Product Description

Far in the future, 60,000 light-years from Earth, a loose confederacy of Terran exiles is locked in battle with the enigmatic Protoss and the ruthless Zerg Swarm, as each species struggles to ensure its own survival among the stars -- war that will herald the beginning of mankind's greatest chapter or foretell its violent, bloody end.

All Ardo Menikov ever dreamed of was to live in peace on the verdant colony world of Bountiful. But when the vicious Zerg Swarm attacked the colony and annihilated his loved ones, Ardo was forced to wake from his dream and accept the brutal realities of a war-torn galaxy. Now a confederate marine, charged with defending the worlds of the Terran confederacy, Ardo must come to terms with the painful memories of his past -- and the unsettling truths that may dominate his future.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #422706 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780671041502
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

Scifi fans and Starcraft fans rejoice!
This is definitely the best Starcraft book so far and totally redeems the Starcraft novel series. If you haven't read any of the novels yet, you should start with this one, since none of the stories are connected. (But definitely DON'T read "Shadow of the Xel'Naga")

Taking place during the beginning of the STARCRAFT game (before BROOD WARS), it follows a band of soldiers through a single battle as they go against the Zerg. The writer really researched the world and portrays everything realistically and in detail (so the book is exciting even if you never played the game). Like how those Terran barracks can spit out marines so quickly.

Sorry Protoss fans - since this is early in the STARCRAFT wars, the Protoss never show up or are even mentioned here. The story follows Aldo through the Confederates' training/brainswiping and spits him out against the Zerg which are finally portrayed realistically.

A Beautiful, if Cliched Story
To me Speed of Darkness is the best book of the series, which unfortunately seems to have fallen on the wayside. The Starcraft universe enthralled me in a way I did not think a videogame could. Liberty's Crusade by Jeff Grub was a wonderful (if underdeveloped) telling of the original story, which spent some time in the trenches with the average Joe. I didn't care too much for Shadow of the Xel'naga. I enjoyed the read and the perspective, but it hasn't clung with me like Speed of Darkness. Being human helps me to relate to the Terrans and their plight, and since the game came out, I've had a special fascination for the Terran Marine. To me Speed of Darkness shines as a view in the trenches of a small squad of marines. My experience as a living history reenactor in 18th and early 19th century soldiering see the marine as a throwback to earlier warfare. Today we expect our soldiers to be super-smart, technological single-person armies. The Terran Marine seems like a throwback, a brainwashed conscript with no purpose in life but to follow orders.

Soldiers from the age of linear warfare were expected to follow orders and stay in line, Terran Marines are treated pretty much the same way. Yet just as the soldiers of that bygone age were capable of extraordinary acts of heroism, sacrifice, humanitarianism, initiative, and ambition. Tracy Hickman shows an incident where the Marines do the same thing. That small squad consisting of a diverse group of people, all with different backgrounds act on their own initiative. Not because of orders, or duty, or glory, they do it because it is the right thing. It's quite beautiful, without coming across as too corny, or over dramatic, because it works in context of the Starcraft universe. A place so dirty, corrupt, rife with conflict, death, and negativity. Speed of Darkness works, and it works in a memorable way.

Unfortunately, the novel is quite short, and somewhat underdeveloped, leaving a lot to the reader's imagination. Plus without a good working knowledge of the Starcraft universe, there is much that will be missed, and the story itself will just feel like something that's been done dozens of times.

Not as upbeat as the others but very good
I was hesistant to pick up "Speed of Darkness" because I heard from a few friends that it was the worst book so far. But when I did pick it up I really enjoyed it. The story follows a young man whos life seems all up and joyful until he is forced to join the Terran marines. Hickman attempts to make his character very human and sort of erie: and he does a great job! The only flaw that I find with this novel is that the ending was sort of a let down (I won't spoil it for you). Overall, read "Speed of Darkness", I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.