The Rookie: Galactic Football League: Book One (The galactic football league, 1)

It probably sounds campy, combining space opera with football but Scott Sigler pulls it off brilliantly not only in the first novel "The Rookie" but equally well in the subsequent ones as well .

Sigler does a brilliant job of describing a future football league that includes regular humans (who generally play quarterback, running back, tight end, and some line backers, humans from heavy gravity worlds or heavy-G (who generally become defensive ends and sometimes offensive linemen), Sklorno the superfast though fragile aliens who make up almost all wide recievers and defensive backs, the Ki the literally nightmarish aliens who make up the offensive linemen and interior defensive line, and the Qyuh, warrior sect who are mostly outside linebackers and defensive ends.

The characters are remarkably well drawn with the central figure, human QB Quentin Barnes being a likeable though occasionally annoying young man who hails from a nightmarish human interstellar power called "Purist Nation" that is obviously the worst possible combination of Christian fundamentalist and Islamic extremism. Along with his staggering racism many of his attitudes seem just like a 21st century athlete going from high school and then to the college level.

All in all the Galactic Football League is one of truely great science fiction series being written today.

This is just a very fun book to read. It's very entertaining and I highly recommend it. Great blend of Friday Night Lights and Sci-Fi.

This is a young adult novel that combines science fiction and football. The title character is Quentin Barnes, a 19 year old quarterback who makes the jump from Tier Three (roughly the equivalent of class C in baseball’s minor leagues) to Tier Two (AAA) in the Galactic Football League. (There is still college football on Earth, which is unofficially referred to as Tier Four.) I actually found the galactic civilization in the year 2682 AD to be more interesting than the actual story, which reminded me a lot of the sports stories I read when I was growing up. They were usually some combination of a boy growing up (I don’t recall any stories featuring girls) or a selfish player learning to be unselfish. This story also has a thinly-disguised message against racial bigotry. In 2641, humans and several other intelligent species were conquered by the Creterakians, who decided that the official galactic sport would be American football, because multiple species could play on one team. A species called the Ki play the offensive and defensive lines, another called the Sklorno play the wide receivers and defensive backs, one called the Quyth play linebackers and tight ends, and humans get to play in the offensive backfield. This is the first book in the Galactic Football League series.

I resisted reading "The Rookie" for a long time, despite enjoying Sigler's other works. See, I'm not really into sports and figured I wouldn't be interested in the characters in the book. Friends talked me into it, though, and I'm glad they did. This is a really great story. OK, sure, there's some football jargon in there but you pick it up as you go along. It doesn't matter if you don't know a wide receiver from a cornerback; the story comes through. And it's one hell of a story.

The biggest sign of great writing to me is when I read about a topic I don't care about (football) and I fall in love with it. I listened to the author's podcast (audiobook) and I had to get the book for my dad for Christmas.

:)

I abhor football with a passion. I picked up The Rookie because I'm a big fan of Sigler's work. I thought I'd give it a chance.

I made the right choice. This was a wonderful book. Granted, my dislike of football was tested right at the beginning, with Quentin being smack in the middle of a game, but I knew the book wasn't just going to be about the games themselves. I was quickly rewarded with rich culture and conflict between races and with Quentin's internal struggles.

Honestly, I think I'd be okay watching a GFL game or two. There are no hold barred in this evolved version of the sport. True, I am far more interested in Quentin's development as a character and what's going on in the world around him rather than what's on the field, but Sigler manages to make each game mean something. GO KRAKENS!

I have enjoyed most of Scott Sigler's books, specifically the "Infected" books. But this series goes above and beyond! Sigler creates a massive galaxy of different species and planets competing in a plethora of sports, this series focusing on the GFL(Galactic Football League). Action, comedy, sci-fi, crime, and some mystery this book will drag you in! These are a great read but i like to listen to it on audible, as it is read by Scott Sigler himself and creates the atmosphere with music and sound effects.

Also, i dont even like to watch football!

Sigler is one of my top 3 favorite authors hands down but I just kept skipping over his GFL books because honestly I could care less about football. I finally took the plunge and read the Rookie. Now I can't get enough of the GFL!!!! With out a doubt my favorite series now. It almost even got me to watch a whole football game....almost

Really picked this book up after exhausting all other know authors. I was pleased and surprised by how much I liked it. Love science fiction and thought this would be a snoozer but really enjoyed the read. I am mildy interested in football but Sigler did a good with pacing in the book and also, while not ground breaking, character development. I will be getting the next in the series and would recommend it to friends.