Avalanche Soldier

by Susan R. Matthews

Book Overview

Salli is an avalanche soldier. As a member of the elite paramilitary force she is responsible for prtecting the religious shrines scattered throughout the mountainous silderness regions of the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0380803151
• ISBN13: 9780380803156
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Eos
• Length: 276 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

And Where Were You When the Savior Came?

I have to weigh in on this one. It pushed a lot of buttons, and it's surprising to me that it hasn't pushed a lot more. It's not as jump up and down on your sensibilities disturbing as the Koskuisko books, no. The subject matter, though, is just as harsh. This book is excellent, and worth pressing on anyone having a struggle with the notion of the divine.Avalanche Soldier doesn't feel as involved as the Andrej Koskuisku (I apologize if I've murdered the spelling) books. On the other hand, I was really impressed. Religion is not an easy subject to even begin to touch. Salli's experience of conversion and faith is powerful and convincing. As someone who chases the ghost of faith around the kitchen table now and again, and has some fairly strict theological notions (and you just try fitting that into one head on one night!), watching Salli deal with both faith and doubt in the context of a divided and stratified society was fascinating.Salli, the viewpoint character is straightforward. Maybe a little unsubtle, and just sketched in on some levels. Yet I found her experience of faith convincing and powerful. The final decision she makes is tearing, and (emphasis) it's the right one.The only real quibble with this was the cop-out, of Varrick declaring herself to be "just another teacher." The denoument would have been stronger without it, and also, from where I'm sitting, it felt like a pro-active ducking of the more doctrinaire believers. This is worth your money.

Avalanche soldier - for the non-mainstream

Another excellent book, though not in the same venue that one would expect from her previous works. After reading this, I was struck by the total focus of the book upon the primary character. Everything seems to come from Salli's perspective, even though none of the story-telling is in the first person. You're caught up in the changes of her life as if it were her telling you the story itself. In that regard, I see it as being non-mainstream, leaving the safe beaten track that some authors tend to tread, with different elements and persons all interconnecting for their "share" of the story. In this case, those elements and people are just portions of the total story, and that story is Salli.Susan doesn't pull any punches here, just like her previous books. Her characters don't have quick easy fixes in their lives and not everyone lives happily ever-after as they struggle to survive and move on amidst the forces at work around them. Nothing is set in stone, life is malleable and moves on of its own accord whether the character wants it to or not. That of itself makes the characters more believable, more real and more dimensional - and therefore, a good read.

Fun quick read with plenty to think about later

This is way different from author's previous, and I liked both. This story goes down so quick and smooth that it wasn't till days later that I started really thinking about some of the ideas that it had raised in my mind that had been just sort of rattling around in my head since I read the book. Sure there was meat on its bones that I gulped down whole while I was reading it & digested later, but basically it's an easy read with an interesting plot.It's a deceptively simple story. The heroine goes through a lot of changes and the choice she has to make at the climax of the book was a real doozie -- a great payoff that really tied everything together. There's character-driven stories and there's plot-driven stories, and this one's both. I liked it. Give it a whirl!

An intriguing angle on another difficult subject

I liked the question this book tackled. What we think and feel about religious beliefs as a society and how such ideas can grow out of social and scientific events that have nothing to do -- originally -- with religion. It's a passionate subject, which Matthews presents from a dispassionate side. It's an unfamiliar fit but I wonder if it isn't deliberately done? The Andrej books compelled people to identify with a passionate character no matter how much they fought against it. I learned that I could like a man I despised. And the shared passion was enjoyable. Here, where I would feel comfortable with passion (even assume it these days), Matthews doesn't employ it, forcing me to look at the subject matter more objectively. I agree that the story could have been longer. But, I think it's a good read. I'll be interested in seeing what tack Matthews takes in the next book (and I look forward to another Kosciusko book).

Science Fiction or Literature?

As with her other books, _Avalance Soldier_ can only be classified as science fiction because of its setting. This is an excellent study into the psychology of the convert and the inner workings of a religious organization with a charismatic leader. Ms. Matthews has a powerful way with language, simple to read, but complex in tone. Her books touch on the dark side that resides in us all, but with a liberal sprinkling of humanity and emotion that makes it much easier to bear. _Avalance Soldier_ is less dark than _Exchange of Hostages_, _Prisoner of Conscience_ or _Hour of Judgement_, but also of the same high calibur of writing.