequences were excellently written, and I usually do not care for action sequences. Eric Nylund didn’t make them too technical or difficult to understand.
I also loved reading about Captain Keyes, who is an interesting character to me.
The one thing I thought was odd was that the book is titled “The Fall of Reach�, but we don’t see the fall of reach until the last 60 pages. Just an odd choice for the title, which I think they could have saved and hidden the surprise.
Overall, I really enjoyed the novel. Not only was it an engaging story, but it makes me want to play the game now. So I’ll give the book a 9.3 out of 10! Well done Eric Nylund!
May 8, 2022
Počela sam gledati seriju Halo i totalno se navukla na nju. S obzirom da epizode dobijamo na kapaljku, a i bit će ih samo devet u prvoj sezoni, reko, idem vidjeti ima li koja knjiga. I na moju veliku sreću, ima, i to ne jedna, nego hrpa! Odmah sam se uhvatila prve.
Igricu nisam gledala pa ju ne mogu komentirati, ali zato ću sad nakon što sam pročitala knjigu, usporediti malo nju i seriju.
Prvo bih rekla da sam, kao i obično kad je SF u pitanju, apsolutno neobjektivna, a sad pogotovo jer su me i serija i knjiga oduševile. Ko luđakinja sam čekala nove nastavke, pogledala ih sve dvaput i onda progutala knjigu. Sad bih najrađe uzela i drugi dio, ali naučila sam na teži način (uz Takeshi Kovacsa) da ne pretjerujem, jer ću sama sebi upropastiti užitak. A i realno, imam neke druge čitateljske planove kojih bih se kao trebala držati.
Dakle, prvo serija. Upoznajemo Master Chiefa Johna 117 i njegov elitni tim super vojnika (Spartance). Oni su jedina prava obrana od Sangheilija (Covenanta), nadmoćne izvanzemaljske rase koja želi uništiti ljudsku rasu. Kroz seriju saznajemo kako je Master Chief postao super vojnik i pratimo njegovu preobrazbu.
S druge strane, knjiga nas vodi u jednom drugom smjeru. U prvom dijelu detaljno pratimo Master Chiefovo djetinjstvo i preobrazbu u super vojnika. Nakon toga je najviše naglasak na ratu s Covenantom i tu upoznajemo kapetana Keysa.
Postoje naravno razlike između serije i knjige. U seriji je više naglasak na Johnu kao glavnom liku, dok knjiga najviše ističe kapetana Keysa, koji ima veliku ulogu u ratu, a John nekako pomalo pada u drugi plan. U seriji John, izazvan određenim izvanjskim utjecajem, propituje svoj život i ono što mu je učinjeno, a u knjizi poslušno slijedi zapovjedi i rijetko kad što propituje. Ok, knjiga ima još dva nastavka pa se tu može još štošta dogoditi.
U knjizi se zasad ne spominje ni Makee koja, uz određene artefakte, u seriji ima veliku ulogu. AI Cortana, opet ima važnu ulogu i u knjizi i u seriji, ali mi je njen lik u knjizi zasad bolji. Ima tu još dosta razlika, ali neću ih sad baš sve nabrajati. Inače mi razlike između knjige i serije/filma dosta smetaju, ali ovdje mi nekako sve odgovara jer mi sve one proširuju priču i čine ju zanimljivijom.
U seriji mi se jako svidio taj Johnov put od slijepog vjerovanja i poslušnosti, do istraživanja, propitivanja, suočavanja s lažima. Baš me zanima kako će se to dalje odvijati. Jedan prijatelj, ljubitelj igrice, nezadovoljno je komentirao kako mu se uopće nije svidjelo što su u seriji Spartanci skinuli kacige, a meni je to opet bilo odlično jer sam željela vidjeti da su i oni ljudi, a ne neki strojevi za ubijanje. Željela sam da mi se svide, željela sam navijati za njih.
Jedina stvar koja me je baš zasmetala kod knjige bila je što me je prvi dio (Johnovo djetinjstvo i trening) jako podsjetio na Enderovu igru. Koncept stvaranja ratnika od djece mi je prilično odbojan pa sam jedva čekala da taj dio knjige završi.
A ono što mi je bio najbolji i najžešći dio knjige bile su svemirske bitke ljudi s Covenantom. Koji zakon brodovi, koji arsenal čudesnog oružja, manevri i strategije, fenomenalni opisi samih bitaka. Totalni nabrijanac. Osjećala sam se kao da sam tamo s njima. Uživala sam ko mali majmun!
