Classic Battletech: Illusions of Victory

BattleTech Universe #51

by Loren L. Coleman

LET THE GAMES BEGIN... Solaris VII is known as the Game World -- where entertainment is king, money is power, and MechWarriors from every corner of the Inner Sphere come to make war against one another in the ultimate sporting event. Michael Searcy arrived on Solaris VII as a dishonored MechWarrior, and worked his way up in the rankings to become a valued commodity in the games. He knows all the moves, plays all the angles, and can put on a show as well as he fights. But now, the ancient grudges pitting warriors against each other have spilled out of the arena -- and are moving through the streets in an all-out war. And Michael is caught in a championship match where the winner is the last man left alive....

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Ebooks

280 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Loren L. Coleman (born 1968) is a science-fiction writer, born and grew up in Longview, Washington.

He is known for having written many books for series such as Star Trek, Battletech/Mechwarrior, Age of Conan, Crimson Skies, Magic: The Gathering and others. Former member of the United States Navy, he has also written game fiction and source material for such companies as FASA Corporation, TSR, Inc. and Wizards of the Coast.

In early 2010s, he began writing The ICAS Files series, science fiction short-stories. [wikipedia]

Reviews

[Brian Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first Battletech novel I got, and have been hooked on the series since.
Actually a very good place to start, set in the arenas of Solaris VII which are a microcosm of the whole Inner Sphere, so you get a good grounding about what is going on and the main groups involved.

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a general respect for Loren L. Coleman's work with Battletech so I was pretty curious as to what this book was going to be about. And it started a little weird as it felt like yet another dispossessed Mechwarrior looking to make a career on the game world of Solaris VII. And at first, it really felt like just that with our protagonist Michael Searcy behaving more like a conventional professional wrestler when in front of the cameras including interviews that break into fights and other theatrics.

And for a large part of the book, it's mostly antics like that while we continue to wonder what sort of game stable master Drew Hasek-Davion is really trying to play with increased incidents of fights and riots surrounding the matches. Given he does seem to have an agent actively causing trouble, it's clear we're not supposed to like him.

There are other characters that make up the other Mechwarriors who compete for the championship, but they get little characterization. Things really pick up when a fight echoing the Steiner-Davion conflict becomes a full on riot with Battlemechs duking it out in the streets. It leads to a weird little character arc for Searcy until the conflict is brought to an odd end.

Not the best story the Coleman has created, but it does sound like someone needed to flesh out a paragraph in an RPG source book as part of a larger writing effort. It's not terrible and Coleman brings a lot to the table in terms of great depictions of mech combat. But it's also not exactly a book with wide-reaching implications or characters that we'll want to see more of.

[Randall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up playing the Mechwarrior PC games and that's where most of my previous experience with Battletech came from. I enjoyed all of the action sequences because I could say to myself "I've piloted that Mech before!" or "Hey, I've shot PPCs before! I know all about that heat and recoil!". Sadly everything that didn't involve Battlemechs blowing each other to hell was cliche and boring. I expect all Battletech books are like that and I've heard that this is actually the best one so I don't know if I'll bother with any more of the novels.

[Josh Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This certainly isn't a bad book - the ending was actually really good, and Victor's character was actually very well done. The first 3/4 was slow, despite all the action, and I think it was because the main character was not fleshed out very well - he was almost just a side character until the end.

There were a few scenes that were built to and then glossed over or skipped entirely that I think would have made the story better had they been included instead of summarized.

[David Bishop · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it because I'm getting back into playing Battletech and wanted a refresher on the universe. It was definitely rough, but worth reading once.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun addition to the series with a great mix of interesting characters and Mech action. The story keeps you interested as the various stables on the gaming world face off to become the dominate one.

[Orion · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really struggled to get through this one. What was the point of this story?

[Ivor · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was looking for nostalgia from my childhood and the 90s when I read this book, as I enjoyed playing MechWarrior on the computer and the BattleTech card game. I had never read any of the books, and my hope was to regain some of the excitement from playing these games as a child.

However, this book - which is supposed to be one of the better ones - had 2 dimensional characters, a thin plot line, and was full of cliches. It was boring and hard to finish.

I had low expectations for this book, but even so, this was one of the worst books I have read in a long time.

[Josh Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"So You've Decided to Read Battletech" - Review 2

The second Battletech book I've read in my quest to burn myself out on BT fiction. This book was suggested as a good place to start by an article on PC Gamer Magazine's website (of all places).

Review:

I never felt invested in the main protagonist, but that worked for the story. It kept me guessing what direction he would go. Would he turn into a cold-hearted betrayer or realize he's being a schmuck?

The action was generally exciting, the thin mystery elements were engaging enough, and the final quarter of the book had me amped up and unwilling to put it down.

The themes go about as deep as a kiddie pool, but it was a lot of fun splashing about in the shallows.

Assessment

Good. (And a fine place to begin reading Battletech)

Lasting Impressions
In this section, I return long after reading to give my remembered impressions. Did this book stand the test of time?

Yes! Most of the characters including the main one are not memorable, but I still fondly recall the excitement of the mech fights and the great final one-on-one fight with the rival MechWarrior. That guy with his massive chip on his shoulder was a great character! This remains the most interested I've been in mech combat in all the BTech reading.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of those Battletech books that asks you to remember who is who in regards to the galactic civil war. If you're like me an gloss over maps, names, etc then you'll be a hint challenged.

That said, this one didn't go according to the script in my head. I felt like it really had two climaxes, which was great because I love reading about what happens after a climax.

I would also like to say that I didn't know how to respond to the main character. He was 'colorful' with his persona, yet the real person was hard to see. Therefor you dont know if you should enjoy him or not.

Overall this was a pleasure to read. I wish I kept a better tab over the events between 57 and 62 as it's a little fuzzy, and this book leans heavily on the events between there.

[Doc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down the best in the series. Mech fights, intrigue, politics, gambling, spies, and lots of explosions! But seriously, this story moves so well and keeps you glued to each page. This is one of those reads that has you staying up late at night and saying “Maybe just one more page.”

[Dale (Aus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Middle of the road book in the series. Nothing leaps off the page from it.