Return Protocol

Weapons of Choice #2

by Nick Snape

Military Sci-Fi meets Alien First Contact as the British Army Reserve squad uses the power of ancient alien technology to discover the way home in this all action, brilliantly paced and character driven sci-fi novel. Still struggling with his guilt, ex-War Hero Finn leads the remaining squad as they encounter the fallen Haven race on an advanced Space Station and Havenhome, the aliens’ home planet. Battling both inner and outer demons, Finn relies heavily on Zuri, the female gunner, and Smith, his deceased Corporal now AI, as they fight their way past the Haven who crave their old but powerful technology. In the midst of battle, revelations arise about the ancient Haven’s plans for humanity as tools for colonisation and with the horrifying realisation of how the current Haven race fell from their technologically advanced pinnacle, Finn and his team question their place in the Universe. Pitted against such huge odds, the squad use their newly acquired alien technology to survive on a hostile, high gravity planet where everything either wants to eat you or kill you, not caring which comes first. Aliens, they are more like us than you think. Return Weapons of Choice Book 2

Genres: Science Fiction

207 pages, Paperback

Published March 31, 2023

About the author

Nick Snape has been steeped in Science Fiction and Fantasy since his friends first dragged him from his schoolwork and stuck a book under his nose. Lost to the world of imagination he became a teacher by accident though he thoroughly enjoyed developing the joy of reading and writing in his pupils. Having retired after thirty years he thought it was high time to practise what he preached.

Reviews

[nozama · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another enjoyable pacey romp

Another enjoyable pacey romp, led by brave, likeable, flawed humans, trying to stick to their principles in the face of a hostile reaction from the alien homeworld as they try find a way home.

They are somewhat assisted by Yasuko, with the ship's AI hamstrung by the severe restrictions placed on her 33 millennia earlier.

More is revealed about the aliens who built Yasuko, their civilisation, and about Yasuko's purpose, as they encounter hostile robots, hostile aliens, and hostile planet, all leading to an unexpected outcome and the emergence of a long-term threat.

[Mark H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me & mine survive

I can't begin to tell you how much that phrase resonated with me. And that fact made the book much more believable. Well written, interesting and fun. I think I identify with Sargent Smith. 😱

[Malcolm Peacock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining

Hugely entertaining and interesting. Very well written not a moment of boredom. Love it. X x x x x x

[Leslie Baptiste · Rating 4 out of 5]

return protocol, weapons of choice book 2 good solid book well worth the read

Good book, fast paced, plenty of sci-fi, military action. A likable group of characters and good world building. I just wish that Corporal Smith was not deceased, I’d identify with him he’s a soldiers soldier. Series is good enough for me to continue reading the next book. You probably will like it. Also, more people should read it and review it.

[Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

you need to read the first one to put into context and understand all. once you do this , this is a GREAT book

[Tony Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent

Good paced plot with believable characters. Loved the alien tech for saving minds and bodies. Looks like a great series

[Tony Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great plot with believable characters. Great alien tech for saving minds and bodies. Great start to the series.

[Ryan M Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a lot of self-published science fiction books, which are usually in a series. I read a lot of Book 1s, fewer Book 2s, and even fewer Book 3+s, because the magic that an author captures in their first book often is lost in the sequel.

This is not the case here.

Return Protocol is bigger and better than Hostile Contact (which was an excellent book) in almost every way. The small team of British reservists trapped light-years from Earth must rely on all of their skills in order to try and make their way back home. The setting is unique, the aliens sufficiently alien, the characters well-developed and interesting, and the small squad-based action is incredibly captivating. It's not treading any new ground, but it is masterfully executed and had me turning the pages quickly in order to see what came next. While it does set itself up for a sequel, the main plot is satisfactorily concluded.

I highly recommend this - and the first book in the series - for fans of military sci-fi, especially if you (like me) enjoyed the Halo games and novels; I really feel like this series captures the feel of fighting far from home more than almost any other out there.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Two takes the characters out to space. Modern soldiers finding themselves of on an alien world scratched an itch I’ve had since they stopped making Stargate.
The characters felt fresh in a way that breathed new life into a fun genre.
The audio production was top notch and I can not wait to listen to the next instalment.

I was given a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m still not sure what the title of this series has to do with the story-line. But now we’re down to a smaller set of characters that are making the story better understandable. Most of my confusion before was due to the military folks being British and they have a slightly different rank structure than Americans. Now that we’re only dealing with Noah, Zuri, Finn and a ship’s AI named Yasuko. Oh, there’s also some kind of human/computer entity that has taken over the personality of Smith, a former soldier like the others. He resides with the ship’s AI although it is limiting what Smith can do. Yeah, this is a strange story and it’s getting stranger.

