My friend and colleague Eugene Volokh opines:
Just finished John Scalzi's Old Man's War, which was very good. I bought it in hardcover; cheapskate that I am, I rarely do this except with authors whose work I know well, but I made an exception because of Instapundit's and Professor Bainbridge's recommendations. They steered me well; really good science fiction, fresh and well-crafted.
Oddly, the weakest parts of the book are the first few chapters, which weren't quite as tightly written as the rest of the book. If you find yourself disappointed at first, stick with it; I think you won't be disappointed.
Frankly, however, I must disagree with Eugene about those first few chapters. I was hooked from page one. Your mileage may vary, of course, but with a line-up of recommenders like Reynolds, Volokh, and, dare I say, Bainbridge, how could you go wrong?
