Military Science Fiction for the Rest of Us Brief Synopsis: The story starts with Jason Wander, a somewhat misguided youth with two options: join the military or go to jail. Enter the devastation caused by the alien race later termed as 'the slugs.' The story follows Wander and his exploits in basic training and the planning behind the first counter offensive against the slugs on their base on one of Jupiter's moons. Overall Impressions: ORPHANAGE, by Robert Buettner, may remind many readers of STAR Military Science Fiction for the Rest of Us Brief Synopsis: The story starts with Jason Wander, a somewhat misguided youth with two options: join the military or go to jail. Enter the devastation caused by the alien race later termed as 'the slugs.' The story follows Wander and his exploits in basic training and the planning behind the first counter offensive against the slugs on their base on one of Jupiter's moons. Overall Impressions: ORPHANAGE, by Robert Buettner, may remind many readers of STARSHIP TROOPERS, by Robert Heinlein, and rightfully so.

I have seen some discussion about how it was written as a tribute or to STARSHIP TROOPERS. The basic plots are the same, but they are different enough for mutual appreciation. As a side note, STARSHIP TROOPERS is one of my favorite books. I judge military science fiction on two things: * How often the phrase 'bought the farm' is used; and, * How many moments there are that are only funny when taken outside the context of the military and wartime. While somewhat superficial, at face value you can derive a lot from military science fiction from those two criteria (and by no means am I serious that a book like this is only good based on these two things; especially since ORPHANAGE only says 'bought the farm' once). For one, even though ORPHANAGE is set in the future, the moments that are only humorous outside the context of war, only bring a real time element to the book.

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It is easy to relate to a story, however far into the future it may be. Believability is incredibly important, and by using elements that are prevalent in today's society, an author (in this case Buettner) makes the story believable and easy in which to relate. More importantly than the plot, Buettner has created a cast of characters that go on a roller coaster of emotional responses. Wander has superior officers and friends that he interacts with that the reader with which the reader becomes attached.

The characters are given countless moral dilemmas that add to their depth. Upon the invasion of Jupiter's moon, war becomes war, and with casualties amounting the way Wander and the characters respond is remarkable. Promotions, demotions, and stress exacerbate the chaos that is war. ORPHANAGE has everything that a military science fiction book should: believable and memorable characters, a tragic premise, and lots of action. Closing Comments: One problem I have with the book is the fact that it is written in first person from the perspective of Jason Wander. Unfortunately, as explained previously, there are many great characters and I would have liked to hear more of their internal dialogue. However, I do not believe the story would be as compelling if not told from Wander's perspective.

I normally do not prefer first person stories, but ORPHANAGE is a wonderful exception. Another thing that separates ORPHANAGE from STARSHIP TROOPERS is the fact that ORPHANAGE is just the start of a series. At the conclusion of this book the reader only has more to look forward to. Recommendations: If you enjoyed these books, you will enjoy ORPHANAGE: * STARSHIP TROOPERS by Robert Heinlein; and, * by Joe Haldeman Good reading, J.Stoner. Another example of a 'Starship Trooper' or 'Forever War' book. I read it through today, so it obviously kept my interest. There were parts that were fantastic, but plot holes you could drive a rocket through.

The descriptions of military life were fantastic. He could have shared my barracks in AIT (Advanced Infantry Training). He obviously spent time in the Army Infantry, likely as an enlisted man. (He probably has that in a bio somewhere, but I haven't gone looking.) His description of Another example of a 'Starship Trooper' or 'Forever War' book.

I read it through today, so it obviously kept my interest. There were parts that were fantastic, but plot holes you could drive a rocket through. The descriptions of military life were fantastic.

He could have shared my barracks in AIT (Advanced Infantry Training). He obviously spent time in the Army Infantry, likely as an enlisted man. (He probably has that in a bio somewhere, but I haven't gone looking.) His description of the old barracks latrine is just too well done, as were the issues some faced because of them. Transportation movements didn't grab me though. The logic behind them could have been military, but I would hope not. His take on sexual equality didn't do a lot for me either. Parts were good, but others were illogical.

So I found the book uneven, but entertaining over all. I don't think it is in the same class as the first two books I mentioned, but it's up there with 'Armor' & entertaining.

Personally I think the Marine Corps is better but I may be biased. Orphanage is one great book. It’s probably the best military sci-fi book I’ve ever read.

My definition of military sci-fi differs from publishers that’s probably why. I think of books like Orphanage as military not the ones where some vague alien officer is off doing their thing. I digress though. I loved the boot camp part though. It really brought home the differences between Army and Marine Corps boot camps.

I’ve heard a lot of p Personally I think the Marine Corps is better but I may be biased. Orphanage is one great book.

It’s probably the best military sci-fi book I’ve ever read. My definition of military sci-fi differs from publishers that’s probably why.

I think of books like Orphanage as military not the ones where some vague alien officer is off doing their thing. I digress though. I loved the boot camp part though.

It really brought home the differences between Army and Marine Corps boot camps. I’ve heard a lot of people say the book likens a lot to Starship Troopers, as I haven’t been able to make it more than 10 pages through that book, I don’t know if the correlation is spot on or not. Judging by the movie, if it’s close to the original book, then Orphanage is close to Starship Troopers but only in that bugs send rocks at Earth. The rest differs. It’s a very personal book, you almost get to the point where you care what happens to Jason Wander. The book is incredibly strong military sci-fi.

If you don’t like books that get more militaryish than a storyline that uses a military career backstory, you won’t like the book. For the rest of you, it’s a wonderful read. I almost hate to review this because I really don't like saying negative things about the works of living writers, who I'm sure that, just like myself, are trying their best to produce good writing that readers will enjoy. However, I've reviewed everything else I've read so here goes my 2 cents. First there are plenty of positives about the book.

