I read this classic twenty years ago as an adolescent, and remember it well enough to wish to do so, again. Probably, it was one of the first post-collapse books I ever read. Is he hearing voices in his head? Is he insane? Or, is he really being given advice by a sentient computer so he can resurrect the former glory of the species?

Somehow I've managed not to come across this series before - probably largely because I've never much enjoyed any of Drake's works I've tried. And I've always been conflicted about Stirling: I like a lot of his concepts, and the emphasis on battle descriptions is right up my street, but they are almost universally spoiled for me by his taste for nauseating levels of sadism - not to mention the black and white good vs evil he specializes in, though that's less of a concern in this book, where it'...

Awesome setting and concept, cool pseudo-19th-century military porn, absolute shit characters. More to come.

This is a very old Stirling / Drake collab (first book ~91) following the attempts of Raj Whitehall, chosen of the great war computer, to reunite his world. Compared to other books by these authors both individually and co-written, this one ranks near the bottom. While the story and the characters did hit their stride around the end of the first book, there is a distinct lack of truly likable characters, not to mention a cause that you can cheer for. Indeed, the core conflicts may be reasonably

The human galactic federation is in ruins, and the worlds have devolved to various levels of barbarism. On the planet Bellevue, which is at about the early nineteenth century in development, a young officer named Raj Whitehall and his friend venture into the catacombs under the capital. There, they find an ancient battlecomputer named Center. With Center’s help, Raj must unite the planet and enable humanity to retake the stars. The story is at least somewhat based on that of the Byzatine general...

I first read this 25 or so years ago when it was released in paperback. I enjoyed it with its big dog cavalry and 'Brits in Space' aura. Now, not so much. The battles and campaign is fine, but the constant use of almost unreadable dialect at times is impenetrable. Plus we've come through a summer of intense anti-racism and the constant use of 'wog' (still hilarious from the mouth of the Major in Fawlty Towers) is wearying. I do look forward to re-learning how this world came about because there

Two reasons for the low rating.1. Author writes in snapshots (like a picture). He begins telling a portion of the story and halfway through stops and picks up at somewhere completely different. That is irritating and inhibits a good plot development b/c it leaves the reader with two many unanswered questions.2. Women were objectified and were treated like property. This is not a mindset that should be promoted, even in fiction.

This was my first book I read in well over 10-15 years. Very enjoyable military themed science fiction book that does not get too carried away with fantasy descriptors. Easy to follow story.

Great book, interesting premise and believable characters, good start to one of the best series out there on SCI-FI universe.

Gripping and grim and thrilling in the classical sense of the word. I recommend the baenebooks.com site for the plot synopsis - I couldn't do better than they have, for that.Sympathetic heroes, villains ranging from brilliantly evil to dedicated-but-on-the-other-side to stupid-but-powerful. Limited growth by the heroic figure (but there is some, yes). Pounding action and tense confrontations. Lots, and lots, of gunfire and blood and un-pretty warfare, logistics and tactics and strategy and betra...

I don't quite know what to make of The Forge. The book is 30 years old, but not in the golden age of fix ups, but that is how it reads. There are 3 "stories", which could be stand alone, however they do all have a number of common threads which could mean they are a novel.The plot could be set in Earth history, but is set on a planet cut off the the rest if the universe and has reverted to a less technological way of life. It is the story of an up and coming army officer. It reminded me of the H...

Really enjoyed the whole 'The General' series. One, if not the first delve into military science fiction.

Solid post-apocalypse sci-fi with a very clear Byzantine Influence.

It's true what others have said in these reviews. This is not a subtle book. The bad guys are the bad guys and the good guys have to make the bad guys more civilized.

The book is quite weird. While the narration is not bad per se, it has scores of problems that made me difficult to enjoy it, and assured that I won't be reading the following books in the series.Problems in the worldbuilding: social. How do they support an industrial powerbase and a professional army, with a tech level approximately 1870-1914, with masses of illiterate peasants and outright slavery? How do they train the mass of hapless serfs to use time-delayed airburts shells or internal comb...

Like the "Belisarius series" by David Drake and Eric Flint, "The General" series is inspired by the life of the late Roman (Byzantine) general, Flavius Belisarius. However, the series are very different in plot, tone and character. In both series the main character, based on Belisarius, gains an advanced entity which provides advice and information aiding in the mission. And both series share two or three events which were based on dramatic real-life achievements of Belisarius, but those few sim...

The Raj Whitehall series, by S.M. Stirling and David Drake, is worthy of comparison to the Belisarius series by Eric Flint and David Drake. An interview with Drake notes that he drafts lengthy outlines, then hands them off on other writers to flesh out with characterization, dialogue, and so forth, and that he is uncomfortable with a co-author credit on the books.The Belisarius series is clearly modeled on the Byzantine general and historical figure of Belisarius, while the Raj Whitehall series

Deze boekenreeks bestaat uit: The Forge(1991)The Hammer(1992)The Anvil(1993)The Steel(1993)The Sword(1995). Int kort, planeten federatie zegt boem, de afzonderlijke planeten verliezen de ruimtevaarttechniek, de planeet Bellvue gaat enkele honderden jaren na de val meer en meer naar barbarisme. Maaar "Raj" het hoofdpersonage wordt bezeten door een nog actieve superpc "center" de welke hem opdraagt en helpt de verdeelde planeet te veroveren, btw de technologische ontwikkeling zit rond 1800 dus mus...

The flow of the book was terrible, really badly written, accents of the character speech was far too much and at times very confusing and the main characters had very little charisma. But the idea itself is not that bad and I'm hoping with the next book the author would have improved his writing style and polished the characters a bit more.

I really enjoyed this book and series. I've read both several times. Takes place in the far future where there is a break down in space travel and civilization regresses. It follows the main character Raj Whitehall on one planet as he tries to pull the planet together and start the climb back. It starts with Raj moving up the military ranking.

Ok The battle scenes were confusing but I liked the political intrigue. There are 4 more books in the series. I haven't decided if I'll finish. It was interesting learning about the Byzantine general that inspired this series.

This book was first I read in military science fiction genre. I "found" new genre with this and has been thankful ever since. I still compare new writes in this genre to this series and this series, first 5 books, are still in my top ten list.

Reminded me of Lost Regiment series by William R. Forstchen, but not as well written, or as interesting a world. Good enough to keep reading the series, and they have hinted at a full extended story.

Truly one of the worse books I have ever read. It is shocking to me that some people like this. Basically, one could get the same experience by watching someone else play a video game. Dull, dull, dull.

Excellent

my favorite book series of all-time. Detail battles, artifical intellegence, great characters, giant dogs, what more do you want!

A retelling of the life of Belisarius as a science fiction story set on another planet.

Realistic 19th century warfare, compelling characters and a A.I. that you want on your side, if you ever had to go to war!

Gives good battle.

Good ideas, unlikable characters.