Planetside
By: Michael Mammay
Narrated by: R.C. Bray
Series: Planetside, Book 1
Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins
Unabridged Audiobook
Release date: 07-31-18
Language: English
Publisher: HarperAudio
Book Blurb
A seasoned military officer uncovers a deadly conspiracy on a distant, war-torn planet…
War heroes aren’t usually called out of semi-retirement and sent to the far reaches of the galaxy for a routine investigation. So when Colonel Carl Butler answers the call from an old and powerful friend, he knows it’s something big – and he’s not being told the whole story. A high councilor’s son has gone MIA out of Cappa Base, the space station orbiting a battle-ravaged planet. The young lieutenant had been wounded and evacuated – but there’s no record of him having ever arrived at hospital command.
The colonel quickly finds Cappa Base to be a labyrinth of dead ends and sabotage: the hospital commander stonewalls him, the Special Ops leader won’t come off the planet, witnesses go missing, radar data disappears, and that’s before he encounters the alien enemy. Butler has no choice but to drop down onto a hostile planet – because someone is using the war zone as a cover. The answers are there – Butler just has to make it back alive…
My Review
This was a fun scifi mystery. Set in a far future where humans have colonized many planets, Colonel Carl Butler is pulled out of retirement to track down Lieutenant Mallott, the son of an influential politician. Butler arrives at Cappa Base and gets right to work. The planet below is embroiled in a long-running conflict with the natives. The money-hungry corporations just want to get to mining the planet but not all the natives are interested in cooperating. This is where Mallott was injured during combat and he was evacuated out…. and that’s where his trail goes cold.
Immediately, Butler runs into in roadblocks. Very few people are willing to be helpful and forthright. Plus Butler is convinced that one or more of his aides or body guards are reporting back to their own supervisors about his accomplishments. Using his wits and acerbic sense of humor, Butler keeps pushing for info.
The story is a great mix of action and detective work. And as dangerous as Cappa Base is, planetside is even more dangerous. Of course the General Serata has been dodging Butler’s calls. It seems the only way to get straight answers out of the man is to show up in person. Hahaha! That doesn’t go as expected at all. But I loved the turn the plot took here. There were little hints leading up to it and I was hoping it would go there, but was still pleasantly surprised when it did. My inner biologist loves the sinister twist! 5/5 stars.
The Narration: R. C Bray makes a great Colonel Butler, capturing his sense of humor and ability to take it as it is attitude perfectly. I really liked his voice for the female doctor who is also the head of the medical unit at Cappa Base. She’s crisp, blunt, has no time for nonsense, and is dedicated to the science. Bray had unique voices for all the characters. There were no tech issues with the recording. 5/5 stars.