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Battlestar Galactica Miniseries #2
The Cylons' Secret: Battlestar Galactica 2
Sometimes no news is bad news.
It's been twenty years since the end of the Cylon war. The twelve human colony worlds are rebuilding, and the Cylons . . . the Cylons have been just too quiet. They are nowhere to be found. The robotic race that tried to obliterate their creators has gone to parts unknown in deep space.
The aftermath of the war has created a new, illegal scavenger. Tom Zarek is one, scouring the outer settlements for valuable Cylon technologies and artifacts and usually returning empty-handed. But now, he and the crew of the Cruiser Lightning have found the Omega Station, a scientific station shrouded in secrecy beyond the edge of charted space. This is it, the big score, except something is wrong…the base is still occupied, not by humans alone; by Cylons too!
The Battlestar Galactica , one of the oldest warships in the fleet, receives the Lightning 's distress call, a cryptic one-word "Cylons." William Adama, newly promoted to second-in-command, is worried. Most of his crew are green, new recruits, not prepared for anything but the most routine missions. And, as Adama soon discovers, this mission is anything but routine. Omega is indeed full of Cylons, but also something much more disturbing . . .
It's been twenty years since the end of the Cylon war. The twelve human colony worlds are rebuilding, and the Cylons . . . the Cylons have been just too quiet. They are nowhere to be found. The robotic race that tried to obliterate their creators has gone to parts unknown in deep space.
The aftermath of the war has created a new, illegal scavenger. Tom Zarek is one, scouring the outer settlements for valuable Cylon technologies and artifacts and usually returning empty-handed. But now, he and the crew of the Cruiser Lightning have found the Omega Station, a scientific station shrouded in secrecy beyond the edge of charted space. This is it, the big score, except something is wrong…the base is still occupied, not by humans alone; by Cylons too!
The Battlestar Galactica , one of the oldest warships in the fleet, receives the Lightning 's distress call, a cryptic one-word "Cylons." William Adama, newly promoted to second-in-command, is worried. Most of his crew are green, new recruits, not prepared for anything but the most routine missions. And, as Adama soon discovers, this mission is anything but routine. Omega is indeed full of Cylons, but also something much more disturbing . . .
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
3 people are currently reading
173 people want to read
About the author
Craig Shaw Gardner
151 books138 followersCraig Shaw Gardner was born in Rochester, New York and lived there until 1967, when he moved to Boston, MA to attend Boston University. He graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Broadcasting and Film. He has continued to reside in Boston since that time.
He published his first story in 1977 while he held a number of jobs: shipper/receiver for a men's suit manufacturer, working in hospital public relations, running a stat camera, and also managed of a couple of bookstores: The Million Year Picnic and Science Fantasy Bookstore.
As of 1987 he became a full time writer, and since then he has published more than 30 novels and more than 50 short stories.
He also published under these pseudonyms:
Peter Garrison
He published his first story in 1977 while he held a number of jobs: shipper/receiver for a men's suit manufacturer, working in hospital public relations, running a stat camera, and also managed of a couple of bookstores: The Million Year Picnic and Science Fantasy Bookstore.
As of 1987 he became a full time writer, and since then he has published more than 30 novels and more than 50 short stories.
He also published under these pseudonyms:
Peter Garrison
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
February 10, 2010
This book is crap in so many ways that I should have put it down after thirty pages and scoured the vacuum tubes of my brain with the light acid solution of an idiotic RA Salvatore drow bloodfest.
Craig Shaw Gardner's attempt to cash in on Battlestar Galactica, commissioned or not, is poor.
It's bad enough that the survival of a Cylon Dreadnought from the first-Cylon War raises unanswerable questions for the wider BSG universe -- particularly considering its total exclusion from the reimagined series. But Gardner doesn't stop there. He engages the Cylon's in clearly "evil" machinations at a former Picon scientific colony, years in advance of the sneak attack on the Colonies that precipitated the second-Cylon War, which undermines the careful suggestions by the television series' creators that the Colonials were aggressors who pushed the Cylons into a preemptive strike.
Moreover, Gardner completely abandons the muddy ethics of the series, making all actions as black and white as possible. There are good guys and bad guys, sinners and saints, and there are no cases wherein anyone is challenged by what "they must do." And this is a shame because the gray areas are precisely what made Battlestar Galactica worth watching.
As a result, his versions of William Adama, Saul Tigh and Tom Zarek are pretty awful too. All their depth is gone. It is as though Gardner writes with the depth of these characters in mind but assumes that the preexistence of their depths is enough. It isn't enough, however. Gardner needed to expand on these men, show us their struggles and contradictions, engage with what made them complex men on television. His failure to do this makes them caricatures of what they should have been rather than characters worthy of existence beyond the confines of the Sci-Fi Network.
