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Jonny Moreau becomes one of the Cobras--an invincible soldier with surgically implanted weapons--in order to help defeat the alien Troft, and years later, works for both human and Troth when a new menace arises. ... Read more

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Great story of a man's hope for self peace
The story of a man who finds himself transformed into a fighting machine and then shunned by his fellow beings.The government sends him and others like him to a planet to colonize the place.The story is gripping and has a very unusaual ending.I find this book fun to read.I've read it 3 times ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Good Bargain
"Cobra Bargain" is actually the third of what I guess would be the Cobra trilogy.I never read the first one (see special note) but I did read the second one, "Cobra Strike" that was fast-paced but flat.That is largely corrected with "Cobra Bargain"--and not just because it's longer.There's more character development in this story that makes it more enjoyable to read.

This is the third in the series, but each book is separated by 30 years or so and focuses on different generations of the Moreau family.The original "Cobra" focused on Jonny Moreau, who signed up to become a cyborg warrior known as a Cobra and fought aliens known as Trofts.The second book, "Cobra Strike" focuses on Jonny's children, especially Justin Moreau, who also becomes a Cobra and goes to a mysterious planet called Qasama that's populated by humans who make up for their lack of technology with paranoia about outsiders."Cobra Bargain" then focuses on Jonny's granddaughter--Justin's daughter--Jasmine Moreau, who becomes the first female Cobra.The "bargain" in the title comes in large part because Jasmine is allowed to become a Cobra and go on a spy mission to Qasama when her uncle agrees to quit politics if Jasmine fails.

Once the mission gets underway, though, the bargain becomes secondary to survival.The scout team's shuttle is shot down, leaving Jasmine as the lone survivor far, far behind enemy lines.On the plus side, Jasmine is fluent in the Qasama language.On the negative side, Qasamans view women as only a notch better than outsiders.

Jasmine is taken in by the Shammon family, whose young son becomes her warden--and maybe a bit more than that.While she recovers and tries to come up with a way to get home, Jasmine finds out there's bad stuff afoot on Qasama that could mean very bad things for everyone back home.

For the most part this retains the fast pace of "Cobra Strike" or Mr. Zahn's other books I read.In many ways it's similar to the later "Conquerors Trilogy" that similarly focuses on a multi-generational family and delves into the culture of an alien race.(The difference here being the "aliens" are human.)But as I mentioned before, there's more character depth in this book as it focuses mostly on Jasmine and the younger Shammon family son.There could perhaps have been a little more romantic tension, but for a sci-fi action story it's pretty good.

As a fan of Mr. Zahn's work since his "Star Wars" novels, it was interesting to read some of his earlier novels.The Jasmine character could be seen as a prototype to the Mara Jade character in his "Star Wars" books in that both are strong, independent females.(The difference being that Jasmine comes equipped with all sorts of cool lasers embedded in her skeletal structure while Mara Jade has a lightsaber.)I already mentioned the Conquerors books, which again these could be seen as a forerunner to.If you like a good light sci-fi story, then this isn't a bad read.

That is all. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (13)

The Fifth Dragonback novel - where Jack finally learns who he really is
Dragon And Judge is the fifth book in Timothy Zahn's Dragonback series, picking up shortly after where Dragon and Herdsman left off. As readers of the first four books will know, Jack, an orphan con-artist/thief (reformed, he insists) and Draykos, a warrior/poet of the dragon-like K'da, are working against a deadline to find out who was behind the attack on the advance fleet of refugee ships that Draykos' people were traveling on, an attack that left Draykos the only survivor. They originally only had two clues -- that the attack was carried out by mercenaries, and that the mercenaries had aliens known as Brummgas in their ranks. Now, after Jack's having first joined up with a mercenary group and then later having himself sold as a slave to a prominent Brummga household that also dabbles in mercenaries, they know all of the key players behind the attack. But they still do not know the exact time and place when the rest of the Shontine/K'da fleet is to arrive, which they must find out in order to prevent it from being ambushed.

