War Machine

Characters well developed and likable. The technology is interesting and the fast paced action will keep you reading late into the night. It is dark novel filled with death and sexual images so not for the kiddos. Science fantasy minded folk will enjoy, reminds me a little of Dan Abnett's work.

When Keenan, a former soldier, is asked to steal the Fractured Emerald, he immediately says no. But when he realizes that the Emerald has the power to see into the past, Keenan changes his mind in hopes of tracking down the killer of his wife and children. On his quest for revenge, he reassembles his former Combat-K squad, breaking Franco out of a psych ward and Pippa out of a prison. But with relationships strained among them, can they settle their differences in order to complete their mission? War Machine is a dark and violent, military science fiction novel. When reading the back stories of each character, I knew immediately that this one wouldn't have a bright and happy ending. Each member of Combat K has a brutal and violent past, full of regrets. Giving some levity to otherwise grim situations was Franco the psychotic, explosives expert of the group. Not for the squeamish, this is tale of revenge and dealing with personal demons. I'm a fan of a few military science fiction series, so I jumped at the chance to read this one. And though this is much darker than the ones I'm used to, the action and adventure never stop, making this a difficult one to put down.

While billed as a Military SciFi novel, this testosterone-filled action adventure is more of a revenge quest than anything else. Swift plotting, bloody action, and interesting characters (especially the lovable and funny, insane mad-bomber, Franco) overcomes any flaws (lots of anachronisms in this far flung future). The slam-bang, cliff-hanging ending has me craving the sequel. Excellent!