Star Commandos 01 [Hardcover]

For fans of the Star Commandos series this book was a dissapointment only in that it signalled the conclusion of a -fun- series of books. It took up neatly where 'Jungle Assault' left off, and while the entire series was pleasantly well connected, this second book was deeply linked with its predecessor making it an amazingly fun read. The fact that action takes place on the home planet of some of the major characters, rather than some distant far off colony made it just that much more engrossing. Too bad it was the last.

Star Commandos 1 -- the adventure does indeed begin with two former adversaries thrown together in a survival scenario. Griffin develops superb characterization that explains in depth the motivation and personalities of Varn, the ex-War Prince, and Islaen, the commando, bringing them into a partnership to last the series and beyond. Against the backdrop of the recent Federation-Empire war, with its disparate philosophies, Griffin presents the two main characters in a newer battle to save innocent colonists from the dual threat of local predators and greedy developers. She succeeds admirably. A wonderful introduction to the series with two fine characters who keep the reader constantly engaged.

I discovered this series of books by accident in the mid-1990s. I usually do not buy books on a whim, but I happened to be in a bookstore & saw either "Return to War" or "Fire Planet" on the shelf. The cover art attracted me because the man looked like a favorite actor of mine & I wondered if a film was being planned. I bought the book & was soon in pursuit of the earlier, even then out-of-print paperbacks. I criss-crossed Los Angeles County visiting every used bookshop I knew of & a few I didn't know of looking for my prizes.

I must add that this search & the pleasure these books brought me were a very important diversion at a difficult time in my life. My aged parents were in decline & passed away within months of each other. Therefore, these books will always have a place in my library & their author will always have my greatest regard & thanks.

As I read these new editions, I am also reading the old Ace mass market trade paperbacks. I have an interest in the writing process & the editing process, which goes hand in hand. This parallel reading has been fascinating.

I suspect that these hardback editions are the equivalent of the "director's cut" of a film.

On the whole, there is not much difference between the 2 editions of "Star Commandos." The name of the planet changed. In the paperback it is consistently Visnu, while Ms. Griffin evidently preferred Vishnu. Was it an attempt at political correctness to avoid a slight to Hinduism?
There are other minor differences. Paragraph & chapter breaks are sometimes different. There are a few more typos, which hint at non-professional proof-reading, but there were a few typos in the mass market paperbacks as well. Nothing's perfect.

In the new editions, one sees a bit more of the "home port" of Horus, & therefore, a little more of "normal life," as well as a little more insight & detail about the characters. They are things that a commercial editor might have found to be an interruption of the momentum of the story, which I suspect Ace was trying to skew a bit towards the 14-25 yr old male crowd. In reality, these books were always more for women who love SF-action-adventure-romance with strong male & female leads.

In some instances, the Ace editor was right about the cuts enhancing momentum. However, the true fans of these stories will not mind those minor "time-outs" at all. These may be action/SF novels, but they are character driven. It is the characters for which the true fans read.

I admit that I have read the last 3, non-Ace published novels already. These new editions contain some "set-ups" & introduce a few of the characters who will appear in the later books, but who were not seen in the original paperbacks. Therefore, I heartily urge any fan of these books to read the new editions, published by ArcheBooks Publishing.

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