Dragon And Judge starts with Jack and Draycos, along with Alison Kayna and her recently acquired K'da companion, Taneem, aboard the Essenay, but things quickly go awry when they decide to make a side-trip to a planet called Semaline in the hope of getting some cash for fuel. In a double case of seemingly mistaken identities, Jack is abducted by a group of Semaline natives known as the Golvins who are convinced that he is the judge they have been waiting for.And Alison is in turn abducted by the Malison Ring who believe her to be working for Jack's Uncle Virgil. The book alternates the action between what's happening with Jack and Draykos back on Semaline and what's happening with Alison and Taneem when they are taken to the Brummga estate where Jack had once been a slave.

"One of the Eytras was standing a little in front of the rest. It was, Alison knew, the position a leader would normally take. 'Good evening,' she said, nodding to all of them and then focusing her attention on the Eytra. 'Do I have the honor of addressing the Penitent?'
--A ripple of surprise ran through the group. The Eytra himself gave no visible reaction. 'I am,' he said. 'Stronlo is my name. Yours is Alison Kayna?'
--'Yes,' Alison confirmed. 'Why the name Penitent?'
--A flicker of pain crossed Stronlo's face. 'I was there when Jack Morgan offered us freedom. I failed to grasp that ofer, and have spent two months repenting my foolishness.'
--He straightened up. 'But now I have been given a second chance,' he said firmly. 'Now that you are here to free us.'
--Alison felt her throat go dry. Shoofteelee, back at the house, had had the same attitude. And the same assumptions. 'That's not exactly the case,' she said carefully. 'I came on a mission of my own.' She had a quick flash of inspiration -- 'At the request of Jack Morgan and the black dragon.'
--'She lies,' one of the Jantries murmured. 'She doesn't know the dragon. She's a spy.'
....
--'Then repeat for us the poem he spoke to the human Noy,' the Jantri said.
--'You must be joking,' Alison protested. 'That dragon has hundreds of poems swimming around his brain. I have no idea which one he hauled out for Noy.'
--'Then perhaps you do not know him after all,' the Jantri growled.
--'The poem begins this way,' the Compfrin beside her offered helpfully.
--'The night was calm, the battle near,
-- The enemy was set with fear,
-- Their eyes had hearkened,
-- The sky had darkened
-- Memories we held so dear.'
--'No,' came a quiet voice from behind them.
--The entire group spun around, their weapons snapping reflexively up into ready positions. And there they froze as a muffled gasp rippled through their ranks.
--Taneem was crouched above them on a large tree limb, her silver eyes shining like tiny moons in the darkness. 'That was incorrect,' she said into the taut silence. '_This_ is the correct poem:
--'The night was calm, the battle near,
-- The enemy was wet with fear.
-- Their ears were hearkened;
-- They had darkened
-- Memories we held so dear.'
--She switched her tail, her eyes shifting to the Jantri. 'I am not the black dragon,' she said. 'But perhaps I will do.'

This fifth book is more on a par with the first two volumes, particularly as it advances the plot considerably with a number of revelations, most significant of which is Jack's finding out who his parents really were and who he really is.However, like the third and fourth volumes, it still annoys me at times in that the plot sometimes requires certain characters to either be dumber than they are or at the very least conveniently forgetful. There's still a lot to be wrapped up in the sixth and final volume, and I look forward to reading it and seeing how it all ends. Recommended.

One Giant Step Forward
Dragon and Judge (2007) is the fifth SF novel in the Dragonback series, Following Dragon and Herdsman.In the previous volume, Jack, K'da and Alison herded the Erassvas and Phookas through the forest.They outmaneuvered the Malison Ring mercenaries several times.

Then Frost drove them to the river with a forest fire.Unfortunately for the mercenaries, Uncle Virge was lurking in the river and damaged the transport vessel.Jack and his friends then left the planet in a very conspicuous manner.

In this novel, Jack Morgan was a con artist before he met Draycos.Now he is a young man who hosts a K'da.

Draycos is a K'da, a species that is symbiotic with other beings.Draycos can spread himself over Jack's body like a tattoo.Draycos is also a warrior-poet with the mission of warning his people of the ambush that killed his comrades.

Alison Kayna is a thief and spy.She had escaped with Jack from the Malison Ring mercenary unit on Sunright.Now she has become the host of Taneem.

Taneem is a K'da, but knows little about her species.She had been a symbiont of an Erassva on Rho Scorvi and thus lacked education and training.Now she is Alizon's symbiont.

