Description:

The hugely popular Starfist saga featuring Marines at war in outer space is the only military science fiction series written by real combat vets: David Sherman and Dan Cragg. Now comes the explosive hardcover debut of this series–packed with hell-torn action and blazing adventure.

In their fiercest combat yet, the hard-charging Marines of 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team (FIST) have finally won their battle against a full-scale alien invasion of planet Kingdom. But victory over these savage enemies comes at a terrible price, especially for the Marines of Company L’s decimated third platoon. The leader these men would follow into hell itself–Gunnery Sergeant Charlie Bass–was consumed in a fiery ambush that obliterated everything but his dog tags and a few scraps of DNA.

On planet Kingdom, citizens try to return to some semblance of normalcy as the military conducts patrols to search out and destroy any remaining alien Skinks. The old government of squabbling religious leaders has been replaced by a ruthless new regime. All power rests with Dominic de Tomas, a depraved despot who will stoop to any means to achieve his vile ends. His reign of terror bodes ill for the fragile planet still reeling from the chaos of war.

In a cave in some forgotten Kingdom backwater, several humans slowly regain consciousness. Their minds have been probed repeatedly . . . by whom and for what reason they cannot say, for they’ve been stripped of all memories of themselves and their past lives. In time wounds will heal, but who knows if they will ever fully recover.

For now, finding food and water takes precedence. And so these half-dead outcasts begin a journey into the unknown–in search of civilization, in search of themselves. And one survivor’s journey will take him to places of overwhelming danger, where his identity will be revealed to the shock of all.

From the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

The ninth novel in Sherman and Cragg's classic military SF series (First to Fight, etc.), the strongest entry yet, has earned a well-deserved promotion to hardcover. In the 25th century, those in trouble can still call on the Marines. Having driven the alien Skinks off the planet Kingdom, the guys of the all-male 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team (FIST) are going back to base, to receive new people, promote old ones and restore their morale with beer, steak and willing women. Back on Kingdom, however, the dictatorship of Dominic de Tomas has turned into something frighteningly like the Third Reich. Part of this Nazi resemblance is tongue-in-cheek (e.g., the Leader has a fat sidekick, Senior Stormleader Herten Gorman), but the vividly described labor camps are anything but funny. And on a farm, a man with amnesia nicknamed "Military Operations" because he knows something about war is organizing the farmers to resist de Tomas and his thugs. As he recovers his memory, he realizes that the farmer's daughter is in love with him. The Leader's minions carrying off the daughter to be de Tomas's consort/love slave ensures non-stop action for the book's last third. The authors have avoided the implausible scenarios and interservice rivalries of some past volumes. This is state-of-the-art military SF.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From

Starfist, the saga of a far-future marine strike team, switches from paperback to hardcover for the hardest battle of the 34th FIST's career, against an alien invasion on Kingdom. Many of the best men are lost, among them gunnery sergeant Charlie Bass, and when the rest get home, Kingdom's trials are only beginning. A secular dictator has overthrown the government and plans to clean out the last remnants of religious settlements. Meanwhile, former prisoners of the aliens, who have lost their memories, have found a village of refugees from the invasion, among them Charlie. He has some knowledge of tactics and prepares the villagers for further invasions. But the preparations aren't for human invaders, and when humans do invade, a woman dear to Charlie is taken prisoner and sent to a concentration camp, in which the dictator stows threats to his regime. Charlie must react, providing the impetus for rebellion against the dictator by dissatisfied elements in the government and military. Even the tragically depleted 34th FIST gets a happy ending. Regina Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved