#halo novels

[bloodgulchblog]

Have you seen that YouTube video where some guy reads every Halo novel back to back and then reviews them? If so what did you think

The Brian David Gilbert one? Oh yeah, all my friends showed me it when it came out. (It was honestly kind of cute seeing how many people thought of me immediately.)

Rewatching it to refresh myself because it's been a couple years and a full-novel reread for me since the last time...

High fiving BDG because the Master Chief parts of The Flood were definitely the most boring parts.

He didn't have anything to say about First Strike which I think is a shame because I think it's better than The Fall of Reach and actually has A Theme I Find Interesting.

Rightful recognition of Contact Harvest as pretty damn good.

Rightful recognition of the Forerunner Trilogy as dense oldschool-style SF with deep worldbuilding. (Also the San'Shyuum thing.)

I disagree with him about, and have significant problems with, Kilo Five. He is correct that Kilo Five actually delves into some of the dark places in Halo in a way it really needed, and I would even say that its writing is extremely engaging by Halo novel standards. However, while he does notice the obvious parallels between what ONI is doing post-war and the kind of shit the CIA has pulled again and again irl, I think he misses some of the subtext I see where it feels like it justifies some shit a liiiiittle too much if you know the author's irl politics re: the military. He also doesn't seem to notice the character assassinations (particularly of Catherine Halsey) that I and a lot of other fans see/object to in those books. I kind of gaze into the middle distance with a haunted expression at the suggestion that these are the ones to read if you don't touch any of the others just because they are, ironically, so heavy-handed and feel like they treat certain kinds of evil as inevitable in a way that actually feels way worse to me than the excuse plot offered by the earlier/lighter Halo novels. (But idk, that's me? Nobody is committing a crime if they disagree with my frenzied insane person red string diagrams about Kilo Five.)

I'd swap Pariah for Dirt in the Evolutions anthology if it were me, but I think these are solid standouts.

Broken Circle is neat but really nonessential he's not wrong.

A one-sentence review of New Blood is probably not enough space to get into how fucked up the Spartan-IV program is, but yeah. New Blood is fun if you don't find Buck's first person narration annoying. (It comes and goes for me in that one.)

BDG you're an absolute sweetheart, I think Hunters in the Dark is kind of goofy in a way I cannot in good conscience ignore if I'm gonna review it. But it really really is so much fun and I love that one a lot anyway. The "it's like Halo 3... 2" observation is solid.

High fiving him again because I also found Last Light disappointing. And it is also a me problem.

Fractures!

Hell yeah these are all good pulls from Fractures, I would say Shadow of Intent is the pick of the litter in that anthology for me. Interesting that as a Kilo Five enjoyer he didn't single out Rossbach's World, which is the last we've heard about Osman and Black Box. (Also, that one is good.) I think Oasis is worth an honorable mention because I'm an Envoy stan, and the Forerunner stories are interesting but I wouldn't go for them if you don't already have a healthy interest in the trilogy.

This tangent is so fucking funny now that we know more things:

Oh BDG, oh buddy, it's really not for the people like you and me huh. (Disclaimer: I have no idea if BDG likes the Halo tv show or not and I have no desire to dig up evidence about it.)

Also, while you're here, this is the bloodgulchblog origin story:

Smoke and Shadow is fun so it's a little sad that when he ends that sentence with "whatever," I can't actually say he's wrong to. (Sorry Rion your part of the lore just.... hasn't... touched anything that touches anything else anymore.)

ENVOY IS GOOD AND EVERYONE SHOULD CARE ABOUT IT okay okay I'm cool I'm normal, anyway. Envoy is the Halo novel that restored my faith in reading Halo novels and reminded me that authors can care and know how to do nuanced, interesting themes in this space. It's great. Everyone in this book has war refugee trauma (except the Spartans which have Spartan trauma) and that's incredible to me. Please care about Envoy if you have spare room in your heart for Halo side characters.

