Halo: Primordium: Book Two of the Forerunner Saga: 9

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The origin story touches on otherwise minor details and characters in huge way. We learn also the truth of Guilty Spark 343, his creation and not only what but who the monitors really are. I thought Bear's writing style truly captured the essence and desperation of this being a lynchpin time in the universe, where the librarian not only placed the fate of the Forerunner civilization in Chakas, but the fate of the entire universe itself. a b BS Angel (March 6, 2013). "THE HALO BULLETIN: 3.6.13: An Interview with Greg Bear". Halo Waypoint . Retrieved April 15, 2013. Set primarily on the "rogue" Halo ring Installation 07 used by Mendicant Bias during the events of Halo: Cryptum, [3] the novel follows the journey of the humans Chakas and Morning Riser, former companions of Bornstellar-Makes-Eternal-Lasting. After crash-landing on the Halo ring during Mendicant Bias' assault on the capital, they discover it has been used by the Master Builder's researchers to conduct research on humans. [4] They are forced to make their way across the embattled Halo installation, facing the Flood and rogue A.I. constructs on the way, while the Precursors' ancient plan of vengeance against the Forerunners is revealed. [2] During their journey, they find their way into the Palace of Pain, the lair of the ancient entity known as the Timeless One, which has unleashed The Flood on the Master Builder's researchers on the installation. [4] Mendicant Bias will also play a major role in the story. [5] I think what the problem a lot of people might have with Greg Bear's trilogy (again, I've only read two so far), is that they are more "interesting" books than they are "compelling". There is a distinct level of emotional detachment for the most part, and often events just happen without you realizing. It's like some things aren't described in great detail while massive plot points end up being almost footnotes. It seems like a deliberate writing style, if you ask me, and so I appreciate what Bear is doing here. Also I appreciate the way he weaved so many disparate elements of the lore into his own unique creation. Wow, what a surprise this book has been. I came in expecting it to be the darker middle entry in a trilogy that would ultimately have a tragic-but-hopeful ending. This book is not that. It is dark to be sure, but in many ways, this hardly feels in any way like a sequel to Cryptum . The only thing that even reminds me that this is related to that book is that some characters reappear, and that it takes place on a Halo, but that's about it. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but there's no doubt this book suffers a bit more than the first, despite its strengths.

It’s certainly not helped by the incredibly abrupt beginning which takes place part way through the previous instalment of the Forerunner Saga. And the fact its told in two different periods of time just confuses things more.As a whole, I quite liked this and I'm excited to see where Bear goes in Silentium, which I of course will be reading next.

Captured by the Master Builder, misplaced during a furious battle in space, they now find themselves on an inverted world where horizons rise into the sky, and where humans of all kinds are trapped in a perilous cycle of horror and neglect. For they have become both research animals and strategic pawns in a cosmic game whose madness knows no end--a game of ancient vengeance between the powers who seeded the galaxy with life, and the Forerunners who expect to inherit their sacred Mantle of duty to all living things. Halo: Primordium is continuing on the new story telling style and tradition as the first book, Halo: Cryptum; which for the first time, represents the most influential society of the Halo universe in the reading style and grand scale as the Greek Epic. As a reader of every Halo book and an all around scifi fan, I found the series to be a refreshing change from the past books: successfully emphasizing the reach and divinity of the demi-gods known as the forerunners while satiating my desire for not only learning the 'what' of the Master Chief era of Halo, but the 'Why'. We learn the complete truth about the Flood and the Halo Installations, their amazing capabilities not only as a super-weapon but what the Forerunners known as the Master Builder and Librarian truly intended in their creation, while juxtaposing their greatness with how childlike they still are; especially when we learn of the 'Precursor'. After Chakas recovers, he soon finds that he is host to the archived personality of Forthencho, the Lord of Admirals, who commanded the human military forces against the Didact's fleets in the final battle of Charum Hakkor. Vinnevra takes Chakas to see Gamelpar, who explains that he was originally from Earth and, like Chakas, also holds an "old spirit" within him. The old man also explains the history of the humans on the installation, and reveals that he has once been taken to what the humans call the Palace of Pain; a term used by the People for the Flood research facilities on the installation. I see "Silentium" isn't to be published and available till March of next year. sigh** I WILL WISH TO READ IT. Whether I'll like the novels of the earlier HALO series, I will soon see.A preview of the novel's first chapters was released on December 28, 2011 on Tor.com and Halo Waypoint, with the first chapter released on Tor.com and the second and third chapters as well as part of the fourth chapter on Halo Waypoint. [6] At the lesser Ark, the IsoDidact activates the rings while the remaining Forerunners fends off Mendicant Bias' fleet, stopping the Flood. Life is reseeded across the galaxy. Guilty Spark's memory is erased and he forgets his old life as Chakas. This journey will take them into the Palace of Pain, the domain of a powerful and monstrous intelligence who claims to be the Last Precursor, and who now has control of both this Halo and the fate of Forerunners and Humans alike. Nigel Seel (February 7, 2011). "Book Review: 'Halo: Cryptum' By Greg Bear". Science Fiction.com . Retrieved March 20, 2013. One hundred thousand years ago. In the wake of the apparent self-destruction of the alien Forerunner empire, two humans—Chakas and Riser—are like flotsam washed up on very strange shores indeed. Captured by the Forerunner known as the Master Builder and then misplaced during a furious battle in space, Chakas and Riser now find themselves on an inverted world, where horizons rise into the sky and humans of all kinds are trapped in a perilous cycle of horror and neglect. They have become both research animals and strategic pawns in a cosmic game whose madness knows no end—a game of ancient vengeance between the powers who seeded the galaxy with life, and the Forerunners who expect to inherit their sacred Mantle of Responsibility to all living things.

