Crucible (Empire Lost #3)

Two years after the Battle of Atlas Prime, the Scourge have vanished, and some begin to believe the war may be over. Yet vast sums still pour into a war machine that may have nothing left to fight, and Connor Drake's face is on every broadcast helping to justify it.

When new orders finally pull him away from the cameras, he accepts them without hesitation. What those orders set in motion takes him further than he's ever been, into territory no amount of experience could have prepared him for.

Connor Drake built his reputation doing the one thing he's always been good at. What comes next will ask for something different entirely.

However, the quiet never lasts. Old enemies are moving again, and new ones have been patient. When the shooting starts, Connor finds himself exactly where the Union needs him, in command of Marines counting on him to be something he's still learning how to be.

Pick up the third installment in the Empire Lost series from author Kirk Richardson. If you're a fan of hard-hitting military science fiction, authentic combat, and stories that don't pull their punches, you'll feel right at home.