Sten (Sten #1)

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Like Stars in Heaven. The Fires of Coventry. Come and Take Them. Rita Longknife - Enemy Unknown.

A Myth of the Far Future. Enemy in the Dark. Rome An Axis of Time Novella. A Call to Vengeance. The Path of Duty. The Sea Without a Shore. The Return of the Emperor Sten 6. Fleet of the Damned Sten 4.

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Revenge of the Damned Sten 5. Empire's End Sten 8. The Wolf Worlds Sten 2. When The Gods Slept. There is a small chance that I will continue with this series, on one condition; I don't have to buy them. And even then, I am not sure if I will. Feb 08, Tom rated it liked it Recommends it for: Unforgettable Characters, Great Story Con's: Too much happened in the first novel that could've been stretched and explained better. Where can they go from here? I am a big fan of the Timura Trilogy by Allan Cole even though I have yet to read the third book for fear of a bad ending to the trilogy, stupid huh?

For some reason or another, I had yet to read the Sten series even though I was so in love with the characters Cole created in the Timura Trilogy. The benefit of reading a series well after it is over, is knowing how much time you have with the main character. It is always a fear of mine, when reading a new book, that I won't get to spend time with that character again.

Sten (Sten #1)

Sten is the epitome of a sci-fi classic that could've used a little more time to bake. The character of Sten is great, and you feel for his plight, but a few things get in the way.

Each chapter and section feel like segments of the story instead of a continuous flow. It will often make you re-read the last paragraph before continuing. Otherwise, it is a great story. There are many interesting and memorable characters to meet that you hope will be seen in the other Sten books, and fantastic settings that you won't forget when you pick up another book. While minor things held back a 4 or 5 rating, I am anxious to read the rest of the series and I highly recommend this book to any sci-fi fan or anyone who wants an introduction to Cole's work.

Oct 07, Christopher rated it it was amazing. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. D Sten is a book that pulls very little punches to the point that when the proverbial 'punch, knife or rifle blast' lands the story is already moving on to the next scene which draws the reader on at a breakneck pace!

D Characters grow throughout the book and are formed through the events that the Sten and Bet and others go through: D There are snippets of backstory that pop up that further flesh out the characters but the authors are certainly not afraid to remove characters left right an Wow! D There are snippets of backstory that pop up that further flesh out the characters but the authors are certainly not afraid to remove characters left right and centre in many various ways! D Sten has relentless pace that will keep you page turning: D There is a lot of humour in Sten some unexpectedly provided a lot of the time by the Emperor and his cooking habits!

D In addition there is a dark humour that permeates the book which can have you laughing at some scenes that out of context you really shouldn't be! D A fast inventive pacey book with a unique spin! Highly recommended and a great start to this series! View all 4 comments. But this book is closer to Haldeman's The Forever War with it's gritty action and angst-filled protagonist. Written with spare, impactful prose and the insight of one who has been to war and knows its horrors.

A good origin story for the series. Back when this book first came out, I loved it. I think I was 17 at the time and I just found it to be immense fun. Lots of action, some cool sci-fi stuff, a protagonist I could relate to, witty banter and a quick read. I probably read it another 3 or 4 times as the other books in the series came out. Upon rereading it again after more than 25 years have passed, I thoroughly enjoyed it once again.

Allan Cole and Chris Bunch were screenwriters, and that really comes across in this book.

The descriptions are spare without being sparse and the dialogue is punchy. Rarely in films do you hear characters say more than a couple lines at a time, particularly in action movies, and that's the case here. It also helps that Cole's dad was a spy for the CIA and Bunch was a Vietnam vet, which makes the military scenes ring true.

I was genuinely surprised at how well the science fictional aspects hold up. This is definitely in the Space Fantasy subgenre inhabited by Star Wars and Star Trek, but other than the computers being a little dated and big , it wasn't too bad. Usually this stuff ages badly, but it held up rather well, all things considered.

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This book, though, is fun in and of itself. It's not very deep, but it is plenty fast, and there's a brief section with miniature T. I actually think this would make for an excellent movie, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn it started life as a script. Mar 17, Michael Lawrence rated it it was amazing. I read this book on a dare, sort of What made this book a must read for me though was the overriding story arch that I could neither guess at nor imagine. The cover reminds me of old-style pulp fiction and I guess, in a way, that's what it is.

