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26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Welcome Back, Croaker, August 7, 2000
By A Customer
In my estimation, the Black Company books, collectively, represent the best of the genre. Nothing else even comes close. Although some aspects of the book may be troubling to devoted fans (the attrition of characters near and dear from previous books, in particular), its more troubling aspects are its greatest strengths. This book may be one of the blackest, bleakest, and most blighted of any in a series that has distinguished and distanced itself from the "young woman struggles to unlock the frightening but wondrous powers buried within her" trash that has come to typify contemporary fantasy. It has the moral ambiguity appropriate to the conclusion of an anti-epic like Glittering Stone, and the gnawing sense of futility that infects Croaker's narration makes the sacrifices of an aging mercenary seem more, rather than less, redemptive. All the things diehard fans demand from a Black Company novel are there, but as Croaker (to my mind, the heart and soul of the Company) sees himself as increasingly remote from the latest incarnation of the Compnay, his feelings on his fallen comrades mirror our own feelings on our favorite vanished characters (Goblin, Silent, Elmo, even the Limper). The ending (if it is truly an END to the Black Company) was, as another reviewer put it, "very disturbing." I agree, but would argue that the ending was perfect, even necessary, for the series, and that it exemplified what it is that makes the Black Company so different from everything else out there, and so worthy of the outlandish affection its fans feel for it.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Fitting End(?), September 19, 2000
About 12 years and countless engaging hours since I first picked up the original Black Company novel, it seems this great series has come to a close (of sorts). Though Cook may write other books about one or more of the (incredibly few) remaining characters, the Black Company as we know it has made its last march. This installment of the series was largely a very satisfying, albeit bittersweet read. Unlike many other authors in this genre, Mr Cook has never been afraid to kill off his characters in sudden and unexpected ways. "Soldier's Live" is no exception. As the Company makes its way back to Taglios to thwart the plans of the Death Goddess(and not to mention rid themselves of a few extremely pesky recurring adversaries), Cook pares his cast down almost obsessively. The end result is that no one is safe. The danger the Company faces in every circumstance is real and immediate, regardless of which characters are involved. This approach would be lethal to a less imaginative author, but Cook's strength is a seemingly endless supply of colorful, entertaining, and well-developed characters. As this is the last book in the series (or at least in this incarnation of the series), Cook does more paring than planting. Loose ends stretching back almost to the beginning of the original series are tied off with mostly satisfying results. Like a previous reviewer speculated, Cook has left the door open for possibly one or more prequels (oh please oh please) involving the Company in the early years...until then, Soldiers Live is a fitting epilogue to a superb series.
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16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
What the heck?, March 23, 2001
I'm still a little disoriented, as I only finished the book about 10 minutes ago. My title sums up my entire mental process right now, though not my emotional one. This is an excellent addition to the Black Company series. As another reviewer pointed out, it wraps up Glittering Stone without really ending the story of the Black Company. Not only is there the brand-new Company with its several Annalists, there's some serious room for flashbacks. I expect further installments, though I'm not on the edge of my seat just yet. "Soldiers Live" opens the way we expect Black Company novels to open. We have our familiar characters all in place (a surprise to me, since One-Eye died at the end of "Water Sleeps") and it quickly becomes apparent that just about every loose thread is going to be tied up. Having read many reviews (quite a few were inaccurate, by the way... Croaker does NOT begin "Soldiers Live" as the military dictator of Taglios!), I was prepared for surprises. But they just kept coming. This is a novel of attrition; in a story so long, many of our favorites are sure to pass away. And even so, the surprises just kept coming. Quite a few anticlimactic moments added to the surprises Cook offers his readers. But gut-wrenching unpredictability is a hallmark of the series. It's been so long since I've read a real page-turner (let's face it, the last few Black Company novels weren't) that I forgot what it's like to want to stay up all night reading. If you're a fan of the Black Company, you'll miss out on some sleep finishing this one. And if you're like me, you'll read the last chapter a few times and marvel at how the story all gets wrapped up in a package labled "Start Here."
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