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5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic Battletech at its very best, Jul 14 2004
Reading Bloodname, the second book in The Jade Phoenix Trilogy, it is easy to see why the Battletech series has been so popular for so long. This novel has battles galore, and the main characters, already well developed in the Way of the Clans, continue to grow in the fullest, most intriguing, of ways. Battletech is about much more than armed conflict between gigantic behemoths piloted by warriors; Thurston delivers a penetrating study of clan society, human motivation within that society, and the type of heroism that is not limited to action on the battlefield. As a relative newcomer to the Battletech universe, I was also delighted to find so many different kinds of Battlemechs involved in the action, as it gave me a most helpful footing in the technology and weapon-related tactics employed in this futuristic world.Aidan is a remarkable protagonist - his dreams of becoming a warrior had seemingly been quashed by his last-minute failure in his Trial, but his commander had defied clan law by secretly giving him a second chance. The catch had been that he must compete under the identity of a freeborn cadet. In clan society, freeborns are treated as second-class citizens, even those who manage to earn the name of warrior. This war-focused society creates its best warriors through the artificial manipulation of the genetic material of trueborn warriors - it is the hope and dream of each trueborn warrior that he earn a Bloodname and thus contribute his/her own material to the gene pool. Aidan very much wants to earn his own Bloodname, but this honor is now forbidden him given his new existence as a freeborn. While Aidan actually finds a happier life among freeborn compatriots, his pride and ambition refuses to let him give up his dreams of securing the Pryde Bloodname. Now stationed on Glory Point, Aidan finally gets the chance to engage in real combat when a contingent of soldiers from the Wolf Clan seeks to steal the genetic legacy of the base commander there. He is also reunited with Falconer Joanna, under whom he studied in warrior training. Joanna hates him for many reasons, yet she somehow becomes a strange ally of sorts when Aidan lets the proverbial cat out of the bag. Not only does he announce the fact that he is in fact a trueborn, he demands the right to compete for a Bloodname. The odds are stacked heavily against him, as he must face a Court of Falconers just to maintain his warrior status and then, if he makes it through that, earn a spot in the Bloodname competition in a massive melee of competitors - and, even if he wins the spot, he still faces the Trial of Bloodright, the actual tournament for the right to the Pryde Bloodname. There is also the added difficulty of his opponents' fiery hatred for him - the only thing the trueborn hate more than a freeborn is a trueborn who earned his warrior status in the guise of a freeborn. Bloodname is the best Battletech novel I have read so far. The characters are immensely complex, especially Aidan and Joanna, and each of the many Battlemech engagements is even more exciting than the last. You'll want to read Way of the Clans, the first book of the Jade Phoenix Trilogy, before this one, and then you will surely want to dive immediately into Falcon Guard, the third and final book of the series.
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