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The Black Ships #1
The Black Ships
Humanity is reaching out to the stars.
Something out there is reaching back…
Vinland is a colony of corpses. The Mars outpost was our first tentative step out of the cradle. More than a half century after man first walked on the moon we were finally exploring our own solar system.
And we found monsters.
An alien species, determined to seize Earth and its resources, is also on Mars and they don’t like to share. We’re outclassed, outgunned and almost out of time. We have one saving grace. The enemy suffer from the universal bane of all sentient life – politics.
They were allowed only a minimal invasion force (some assembly required) and they’re building up on the red planet.
We get one shot at stopping them. We have no choice but to send the enemy home defeated.
Or lose our own home forever…
From the training grounds of Earth to the battlefields of Mars, Black Ships is the first book in A.G. Claymore’s Black Ships, a military, sci-fi, 1st contact space opera. If you like Herbert and Heinlein, you’ll love Black Ships!
Immerse yourself in this epic series today!
Something out there is reaching back…
Vinland is a colony of corpses. The Mars outpost was our first tentative step out of the cradle. More than a half century after man first walked on the moon we were finally exploring our own solar system.
And we found monsters.
An alien species, determined to seize Earth and its resources, is also on Mars and they don’t like to share. We’re outclassed, outgunned and almost out of time. We have one saving grace. The enemy suffer from the universal bane of all sentient life – politics.
They were allowed only a minimal invasion force (some assembly required) and they’re building up on the red planet.
We get one shot at stopping them. We have no choice but to send the enemy home defeated.
Or lose our own home forever…
From the training grounds of Earth to the battlefields of Mars, Black Ships is the first book in A.G. Claymore’s Black Ships, a military, sci-fi, 1st contact space opera. If you like Herbert and Heinlein, you’ll love Black Ships!
Immerse yourself in this epic series today!
334 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
252 people are currently reading
278 people want to read
About the author
A.G. Claymore
16 books26 followersI grew up on a tiny little island on the East coast. We had three channels on TV and only one of those was English. Needless to say, I spent a lot of time reading whatever I could get my hands on.
I spent eight years writing for the military as an analyst before deciding to try Engineering.
It only took me eight years to decide that I should go back to writing...
I spent eight years writing for the military as an analyst before deciding to try Engineering.
It only took me eight years to decide that I should go back to writing...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
October 17, 2017
Set in the near future, after the first colony on Mars has just been established, this is the story of the response of men on Earth when it becomes apparent that not only are there other intelligent beings in the universe, but they come planning to colonize our solar system. There are political, social, and engineering challenges to be overcome. Short chapters kept the pace moving quickly. Kept me entertained, but definitely a brain candy story.
January 18, 2020
Doug through and the last quarter gets good!
I thoroughly enjoyed the last quarter of this book. The first 3/4 of it were often tortuous. This is one of few books I had to force myself to keep reading! I won't be reading the sequels because I am not feeling masochistic!
To slow with endless details! The author obviously loves technology and war armament and tactics.
I thoroughly enjoyed the last quarter of this book. The first 3/4 of it were often tortuous. This is one of few books I had to force myself to keep reading! I won't be reading the sequels because I am not feeling masochistic!
To slow with endless details! The author obviously loves technology and war armament and tactics.
December 17, 2020
This is a sprawling tale involving multiple characters from the highest level of government to soldiers in the armed forces. The author makes the shrewd observation that an alien force invading Earth would need to regroup and rebuild nearby - one of the many reminders in this book of the importance of logistics in military operations. He likewise has a keen eye to the way human behavior would be affected by the unexpected appearance of hostile aliens, from outright deniers to goal-driven people who apply their talents and leadership to where it is needed. The realistic details of travel and fighting in various degrees of gravity and vacuum made me feel like I was right there. Once caught up in the plot, you will not be able to put this book down!
September 10, 2018
Aliens invade; but for not-all-that-well-justified reasons they choose humanity's tiny colony on Mars as their first port of call. The governments of Earth rather implausibly agree to fund a space fleet to prevent the follow-up invasion they are sure is coming. And the reader is introduced to a massive host of characters, many of whom do very little over the course of the book, and none of whom get developed beyond the barest of outlines. I'm sure the author is shooting for an epic scope, but it just makes the book feel 'stretched' instead. Not terrible overall (though it sure did need another editing pass) but certainly not good enough to coax me into shelling out for book 2.
September 20, 2018
Bloody good read!
I was really impressed by this book, by the writing, the characters, the fact that I didn't spot any spelling mistakes or grammar errors and the way it was so easy to read and the different story arcs were fantastic. It read like a history book from the future, as far as I can tell it was accurate in its explanations of military equipment and Maneuvers.
it was a fantastically believable read and I can't wait to read the second in the series just see how the characters turn out.
