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The Palladium Wars #4
Descent
A nationalist uprising triggers an interstellar wrest for control in an epic novel of embattled worlds by the author of Citadel and the Frontlines series.
POW Aden Jansen has lost a decade of his life to both the war and internment when he’s recruited by the Alliance. He’s to return to Gretia as an undercover Blackguard operative and destroy Odin’s Wolves—an insurgency that’s setting his home world afire. The mission comes with a full pardon and a chance to reclaim his identity. It also means rejoining his friends and family in space. That’s motive enough. If he can succeed—and survive.
Dunstan Park is on piracy patrol to track down the spaceborne arm of the uprising. Meanwhile, the rebels’ insidious terrorist cells are targets for battle-hardened insurgent hunter Idina Chaudhary and her Palladian commandos. As for Aden’s sister, Solveig, she’s put herself in the line of fire before, but discovering who’s bankrolling Odin’s Wolves is as dangerous as it is personal.
As Aden works his way back into the confidence of his comrades, the stealth campaign to sow discontent descends into chaos. At Aden’s legacy, and the very stability of a galaxy struggling for peace against all odds.
POW Aden Jansen has lost a decade of his life to both the war and internment when he’s recruited by the Alliance. He’s to return to Gretia as an undercover Blackguard operative and destroy Odin’s Wolves—an insurgency that’s setting his home world afire. The mission comes with a full pardon and a chance to reclaim his identity. It also means rejoining his friends and family in space. That’s motive enough. If he can succeed—and survive.
Dunstan Park is on piracy patrol to track down the spaceborne arm of the uprising. Meanwhile, the rebels’ insidious terrorist cells are targets for battle-hardened insurgent hunter Idina Chaudhary and her Palladian commandos. As for Aden’s sister, Solveig, she’s put herself in the line of fire before, but discovering who’s bankrolling Odin’s Wolves is as dangerous as it is personal.
As Aden works his way back into the confidence of his comrades, the stealth campaign to sow discontent descends into chaos. At Aden’s legacy, and the very stability of a galaxy struggling for peace against all odds.
300 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 16, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews
July 22, 2024
Should have been called 'Decent'. The writing is good. The characters are enjoyable. The story is? Very little happens to move the series along. The Dunstan chapters are the most exciting and interesting. Kloos is great when it comes to space battles. His vision of how they would work is so plausible. Unfortunately that's a 1/4 of the book. The remaining characters feel like they are running in place. The end came with nothing wrapped up and honestly not much moving forward. Descent was okay but Kloos has been so much better in the past.
March 27, 2024
Descent is Volume 4 of Marko Kloos’ mil-sf space opera The Palladium Wars. Currently, the series is three volumes, with this planned extension next July. The books are strictly sequential, with cliffhanger endings. If you want to read the initial trilogy, I recommend you go read those (Aftershocks, Ballistic, Citadel), before proceeding with this or any other review, to avoid spoilers of those prior volumes. If, however, you choose to jump into the series here, after the initial trilogy, you will find it contains recaps of previous action. On www.markokloos.com, I learned that the author intends to work on Volume 5 in the second half of 2024. The only information I could glean regarding it is that the title will probably start with an “E.”
The Palladium Wars series has been entirely set in the Gaia system, where there are six human-inhabited worlds, settled by generation ships from Old Earth, one thousand years ago. The timing is in the post-war aftermath of a failed attempt by Gretia to seize control of all the other worlds. The post-war setting gave the debut an original flavor, that is now moving towards more conventional mil-sf.
In this volume, the action resumes quickly, as we follow the lives of the same four protagonists. They are Aden, who is brought out of prison by Rhodian commander Dunstan to infiltrate the Gretian Insurrection. Idina has joined a secret anti-Insurrection force, and Solveig has begun to suspect her father is somehow involved with funding the Insurrection. Aden’s former Zephyr crewmates are now somewhere in the background. The largest focus has shifted to Dunstan, who commands a secret new state-of-the-art stealth spaceship for the Rhodian Navy. Unfortunately, he is just not as likeable a character as Aden has been. His dialog consists largely of jargon-filled naval command interchanges. And,
And,
At the end, there are some major cliffhangers, which would make this an unsatisfying place to wait a year for Volume 5. My recommendation is to read the very engaging and original trilogy now, but then wait for more of what may become a second trilogy to be published before proceeding.
The Palladium Wars series has been entirely set in the Gaia system, where there are six human-inhabited worlds, settled by generation ships from Old Earth, one thousand years ago. The timing is in the post-war aftermath of a failed attempt by Gretia to seize control of all the other worlds. The post-war setting gave the debut an original flavor, that is now moving towards more conventional mil-sf.