It is well written and there are some nice turns of phrase. There seems to be some pretty good accuracy on the military elements, and this is despite th I almost hate to review this because I really don't like saying negative things about the works of living writers, who I'm sure that, just like myself, are trying their best to produce good writing that readers will enjoy.

However, I've reviewed everything else I've read so here goes my 2 cents. First there are plenty of positives about the book. It is well written and there are some nice turns of phrase. There seems to be some pretty good accuracy on the military elements, and this is despite the fact that hard SF is among the most difficult stuff to write. The ending is also pretty well done.

These earn the book 3 stars. Here's my problems with the book, which would probably drop it to 2 stars. First, I really, really hated the main character.

Yes, he had a horribly loss early in the book when he lost his two parents, but he too often seemed flippant and largely unaware of what others were suffering around him. He commits a mistake that actually gets his friend killed early on and his main concern seems to be for himself. Now, I could forgive the mistake itself, but he should have suffered a lot more for it.

At one point he rejoices that he's been given his life back and all I could think about was how his friend wasn't given his back. The second problem I had with the character was how he was just handed everything by luck and by the intervention of powerful others who seemed to have recognized 'strengths' in him that the reader never sees. First a Judge takes an interest in his career, then a drill seargent.

They go to bat for him and save his career even though the reader, or at least I, couldn't see anything that would have earned their respect and intervention. The only thing about the book itself that I thought could have been better was if we'd moved to the fighting part of the story sooner and spent less time with the training. Most of that was well written, though, and did hold my interest. I'm sure this book could be vastly enjoyed by others who wouldn't be so put off by the character.

The character certainly bothered me, though. There's a fine line between accurately depicting military life and fetishizing it, and while the first half of Orphanage felt to me like the latter, Buettner dives straight into 'War Is Hell' territory in the second half. If you're a fan of military SF who can't get enough of Robert Heinlein and has watched the boot camp segment of Full Metal Jacket more times than you can count, you will love this book and should run out and buy it right now. As for me, while I always stop channel surfing for R.

There's a fine line between accurately depicting military life and fetishizing it, and while the first half of Orphanage felt to me like the latter, Buettner dives straight into 'War Is Hell' territory in the second half. If you're a fan of military SF who can't get enough of Robert Heinlein and has watched the boot camp segment of Full Metal Jacket more times than you can count, you will love this book and should run out and buy it right now. As for me, while I always stop channel surfing for R. Lee Ermey, I don't dig the Heinlein and I don't get much out of military SF, so it was harder for me to gloss over some of the book's contrivances. The main character's a total washout who just happens to be friends with the world's top space pilot, and whose judge in juvie court just happens to be a Medal of Honor recipient who can pull strings for him whenever the plot requires; he just happens to stumble across the most intact alien artifact found in the war, becomes pals with the army's best gunner, falls in love with the best pilot, etc. I could gripe, but the book was honestly too engaging for all that to really get in the way of enjoying it. One could make the complaint that the author doesn't bring anything new to the military SF genre, or that his overarching conflict is a little too black and white, but you know what?

If this book is your kind of thing, you're going to eat it up. The first chronicle of Jason Wanderer. This story is somehow greater than the sum of its parts. The story is not unbelievably original, you have already read it if you read Starship Troopers. The technology quips are actually a bit off-putting.

That is to say the main characters, talks about having to use something from our time - though he is in 2040 - and he whines about how it is ANCIENT ETC. Still I do not think of this as a rip-off of Starship Troopers, but rather an homage, and the start o The first chronicle of Jason Wanderer. This story is somehow greater than the sum of its parts. The story is not unbelievably original, you have already read it if you read Starship Troopers.

The technology quips are actually a bit off-putting. That is to say the main characters, talks about having to use something from our time - though he is in 2040 - and he whines about how it is ANCIENT ETC. Still I do not think of this as a rip-off of Starship Troopers, but rather an homage, and the start of ST on an epic scale (based on the remaining volumes in the Jason Wanderer Chronicles). Buettner obviously was a Heinlein fan, he even mentions him in the acknowledgements. If I had to guess I would say he liked the idea, but just thought there was more there to run with and wanted to see it extrapolated over several volumes. Good deal - I want to see that too. We follow the WIN/FAIL adventures of Jason as he goes from orphan to war hero, and fights the bugs that are trying to wipe out the good and peaceable folks of Earth.

The characters are likeable enough for a Sci-Fi novel, and the story moves right along very quickly, but without feeling frenetic. I never found myself thinking; get to the good part.

I have had this book sitting on my shelf for quite a while now (lol, more than 6 years in fact), and finally decided to finish it. The overall story is OK, but nothing mind-blowing. It is very similar to the likes of “Starship Troopers” by Robert A.

Actually, almost the whole time I was reading this book, I just kept thinking about “Startship Troopers”. It is not bad by any means, but I desired a little more. The characters are substandard and typical sci-fi characters, the grunt who i I have had this book sitting on my shelf for quite a while now (lol, more than 6 years in fact), and finally decided to finish it.

The overall story is OK, but nothing mind-blowing. It is very similar to the likes of “Starship Troopers” by Robert A. Actually, almost the whole time I was reading this book, I just kept thinking about “Startship Troopers”. It is not bad by any means, but I desired a little more. The characters are substandard and typical sci-fi characters, the grunt who is stubborn, his cool best friend, and a hardcore drill sergeant we all know and love. The story is also just like Mr.

Heinlein’s with an alien race attempting to destroy Earth (OK not fair, it is like most sci-fi books in general). The good thing is it is rather short and you can finish it quickly. I would recommend some other sci-fi books like the one currently listed in this review, “Old Man’s War”, and “Dune” before this one. If you need a quick book to read on the beach or an airplane though, it will keep you busy during that time. Jason Wander, eighteen years old, with no particular skills, in trouble with the law, and with his only family killed in the alien attacks that are slowly destroying Earth's ecosystem and killing the human race, somewhat involuntarily enlists in the infantry. He does not suddenly discover that this is the life he was born for, but he does, eventually, decide that he doesn't want to fail at this, too, or let down the few people who believe in him.