Igricu nisam gledala pa ju ne mogu komentirati, ali zato ću sad nakon što sam pročitala knjigu, usporediti malo nju i seriju.
Prvo bih rekla da sam, kao i obično kad je SF u pitanju, apsolutno neobjektivna, a sad pogotovo jer su me i serija i knjiga oduševile. Ko luđakinja sam čekala nove nastavke, pogledala ih sve dvaput i onda progutala knjigu. Sad bih najrađe uzela i drugi dio, ali naučila sam na teži način (uz Takeshi Kovacsa) da ne pretjerujem, jer ću sama sebi upropastiti užitak. A i realno, imam neke druge čitateljske planove kojih bih se kao trebala držati.
Dakle, prvo serija. Upoznajemo Master Chiefa Johna 117 i njegov elitni tim super vojnika (Spartance). Oni su jedina prava obrana od Sangheilija (Covenanta), nadmoćne izvanzemaljske rase koja želi uništiti ljudsku rasu. Kroz seriju saznajemo kako je Master Chief postao super vojnik i pratimo njegovu preobrazbu.
S druge strane, knjiga nas vodi u jednom drugom smjeru. U prvom dijelu detaljno pratimo Master Chiefovo djetinjstvo i preobrazbu u super vojnika. Nakon toga je najviše naglasak na ratu s Covenantom i tu upoznajemo kapetana Keysa.
Postoje naravno razlike između serije i knjige. U seriji je više naglasak na Johnu kao glavnom liku, dok knjiga najviše ističe kapetana Keysa, koji ima veliku ulogu u ratu, a John nekako pomalo pada u drugi plan. U seriji John, izazvan određenim izvanjskim utjecajem, propituje svoj život i ono što mu je učinjeno, a u knjizi poslušno slijedi zapovjedi i rijetko kad što propituje. Ok, knjiga ima još dva nastavka pa se tu može još štošta dogoditi.
U knjizi se zasad ne spominje ni Makee koja, uz određene artefakte, u seriji ima veliku ulogu. AI Cortana, opet ima važnu ulogu i u knjizi i u seriji, ali mi je njen lik u knjizi zasad bolji. Ima tu još dosta razlika, ali neću ih sad baš sve nabrajati. Inače mi razlike između knjige i serije/filma dosta smetaju, ali ovdje mi nekako sve odgovara jer mi sve one proširuju priču i čine ju zanimljivijom.
U seriji mi se jako svidio taj Johnov put od slijepog vjerovanja i poslušnosti, do istraživanja, propitivanja, suočavanja s lažima. Baš me zanima kako će se to dalje odvijati. Jedan prijatelj, ljubitelj igrice, nezadovoljno je komentirao kako mu se uopće nije svidjelo što su u seriji Spartanci skinuli kacige, a meni je to opet bilo odlično jer sam željela vidjeti da su i oni ljudi, a ne neki strojevi za ubijanje. Željela sam da mi se svide, željela sam navijati za njih.
Jedina stvar koja me je baš zasmetala kod knjige bila je što me je prvi dio (Johnovo djetinjstvo i trening) jako podsjetio na Enderovu igru. Koncept stvaranja ratnika od djece mi je prilično odbojan pa sam jedva čekala da taj dio knjige završi.
A ono što mi je bio najbolji i najžešći dio knjige bile su svemirske bitke ljudi s Covenantom. Koji zakon brodovi, koji arsenal čudesnog oružja, manevri i strategije, fenomenalni opisi samih bitaka. Totalni nabrijanac. Osjećala sam se kao da sam tamo s njima. Uživala sam ko mali majmun!
May 20, 2017
*** 1.5 stars ***
Well... at least I tried.
I have a friend who is a big Halo: The Fall of Reach fan and in his attempt to get me interested in the story, heconvinced me to give it a shot.
I really, really tried to like the story, the book, the writing... I couldn't.
Halo: The Fall of Reach to me was poorly written and rather dreary, shallow and messy. Many events came to be in the book, but the story moved so little in terms of world-building. Yes, of course there were big events, but most of them were battles between the Covenant vs Deus ex machina. And my curiosity about the essence of this world was hardly nourished.