Then there are the nits to be picked, and pick them I will: 1. never write "anarchic" when you mean "archaic," or you better make sure you have a decent editor; 2. don't call him "Captain Adama" when you've already told us his rank is "Colonel," or you better make damn sure you have the same support as suggested in number one; 3. when you ask a question (or three) make sure you use a question mark rather than a period...question marks (right above the backslash) are there for asking questions -- go figure; 4. drop the wordiness: "Dr. Fuest was never much of a one for speed"?! Seriously? Try Dr. Fuest was never much for speed, or Dr. Fuest was never one for speed. Trust me, Craig, my alterations flow better (and they're correct).
So...yeah...this book was basically crap, yet I still gave it two stars.
What can I say? I am a sucker for BSG, and it was a nice way to escape from the mental strain of Nabokov late in the night. Plus it made me smile...and it fulfilled my expectations entirely.
Don't buy this if you haven't a love for Battlestar Galactica, though. You'll wind up over your barbecue with lighter fluid and matches in hand. You've been warned.
Craig Shaw Gardner's attempt to cash in on Battlestar Galactica, commissioned or not, is poor.
It's bad enough that the survival of a Cylon Dreadnought from the first-Cylon War raises unanswerable questions for the wider BSG universe -- particularly considering its total exclusion from the reimagined series. But Gardner doesn't stop there. He engages the Cylon's in clearly "evil" machinations at a former Picon scientific colony, years in advance of the sneak attack on the Colonies that precipitated the second-Cylon War, which undermines the careful suggestions by the television series' creators that the Colonials were aggressors who pushed the Cylons into a preemptive strike.
Moreover, Gardner completely abandons the muddy ethics of the series, making all actions as black and white as possible. There are good guys and bad guys, sinners and saints, and there are no cases wherein anyone is challenged by what "they must do." And this is a shame because the gray areas are precisely what made Battlestar Galactica worth watching.
As a result, his versions of William Adama, Saul Tigh and Tom Zarek are pretty awful too. All their depth is gone. It is as though Gardner writes with the depth of these characters in mind but assumes that the preexistence of their depths is enough. It isn't enough, however. Gardner needed to expand on these men, show us their struggles and contradictions, engage with what made them complex men on television. His failure to do this makes them caricatures of what they should have been rather than characters worthy of existence beyond the confines of the Sci-Fi Network.
Then there are the nits to be picked, and pick them I will: 1. never write "anarchic" when you mean "archaic," or you better make sure you have a decent editor; 2. don't call him "Captain Adama" when you've already told us his rank is "Colonel," or you better make damn sure you have the same support as suggested in number one; 3. when you ask a question (or three) make sure you use a question mark rather than a period...question marks (right above the backslash) are there for asking questions -- go figure; 4. drop the wordiness: "Dr. Fuest was never much of a one for speed"?! Seriously? Try Dr. Fuest was never much for speed, or Dr. Fuest was never one for speed. Trust me, Craig, my alterations flow better (and they're correct).
So...yeah...this book was basically crap, yet I still gave it two stars.
What can I say? I am a sucker for BSG, and it was a nice way to escape from the mental strain of Nabokov late in the night. Plus it made me smile...and it fulfilled my expectations entirely.
Don't buy this if you haven't a love for Battlestar Galactica, though. You'll wind up over your barbecue with lighter fluid and matches in hand. You've been warned.
February 18, 2020
Even though I’ve read this before, Its been so long that I had forgotten the plot. When I picked this up again, I thought it was a novelization of the TV show pilot. Turns out that it is a new story, not shown on TV, which follows a young Adama and Tom Zarek.
Set after the cylon war, Zarek is working on a scavenger ship when they stumble across a research station. The station is filled with Cylons! The Battlestar Galactica is not far behind!
This was a pretty good book. I enjoyed the plot and it makes me want to re-watch the show again. Good book for Battlestar fans.
Set after the cylon war, Zarek is working on a scavenger ship when they stumble across a research station. The station is filled with Cylons! The Battlestar Galactica is not far behind!
This was a pretty good book. I enjoyed the plot and it makes me want to re-watch the show again. Good book for Battlestar fans.
August 26, 2021
Battlestar Galactica: The Cylon’s Secret by Craig Shaw Gardner, is a media tie-in novel based of the Sci-fi Channel’s Battlestar Galactica reboot TV series, and the second book of the Battlestar Galactica book trilogy.