He makes some appalling mistakes on his way to th Jason Wander, eighteen years old, with no particular skills, in trouble with the law, and with his only family killed in the alien attacks that are slowly destroying Earth's ecosystem and killing the human race, somewhat involuntarily enlists in the infantry. He does not suddenly discover that this is the life he was born for, but he does, eventually, decide that he doesn't want to fail at this, too, or let down the few people who believe in him. He makes some appalling mistakes on his way to that decision, and it's not smooth sailing after that, but Jason does start to make a foot soldier of himself. When an expedition is dispatched to take the war to the enemy, at their base on Ganymede, Jason and his squadmates are part of it.

This is a book that borrows heavily from all the great buddy war movies, as well as Starship Troopers and The Forever War, and freely acknowledges its debts. Orphanage doesn't break new ground in the genre, but it's a solid, enjoyable read. Don't let the 3 star review fool you, I liked this book and will read on into the series. Compares very much to, but I liked that aspect of this story. Jason just always seems to have his things go his way, or IN his way. Kind of a simple but fun sci-fi thriller. Not too deep into sci-fi details of how things get done or work.

The cool new cover caught my eye and I went on to read the reviews and then I was reading the book. This guy gets promoted faster than Kirk did in the Star Trek redo a fe Don't let the 3 star review fool you, I liked this book and will read on into the series. Compares very much to, but I liked that aspect of this story.

Jason just always seems to have his things go his way, or IN his way. Kind of a simple but fun sci-fi thriller. Not too deep into sci-fi details of how things get done or work.

The cool new cover caught my eye and I went on to read the reviews and then I was reading the book. This guy gets promoted faster than Kirk did in the Star Trek redo a few years ago (Cadet right to Captain). My digital library has several of the Orphan books like. A good start to a series. A bit of a stretch that this guy could have learned enough as a ner do well slacker to actually command troops, but still a good read.

I will pick up the next in the series and see how it goes. The book has an odd internal feel thru the read: Certain parts and descriptions are overly sanitized and others are right on the mark. Characters important to the protagonist should really be shown to be real, even if they later vanish from the story for whatever reason. I hope th A good start to a series.

A bit of a stretch that this guy could have learned enough as a ner do well slacker to actually command troops, but still a good read. I will pick up the next in the series and see how it goes. The book has an odd internal feel thru the read: Certain parts and descriptions are overly sanitized and others are right on the mark. Characters important to the protagonist should really be shown to be real, even if they later vanish from the story for whatever reason. I hope that this will become more consistent [and more mature] which will improve the readers' overall engagement with the characters as the series progresses.

Orphanage is a straightforward SF blend, part 'Enders Game', part 'The Martian'. It has the latter's humour, and shares segments of the formers storyline, both of which are good things. It's not intellectual SF, more the shoot-em-up style Hollywood blockbuster blueprint, you know, the one with the twang-on-the-heartstrings ending. Light on character development, heavy on smart-arse one liners, in a nutshell then, a thoroughly enjoyable escapist experience.

Well worth a read if any of the above d Orphanage is a straightforward SF blend, part 'Enders Game', part 'The Martian'. It has the latter's humour, and shares segments of the formers storyline, both of which are good things. It's not intellectual SF, more the shoot-em-up style Hollywood blockbuster blueprint, you know, the one with the twang-on-the-heartstrings ending. Light on character development, heavy on smart-arse one liners, in a nutshell then, a thoroughly enjoyable escapist experience.

Well worth a read if any of the above don't turn you off. An interesting and entertaining first book in an undoubtedly decent series.

I read someone comparing it to Chris Bunch’s The Last Legion series and I’m glad I read that because that thought occurred to me as I was reading it, but I pushed that thought aside as irrelevant, but then apparently it wasn’t. I’m glad to see I’m not the only person who thought about that. You see, I really love Bunch and his military sci fi series.’ I think they are excellent and I think Bunch writes some of the best m An interesting and entertaining first book in an undoubtedly decent series. I read someone comparing it to Chris Bunch’s The Last Legion series and I’m glad I read that because that thought occurred to me as I was reading it, but I pushed that thought aside as irrelevant, but then apparently it wasn’t. I’m glad to see I’m not the only person who thought about that. You see, I really love Bunch and his military sci fi series.’ I think they are excellent and I think Bunch writes some of the best military sci fi out there. Now I think Buettner might be close to Bunch.

The only difference is Bunch uses some wicked humor in his books in his dialogue between characters, while Buettner generally does not. Otherwise, the military tactics are there, the action is frenetic, the butchery is shocking, the apparent “realism” to those who have been in the military is significant, and they are excellent writers writing excellent books. Of course, there’s that huge detail I haven’t touched on yet that every reviewer mentions. I don’t know why I bother, but I guess I will.

Starship Troopers. Yes, Orphanage is a lot like Starship Troopers. There, I said it! The book follows a new infantry recruit as he trains to fight a slug-like alien enemy busy destroying major Earth cities with huge projectiles from one of Jupiter’s moons (Ganymede). There are also supporting characters such as a school friend who becomes a major pilot and a stereotypical drill sergeant. A huge secret mission is launched to go to Jupiter, take the fight to the enemy, and save humanity. Starship Troopers anyone?

Jason Wander is an orphan. His mother is killed when the city she lives in, Indianapolis, is demolished by a huge projectile sent down by the slugs, as is the case with cities all over Earth. Tens of millions of people, hundreds of millions, are dying as cities are obliterated. Jason doesn’t handle it well and beats up his teacher in school, is sent before a judge and is given two choices: jail or the Army. He chooses the Army. We follow him through basic training and it’s interesting, but what’s really interesting is that the world’s military is really out of date.