Uncle Virge is a simulated personality within the computer on Jack's ship.He is a copy of Jack's Uncle Virgil.He has most of Virgil's skills and quirks, but cannot override orders from Jack.

Maximus Frost is a Colonel within the Malison Ring mercenaries.He is a rogue, on the payroll of Arthur Neverlin.They apparently arranged the ambush of the Shontine/K'da advance party.

In this story, Taneem is learning to read.She learns the lessons with some difficulty because of the idiosyncrasies of the language.Draycos supplements her reading with stories of the K'da and their Shontine hosts.

Jack is trying to hack into another Malison Ring computer system, but it locks him out.Alison offers to help, but Jack is mot willing to give her have access to the communicator.He still doesn't trust her.

Jack and his friends need to discover where the Shontine and K'da are planning to meet with their contacts in this space.They assume that their enemies know the rendezvous point.Now they have to pick another Malison Ring station to try again.

Uncle Virge tells them the location of the two nearest stations.Although Montenegro is closest, Jack tells him to go to Vers'tekim.When asked why, Jack says that he wants to go to Semaline, which is on the way to Vers'tekim.

Virgil had often stopped at Semaline.When he went to the bank at the spaceport, Jack was always left behind.Now Jack wants to see what is inside Virgil's lockbox.

Arriving a Semaline, Jack goes to the bank with Draycos spread on his skin.Before he reaches the bank, however, three natives smell his scent and declare him a Jupa.They take him -- despite his protests -- to their home in a desert canyon.

Later, Alison goes to the bank to find Jack, but without success.She does retrieve the items within the lockbox, but two men accost her and take her prisoner.They fly her off the planet to a spaceship, where Colonel Frost confronts her.She is told to break into a safe.

This tale gives Jack some important information about his parents.Alison also gains information about the Shontine/K'da rendezvous.Taneem learns a few lessons about being a K'da warrior.

This story advances Jack and Draycos toward their contact with the Shontine/K'da.The next volume -- Dragon and Liberator -- may complete their mission.Read and enjoy!

Recommended for Zahn fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of high adventure, alien customs, and youthful agents.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Dragon and Judge: The Fifth Dragonback Adventure
The Dragonback series is in my opinion a wonderful adventure for young adults of all ages.The Dragon and Judge is the fifth in the series and I am still captivated by the story and the message that it shares with the reader. Jack and Dracos are becoming more than a team.Together they are better than they could have ever been alone.In this book Jack discovers who his parents really were, Judge/Palidins, and they died trying to fight for the rights of a species that wouldn't have a voice otherwise.Jack risks his life trying to do the right thing and Dracos is hurt in the process, which up's the emtional stake.As a contrast Jack's friend Allison from earlier books is on a mission of her own retrieving information about Dracos' people.As she builds a relationship with her dragon, she finds herself making choices she would not normally make.I can't wait to read the next book!

Great Book
My son is hooked on this series.Each one is well written and holds the attention.Dragon and Judge has a bit more humor than the others because of the aliens.

Decent Series
This entire series is vetted as for "young readers" and while it is not a complex, deep philosophical book it kept my interest through out and I am 54 so this is one I have shared with my thirteen year old and we have been equally satisfied with it.

Me because it was entertaining enough and not in anyway condenscending in tone and to my thirteen year old as the main character is fourteen. LOL.

I recommend the entire series ... Read more

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The books that turned the tide
These books reshaped the the way people thought about Star Wars. Their action, and amazing plot, gave the idea a rebirth which continues to this day. Read these books, they're well worth the time and money.

The books that brought back the Force!
There was a time almost a decade ago when SW was dead, a thing from the past, then one day passing by a bookstore something called my attention "Heir to the Empire", What's this? I wondered, and as I wasreading page after page of this novel I relived the thrill and excitementand dreams from my childhood. Undoubtely this trilogy (completed by"Dark Force Rising" & "The Last Command") are asclose to the original vision of George Lucas as they could have been and itis the best story of all the Expanded Universe. Now with the audiobookversion I will have a chance to listen to the story everytime that I desireit. If you haven't read the books, buy this audio version, you won't regretit. ... Read more

