Review: Gust Front

I just finished Gust Front by John Ringo, and Ringo is a hard man to understand. He clearly loves the SciFi genre, and with the continuation of the Posleen War, proves he can delve into the stickier details many gloss over.

The problem is he goes way too far on occasion, detailing for pages on very intricate and specific troop movements and justification. I felt like I was reading a historical account of each battle. Provided a map of the United States, I could probably have replayed each flank and counter-attack exactly as if executing a play-by-play of an Axis and Allies or Risk game. It was mind numbing, and I found myself skimming over vast swaths of copious minutiae. It’s fairly obvious why this, the second in the series, was over 250 pages longer than the first.

That said, I still enjoyed the book’s plotting and overall direction. I have a feeling the third book will pull back from this level of detail, if only because Ringo has brought much of the background scheming to a head, and the Earth is now firmly embroiled in the war. I have a feeling the Darheel will be outed outright in the third novel, which could make for interesting counter-movements as Earth’s government attempts to escape their control while still retaining Galactic resources to fight the Posleen.

It’s a fairly complex series so far, and I’ll have no qualms continuing reading as everything unfolds. I give this book a 4 out of 5.