I was really impressed by this book, by the writing, the characters, the fact that I didn't spot any spelling mistakes or grammar errors and the way it was so easy to read and the different story arcs were fantastic. It read like a history book from the future, as far as I can tell it was accurate in its explanations of military equipment and Maneuvers.
it was a fantastically believable read and I can't wait to read the second in the series just see how the characters turn out.
September 22, 2017
I had to give up after getting through the first 15% of the book as it never could grab my attention – it bounced around from topic to topic, character to character, and it was distracting and really didn’t flow. I read a lot of science fiction, and have finished some titles I thought were really bad but I just couldn’t waste enough time on this one. If you are a science fiction fan, I would give this one a pass.
June 7, 2018
Not much to praise in this set of three novels, except the writing, which flowed well. The content consisted of descriptions about the assembling of men, who went on to build defensive space ships, and contained little character interaction. This didn't engage my attention enough to read every word. In fact, the effort turned me off reading of any kind for weeks. However,not to be beaten, I persevered to the end.
February 2, 2019
Good story line, plenty of action!
I enjoyed this book and read it through several sittings without loosing interest as I find myself doing at times. The story was fun and believable,with lots of military style sci-fi action. It did jump around a few times but kept coming back to the action. Good, well developed charachters and situations kept things going. I look forward to a sequel!
I enjoyed this book and read it through several sittings without loosing interest as I find myself doing at times. The story was fun and believable,with lots of military style sci-fi action. It did jump around a few times but kept coming back to the action. Good, well developed charachters and situations kept things going. I look forward to a sequel!
December 29, 2019
Very good book, non stop all the way with good human interest and fast paced action. Can't wait to read the next book! I would definitely recommend this book to anyone as science fiction or just plain good action!
Very good book, non stop all the way with good human interest and fast paced action. Can't wait to read the next book! I would definitely recommend this book to anyone as science fiction or just plain good action!
Very good book, non stop all the way with good human interest and fast paced action. Can't wait to read the next book! I would definitely recommend this book to anyone as science fiction or just plain good action!
July 4, 2018
Really enjoyable
This novel is one of my favorite sci-fi stories in a long time. It takes ordinary people and thrusts them into interesting and difficult situations. As Arthur Clarke used to say take a plausible alternative future and make it a story. A very enjoyable read. Several of the characters could have used a little more development but definitely a choice to read!!
This novel is one of my favorite sci-fi stories in a long time. It takes ordinary people and thrusts them into interesting and difficult situations. As Arthur Clarke used to say take a plausible alternative future and make it a story. A very enjoyable read. Several of the characters could have used a little more development but definitely a choice to read!!
February 10, 2020
This was an interesting book but I didn't like the number of threads and different people associated with them. It made keeping track of what was going on difficult. The actual aliens were excessively stupid in my opinion, but I can't write so what do I know. Looking forward to the next book in the series if it doesn't take a left turn somewhere.
September 8, 2020
Alien invasion? I knew they were real!
Fantastic read. I couldn't stop reading. I got in trouble for not listening to my wife, but when I'm in the middle of a good read, I don't hear anything. This was more than a good read, it was captivating and I was it's prisoner. Read it if you dare, just make sure you keep one ear tuned in, just in case your wife says something to you.
Fantastic read. I couldn't stop reading. I got in trouble for not listening to my wife, but when I'm in the middle of a good read, I don't hear anything. This was more than a good read, it was captivating and I was it's prisoner. Read it if you dare, just make sure you keep one ear tuned in, just in case your wife says something to you.
August 6, 2022
Monkeypox.
Nice premise. Lots of technical fun. Terrorism aspect was strange and perhaps unnecessary. Book one left a few loose threads but otherwise the ending was OK. I enjoyed the story but found some threads overly detailed while others were only lightly covered. Very close to a “more” rating. But I’m going to give it a solid “maybe”.
Nice premise. Lots of technical fun. Terrorism aspect was strange and perhaps unnecessary. Book one left a few loose threads but otherwise the ending was OK. I enjoyed the story but found some threads overly detailed while others were only lightly covered. Very close to a “more” rating. But I’m going to give it a solid “maybe”.
July 27, 2019
Great read
The Black Ships has a well thought out flow, I kept looking a the clock and deciding to read “just a little more” until it suddenly occurred to me I’d been reading for 26 hours almost straight!
The Black Ships has a well thought out flow, I kept looking a the clock and deciding to read “just a little more” until it suddenly occurred to me I’d been reading for 26 hours almost straight!
August 31, 2019
What to do when a hostile attacks Mars
The author did a very thorough job describing the world's reaction to a hostile extraterrestrial invader. There was a bit more detail then I wanted, but it probably would appeal to many readers.
The author did a very thorough job describing the world's reaction to a hostile extraterrestrial invader. There was a bit more detail then I wanted, but it probably would appeal to many readers.