“The Cylon’s Secret”, Tells an original prequel story set twenty years after the Human-Cylon War. The aftermath of the war has created a new illegal profession: scavenging. A young rebellious Tom Zarek and the crew of salvage ship Lighting come across what appears to be a abandoned scientific station on a remote planet. Hoping to salvage it for easy money, but they soon discover it’s occupied by Cylon’s and humans living together, so after a fight between the crew and the locals Zarek is forced to call for help.
Mean while newly promoted Colonel Willam Adama and Captain Saul Tigh of the old Colonial warship Battlestar Galactica are patrolling remote sectors of human space when they receive the cryptic distress call. They arrive to find the small outpost, and some of Zarek’s surviving salvage operators. The salvage operators who found the outpost met disastrous results when making contact. The outpost is a scientific research facility meant to examine the relationship between Human and Cylon. That means that there are Cylon's present. But these Cylon's seem to be living in harmony with the few remaining humans, but with the arrival of outsiders it would appear they are not as harmless as first thought.
The Galactica crew manages to safely land and make contact with the outpost. Slowly they learn something about what has been going on, but it is a surviving salvage crew member Tom Zarek that discovers some of the hidden secrets on the station When more Cylon's show up, the Galactica crew has to remember that there is an armistice and the Cylons are not currently a foe although prejudice runs deep. Things escalate of course and soon the skies are full of Battlestars and raiders looking to stave off or end a possible Cylon threat.
Given the show has concluded for some time now, I have to admit that it was rather enjoyable to return to the universe, even just in book form. Thus a bit of nostalgia helped me get through the title, even though it really wasn't that remarkable a book. As far as franchise fiction goes, it was very, very light far that felt like the equivalent of having a snack instead of a full meal.
One of the biggest problems of the book is the many continuity errors with the book, which I suppose could not be helped. This book was written while the show was still active but probably during its early years and thus they ended up a prequel instead of daring to have a story set in the main universe. But as it stands the book doesn't exactly play along well with the main TV continuity, thus making it rather suspect as far as canon is concerned.
A lot of the book ends up being focused on the scavenger crew of the Lightning and their initial attempts to enter Research Station Omega. And this was interesting to a limited degree since there's always a lot of potential when it comes to a character like Tom Zarek, but you can only go so far with that. And the author wasn't able to utilize the full Tom Zarek potential because of the need to somehow depict him as younger and thus less experienced. So that was a bit of a disappointment. There was also some potential in the interaction between Tigh and Adama as somewhat younger men but still grizzled war veterans. But this also was not fully utilized in the course of the book. Another opportunity missed once more.
Really, we spend way too much time with the station being stupid and the scavengers being even more stupid since they keep sending small parties over to the station to "talk to the natives". And when we do get the chance for a decent fight, the Battlestar in the book pretty much holds back and we wait for everyone else to figure out how to resolve the conflict. While their reasons in the book may have made sense, they just weren't very satisfying for a fan of the show reading the book.
All that aside the cast of Characters were flat; the author managed to tell a Original story involving several of the primary BSG characters without actually adding anything to their personalities. There was no suspense build up. There was a distinct discontinuity with the series. The novel felt like it had been written by someone who hardly new anything about the show, and wanted to cash in on the popularity of the series but felt he was too good to do his research or even watch the series. Which is too bad. BSG deserves the best novelists at their best. Too bad too, because the storyline of Cylons and humans working together is very interesting one with a great deal of potential.
Overall, Battlestar Galactica: The Cylon's Secret is a rather weak entry at creating an original story in the BSG universe outside of the TV show. As a huge fan of the series I found this book very disappointing, and would definitely not recommend reading this entry of the BSG novels.
“The Cylon’s Secret”, Tells an original prequel story set twenty years after the Human-Cylon War. The aftermath of the war has created a new illegal profession: scavenging. A young rebellious Tom Zarek and the crew of salvage ship Lighting come across what appears to be a abandoned scientific station on a remote planet. Hoping to salvage it for easy money, but they soon discover it’s occupied by Cylon’s and humans living together, so after a fight between the crew and the locals Zarek is forced to call for help.
Mean while newly promoted Colonel Willam Adama and Captain Saul Tigh of the old Colonial warship Battlestar Galactica are patrolling remote sectors of human space when they receive the cryptic distress call. They arrive to find the small outpost, and some of Zarek’s surviving salvage operators. The salvage operators who found the outpost met disastrous results when making contact. The outpost is a scientific research facility meant to examine the relationship between Human and Cylon. That means that there are Cylon's present. But these Cylon's seem to be living in harmony with the few remaining humans, but with the arrival of outsiders it would appear they are not as harmless as first thought.
