From Publishers Weekly
Careful plotting and realistically messy detail help lift Dietz's sixth military SF novel (after 2003's For More Than Glory) about the Legion of the Damned, an army of biobod humans, aliens and brain boxes installed in mechanical bodies, which defends the Confederacy of Sentient Beings against any threat. The present enemy, the insectoid Ramanthians, needs more planets to accommodate their queen's billions of eggs. When the Confederacy learns that a Ramanthian research outpost has developed a communications device that could win the war, an expedition sets out to capture the new technology. In particular, a young first lieutenant must lead his troops through the perils of jungle, desert and ambush by psychotic renegades. Meanwhile, a young woman diplomat discovers that one of the Confederacy's alien races is secretly aiding the Ramanthians. Characters attempt to gather information, make political alliances and maneuver skillfully, but often their efforts degenerate into groping, murderous frenzy. Dietz expertly jumps from one theater of combat to another, one side to another, to show the opponents planning but then improvising as plans go awry. Even if the novel's action sometimes is as manipulative as a WWF Smackdown, it still gives a genuine adrenaline rush. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Dietz's new Legion of the Damned novel lands the Confederacy on the chill planet Algeron. The natives' welcome is also chill, for they fear that the alien Ramanthians will pursue the legion across the stars and devastate their home. Meanwhile, legion general Booly gets an intelligence windfall: in a Ramanthian fortress lies the key to instantaneous interstellar communication. The military advantages of this are too obvious to require comment, so the legion puts together a special ops mission to steal the secret or at least keep the enemy from getting it. Leading the mission is hardy, larger-than-life series perennial Lieutenant Santana, whose adventures, and also those of the humans and aliens he leads, constitute the usual fast-paced adventure we have come to expect in this series and from Dietz. Recommended for military sf collections, in particular. Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Book Description
In a galaxy where alliances shift like sand, the Legion of the Damned is humanity's first line of defense-and often last hope-against its enemies. Now, the acclaimed author of For More Than Glory delivers a gripping new novel of the soldiers-both human and cyborg-who step up when the chips are down...
When faster-than-light technology is discovered in the alien Ramanthians' possession, General William "Bill" Booly III and First Lieutenant Antonio Santana face an epic struggle-on two fronts-to save The Confederacy at any cost.
About the Author
William C. Dietz is the author of more than 20 science fiction novels, including the Legion of the Damned novels: Legion of the Damned, The Final Battle, By Blood Alone, By Force of Arms, and For More Than Glory. He grew up in the Seattle area, spent time with the Navy and Marine Corps as a medic, graduated from the University of Washington, lived in Africa for half a year, and has traveled to six continents. He and his wife enjoy traveling, boating, snorkeling, and not too surprisingly, reading books.
For Those Who Fell: A Novel of the Legion of the Damned FROM OUR EDITORS
The Barnes & Noble Review
In For Those Who Fell, the sixth installment in William C. Dietz's Legion of the Damned saga (By Force of Arms, For More than Glory, et al.), heroic soldiers like General William "Bill" Booly III and Lieutenant Antonio Santana continue to fight for freedom against the ever-opportunistic insectoid Ramanthians.
The war with the Ramanthians is supposedly over but as the Confederacy of Sentient Beings searches for a new capital, the devious Ramanthians continue to plot against the Confederacy by secretly dealing with the Thraki, a neutral race of master engineers who are helping retrofit thousands of military spacecraft for the Ramanthians -- for a considerable fee ("If you scrape my chitin, I'll polish yours"). The Bugs have also just made a momentous technological breakthrough by creating a hypercom: faster-than-ship communication.
While Booly helps to stabilize the new Confederacy capital on the planet Algeron, Santana is sent on an "off-the-cuff special ops mission" to the remote planet of Savas to find and steal the hypercom. Meanwhile, on the Ramanthian's Hive planet, the Queen is in the process of creating millions of new insectoid soldiers.
With the hardcore military ambience of David Weber's Honor Harrington saga and the sociological complexity of Alan Dean Foster's Commonwealth novels, Dietz's Legion of the Damned series is so much more than the sum of its parts. Fans of military science fiction who have yet to experience Dietz's storytelling prowess should make it a point to do so immediately. Are these novels first-rate military sci-fi? "Sir! Yes Sir!" Paul Goat Allen
FROM THE PUBLISHER
"In a galaxy where alliances shift like sand, the Legion of the Damned is humanity's first line of defense - and often last hope - against its enemies." "After the destruction of the ex-battleship that served as its capital, the Confederacy searches desperately to find a new home planet for its government. But the alien Ramanthians are not finished fighting - and no planet wants to host the Confederacy knowing the Ramanthians will follow." "But a new capital is born - on the snowy, windswept planet of Algeron, birthplace of General William "Bill" Booly III. The move meets with great resistance from the Algeron natives, forcing the part-alien Booly to fight political battles just as a disturbing discovery is made. Intelligence has detected a faster-than-ship communications antenna in a Ramanthian fortress. If this technology is integrated by the aliens, battles will be lost before they are begun. A special ops mission to seize the research facility is launched, under the command of First Lieutenant Antonio Santana, who is no more by the book than when he distinguished himself during the LaNor Rebellion." The stage is set for an epic struggle on both fronts, as two men - the much-decorated elder officer and the young upstart - each face enormous odds in their efforts to save the Confederacy at any cost. And in the course of the struggle, they will both suffer losses above and beyond the call of duty.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
Careful plotting and realistically messy detail help lift Dietz's sixth military SF novel (after 2003's For More Than Glory) about the Legion of the Damned, an army of biobod humans, aliens and brain boxes installed in mechanical bodies, which defends the Confederacy of Sentient Beings against any threat. The present enemy, the insectoid Ramanthians, needs more planets to accommodate their queen's billions of eggs. When the Confederacy learns that a Ramanthian research outpost has developed a communications device that could win the war, an expedition sets out to capture the new technology. In particular, a young first lieutenant must lead his troops through the perils of jungle, desert and ambush by psychotic renegades. Meanwhile, a young woman diplomat discovers that one of the Confederacy's alien races is secretly aiding the Ramanthians. Characters attempt to gather information, make political alliances and maneuver skillfully, but often their efforts degenerate into groping, murderous frenzy. Dietz expertly jumps from one theater of combat to another, one side to another, to show the opponents planning but then improvising as plans go awry. Even if the novel's action sometimes is as manipulative as a WWF Smackdown, it still gives a genuine adrenaline rush. Agent, Richard Curtis. (Oct. 5) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
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