TGB, Described
Posted on November 7, 2005 Posted by John Scalzi 34 Comments
Look, Amazon has up what I assume is the dust jacket copy for The Ghost Brigades:
The Ghost Brigades are the Special Forces of the Colonial Defense Forces, elite troops created from the DNA of the dead and turned into the perfect soldiers for the CDF’s toughest operations. They’re young, they’re fast and strong, and they’re totally without normal human qualms.
The universe is a dangerous place for humanity—and it’s about to become far more dangerous. Three races that humans have clashed with before have allied to halt our expansion into space. Their linchpin: the turncoat military scientist Charles Boutin, who knows the CDF’s biggest military secrets. To prevail, the CDF must find out why Boutin did what he did.
Jared Dirac is the only human who can provide answers — a superhuman hybrid, created from Boutin’s DNA, Jared’s brain should be able to access Boutin’s electronic memories. But when the memory transplant appears to fail, Jared is given to the Ghost Brigades.
At first, Jared is a perfect soldier, but as Boutin’s memories slowly surface, Jared begins to intuit the reason’s for Boutin’s betrayal. As Jared desperately hunts for his "father," he must also come to grips with his own choices. Time is running out: The alliance is preparing its offensive, and some of them plan worse things than humanity’s mere military defeat…
In case you didn’t know, no, the author doesn’t usually write up the text for the dust jacket copy; I actually don’t know who does (I assume it’s Patrick Nielsen Hayden in my case, but I’m not entirely sure). It reads a bit like the pitch I made for the book before I wrote it, but it’s not exactly what I wrote. Be that as it may, I’m perfectly happy with this text, which gives the basic plot set-up without revealing any of the major secrets. It’s a pretty decent come-on for the potential reader, I think.
Anyway, if you had no idea what The Ghost Brigades was about before, now you know. Within reason.
Nice.
Could have done without the “…elite troops created from the DNA of the dead…,” though. Kind of a spoiler for one of the neat twists in the first book.
Yeah, it’s one of the hazards of positioning a sequel, I suppose.
So John, is the Ghost Brigades going to be available in a Science Fiction Book Club edition? Yes / No / Too Early To Tell?
I’m planning how to best maximize my membership…
It sounds great, and it’s now on my Wishlist at Amazon. I notice that it’s scheduled to come out the day after my birthday, something which should be noted by a certain someone else who also reads this blog.
K
Richard:
No idea re: SFBC edition. I would assume so, considering the first one did reasonably well for them (it was on their best seller list for a few weeks), but as far as I know no deal has been reached.
I didn’t realize the Ghost Brigades used Imperial Star Destroyers…
Michael, I find your lack of faith disturbing.
Damn, but that’s got me hooked. Which, while academic since I’ve already intended to obtain The Ghost Brigades, bodes quite well for the ultimate performance of the book.
Congratulations, in advance, again.
-shudder-
I still can’t quite stomach the fact that I’m essentially a fan-boy on this site. Perhaps I should be at ease with it, and just go with it. With that thought in mind, fellow burgeoning Scalzi fans, what should call ourselves?
Scalziacs?
Scalziods?
Scalzians? (Second thought, no – “Scalzian” would probably be reserved as an adjective of superlative fart joke style.)
Scalzioons?
UFOS (Unimaginative Fans Of Scalzi)?
Rook:
“I still can’t quite stomach the fact that I’m essentially a fan-boy on this site.”
Eh. We’re all somebody’s fan boy. I know if I ever met Daniel Lanois, I’d probably drool on myself.
Anyway, if people here were really fanboys and fangirls, y’all wouldn’t argue with me so damn much. Real fans wouldn’t tell I’m as full of shit as you folks do on a regular basis. Which, of course, makes all of you much more fun than real fans.
What’s a “Sci-Fi Essential Book?” Are you being endorsed by the TV channel?
“Eh. We’re all somebody’s fan boy. I know if I ever met Daniel Lanois, I’d probably drool on myself.”
I’ve always loved his work, but I nearly wet myself when I heard Willie Nelson’s Teatro, which Lanois produced, through a good stereo system.
