The Human Division #12: The Gentle Art of Cracking Heads
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4.4 • 54 Ratings
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Publisher Description
The twelfth episode of The Human Division, John Scalzi's new thirteen-episode novel in the world of his bestselling Old Man's War. Beginning on January 15, 2013, a new episode of The Human Division will appear in e-book form every Tuesday.
United States Diplomat Danielle Lowen was there when one of her fellow diplomats committed an unthinkable act, which had consequences for the entire planet. Now she's trying to figure out how it happened before it can happen again. Putting the puzzle pieces together could solve the mystery—or it could threaten her own life.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Scalzi's hectically paced and philosophical continuation of the Old Man's War series is an invigorating and morally complex interstellar thriller with heart. The human Colonial Union has lost the trust of neighboring worlds due to allegations that it's been delaying Earth's technological development so it can "farm" Earth for colonists and soldiers. When the Polk, a Union ambassadorial starship, is obliterated while on a secret diplomatic mission with the alien Utche, the Union sends in a "B-team" rebellious and unorthodox Lt. Harry Wilson, meek diplomatic assistant Hart Schmidt, and aggressive ambassador Abumwe to seal negotiations and discover who (or what) destroyed the Polk. Scalzi injects the thrilling wonder of escapist science fiction with the painful despair of human betrayal and selfishness, focusing as much on conflicts of the heart as on warring alien civilizations. First released as digital serial installments, the book's chapters reverberate with cliffhanger suspense, building and resolving a central conflict while building on more complex story arcs. Deeply realized characters and stinging webs of political and social deceit lend mystery and emotionally harsh realism to a thrilling setting of deep space and distant worlds.
Customer Reviews
Disappointed
My disappointment is not with John Scalzi's writing, but with the format of these e-published "episodes." When you download one, you'll see at the bottom of the page, in Arabic numerals, a page range: 1.....179; 1 ..... 53; 1 ..... 60; etc. So, you think you're getting close to those many pages of story. Well, you're not! Every episode has 17 or 18 pages of boilerplate - the same boilerplate. So, you're really getting just 162, 36, 43, etc., pages of story.
In fact, only two of the 13 episodes have more than 100 pages; the rest range between 51 and 79 pages, with most of those being 70 pages or less. A full-size novel runs between 94 and 97 percent story. The best a Scalzi episode can do is 87 or 89 percent story, with the rest ranging from 67 to 78 percent.
So, I'm feeling disappointed, bummed, maybe even a little scammed by what the publisher has done. Scalzi should not have permitted it.