Orcs (Orcs, 1)

This book reminds me of different RPG sessions over the year. Core group of PC's with various others that sometimes help out. The Hero's are nearly stoppable except when they fight each other. The quest the Wolverines end up on is epic in scale and always gets the right nudge along the lines to keep moving. The pacing of the witting is fast enough to overcome most of the excess details that crop up from time to time. I enjoyed this book and will purchase the additional books in the series.

This was a great book (really a trilogy of books) that I picked up for my Kindle for only $1. This was a great value, I got much more than my money's worth.This book is definitely geared towards a male audience with lots of descriptions of battle sequences, gory details included. But there was a good storyline here as well. I thought it was well written, and my Kindle's built-in dictionary was used on more than one occasion to look up an obscure word. This books isn't just for teenage boys, I'm in my 30's and enjoyed it as well.The characters were fairly one-dimensional, good guys being good, bad guys being very bad. The ending did seem a bit of a letdown, with many loose ends unresolved or not resolved satisfactorily, but really it was setting up for the next trilogy in this series.

"Look at me. Look at the Orc.""There is fear and hatred in your eyes. To you I am a monster, a skulker in the shadows, a fiend to scare your children with. A creature to be hunted down and slaughtered like a beast in the fields.It is time you pay heed to the beast. And see the beast in yourself. I have your fear. But I have earned your respect."First, a disclaimer: Fantasy novels which read like a narration of a D&D campaign (aka "quest literature") are a guilty pleasure of mine. If protagonists are herded from quest to the next quest via some totally improbable deus ex machina, that is also fine. Moreover, I like fantasy written from bad guys' point of view; I like explorations of what it's like to be evil, to serve evil, and/or to choose the above two. As an aside, "The Goblin Corps" by Ari Marmell is an excellent example of quest literature from the bad guys' point of view.So when I read the chilling self-introduction above and skimmed first few pages, full of exactly the kind of bloodlust and slaughter one would expect from orcs, I thought this was a book for me. Alas, it failed completely.After the first chapter, there is absolutely nothing "evil" about Stan Nicholls' orcs. In fact, the protagonists (the orc band named Wolverines) are probably the most honorable individuals in the entire book. And while I can deal with humans being the enemy (to orcs, they are, almost by definition), I can't stand the "human guilt" message which permeates "Orcs". Humans are blatantly European colonizers complete with environmental despoiling through ignorance*, and all "elder races" -- orcs, elves, nyadds, gremlins, etc. -- are Native Americans, complete with vulnerability to human-born diseases. Basically it is "Dancing With The Wolves" with magic. Oh, and there are two human factions -- polytheistic Manis and monotheistic Unis, and Unis are so over the top, the word "absurd" does not even come close. "Genocidal Mennonites" is about the best description. I made it past Book 1, "Bodyguards of Lightning", and could not stand it any more.Oh, and what I mentioned about quest literature? I am okay with "hand of author/gamemaster" giving protagonists the clue to their next step; I am not okay with them coming with barely scratches out of fight after fight after fight against superior odds. The Wolverines have the worst example of "plot armor" I had ever seen.The only reason I am giving this book 2 stars is because of variety and detail Nicholls put into many elder races. Even so, what little we see of their backstory makes no sense. If before arrival of humans the continent of Maras-Dantia was as peaceful as they claim, there would be no reason for orcs -- a race of hereditary mercenaries, -- to exist at all. Granted, this could be a nod to modern romanticizing of Native Americans (meaning elder races were never as harmonious as they now claim), and given what we see of nyadds and especially of half-nyadd queen Jennesta, that's probably the case. Maybe nyadds are Maras-Dantia's equivalent of Aztecs.*Ignorance yes, but Unis at least would enthusiastically double their efforts if they realized what they've been doing inadvertently

I enjoyed this book very much, I’ll be starting the next book when I finish this mini review. This story is very good, the characters are believable, and the action is intense without excess gore. Enjoy!

Positives1. A unique and original take a fantasy novel2. Gritty and real feeling to the way battle scenes are described3. Story moves fast and makes you want to keep reading.Negatives1. the Orcs are not really that different from humans. It would have been interesting if the book described their culture more.2. A weak ending (but it does not matter if you are planning to read the next book in the series as the ending sets up the story for the next installment )

I bought this book kind of on a whim and I liked what I thought was a quote about 'be thankful for the orc' and all that. It is not as philosophical as I thougth for those 'quotes' that it would be. As least not in that way. Nice lesson on religious intolerance, though some spiritual redemption for the Unis would have been nice. That religious concept took a beating here. Perhaps leaving reference to 'real' religions out of fantasy would be a great idea.It was two and a half books, maybe a little more, of pretty good reading. I sped through it and I only do that with things that hold my limited attention. The ending almost hit the mark, but it really left you wanting more. More finality, more changes for more creatures, and more of what the heck happened when they got where they were going (there maybe a good chapter left undone with that last one alone). The ending is why it only got 3 stars from me, otherwise it would have been 4. It is an easy, good flowing read that is enjoyable up until the very 'uh' ending. Worth reading for the price.

What a breath of fresh air. Orcs from the Orcs point of view. Not the bad guys this time, but the reluctant heros out to save their kind. I was a little put off with the ending, anti-climatic, but the three books on a whole were a great read. Good for those who have always looked at Orcs as the man-hating ruthless killers, the book explores the other side of Orcs, the battle-bred military of this world. Enjoy the book!

breath of fresh air, action packed, gory,wity and thoroughly enjoyable!!!

5 stars as it is an awesome book. If you are a fan of this genre you will appreciate the way that Stan Nicholls has portrayed the Orcs.The characters are well made and allow a very insightful look into each one. I highly recommend this book to all.