Crimson Skies is a game world created by Microsoft and Fasa, where it's an alternate 1937 and the United States has broken up into several independant nations. The rail lines and freeways have all been destroyed, so travel and trade is now only possible by air. This lead to the rise of airborne pirate gangs and the hijacking of cargo zeppelins. The North American nations responded by forming their own national air militas or contracting private companies to keep their cargo, and themselves, safe. It makes you wonder just how things would be like if history was just a little different.

This is a collection of three novellas, two of which were originally published on the official Crimson Skies website. Done in the style of the old pulps, each story follows one of the main Crimson Skies characters as they fly, flight, and con their way to save the day, or line their pockets their pockets in the process. Highly recommended.

A collection of three novellas, two originally published on the Crimson Skies website, one previously unpublished. All are highly entertaining.

The Phantom Prototype pits international detective Paladin Blake against a mysterious conspiracy with a dire plot for mass destruction, to further a sinister political goal! Written pre-9/11, a simple delivery job turns into a desperate fight to prevent a devastating aerial strike on an innocent city. The Phantom Prototype was written by SF author Eric Nylund, who wrote last year's HALO novel, and gives us a portrait of Blake as hardboiled dick in a noir situation. Blake comes off a bit shinier than most hardboiled detective stories, mostly because he's too busy saving his can to misbehave.

On the flip side of the law, The Manchurian Gambit draws international pirate Genghis Khan into a web of intrigue as he tries to get free of his money troubles. Along the way, he rescues fair maidens and heads off on a quest that might free the Chinese people from a foreign aggressor-all for a buck, of course. I'd never hear of Michael B. Lee before this story, but he turns in a good story about a bad man.

Somewhere in the middle of the law, Bayou Blues is a story of Nathan Zachary and his efforts to make a buck off a town under a Louisiana despot's thumb, and maybe do a good deed. This is the original story, by Crimson Skies guru Eric Trautmann. It rocks along at a goodly pace, and comes off a lot like the good stuff in The Maltese Falcon. I never liked Nathan Zachary in any of the earlier Crimson Skies fiction, or the original computer game, but here Nathan is more a Han Solo rogue than the smarmy egotist he comes off as in other stories.

One of the things I like about all of these stories is that the heroes mostly fight and think their way through their problems, with bruises and cracked heads. Most adventure stories have the heroes more or less skate through (more in movies than books, I guess) with not much danger. The Crimson Skies stories come off more like Die Hard, with the heroes getting slammed around a bit. That gives them a bit more grit than a lot of stories.

This book was the first I read by Eric Nylund, and it had me searching all of the used book stores for more. I was enthralled from page one, and never put it down. I'm frankly not that much into sci-fi any more, but this was a rare find and a fun read.

I thought A Game of Universe was a great book, and I'm certain my wife hated it. Every free moment I had I had my nose in the book. The author does a great job merging fantasy and science fiction. The two genres are blended wonderfully in this work, and it is easy to envision the world(s) in the novel. The action in the book was continuous, which is why it was so hard to put down. The last few pages where you get to find out about the great battle between good and evil and a third player wrap the book up splendedly. I highly recommend this book, but only pick it up if you have time to read it continuously!

Usually, most literature which tries to mix technology and magic doesn't work for me at all (e.g. the "Shadowrun" stuff), badly executed and stitched together. Not so this time. One of the all-time best books to read, this novel offers the inside view of a split-personality corporate assassin/sorceror in a future where powerful magic dwells between sophisticated ultratechnology and time-bending psionic powers. It artfully splices together the stuff of ancient legends and high-tech thriller. While certain ideas in this book are not entirely new, I would nevertheless rate it 6 stars, if I could, due to it's beautiful style, in-depth characterization, fast pace and intricately wrought background. I think this book is even better than "Signal to Noise", and just wish the very promising Mr. Nylund would produce more novels in this setting. Very highly recommended.

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 humanity. The story focuses on the hero of the Halo Xbox game and his fellow Spartans, 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. The events in the book directly lead into the events in the game.

Even without playing the game, it's a pretty good book by itself. The sci-fi universe created by Bungie (the makers of the game) which Nylund expands on is detailed and believable. Nylund's descriptions of space battles and futuristic militaries are excellent, as well as his portrayals of the human military strategy and tactics while fighting against a superior enemy. The book flows well and is an easy read.

But the book is raised to a new level if you play the game alongside reading the novel. Nylund's otherwise average character development and background instead become outstanding insight into the life of the game's hero and opens your eyes to the bigger picture of the Halo universe. You become truly immersed, which makes both the book reading and video game experience that much more rich.

Sci-fi nitpickers will criticize some of the technological aspects of the Halo universe (for example, it is 500 years in the future where humans have mastered faster-than-light travel and true artificial intelligence, yet soldiers and ships still use solid ammo as their primary weapons), but those issues are minor. Nylund is still able to suspend disbelief. And it doesn't hinder the overall good story.

