The Book Nook

War Hero in Space   While military science fiction is a fairly specialized genre, I’ve found a trilogy that has appeal to a much wider base, but more on that later.  Michael Mammay is a war veteran whose first book, “Planetside”, was named “Best Book of 2018” by Library Journal.  It was so well-received that he followed it with “Spaceside” and “Colonyside” within two years.   Each is a fast, fun drama mixing political and military aspects with compelling plots stuffed with twists and turns. The protagonist in all three books is Carl Butler.  He’s a military veteran with a no-nonsense approach to life.  His status as a seasoned war hero has helped his career and he’s got a knack for reading people and situations.  Unfortunately, he also has a knack for getting people close to him killed. In “Planetside”, a powerful old friend asks Carl to look into strange circumstances.  A high councilor’s son has gone missing at Cappa Base, the space station orbiting a war-torn planet.  While Carl is assured this will be a fast, routine enquiry, he senses there’s more he’s not being told. Once on the space station, Carl and his small team encounter a monumental lack of cooperation and numerous dead ends.  Trying to find answers in a sea of disappearing data and witnesses is starting to anger him.  Each day leaves him less clear who he can trust.  The only person he’s really sure of is Mac, a soldier who always has Carl’s back. When a crucial witness refuses to leave the planet to be interviewed, Carl risks entering a war zone to get answers.  What he discovers forces him to make tough decisions that could get him in deep trouble.  While getting into the combat area is difficult, getting out alive may not be an option.  The ending leaves readers guessing. The entertaining opening of “Spaceside” tells us that Carl did indeed survive, although there was heavy fallout from the mission.  Now he’s viewed either as a hero or a pariah, but at least his fame has garnered him a cushy position in the private sector.  The job has few responsibilities and many perks and Carl doesn’t mind being used as a figurehead to impress others.  He’s surprised when his boss gives him a real task – quietly probing a rival company’s problems. What follows is a strange series of events including coverups and murder.  It gets stranger when Carl is targeted as the prime suspect.  He has a creepy feeling that he’s being watched and at times questions his perception of reality.  Has he ventured into dangerous territory or is he just being paranoid?  After getting information from an unlikely source, he wonders how many lives will he’ll put in jeopardy this time. In the final book, “Colonyside” Carl is even less popular than before, living a reclusive life on a backwater planet.  One day a high-ranking buddy seeks him out with an urgent request.  The daughter of an ultra-rich CEO is missing and presumed dead after an initial search.  The CEO claims Carl is the only one capable of finding the truth and the government is desperate to appease him. Carl reluctantly agrees to lead a second investigation, but only if two of his former team members join the mission.  His demands are met but come with a price that forces Carl to make changes if he wants a cohesive team.  They arrive on the planet, which they find is filled with dangerous flora and fauna.  What they can’t find are people willing to cooperate with the investigation.  In fact, there are multiple, often opposing itineraries.  As Carl tries struggles to determine his real role it seems only bold moves will yield results, but doing so will put him and his team in an impossible position with little chance of surviving. After finishing the trilogy, I felt there was a slightly formulaic feel from one book to the next, but it wasn’t bothersome.  I wished Mac’s character had a bit more development, but appreciated the authentic feel given to each individual.  Mammay gives his protagonist enough good qualities to make him admirable and enough bad ones to make him interesting, with nice character development throughout the series.  Another positive feature was the complexity of Carl’s character, and the author used interesting ways to give background.  The realistic feel to most of the scenes and exploration of moral issues were a plus. Growing up, Michael Mammay enjoyed reading science fiction and fantasy books.  After graduating from West Point with a degree in military history he served multiple decades in the Army where, like Carl, he rose to the rank of colonel before retiring.  He’s a veteran of Desert Storm, Somalia and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Before deciding to become an author, Mammay studied and taught literature. As mentioned, I feel this trilogy has appeal beyond the target audience.  There’s lots of intrigue for mystery, conspiracy and detective novel fans.  The quick-pace should please those seeking action or high-stakes adventures, while lovers of military novels will appreciate the themes of honor, duty and working as a team.  There’s humor along with more than a decent grasp of human nature and military knowledge.  Those who read sci-fi for the world-building aspect may be disappointed by sparse descriptions, but readers who like exploration of social issues will find platforms for that in each book. “Planetside” also works well as a stand-alone novel, making it easier to decide whether to continue.  If so, here’s the order with publication dates: 1 “Planetside” (2018) 2 “Spaceside” (2019) 3 “Colonyside” (2020) In all three books the author does a good job of highlighting misdirection, camaraderie and hidden agendas.  Readers may find themselves on the edge of their seats as Carl fights his way through no-win situations.