Starfist: Firestorm

In the exciting 12th military SF novel to feature the Confederation Marine 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team (FIST) from Sherman and Cragg (after 2006’s Starfist: Flashfire), former gunnery sergeant and now ensign Charlie Bass and his platoon of Devil Dogs are pulled out of the quarantine to which their knowledge of the alien Skink menace condemned them, to participate in a campaign against a coalition of worlds that wishes to secede from the Confederation. Bass and his platoon have the misfortune to end up in a situation similar to the U.S. Civil War’s Peninsula Campaign, under a Marine-hating army general who makes McClellan look like Rommel. The authors continue to excel both at showing the cruel randomness of war and at affectionately portraying the military subculture and ethos. Readers looking for accounts of futuristic combat that depict realistically the psychology of men in battle need look no further. (June)