Halo: The Fall of Reach

Blurb

Halo: The Fall of Reach is a military science fiction novel by Eric Nylund, based on the Halo series of video games, and acts as a prequel to Halo: Combat Evolved, the first game in the series. The book was released in October 2001 and is the first Halo novel. It is set in the fictional Halo universe, taking place in the 26th century across several planets and locations. The novel details the events which led up to the game and explains the origins of the SPARTAN II super soldiers, narrating the story of the series protagonist, the Master Chief.
The Fall of Reach was conceived after Nylund had discussed the possibility of a Halo novel with Microsoft's Franchise Development Group. A "Halo Story Bible" was created to assist Nylund in keeping with Halo canon. The novel was written in seven weeks, Nylund's shortest writing deadline.
The book was well received by critics who thought it added depth to the plot of the game but the large number of characters was highlighted as a shortcoming. Going on to sell over one million copies, the success of The Fall of Reach paved the way for further Xbox game novelizations, including another book in the Halo series. William C.