Customer Reviews

The Complete Hammer's Slammers Volume 2

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

VOLUME TWO of THE COMPLETE HAMMER'S SLAMMERS is a good collection of novella sized stories, mostly from the late-80's. Following are individual reviews of each of the main stories:

AT ANY PRICE (1985) **** - A breakthru story for its day... Military SciFi, with aliens. Drake's combat action dialog is hard to follow at times in this story, but still worth it.

COUNTING THE COST (1987) *** - A Company of Hammer's Slammers (a spaceborne Mercenary Regiment) gets mixed up in the wranglings of a backwater world in political upheaval. The ending sets a record for bloodshed. Not easy to find any likeable characters in this one.

ROLLING HOT (1989) ***1/2 - I read this story in TANK LORDS a couple of years ago, and lift the review from there... Full-length story, which makes up the bulk of the book. Lots of detail of the horrors of war. A hodgepodge group of mercenaries (recruits, burnouts, maintenance techs) at a rear guard/maintenance site have to deal with an enemy ambush, and scrape together a force to launch a counterstrike. Mixed in with this are great descriptions of future military technologies, which still hold up well over 16 years later. I'm greatly impressed with his description of the tank commanders' display technology, the Unmanned Air Vehicles (which I'm very familiar with), and his description of battlefield digital communications (even today's 4th ID can't yet match his descriptions). When all the communications satellites are taken out, he even describes a way of getting long-range digital messages thru via meteor scatter.

THE WARRIOR(1991) ***** - Veteran tank commander Sgt. "Slick" Des Greiux is frustrated by having to take up a defensive position and endure constant pounding from the enemy... but, when the enemy launches an assault on their position, it gives Slick the perfect excuse to break the enemy's lines, and launch a one-tank offensive and create futuristic "Tank Terror" among the unsuspecting support battalions and artillery batteries that have been hounding Slick for unending days... Rolling Havoc - all around great fun. THE WARRIOR and THE TANK LORDS comprise "THE BEST OF HAMMER'S SLAMMERS".

What can I say? David Drake and his publishers did what every Hammer's Slammers fan ever wanted. Every book combined together in only 3 volumes!? AWESOME!! Having been several years since I have read these and was immediately drooling when I saw the announcement. And they do not leave you wanting. Bound in hardcover black with the title gold-embossed on the spine and a dust cover with cool classic Slammers style artwork ... A TRUE MASTERPIECE!! Any Hammer's Slammers fan must own these!!!

Received from cross country in two days in excellent condition. Book jacket had a portion cut out. Otherwise it was a new book.

More great Hammers stories and some background on David Drake and how the stories got written.

This is a reasonably good book, but I actually prefer David Drake's shorter stories (like the ones in the Complete Hammer's Slammers vol. 1). I've only read the first story in this one so far, and although it was enjoyable to read, it felt a little bit too long and drawn out.

Good batch of titles, enjoyed them all. My set is complete (so far).