No major wars have been fought in a very long time. There certainly are no interstellar fleets to go kill the slugs. No great plasma weapons, or anything like that. But as cities keep getting wiped out, the governments (mostly the US, I believe) come up with a one time possibility – take “orphans” – soldiers with no families left – train them, send them on a giant ship up to Ganymede, and attack the slugs in a winner take all battle/war for supremacy. It’s a gamble, but it’s all they’ve got. Unfortunately, all they’ve got, too, are weapons from the late 20th Century and a huge starship dating from a similar time, for the most part.

And it’s going to take hundreds of days to get there! Jason is one of 10,000 soldiers chosen and trained, quickly, and then loaded onto the ship. One of his old buddies, Metzger, is the pilot.

He becomes friends and combat colleagues with a fiery little female Egyptian solider he calls Munchkin. Jason develops a relationship with his own landingship’s pilot. So, there are big plans on how they’re going to go in and land and then proceed to take on the slugs. Then it’s time. They take off for the surface and his ship is second in line, but things don’t appear “right.” The first ship disappears, and then his love/pilot starts shouting a warning and makes a crash landing, killing herself in the process, and the whole line of ships landing starts crashing into the moon’s surface that was supposed to be composed of a completely different type of surface with mountains elsewhere. What they land on isn’t compatible with what can hold their ships. It’s a blood bath.

Thousands die. About 2,000 soldiers survive the landing, only 20% of the invading force. Things get worse. The force heads off looking for shelter and discovers some caves that look safe. They set up a defensive perimeter and people bed down in the caves. Jason wakes up in the middle of the night, thinks he sees some shadows moving, realizes he does, and realizes the slugs, nearly invisible, are in the caves, and are suffocating soldiers as they sleep! He attempts to wake everyone he can and people start firing, but they lose hundreds of more soldiers that night and morale plummets even further.

All this before they even face the slugs in battle. Finally, they get out onto the battlefield the next day. I believe by that point, Jason’s been promoted from Specialist Fourth Class to something higher, can’t remember.

The field promotions start coming fast for everyone. His general really relies on him a lot, for reasons I never fully understood.

I could go on with details, but suffice it to say that the troops keep getting whittled down as they face tens of thousands, maybe even more, of the slugs who march straight at them and the human soldiers just take horrible casualties. Promotions keep coming and Jason keeps rising up the ranks. Soon he’s a captain, then a major.

By attrition. Munchkin is still with him.

She and Metzger have gotten married and she’s pregnant with his child. Jason’s “spook” buddie, Howard, comes to believe the slugs have a “hive” mind/system, that there’s really only one master slug and that they’re being pumped out by this master slug and that if they could kill this slug, they could kill them all. And meanwhile, they keep coming by the thousands and humans keep dying. Soon, there are fewer than 1,000 soldiers and Jason’s general has been taken away after pinning his insignia on Jason, making him general of all the human forces, youngest general in human history. Jason really feels like this is surreal, he’s not cut out to be a leader, he’s a follower.

But he gives it his best shot. He and Howard and Metzger come up with a plan to kill with master slug and end the war. It won’t go over well with everyone and it’s got to be a little lucky to work, but if it does work, it should end the war. The slugs make one last push, while the soldiers try and hang on again. Metzger takes the ship in orbit and soars down into the skies overhead toward the slug area and plows into what had appeared to be the headquarters buildings, blowing himself and the whole area up in a near mini-nuclear explosion.

And all of the slugs fall over and die. He sacrificed himself, Munchkin is devastated, especially since their son, who Jason delivered, will never get to see his father, but the Earth is saved and the 700 remaining soldiers – out of 10,000 – have been saved! General Wander helped save the Earth. Earth has sent a small fleet some time ago with reinforcements and they arrive shortly to help and to take the survivors home. I’ve already started on the sequel, so I know a little bit about what happens next, and I won’t say anything in this review, but I really enjoyed this book. It was hardcore military. Took itself almost a little too seriously, if it’s possible to say that.

Whereas Bunch’s characters could let down and goof around in between missions and even during firefights, just for some levity, it didn’t seem that was Buettner’s style, which is fine. Every author is different. He doesn’t have to be Chris Bunch. It’s just that it’s a little more somber. Again, that’s okay. Just be prepared to laugh a lot less than you will with Chris Bunch. Nonetheless, non-stop action, lots of blood and guts, fascinating tactics, good story, good potential for an interesting series.

I’d like to give it five stars, but I have concerns with some of the decisions made by the officers above Wander, especially his commanding general, particularly as relating to his nonstop field promotions all the way to general within days. It just doesn’t seem that realistic to me and I find it hard to believe there weren’t other soldiers just as or more qualified than him to be promoted to those positions that quickly. Just not sure if I fully buy it. Still, four solid stars and definitely recommended.

Like some other critical reviewers, I really wanted to like this book. It's a quick and engaging read, the author's prose style is brisk and eminently readable, and the main character is affable. The first two stars are for all that. It's everything else that falls flat. Worse, the more I think about it, the more annoyed I get. Buettner's book is utterly derivative, lifting its broad narrative, numerous plot points and ideas, and even some characters from Starship Troopers, with a smattering of H Like some other critical reviewers, I really wanted to like this book. It's a quick and engaging read, the author's prose style is brisk and eminently readable, and the main character is affable.

The first two stars are for all that. It's everything else that falls flat. Worse, the more I think about it, the more annoyed I get. Buettner's book is utterly derivative, lifting its broad narrative, numerous plot points and ideas, and even some characters from Starship Troopers, with a smattering of Haldeman's Forever War and Scalzi's Old Man's war.

