Ballistic (The Palladium Wars book 2) by Marko Kloos
I’ve strayed from my usual crime fiction and read this military science fiction book. It’s book two of a three book series. I’d read book one over a year ago and decided it was time to finish the series. As for theme, it does carry a theme of revenge with some characters experiencing redemption. Whether there’s justice, we’ll have to wait and see in book three.
The backdrop of the story is set five years after a war between several planets ended. The planet Gretia invades the planet Pallas trying to grab palladium, a valuable mineral that all the planets use. Gretia loses the war and is now occupied by the conquering planets’ military. But now, someone is stirring the pot. Throughout book one and two, we don’t know who that someone is. Could be Gretian separatist protesting the occupation or could be someone else. But it becomes clear in book two that this group wants a new war to start.
Kloos tells his story through the eyes of four very different characters, who in the beginning are completely disconnected. In this book, those characters start to come together. Aden spent many years in a Rhodian (Rhodia – another of the planets) prison as he was a Gretian Blackguard. In book one, he’s released from prison and is trying to start a new life. Solvieg is the heir to a large corporation on Gretia. She’s thrust into leadership because her dad has sanctions placed on him due to the war. Idina is a Pallas (another planet) military sergeant who is part of the occupying force of Gretia. Dunstan is a Rhodian commander of a military ship patrolling space helping to keep the trade routes safe.
The world that Kloos builds is believable and fascinating. For fans of military or any science fiction, this book should rank up there with other great series. Both book one and book two end in cliff hangers. The downside of a series like this is book two and three are not stand alone enough to only read one of them. You’ll need to read the series. And that’s where I’m headed next is book three.
This is a fairly clean read. Some profanity but not as much as you might read if it was a modern military novel. No on page sex. No over the top violence.
The four primary characters all have their flaws but are all likeable. The plot moves well and kept me reading. I rarely wanted to put the book down, but sleep is still a necessity. If you’ve never read military science fiction, this would be a good series to start with as it’s an easy read. The technology is handled well. Nothing overly complicated nor totally unbelievable. I’ve enjoyed this series and look forward to book three.
I’ll rank this one sixth of the books I’ve read this year. Not quite a five star, but a high four-star.
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- Right Behind You by Lisa Gardner
- Moonlight Awakens by John Matthew Walker
- Win by Harlen Coben
- Lost Light by Michael Connelly
- Ballistic by Marko Kloos
- Murder Board by Brian Shea
- Anna: A Cliff Ford Mystery by Terry Toler
- The Man Burned by Winter by Pete Zacharias
- Born to Die by Lisa Jackson
- Calculated Risk by Lynn Shannon
- The Tapestry Bag by Isabella Muir
- The Mechanic by Tom Fowler
- Into the Flames by Liz Bradford
- You Are Invited by Sarah A Denzil
- Girl, Alone by Blake Pierce
- One Night in Sedona by Carrie Latimer.
- Coffin Cove by Jackie Elliott
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