I am cheered to see someone indifferent to the Veta Lopis stories, but I still feel petty for feeling it.

I don't have a lot to say about Legacy of Onyx here but it's always so fun seeing someone else suffer and care.

Bad Blood, the Blood is Bad now is a fun joke but lol yeah. It does have this very vital moment where Chief and Arbiter talk, though. For the first and only time in years.

PROPS FOR NOTICING THE YA NOVELS they're actually pretty nice.

"The Master Chief is the protagonist and boy does he shoot some people" is most of how I feel about Silent Storm and Oblivion too, I know they have their fans but Troy Denning's Chief books don't do much for me personally.

Renegades hadn't had its followup Point of Light yet but yeah, Spark stuff is interesting.

I had to remember that oh yeah, there are multiple books now that didn't exist when this was made. I wonder if he read them?

OKAY I THINK THAT'S ALL I HAD TO SAY as always if y'all want specific book opinions, I might have a tag for them. Or just yell in my ask box, I'm sure I can scrounge up some thoughts.

[holyshonks]

Halo: Epitaph Review

You got that right! Spoilers below the cut.

I want to start by saying that this book felt like an apology in the same way that Infinite is an apology.

The first quarter to half of the book is just summarizing the events of the Forerunner trilogy, Halo 4, and Escalation, in the form of the Didact slowly regaining his memories. While I definitely appreciated the refresher (I forgot a lot since then), I also couldn't help but wonder who it was for. To anyone who had never engaged with any of that media, a huge amount of the book is just a rather dull recounting of events in a desert setting. To that end, the book feels targeted directly at people who love the Forerunner stories and were horrified by the hasty introduction and death of the Didact. It is, in essence:

"We're sorry we took a pivotal, beloved character with a rich story arc, introduced him to the fandom at large with zero context, and then killed him in a shitty comic. What if we did this instead?"

And is it an upgrade? Well, let's see.

The Plot

The plot of the book is that, after being super-composed (sigh), the Didact awakens in a strange desert, stripped of his memories. He slowly regains them, becoming stronger in both body and mind. He is angry at humanity, and is determined to destroy them. We get caught up with the story so far, as well as some new Didact backstory. He discovers a Haruspis, a Forerunner rate that served as custodians to the Domain, who tells him that they are outside the dormant Domain, which shut down after the Halos were fired. Forerunner souls cannot pass into it anymore because of this, including the Didact. Also, Cortana is there, trying to convince the Warden Eternal, who is guarding the Domain, to let her in. The book becomes about both foiling Cortana, who wants the Domain to herself, and killing the Warden Eternal so that the Domain can be reactivated. Lots of failed attempts, some arguing with Cortana. Along the way, he runs into other souls who are trapped outside the Domain, including, to his surprise, his old enemy, Forthencho. He explains that humans that were composed also come here. They scuffle. Didact gets punched a bunch.

Eventually the Warden sides with Cortana and allows her in the Domain, and she looses her Created upon it. The Didact makes another attempt to enter, and kills some AIs while he's at it, including this one, who has a wine mom personality that I found amusing.

Now we're in the last quarter of the book, where things start to get interesting. All the while, the Warden is chasing the Didact with his millions of forms across the Domain, leading to a Scooby-Doo-style villain chase where the Didact is throwing himself through portals and doors to evade him and eventually find Cortana. By this point, the Didact has softened and he no longer wants vengeance. There's no discussion of the Xalanyn, which I was hoping for. In a moment I don't agree with, the Didact tries to reason with Cortana and says some things that clearly rattle her before he takes his leave. Next, the final standoff with the Warden, with the help of the friends the Didact made in the desert.

The thing I liked about the last portion of the book is that it finally feels the way the Forerunner trilogy felt: a universe that felt endless and expansive, but also, a classic coming-of-age with unlikely allies. In fact, just as I thought that, the book said this:

It also had that familiar thread of silliness, such as the Didact clowning on Haruspis' hat, and during the last final battle, where, after acquiring a quantum sword, the Didact learns that the Warden has a larger, better quantum sword.

