New ‘Halo’ Novel Picks Up Where ‘Halo 5: Guardians’ Left Off

By Brittany Vincent

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – “Halo: Bad Blood”
is the latest original full-length novel to join the “Halo” expanded universe, and it’s available to purchase now. Written by bestselling author and game designer Matt Forbeck, it continues the storyline from “Halo 5: Guardians.”

Given that it’s going to be quite some time before we hear anything about the recently-announced
“Halo Infinit e ,”
this novel should help tie up some loose ends and offer a bit more insight into the world of “Halo” for fans. There are a purported two years that take place between “: Guardians” and “Infinite,” after all. What ended up happening during that time?

The narrative follows the Spartans from Blue Team and Fireteam Osiris as they struggle to remain one step ahead of the rampant artificial intelligence Cortana. Spartan Edward Buck is the focal point of the narrative, taking on a secret mission to help reclaim some ground after Cortana’s devious advances.

He reforms his old team, Alpha-Nine, to complete said mission, and first directs them to head to Sanghelios in an effort to meet with any UNSC personnel who managed to survive Cortana’s attacks. It’s a tumultuous journey from there, of course.

There are a few interesting highlights from the novel, as outlined via online forum
ResetEra
, as several of the Spartans end up reuniting with familiar faces from “Halo 5,” such as the Arbiter and Dr. Halsey, as seen during the final cutscene of “Halo 5.” Without spoiling too much, yes, the Master Chief does make another appearance in the novel, as well as the UNSC Infinity, the fleet’s massive ship. There’s a lot to take in, and the time is ripe for a refresher now that “Infinity” is on the horizon.

“Halo: Bad Blood” sounds like an interesting tie-in, and it’s available now if you’d like to delve further into the events post-”Guardians.”