January 25, 2020
The first time I've had time to enjoy a book
The young man had known Christina, one of his fellow soldiers from the battalion, for over two years and had just recently found the courage to talk to her. He’d been thrilled to find the attraction had been mutual.
The young man had known Christina, one of his fellow soldiers from the battalion, for over two years and had just recently found the courage to talk to her. He’d been thrilled to find the attraction had been mutual.
December 19, 2021
Different approach to SF
I started a bit bored but then started to enjoy this different style of writing. The techie approach seemed odd but the action was great.
Looking forward to the next.
I started a bit bored but then started to enjoy this different style of writing. The techie approach seemed odd but the action was great.
Looking forward to the next.
June 6, 2018
Jody
Loved this book. Kept my attention and I couldn't put it down. Was up until 3 a.m. in the morning.
Loved this book. Kept my attention and I couldn't put it down. Was up until 3 a.m. in the morning.
December 9, 2018
Excellent read!
Strong plausible characters, great science and a rip roaring storyline. Couldn’t put it down. Can’t wait for the next instalment.
Strong plausible characters, great science and a rip roaring storyline. Couldn’t put it down. Can’t wait for the next instalment.
November 13, 2019
Good writer goog story
As good of a writer as Steven counts
A story that just might happen one day
I would read more of this writer
As good of a writer as Steven counts
A story that just might happen one day
I would read more of this writer
November 14, 2019
Good overall
A good solid read. No annoying misspellings or bad punctuation. Professional. May continue the series now that I know the main characters.
A good solid read. No annoying misspellings or bad punctuation. Professional. May continue the series now that I know the main characters.
May 4, 2020
Too much tech
But I still read the whole thing because of that attention to detail. Knocked off a star since I was about to give it up a couple of times. Maybe some trimming?
But I still read the whole thing because of that attention to detail. Knocked off a star since I was about to give it up a couple of times. Maybe some trimming?
October 9, 2020
Meh. Too much talking, not enough action until the very end.
April 27, 2021
Promising
Well written, with enough action to satisfy fans of science fiction and military fantasy. Takes more than a little willing suspension of disbelief, but worth the read
Well written, with enough action to satisfy fans of science fiction and military fantasy. Takes more than a little willing suspension of disbelief, but worth the read
September 25, 2023
Loved it.
December 16, 2020
Convenient.
I usually read non-fiction, but once in a while I relax with some sci-fi, and the Kindle store is full of cheap sci-fi books, which I grab a lot of, but there are so many of them that they tend to be hard to tell apart (IMO)!
But this time around I decided to read it right away before I forgot what it was about (first world problem I know).
As indicated I mostly read sci-fi to wind down, but I prefer to read stories set in the near future and not in the far far distant future, because I like to see how one would plausibly set up space travel and the like with tech not too far removed from what we have available now.
This book is set in the near future, and there are humans on Mars (but it is never explained how they got there), mining the planet, but when aliens show up on Mars, humanity needs to respond.
The following story is characterized by one thing: convenience.
DARPA (US military science agency) just happens to have already developed designs for new space crafts, they just need the funding. A lot of funding.
As always, the UN plays a role and having that organization running humanity never ceases to unnerve me.
One reviewer claims there are new characters for each chapter, not correct; there are several characters and the viewpoint switches frequently between them, but its not more or less than in other sci-fi romps of this kind, I at least had no problem distinguishing them from another, although they're not very fleshed out.
Anyways, more convenience follows, which I won't spoil, but one of them is especially convenient and had me rolling my eyes
Some of the tech solutions I had my doubts over, but I can't really say if they plausible or not, physics isn't my field!
All in all, an OK sci-fi pulp, easily read, but I'm not sure if I will read the next installment.
It was just too...convenient.
I usually read non-fiction, but once in a while I relax with some sci-fi, and the Kindle store is full of cheap sci-fi books, which I grab a lot of, but there are so many of them that they tend to be hard to tell apart (IMO)!
But this time around I decided to read it right away before I forgot what it was about (first world problem I know).
As indicated I mostly read sci-fi to wind down, but I prefer to read stories set in the near future and not in the far far distant future, because I like to see how one would plausibly set up space travel and the like with tech not too far removed from what we have available now.
This book is set in the near future, and there are humans on Mars (but it is never explained how they got there), mining the planet, but when aliens show up on Mars, humanity needs to respond.
The following story is characterized by one thing: convenience.
DARPA (US military science agency) just happens to have already developed designs for new space crafts, they just need the funding. A lot of funding.
As always, the UN plays a role and having that organization running humanity never ceases to unnerve me.
One reviewer claims there are new characters for each chapter, not correct; there are several characters and the viewpoint switches frequently between them, but its not more or less than in other sci-fi romps of this kind, I at least had no problem distinguishing them from another, although they're not very fleshed out.