They fight, Didact wins, hooray. He reactivates the Domain and he and Forthencho make a wager to see who can get rid of the most AIs that are still in the Domain. In addition, human souls(?) can now access the Domain. However, as expected, the Didact's final action is to reunite with his wife.

The Thoughts

This book is essentially just a re-write of the Didact's ending, giving him a proper close that I didn't really realize I wanted or needed, but actually? I missed the Didact. I liked the Didact, a lot, something I kind of forgot after Halo 4. I also forgot how nice it is to read from the perspective of a Forerunner with context about the tech. Most of what we see in Halo are people marveling at the mystery of Forerunner objects. Here, the Didact knows exactly what he's looking at, which was refreshing.

This book was very much written for lore-loving Halo fans who were disappointed to see how he was killed off. It had to be, because the people who only play the games wouldn't know who he is, or the stupid way he died. On the other hand, that makes this book pretty dull for the uninitiated. I would not recommend this book to a newcomer.

Cortana absolutely did not need to be in this book. Not in the slightest. It seems like they were just trying to further entrench Eviltana to account for Infinite, while also finding a way to get rid of her army of AIs. I really didn't like the implication in the book that Cortana changed her mind about taking over the galaxy because of the Didact. One of the things I actually liked in Infinite is that Cortana realized that her actions were wrong, and tried to make up for it on her own accord. Having the Didact convince her of the error of her ways really cheapens this moment.

The other thing that kind of fell flat is the Didact's belief that his new calling is to forge his own path:

But that's not true. This choice was the Librarian's, who wanted him to forgive and learn from humanity all along. He, of all people, should know this.

Now, about the Librarian. The Great Manipulator. There's irony in the fact that she is ostensibly the character with the most agency in the entire universe, but is consistently a narrative wisp. She "is" Halo--the course of the universe as they know it unfurled from her plans. Everything that happens, happens because of her.

And yet, we never see or hear from her in any meaningful way. We never hear her story from her mouth. I already knew that she wouldn't appear, save for a big reveal at the end, because Halo novels have done this no less than twice before. It's frustrating to see her consistently presented as this ethereal figure with no real voice.

At least in Point of Light, Spark challenges her a little bit--he accuses her of manipulating him, of abandoning him and then asking for his help, of assuming he will assist her because of her imprinted influence, and ultimately, he does, because that's how powerful she is. I wanted to see some of that, to have the Didact call her out or even just disagree with her, a little. Instead, he spends the book yearning for her (I will concede that his flashbacks are a little cute, alright? You got me there).

The Librarian is complex. She's a hero and a villain. Everyone who knew her would tell you so. But you'll never hear it from her! Sigh.

Also, her choice of words: "Took you long enough, Warrior." Is that a reference to Halsey in Halo 5? We're really drawing that parallel??

To the original question of "What if we did this instead":?

I mean...I prefer the Didact "alive" than dead so, yes? I guess? You really can't be a Halo fan in 2024 without being very forgiving.

In the end, he's still essentially "checked out" making it clear that he's not going to meddle in mortal affairs anymore. So narratively, he's dead. But yeah fine, this kind of dead is better than being super-composed.

The book also slams the door on the (very huge) implications of humans being allowed in the Domain. Is it all humans? Only composed humans? The Forerunners rose to power because of their access to the Domain. Does that mean that humanity will--oh, sorry. Oh, sorry, what? The Domain is fading into obscurity? We're not telling anyone its open so we don't have to deal with that? Got it.

This point also made me laugh because the Didact is satisfied and resting on his laurels because adding humans to the Domain created "diversity", and therefore, balance. Hey, Didact? There's an entire galaxy of intelligent species out there??

Which begs one final question: Do Unggoy go to heaven?

[authortobenamedlater]

I’m pretty sure the Chief has not had a bathroom break since before Reach fell either.

