Battle Hymn

This really should be 4.5 stars.....This is the Fifth in the series.... I have been reading them in the correct chronological order. With this series, that is the only way. There are too many events and people to start in the middle. Too many references to events in the past.This is a good story. The alien hordes have a new leader. He has also come through the tunnel of light. His home world appears to be around 100 years ahead of earth of 1865. He talks about nuclear weapons and jets. It will be interesting to see how this character develops the hordes.At one point, the author indicates that the total population of the humans on the planet outnumber the hordes by 10 to 1. That is an interesting fact.Two new civilizations are introduced. The Zulus and the Chin. The Chin are currently enslaved by the Bantag horde.This book is mostly about the life of imprisonment that a "pet" of the horde must endure. Towards the end, the slaves revolt and few escape. The last third of the book is devoted to the escape of this small band. Several minor clashes and one large one. A great description of a locomotive chase, similar to the one that occurred during the Civil War with Andrew's Raiders.The series so far:#1 - Rally Cry#2 - Union Forever#3 - Terrible Swift Sword#4 - Fateful Lightning#5 - Battle Hymn#6 - Never Sound Retreat#7 - Band of Brothers#8 - Men At War#9 - Down To The Sea

This was a great read that developes a strong understanding of most character's motivations. Besides being a great work of fantasy the book is interlaced with references to what seems to be very accurate snippets from the Civil War. It will definately leave you ready for book #2.

OK, so, I knew Sgt. Major Hans Schuder wasn't dead when I wrote the review for "Fateful Lightning." But I didn't know it when I read the book so, hoping that you will read these books in chronological order, I think my review kept the spirit of the novel by not revealing everything. This one is absolutely different. "Battle Hymn" is a vision of the Gulag on an alien world. Whereas "Fateful Lightning" gave us the terrible sacrifice of the Cartha, "Battle Hymn" shows us the enslavement of the Chinese, and others, with whom Schuder is now living. Major new character is Ha'ark, the Redeemer and, very important as well, a Zulu warrior friend of Hans. There will be a bit of confusion with come names. As in ther past, with Vuka's brother, in this book a companion of Ha'ark is named Jamul, but in the future will be referred to as Jurak. I do not know the reason for this. It may be an oversight, or it may be that these new commers have chosen to make their names more palatable to the natives. Still, all books have errors. The soul of this series is its conflict, big as a planet and enduring as the machines that transported the Yankees to a New World of War. Most of the book concentrates on the efforts by Hans and his confederates in escaping, the help they get from the Republic, the problems that the traitor Hinsen creates, and the menace that Ha'ark, with his modern, futuristic vision of warfare, means for the survival of humans on Valdenia. Suspenseful, filled with the heroics and folly of war that Forstchen has turned into a trade mark, "Battle Hymn" also introduces the tank into the series.

Not as epic as its predecessors, this book is just as exciting and gives the conflict between the Humans and the Hordes an new excillirating perspective, that of the captives and slaves living under the heel of the Bantag tyrant Ha'Ark, an alien of the same species as the Hordes that has come through the Space Vortex armed with the knowledge of 20th Century Warfare. Hans Schuder, presumed dead after the Merki War, returns as a prisoner of the Bantag Horde forced to serve as an overseer in Ha'Ark's war industries. Schuder's knowledge of the Bantag preparations to conquer the human resistance and of Ha' Ark's new weapons could save the Republic if he can manage a daring escape accross hundreds of miles of enemy held territory.

The continuing story of the 35th is just as good as book 1 - 4. Your only problem will be, having the time to absorb each page. Where do we go from here?, this was and still will be your final comment. Yes, there is at least one more coming