The Galactica crew manages to safely land and make contact with the outpost. Slowly they learn something about what has been going on, but it is a surviving salvage crew member Tom Zarek that discovers some of the hidden secrets on the station When more Cylon's show up, the Galactica crew has to remember that there is an armistice and the Cylons are not currently a foe although prejudice runs deep. Things escalate of course and soon the skies are full of Battlestars and raiders looking to stave off or end a possible Cylon threat.
Given the show has concluded for some time now, I have to admit that it was rather enjoyable to return to the universe, even just in book form. Thus a bit of nostalgia helped me get through the title, even though it really wasn't that remarkable a book. As far as franchise fiction goes, it was very, very light far that felt like the equivalent of having a snack instead of a full meal.
One of the biggest problems of the book is the many continuity errors with the book, which I suppose could not be helped. This book was written while the show was still active but probably during its early years and thus they ended up a prequel instead of daring to have a story set in the main universe. But as it stands the book doesn't exactly play along well with the main TV continuity, thus making it rather suspect as far as canon is concerned.
A lot of the book ends up being focused on the scavenger crew of the Lightning and their initial attempts to enter Research Station Omega. And this was interesting to a limited degree since there's always a lot of potential when it comes to a character like Tom Zarek, but you can only go so far with that. And the author wasn't able to utilize the full Tom Zarek potential because of the need to somehow depict him as younger and thus less experienced. So that was a bit of a disappointment. There was also some potential in the interaction between Tigh and Adama as somewhat younger men but still grizzled war veterans. But this also was not fully utilized in the course of the book. Another opportunity missed once more.
Really, we spend way too much time with the station being stupid and the scavengers being even more stupid since they keep sending small parties over to the station to "talk to the natives". And when we do get the chance for a decent fight, the Battlestar in the book pretty much holds back and we wait for everyone else to figure out how to resolve the conflict. While their reasons in the book may have made sense, they just weren't very satisfying for a fan of the show reading the book.
All that aside the cast of Characters were flat; the author managed to tell a Original story involving several of the primary BSG characters without actually adding anything to their personalities. There was no suspense build up. There was a distinct discontinuity with the series. The novel felt like it had been written by someone who hardly new anything about the show, and wanted to cash in on the popularity of the series but felt he was too good to do his research or even watch the series. Which is too bad. BSG deserves the best novelists at their best. Too bad too, because the storyline of Cylons and humans working together is very interesting one with a great deal of potential.
Overall, Battlestar Galactica: The Cylon's Secret is a rather weak entry at creating an original story in the BSG universe outside of the TV show. As a huge fan of the series I found this book very disappointing, and would definitely not recommend reading this entry of the BSG novels.
March 12, 2019
Man this thing went South fast. Not only was the resolution predictable, it was poorly executed and rushed frantically. Like seriously, all the action happened in the last 50 pages. And it was just bad. Don't read it.
May 4, 2020
Enjoyed visiting the BSG word again with familiar characters.
January 9, 2022
The Cylons would work for humankind no more. They had declared their independence.
I thoroughly enjoyed the mid-2000s reboot of Battlestar Galactica, but it’s been years since I returned to the property in any meaningful way. However, I ‘m always a sucker for old licensed-property tie-ins and to his credit, author Craig Shaw Gardner plays rather well in this space, giving us The Cyclons’ Secret, an enjoyable little piece of the BSG-expanded universe.
Despite not having seen an episode of the series in at least a half-dozen years, Shaw makes it easy to reconnect with the central themes of the original show and main characters Bill Adama, Saul Tigh and the Richard Hatch-cast Tom Zarek. Set as prequel, Shaw does a really good job of filling in some blank spots in the universe – beginning with a chilling opening act at the start of the first Cylon War – and creating stakes for book’s character’s that feel real despite the obvious limitations that things can only go so far before they butt up against the wall of the television series.
The strongest part of this one is Shaw’s work with the Cyclons. The backgrounder of their evolution from household appliance-bots to genocidal legions was interesting as was the exploration of Galactica’s seemingly anachronistic design. As our real-world society remains increasingly vulnerable to cyber-malice attacks, the logic for independent operating stations on military vessels isn’t anything far-fetched. I was also kind of pleased that Shaw took the opportunity to bring a little bit of gore to this one. War is ugly and with the rebooted Cylons already meshing flesh and metal in the show – well, it makes senses that they didn’t exactly wait to get there overnight.
You probably won’t ever label The Cyclons’ Secret a sci-fi classic, but for fans of the show, it does everything it needs to do as it expands the original universe and spins an enjoyable yarn while keeping the general spirit and themes of the parent property intact. If you find yourself with a nostalgic itch for BSG, then this is a great scratch.