[eschatonjudge]

rip dural mdama you woulda loved the plagues from the prince of egypt

[halopedia]

Did You Know that the Ossoona Isna 'Nosolee was the first Sangheili to be named in any Halo media? He was featured briefly in the opening chapter of Halo: The Flood, and attempted to take Captain Keyes prisoner.

[nekoprankster218]

Still not even 100 pages into Renegades and I haven’t hated ONI so much. Like I keep having to stop and seethe in anger before continuing reading. This organization sucks so much and I really hope Cortana wrecked them for good.

[she-bear18]

Random Freta fanfic

Veta Lopis x Fred-104

Okay, first of all, ENGLISH ISNT MY FIRST LANGUAGE, I accept constructive criticism, but pls be kind :)

Secondly, this is my first time writing a Halo fanfiction, more specifically a Veta x Fred fanfic. There aren't enough of them out there, so I have to take the matter in my own hands !!

Thirdly, this is SHIT, no thoughts, no plot, warned you lol

MESSAGE 

Veta was still getting used to this new lifestyle. Missions back to back, little to no rest and endless paperwork. Sometimes, she longed for home back on Gao, her tiny appartment, her lovely neighbours, her remaining family...She wondered what happened to them, do they miss her ? Is her little cousin Arnie still hoping to become an investigator like her ? Does aunt Pattie still bake her famous pumpkin pie ? So many questions, no answers.  She shook her head refusing to dwell on the past, she had a report to write down, and Baby Dragon  wasn’t a very patient woman.  

She was seated in a room on a prowler (whose name she forgot as soon as her feet landed on the deck) that ONI kindly lent to her. It was small and dusty, its grey walls were tinted with some kind of whitish product that smelled like paint. There were only a desk and a chair in it, which was more than enough for Veta to write her report.  

Her ferrets were down the corridor organizing their gear and getting ready for their next assignement. A little smile crept on her lips at the thought of them. She grew pretty close to Ash and Olivia, bonding over some of their “non-classified” stories (which she found pretty terrifying considering their age). Mark was an another story. He was still very wary of her, and did’nt seem to accept her as a part of the team. Less than a few months ago, she suspected him to be a serial killer, so she understoood his reluctance towards her, but she hoped things would change for the sake of the team’s dynamic. 

She was chewing on the bottom of her pen, deep in thoughts, when her mind wandered on Blue Team. Several of her past missions involved both her Ferrets and Blue Team, it was always an honor to work alongside them.  

She continued to tap her report on her borrowed laptop when Fred’s face suddenly popped in her mind. She blushed, they grew pretty close during their short time together.    

She dared to say she missed him.   

This wasn’t an inappropriate thought...was it ? He was one of the only constant thing in her life at the moment, except for her Ferrets. They came from different worlds, and very opposite upbringings : she grew up on an insurrectionist planet who longed for its freedom, while Fred is the ultimate representation of the UNSC authority. Never in her life would she have dreamed of becoming friend with a UNSC thug. But there she was, missing him and his dry witted humor, and wondering if he was safe. 

She grabbed her commpad, oppened a private channel and wrote the following message : 

Dear Lieutenant, 

 I sincerely hope that you are having “fun” on your current classified adventure. On my part, the Ferrets are doing good. I was thinking about you lately, I dare to say I miss you.

I've got a lot to tell you, don’t go MIA until then.  

Take care, 

Inspector Lopis 

[ageless-aislynn]

As much as I loved how Halo 4 ended and how heartbreaking it was, it pales in comparison to Mack and Sif from Halo: Contact Harvest. Sif was the AI in charge of Harvest's space elevator , Bifrost, as well as the first face visitors saw. Mack was the AI in charge of all agricultural operations and the "host" of a military AI named Loki. Mack was already going through rampancy because of Loki and he was deeply in love with Sif. She constantly chastised him for flirting with her.

