Into the Black: Odyssey One by Evan Currie

Genre: Science Fiction, Military Science Fiction

Setting: In space, in the future.

First sentence:  As his fighter broke clear of the atmosphere, Eric Weston reached forward and flipped a series of switches to disengage the Scramjet intake and engage the pressurized oxygen flow to the twin engines.

This novel is the first in Currie's Odyssey One series.  The series currently has four novels.

I must say that I was a little confused when I started reading this novel.  There was a lot of exposition covering events which happened prior to the beginning of this novel.  I felt like I had missed  an entire novel of this series.  I did a little research, and came up empty.  Hopefully, Currie will get around to writing the story of the Archangels and their experiences in World War III.

None of that takes away from this novel.  This is an action packed military sci-fi novel.  There are grand space battles featuring large star ships and small space fighters.  And, there is an unfeeling, ruthless, insect like enemy.

The Odyssey is Earth's first interstellar space craft.  On its first foray into the galaxy, the Odyssey discovers a civilization of "alien humans" genetically identical to humans on Earth.  The Colonials are more advanced than Earth in some technological areas, and behind Earth in others.  They are peaceful, and have not experienced was for thousands of years.

The enemy, the Drasin, have reemerged after thousands of years.  Their goal seems to be capturing and devouring entire planets.

The appearance of the Odyssey and its crew upsets the plans of the Drasin.  The crew of the Odyssey cannot stand idly by and watch the Colonials' home world be destroyed.

The ensuing battle is a thrilling match of technology and strategy.  The author envisions a great space battle in which the speed of light is a critical factor.

In the end we are left to wonder, what is the ultimate goal of the Drasin?

I enjoyed this book.  If you like military sci-fi, you will probably enjoy this book too,  There's lots of military jargon and acronyms.  There's descriptions of technological hardware.  And plenty of futuristic weaponry.