Stark's Crusade by John G Hemry (Ethan Stark: Book 3)

9/10

The last surviving superpower on Earth, the USA is fighting a war to conquer the moon and obtain its riches. However, the American military has its own battles to fight before it can claim victory.

In this final instalment in the ‘Stark’ series we see Sergeant Ethan Stark who was sent into space to protect the US Lunar Colony. As the two previous entries documented, when faced with orders that would do nothing but get his soldiers needlessly killed, he led a rebellion. This adventure sees Stark and his soldiers having to fend off deadly aggression from their own country whilst simultaneously preventing a full-scale civil war from erupting.

This entry sees desperate ship to ship battles as well as the ones on the lunar surface. The stakes are even higher for this final outing for Hemry’s uncompromising hero.

Governments and greedy self-interested corporations still pose a threat to Stark and his band of loyal followers and the colonists they are protecting. A greater threat of mistrust and espionage also exists as well as a fearsome new technology: the autonomous robotic combatants who exist for one sole purpose: to destroy.

Together with technology and hardware this is also packed with tactics, military feints and counterpunches as Stark draws on all of his resources, experience and nous to stay one step ahead of his foes. Hemry has clearly saved all the pyrotechnics and drama for this the ‘grand finale.’

‘Stark’s Crusade’ is not just a battle for the moon, rather it is a battle of ideas and for the kind of leadership and government citizens deserve and want. Big themes punctuate the unrelenting and gripping action.

I found myself eagerly racing to the stories (and series) conclusion and I can state with confidence that this entry is the final pay off that fans of Stark were hoping for. Once again Hemry shows just why he is such a revered writer of military science fiction.

www.danielcann.com

First Published 2002 This Edition 2011 by Titan Books 
ISBN: 9780857688996