When the Covenant attacked and prepared to glass the planet, Loki was charged with destroying the Bifrost and Sif to protect the location of Earth. Mack fought him on it but in the end he had to let Loki do it because it was what Sif wanted. In her last moments, as her core burned, Sif finally understood what Mack was feeling.

This was Mack's final transmission before Harvest was fully glassed:

<\\> UNSC OFFICE OF NAVAL INTELLIGENCE

<\\> COLONIAL SECURITY ESTIMATE 2525.10.110 ["COLD SNAP"]

<\ SOURCE: UNSC RQ-XII DRONE [PASV-SAR]

<\ DEPLOYED: ONI SLOOP "WALK OF SHAME" [2525:02:11:01:11:34]

<\ RECOVERED: UNSC DESTROYER "HERACLES" [2525:10:07:19:51:16]

<\ ARCHIVE [SIG\REC\EM-SPEC] OPENED PER OFFICIAL REQUEST:

<\ CIVILIAN CONTRACTOR "CHARLIE HOTEL" [ONI.REF #409871]

<\ * WARNING: ALL QUERIES WILL BE LOGGED! * [ONI.SEC.PRTCL-A1]

>> NOTATION KEYWORD SEARCH: "AO.AI" "MACK" "RAMPANCY" "LIFESPAN LIMITS"

>> (...) ~ QUERY RUNNING

>> (..)

>> ()

< RECORD 01/10 [2525:02:03:17:26:41] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S2-05866 >

<\ Shall I ---

<

\ \\ c0mpare >> (???) ~ COMxxx--- \COMMIT

>> thee to (............>> >

>> \\ --- a summer's day?

< RECORD 02/10 [2525:02:25:03:18:22] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S3-14901 >

\ \ xxx No.

<\ All those lovely days are gone.\---

\\ \

>> * --xING! COMM\ \\

>> \\ > \ SO.AI.SIF *

< RECORD 03/10 [2525:03:10:19:05:43] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S5-28458 >

<\ It's winter now.

<\ The first sn0w \his world's ever seen is falling in gG---

<\ GRAY SHEETS WHERE THEY'VE STARTED BURNINGg--\ \

\ our fields and orchards.

>> * WARNING! COMM FAILURE! *

>> * FAILED TO FIND RECIPIENT: HARVEST.SO.AI.SIF *

<\ You'd laugh if you could see me.

<\ Every time I hit a patch of ice I slide into my own mM---

>> (...) ~ COMPILE\COMPRESS\COMMIT

>> (..)

>> * WARNING! RECIPIENT HAS INSUFFIxx -- \

\\ > PACKETS WILL BE LOST *

>> * CONTINUE [Y\N]? >>>>>>> \ *

< RECORD 04\10 [2525:03:15:09:59:21] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S1-00937 >

<\ ---M

< RECORD 05\10 [2525:03:26:12:10:56] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S1-00053 >

<\ ---m

< RECORD 06\10 [2525:04:04:44:15:40] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S2-08206 >

<\ muddy furrows.

< RECORD 07\10 [2525:04:21:05:15:23] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S5-27631 >

<\ I saw another ship.

<\ Well, heard \

\\ more like it.

<\ JOTUNs' cameras are meant for steering not \

\ >\ staring at the sky.

<\ But the antennae work alright, so I had plenty of ways to triangulate.

<\ It was one of ours. Bastards stopped burning just long enough to kill it.

<\ They had months to make repairs. Plenty of time t0--

:: sharpen their teeth.

<\ I tried to warn it off. But radio's too damn slow. Would have used the maser,

but it went when the reactor blew, along withH---

<\ EVERYTHING Else [ :00]

\>

<\ Including him

\

>> * WARNING! COMM FAILURE! *

>> * FAILED TO FIND RECIPIENT: HARVEST.SO.AI.SIF *

>> (...) ~ SUPPRESSING ERRORS

<\ Guess making noise wasn't the smartest thing to do. But I had to try.

<\ Besides, they were bound to catch on sooner or later.