It has been 'updated' with a 21st century perspective, but even then it draws on a scrap heap of tropes and some blatant identity politics. On top of that, I had a lot of trouble with the science.

Some plot spoilers ahead. The story is that of Jason Wander, bright but troubled, coming of age during a period where an alien race is threatening Humanity's very existence by dropping giant rocks onto major cities. If you've read Starship Troopers, you recognize the tale. Wander goes through boot camp (Troopers), nearly washes out by breaking rules (Troopers), gets some fancy armor (Troopers) that, cursorily, seems to violate various laws of physics and thermodynamics, comes face to face with the alien Bugs. Cadillac Srx Cue Hack on this page. Slugs (Troopers), has a three-way romantic entanglement (Troopers), goes on to fight the Slugs, where the first battle plans go horribly awry and many die (Troopers), gets quick battlefield promotions (Troopers), and so forth.

Tack on top of that the counterintuitive idea that only orphans of the war are accepted into the elite training program (Old Man's War) (if the Earth was under existential threat, why oh why would the military limit itself in recruitment?), a ludicrous idea that an interplanetary space ship could hide behind planets for the early part of its journey, and a very forced mashup of old and new technologies that not only makes little sense, but reeks of deus ex machina. And, since it's not good enough that our protagonist and his immediate cohorts simply survive and contribute, they all have to be the heroes, the very best at everything, and so forth. I'm generally loath to be harsh like this, preferring instead simply to ignore and move on, but I read this book based on a lot of good reviews, and I feel obligated to counterweigh them, lest others fall into my trap. You're better off simply re-reading the nearly 60 year old Starship Troopers.

This book is a pale shadow, one that tries to be a whole lot more and becomes a lot less instead. I recently enjoyed Chris Bunch's 'Last Legion' series, which told the story of training, combat and down time in an army marooned without help and seemingly without hope in deep space. Robert Buettner's 'Orphanage' promised more of the same, although based a little closer to home, so I was greatly looking forward to it. The world is on the brink of destruction, with an unknown enemy having taken over Ganymede, one of the moons of Jupiter, and firing large missiles at cities all over the world.

Ja I recently enjoyed Chris Bunch's 'Last Legion' series, which told the story of training, combat and down time in an army marooned without help and seemingly without hope in deep space. Robert Buettner's 'Orphanage' promised more of the same, although based a little closer to home, so I was greatly looking forward to it. The world is on the brink of destruction, with an unknown enemy having taken over Ganymede, one of the moons of Jupiter, and firing large missiles at cities all over the world.

Jason Wander is one of many to lose family in one of these strikes and his reaction to this leaves him facing a tough choice; jail or the Army. In a similar fashion to the TV series 'Bad Lad's Army', we follow Wander through his basic training and see how the time in the Army changes him from someone who reacts with uncontrolled violence to someone less resistant to discipline.

After the ups and downs of his training, we get to see Wander play his part in attempting to repel the enemy threat. We see how he reacts in the combat situation and how he deals with meeting both his colleagues and his enemy and how he deals with the differing temperatures and atmospheres on Earth, the moon and Ganymede. As with the Chris Bunch series, this is a fast paced, all-action read. Being set in a time of war, everything has to happen quickly in order to help Earth survive the onslaught and Buettner's writing picks up on this perfectly. There is barely time to breathe between sentences and the pages keep turning. There is so much happening that it is very difficult to put the book down, as even the breaks between chapters rarely offer any respite from the action, as you know something else is about to happen. The one thing I did feel let 'Orphanage' down slightly was that we didn't get to see too much of the down time enjoyed by the soldiers.

One of the features of 'Last Legion' that I most enjoyed was the easy banter between the soldiers, honed during their down time and carried over when the action started. Here, there isn't a great deal of off duty time, thanks to the planet being at war since before the start of Wander's training, so it's all a lot more serious.

Whilst I realise this is important for keeping the action more prominent, I did miss the slightly lighter touches that do always seem to be present even in the worst of situations. I did feel that the ending was a little rushed as well. In a book that has been so high paced all the way through, this takes some doing, but it felt like the summary skipped over far too many points.

It may be that these are addressed in full in later books in the series and, from some of the things mentioned I do hope this is the case as these will be fun books to read, but here it was slightly annoying. All in all, 'Orphanage' isn't the most mentally stimulating of reads, as it's very much like an action film in book form. It's enjoyable while it lasts, but not something you'd feel any need to read again once you were done and not something you'd need to look back through to see if you'd missed any nuances in the plot.

It's straight forward, high paced and an awful lot of fun; a bit of a guilty pleasure, but a pleasure nonetheless. This review may also appear, in whole or in part, under my name at any or all of,,, and. I’m a quick reader, and few authors have smashed so much content into individual sentences as much as Robert Buettner has, and still remained not only palatable, but enjoyable. Orphange comes out swinging for keeps as it hits the reader with immediate energy and sense of urgency in the opening pages.

By the time you gather the very real sense of terror about to occur you are shuffled away to years before hand to give what you just witnessed some context. A lovely non-linear way of strapping in y I’m a quick reader, and few authors have smashed so much content into individual sentences as much as Robert Buettner has, and still remained not only palatable, but enjoyable. Orphange comes out swinging for keeps as it hits the reader with immediate energy and sense of urgency in the opening pages.

By the time you gather the very real sense of terror about to occur you are shuffled away to years before hand to give what you just witnessed some context. A lovely non-linear way of strapping in your attention for the long haul, for some authors, this is a cheap tactic; for Buettner it’s a quick way of communicating his rock and roller voice that breathes so much life into his characters and story. Jason Wander, orphaned when the “slugs” launched a building sized projectile traveling thousands of miles per second into Indianapolis leveling the city killing millions instantly. His mom being only living family member, was never found. A day after the news Jason beat the shit out of his high school teacher out of grief thus sending him before a judge weeks later who then, (it gets worse) tells him the bank is taking his home away and he is now homeless. He has two choices, jail or the Army.

