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M.C.A. Hogarth

Spots the Space Marine: Defense of the Fiddler Paperback – February 25, 2012

by M.C.A. Hogarth (Author)

69 ratings

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Pollyanna meets Starship Troopers in this fast, screenplay-like novel about a 30-something Marine private called out of retirement to join the war against the crabs. But shattered morale is the least of her company's problems, and their survival may hinge on an unlikely friendship forged between an alien weapons designer and a mother-turned-warrior....

Print length

514 pages
Language

English
Publication date

February 25, 2012
Dimensions

7 x 1.16 x 10 inches
ISBN-10

1470131056
ISBN-13

978-1470131050
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Daughter of two Cuban political exiles, M.C.A. Hogarth was born a foreigner in the American melting pot and has had a fascination for the gaps in cultures and the bridges that span them ever since. She has been many things---web database architect, product manager, technical writer and massage therapist---but is currently a full-time parent, artist, writer and anthropologist to aliens, both human and otherwise. Her fiction has variously been recommended for a Nebula, a finalist for the Spectrum, placed on the secondary Tiptree reading list and chosen for two best-of anthologies; her art has appeared in RPGs, magazines and on book covers.

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (February 25, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 514 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1470131056
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1470131050
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.94 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7 x 1.16 x 10 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #6,553,203 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #10,857 in Space Marine Science Fiction

Customer Reviews:
69 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		64%
4 star		22%
3 star		5%
2 star		9%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Brojo Pasai

The Adeptus Astartes has met its match.

Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2015

Verified Purchase

I first got interested in Spots after reading a Cracked article. As a 40k Space Marine fan, hearing that Games Workshops was suing Mrs. Hogarth under the mistaken idea that they owed the whole concept of people who are a fighting force on ships who are not sailors, but instead of these people being on water ships, they are now on spaceships. I found this idea laughable and when I heard that Games Workshops had in fact lost its case, I thought "Humm, The Tyranids failed to eat them, the Tau failed to convince them of the Greater Good, The Orks can't crush them, the Eldar, who think of humans as monkeys get routinely spanked by them,and Chaos only neted a few. Lets see this force that sent the Adeptus Astartes running to hide behind the Golden Throne and Big Daddy Emperor of Mankind."

I was not disappointed. Spots had all the action a 40k fan could want and was written in a way that I hadn't seen outside of play or movie scrips making it a refreshing read. Another thing that honestly surprised me was how well this book portrays being deployed. I was in Iraq in 2009 and as I read this book, I kept wondering "What unit were you in Mrs. Hogarth?" When I found out that she had never been in the military, I was quite shocked.

I recommend Spots both as a 40k fan and as a veteran. It's a good read and I'd recommend her other books.

23 people found this helpful

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Faith

Excellent, Nontraditional Military SF

Reviewed in the United States on September 24, 2014

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I came at this book sort of an odd way. I had run across the author on a forum unaffiliated with her or her books or even writing at all. There was mention of the Games Workshop controversy. Curious, I investigated. The title seemed...different. And then having read the description of the book, and finding it rather interesting. I downloaded the sample. And when I reached the end of the sample, I bought the book.

I read it in one sitting.

It didn't really take me long to adjust to the screenplay-like style, and by the end I actually really liked it! For me, at least, it gave the whole book a feeling of discovery. You know very little other than what you hear being said and what you see being done - and you learn more about what's going on right along with the characters. And by the end, despite the sparse style, you have a picture of what these people and this world is like.

The plot was a bit slow at first, but soon hit its stride. And what a stride! It never lags, never loses intensity. There are just enough "relief" sections to keep the reader from getting too fatigued - but then it's right back into the conflict.

Hogarth does a wonderful job of weaving together the various narrative threads - surviving the crabs, figuring out what they're up to, the squad coming together, the interpersonal relationships between squad members, how the allied aliens fit into everything - so that it all feels real .

If you can get past the idiosyncrasies of the style (and you should, because I'm telling you, it works) then Spots is an excellent read. Highly, highly recommended.

One person found this helpful

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Patti Ludwig

The friendships that developed brought it back into more comfortable territory, for all that those friendships were often ...

Reviewed in the United States on June 5, 2018

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People always have depth in M.C.A Hogarth's books, no exception here. The story made me - hmm, not feel - aware of the grind of military duty at an isolated post. It also spotlighted some different kinds of trauma that combat vets can experience, and a few of the coping mechanisms that are used to continue in combat situations. The friendships that developed brought it back into more comfortable territory, for all that those friendships were often fraught too.
The alien species, and the gradual revelations of how the two sides developed their opposition were well done.
The format is a cross between a movie/TV shooting script and a novelization of one, which leads to some interesting chapters/scenes.

