Jack Hanson just released the second volume of his science fiction series, Secret Files of the League of Silence. I found this second book entitled “Forlorn Hope” is even better than the first. I read a draft copy several months ago and passed along a few thoughts to the author. I will let some of my comments to him stand for my review.
“I finished the draft you sent me earlier while in Half Moon, NY. It was great. The characters are developing well and the universe is becoming even more interesting. I'm particularly intrigued by the psychic aspects. I've always been fascinated by shamanism and concentrated in that area in my anthropological studies. Years ago I dabbled in remote viewing. Just to see if there was anything to it, I learned enough to prove to myself that there is definitely something to it. There's a lot out there we don't understand.”
“You asked if there was anything else I liked about the second book. Definitely. I found it stronger than the first. That may just be because it builds on the first one. In addition to your handling of psychic abilities, I enjoyed the care you took in developing the four young FOSsils. The third gen FOSsils may be combat veterans who have already acquired a full set of demons and doubts, but they’re still kids. Yeah, at my age that’s how I see soldiers this young. You let them act like kids, with all their innocence and awkwardness, when they were away from the battlefield. I appreciate that.”
“The older FOSsils are of particular interest to me. I hope you develop some of them in addition to Clay in some of the future novels. They remind me of three MACVSOG one zeros that mentored me as a ROTC cadet and as a lieutenant in the 25th Infantry Div. One was a MOH holder. I learned far more from them about soldiering and leadership than from my formal military education. And all this was before I got to SF.”
“You created a very interesting and imaginative universe. I like the way you are slowly revealing it as the stories unfold. You give just enough detail for us to follow the story line. But you let us readers add some understanding from our own imaginations rather than being spoon fed an exhaustively detailed description. Very effective. I hope this is a long, long series and you are well rewarded for your efforts.”
Take a gander at the write up on Amazon. If that doesn’t peak your interest, I don’t know what will.
TTG
Just in time to celebrate general Jackson's birthday. I'm sure it is not just a coincidence.
Posted by: Fred | 21 January 2015 at 04:20 PM
TTG, would you be so kind and translate "MACVSOG one zeros" for us common folks?
A fast check get's me to MACVSOG but "one zero"? One Zero, Teamleader?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlh-rtyxIAE
Posted by: LeaNder | 21 January 2015 at 09:08 PM
LeAnder
MACVSOG was engaged in cross border reconnaissance and raiding operations in Cambodia east of the Mekong, the Laos Panhandle east of a line down the middle of it and the southern part of NVN. There were very few non-military people in all that vast area of jungle. There were 200,000 NVA soldiers in that area. We (I was in the unit)inserted small teams into the area to seek to identify locations and strengths of enemy military units. The teams were part US and part native made up of various aboriginal non-Vietnamese. A team would have a "10" American leader, a "20" American deputy leader, etc. the native soldiers in the team would be numbered "01," "02," etc. This was for use on the radio. These were men from the Iliad. I suppose that view is not acceptsable to German leftists like you. pl
Posted by: turcopolier | 21 January 2015 at 09:24 PM
LeaNder, you nailed it.
MACV-SOG Military Assistance Command Vietnam - Studies and Observation Group
One Zero team leader of a recon team, usually a Special Forces NCO
Posted by: The Twisted Genius | 21 January 2015 at 09:25 PM
thanks anyway. So in passing I learned a little about you. Highly dangerous affair, apparently.
By the way, some on the left called me a fascist when I wasn't orthoxically leftist enough for them. But I love it, when you call me a German leftist nevertheless.
Maybe I never was a true leftist but something like a believer in the metaphysics of words to adopt Henry Miller's Metaphysics of Art, when everybody seemed keen on recruiting me as a true believer. And from that special perspective their narrative lacked inspiration occasionally, or seemed to substitute dogma for reality.
But true, in 1989, when, as Condi Rice told us Germans, everyone in the US wondered who would be the next enemy now, I was a little worried. Not because of the fall of the Soviet Regime. I could watch it's repressive acolyte in the German East closely, system-wise. I wondered if this opposition of the dogma poles, if I may, had not somewhat helped to moderate Western systems too.
When I stumble across a proud true believer in American power, and its muscles in shaping the destiny of the world, I shamefully admit, I register that as sign that my fear was not completely unfounded.