He didn’t want to go to jail. The story is told 1st person through Jason and it paints a very real, honest and sometimes slapstick picture of his world. He isn’t the smartest or the most talented of soldierswell I guess you could say he has a talent for getting himself into trouble.

Anyways, after all of the trials and tribulations he goes through when he meets women and new friends, goes through basic, then talks to his childhood bestfriend (who is Captain America on roids) it paints an interesting self portrait of just who he is as a human being. Not one to lead so much as follow, and with an army of 10,000 orphans at your back, you all become family and it matters not who leads, but who you trust with your life and will die trying to protect. Which brings me to my main point of criticism, I don’t for the life of me understand some of the decisions people make above him that have such a profound effect not only on him, but the story itself. (Well hey, its his story don’t get me wrong but geez some of them just come out of left field.) I scratched my head early on when he is in basic, then getting out, then later in the book when the slug shit hits the fan I am at a complete lossbut I find my way in the end.

After the fact. I suppose some of the characters saw something in him I didn’t. Just, some lines make me go, “huh.” Also, I understand and relish when a character is beat down into emotional ruin but rises above it all to save the day. I fucking love that shit. But fuck me if every other sentence is him crying. It’s not that it isn’t warranted or even makes sense for the character and story but, damn. It’s use can only carry you so far until it starts to lose its edge.

Which it does. All other bullshit aside this author can write. His voice is like garage punk rock with incredibly sophisticated lyrics and emotional draw. Endlessly entertaining.

Page turning is an order. And you will just fall in love with the world and the character’s he’s created. And then he’ll rip your heart out through your ass.

The book follows Jason Wander as he evolves from being a kid with a chip on his shoulder to an effective, dedicated soldier, as the human race is threatened with annihilation by an alien race. More than a sci-fi story, the book is about war. It almost doesn't matter that the enemy is a slug-like alien race. The focus is war, what it takes to be a soldier, the horrors of battle, the amazingly courageous acts in the face of death. The enemy is the enemy. The details may differ from enemy to enemy, The book follows Jason Wander as he evolves from being a kid with a chip on his shoulder to an effective, dedicated soldier, as the human race is threatened with annihilation by an alien race.

More than a sci-fi story, the book is about war. It almost doesn't matter that the enemy is a slug-like alien race. The focus is war, what it takes to be a soldier, the horrors of battle, the amazingly courageous acts in the face of death.

The enemy is the enemy. The details may differ from enemy to enemy, but war is war no matter the enemy.

I've always wondered how soldiers do it - commit acts of incredible courage to save others or advance the mission, knowing it will cost their lives. I've heard the stuff about doing it for God and country and wondered how a person could keep that in mind amidst the heat and horrors of battle.

The author offers another explanation. Soldiers ultimately fight for the soldiers next to them, the soldiers who have become their family, sharing bonds that non-soldiers will never fully understand.

That makes sense. And for these orphaned soldiers, family is everything. As the aliens destroy city after city, the author touches briefly on what that might do to society - the sun's light is blocked out by the dust in the atmosphere, goods and resources become scarce, society changes in response to the ever present danger of being under attack by an enemy never seen before.

He mentions these details enough to give you a hint about what it might be like and to move the story, but the focus is the soldiers and the military response. Something about the book felt familiar somehow, aside from it's similarities to other stories, like Starship Troopers. Then, after I'd finished the book, I read the author's comments in the back of the paperback edition. He wrote the book right after 9/11 and draws a parallel between the 9/11 attacks out of nowhere and the alien attacks out of nowhere. Then there is the difficulty of fighting an enemy whose life and beliefs are so very different than yours that you simply cannot understand the enemy.

Buettner mentions in his comments that he's been told that the book is very popular with soldiers for its accurate portrayal of war and their experiences, especially what it's like to be a 'grunt'. That had to be very gratifying for the author. It's a good story. You come to care about the characters and what happens to them. It starts out a little slow and builds speed. Toward the end it was impossible to put the book down.

It would make a great movie, but the battle scenes would be a lot harder to take on the screen. I think the video gamers who like Halo and other similar games should give reading a chance and start with this book. The picture on the cover of the paperback reminded me of Master Chief. Anyway, I'm looking forward to reading the rest of this series. You should be geeking Jason Wander. Jason Wander is the youngest Army General in history; he’s a man who went from a private to General in one battle.

This Earth is a place not unlike ours. We live in relative peace and worry about very little but when mankind discovers they aren’t alone in the universe war comes. From the Jupiter’s moon, Ganymede, comes mankind’s first alien contact.

Projectiles launched at Earth crash into the surface and vaporize entire cities. Humans do what they always do when You should be geeking Jason Wander. Jason Wander is the youngest Army General in history; he’s a man who went from a private to General in one battle. This Earth is a place not unlike ours.

We live in relative peace and worry about very little but when mankind discovers they aren’t alone in the universe war comes. From the Jupiter’s moon, Ganymede, comes mankind’s first alien contact. Projectiles launched at Earth crash into the surface and vaporize entire cities. Humans do what they always do when they are threatened, they go to war.

Gambling on a desperate counter-strike, humanity loads a scavenged spacecraft with Vietnam-era weapons and foot soldiers made up of Orphans that no-one will miss. If they don’t succeed then humanity will quickly become extinct.

