The Warlord

The Warlord series was published by Zebra Books in the mid-80s. Zebra, (in)famous for truly awful crap like the Doomsday Warrior books, had itself a hidden treasure in Warlord.Though the quality declined a bit as the series progressed, this first book was spectacular. On the surface, the premise is simple: Vietnam vet, ex-Special Forces soldier-turned history teacher Eric Ravensmith rises to lead a band of survivors in a California which has been decimated by a massive earthquake. Ah, but its all in the details. Exactly HOW California is destroyed and the results thereof, is fascinating to read about - really imaginative. Sure, the science is a bit suspect (or is it?), but that doesn't detract from the entertainment value. The characters are extraordinarily well-developed and engaging; the author is not afraid to delve into the background of minor characters to make them more sympathetic to us when they meet their inevitable end.Ravensmith's nemesis, the psychotic Colonel Fallows, is a great, menacing villain, as is his henchman Cruz.Something interesting I noticed: there is a character named Grimme who happens to be a physics graduate student working as a janitor at the university where Ravensmith's band makes it headquarters... wonder if Affleck/Damon read this book before writing 'Good Will Hunting'? :) Just a thought...Great book overall, highly recommended. Its too bad Zebra published it; otherwise it might have the recognition it deserves. I can only hope that a more worthy publisher attains the rights.

This 1st volume in the 6-book series was almost made into hollywood gold back in the mid-eighties by none other than Arnold himself. Though it obviously did not happen, this would have been a major miss-cast because the man in the book did not resemble Arnold at all and was his own unique character. The WARLORD is a great novel of a man with a sordid past whom is forced thru circumstance to revert back to his training both as a special forces soldier and his background in growing up with the indians and learning to survive. This unique individual named Eric Ravensmith and his family are plunged into a world gone mad when earthquake tremors turn California into an island unto itself, and to make things worse, its protected by a bubble of toxic waste that no one can leave or enter, thus leaving anarchy to rule. Ravensmith reverts back to his training in both areas of his expertise to save both his family and the fate of the state of California against his ruthless past in the form of his former commander in the military back in his vietnam days. The action and adventure soar in this too-short-lived series. A must read for all, I am lucky to still have them all.

First read the series back in high school (class of 86) and could not put it down. Rather comical that I started passing the series around and people were getting upset when the person with the following book was not reading fast enough. Although the series was located in the "Men's Adventure" section of B. Dalton, the series was read by a number of ladies. Still reread the series every so often to liven up a cold, dreary, winter day. The series will grab you within the first few pages and not let go until the end...leaving you to want more.

Very well written. I enjoyed this book and its series. However I can not find any more books after the sixth. If anyone knows of more books please let me know. If you like a good adventure read this book is for you...but the series leaves you hanging unfinished at book number six.