Legion Paperback – August 27, 2013

This story is an interesting take on the foreign legion genre. The protagonist is well developed and actually seems real, and not some cardboard cut out. The story is crafted, not simply written and it was a pleasure to sit back and loose myself in this excellent piece of SciFi.

I'm a sucker for the regular guy enters the military, goes through boot and becomes a decent soldier, type stories and this did not fail to deliver.Pros:-Good Story that had good editing, very few type-0's or misspellings, always a positive in an independent book.-Decent character development, I found the change, in the main character, from spoiled civilian, to a valued member of his platoon, plausible and interesting.-No silly tropes, ie., the super Rambo, the hot chick who kicks the butt of men who outweigh her by 150 lbs., etc., just realistic soldiers adjusting to battlefield conditions, very limited dues ex machina, which is a HUGE positive.-Very realistic and well written forces, I could see the point of both sides, there were some real "bad" guys, but they never distracted from the overall factors in the conflict and added to the storyline.-No over description of arms and armor, great dialogue among the soldiers and proper use of military hierarchy and custom, it does become irksome when I read some military sci-fi from authors with no clue on this, I've seen some that have said, "First Sgt. Jones, A company comander, yelled for his LT., to get the squad ready." ummmm.... NO, the author didn't make this mistake.Cons:-The lack of tech. I know the over-description of it can be boring page filler and the author didn't do that, thankfully, but the use of M-16's, 400 yrs in the future??? The M-4, an M-16 varient, is the current standard issue battle rifle, I get the feeling that they were using the old Vietnam era issue. The explanation of this was b/c it was cheap to produce and use in colonial postings. The problem with that is that it is 400 yrs in the future!! Think about it, in 1613 the blunderbuss was the pre-eminent weapon, you don't think we would have something better 400 yrs from now? Even if the U.S. had an expendable force, one that was nothing more than cannon fodder, would we issue them a blunderbuss? I mean a bolt action rifle, or heaven forbid and M-1 Garand would at least put them close to the same century and make them much more effective at their job. The use of helicopters, really? We have the ability to control gravity artificially, you don't think that just maybe they would have something better than Black-Hawk varients 400 yrs in the future? These kind of things were a major pet-peeve and kept me from giving it a full 5 stars.-Lack of background. I would have liked more background on the USFL, why foreigners were so gung-ho to get into the Legion, why their country of origin so bad? Was the U.S. of the future still a shining beacon etc., A little more back-story would have gone a long way, though it did not destroy the premise.Overall a good book and would def., purchase any follow-up's and would give this author another try if he writes something else.

Thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. This is a new author for me and I'm so glad I read the excerpt. Got hooked right away. Fast paced action with well developed characters, some interesting and unexpected plot developments - what more can one want?! Have to admit, I got annoyed at the main character for feeling sorry for himself for quite a number of pages but overall I couldn't put the book down. There are number of small (for me) issues, such as using antiquated weapons and no explanation why there are no women in the USFL, but that didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of this book. Can't wait for the sequel.

Champion is no Tolstoy, no Hemingway but he CAN write. Good story. Good, solid characters. Good, believable plot. All in all a good read. If you're looking for literature, Leo Champion ain't your author. But if you're looking for a little good fun. For some M&Ms for the mind, give Leo a try. Me? I was hooked when I saw the POV character had the same last name as mine. When, later on, he even drank my favorite brew - Steel Reserve: cheap, smooth (no bitter follow-on), and packing a punch (8% ABV) - I was hooked. GOTTA read the rest in the series!

In spite of the anachronisms (cars, paper books, M-16 rifles, WP grenades, debit cards and paper and coin money) I thoroughly enjoyed this book, The author's background in proofreading is obvious as nothing spoils a book for me than sloppy writing, editing and proofreading. I took the book as a rollicking, tongue-in-cheek adventure, somewhat comedic although the action is excellent and the dialogue crisp. I have no idea if that was the author's intent, but it worked for me. I urge you to give it a try...hey, if you don't like it, return for refund!

The story drug for about half the book, some minor plot details, just enough to keep you interested but mostly the daily grind of life the United States Foreign Legion. When the plot lines finally came to a head the book was pretty good. Getting to those parts was like walking in sand then you hit the concrete. I'd probably buy the next book though, if I didn't have anything better to do.

When is the 2nd one coming Mr Champion??Was led to this book by an excerpt in one of Chris Nuttall's novels....and there is a certain symmetry to the story lines...but enough of a gap for it to be refreshing and new, and a joy to read.The basic premise is well thought out, and the characterisation enjoyable - the story is paced to fit the action on the page and flows nicely along...leaving me wanting more......Has the makings of being a great space opera - with a universe that is believable and characters which you can believe in too....SO...when is the 2nd book coming??....

This book engages from beginning to end.Believable military sci-fi set in a future where the United States Foreign Legion is deployed to far off planets to quell uprisings, protect US commercial interests and wage war wherever expendable troops are needed.Paul Mullins "joins" the Legion after a drunken night out from his white collar job and tracks his story from boot camp to hard bitten Legionnaire.The characters are well developed, in particular the main protagonists, LT Croft and PFC Mullins, and there are adventures a-plenty, nail biting cliff hanger scenes, evil aliens and corrupt planetary officials to be overcome and an epic battle to cap off a terrific yarn.I haven't enjoyed a space yarn this much in years.Highly recommended for fans of the genre.

Legion is being re-read, on a Samsung S5 (a computer hiding ahind a mere CellPhone facade!). I am up to the Hearing for the alleged planning to desert. Recommend his book very highly. First one, in a very long time, with another thinking folk's Society and Culture thought out so well. The terrain and climate is well done, I could feel the heat, and he wind-driven sand! Gonna up the 'stars' to 5, I suspect...Very well done, Leo.

Quirky but I found it to be a very good read and the descriptive parts were very good.

Waking up the next day after a bender and finding yourself enlisted. We follow Paul through basic and out on to his first deployment. The way in which this is done helps the reader get background in to the world without massive infodumps. His character develops as he meets and overcomes challenges of the service and someone who has it in for him. Lots of military action. I'm looking forwards to more in this universe.