Redshirts

Books | Fiction / Fantasy / Contemporary

3.7

(955)

John Scalzi

Ensign Andrew Dahl has just been assigned to the Universal Union Capital Ship Intrepid, flagship of the Universal Union since the year 2456. It's a prestige posting, and Andrew is thrilled all the more to be assigned to the ship's Xenobiology laboratory. Life couldn't be better...until Andrew begins to pick up on the fact that (1) every Away Mission involves some kind of lethal confrontation with alien forces, (2) the ship's captain, its chief science officer, and the handsome Lieutenant Kerensky always survive these confrontations, and (3) at least one low-ranked crew member is, sadly, always killed. Not surprisingly, a great deal of energy below decks is expendedon avoiding, at all costs, being assigned to an Away Mission. Then Andrew stumbles on information that completely transforms his and his colleagues' understanding of what the starship Intrepid really is...and offers them a crazy, high-risk chance to save their own lives. Redshirts is the winner of the 2013 Hugo Award for Best Novel.Old Man's War Series #1 Old Man’s War #2 The Ghost Brigades #3 The Last Colony #4 Zoe’s Tale #5 The Human Division #6 The End of All Things Short fiction: “After the Coup” Other Tor Books The Android’s Dream Agent to the Stars Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded Fuzzy Nation Redshirts Lock In The Collapsing Empire (forthcoming)

Science Fiction

Humor

Buy now:

More Details:

Author

John Scalzi

Pages

317

Publisher

Macmillan

Published Date

2012-06-05

ISBN

0765316994 9780765316998

Ratings

Google: 5

Community ReviewsSee all

"Really enjoyed this, it’s hilarious. I recommend getting the audible because it’s read by Wil Wheaton, which is very fitting, and he does a great job. "

Dave Sa

"This was 75 percent exactly the book I thought it was going to be and then 25 percent something much more affecting that I was totally unprepared for. So different than the Old Man's War books but in a way that turned out great."

M R

Max Rosenthal

"This book is first funny. And silly. And then it’s quite clever. And interesting. Loves this "

Karen Sawyer

"I was grinning like an idiot as Scalzi skewered classic sci-fi tropes with irreverent panache in "Redshirts". The book's best feature is its outrageously sarcastic and witty dialogue. The first half was genuinely hilarious and I was prepared to give the book a 4 star rating, but then the plot and writing began to drag in the second half. Things got less funny and more awkwardly serious. And then the final three - THREE - codas at the end were just too much. Scalzi's lucky to escape this one with a three and not a two. It's a shame, because I loved his "Old Man's War" so much. Sort of odd that this won a 2013 Hugo - I found the quality and pacing pretty inconsistent. But the great first half and the excellent narration by Wil Wheaton (who also narrated "Ready Player One") made this a fun read. And that's really all I wanted. Cross-posted from <a href="https://books.max-nova.com/redshirts">https://books.max-nova.com/redshirts</a>"

Max Nova

"At first, I thought this was a parody of Star Trek. Then the author basically said it was a parody of Star Trek. The book made a lot more sense after that. Don't worry if the sciencey stuff doesn't make sense to you. It's not supposed to. Just roll with it and keep going. The pieces will fall into place. Whatever you do, don't skip the three Codas at the end. They are epilogues for three of the minor characters. They tie up loose ends, and the final Coda will make it all worthwhile. I got teary, and smiled. I laughed aloud many times. It is a bit confusing at the start, but hang in there and it will be worth the read."

undefined

"I just thought this book was a fun read"