Anyways, more convenience follows, which I won't spoil, but one of them is especially convenient and had me rolling my eyes
Some of the tech solutions I had my doubts over, but I can't really say if they plausible or not, physics isn't my field!
All in all, an OK sci-fi pulp, easily read, but I'm not sure if I will read the next installment.
It was just too...convenient.
January 4, 2016
Excellent, technical near future alien fight.
The book is a solid bit of near future space fiction. The plot follows an ensemble cast after an alien attack on a martian mining site gets the world building space ships through the first clash with said aliens. Though the story dragged a bit in a couple places, the book as a whole was really well written and satisfying to read.
Worth mentioning is that the vast majority of the book deals with people (jointly and severally) preparing for the confrontation, not actually fighting it. I found this a really interesting concept, and I thought the author had some interesting ideas about what might happen. That said, some parts of this preparation were a bit slow, while others lacked the development I thought they deserved.
While it doesn't take up much of the book, the battle is a lot of fun to read. I thought it got a pretty interesting treatment, even though I really liked the build up best of all. Overall, I enjoyed it enough that I'll continue reading the series.
The book is a solid bit of near future space fiction. The plot follows an ensemble cast after an alien attack on a martian mining site gets the world building space ships through the first clash with said aliens. Though the story dragged a bit in a couple places, the book as a whole was really well written and satisfying to read.
Worth mentioning is that the vast majority of the book deals with people (jointly and severally) preparing for the confrontation, not actually fighting it. I found this a really interesting concept, and I thought the author had some interesting ideas about what might happen. That said, some parts of this preparation were a bit slow, while others lacked the development I thought they deserved.
While it doesn't take up much of the book, the battle is a lot of fun to read. I thought it got a pretty interesting treatment, even though I really liked the build up best of all. Overall, I enjoyed it enough that I'll continue reading the series.
April 9, 2019
Annoying
I thought this book had promise. It was really annoying however. Every single chapter is a different character, in a different location, on a different day. I think it had seven chapters (maybe more) before the first character from the first chapter was used again. I ended up skimming the book because I couldn’t connect with it. So, new chapter, who is the stranger now? Okay, who’s the next stranger? The next? I had no concern for the characters, and the characters are what make your story. I don’t think half of the characters were necessary, and it was just snippets that were days, weeks, or months apart, not an actual cohesive story. Fighting with the aliens doesn’t take place until the very end of the book, and the fighting is shooting a few missiles. I was bored and annoyed.
I can sum it up for you: Earth has colonized Mars, aliens are spotted above Mars, Earth freaks out and starts building a fleet to get rid of the aliens, there are boring politics, earth goes to fight, pew pew and the aliens back off. The end.
I thought this book had promise. It was really annoying however. Every single chapter is a different character, in a different location, on a different day. I think it had seven chapters (maybe more) before the first character from the first chapter was used again. I ended up skimming the book because I couldn’t connect with it. So, new chapter, who is the stranger now? Okay, who’s the next stranger? The next? I had no concern for the characters, and the characters are what make your story. I don’t think half of the characters were necessary, and it was just snippets that were days, weeks, or months apart, not an actual cohesive story. Fighting with the aliens doesn’t take place until the very end of the book, and the fighting is shooting a few missiles. I was bored and annoyed.
I can sum it up for you: Earth has colonized Mars, aliens are spotted above Mars, Earth freaks out and starts building a fleet to get rid of the aliens, there are boring politics, earth goes to fight, pew pew and the aliens back off. The end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 19, 2016
This novel was a good, hard science First-Contact-turns-into-war military science fiction. Politics, time scales, and (within reasonable limits) technology were all given very realistic treatment. As is often the case, there was quite a lot of good luck / bad judgment (on the part of the bad guys) to produce a positive outcome, but altogether a really good story. As is often the case with science fiction, the characters were delivered in such a way as to leave me feeling like an outsider looking in. The difference between three and four stars....
June 5, 2021
Predictable and weak character development
I realize it’s kind of ungrateful to complain about a free book. And writing a novel, good or bad, is a formidable accomplishment. But this alien invasion story reminds me a lot of the space war stories of the 1950s and 60s; predictable shoot-em-ups with forgettable 2 dimensional characters and simple good guys and villains. The aliens’ motives for invading are never clear, and the guns are described with more passion than any of the people.
I realize it’s kind of ungrateful to complain about a free book. And writing a novel, good or bad, is a formidable accomplishment. But this alien invasion story reminds me a lot of the space war stories of the 1950s and 60s; predictable shoot-em-ups with forgettable 2 dimensional characters and simple good guys and villains. The aliens’ motives for invading are never clear, and the guns are described with more passion than any of the people.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews