Sunday, March 21, 2021

The Outposter

The Outposter is a science fiction novel by award-winning author Gordon R. Dickson. It's part swashbuckler and part space opera and is certainly one I'd've read long ago if I'd come across it. Great fun, with a satisfying conclusion.

from the back of the book:

FORMULA FOR REVENGE

Take one high-spirited little boy.
Kill his family before his eyes.
Allow him to escape.
Give him time to grow up.
You're in trouble.

from the publisher Baen:
The Earth is overcrowded. Chosen by lottery, people are shunted off to the far-flung planetary colonies. But winning this lottery is no prize, for the colonist are largely ignored by the people of Earth, considered disposable. Left to defend for themselves, the colonist are plagued by low supplies and are forced to eke out a hardscrabble existence. Worse, they face an ever-looming threat from without: the alien Meda V'Dans, who routinely attack without provocation.

Fortunately, the colonists have the Outposters to protect them. One such Outposter is Mark Ten Roos, a young man with a score to settle against the Meda V'Dans . . . and the will to bring a corrupt system to its knees.

12 comments:

  1. This sounds good! Enjoy your weekend, Valerie

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  2. Sounds like it would make a great movie!

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    1. I hadn't thought of it, but yes, you're right. I'd definitely watch it.

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  3. ...I guess that you would be in trouble.

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  4. It's always great to find a good book, isn't it?

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    1. This one was gifted me by a friend whose science fiction-loving husband recently died. I am so grateful she thought of me. So many fun books :)

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  5. This reminds me of a book I read years ago called "The Lottery." I think it was also made into a film. In a way, it reminds me of the Capitol on Jan 6, where mob mentality took over.

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    1. The Shirley Jackson "The Lottery"? Yes, that's a great story, and I've seen more than one adaptation. Scary. A perfect picture of a cult and of how the socially expected actions become the norm no matter how horrifying.

      In The Outposter the overpopulation with some folks being sent to colonies is not explored but only used as an explanation for how their planetary settlements work. It's just background, and the focus is on the dynamic of unwilling settlers and their needs as opposed to Earth's management system.

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  6. This definitely is one I would have read as well. The perfect formula for a good story.

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    1. Pretty basic, but it did have a good story with a bit of something different to it.

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