69 Books Like Battletech 18

This has to be one of–if not the–greatest single book I’ve ever read about war in the ancient world. I read the first ten pages, and I was interested; then I read the next forty, and I was utterly hooked. As a description of an elite military force holding out against overwhelming odds it fascinated me, but as a human story of the way Spartan society worked to produce those warriors, imbued with heroism, honour and humour in equal amounts I was simply blown away.

It’s fair to say that this book has been my greatest influence all the way through my writing career. I dare anyone with an interest in the genre to read this and then deny that they were informed, entertained, and (perhaps darkly) amused by the story and its payoff. This is God-tier writing, plain and simple, and, not for no reason, the closest thing the… show more.

I loved this book because it is another time-slip novel, but mostly because of the characters that Gabaldon has created. Claire is a strong woman both in the present time zone–post-war Britain–and the Scottish Highland time zone of the seventeenth century and the uprising. You sense immediately that she is in danger as the story is told from her point of view. 

I loved learning about the lives of the Scottish highlanders, how the story moves from one-time zone to another, and how the characters overlap.

This book quickly immersed me into its alien culture, mysterious science, and surprisingly impactful character development – I was nearly an instant fan of this superbly fresh approach to interstellar combat.

I love space fiction and its myriad of conflicts arising from exploring new worlds, but apart from rare standout exceptions, I feel that a military focus weighs down a story and handicaps it with deafeningly overworn tropes.

Halo was the first military read that never left me drifting from the story because of thoughtless tropes or corny dialogue. Instead, it kept me engaged through continual mysteries, worldbuilding, and a fresh take on personal growth within a military framework.

I found the books vastly different from the film adaptations, but they were also a surprisingly fresh compliment to one another.

I was never a fighter pilot. Through timing and happenstance, I was never able to make this journey. Yet, through the magic of the written word, I was taken on an adventure I could never make on my own.

It is great when you can find a book penned by an author who is an expert on a subject, but it is amazing when you find a writer who has lived the experience. For me, Jake Grafton's experiences outside the cockpit are secondary to the flights he makes in his A-6.

Thanks to Stephen Coonts, I feel I have sat on the deck of an aircraft carrier off the coast of Vietnam and launched into the sky to face my own mortality. 

Setting, setting, setting! Barbara writes such lovely backdrops for her even more lovely characters, and this one takes you way back to the dangerous and politically charged fifteenth century. True to the Highlander kicks off a 4-book series, and each book is as engrossing and detailed as the last. I love when a character has a thing that separates them from the crowd, and that thing for Barbara’s heroine is her beautiful violin playing. Pick this one up, and your heart will be making music too, because this one tugs at the heartstrings.

With compelling characters and true insights into the historical period it is set in, I consider this the best novel of all time. The movie it inspired is a classic, but the novel delivers much more.

The characters are brought to life with realistic motivations, dialogue, and inner monologues. Heinrich's masterful changes of point of view and suspenseful chapter breaks still maintain my interest every time. 

I can't praise the book enough for its pure literary quality, and even though it is a work of fiction, it has a ring of authenticity about it. The author served in the same regiment his fictional Steiner character belongs to and based him on a soldier who lived through the real-world events Heinrich set his novel in.

Guderian, a name that is synonymous with mechanized warfare started his career as a Signal Officer in WW I. He describes in great detail how the tank changed modern warfare. This book is not only the tale of how he fought to introduce armour tactics to the German army during the inter-war years but also how armour is best employed in battle. Every armour officer must read this book; but it is also worthwhile for the general reader looking for insights into tactical employments, leadership, and history.

This was the first book I read that brought the concept of artificial intelligence to my attention. The staggering amount of property damage that these massive war machines are capable of redefined my understanding of battlefield carnage. Laumer’s insightful portrayal of what AI can be still holds up today. I really like the way these machines are imagined; they are so very human.

The bonds of comradeship formed by volunteer soldiers during the Civil War lasted a lifetime for those who survived its bloody campaigns. Most regiments held annual reunions, during which the veterans rekindled friendships and remembered their service. Many collected reminiscences in book form, and these regimental histories are treasure troves of personal accounts. One of the most outstanding of this genre is the History of the Twelfth Regiment, a narrative of the men and officers who served in the 12th New Hampshire Infantry. Author Asa Bartlett, a beloved officer, humanizes the service of these Granite State volunteers.

When civil war threatened to destroy the American form of government and the liberty and freedom it represented, Alexander Herritage Newton rallied to the cause. “My bosom burst with the fire of patriotism for the salvation of my country and my people.” His people were millions of enslaved Black families who had toiled for generations in service of the white majority population. Early in the war, Newton was not allowed to serve because of the color of his skin. But as the laws changed, he joined the 29th Connecticut Infantry. He tells the story of his journey in a vivid autobiography, Out of the Briars.