November 13, 2013
I have to be honest, I have read a few bad reviews of this book, but I thought is was alright. Yes, no where near as awe-inspiring as the TV show nor the sort of book that would be read again and again, but I enjoyed the adventure and the return to the BSG world.
The plot revolves around a research station on a remote planet, where humans and 'companions' work together in an attempt to create a true working relationship between man and machine. When a group of renegades touch down and over react to the presence of prototype Cylon's, the peace of the station is shattered. The four remaining humans start to question the motives of their machine counterparts, who are in fact hiding a deadly secret. When the Galactica arrives following a garbles SOS message, the secrets are revealed.
So, an ok story, with a couple of surprises, if not many, and average characterisation. I enjoyed reading about Tigh and Adama's early friendship and also some of the Zarek's background. Overall, an entertaining way to spend a couple of days, but not something I would bother to read again.
The plot revolves around a research station on a remote planet, where humans and 'companions' work together in an attempt to create a true working relationship between man and machine. When a group of renegades touch down and over react to the presence of prototype Cylon's, the peace of the station is shattered. The four remaining humans start to question the motives of their machine counterparts, who are in fact hiding a deadly secret. When the Galactica arrives following a garbles SOS message, the secrets are revealed.
So, an ok story, with a couple of surprises, if not many, and average characterisation. I enjoyed reading about Tigh and Adama's early friendship and also some of the Zarek's background. Overall, an entertaining way to spend a couple of days, but not something I would bother to read again.
November 20, 2018
Cylons and humans together on a planet, when in the rest of the universe cyclons and humans are a war, the story line works, well written. Great book
March 29, 2021
Even though the continuity is a little screwy, it's a good story, because you don't know what's going on with this settlement. What could have been done is use human characters who were not in the show, because wouldn't they have recognized these cylons on the ships? Anyway, I figured, in the process of making humanoid cylons, some experiments would have been done to make sure they worked properly.
July 29, 2017
Interesting enough that I found it easy to read, but the story was bland, the characters (both new and familiar) were two-dimensional and, on the whole, this book added nothing to the BSG canon. In fact, it would be better off without it.
September 27, 2017
I have been a fan of Craig Shaw Gardner ever since I read the Batman movie tie-in. Kidding aside though, this is a highly readable book, especially if you're a fan of the magnificent TV series, as I am.
June 30, 2017
Now that was more like it! Interesting background info on Adama, Tigh, and Zarek. The cylon's actual secret is gruesome, shocking, and perfectly BSG.
April 17, 2019
BSG is one of my favourite TV shows. It was enjoyable to read a different story with some familiar characters. The build up went on a bit long for a short climax unfortunately.
May 28, 2019
A decent tale set in the series. The spinoff works can never drastically change the universe for this saga, but this book crafts a prequel tale that is only slightly incongruent.
September 22, 2019
Nice little side prequel, but if this to be cannon, it would have been nice to have a bit more tie in with the show
July 1, 2020
This book is much better than the first in the series. A story that is tied to the series but was not covered by the tv show.
June 4, 2021
What a secret, makes you think
Great 👌 second book in the BSG series, I would love to see a prequel battle with Galactica vs. that ship. Definitely recommend for all Sci-Fi fans.
Great 👌 second book in the BSG series, I would love to see a prequel battle with Galactica vs. that ship. Definitely recommend for all Sci-Fi fans.
October 14, 2024
I read this after finishing the second tv series. It was good for fulfilling my need for some more Galactica.
January 18, 2013
Nostalgia dei Cyloni
Lo ammetto, nel dare cinque stelline a questo libro ho esagerato, ma io sono di parte e il mio giudizio deve essere in ogni caso soggettivo.
Si tratta di uno di quei romanzi, definiti tie-in, che vengono scritti unicamente per far spendere soldi a noi fan della serie, ma non aggiungono nulla alla storia. Anzi è corretto dire che "Il segreto dei Cyloni" è pieno di incongruenze rispetto a "Battlestar Galactica", ma il motivo è semplice: è stato scritto quando ancora la serie non era finita, prima che certe decisioni sulla trama venissero prese o modificate.
Come tutte le serie TV anche "Battlestar Galactica" è partita da un concept iniziale, che negli anni si è evoluto, anche in base al gradimento del pubblico. Questo ha generato qualche piccola incongruenza al suo interno, anche se veramente trascurabile, ma ha influenzato anche prodotti come "Il segreto dei Cyloni". E nell'iniziare a leggere questo libro bisogna avere chiaro in mente questo fatto. Una volta che si accetta ciò, alla fine non ha molta importanza se quanto narrato è tutto plausibile. Possiamo scegliere di ignorare ciò che non va e divertirci col resto, perché questo libro serve a un unico scopo: divertire i fan di "Battlestar Galactica".