The five books in the Jason Wander series follow the rise of Jason Wander, the hero of the battle of Ganymede. The books are a first-person viewpoint telling of eighteen-year-old Jason coming of age and growth from the eccentric soldier to maverick general. This epic saga takes place during a decades-long interstellar war, a feat that Robert Buettner said in an interview “Writing generation-spanning space opera through a single, first-person-viewpoint character is like painting the Death Star with a toothbrush.” The books, written as deliberate literary homage to Robert Heinlein and Joe Haldeman, have been favourably to the work of “Golden Age” science fiction writers Poul Anderson and Andre Norton. This space-age military book, which garnered author Robert Buettner (former Military Intelligence Officer) a nomination for a Quill Award for Best New Writer in 2005, recently spawned a spin-off series called Orphan’s Legacy is one of the best books in a new generation of sci-fi writing.

This is a massive must-have for any sci-fi or military men. Now Geek This!! Robert Buettner can be followed at his blog.

If you like this: Starship Troopers – Robert A. Heinlein On Basilisk Station – David Weber Halo: Fall of Reach – Eric Nylund The Electric Church – Jeff Somers. Orphange by Robert Buettner is Heinlein’s Troopers without the mechs and Denise Richardson.

The good news is: The novel highly enjoyable. If you hate military books then this one will not turn you off. If you hate “the chosen one” type of story lines then you’ll like this since Jason Wander our protagonist is nowhere near the chosen one. Those who hate deep descriptions of war and blood: There’s barely any and if it is, it’s quick and nowhere near horror movie standards. The bad news is: It’s too Orphange by Robert Buettner is Heinlein’s Troopers without the mechs and Denise Richardson. The good news is: The novel highly enjoyable.

If you hate military books then this one will not turn you off. If you hate “the chosen one” type of story lines then you’ll like this since Jason Wander our protagonist is nowhere near the chosen one. Those who hate deep descriptions of war and blood: There’s barely any and if it is, it’s quick and nowhere near horror movie standards. The bad news is: It’s too damn short. The Slugs, the antagonists are two letters away from Bugs from Troopers and while generally are different enough; they’re a mindless enemy. The worst news: The epub format for iBook is atrocious but book #2 looks to have fixed that.

The overall plot: Jason Wander is orphaned by a Slug bomb and after slugging a high school teacher he ends up in front of a judge that gives him a choice: Either you straighten up or else. Well the or else is Military and one more offense and off to boot camp he goes. The world Jason lives in is the near future but there are no flying cars or space ships. It’s a rather believable future and after several Slug bombs are dropped many of the finer comforts are eliminated and the novel ignores its possible future roots and its boot camp in almost any war setting you can imagine post Vietnam.

The curtain is pulled back on Jason and us while we find out that guess what: We know where the Slugs are and we’re gonna give them a whatfor! Oh, and by the way, we’re using thirty-year-old technology. The characters that inhabit the novel are memorable.

The Boot Camp DI. The best friend that’s a flight jock, the intel boy with the robotic flying drone and then there’s Munchkin and Pooh. Robert Buettner’s previous job as a Military Intelligence Officer pays off well and does no go overboard ala Tom Clancy, it’s short, sweet and to the point. He even manages to throw some history lessons in there without throwing up the: “It’s time to learn, children!” flag. Since Orphange is book one of five, I’ve downloaded the next two. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.

To view it, This is another book that I really wanted to like. In fact, I enjoyed it until the final 40% or so. The book started off fairly strong. Set in a sorta near future the abilities of mankind to deflect some of the incoming projectiles launched by the slugs sort of made sense if you didn't think too much about it. Considering that, as of right now, we'd have no chance to launch an interceptor on a moments notice. The decision by the author to avoid going into detail about how mankind is able to defl This is another book that I really wanted to like.

In fact, I enjoyed it until the final 40% or so. The book started off fairly strong. Set in a sorta near future the abilities of mankind to deflect some of the incoming projectiles launched by the slugs sort of made sense if you didn't think too much about it. Considering that, as of right now, we'd have no chance to launch an interceptor on a moments notice. The decision by the author to avoid going into detail about how mankind is able to deflect the projectiles was probably a good choice. The boot camp sequence was pretty sold in my opinion.

I can definitely believe that an impoverished country would open up recruitment as a way to attempt to employ its people and use the new forces to essentially keep order in a war torn world. The only places I felt this part lagged in was the operation in Philadelphia where the main character has his '6th sense' moment and the scene at the end with the judge who just happens to be a decorated war hero, who just happens to have served with the base commander's father and who just happened to get a hunch about the main character and decided to intervene. It all began to fall apart for me when Jason was called upon to go to the moon with a single days notice. I could understand a rushed mission but they didn't even test him out to see if he was physically capable of surviving the kind of forces he would face just trying to leave the planet. And of course Jason easily gets in, survives a firefight and gets out with the holy grail of intelligence. I could go on but it would just be more of the same. I hate science fiction where the main character is basically a one man, story driving army.

A grunt gets elevated to the position of general because the general 'saw something in him' despite having only had a few conversations with him. I might try the other books in the series to see if the story can recapture my attention. This is not an insult to this book when I say that this book is basically Guns of Navarone meets 2010. It sums it up well and it’s not an insult to me. Buettner has created another entry into military science Fiction that fans of the sub-genre can’t afford to miss.

I am a fan of this sub-genre of Science fiction. Military Science Fiction kinda of started off with Heinlien’s Starship Troopers and certainly it is it’s most famous book. The king daddy is Joe Handleman’s Forever War. For me Barry Lon This is not an insult to this book when I say that this book is basically Guns of Navarone meets 2010. It sums it up well and it’s not an insult to me.

Buettner has created another entry into military science Fiction that fans of the sub-genre can’t afford to miss. I am a fan of this sub-genre of Science fiction. Military Science Fiction kinda of started off with Heinlien’s Starship Troopers and certainly it is it’s most famous book. The king daddy is Joe Handleman’s Forever War. For me Barry Longyear’s Enemy Mine can’t be over looked. Like the best in genre, Buettner is a vet. It shows in the details.