For starters, the core of the story were the war and the creation of the Spartans because of the war. But those two ideas were developed in such a strange way that I couldn't really make myself take the story seriously. The Spartans were described in very contrasting ways, which could make sense if developed properly (the people who support the idea of the Spartans' creation - the Spartans themselves - the horrors of their creation - the people who would like to see them fall), however the majority of these contrasts were written in a very off-hand manner, so it just seemed like that was "writing for the purpose of filling pages" in between epic battles.
And don't even get me started with the battles. There was so much... I would say, "military jargon"? Just commands, terms, words that may make sense to gamers, but not to a casual reader... More so, however, the battles were lead solely relying on miracles, a.k.a deus ex machina. Half of the battles scenes between generic ships and ship crews went on like this:
"- We have to fight!
- Sir, they are turning around!
- Oh no, we will die!
- At least we are going to die in honor!
- There's nothing more to do! We will die!
- UNLESS! Turn the ship, yeah, hit them Covenant bitches, uh uh, how do you like me now?!
- Oh sir, you saved us! How did you come up with this brilliant plan?
- Nah, it wasn't anything special."
In general I just couldn't get engaged in the story. Not my cup of tea at all, I admit, but I still thought it might surprise me. It didn't.
January 26, 2021
I can't even summarize how much I loved this. Halo is my favourite fictional universe of all time, so I'm always eager to dive deeper when I can. I actually read this book already when I was a kid, but I couldn't remember a bloody thing about it so I picked it up again as an adult.
As wonderful as the story is, something must be said: the editing for this book was hot garbage. I have read many fanfictions with less typos. I don't recall ever reading a traditionally published novel with more errors in it. I genuinely believe this takes the cake. I hope this doesn't sound mean, but I hope this editor was fired. They were entirely useless. I can't even imagine this book having an editor at all. That makes me sound like an asshole, but seriously, this was unreal. It's not just the editor in question, either. Did the author not reread his rough-draft a single time? I'm so confused at how this was allowed out of the gate.
The only reason I'm still giving this a 5 star is because I know this book was republished with new editions, which I'm only assuming fix the myriad of problems. I read the original release, so I was subject to this madness. I highly recommend anyone to read the newer editions.
Story = Fantastic
Editing = Absolutely Abysmal
I can't wait to read the other Halo books. Infinite comes out this year, so I want to catch up before then. You'll be seeing a lot of Halo reviews from me this year.
As wonderful as the story is, something must be said: the editing for this book was hot garbage. I have read many fanfictions with less typos. I don't recall ever reading a traditionally published novel with more errors in it. I genuinely believe this takes the cake. I hope this doesn't sound mean, but I hope this editor was fired. They were entirely useless. I can't even imagine this book having an editor at all. That makes me sound like an asshole, but seriously, this was unreal. It's not just the editor in question, either. Did the author not reread his rough-draft a single time? I'm so confused at how this was allowed out of the gate.
The only reason I'm still giving this a 5 star is because I know this book was republished with new editions, which I'm only assuming fix the myriad of problems. I read the original release, so I was subject to this madness. I highly recommend anyone to read the newer editions.
Story = Fantastic
Editing = Absolutely Abysmal
I can't wait to read the other Halo books. Infinite comes out this year, so I want to catch up before then. You'll be seeing a lot of Halo reviews from me this year.
March 30, 2020
I wasn't expecting too much from this book, so I was more than surprised at the quality of the novel. It's wonderfully fun. The author has very fluid prose that keeps you addicted to the story but doesn't rush you through it. Also, given this is a prequel to the games, the author was kind of stuck writing within certain parameters, meaning that he had to conform to the series' history/locations, and he has to ensure his writing was accessible to everyone - that leaves little room for experimentation with regards to prose or ideological concerns. So, I forgive the very conventional format/style.
On that note, the only real issue I had with the story was the character development. The characters were unique to themselves, but no one was very deep. The characters read like typical action-movie stars: they are likeable and their motives are very black and white. It wouldn't have detracted from the story to have more background on the characters.
Overall, I really enjoyed this novel.
On that note, the only real issue I had with the story was the character development. The characters were unique to themselves, but no one was very deep. The characters read like typical action-movie stars: they are likeable and their motives are very black and white. It wouldn't have detracted from the story to have more background on the characters.
Overall, I really enjoyed this novel.
June 24, 2022
To make a long story short, no the suit does not jack him off.