Not my favorite album ever, but the closest we’ll ever come to hanging out next to Willie whilst he’s playing. Ahhhh….
With that thought in mind, fellow burgeoning Scalzi fans, what should call ourselves?
I thought we had this discussion at one point. I remember something about it.
Ach, the brain, he is old and dim. Sux to get old. But that’s what search engines are for, isn’t it?
Harry Connolly:
“Are you being endorsed by the TV channel?”
Yes. It’s a joint thing between Tor and SciFi. Both Old Man’s War and The Ghost Brigades are being promoted in January on the SciFi.com Web site and in the SciFi magazine.
Why the change in artists for the covers? I really liked the original OMW cover.
Jim
Now, now. Some of us are fangirls.
I think “Scalzoonis” has a nice ring to it.
Jim:
“Why the change in artists for the covers?”
It’s complicated but has to do with secret cover art code to booksellers. I like the hardcover artwork as well (heck, I own the original), but the new artwork is good, too.
mythago: I think “Scalzoonis” has a nice ring to it.
Aye, it’s possible that you bear that elusive HANRTI gene which permits you to recognize pleasing auditory combinations. I lack it myself, and will just have to take your word for it.
I still have a preference for “Scalziacs”, because I feel that it captures my fundamental proclivity for using butcher knives rather than firearms when I fantasize about killing those I hate. How about a show of hands; how many other potential knife-weilding crazies in our demographic? Bare-handed and blunt-object crazies probably qualify as well. Come on now, don’t be shy.
How about a show of hands; how many other potential knife-weilding crazies in our demographic?
I must confess a fondness for knives and other edged weapons.
I think I’m disposed towards firearms, mainly because I find the mechanical and chemical complexity intriguing. Needless to say, I’m a fan of Counter-Strike… though it’d be nice if I weren’t so terrible at it. :-P
I agree with Rajesh… could’ve done w/o the ‘DNA of the dead’ spoiler, as I’ve been bad and not yet read OMW. <hangs head> It’s on my Christmas list, though, I promise!
While I do have a preference for complicated mechanical objects, I find most personal weapons don’t have enough authority for my tastes.
Brian, it’s not actually a spoiler for OMW, as it’s not a main plot point.
I haven’t had the time to read Old Man’s War yet, but I’ll certainly get it when it comes out in paperback. If it is as good as people say, I’ll certainly get the sequel too.
Yeah, when is OMW gonna be out in paper, anyway?
Its official release date is 12/27, which means you’ll probably see it before Christmas.
“Scalzers.”
Simple. Descriptive. Fun to say.
“Time is running out: The alliance is preparing its offensive, and some of them plan worse things than humanity’s mere military defeat…”The ellipsis at the end tells you, the potential buyer, that there’s more stuff in the book you might want to know about. Wicked clever, that.With that thought in mind, fellow burgeoning Scalzi fans, what should call ourselves?I’d say “dorks” probably covers it. (Hey, I liked Old Man’s War too, but I’m just sayin’.)
Wish Ghost Brigades was coming out sooner – I’m about to spend a lot (more) time on the couch reading. ah well….
Scalziac – definitely.
Loved the first book, definately gonna get Ghost Brigades. As for the Scalzi fan club thing, I liked the UFOS one.
I would suggest that John’s fans – or at least the female ones – could be “Scalz Girls” [sic], but that would be silly.
And lord knows we don’t want that.
Scalzones.
Ha!
John, that’s pretty cool about the cross-promotion. Congrats. I hope it brings in a ton of readers.
And I think that cover is pretty cool, too.
I sent the parents a link to OMW on Amazon when they asked about birthday presents. However, in what I considered a brilliant cost-saving measure, I sent them the link to the paperback version.
They picked up Book of the Dumb 2 instead. I found that more appropriate than I was quite comfortable with. Great read nonetheless.
Anyways, looking forward to this, and hopefully getting a copy of OMW for Christmas.
I hope your books make it to the following list even if the list caters only to a limited audience.
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/archives/2005/11/09/top_20_geek_novels_the_results.html