The ship is headed back to Havenhome some eighteen hundred light years distant, but the ship says it can get them there in an instant! That’s simply amazing to Noah who was an astrophysicist working on his PhD. Now they are all just trying to survive this current ordeal they have found themselves in. The ship has identified Zuri as its crew-Captain and all the other humans are recognized as crew. It can and will respond to specific commands by the crew, but there are limits. The ship is absolutely nonviolent. It will not attack anyone or anything, but it can make weapons and armor to keep its crew alive. They can converse with Yasuko just like any other human because she projects herself as a three-dimensional hologram when being talked to. Still, right now she is following her creators programming and that is to return to Haven home. She cannot deviate from that directive.

Now we have to remember that this ship was launched towards earth some 33,000 years ago and has lied dormant all that time. The Stratan soldiers that had come to Earth to find the ship were certainly armed and deadly to fight. The crew aboard the starship had no idea who or what they would find at the end of their journey, so they used simulations created by the ship’s AI to increase and hone their combat skills as much as they could. They did find out that the ship could design and create weapons of any kind desired by each human. So, in this regard, each had their own “weapon(s) of choice”, including flash/bang grenades.

The finally arrived at Havenhome and initially found it totally uninhabited, at least on the surface. Oh, there were dangerous fauna along the lines of insects and worms, but nothing seemingly intelligent. This was very different from the world the ship had left. Havenhome had been thriving with a huge population of Havenites. They had industry and commerce and were highly technological as evidenced by the building of these explorations ships.

They did find an abandoned space station floating above Havenhome. The occupants were long dead and the place was slowly deteriorating. Still, they found operating machines that seem bent on protecting the station. They had to fight their way to the control room hoping to find any information on what had attacked and destroyed most of the space station. What they found was a data plaque of a long dead Chief Scientist named Xxar. They found out that one of the purposes of the space station was to sterilize and decontaminate any ship or personnel returning from long exploration voyages. Apparently, that had failed to get done and some human-like entities called the Stratan had descended on Havenhome and had infected the population with bacteria and other contaminates they could not tolerate. Billions died and the survivors had to go underground to survive at all.

So, Zuri’s team thought they might have to do something to attract the attention of any Havenites living under ground. They set the space station to de-orbit and eventually burn up in the atmosphere or crash on the planet. This did get some response, but it wasn’t what they wanted or expected. Those underground Havenites were heavily ruled by a leader and a council, none of which wanted to give up power. They did not and would not let the Havenites underground realize that Havenhome above ground was once again habitable.

Still, this political intrigue didn’t apply to what the crew of the returned explorations ship. They needed to get the ship’s AI, Yasuko, released from her programming which would then allow her to return these humans back to Earth. They also needed navigation data as to the location of Earth before that trip could be made. So, they had their work cut out for them and hope they would be a whole lot of obstacles placed in front of them. Unfortunately, there were.

So, the story continues in book 3, “[Zuri’s War](https://amzn.to/3s6A5h9)”, available on Amazon now.

[Píaras Cíonnaoíth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Return Protocol Delivers Action-Packed Sci-Fi Adventure...

Return Protocol: A First Contact Military Sci-Fi Adventure (Weapons of Choice Book 2) by Nick Snape is a fast-paced, character-driven novel that seamlessly blends military sci-fi and alien first contact. The book follows the journey of ex-War Hero Finn and his team of British Army Reserve squad members as they use ancient alien technology to navigate through space, encounter the fallen Haven race, and fight for their survival on a hostile planet.

The story is brilliantly paced and keeps the reader engaged from start to finish, with the characters battling both inner and outer demons as they fight their way past the Haven, who crave their old but powerful technology. Zuri, the female gunner, and Smith, Finn's deceased Corporal now AI, provide much-needed support to Finn as he struggles with guilt and navigates through the challenges presented by the Haven race.

As the squad battles on, they uncover revelations about the ancient Haven's plans for humanity, and with the horrifying realization of how the current Haven race fell from their technologically advanced pinnacle, Finn and his team question their place in the Universe. The author Nick Snape has a gift for creating an eccentric and thought-provoking novel with original characters and futuristic sci-fi action that is sure to captivate readers.

An exciting and original sci-fi adventure, “Return Protocol” continues the story begun in the first book of the “Weapons of Choice” series. The novel is fast-paced, engaging, and unique in its take on first contact with aliens. For military sci-fi fans or anyone looking for an exciting read that explores the depths of human nature in the face of overwhelming odds, this series comes highly recommended.

[Beach Bum · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me, far too slow

I was not sure about book 1, but thought the premise was interesting and would book 2 a go, but it needed to be good. Unfortunately for me it failed to deliver
Things just take forever to develop, some may like the details, side stories, and descriptive text, but it was just too much for me
The story revolves around 3 soldiers, but there is more politics and technological narrative than military storyline

[Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Won't continue the series.