| | |  | Books | Home » » The Cole Protocol (Halo) | | | | | | | Description: | | In the first, desperate days of the Human-Covenant War, the UNSC has enacted the Cole Protocol to safeguard Earth and its Inner Colonies from discovery by a merciless alien foe. Many are called upon to rid the universe of lingering navigation data that would reveal the location of Earth. Among them is Navy Lieutenant Jacob Keyes. Thrust back into action after being sidelined, Keyes is saddled with a top secret mission by ONI. One that will take him deep behind enemy lines, to a corner of the universe where nothing is as it seems. Out beyond the Outer Colonies lies the planet Hesiod, a gas giant surrounded by a vast asteroid belt. As the Covenant continues to glass the human occupied planets near Hesiod, many of the survivors, helped by a stronghold of human Insurrectionists, are fleeing to the asteroid belt for refuge. They have transformed the tumbling satellites into a tenuous, yet ingenious, settlement known as the Rubble--and have come face-to-face with a Covenant settlement of Kig-Yar . . . yet somehow survived. News of this unlikely treaty has spread to the warring sides. Luckily for the UNSC, this uneasy alliance is in the path of the Spartan Gray Team, a three-man renegade squad whose simple task is to wreak havoc from behind enemy lines in any way they see fit. But the Prophets have also sent their best---an ambitious and ruthless Elite, whose quest for nobility and rank is matched only by his brutality . . . and who will do anything to secure his Ascendancy and walk the Path. | | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| Tobias S. Buckell | | Paperback:
| 368 pages | | Publisher:
| Tor Books | | Publication Date:
| November 25, 2008 | | Package Length:
| 8.1 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.5 inches | | Package Height:
| 1.1 inches | | Package Weight:
| 0.5 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 41 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
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Good For Halo Fans - RecommendedMay 16, 2010
"Halo: The Cole Protocol" picks up in the years after Halo: Contact Harvest and before the events in The Fall of Reach (Halo, Bk. 1), so this is not a good place to start reading the Halo series of books. This book was written by Tobias Buckell, who does a good job with the existing Halo universe, but is not as engaging as some of the other Halo writers (like Nylund). That being said, this was an enjoyable look into the events leading up to the action seen in the Halo games.
The story revolves around Lt. Keyes of the UNSC (who we see later in the series), a Spartan II team, several Covenant aliens (including two Prophets, an Elite leader, and a Kig-Yar), and a colony of humans made up of refugees, Insurrectionists, and a possibly unstable Artificer Intelligence.
This is a well thought out story that only suffers from Buckell attempting to show too much of the insights into the personalities of all of the players. The attention to detail was notable, but it also took me a lot longer to read this book than any of the others because it just didn't draw me in right away.
This is a good read for fans of Halo who want even more background story.
Recommended
CFH
 Halo - The Cole ProtocolMay 03, 2010
The Halo universe, games and novels, tells one of the top 5 greatest sci-fi stories of all time, in quality and quantity. This is a must have for TRUE Halo fans, and simply a really good sci-fi novel for those that aren't. This novel and all of the others in the Halo universe are fantasically written and are very easy reads. Each novel tells a truly awesome story and blends the action, drama, and even comedy very well. Kudos to this author and the others that have contributed to this amazing tale. I hope the Halo franchise and universe continue to evolve for a long long time.
awesome aspect to the Halo UniverseApr 19, 2010
This book was very entertaining for a behind the covenant lines look at what millions of civilians would do in desperation. If your at all a Halo fan then this book will satisfy your hunger for more of the Halo universe. The story is from the insurrectionist point of view near the end of the war with the covenant. There are still Spartans in this story just spartan III's is all so they are a little newer in comparison. Overall I would give this book a 9/10 simply because it wasn't the page turner that I sometimes come across but still had a solid action storyline.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Great BookFeb 28, 2010
If you love the games, and like to read you have to read this book along with the rest of the serious as I did, as I was reading I could picture every character and place in my head and when I was done I had to play the games again LOL
Not Half BadJan 30, 2010
I've really taken a liking to the Halo series of books. It's a lot better story than some of the games out there and reading the books gives you a lot better idea of what the heck is going on in the games.
The story covers the execution of the Cole Protocol, the set of rules laid out as an emergancy measure to prevent the Covenant from finding human colonies. There is legitimiate fear that a single captured civillian ship will provide all the navigational data required to lead the enemy right to Earth's doorstep. While trying to secure the destruction of navigational data behind enemy lines, a team of Spartan soldiers finds an odd cooperation between Jackel and human on the astroids that house the last remnants of the colony's population.
The story is pretty good. It's well written and detailed. I liked seeing things from the enemy side as well as the colonist side. I also liked that things weren't exactly black and white. You knew it was wrong for humanity in the grand scheme of things, but you could also see why colonists behaved as they did.
There was also some insight into the Covenant and how unequal the members are. The Grunts are treated like stupid cattle, their breeding restricted, and have little to no say in things. On the other hand, you can see why that's probably a good thing given their intellect and penchence for over breeding. It's just another little minor thing, but it was a really nice touch to give you a chance to weigh the morality. Again, things aren't all black and white. Despite their responsiblity for the colony's destruction, you find yourself hoping things will work out for the little guys.
All in all, this is one of the better Halo books I've read. If you like any scifi novels based on computer games then you should give this one a try. It's not huge battles or massive space fleets facing off, but it's also not a cookie cutter story. It will make you think a little.
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