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The Empire is dying; but like a dog near death, the Empire is at its most dangerous, ready to lash out with nothing to lose. Grand Admiral Thrawn may have found just the firepower needed to take a bite out of the New Republic: some two hundred Dreadnaught heavy cruisers, lost to hyperspace in the days of the Old Republic. Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewbacca may be up against more than they bargained for, but it`s not the first time the odds have been stacked against them! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

The middle of a great trilogy
Dark Force Rising is the second book in the Thrawn Trilogy and is a great continuation of the struggle between the Republic and Grand Admiral Thrawn's forces. What we are most interested in this time is the legendary Katana fleet, a large fleet of dreadnoughts lost years ago in the depths of space. It is somewhat difficult to imagine that a fleet of this size has never been found, but space is a big place. The fleet is considered to be a myth by most people, but a few know otherwise. Both sides desperately want to find the dreadnoughts as they could prove to be the difference in the war.

Mara Jade and the smuggler Talon Karrde play major roles in this tale. Karrde wants to remain neutral and profitable, but Thrawn forces his hand by attacking the smuggler's base of operations on Myrkr. Mara Jade is an extremely interesting character. She is determined to kill Luke because of his role in the death of the Emperor, but she just never seems to be able to actually do it. She works with Karrde and then with Thrawn and creates several interesting complications.

Luke is still involved with trying to shape the Jedi movement, and he is drawn into a confrontation with the rogue Jedi (or Jedi clone) Joruus C'baoth on Jomark. C'baoth considers himself to be the true leader of the Jedi, and he wants Luke as well Leia and her twins so he can train them in what he espouses to be the correct Jedi way. Leia is busy for much of the book trying to make allies of the Noghri, an alien species that is an excellent addition to the Star Wars realm.

The Thrawn Trilogy is consistently outstanding. I believe that any Star Wars fan will love all three books in this series.

Star Wars: Dark Force Rising
It is basically a short review of the great book written by Zahn.I recommend the novel and this as a refresher for later times.

Dark Force Rising makes me want to read it over and over
This book is awesome. It was unnerving how calm Thrawn was. This book is so good that after I'm done with The Last Comand I'm going to read it again.

Good story, but read the novels first
For starters, I read the novel version of this Star Wars story prior to the graphic novel when I was still in college. Fortunately, it's safe to say that I wasn't disappointed in any way. SW: Dark Force Rising was one of my favorite books in the SW mythos and it still is up to now. It features the classic SW characters fans have loved throughout the years of their existence. The book also features some of the really cunning newcomers, which rival that of Darth Vader's infamous exploits. Although I'm sure right now there are better books out there (i.e., Shadows of the Empire, Episode I: Phantom Menace, etc.) Dark Force Rising is an exceptional read and serves as the best intermediary book in Timothy Zahn's Star Wars trilogy.

I admit the Dark Horse Comics adaptation have some faults in them that tends to 'lessen' the depth and impact of the characters as well as put to vagueness the tactical intelligence of the villains originally depicted in the novels, but we can't squarely put the blame on the creative team's shoulders. I know they did their best to cram 400-plus pages of written material into a 144-page graphic album format. In fact they did quite an impressive job despite certain art flaws and story sequence gaps. Dark Horse has managed to give itself some of the much needed credit by telling a very good story for readers (average and avid alike) to be permanently hooked to the Star Wars mythos.

A cool graphic novel to collect if you're the 'completist' type. Though the graphic novel is a real eye candy, I only give it four stars for the little details the creative team failed to put in. Otherwise the book is a good read and well worth your hard-earned cash. But, if you have a better alternative, look for other Star Wars graphic novels instead.

Okay.
Although good, and one of the first ever to be written, Dark Force Rising lacks realism.Timothy Zahn, I have found tends to make all of the main characters look wussie.A real imperial commander (not wimpo Thrawn) wouldn't have put up with C'Baoth at all, but shot him at the first disobeying of his orders.Like I said, lacks realism. ... Read more

Product Description
Available for the first time, all three audio books in Zahn's bestselling trilogy--Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, and The Last Command--in a unique collector's edition gift box. 6 cassettes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Better than the origianal series "10 fold"
Hey look I'm Keanu Reeves, "Whooaa!"

