Product Description
Kisho is a member of Clan Nova Cat's Mystic Caste, a select group of warriors loyal to the Oathmaster. Trained to succeed the Oathmaster, Kisho must overcome his disbelief in the Mystic Caste's supernatural gifts if he is to succeed in the forthcoming combat.
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Mechwarrior: Dark Age #17: Heretic's Faith (A BattleTech Novel) (Mechwarrior)
- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Roc; 2005-08-02
- Label: Roc
- Studio: Roc
- ISBN: 0451460405
- Average Customer Review:
 based on 8 reviews
- Sales Rank in Books: #211077
Avg. Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Not worth it 2006-12-11
Comment: This book hits bottom barrel. The writing style is totally unreadable - its excessive in descrition and not in a good way. Not only that, but twice in the book the author switched from 3rd person to 1st person!
I definatly would not recommend the book. Though it sounded pretty excited and definatly seemed to have an interested character to follow in the end you'll be dissapointed.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Much better than Daughter of the Dragon 2005-10-11
Comment: I've been waiting for more background and updates on the current activities of the Nova Cats and the Spirit Cats, and this story elaborates on these factions with a fair amount of detail. The story focuses on Kisho Nova Cat, a mystic that was introduced in "Sword of Sedition". After throwing "Daughter of the Dragon" in the trash, where it belonged, this book was a pleasant surprise to me. The author goes a little overboard on the inner turmoil content, pushing Kisho's behavior slightly beyond believable. However, the story and action provided enough of a foundation to keep my interest. Although not blatantly pornographic, like "Daughter", there is one subtle sex scene that spans chapter 7, so parents, be forewarned. The author aparently also has permission to kill off a couple well-known characters from the MechWarrior miniatures universe. I was very dissapointed in the pointless way they were eliminated. I'm worriedly holding out hope that WizKids and their authors will reveal some actual purpose for these executions, other than to just eliminate factions in their game.
This book does a nice job of illustrating the nobility and pride of the Nova and Spirit Cats, while also exposing the conflicting nature of their eugenics program; the brutally harsh system that the Nova Cats have swathed in a semi-religious belief system. Although not as good as Loren Coleman's books, or "Target of Opportunity", this is a good read, especially for those interested in the status of the Nova Cats and Spirit Cats.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Building depth and complexity into a fictional universe 2005-09-12
Comment: I've read the book, and I've read the reviews, and I felt compelled to write a review.
I give the book four stars out of five based on the fact that it's a pulp sci-fi book, and not intended to be a great work of fiction. If you want great fiction, look elsewhere, but like I've said in other reviews, if you're wanting a good time to imagine somewhere else...this series is a good bit of fun.
That being said, it's also worth noting I've been a fan of the Battletech/Mechwarrior universe since the 1980's. While I sympathize with some of the reviewers here, I respectfully disagree. Having a long series one exciting battle after another is fun, but if you want a series of books to last beyond five or ten books, you sometimes have to build more background, which isn't always going to be done in the most exciting manner.
As one reviewer noted, members of the clans are almost alien. While much attention has been given to their reasons for fighting and their skill at doing just that, why they think and do things differently than other humans just hasn't really been well developed. This book aims to change that, by taking one individual clan member, and showing us his upbringing, his thoughts, his struggles. In fact, by showing us the "heretic," it gives us a much better view of the psyche of a clanner. One of the chief themes of the book is a universal one, "what is my role in the universe." It's one of those things that almost everyone goes through at some point, but the point of this book is that those in the clans rarely if ever doubt their role. The book not only tells us this, but shows us why by exploring the childhood of those in the clans and interactions between adult members.
In fact, looking at the series as a whole, it's surprising that there are children at all in the Battletech/Mechwarrior universe, as they are so rarely seen.
Why four stars? Well, the book was enjoyable and well written (but with the editorial errors as noted, so minus one star), but more importantly it's given me more insight into the entire universe, so after this book I'll enjoy seeing clans more, and Nova Cats in particular. As a member of the military in real life, knowing why people fight is important to me. It will be fun when they go back to their epic battles, but now I'll care just a little bit more since I have a better appreciation for why. That difference is worth four stars any day.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Spoiler Alert indeed 2005-08-23
Comment: The back cover spoiler was QUITE annoying, as I always read the jacket/cover stuff.
I like Randall's previous works, but this one was a little too light and fluffy for me. Not enough battle is not always a problem, but since there wasn't much else going on, it definitely showed.
I was intrigued by the mystic concept, but ultimately I feel let down. This was the first time in all the Dark Age books (or any Btech book for that matter... ) I just couldn't seem to latch on to the story...
Note that the interludes were interesting, and did give some unique insights which I liked... but the "breadcrumb"ing of the past is only going to work for so long... :)
1 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: The slow decay of a once great franchise continues. 2005-08-13
Comment: At one time I looked forward to the release of a new Battletech novel. The writing was, for the most part, enjoyable and the stories were, again for the most part, exciting.
Then came Mechwarrior Dark Age.
I really tried, tried hard to enjoy these books. But each one got progressively worse. The plots, such as they were, became more banal and dull.
Heretic's Faith tries very hard to break the pattern. But, it fails on almost every attempt. By the midpoint of the book, you'll have figured out the ending. By the ending you'll be wishing that you ordered something else. Surrounded by fanboiz and sycophants the current authors fail to realise one important fact:
The magic is gone, and they have no idea how to get it back.
Go buy some of the Original Battletech novels.
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Mechwarrior: Dark Age #17: Heretic's Faith (A BattleTech Novel) (Mechwarrior)
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