This is a series of short reviews for military SF and mecha SF. You will not see a review of something I don't like as it isn't worth writing about in that case, but I will tell you what works for me and what doesn't about the stories I did like.
This book was a pretty enjoyable read, but it almost threw me off at the start. The premise of the novel has America being the global peacekeeper in the near future because of they have the Remote Infantry Corps, a war winning technology that no one else has. These Remote Infantry Corps ("Tin Men") are armies of remotely operated humanoid robots (human sized) that are extremely strong, extremely tough, and are faster and more dexterous than an actual human. An American operator basically controls the robot as their surrogate body (like they were in it - aka the Avatar movie) from a base in Germany to any point in the world. This whole peacekeeping aspect (which is a good thing in many ways) and American dominance via tech almost made me stop reading (it was pretty high handed), but it is an integral part of the story in making the Tin Men hated by many enemies around the globe. As the story progresses, something terrible disrupts the entire world and you see the soldiers as human beings and really hope they get out of their fix as they are trapped operating the robots. I recommend this book as a good read.
Does it have a cast of characters listing?
No. It basically operates at a platoon level with three sets of protagonists. One being the soldiers originally in the Middle East, another being the President of the United States and this protection detail, and the base troops for the Tin Men in Germany.
What is the scope / scale of the story?
Street level combat with squads and platoons within wider battles around the globe. A murky, unknown force is behind the disruption of the world.
Does it have likeable characters?
PFC Danny Kelso is the main protagonist and you like the guy and quite likable. I like the fact that there are male and female soldiers in the field and you really want them to find a way out of their situation.
Does it have an entertaining story line?
Yes. The story line moves quickly and shifts between the multiple groups of characters. There are good survival, journey, and political sub-plots to the book. Having some civilians mixed into the Tin Men as they journey across a devastated world was a good touch.
How is the internal consistency / plausibility?
Hmmm, this one is tough one. The tech is internally consistent in the book and it works for the story - I enjoyed the story even if I didn't think the tech was plausible. I'd have to say the plausibility is a no, based on the level of tech that would exist to support the Tin Men (it is near future). SPOILER WARNING : **** The plausibility of transferring a consciousness to an artificial brain via a high speed satellite link is a big no. **** The robots are also extremely tough. Something humanoid size wouldn't be resistant to .50 or grenade launchers to the level they are in the book, but they are feared because of this.
What cool bonus features are there?
The whole concept of remotely operated infantry robots is pretty cool. Since combat is always about getting down and dirty, this is a nice extrapolation from our current drone operators.
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