Pros
- Action that fills almost every page
- One small story about the heroics of a platoon on some nondescript mining colony
- Lines from personal letter adds a personal touch
- Sense of brotherhood
Cons
- There’s not much to dislike about the book except the two points
- No sense of context for Stryker company’s role in the larger story universe
Fans of the Galaxy’s Edge universe will enjoy the action-packed story in Stryker’s War. This story follows the the heroics of a company of legionnaires on the galactic edge, so there’s plenty of military action and excitement.
Plot
Stryker Company defends a mining town against insurgents.
Characters
Stryker Company is led by Captain Kato. Sergeant Talon and Corporal Lankin are in charge of First Platoon.
Setting
The story takes place on a mining world on the edge of the galaxy.
Stryker’s War Review
One of the best aspects of books in Galaxy’s Edge universe is that it’s filled with action, suspense, and plenty of battles on the ground and in space.
Readers will be glued to the stories in Order of the Centurion, focusing on the heroics of legionnaires and the actions that earn them the highest honor in the Legion: the Order of the Centurion. The sacrifices and courage displayed by the legionnaires, then, shouldn’t shock readers.
Stryker Company itself reminds me of many military shows about soldiers like Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers. There’s a sense of fraternity forged during battles that appeals to audiences—it’s a little disheartening that such bonds are formed from the killing of others.
If I have one complaint about this series, it’s that it’s not located in the context of the larger Galaxy’s Edge series. Stryker’s War is story that is confined to one company of legionnaires, and while the story does illustrate some of the rot of the Republic—the points, for instance—it doesn’t really provide much information about the larger universe.
For instance, if this book wasn’t couched in the Galaxy’s Edge universe, then it’d be an exciting science fiction military story, but it’d also be a fairly generic story in terms of plot.
Fans of Galaxy’s Edge will find some grounding for the story though. For instance, the appointed leaders and the information discovered about the insurgents provide an idea of when Stryker’s War takes place in within the series universe.
The story itself isn’t necessarily unique: a company of soldiers is sent to protect the mining operations necessary to the function of the Republic. And the insurgents and rebels echo the same sentiments of many colonized peoples: resource exploitation, ignorance of local cultural values, and a feeling of superiority. This situation has been common throughout world history. Perhaps it’s a little ironic that the legionnaires like Lankin and Talon treat the locals the same way the points treat the legion. There’s almost a sense of self-awareness in the story.
One unique aspect of Stryker’s War is the use of letters to home that precede the start of a chapter. While a little clunky at times, I thought that the personal touch revealed through the letters really served to humanize the legionnaires, which the writers sometimes portrayed as killing machines insensitive to the plight of others.
Overall, it takes a lot of skill to get readers involved in a story, and it takes even more skill to elicit strong emotions from readers. Stryker’s War manages to engage readers with its action-packed scenes and keep readers hooked with a flowing writing style. And while it provides just one glimpse into the world of a company of legionnaires, it does give readers an idea of how the Legion functions throughout the galaxy. It’s no wonder they’re a force to be feared.
Read a review of other books in the Galaxy’s Edge universe:
