Halo: The Fall of Reach

We all know the story of Halo: Combat Evolved, but did you know the story of the Spartans? Their rise to super soldiers and their history from a black ops organization to the most feared of humanities warriors? In 2001 Eric Nylund took on this task and wrote the story of the early days of the Spartan program, the origins of the Human-Covenant War and most importantly, the Fall of Reach.

As a note, I am reviewing the original 2001 publication of The Fall of Reach, not the 2012 reprint which fixed some continuity errors and expanded some of the story.

After an action packed prologue, the story begins in 2517 with Lt. Jacob Keyes escorting a UNSC specialist Dr. Kathleen Halsey to a planet in the Outer Colonies. Curiously, they tour a school looking for a 'subject' that is being examined for some obscure program that the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is undertaking. The young boy, John, is a rough, adventurous, and courageous child who, ultimately, also has a lot of luck on his side. He is considered a perfect candidate.

Fast forward some months later, and John has been kidnapped and placed in a training facility under the care of Chief Petty Officer Mendez, and he will be trained in the ways of war, strategy and tactics. He will become the ultimate soldier for the UNSC and help quell the maelstrom that is coming. Little do any of them know, humanity's first contact with a hostile alien species is just around the corner.

I've been interested in the concept of supersoldiers for a while. My own novella Reintegration, deals with the idea, and it was partially inspired by this story. The Spartans are supersoldiers made to be the last line of defence against a civil inssurection which could tear humanity apart, and how they are formed is quite a fascinating tale. Nylund captures it with a lot of discussion on why the government feels it's necessary, the extreme lengths gone to in order to make the perfect soldiers, and how it changes them over time. It also explores how, in some small ways, these children turned soldiers lose their humanity, but become it's ultimate guardians in the end.

Nothing in the novel fails to deliver, and it fleshes out the history and character of Halo protagonist John 117, who is the lens through which the player/reader sees much of Halo's world. It also exposes us to other Spartans like Linda, Fred and Kelly who are John's teammates and friends for much of the later games and novelizations who add depth to the world and the Spartans overall. Alongside stellar characters like the brilliant tactician Captain Keyes, the enigmatic Dr. Halsey, and of course Cortana, it gives a lot more to each of the characters it explores.

Of course it also has some amazing action scenes.

From Spartan infiltration missions to duking it out with Covenant ships with superior weaponry, it does a lot to give us some amazing action sequences. 

My favorite part is the whole Sigma Octanus campaign, which has some simply awesome space battle action and some very memorable moments with the Spartans on the ground. It has a particularly memorable sequence which has ignited a love affair with space battles that continues to this day in what I read and write. Nylund really nails the pulse pounding action and gets me pumped up for every alien encounter. It's a perfect companion to a first person shooter.

The Fall of Reach is a fun, and very easy read. Somewhat heavy in a moral direction, it's a fun action romp that will hopefully get you thinking on the morals of supersoldiers, but also suck you into the world of Halo and the many stories it has to tell.