This could have been or might have been written directly from someone who had extensive experience in Afghanistan or Iraq when the USA was fighting there. Now I don’t know if either of these authors had hands-on experience, but they must have done some pretty good research because the war fighting sounds pretty authentic. The reason I say this could have come from Afghanistan or Iraq is because our war fighting takes place mostly on Mars and some unknown alien planet. Both of these settings are desert lands with blowing sand as well as lots of enemies to contend with.
There is a short story at the end of this book that is kind of a prelude to how all of this got started. Needless to say, aliens are involved and a portal exists but unlike in the book cover, I don’t remember anything as big as a starship coming through the portals.
We start off on Mars. It seems that this Mars has seen some fantastic environmental terraforming because we don’t seem to be housed in domes or anything normally associated with humans living on Mars. No, it seems to have an atmosphere, breathable, but you do have to contend with a lot of dust. The Martians or Martian Royal Militia (MRM) have been in direct revolt with the Earth government. These Martian militia elements are also known as the “Sand Clans” which is where most of the fighting takes place. While it seems that Earth has colonized other places and has a fairly advanced civilization, the homes and facilities of Mars more mirror those found in the deserts of Afghanistan or Iraq. Mud-brick homes line streets that don’t seem very modern.
Anyway, we’re with a Marine Special Operations Team of the 1st Marine Raider Battalion. These guys aren’t regulars Marines, they are the best of the best and their job is to kill or capture the Martian insurgents where and whenever they find them. You’re going to read a lot about the operations of Alpha Team, its personnel and equipment, plus the missions that are described in this book. It’s an interesting read, very much military, but could have happened on Earth just as well as Mars.
One thing that will come to light in the book is that the Martians or Sand Clans have somehow gotten the support of an alien civilization. Our MSOT Alpha unit previously ran into this alien incursion a while back before Staff Sergeant Trenton Carver became a special operator even though he was involved in the encounter. He was sworn to secrecy then and is now still operating under that intelligence classification because they are going to come into contact with these aliens again.
The Intel community has gotten word that the second guy in charge of the Martian insurgency is planning to be at a certain warehouse to inspect some equipment. That’s where MSOT Alpha plans to also be in force large enough to kill or even capture this guy. The mission was going about as well as could be and everyone was staging for the insertion into the warehouse when a drone spotter saw something that stopped everyone. It seems that the big boss or the number 1 guy leading the insurgents was going to shortly join his friends in the warehouse.
So, that was going to be a prize the Marines couldn’t let go. They halted their attack just long enough for Khartoum Bilali to arrive although he brought with him an additional contingent of guards. Still, this opportunity couldn’t be passed up. The attack took place and all seemed to be going well, when there was a flash and something came into the warehouse that shouldn’t have been there. A portal had opened up and some very tall and muscular aliens came through, set up a perimeter and started firing off what the Marines called plasma weapons. These aliens were not completely covered with armor so they could be shot, but it took a lot of hits to make one go down. Even with the effort of MSOT Alpha Khartoum Bilali and several of his guards still alive, fled through the portal.
What happens next will be asked by everyone. The order to hold their ground was shouted by the Marine leadership and that’s what they were supposed to do. Except not everyone did.
This book sets the groundwork for future missions that will probably be fought on other planets against unknown aliens. I guess it’s something like the TV series, “Stargate”, but I don’t think these stories will have peaceful and pleasant moments of contact. Book 2 is out and titled, “Gate Crashers”. It should be just as exciting as this first book.
[Note 1 (12/23/2025): I’m no longer associated with Amazon and will no longer provide any links to books from that website. You can usually find books that you like at your usual source.]
[Note 2: As of 12/03/2023, this will not be posted on Amazon since I have been banned from posting reviews for some unknown reason. ]