Hollowed-out asteroids: If in PA we could heat an asteroid while spinning it, the diameter will increase, the density will fall, and we might be able to hollow it out more easily. Also in the book, fabbers are seen building even-more-specialized fabbers that excel in creating a specific item (a single missile type, or a single laser crystal). I like the idea of having to actually *move* my mined resources to a fabber to begin production. Fabbers: Automated construction machines, with scrap metal and electronics going in one end, and processed components, vehicles, and weapons coming out the other end. Useful for extracting resources from metal-rich asteroids, and distributing laser-power so as to provide a redundant energy system. When the civilian laser is turned on an enemy ship in military combat, though, it melts through it like hot butter. A gigantic mining laser, built from countless mirrors scattered in clusters throughout the solar system. Here's some of my favorite ideas from the books: The scope and scale of these books is astounding, and if PA ends up being 1/100th the size, I will be impressed. The book this review discusses is not the one I read, but probably matches many of his points which is condensed into this: 'Because dammit, there's bad, and then there's so bad you have to memorialize it for future generations.Upon hearing of neutrino's interest in John Mavor's Live Free Or Die book recommendation, I picked it (and its sequel Citadel up from my local library.Īnd wow, they are freaking amazing. So, interestingly, after searching the Internets for opinions on this novel I come across an internet meme I never knew existed: OH JOHN RINGO NO. The science is fascinating, the plot moves along, he obviously knows military tactics, the characters are one dimensional bores, every female mentioned is 'stacked', and Ringo has a nasty habit of injecting ridiculous political agenda into the weirdest bits of his story. John Ringo is not a great author he isn't even a good one. Eventually he makes a prototype Death Star. With this fortune, he begins to create lasers. Funny, but still not as well delivered as the aforementioned Douglas Adams. A human entrepreneur finds out another group of aliens love Maple Syrup. We give them our rare precious metals they don't nuke more cities. Shortly later, aliens nuke cities and take over the world. Gate pops up in the general region of earth, aliens fly through and gave a brief humorous description of what the gate exactly provided: namely, the ability for anyone who could pay (aggressor/trader made no difference to it) a trip through.

Live Free or Die starts with a near Douglas Adams' flair for comedy. My requirements were thus when I set out to read this novel (which is really a series of three novellas packed into one larger work):

Live free or die by john ringo