The book opens after the destruction of Indianapolis by bombs sent to earth from the moon of Jupiter. The human race is facing a nuclear winter and slow destruction from an enemy it has never seen, one that sits back throwing bombs at our planet from 300 million miles away. Humanity has one hope a suicide mission led by a team of war orphans to try and take out the enemy stronghold on Jupiter’s moon.

This book follows the standard men on mission war movie structure, which I think it should. If anything is a weakness in this book is how it bogs down a bit during the training, and first Mission our hero goes on. I liked the beginning of the book, and thought the last third was amazing. Once mission is under way, Buettner does a great job of moving the action along and keeping the stakes high. It’s not a pleasant environment to be in but an exciting story for sure. Thankfully the characters are strong and interesting thus making the book fire on all clynders down the stretch. There is a lot to like here, and three more books in the series I’m sure I’ll read them in time.

Fans of Science Fiction action should not miss this one. Orphanage is a four star Heinlein, “Star Ship Troopers” type of space war-apocalyptic novel with Jason Wander as our main protagonist. The author Robert Buettner does a fine job at developing his characters. They aren't Jane Austen characters but they are developed well enough that you care about them when their adventures and mis-adventures change their lives and leave you hurt or happy depending on how a scene turns out. The story of Jason Wander is one of typical screwed up youngster through h Orphanage is a four star Heinlein, “Star Ship Troopers” type of space war-apocalyptic novel with Jason Wander as our main protagonist.

The author Robert Buettner does a fine job at developing his characters. They aren't Jane Austen characters but they are developed well enough that you care about them when their adventures and mis-adventures change their lives and leave you hurt or happy depending on how a scene turns out. The story of Jason Wander is one of typical screwed up youngster through his adventures on Earth and through his adventures as a soldier on Jupiter's moon Ganymede where aliens are based in their war against Earth. Where Buettner may fall a bit short on filling out his characters he makes up for it in his descriptions of war. It is no easy task to effectively write about the absolute chaos and tragedy of the blood and guts of war. I wasn't terribly impressed with the “science” in the science fiction of the book.

Buettner did hit close enough that I could shrug my shoulders and think, Ok, I'll go with that, rather than turning stubborn and calling “blasphemy” against his science. The book I read was published in 2004. Reading it in 2012.

My, how fast science advances these days, but Orphanage does attempt to fit into the “hard science” fiction that is really some mystical genre that is annoyed to be classified as science fantasy. And now for the important part of this 'review'. I've added Jason Wander #2 to my read immediately list (ten books long, rather than tossed into the 60 read soon book list.). This book is too similar to 'Starship Troopers' not to draw a few comparisons. The story follows a recruit in the infantry as he trains to fight a slug-like alien enemy who are busy destroying major cities on Earth using huge projectiles. There are also supporting characters in the form of a school friend who becomes a pilot and the usual stereotypical drill instructor.

A mission is launched to take the fight to the enemy and save mankind. Sound familiar?

Although this is essentially the same sto This book is too similar to 'Starship Troopers' not to draw a few comparisons. The story follows a recruit in the infantry as he trains to fight a slug-like alien enemy who are busy destroying major cities on Earth using huge projectiles. There are also supporting characters in the form of a school friend who becomes a pilot and the usual stereotypical drill instructor.

A mission is launched to take the fight to the enemy and save mankind. Sound familiar? Although this is essentially the same story as 'Starship Troopers', this story has enough of its own ideas and interesting enough characters to stop this being a problem. I particularly liked the idea that mankind has not been at war for a number of decades and hence the recruits are forced to train and fight with largely obsolete equipment taken out of mothballs from previous conflicts. A lot of the book is devoted to the story behind how Jason Wander ended up in the military to start with, and his subsequent basic training. Although this is interesting enough to keep the reader going, the action really starts when the proposed mission to Ganymede to fight the Slugs begins to enter the story.

The following battle provides a satisfying conclusion to the story, while leaving it open enough to allow a sequel to be written. I recommend this book if you liked 'Starship Troopers' but could take or leave the political side to it. Robert Buettner’s best-selling debut novel, Orphanage, 2004 Quill Award nominee for Best SF/Fantasy/Horror novel, was called the Post-9/11 generation’s Starship Troopers and “one of the great works of modern military science fiction.” Orphanage has been adapted for film by Olatunde Osunsanmi (The Fourth Kind) for Davis Entertainment (Predator, I Robot, Eragon).

Orphanage and other books in Robert’ Robert Buettner’s best-selling debut novel, Orphanage, 2004 Quill Award nominee for Best SF/Fantasy/Horror novel, was called the Post-9/11 generation’s Starship Troopers and “one of the great works of modern military science fiction.” Orphanage has been adapted for film by Olatunde Osunsanmi (The Fourth Kind) for Davis Entertainment (Predator, I Robot, Eragon). Orphanage and other books in Robert’s Jason Wander series have been translated into Chinese, Czech, French, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish. Robert was a 2005 Quill nominee for Best New Writer. In April, 2014 Baen Books released his eighth novel, Balance Point. A long-time Heinlein Society member, Robert wrote the Afterword for Baen’s recent re-issue of Heinlein’s Green Hills of Earth/Menace From Earth short story collection. His own first original short story, Sticks and Stones, appears in the 2012 anthology, Armored, edited by John Joseph Adams. Robert served as the author judge for the 2011 National Space Society Jim Baen Memorial short story writing contest.

Robert is a former U.S. Army intelligence officer and National Science Foundation Fellow in Paleontology. As attorney of record in more than three thousand cases, he practiced in the U.S. Federal courts, before courts and administrative tribunals in no fewer than thirteen states, and in five foreign countries.

Six, if you count Louisiana. He lives in Georgia with his family and more bicycles than a grownup needs. Visit him on the web.