May 12, 2023
This book was pretty good. I wasn't sure what to expect. Sometimes tie-in novels are amazing and other times . . . not so much. This one was good. I've played the Halo games, but am not a super-fan who knows all the mythology. So, this book was fun to read because it covered how Master Chief came to exist, how Cortana was implanted into his armor, and some other important events I don't want to spoil.
If you are a Halo fan, you'll like this book. If you aren't a Halo fan, it is still entertaining, but might not have enough world-building to fully understand it.
If you are a Halo fan, you'll like this book. If you aren't a Halo fan, it is still entertaining, but might not have enough world-building to fully understand it.
August 22, 2018
I am a huge fan of the Halo universe and doubly-so it's Expanded Universe. Long before I got my copy of the Master Chief collection, I was enjoying the books by Eric Nylund and William Dietz that set up a surprisingly awesome science fiction universe. They were written in conunction with the original game and I suspect provided much of the backstory which would eventually be incorporated into the game's lore.
The premise is surprisingly dark. John-117 is a six-year-old boy kidnapped from his family by the Office of Naval Intelligence. Doctor Catherine Halsey proceeds to teach John and seventy-four other candidates bruttal combat techniques as well as strategy for the next decade. He is part of the SPARTAN-II program that is designed to produce super-soldiers.
Rather than vilify her for, the books show the children thriving under their training until they are surgically enhanced to become cyborgs capable of wearing Mjolnir armor. It's just in time, too, because the human race is being invaded by the Covenant and they want to exterminate us. Determined to defend their home, the Spartans fight a desperate holding action against a foe with far more advanced technology.
Despite the dark backstory, which helps it stand out from the rest, Halo: The Fall of Reach is a really entertaining action novel as well as uplifting. We see John and his Fireteam bond with one another as well as learn the lessons which will allow them to delay the Covenant even if they can't stop it. The action in the book is tremendous and the characters stand out. I liked Doctor Halsey a lot despite the fact she's a kidnapper, a mad scientist, and quite possibly crazy.
The events of the books were so entertaining they've been adapted twice with Halo: The Fall of Reach as a CGI movie I first saw on netflix as well as a somewhat looser adaptation of the novel's second half in the Halo: Reach video game. I shouldn't give this book such a high score as I'm going to but I've read the books like three times now and will probably read them again, I haven't done that with any other book.
10/10
The premise is surprisingly dark. John-117 is a six-year-old boy kidnapped from his family by the Office of Naval Intelligence. Doctor Catherine Halsey proceeds to teach John and seventy-four other candidates bruttal combat techniques as well as strategy for the next decade. He is part of the SPARTAN-II program that is designed to produce super-soldiers.
Rather than vilify her for, the books show the children thriving under their training until they are surgically enhanced to become cyborgs capable of wearing Mjolnir armor. It's just in time, too, because the human race is being invaded by the Covenant and they want to exterminate us. Determined to defend their home, the Spartans fight a desperate holding action against a foe with far more advanced technology.
Despite the dark backstory, which helps it stand out from the rest, Halo: The Fall of Reach is a really entertaining action novel as well as uplifting. We see John and his Fireteam bond with one another as well as learn the lessons which will allow them to delay the Covenant even if they can't stop it. The action in the book is tremendous and the characters stand out. I liked Doctor Halsey a lot despite the fact she's a kidnapper, a mad scientist, and quite possibly crazy.
The events of the books were so entertaining they've been adapted twice with Halo: The Fall of Reach as a CGI movie I first saw on netflix as well as a somewhat looser adaptation of the novel's second half in the Halo: Reach video game. I shouldn't give this book such a high score as I'm going to but I've read the books like three times now and will probably read them again, I haven't done that with any other book.
10/10
April 21, 2011
Mass market paperbacks covering someone else's IP must be a pain to write, since you're probably under a huge time constraint to come up with 250 pages worth of story constrained by existing canon. But even more constricting is the fact that your work is permitted to exist only to further sales of the primary product. In essence, your book is a commercial.
Given that, Nylund does a pretty decent job putting some life into a killing game. While the protagonist, John 117, hardly rises above the automaton of the game, here he at least has some back story, some sense of connection to his fellow Spartans, and a deep seeded drive to "win". This makes him only a little less despicable than, say, Robert Howard's Conan. But the reason you end up liking Conan is because he is better than the rest of the world he lives in. The same is true of Master Chief. He is essentially kidnapped and forced by a world-spanning government (the UN) to become a killing machine, one specifically aimed at human beings who are seeking their own autonomy through resisting UN's rule. While Nylund's account avoids explicit moral judgment regarding the insurrectionists, one can only imagine Master Chief as the moral equivalent of Darth Vader hunting down rebels or "the Operative" hunting down River Tam & the crew of Serenity.
