The End of All Things

Executive Summary: I didn't enjoy this quite as much as [b:The Human Division 15698479 The Human Division (Old Man's War, #5) John Scalzi https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1341582413s/15698479.jpg 21356077], but it wraps things up nicely.Audio book: I've always enjoyed William Dufris as a narrator for this series. In this book, he splits time (2 stories a piece, with bonus material read by Mr. Dufris) with Tavia Gilbert who did the narration for [b:Zoe's Tale 2102600 Zoe's Tale (Old Man's War, #4) John Scalzi https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1301108028s/2102600.jpg 18280032]. This seemed like a good choice, as each narrated the story from characters of their gender. Both do an excellent job, and this is definitely a series that works well in audio, but then, I think that's the case for all of Mr. Scalzi's novels.Full Review[b:The Human Division 15698479 The Human Division (Old Man's War, #5) John Scalzi https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1341582413s/15698479.jpg 21356077] is probably my favorite of Mr. Scalzi's novels to date. Well, technically it wasn't really a novel, but a collection of short stories, but I consumed it as a novel. In a similar vein, this book is really a collection of four novellas.I'm not sure why he opted to tell fewer stories this time around, but I think it was slightly to the collection's detriment. That isn't to say I didn't enjoy it, but a story I didn't enjoy as much: Can Long Endure now stands out a lot more as one of four stories, rather than one of thirteen. It felt much slower, and in a book this short, I'd have liked more time spent on other things instead of following around a squad of soldiers. It would have worked much better if he cut it in half, and either did more in the final story, or told another story that moved the plot along more.Thankfully, the other three stories were much better. I particularly enjoyed This Hollow Union, and would put it right up there with the best stories in [b:The Human Division 15698479 The Human Division (Old Man's War, #5) John Scalzi https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1341582413s/15698479.jpg 21356077]. I can't recall if we got stories from inside the Conclave in the last book, but it was a nice addition here.The conclusion in Stand or Fall was quite good, though it felt a bit rushed due to the meandering in Can Long Endure. That said, considering this may be our last Old Man's War book for a long time, things are left in a good place. Harry Wilson probably remains my favorite character in the series, and it felt fitting to end things with his POV.The Life of the Mind does a good job resolving the cliffhanger ending from [b:The Human Division 15698479 The Human Division (Old Man's War, #5) John Scalzi https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1341582413s/15698479.jpg 21356077] quickly, but then drags a bit in the middle before getting really good and setting the stage for the rest of the book.The bonus material, which is an alternate take on The Life of the Mind was fine, but nothing special. I felt it added very little to the collection, but it's worth a listen if you've already bought it.Overall, this is a good book, that anyone who's read this far in the series won't want to miss, and I expect will be happy with.Story RatingsThe Life of the Mind - 3.5 starsThis Hollow Union - 4.5 starsCan Long Endure - 3 StarsStand or Fall - 4 stars

Dieser Teil der OMW Saga beschreibt (zusammen mit seinem Vorgänger) die Politik der Colonial Union.
Scalzi hat hier nicht nur den Protagonisten sondern auch die Erzählform geändert. Von einer durchgehenden Geschichte (Buch 1-4) zu vage verbundenen Kurzgeschichten. Deswegen war Wilson im Vorgänger auch nie wirklich greifbar, immer wenn es spannend wurde war es auch wieder vorbei und Wilson war immer etwas blass.

Dieser Band macht es anders:
Zum einen gibt es nur 4 große Geschichte und jede für sich bekommt ausreichend Zeit ohne zu lang zu sein.
Auch sind es zwar immer noch getrennte Geschichten, aber dafür stark miteinander verwoben und nichts erscheint im Kontext überflüssig.
Und zuletzt, alle Protagonisten scheinen den Untergang mit Sarkasmus zu begegnen. Und der wirkte auf mich nie aufgesetzt, musste sogar einige Male laut lachen.

Alles in allem: Schöner Abschluss, hat mir sehr viel Spass gemacht.

4,5 / 5 ...oder 9 von 10 ... oder “du hast die anderen 5 Bücher gelesen? Dann ließ dass gefälligst auch. Lohnt sich” / 10

Short Review: This continues with the style of Human Division as a short story collection. Scalzi is a good writer but I don't like the method. It ends up minimizing the character development to keep the action moving. Which is fine if you read primarily for action. But to me, it makes the book pretty forgettable once you are done.

My slightly longer review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/end-of-all-things/

“Acabamos de aprender lo fácil que es cambiar la historia del universo. Solo se necesita que todo lo anterior haya sido un desastre. Acompáñenme, señoras embajadoras. Anunciemos nuestra nueva era de paz juntas; que nadie nos arrebate tal honor. Y luego, vayamos de la mano a la guerra. Por primera y, esperemos, última vez.”

Luego de seis novelas, una noveleta y dos cuentos, esto llega a su fin, o, por lo menos, el fin de este arco narrativo. Antes de ponerme a llorar por llegar al final de la saga, tengo que decir que me consuela haber escuchado por ahí que Scalzi no descarta regresar en el futuro al universo de La Vieja Guardia con otro arco. ¡Esperemos!

El autor sabe que es esa prosa ágil y divertida lo que vende, de esa que no paras de leer y te comes el libro en algunos días. Si has leído The Sagan Diary puedes estar seguro de que Scalzi cuenta con la habilidad suficiente para escribir cosas mucho más profundas, el problema es que él mismo se ha marcado un estilo que tal vez no vaya con lo que queremos sus seguidores (tal vez esa fue la razón por la cual le di tres estrellas, no es mi tipo de lectura). En fin, yo me la paso genial y estoy dispuesto a tirar mi dinero a cualquier libro que salga de este univero; de hecho, cualquier cosa que diga Scalzi en la portada. Ahora con La Interdependencia tenemos para divertirnos un buen rato.

Ha sido un viaje tremendo.

Last book (so far) in the series. First half was pretty enjoyable, however went to a rushed and disappointing ending. Theoretically it nicely wraps the whole series' story while also leaving space for possible continuations. How it was done though leaves something to be desired with its naivety and sloppiness.