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Terrible Swift Sword  By  cover art

Terrible Swift Sword

By: William R. Forstchen
Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
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Publisher's summary

Stranded on a distant world ruled by alien creatures, Union Colonel Andrew Keane and his regiment must rely on a brute force when a human traitor among them gives the aliens the secret to air power.

©1992 William R. Forstchen (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Terrible Swift Sword

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Great Sequel

Another great book in the series can't wait to listen to book 4. I was not sure what to expect from this book since book 2 was not as good book 1, but I was not at all disappointed. The ending was great, even if it may have been a little predictable; honestly I think the author intended it to be.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

As good as it gets !!

This is an absolutely outstanding series ! In an alternative reality Union soldiers and freemen fight the ultimate war of survival. The books resonate with military planning, and epic battles. It also covers the human costs of people determined to survive in freedom.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

good, but not a stand alone book

as a sequel, this book does well. I recommend starting with rally cry in order to understand the nuances.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A book

This "review" is being written just to satisfy Audible's offensive and ridiculous decision to require a review to rate books.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

It was the worst of times...

Picking up from where we left off in the last book, the Merki seem to have learned their bloody lessons well and have stepped up their game against the transplanted Americans and their allies. As a result, while our heroes have managed to hold out against everything the alien hordes have thrown against them so far, this is where things start to take a turn for the worst. Still, the humans aren't the only ones having a bad time, as there seems to be a bit of a power struggle going on between high ranking members of the horde. Once more, the story continues on the right track to entertain and keep the audience invested. That said, there's one gripe I have with this book. In the previous entry, we're introduced to descendants of transplanted pirates who teamed up with the American naval traitor and were subsequently coerced into aiding the Merki cause. However, this book claims that in the aftermath of the last book the pirates just slipped away from their alien masters, and then we never see them again for the rest of the series. In my mind, its kinda wasted potential. In spite of that, this book still holds up.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Surprising Grimdark

When I started this series, I didn't realize just how dark it was going to get. Just this book we have war weariness, PTSD, nihilism, and worst of all, the beloved mentor died a glorious death. I'm still enjoying the story, though I do have two complaints. The chapters really need to get shortened to something more manageable and the narrator could act less like he's trying to slowly prounce every instance of dialogue.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

This Review Needs a Title In Order for me to go on

The first book is not bad, but by the time I got to the end of book two, I discovered that the story was not really going anywhere anymore. I started book three and not so slowly got bored with the plot. The characters were familiar, but stranger then usual. Attrition from multiple battles had broken the regiment but it still fought like before. The books are very, very long and they don't seem to end....just muddle on. The idea was enticing, but length and boredom cause me to quit the series at this point.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Mesmerizing

If you have been following along with Colonel Keene since Rally Cry, you will be well rewarded with this 3rd book. I am very happy with the narrator, as he does yet again, stay in character(s) throughout the story. So little to complain about with this fantasy genre of military sci-fi. I look forward to seeing how Keene and the Russ move forward following the finale. To be continued....

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

awesome book

It was a great book from a great series! awesome history and storyline and a great ending!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

great story and narrator

I love this series and the narrator does an excellent job with his tone and narration of the book.

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