Overall, good book by itself. But I recommend you play the game as well. If you enjoy the game, then this novel is a must read! I can't wait until the sequel for both!

Eric Nylund has written an excellent sci-fi story that stands on it's own without Halo (the first person shooter for Microsoft's Xbox game system.) That said, if you are playing Halo (as I am, over 70% finished...keep gaming!) or if you have finished Halo, then the book is beyond expectations.

The Fall Of Reach tells the story of Spartans: a warrior class groomed and made from the bodies of six year old children. Once grown they are tasked to save the human race and way of life from an invading horde called The Covenant.

The Fall of Reach begins with how the Spartans are "recruited", trained, and deployed. Spartans are the equivalent of the 21st centuries Delta Force: operators who's lives are about mission success. Almost 200 pages of the book deal just with the Spartan background (I read this portion in one sitting,) and let me mention, after just finishing Black Hawk Down, this book was a neat follow-up providing a sci-fi equivalent. It is very interesting, very well paced, and keeps the readers coming back for more.

For Halo players if you are looking for background information and insight into Master Chief and his creation, life, etc. prior to the game play - look no further. I would suggest players read this as they play; it doesn't destroy any of the gaming secrets and really makes the game seem more interesting (which is hard to do b/c the game is already superb.) I would almost say shame on Microsoft and Bungie for not bundling this book with the game: it's that good. I would call it a must read.

So whether you are playing the game or looking for an excellent sci-fi story, this book will live up to your desires. I highly recommend it!

Now lets hope the movie rumors are true!

I dont even play computer games but the novel intrigued me in its presentation and book cover. Now, I have heard of this game and its new system coming out and I have tried a few game/novels out and have not been impressed - UNTIL NOW! Eric Nylund's writing is great and I already have two other books from him since I read this novel. Mr. Nylund's story telling and bigger than life characters in this book make it clearly above and beyond just a game book. The story starts out with a woman named Dr. Halsey who is creating a super soldier for the future war that is coming in the guise of an alien race that seems unstoppable and unknown to earthlings in any way shape or form. Dr. Halsey and her accomplice Jacob Keyes take a dozen children from orphanages and make them into super beings thru endless surgeries, drugs, and a battle school that is far superior and secret than normal military. The leader, and main character comes from a boy/man they call number 117, or John. John is not the strongest or the fastest, but he has the mind of a leader. The reader then goes on a journey thru these poor kid's boot camp and watch them fail as well as conquer their own fears and others prejudice. This insight and character development, mixed with great action sequences is what saves this novel from being just another fast written game book for the boys. The author's writing style is made for this type of novel and it shows in every space battle as well as groundside wars as well. This novel goes thru about 25 years or so, so you get to follow the kid's growth, as well as some of the other normal humans rise and falls thru the years. The aliens are introduced slowly and revealed for who and what they are in a way that keeps the reader wanting to read more to find out - very smart! If you love military space opera with lots of great action with lots of great characters written in - then you will find that this is not just another game novel - I can't wait for the new book!

An initially promising plot and use of magic faded into unreadability with the use of plodding, mundane language and a lack of deep characterization.

Nylund's style is easy to devour, and his plot intricacies, broadly looping and carefully crafted, make Dry Water one of the better books I have read this year.

His smooth, believable descriptions of magic and fantasy add to what is, underneath it all, a well-spun down-to-earth story. Reading this book confirms the wisdom of truly thinking sideways.

I tend to find great books in the bookstores based on a hunch, which was what happened with Eric S. Nylund's superb contempo-fantasy novel, Dry Water. After I started reading, I was hooked-- the book goes in several startling directions, and can almost never be pinned down. With each page of Dry Water, I found myself thinking, "no normal author could get away with this!" Between trippy magical effects and surreal juxtapositions of the mundane and the fantastical, it's amazing that this book works as well as it does. Aside from the mind-blowing plot, the story has some recurring themes that keep it grounded, such as the release of guilt and the rush to change the world. Raja the witch and Nick (aka Judzyas) the necromancer are perfect foils for one another, showing how both seeking complete change and desperately clinging to stasis are unwise courses of action. Dry Water is both deeply complicated and a fun, exciting read. I'd recommend it to anyone who isn't, to borrow a phrase, a "narrow-minded quirkophobe"- and especially to fans of Philip Pullman and Jack Chalker.

While the very enjoyable Signal To Noise took an idea and made it plausible through rooting it in a coherent and therefore believable reality, A Signal Shattered reads as something spat out at a great rate - and without much thought. It follows the virtual end of the human race and the struggle of Our Hero to make use of those he saved and his former business parters' machinations and insanity. However, the sense that the characters are actually rooted in humanity is lost through their apparently straightforward intelligence increase and their step-by-step progress through to a disappointingly mundane conclusion.