Thankfully for the franchise, all this become moot when humanity is threated by the alien Covenant and the Evil Empire -- I mean, United Nations -- get's to serendipitously turn it's killing machines on the alien invaders. And for us, since we don't have to think about the moral quandaries, and can sit back and enjoy, since all of the violence and killing is morally good.
Given that, Nylund does a pretty decent job putting some life into a killing game. While the protagonist, John 117, hardly rises above the automaton of the game, here he at least has some back story, some sense of connection to his fellow Spartans, and a deep seeded drive to "win". This makes him only a little less despicable than, say, Robert Howard's Conan. But the reason you end up liking Conan is because he is better than the rest of the world he lives in. The same is true of Master Chief. He is essentially kidnapped and forced by a world-spanning government (the UN) to become a killing machine, one specifically aimed at human beings who are seeking their own autonomy through resisting UN's rule. While Nylund's account avoids explicit moral judgment regarding the insurrectionists, one can only imagine Master Chief as the moral equivalent of Darth Vader hunting down rebels or "the Operative" hunting down River Tam & the crew of Serenity.
Thankfully for the franchise, all this become moot when humanity is threated by the alien Covenant and the Evil Empire -- I mean, United Nations -- get's to serendipitously turn it's killing machines on the alien invaders. And for us, since we don't have to think about the moral quandaries, and can sit back and enjoy, since all of the violence and killing is morally good.
October 18, 2013
Having gotten used to reading very deep, character driven series like Game of Thrones, it was an abrupt switch to read a novel in which character development and differentiation took a bit of a back seat to the action. That isn't the author's fault, per se, but I would be lying if I didn't say I wanted some depth added.
That said, God bless this guy, he wrote this book in under two months so that its release could roughly coincide with the original release of the first Halo videogame, and he wrote the book within a universe that was still being developed as he wrote it. So hats off for creating a generally compelling novel under duress.
The battles, which drive much of the story, are predictable: set up the impossible odds of a battle, and allow a couple of clever moves overcome those odds. Like many such stories, there is a meta-awareness that the author isn't about to kill every main character in a gun blaze, so the stakes feel low. What is more interesting to me is the moral grey area surrounding the creation of the SPARTAN soldiers, the simultaneous intellectual genius/infant of Master Chief as a mission-driven killing machine, and what will eventually become an extremely interesting Oedipal relationship between Master Chief and Cortana.
Unfortunately, the story of Reach is my favorite so far in the Halo canon, and I preferred the Reach video game's approach to the story to this one. For me, that means that the novels can't get much better plotwise unless they deviate from canon or head into some more ancillary events. We'll see how that goes.
That said, God bless this guy, he wrote this book in under two months so that its release could roughly coincide with the original release of the first Halo videogame, and he wrote the book within a universe that was still being developed as he wrote it. So hats off for creating a generally compelling novel under duress.
The battles, which drive much of the story, are predictable: set up the impossible odds of a battle, and allow a couple of clever moves overcome those odds. Like many such stories, there is a meta-awareness that the author isn't about to kill every main character in a gun blaze, so the stakes feel low. What is more interesting to me is the moral grey area surrounding the creation of the SPARTAN soldiers, the simultaneous intellectual genius/infant of Master Chief as a mission-driven killing machine, and what will eventually become an extremely interesting Oedipal relationship between Master Chief and Cortana.
Unfortunately, the story of Reach is my favorite so far in the Halo canon, and I preferred the Reach video game's approach to the story to this one. For me, that means that the novels can't get much better plotwise unless they deviate from canon or head into some more ancillary events. We'll see how that goes.
June 19, 2012
This was a bit better than I expected for a book based on a video game. This is the prequel to the game Halo, which involves a cybernetically enhanced super-soldier battling aliens over possession of a massive ring in space built by a long-dead species. The plot is pretty thin and goes through some major contortions to get all the major characters where they need to be to begin the game. The characters themselves are fairly one-dimensional, with most of the soldiers being either cowards or noble, quick-thinking warriors. The book explains how the main character, Master Chief, came to be selected for the super-soldier project (at age six), his early training, and a few major missions. The action scenes were competently written and used enough visual cues from the game that you can imagine what the scenes looked like without having to go into excessive detail. The book nicely fills in some plot points and background for the game. Bottom line: if you played and liked the game, you'll probably enjoy the book. If you haven't played the game, you could give it a pass.