But the story-line I read this book on a dare, sort of But the story-line is so solid and the descriptions so complete that I would look around for my spacesuit to stave off decompression should an air-lock fail! Of course I'm exaggerating,but the story is immersive and if you plan of reading the first, trust me, you might as well get the other seven in the series as well or you'll be cursing silently why you didn't have them handy when you finish it and the wait is interminable.

I won't submit reviews for the other seven, except to say Jul 08, C.

Stegall rated it it was amazing. This tops my sci-fi all-time favorites This is one of those books that I read about once a year, just for the pure joy of it. Great character development, awesome military themes, Allan and Chris just nailed this one to the floor. It is just about perfect in every way for me. Sten is seen as a kid on a slave planet, who loses everything and has to make his own way in the horrible world he's in.

But, this g This tops my sci-fi all-time favorites But, this guy is not one to back down from any challenge. His character growth over the course of the novel is phenomenal and I would love to be his comrade-in-arms. Sten stands tall as one of my favorite literary characters of all time and throughout the entire series seven books , he continues to grow and surprise us and himself.

If you've not read these books, then do yourself a favor, all you sci-fi fans Apr 07, Michael rated it really liked it.

Although it was originally written in the early 80's the story holds up well even today. The action scenes are written exceptionally well and the characters and story will hold your interest if you are a fan of these genre's. Sten is a worker on a factory planet where it is next to impossible to work off your contract to the company. When his family is killed because of an uncaring company Sten decides to fight back.

This story is about his journey to revenge. I bought my copy of this book at a used book store in Crossville Tennessee. This copy was published in the U. I think that it is interesting how far this book has traveled. Jun 14, Freya rated it really liked it Shelves: I really enjoyed this book and it looks like it is set to be a good series, it took me a little while to get into the story and at some points I didn't really feel that I knew Sten as I suppose he had been through a fair deal and so was sort of numb and a bit "oh, ok".

I note that this book is also by I really enjoyed this book and it looks like it is set to be a good series, it took me a little while to get into the story and at some points I didn't really feel that I knew Sten as I suppose he had been through a fair deal and so was sort of numb and a bit "oh, ok". I note that this book is also by Chris Bunch, which probably explains a little while it took me a little while to get into this book, as his Dragonmaster Omnibus was the same - though I really enjoyed that too once I got to grips with it: Jun 19, Gregoire rated it it was ok Shelves: May 31, Cylentwolf rated it it was amazing.

Great start to the series. He is precursor to Mike Harmon. Oct 15, Al Philipson rated it really liked it. The first book in the Sten series. Fortunately it has a beginning, middle, and and END, so you don't have to read the next book unless you want more of the great writing. The middle moves kinda slow, but the military training described is fairly accurate probably because Chris Bunch was Airborne in 'Nam which makes it fairly interesting in itself. But both the beginning and the end are riveting, and kept me glued to the pages. I'll be reading the next one in the series I've already got them in The first book in the Sten series.

I'll be reading the next one in the series I've already got them in my library. Fortunately for everyone, there is an eBook version, so Amazon won't be running out of them anytime in the near future. And there are some dead-tree versions as well.

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It's a solid sci-fi novel. The only irritating thing was the overuse or repetitive use of the names. In chapter 16 on 7ish pages Sten's name is used 47 time. You might think, "well he is the main character and the book is about him", and I would say - fine, I don't mind.

But when every sentence and every paragraph starts with his name, one paragraph has 3 sentences all of them start with his name, one has it twice it just becomes annoying to read the book that way. It makes me feel like somebo It's a solid sci-fi novel. It makes me feel like somebody ignored editors comments. Enemy in the Dark.

Rome An Axis of Time Novella. A Call to Vengeance. The Path of Duty. The Sea Without a Shore. The Dog From Hell. The Darkness of God. The Wind After Time. The Return of the Emperor Sten 6.

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Fleet of the Damned Sten 4. Revenge of the Damned Sten 5. Empire's End Sten 8. The Wolf Worlds Sten 2. When The Gods Slept. Wolves Of The Gods. The Court of a Thousand Suns Sten 3.

Sten (Sten, #1) by Chris Bunch

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