Greg Bear weaves an intriguing tale as Chakras tells his story of exploring the HALO and of actually meeting a Precursor. The story starts to clarify the Precursor / Forerunner conflict and the Floods connection to it all. It also becomes evident that a planet is heading straight for the HALO which starts to affect the HALO and makes the journey undertaken by Chakras even more tennous. This book was a real disappointment coming off the first in the Forerunner Saga which I thought was fantastic. Before you even begin to start on Primordium there’s a question you need to ask yourself. That question is “Have I read Halo: Cryptum?” If your answer is no, then go read it. Don’t even bother trying to start with Primordium, you’ll just end up very lost.Similar to Halo: Cryptum, the story is told as a first-person narrative, from the perspective of Chakas, one of the two humans who accompanied Bornstellar Makes Eternal Lasting during the events of Cryptum. The novel is set primarily on Installation 07, a Halo ring under control of the rampant Mendicant Bias. [4] After crash-landing on the ring during Mendicant Bias' assault on the Capital, Chakas is joined by two local humans, Vinnevra and Gamelpar, in an odyssey to find his companion Riser. As they attempt to survive on the war-torn Halo, they face several obstacles, including the ancient being known as the Primordial, the Flood, and Mendicant Bias. [5] Primordium involves a lot of walking around. I mean of the type that usually happens in high fantasy novels, but you wouldn't exactly expect to happen in the science fiction genre. I mean seriously, 50% of the book involves walking around this massive construct called a Halo, finding random dead aliens and remains of crashed warships and then more walking. Not a lot happens aside from that for over half the book. I probably should have read more Halo books prior to this but hey, I didn't want to invest the time into something that I wasn't really interested in to begin with (unlike the Warhammer 40k-verse, which is frigging awesome by the way), and I wanted a peek at the Halo-verse. I was not impressed with what I read.

Chakas meets Vinnevra and her grandfather called Gamelpar. They had rescued him from his life pod. They are soon exploring the Halo as it not safe where they are and Chakas wants to find Riser. Vinnevra's inner gaes give her guidance where to go, and their journey begins. The book's cover was designed by Sparth, an artist at 343 Industries known for his "futuristic vistas", [7] and who would later become a creative director at the company. [11] The artwork was adapted from concept art for Halo 4, [12] intended to capture the wondrous scope of the Forerunners. [7] Sparth and Gabriel Garza collaborated for Silentium's cover. [13] Jason Hamilton. "Book Review: Halo, Primordium (2012)". Story Hobby.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2013 . Retrieved April 15, 2013. Halo: Silentium Book Text Holds Codes for Additional Halo Content". Tor Books. February 13, 2013 . Retrieved April 14, 2013. If “The Forerunner Saga” is any indication, Greg Bear clearly doesn’t care about rewarding his readers.Greg Bear. "Greg Bear: News". Greg Bear.com. Archived from the original on April 6, 2013 . Retrieved April 15, 2013.