August 3, 2022
I enjoyed this one. The combat was fun and story interesting. The Spartan age range threw me off though, either everyone felt way to old to be that young, or they seemed to young to be that old. I liked most of the space battles too, although the ending wasn’t my favorite. Spoilers: I was hoping to get a ground war for the final battle. I didn’t care for the zero gravity space fighting here and glazed over a bit of it. I haven’t played Halo enough to understand the significance of the epilogue, but I liked the idea there. Overall a good popcorn ride with some nice technical aspects.
January 26, 2016
A wonderful background on how the SPARTAN's were created.
April 23, 2022
Halo: The Fall of Reach is #goatedwiththesauce
May 17, 2022
I read this garbage book because I started to watch the garbage TV series. No one is making me do this and I regret every choice that led me here.
April 2, 2025
The Fall of Reach
+ Cortana section was really interesting and fun, really intriguing AI pov. I think he nailed her introduction. I loved the pace and detail of that one sequence.
+ Naval battles were really well done, loved this pov also. In general anything to do with the ships: action, technical exposition, lore building was a treat.
+ Overall setup for the universe is mostly well done and interesting.
- Spartan sections were least enjoyable for me. I think I disagree with some of the characteristics the author really leaned into (like really leaned into), particularly their speed and reaction times, and the manoeuvrability and deftness they apparently still maintain within their armour despite now weighing over 500kg, and standing over 2m tall.
“Blue-Two leaped gracefully atop the ridge—three meters straight up. There was no sound as the half ton of MJOLNIR armor and Spartan landed on the limestone.�
Seriously?
Yet they’re still pitifully vulnerable against basic covenant weapons and infantry. It’s a delicate balance to maintain the impact of the Spartans training and augmentations, but I think the conflict in description vs. some fundamental laws of physics push the readers suspension of disbelief too far. I think you can still maintain impact on the reader without such extreme descriptions.
Overall a fun, straightforward introduction to the universe.
+ Cortana section was really interesting and fun, really intriguing AI pov. I think he nailed her introduction. I loved the pace and detail of that one sequence.
+ Naval battles were really well done, loved this pov also. In general anything to do with the ships: action, technical exposition, lore building was a treat.
+ Overall setup for the universe is mostly well done and interesting.
- Spartan sections were least enjoyable for me. I think I disagree with some of the characteristics the author really leaned into (like really leaned into), particularly their speed and reaction times, and the manoeuvrability and deftness they apparently still maintain within their armour despite now weighing over 500kg, and standing over 2m tall.
“Blue-Two leaped gracefully atop the ridge—three meters straight up. There was no sound as the half ton of MJOLNIR armor and Spartan landed on the limestone.�
Seriously?
Yet they’re still pitifully vulnerable against basic covenant weapons and infantry. It’s a delicate balance to maintain the impact of the Spartans training and augmentations, but I think the conflict in description vs. some fundamental laws of physics push the readers suspension of disbelief too far. I think you can still maintain impact on the reader without such extreme descriptions.
Overall a fun, straightforward introduction to the universe.
September 3, 2021
When you say halo in any circle of gamers you'll often hear stories of their battles against the Covenant or against friends and strangers online. If you ask the more hardcore fans you might instead hear about a whole other medium of storytelling, books.
I recently read the mass effect tie-in novels while going through the trilogy again and thoroughly enjoyed my time with them (except deception, that one burns in hell). The books weren't any masterpieces of sci-fi but added details that added in meaningful ways to certain characters and factions in the world, but never at all necessary to the over-arching narrative of the trilogy. I expected the same here... I got a bit more.
Reading this book completely changes how you look at the master chief and the beginning of the first game, adding a great layer of extra depth to our main character and the entire human/Covenant war. Well done emotional moments and questions on the morals around the Spartan program and its creator. A ton of important characters were introduced here that would later show up in the halo sequels and this gives you a better perspective on how these characters fit into the overall narrative.
If you are a fan of Halo read this book, it only makes you appreciate the lore even more!