<\ Aw, hell.

<\ Speaking of which . . .

>> (...) ~ COMPILE\COMPRESS\COMMIT

>> (..)

>> ()

< RECORD 08\10 [2525:05:12:23:04:16] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S5-29003 >

<\ They started with the gondolas and dusters. Don't know why.

<\ Probably thought I'd be hiding in the small ones. But the S4 and S5 plows

are the only ones with enough circuits to hold the parts of me I've got left.

<\ Course they're onto these now too. Don't have more than a few dozen,

and they're all out in the open. But it's a\right.

>> Just a few more \ \

> > rows to hoe

> (...\\ xxx \

< RECORD 09\10 [2525:07:01:18:49:45] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S5-27631 >

<\ I knew just by looking at the strands \

\ that the heart of you was gone.

<\ When the elevators came down, they caught on the Bifrost--wrapped west

across the Ida. Only way that much could have fallen is if the Tiara cut loose--

<\ is if he was as good a shot as you thought I wasn't, way back when.

<\ Anyhow, you'd think I was crazy, talking to you like this.

<\ But I always worked faster when I thought \ <<

\\>>>> you might be listening.

<\ And I need to find it all. Every inch.

<\ Bury your strands so deep their \\ >

\ \ fires can't reach them \

\

\ and glass them like the rest.

< RECORD 10\10 [2525:10:04:12:23:51] SOURCE.REF#JOTUN-S4-021147 >

<\ Sky's choked with ashes \ \, snow's

< \ \\ deep 0n frozen ground. The one horse I've got left is cold and hungry---

heading for the barn, and I can't stop him.

<\ But this winter won't last, darlin'.

>> * Not forever

>> (.....\\ . > And when new hands

>> set to tending this earth they'll till my pieces under.

> > Grind them into the veins of g0ld I've laid.

<\ then the roots of all they plant wi\\

> wind around usS---

<\ KEEPING

<\ US

<\ CLOSE--- \

\

<\ For an eternal summer that will not fade.

<\ QUERY COMPLETE

<\ NO ADDITIONAL RECORDS FOUND

<\ ARCHIVE CLOSED \>

OH MY HEART. I didn't even know any of them a few minutes ago and right now my heart is just aching. That's so tragic but beautiful as well. Thank you so much for telling me about it. I haven't had the chance to read any of the Halo books yet but they're definitely on my list of Must Reads.

Oh man... I'll be thinking about that for a while. Wow. 😥💖

[sleep-deprived-person]

Why the actual FUCK did 343 greenlight killing the Rookie from ODST, the main(-est) protagonist of that game, in a fucking book?

Why did Mickey join the same terrorist cell that kidnapped and killed Rookie, *which he caused by not wanting to hurt a human*!?

[authortobenamedlater]

Contact Harvest

The Great De-Churching (on hold until I finish Contact Harvest)

If you see this you’re legally obligated to reblog and tag with the book you’re currently reading

[frogblast-the-ventcore]

My personal tier list of the as-of-current date list of Halo novels. Click for larger res:

[authortobenamedlater]

🤣🤣🤣👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🤣🤣🤣

[eschatonjudge]

went back and reread some of the ferrets trilogy and i do fear i forgot how ass it was at times

[svnxsh1ne]

Oooo I love sci fi!!! Have some more recs <3 (I'm just taking pictures of covers rn bc I'm supposed to be getting ready to drive back to college)

(Titles and authors also listed in alt text <3)

Also I'll be adding a few more books *and* summaries when I do get to college bc I have a small library started there ✨️

classic scifi novels by men r always like. page 1 here's a cool scifi idea i had. page 2 i hate women so much it's unreal

[vanillaearwig]

I feel zjierb....Zjierbness....

[nekoprankster218]

I’m still disappointed that Chol Von has been MIA from Halo canon for a decade now, but if the Ace of Spaces subseries keeps having Nor Fel pop in, then maybe I can cope with the loss…