Red Legion

What if you were offered this choice - life in prison Earthside, or the chance to win a cushy state pension after serving in the Legion, Redside?

Would you take it, knowing that you need to rack up ninety-nine combat hours and only one in twenty recruits make it out alive?

Would you take it, knowing you are going to be fighting against an ancient foe who has forgotten more about war than man will ever know?

Would you go, knowing none of the men and women you are going to serve with is completely sane, since no sane person ever volunteered to serve Redside?

I did. And I'm keeping a journal about it, but given life expectancy Redside, this might be a very, very short story.

ARE YOU READY TO HEAD INTO THE RED?

Linus Vespasius, a former deep-sea fishing captain turned reluctant soldier, faces life in prison for murder. He opts for service in the Red Army, enticed by the promise of freedom after completing his combat hours, a mere 99.

But nothing is what it seems on Mars, with those hours exceedingly hard to accumulate, a brutal 'Reducation process,' and the shocking revelation that the presumably alien enemy, the Lilin, with bodies 'not made from elements known to humankind,' can pass themselves off as human.

Demotions relegate Linus to the junior-most rank in Legion Praeda, or Legion of the Prey, infamous for its low survival rate.

What follows this seeming death sentence is a surprise: the transformation of a self-interested man thrust into the harrowing Red War and a series of vividly drawn combat situations.

For all its action, described with both vigor and rigor, and its cool revelations about the enigmatic Lilin—a seemingly immortal species whose motives and methods defy comprehension—Red Legion at its heart explores human hubris, especially the lengths to which those in power will go to perpetuate their control.

But it also offers hope, as Linus's fight to survive reveals much about himself, the enemy, and a new future for humanity.

The ground-level realities of this war, told through Linus's journal entries, are deftly juxtaposed against the duplicitous 'official history' of the conflict fed to Earth's population to sustain public support.

Holden's meticulous world-building and well-honed action compellingly conjure the unforgiving realities (and imaginative possibilities) of future war, setting the stage for a sprawling, morally complex universe and more high-stakes, thought-provoking storytelling.

Takeaway: Gripping action-packed sci-fi thriller set around an intergalactic high-stakes war.