Con me ci è riuscito. Affamata come sono di nuove trame basate sui personaggi della serie e nostalgica nei confronti degli stessi Cyloni (sono sempre stata dalla loro parte!), mi sono divertita moltissimo a leggere questo romanzo che si configura, come è ovvio, nel genere della space opera e che dà la sensazione, con un po' di fantasia, di ritrovarsi in quelle ambientazioni televisive.
La storia ha luogo nel passato rispetto alla serie, quando Adamo e Tigh erano giovani ufficiali. I protagonisti però non sono loro, ma servono solo a creare il contorno in cui si muove Tom Zerek. Anche lui c'è nella serie, ma il background proposto in questo libro non corrisponde con quello usato in "Battlestar Galactica". Poco importa. Il personaggio è ben riconoscibile e nella sua versione giovane risulta molto godibile da seguire.
Insomma, se comprate questo libro in cerca di un grande romanzo di fantascienza, lasciate perdere. Questo è un libro per fan, appena un gradino più in altro di una fan-fiction, e come tale va considerato. Da qui le cinque stelline, tutte meritate, perché da fan l'ho divorato in pochi giorni e mi è piaciuto. Ed è solo questo ciò che conta.
Lo ammetto, nel dare cinque stelline a questo libro ho esagerato, ma io sono di parte e il mio giudizio deve essere in ogni caso soggettivo.
Si tratta di uno di quei romanzi, definiti tie-in, che vengono scritti unicamente per far spendere soldi a noi fan della serie, ma non aggiungono nulla alla storia. Anzi è corretto dire che "Il segreto dei Cyloni" è pieno di incongruenze rispetto a "Battlestar Galactica", ma il motivo è semplice: è stato scritto quando ancora la serie non era finita, prima che certe decisioni sulla trama venissero prese o modificate.
Come tutte le serie TV anche "Battlestar Galactica" è partita da un concept iniziale, che negli anni si è evoluto, anche in base al gradimento del pubblico. Questo ha generato qualche piccola incongruenza al suo interno, anche se veramente trascurabile, ma ha influenzato anche prodotti come "Il segreto dei Cyloni". E nell'iniziare a leggere questo libro bisogna avere chiaro in mente questo fatto. Una volta che si accetta ciò, alla fine non ha molta importanza se quanto narrato è tutto plausibile. Possiamo scegliere di ignorare ciò che non va e divertirci col resto, perché questo libro serve a un unico scopo: divertire i fan di "Battlestar Galactica".
Con me ci è riuscito. Affamata come sono di nuove trame basate sui personaggi della serie e nostalgica nei confronti degli stessi Cyloni (sono sempre stata dalla loro parte!), mi sono divertita moltissimo a leggere questo romanzo che si configura, come è ovvio, nel genere della space opera e che dà la sensazione, con un po' di fantasia, di ritrovarsi in quelle ambientazioni televisive.
La storia ha luogo nel passato rispetto alla serie, quando Adamo e Tigh erano giovani ufficiali. I protagonisti però non sono loro, ma servono solo a creare il contorno in cui si muove Tom Zerek. Anche lui c'è nella serie, ma il background proposto in questo libro non corrisponde con quello usato in "Battlestar Galactica". Poco importa. Il personaggio è ben riconoscibile e nella sua versione giovane risulta molto godibile da seguire.
Insomma, se comprate questo libro in cerca di un grande romanzo di fantascienza, lasciate perdere. Questo è un libro per fan, appena un gradino più in altro di una fan-fiction, e come tale va considerato. Da qui le cinque stelline, tutte meritate, perché da fan l'ho divorato in pochi giorni e mi è piaciuto. Ed è solo questo ciò che conta.
April 26, 2016
This isn't a bad book but it could have been much better. I really wanted to read an adventure set before the fall of the colonies and this certainly fitted the bill. The story is quite well thought out but it does feel like it's padded at the beginning. "Colonel" Adama and the Galactica don't really get involved until about halfway through and Tom Zarek is shoehorned in as a crew member on a raider (pirate) ship so there's an established character to fill out the rest of story.
All of this is okay and, to a degree, expected of a Battlestar Galactica novel as you would expect to read about established characters. Setting a story twenty years earlier is an ambitious idea and it works quite well.
However, several new characters were introduced and I would have liked to know their eventual fates at the fall of the colonies and if any survived. A little afterword would have been nice. And the author didn't understand some of the science behind BSG. There was several instances, including the "hook" that brought the Galactica into the story, where faster than light transmissions were sent and received. To the best of my knowledge that doesn't happen in BSG. The only way something travels faster than light is by a ship jumping in FTL and there is no subspace communication.
