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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
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4.0 out of 5 stars (30 customer reviews)
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Exciting Continuation of the Series, Dec 21 2011
By Michael J. Whinihan "designated polymath" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Cobra Gamble: Cobra War, Book III (Hardcover)
Pre-release customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program
Cobra Gamble, the third book of the Timothy Zahn series, Cobra War, is a good story. Members of the Moreau family are "Cobras", warriors whose bodies have been enhanced with things like implanted lasers, targeting computers, and enhanced muscles and reaction times. The story follows several different Moreaus as they try to help former enemies repel an alien invasion. They even try to sneak the Cobra enhancement technology onto the invaded planet, risking that it will fall into alien hands or that the new allies will later turn it back against the Cobra worlds where the Moreaus live.A Moreau with a tumor will die if the aliens aren't defeated so she can get medical treatment. One of her sons is captured by the aliens, in a grim hostage situation. And so on. Zahn always writes fast paced exciting sci-fi novels, such as the classic Conqueror's Heritage trilogy Conquerors' Pride (The Conquerors Saga, Book One) And every reader who read the first two books of this series will want to read this installment. But some readers may be bothered by starting with this third book because the galactic political and military situation is not clear and some technologies seem implausible while other technologies seem to be missing.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another great book by Zahn - but you should start at book #1, Feb 18 2012
By Richard C. Drew "Anaal Nathra/Uthe vas Bethod... - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Cobra Gamble: Cobra War, Book III (Hardcover)
Pre-release customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program
There are some series that you can start reading in the middle or even towards then end, then there are others that are so complex, woven with political intrigue, and have such a cast of characters, that you really need to start at the beginning - as the author probably intended. This is one of those series. Within the first chapter, it's obvious that everyone has an in-depth back-story and detailed history - we literally arrive in the middle of several plot-lines, from injuries, to illnesses, possible betrayals and treason to system-wide wars, invasions and more. It's easy to get lost. But Zahn is a master at his craft, and what could be a confusing mess under another writer, is instead compelling.Many of the characters remind me of the old E.E.Doc Smith Lensman series - they have that "pulp" scifi feel. It's obvious that Zahn, unlike other modern SF authors, does not take himself or his characters too seriously. That's why it's easy to identify (or at least empathize) with them - and there are a *lot* of main characters, with their associated sub-plots.
The Cobra technology, based on implants, is nothing new in SF. It's a mainstay of space opera and pulp SF, Gibson and Clarke tackled it, bounty hunters and mercs use them. John Scalzi took it to new levels. So it's difficult for another author to put his own spin on this well-used storyline, but with the Cobras, Zahn succeeded. Lasers in finger tips, enhanced strength, superior perception and special armor (plus much more) all combine to make a super-soldier of the far future, but one that's still human, with human flaws, both emotional and physical. Zahn kept the technology "real" - people are not supermen - they can be injured and killed. These are still soldiers, but instead of rifles it's LASER implants. Instead of body-armor it's enhanced assisted armor suits, and so on.
This is definitely a book worth reading, but do yourself a favor and start at Cobra Alliance: Cobra War: Book I. My only complaint - when books have this many characters, languages and races, a guide in the back of the book comes in handy!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Exciting Third Book In Latest Cobra Series, Mar 26 2012
By J. Perkins - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Cobra Gamble: Cobra War, Book III (Hardcover)
Pre-release customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program
As always, I will preface my review by admitting that I am a big Timothy Zahn fan. I thought the first Cobra trilogy was great when I read it many years ago. Not as great as the Blackcollar series (Ninjas against aliens--can't beat that), but great nonetheless. I read the first two books in this new Cobra series, but was not exactly thrilled by them. They were reliably good, even enjoyable (~3 stars), but not on par with the rest of Zahn's work. Perhaps the characters of the those two books were not as well drawn, and the action/plot was not as clever or intricate as usual. While the first two books may not have been Zahn's best work standing alone, they did serve as adequate set up for this book.Consequently, I actually approached this book with lowered expectations, which were easily met. This novel had everything I expected in the first two books. Plenty of action, good scifi ideas, clever plot, and enough twists and turns to make it interesting.
Without getting into too much detail, the action in this book is split between Caelian, the deadly Cobra planet, and Qasama, the planet of the Cobras' old enemies turned uneasy allies. After years of good relations (not in the biblical sense) with the alien Trofts, several factions of Trofts have invaded Qasama and the Cobra worlds for reasons unknown. Other Troft factions are poised to step in to assist the Cobra worlds, but the Cobra worlds need to win a significant battle to prove to their potential allies that their help would not be futile. Therefore, the battle for Qasama becomes a must-win situation for the humans. A group of Cobras travels to assist the Qasamans in their battle against the Trofts. Outnumbered, outgunned, they must rely on their wit, a few surprises, and some luck to prevail.
This story has a solid resolution, and certain events occur (no spoilers) that leave it wide open for a very interesting sequel. I am looking forward to it. Highly recommended.
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