Posted by: LeaNder | 21 January 2015 at 11:48 PM
LeAnder
"... dangerous affair, apparently" Yes two years we suffered over 100% casualties among the Americans in MACVSOG. This happened because quite a lot of people were hit more than once. "... a proud true believer in American power, and its muscles in shaping the destiny of the world." If you think that describes me or TTG, John Minnerath, Tyler or any of the other soldiers here you have not been paying attention the last ten years. We are basically hard hearted empaths who will do what we see as our duty no matter what the consequences. As for me, I long ago came to believe that foreigners were not worth fighting for. pl
Posted by: turcopolier | 22 January 2015 at 07:56 AM
Sir,
"As for me, I long ago came to believe that foreigners were not worth fighting for."
Ain't that the truth. If they dont want the boot off their neck why should I care?
Enjoyed the hell out of the book. I imagine the female scytheclaws as sounding like old time actresses in thier diction and attitude.
I also liked how everyone had a different opinion on certain events talked about. The scene with Ripper (from Cry Havoc's cover) and one of the scytheclaws is one of the 'peeks behind the curtain' Hanson is so fond of. Some of us have seen it before, usually at bars where soldiers frequent. "You want to leave it alone" said when a soldier is being judged for what he did.
Except delivered in this case by a T Rex.
Glad to see the Harvesters got some screen time as well. For being two books in though, there is stil a lot of mystery in his galaxy. The Dominion, especially after the incident on Elysium, continues to be a nasty enemy.
Wonder how book 3 will go.
Posted by: Tyler | 22 January 2015 at 08:46 AM
Col.,
"I long ago came to believe that foreigners were not worth fighting for."
I agree. If they won't fight for their own freedoms why the hell should we.
Posted by: Fred | 22 January 2015 at 10:57 AM
Tyler,
You never fail to put a smile on my face.
Posted by: nick b | 22 January 2015 at 01:53 PM
Pat, there are a lot of names I could name, but surely the ones you list are not among them, neither are you. It's also really easy to understand, the military both retired and active on the average may be a little resistant to these type of ideology. After all it ultimately pays the price in blood, wounds and death.
David Habakkuk linked to an interview by Stratfor's George Friedman's in Russia on Adam Silverman's recent "Saudi Arabia's Human Geography Trap" thread. That's a more recent example:
http://tinyurl.com/Friedman-in-Russia
In other words armchair general's but also the larger security industry and it's market interests.
To put it vaguely.
Posted by: LeaNder | 22 January 2015 at 04:33 PM
Pat, I should add this:
You taught me to respect the military in a way it feels I have never thought about before. Basically, I think you understand that fathers that were drawn into the end of the Hitler state, weren't exactly the best motivating force needed in that context? ...
The closest I could get to the US military were people I met. One of the things that fits into my larger skepticism about something like the "collective left camp", was that it apparently was "verboten" to meet and talk to them. The worst case scenario was when they visited you on their way back from their duties still in "regalia". Maybe since that made it too visible? It also, I cannot deny, reminded me somewhat of earlier experiences in a the little black Forest town, where I was born, never lived, was 'thrown back into' at the age of 14, and left with 19 after my high school exam with 19. If you talked with 'foreigners' there or 'guest workers' a rumor spread claiming you were a whore. ...
But yes, within certain limits, I consider myself more 'left' then 'right'.
And strictly that you accepted to share your experience in the Jeffrey Sterling case does not really surprise me. It also raises my respect. There was one article here that made me stay or come back, it was a lot stronger then my occasional irritation. E.g. your sometimes rash decisions to ban people. Not all of them lick their wounded 'superiority' as openly as "b".
The superman:
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2011/04/joining-superman-as-a-pat-lang-anti-american.html
There were times, when I wondered why I was never banished. That's true.
And yes, I no doubt are more on the left then on the right.
Posted by: LeaNder | 23 January 2015 at 07:06 AM
What surprised me was beneath my stereotypical perception of violence were a lot of moral, honorable beautiful men doing their best - despite the managment - in a field too real to really know except by passing through it.
No matter how much I bleed I'm never gonna be black or gay or female - or shot at when my duty was to stand and not run for people who'd like to spit on me.
Posted by: Charles I | 23 January 2015 at 05:07 PM