All in all I would have given this book 3 1/2 stars but I still enjoyed it so I rounded it up to 4 stars.
All of this is okay and, to a degree, expected of a Battlestar Galactica novel as you would expect to read about established characters. Setting a story twenty years earlier is an ambitious idea and it works quite well.
However, several new characters were introduced and I would have liked to know their eventual fates at the fall of the colonies and if any survived. A little afterword would have been nice. And the author didn't understand some of the science behind BSG. There was several instances, including the "hook" that brought the Galactica into the story, where faster than light transmissions were sent and received. To the best of my knowledge that doesn't happen in BSG. The only way something travels faster than light is by a ship jumping in FTL and there is no subspace communication.
All in all I would have given this book 3 1/2 stars but I still enjoyed it so I rounded it up to 4 stars.
June 8, 2007
While the cover art may sport "Number Six" looking both beautiful and menacing, she has nothing (thank goodness!) to do with the plot.
In fact, there are only three characters from the series in this book, the rest are new characters as this is a prequel right in the middle of that time listed as "The Cylons Send No One" in the opening credits of season one. Save for the invention of four ships larger than the Battlestars, the tries to connect the dots left in the flash backs of Tigh, Adama and Zarek's lives. While the story itself may not be canonical (good novelizations rarely are) it does offer interesting interpretations of these three characters that adds something to their characterization in the series.
The story itself reminded me a bit of Alan Dean Foster's interpretation of The Black Hole (1979) as it is told from the perspective of a group of outsiders trying to find the truth behind a station long since forgotten and apparently populated both by humans and Cylons. I liked how Gardener explores the tension between the four humans and the companions. Also some of the choices that the Cylons make for how the treat humans in this book provide some possible explanations for why the future Cylons "evolved" as they have.
In fact, there are only three characters from the series in this book, the rest are new characters as this is a prequel right in the middle of that time listed as "The Cylons Send No One" in the opening credits of season one. Save for the invention of four ships larger than the Battlestars, the tries to connect the dots left in the flash backs of Tigh, Adama and Zarek's lives. While the story itself may not be canonical (good novelizations rarely are) it does offer interesting interpretations of these three characters that adds something to their characterization in the series.
The story itself reminded me a bit of Alan Dean Foster's interpretation of The Black Hole (1979) as it is told from the perspective of a group of outsiders trying to find the truth behind a station long since forgotten and apparently populated both by humans and Cylons. I liked how Gardener explores the tension between the four humans and the companions. Also some of the choices that the Cylons make for how the treat humans in this book provide some possible explanations for why the future Cylons "evolved" as they have.
June 27, 2024
Author Graig Shaw Gardner brings us a tale of the how during the years in between the Cylon wars that the Battlestar Galactica stumbled across a research station that had been run by both human and cylon. The book opens with the signal that starts the first Cylon war. Then we meet Tigh and he and Adama fight their way back to serving on the coloninal fleet. Aboard the Lighting, Tom Zarek is out in space for the first time and wants to make a name for himself. It's the Lighting that comes across Omega station first and sends down two vipers, their pilots see cylons and freak out since it's been twenty years since the war ended. The encounter ends badly causing the Lighting's captain to send Zarek and another team down. That ends badly too and they run into a dreadnought which destroys the escort viper and badly damages Zarek's craft forcing him to crash. They do get a signal out which causes the Galactica to come in. Everything goes to pot soon after and Adama finds out that someone that he once knew is the control center of the dreadnought. This is a great book and it's good to see what the Galactica was up to in the mid point between cylon wars. I highly recommend this book to all science fiction fans.
July 27, 2011
This on the whole was an awful book; reading more like poor fan-fiction than a tie-in novel. The pacing was very slow all the way through and there was little of no character development at all; which is a shame considering there was a potential for some good new characters in there.
The main problem for me were the glaring continuity errors with the established cannon in the series. It claims that Tom Zarek was born on Caprica to a well-off family, yet in the series he was born to a poor family on Sagitaron and his parents died when he was younger. The Vipers are misspelled a number of times as 'Vipes', or 'Vipes Pilots', and the Cylons are described as they are seen in the series yet it's established that they are the same as in the 70's original series during the first Cylon war.
It is also canon that no one has seen a Cylon since a couple of years after the war, yet SIX Battlestars are involved in a skirmish between a lost Cylon Dreadnaught and some space pirates. The hint at the end of Adama taking command of the Galactica was wrong as well as he commanded the Valkyrie before the Galactica.