References to the first book are given throughout in choppy paragraph form, written as an afterthought for those reading the book in an aircraft lounge. Read Signal To Noise (or better still, A Game of Universe), but it's best to skip this sequel, no matter how great your love of speculative mathematics.

Even though this book is a sequel it can stand on it's own. Howver, reading the original, "Signal to Noise" will add new depth to this read. The mix of Zen and technological problem solving are well done. The characters and plot movement are very good. Eric manages to explain the technology while progressing the plot. This is an uncommon ability and is greatly appreciated.

I think the first thing that you must know about this book is that you should really read the book that came before it, Signal to Noise, also by Eric S. Nylund. Without the backstory, I think that this complex book would become even more confusing, and the first book was a good read on its own.

This book starts with all of humanity reduced to a handful of refugees scattered across space (I did say you should read the first book first, didn't I?). The catalyst who brought about the end of the world is Jack Potter, mathematician, cryptographer, and middle-man. And it is now up to Jack to save what remains of the human race. As if this task wasn't daunting enough, Jack must do this while battling such trifiling details as lack of oxygen, planets with insufficient rotational power to be of use (you'll see), two former best friends who seem to want him dead, a bizarre neurological disorder attacking everyone he knows, one or more fellow refugees who seem to want him dead, and oh yeah, at least one exceedingly power alien who wants him dead... or enslaved.

If you're going to read this book, be prepared to give it a careful read. It's certainly a worthwhile novel, but it demands attention otherwise details will slip by that will prove to be important later. The central theme of metaphor and illusion can make the story confusing and chaotic at times, though I believe that is the intent, and it reflects character turmoil well. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the ending, but that is something that you'll have to learn about and decide for yourselves.

This was exciting to read, and like some of the other reviewers I had a hard time putting it down. The story moves along briskly, mixing equal parts mystery, politics, and technology. The plot is thought-provoking, and the device of an heard-but-not-seen alien adds a layer of mystery not usually seen in first-contact scenarios. Little details about the book are annoying, though. At several points I audibly exclaimed my disapointment with the writing; there are many sentences that would have earned a rebuke in a freshman composition class. A few plot twists aren't believable or even understandable in terms of the characters' motivations. The characters themselves are paper-thin, and their emotional detachment, after the Really Bad Thing happens, left me in no hurry to buy the sequel. The main character rushes around rescuing people at the end of the story, but this line of action is poorly integrated into the plot, as if the editor told Nylund he better go back and add more people for the sequel. All in all, S2N is a fun read, but I can't help wondering if another round of polish and editing could have turned it into a classic.

Signal To Noise is a fun, fast book. Nylund's style is completely readable, and he frequently had me on the edge of my seat--this is the kind of novel where you can read two hundred pages in one sitting. The plot is suitably complex, and some of Nylund's ideas are quite interesting. All in all, I enjoyed it a lot...but as my star rating indicates, there are major problems. The protagonist is decently well-developed, but all the other characters are quite thin. When one character is supposed to be undergoing a significant personality change, it has no impact on the reader because we barely know what she was like originally. The writing style is also uneven; there are some very clumsy sentences in here, as well as some misused words. (Nylund must need a new editor--one would think that a good one wouldn't leave untouched mistakes that a high school student could catch.) Finally, some aspects of Nylund's future don't quite ring true. He falls into the commmon trap of always using physical metaphors for computer functions, even though computers don't, and probably never will, work in the same way that the physical world does. The different types of aliens were also able to communicate with humanity much too easily. Image files constructed by one operating system aren't even always readable by another OS designed by the same species, let alone a different one!

Eos has promoted this novel as "hyperpunk," but they have never said exactly what this means. It suggests some kind of relationship with cyberpunk, but this Signal to Noise doesn't really have a cyberpunk feel, even if some of the technology is similar. I don't think that there is any need to create a new subgenre for this book. It's a science fiction novel.

Those who are going to read this book may wish to know that the ending is grim in the extreme. This hasn't changed my rating, of course, but it might be a disappointment if you are reading for light amusement. It does, however, set things up for a potentially very interesting sequel, and one which I will probably buy, despite this book's flaws.

I read the first page of the sequel and thought - whoa, what a Master of Ideas Eric Nylund is... Then, noticed that I've just read the whole story of the first book. Well, I found it in the bookstore anyway and gave it my usual "trial read" - only 5-10 min. ... Two days later I emerged back to the real world.

Instead of just showing you a story, this book challenges you to think. This is a hell of a rollecoaster. I was deeply disturbed AND surprised every few pages.

In the reviews, some people said that the sequel was better - not for me. The sequel is a must read of course, but the first one is the 5-star.

This book is not for everyone, though. Give it a trial read (10-15 pages) to make sure it's your style.

Enjoy... Mmmm, I envy you - you are just entering ...