I recently read the mass effect tie-in novels while going through the trilogy again and thoroughly enjoyed my time with them (except deception, that one burns in hell). The books weren't any masterpieces of sci-fi but added details that added in meaningful ways to certain characters and factions in the world, but never at all necessary to the over-arching narrative of the trilogy. I expected the same here... I got a bit more.
Reading this book completely changes how you look at the master chief and the beginning of the first game, adding a great layer of extra depth to our main character and the entire human/Covenant war. Well done emotional moments and questions on the morals around the Spartan program and its creator. A ton of important characters were introduced here that would later show up in the halo sequels and this gives you a better perspective on how these characters fit into the overall narrative.
If you are a fan of Halo read this book, it only makes you appreciate the lore even more!
January 30, 2025
The Rogue One of Halo books
April 4, 2024
Justice League vs Cielcin Lite...
The Spartans imprinted on me 🥲 I am permanently emotionally attached and invested. Ugh, the 1st half, when they were children, healed me from Christopher Ruocchio's damage.
Listen, maybe I'm not too fond of her bc of the show, but Dr. Halsey is such a bad manipulator she's making me sick. Be better or stop. Someone free Master Chief from the clutches of this woman. 🙏🏽 Also, whenever I hear Cortana, I hear an agitating and degrading voice. Ricky, when I find the mute button, Ricky. Everyone else is wholesome, those two girlies, however. They vex me.
So far, so good 😊
The Spartans imprinted on me 🥲 I am permanently emotionally attached and invested. Ugh, the 1st half, when they were children, healed me from Christopher Ruocchio's damage.
Listen, maybe I'm not too fond of her bc of the show, but Dr. Halsey is such a bad manipulator she's making me sick. Be better or stop. Someone free Master Chief from the clutches of this woman. 🙏🏽 Also, whenever I hear Cortana, I hear an agitating and degrading voice. Ricky, when I find the mute button, Ricky. Everyone else is wholesome, those two girlies, however. They vex me.
So far, so good 😊
August 13, 2011
Halo, The Fall of the Reach by Eric Nylund
Summary, The Fall of Reach is a prequel telling the story of humanity's war against a technologically superior race called the Covenant, a mysterious race on a religious crusade to destroy all of humanity. The story focuses on the hero John and his fellow Spartans Sam, and Kelly enhanced human beings bred as soldiers for humanity's military and the best chance the humans have for victory in the losing war against the covenant. John, Sam and Kelly were kidnapped by Office of Navy Intelligent ONI for short, when they were kids and trained to be warriors. The story is told by the main person John, and has flash backs to and from the past. John is a strong man, who’s luck never runs out. He has seen a lot of combat, but still hold on to his human side. He cares for all of the members of the team, and will never leave his team in a bad situation.
I enjoyed the book, this was the third Halo book, and they have also had a lot of video games and one cartoon movie. I would recommend this book to all who enjoy a good sci-fi novel.
Eric Nylund is the author of Halo: The Fall of Reach, a novel that acts as a prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo: First Strike, a sequel to Halo: The Flood and prequel to Halo 2, and a sequel to Halo 2, Halo: Ghosts of Onyx. Eric Nylund actual job is as a writer for Microsoft Game Studios. His job is to develop character and story bibles, he write backstory, write game manuals, write game scripts.
Summary, The Fall of Reach is a prequel telling the story of humanity's war against a technologically superior race called the Covenant, a mysterious race on a religious crusade to destroy all of humanity. The story focuses on the hero John and his fellow Spartans Sam, and Kelly enhanced human beings bred as soldiers for humanity's military and the best chance the humans have for victory in the losing war against the covenant. John, Sam and Kelly were kidnapped by Office of Navy Intelligent ONI for short, when they were kids and trained to be warriors. The story is told by the main person John, and has flash backs to and from the past. John is a strong man, who’s luck never runs out. He has seen a lot of combat, but still hold on to his human side. He cares for all of the members of the team, and will never leave his team in a bad situation.
I enjoyed the book, this was the third Halo book, and they have also had a lot of video games and one cartoon movie. I would recommend this book to all who enjoy a good sci-fi novel.
Eric Nylund is the author of Halo: The Fall of Reach, a novel that acts as a prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo: First Strike, a sequel to Halo: The Flood and prequel to Halo 2, and a sequel to Halo 2, Halo: Ghosts of Onyx. Eric Nylund actual job is as a writer for Microsoft Game Studios. His job is to develop character and story bibles, he write backstory, write game manuals, write game scripts.
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