All in all I was very disappointed by this book and would recommend fans avoid it. Hopefully the second, third and future novels are better than this
The main problem for me were the glaring continuity errors with the established cannon in the series. It claims that Tom Zarek was born on Caprica to a well-off family, yet in the series he was born to a poor family on Sagitaron and his parents died when he was younger. The Vipers are misspelled a number of times as 'Vipes', or 'Vipes Pilots', and the Cylons are described as they are seen in the series yet it's established that they are the same as in the 70's original series during the first Cylon war.
It is also canon that no one has seen a Cylon since a couple of years after the war, yet SIX Battlestars are involved in a skirmish between a lost Cylon Dreadnaught and some space pirates. The hint at the end of Adama taking command of the Galactica was wrong as well as he commanded the Valkyrie before the Galactica.
All in all I was very disappointed by this book and would recommend fans avoid it. Hopefully the second, third and future novels are better than this
July 31, 2013
BSG is quite possibly one of the best written Sci Fi shows ever created. So, the chance to expand my knowledge of the universe in the novels was irresistible. I cracked the book having visions of Zahn's 'Heir to the Empire' with Cylons.
Wow what a disappointment. Characters were flat; the author managed to tell a story involving several of the primary BSG characters without actually adding anything to their personalities. There was no suspense build up. There was a distinct discontinuity with the series. The novel felt like it had been written by a hack who wanted to cash in on the popularity of the series but felt he was too good to do his research or even watch the entire series. Which is too bad. BSG deserves the best novelists at their best. Too bad too, because the storyline of Cylons and humans working together is very interesting one with a great deal of potential.
Wow what a disappointment. Characters were flat; the author managed to tell a story involving several of the primary BSG characters without actually adding anything to their personalities. There was no suspense build up. There was a distinct discontinuity with the series. The novel felt like it had been written by a hack who wanted to cash in on the popularity of the series but felt he was too good to do his research or even watch the entire series. Which is too bad. BSG deserves the best novelists at their best. Too bad too, because the storyline of Cylons and humans working together is very interesting one with a great deal of potential.
November 5, 2016
As a fan of the TV series, I wanted to read some BSG "extra-series" fiction to see what it was like.
This book has serviceable enough writing, not great but not as bad as these sorts of books sometimes get (i.e. some of the Star Wars universe books are much worse in their writing). There is a mildly entertaining story. The only characters with any real depth or interest are the three from the TV series - and this is not due to the author, but rather the memory of the depth of these characters from the show. Mostly forgettable. That said, I really didn't have very high expectations going in, so I wasn't surprised or disappointed about this.
I finished this because it is a short book and because I wanted to tally it for this year's reading challenge.
This book has serviceable enough writing, not great but not as bad as these sorts of books sometimes get (i.e. some of the Star Wars universe books are much worse in their writing). There is a mildly entertaining story. The only characters with any real depth or interest are the three from the TV series - and this is not due to the author, but rather the memory of the depth of these characters from the show. Mostly forgettable. That said, I really didn't have very high expectations going in, so I wasn't surprised or disappointed about this.
I finished this because it is a short book and because I wanted to tally it for this year's reading challenge.
March 30, 2012
This is a very simply written but nevertheless fun book to read. If you love Battlestar Galactica like I do, this book can be a welcome look into some of the backstory. It takes place between the Cylon wars and wasn't quite inline with what happened in the tv series. I loved it. I wish there were lots more. It includes Saul Tigh, Bill Adama, Tom Zarek, Athena and Skeeter. There was a mysterious and marvelous science research outpost where scientiists and cylons worked together beautifully untill other humans and cylons showed up. Great fun. I stayed up aliitle late to read it but sleep prevailed and then I dreamed of cylons. I am such a nerd.
December 21, 2008
This novel is set before the mini-series, between the first and second Cylon wars. It's beautifully written and explores familiar characters in a pre-war setting, and centres around a research station where cylons and humans worked together to find common ground. Of course, a great bulk of it doesn't quite fit with where the series is now, and as such it is interesting as more of a "what-if" rather than adding to the story.
A thought experiment for fans, but a very enjoyable one.
A thought experiment for fans, but a very enjoyable one.
February 22, 2010
I do judge books by the covers as I find that the back cover info page gives away too much. So in doing so, this cover and even the title of the book is a little misleading. It was still a worthwhile read. Takes place before Adama is captian of the Galactica. Interesting story about a science experient on the edge of the galaxy that has seemingly remained untouched by the Cylon/Colony war. Quick read with a twisting plot.
March 24, 2015
This... ugh. Okay. I don't like to say bad things about books. Let's just say that it didn't fit with what I remember of the tv series. Things happen that.. they'd have been mentioned, is all. It was okay to read, kept me entertained. But.. I've learned my lesson (again) about books based on tv shows.
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