Excellent Collection
A great way to have all 6 audiotapes for the Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn. Anthony Daniels and Denis Lawson do an excellent narration for the books, and provide some excellent personalization for the characters. Definately a recommended purchase for the Star Wars fan. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent collection of Zahn's early work
Timothy Zahn is one of the most imaginative science fiction authors writing today. He has written a large number of novels, which range from fair to excellent, and is probably best known for his contributions to the "Star Wars" Universe, particularly the novels in which he bought to life the character of Grand Admiral Thrawn and his people, the Chiss. However, Zahn's four short story collections are perhaps his best achievement.

This collection is named for a story set in a Universe where the pilot of a star ship, as it travels between the stars, passes through "Cascade points" where he or she will see a pattern of images showing how he or she might have appeared in a slightly different reality in which different major lifestyle choices had been made.

Sometimes Zahn revisits the characters or wider universe he created in previous short stories. For example, his subsequent book "Distant Friends" contains the story "The Evidence of things not seen," which is a direct sequel to the title story of "Cascade Point."

Another very memorable story is "The Giftie Gie Us" (as in the Robert Burns poem, "Oh Wud some Powr the giftie gie us, to see our selves as others see us.") Set in a post-holocaust Canada, a World War Three veteran meets and falls in love with a blind woman. Then he wonders how she can appreciate what is going on around her ...

All these short stories are disciplined and to the point, as they have to be to make this format work: they are also very accessible and easy to read.

As with his novels, Timothy Zahn's short stories are characterised not just by an amazing range of weird ideas about the creatures or scientific principles we might find in the universe, but also about the difficult moral choices which humans - and other intelligent creatures - might face as a result.

Some of these stories have a romantic element, some don't, and when they do the hero may or may not get the girl. Since Zahn doesn't write to a formula in this respect, you cannot always see a romance coming, or predict the outcome. This makes some of the stories more satisfying and others more poignant.

If you like these stories, you will like his other collections which are:

Distant Friends (and others)
Time Bomb and Zahndry Others
Star Song and other stories

Wonderful compilation of Zahn's early work
This book is a great read whether you know Zahn's other work or not. Filled with several solid short stories, the author also takes the time to explain where some of the ideas came from as well as why he has problems with some of the stories. I felt that there was potential full length novels (or at least worlds where a novel could be set) that I haven't seen him visit yet, so hopefully additional readers of this book will feel the same way. ... Read more

Product Description
Les achats comprennent une adhésion à l'essai gratuite au club de livres de l'éditeur, dans lequel vous pouvez choisir parmi plus d'un million d'ouvrages, sans frais. Le livre consiste d'articles Wikipedia sur : Eric Flint, David Weber, David Drake, Timothy Zahn, John Ringo, Roland J. Green, Jane Lindskold, Linda Evans. Non illustré. Mises à jour gratuites en ligne. Extrait : Eric Flint (né en Californie, États-Unis, 1947) est un auteur américain de science-fiction et de fantasy. Certains de ses principaux travaux portent sur de la science-fiction dans des Histoires alternative à la nôtre, mais il écrit également des aventures de fantasy pleines d'humour. Flint a un master en histoire spécialisé dans l'histoire africaine occidentale. Il a abandonné son programme doctoral sur les problèmes politiques et a subvenu à ses besoins jusqu'à l'âge de 50 ans en tant que travailleur : machiniste et superviseur. Depuis longtemps, activiste politique de gauche, Flint a travaillé en tant que membre du Parti socialiste des travailleurs. Après avoir gagné en 1993 le concours de l'Auteur du futur, il a édité son premier roman en 1997 et se consacre à l'écriture à temps plein depuis 1999. En plus, il a édité les travaux de plusieurs auteurs classiques de SF, compilant leurs histoires courtes dans des collections et des romans retravaillés. Bien qu'une partie de ces éditions ont engendré une certaine polémique, les collections résultantes ont été des réussites commerciales, obligeant à des rééditions. En date de 2004, il vit avec son épouse Lucille à East Chicago, Indiana. Eric Flint est noté comme rédacteur de la bibliothèque libre de Baen qui était une expérience dans l'édition électronique (des eBooks dans des formats non codés) où Flint et Jim Baen ont convaincu des auteurs de mettre des copies libres entièrement non protégées de divers de leur travaux pour le téléchargement par l'Internet. Commencé comme une expérience pour voir si ceci au...http://booksllc.net/?l=fr ... Read more

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Word count: 5290. ... Read more