Helpful

Cedarlila

Strong story despite unusual writing style

Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2013

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So, I was reading last night when I couldn't sleep. I'd bought MC Hogarth's novel "Spots, the Space Marine" in a gesture of support during the GW brouhaha, and although I didn't really care if it was good, I read it last night 'cause I was desperate. Which doesn't really do the story justice. Yes, it's written in a very different style, as a screenplay, not a novel. I wasn't expecting that, so it threw me off at first. It might completely deter a reader who hasn't read that style before (which I have). But to my delight, once I really got into the story, I could see that it was very much Human Wave. As a mother I really got into Spots, and I liked that the author didn't take the easy way out with some elements. I will be looking for more by her, although I do hope that she can write traditional style novels. The characters were well developed and the story moved well enough to keep me reading despite being in pain.

6 people found this helpful

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Alexander Hollins

That wonderful mix of combat, creation, learning and interpersonal relationships.

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2014

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Any story should be about people first, and often writers can fail to balance that, especially in the Sci Fi field where the furniture, the gadgets, gizmos, aliens, and space itself, can threaten to become the reason for the story, and not merely support.

MCA Hogarth does NOT have that issue. Spots is about a parent and soldier, and her relationship with other people around her, not all of them human. The growth and learning, the exploration and desire to know harken back to the the early sci fi of Verne and Wells, and the dialogue feels real in a way that written word so often does not. The format was very confusing to me at first, the screenplay approach was not expected, but very very welcome! The book is told in a combination of what feels like someone writing descriptions of camera video feeds, and transcripts of audio feeds. The viewpoint is very voyeuristic, and it gives an odd raw feel that works with the story to highlight imbalance and conflict in a way that keeps the emotions on edge the entire ride. Number 2 will be mine the moment it is available. I have been reading Hogarth for years, but I have to say, I think this is my favorite of her stories so far.

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C REVELL

If you like the genre which I do

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 13, 2018

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Sceptical when I first heard about this book but was curious because of the trademark lawsuit which appears to have been rescinded.
It is written in the style of a play which you get used to quite quickly but I found unusual.
If you like the genre which I do, I found it very enjoyable and now want more to follow.
The only criticism is that where the author uses ....... in place of swear words you have to guess which one fits and this can be quite confusing and interferes with the flow as they are used quite a lot in this book.

GrumpyOldAndy

A good, solid read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 11, 2013

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To summarise, there is nothing new here, Space Marines fight Bug Aliens which evolve, but I found myself engaged with the characters, and enjoyed the writing style. I will be picking up the next full installment.
This is written in the style of a play, (which I haven't read since my school days) but I found it easy to comprehend, and it served to set the scene for the characters nicely with no jarring point of view switching.
The story itself is standard and has been written before, but is well written and being told in dialogue between the characters and short scene descriptions makes it somewhat refreshing.

One person found this helpful

V. Thurlow

I am a great fan

Reviewed in Australia on September 18, 2020

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A very enjoyable read which has a 30 something mother of two unexpectedly become a military hero. Her arrival was greeted with skepticism from the younger marines, but she prevails with her maturity and insight.
This story portrays military culture and camaraderie.

Raceimaztion

Perfect blend of science fiction and humour

Reviewed in Canada on February 14, 2013

Verified Purchase

When your "safe, out-of-the-way, middle-of-nowhere" coincides with your enemy's "safe, out-of-the-way, middle-of-nowhere", and nobody higher up knows this, you have a recipe for potential disaster...
This is only one of the many issues facing Spots the Space Marine.

Humour is sprinkled liberally between the serious moments, so while things can get pretty dang serious, the humour's no more than a page or two away.

A very well-written book that is as entertaining as it is gripping.

One person found this helpful

Amazon Customer

Merkwürdiger Titel ....aber wirklich gut

Reviewed in Germany on March 6, 2013

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Ich bin durch Zufall auf diese Buch gestoßen. Eigentlich hat mich ein online Bericht in dem es um eine größere Firma ging die einer unabhängigen Autorin drohte weil sie in ihrem Titel das Wort Space Marine verwendet hatte.
Zuerst kaufte ich das Buch also eigentlich nur um ein Statement abzugeben und um die Autorin zu unterstützen.

Als ich dann aber die ersten Seiten angelesen hatte, lies mich die Geschichte nicht mehr los.
Der Schreibstil der alles nicht in der gängigen Romanform einer Prosa Erzählung wiedergibt sonder wie ein Script (also Drehbuchartig aufgebaut ist) schafft es eine ungeheuer Dichte Atmosphäre aufzubauen.
Ich würde es jedem empfehlen zumindest mal eine Blick hinein zu werfen, ich für meine Teil werde auch mal einen Blick in die anderen Werke von Hogarth werfen.

One person found this helpful

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Spots the Space Marine: Defense of the Fiddler Paperback – February 25, 2012

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Product details

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Top reviews from the United States

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Top reviews from other countries

Buy new:

$21.99

FREE delivery: Saturday, Sep 18 on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon.

Ships from: Amazon.com

Sold by: Amazon.com

Buy used:

$8.38