The Empty Warrior

by J.D. McCartney

Hill O'Keefe is a veteran of the Vietnam conflict, older now, and with war wounds that have left him a paraplegic. His only pleasures; despite his post-war financial successes; are alcohol, tobacco, and the company of prostitutes. He is biding his time, waiting only for death, when his existence is suddenly and unexpectedly transformed. One lonely night a tremendous explosion high above his secluded estate leaves him comatose and gravely injured. He awakens to find himself healed, rejuvenated, and in the care of a mysterious band of alien, yet human, outworlders. In time, he also learns that he has landed in the midst of a galactic war, a war in which he may hold the key to victory or defeat. Yet despite his importance to both belligerents, one side views him as nothing more than a criminal who should never walk free, while the other would be more than happy to see him enslaved if not killed. No matter which way he turns, it is going to be a long, hard road for Hill O'Keefe.

Genres: Science Fiction

550 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 9, 2011

Reviews

[Bill Goodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly one the best books I've read in years.

It seems as if it starts off a bit disjointed. Just give it a few more minutes and you will be scooped up for a great, action filled and thought provoking ride !

[James Marten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book

I loved this book. Great read. Can't wait for the next episode. Hopefully it will be released in the coming weeks.

[Mike Nemeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

J.D. McCartney's "The Empty Warrior: Volume One of the Aberrant Chronicles" volume one takes a long view. We meet the hero, Hill O'Keefe, after a brief prelude about an ancient civilization of apparent humans long before the Egyptians built the pyramids. O'Keefe gets a blast of shrapnel to the back in a battle during the Vietnam War rendering him a paraplegic and a relatively lonely and pissed off dude. He's mired in his thoughts, drink and depravity. But he's rich. Then he gets caught up in a battle for supremacy of the major power centers in the universe. Gets fixed. But everybody considers him and all Earthers to be barbarians. And not cool like Conan. McCartney does tend to focus a little inwardly, delving into detail about the world and societies he's created. But by halfway, I was hooked and couldn't stop reading. Thank goodness it was my day off. I recommend this to anybody who's into those pulse-pounding thrillers and space dramas.

[Jolter164 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I buy quite a few bargain "self-published" books but this is one of the few that is written as well as a lot of the books issued by major publishers(better than some, in my opinion). The story is not over complicated but very entertaining with a protagonist you actually want to see succeed and enough detail provided to get a good sense of the society in which it's set. I highly recommend this for a casual/fun read and I look forward to the next in the series. The Nook version contains some very minor editorial errors(nothing that detracts from the story) but is surprisingly good for the Nook price of $1.00.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my favorite series so far but plenty of good world and character building going on. I will definately continue the series but that is not to say I loved everything about the story. Sometimes you run into plot twists that just don't appeal to you and this one had one for me. But that simply was not enough to keep me from wanting to continue on with all the good parts that very much appealed to me.

One thing I have to say about this book, it definitely reminds me of why a Glock is my primary self defense gun and not the 1911. I love my 1911, but I depend on my Glock.

[Linda Archinal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly great Space Opera, I would like to read the next in the series. He could have dropped the intimate sex scenes, and just alluded to it. It diminishes the impact of the writing as to the flow of the space opera. There is nothing wrong with romance but adding the sexual content makes the story 'dirty' to me instead of interesting. (I'm not a prude it is a genre thing here). Otherwise it would be 4.5 stars. I'm impressed at the editing for an Indie author who doesn't consider himself an author. Recommended for adult readers because of the above mentioned.

[Tulara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good tale - puts our hero in many situations from going out on the lake to being studied, being made a slave and the whole yarn is yet to be told. Little over the top in violence, but you really get interested in the view that people from Earth are viewed by their alien brothers as "aberrant." Looking forward to the next adventure.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

A solid science fiction adventure. Loads of science to gawk at along the trip. When I was about 30% into the book I thought it was going to bomb. The plot seemed to not be moving, but the descriptions were great so I kept reading. Glad I did.

[car · Rating 3 out of 5]

Author MIA.

This is a great book but I'm afraid there will never be a book two. No one has communicated with the author and his last tweet was 2013. Sad, I was really looking forward to book two.