In this volume, the action resumes quickly, as we follow the lives of the same four protagonists. They are Aden, who is brought out of prison by Rhodian commander Dunstan to infiltrate the Gretian Insurrection. Idina has joined a secret anti-Insurrection force, and Solveig has begun to suspect her father is somehow involved with funding the Insurrection. Aden’s former Zephyr crewmates are now somewhere in the background. The largest focus has shifted to Dunstan, who commands a secret new state-of-the-art stealth spaceship for the Rhodian Navy. Unfortunately, he is just not as likeable a character as Aden has been. His dialog consists largely of jargon-filled naval command interchanges. And,
And,
At the end, there are some major cliffhangers, which would make this an unsatisfying place to wait a year for Volume 5. My recommendation is to read the very engaging and original trilogy now, but then wait for more of what may become a second trilogy to be published before proceeding.
August 30, 2024
At this point I am fully involved in the characters. Not much actually happens in this entry in the series but I loved reading it anyway. I will read them as fast as he can write them.
February 6, 2025
I enjoyed this one a lot. The story is progressing nicely. Just the right mix of plot and character development. Really looking forward to the next book. Can't wait to find out who's behind the attacks, and I hope we'll find out what secrets Aden's family has buried.
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January 17, 2025DNF at 25%. Time to stop reading the series.
February 17, 2024
I have been waiting eagerly for this book for many months and it did not disappoint. This is the fourth book in Marko Kloo’s five-volume Palladium series, following four individuals through a solar system wide insurgency in the wake of a multi-planet war. Each strand is different, as they follow two military personnel from the victors, and a brother and sister (one civilian and one ex-military and both scions of a wealthy corporate dynasty) from the losing side, coping with the turmoil, conspiracies, and bloody mayhem arising from the insurgency. Each character is reasonably well drawn, if a bit stiff, but the action and world-building make the book. Kloos reflects effectively on the causes and reactions to the insurgency and draws as his experience as a naturalized American of German origin to convey the bitterness that can develop after a war (say, World War I), for obvious example.). He is also firmly on the side of the “good guys” and really makes no convincing effort to make the insurgents sympathetic.
I think this is a better book and series than Kloos’s other work. It is thoughtful, more complex narratively, and eminently readable. Start with book one, however, as this would be a confusing place to join in.
I think this is a better book and series than Kloos’s other work. It is thoughtful, more complex narratively, and eminently readable. Start with book one, however, as this would be a confusing place to join in.
September 19, 2024
Disclaimer, this is a filler novel, a really engaging one at that. I love where this evolving plot is going. I feel like Marko Kloos gave the series another life, and its characters especially Adens are all going with the flow. As most of comments on Decent go, this book is a classic Marko Kloos Mil/SCI-FI book with elements of space opera in there as well. What I love the most about this series is the fact he is able to tell 4 unique story’s in a very chaotic solar system full of outbreak of another war. I also liked how he is putting in historical similarities of post WW2 fanatical Werwolf (Nazis that kept fighting after the war was lost) into his writing. I’m guess that is where he got a possible plot…. I don’t know but it is hard to not see the comparison. In any case, here are my 4 reasons why you should give this one a go and 1 that you can definitely look past, but it may bother you a little.
The Good
Uniquely Written & Vibrant, Character Roles:
I think I have said this on another review in this series but I really don’t care, I love how Marko Kloos has these books organized. Aden, Solveig, Indina, and Dustan continue to impress me with their own character developments. I would have thought by book 4 someone would ether become dead meat or just out of content. I am happy to see all of them have plenty of fuel to keep my interests burning. Marko Kloos lets you shift gears in every characters life’s because all of them have a different roles in the series. Indina gives you the hard case detective operator feels while Dustan gives you the bureaucratic military life on board a naval space stealth vessel with all the raw emotions of being military man with a family back home. Aden and Solveig are the main protagonists in this story but they showcase different attributes of strength and resilience. Not to mention the everlasting urge to have a normal life. All of these characters are well represented in Descent and I am truly looking forward to where the next book takes them.
Engaging SCI-FI Tech:
I put the tech as a pro in this book due to how realistic the author describes everything. I also caught myself looking up futuristic space travel concepts on my own and most of them matched up to what he was saying. You will see holograms on wrists, gyro-helicopters, massive space ports and orbiting stations, all different variations of military and civilian space ships and countless other aspects that we should be all familiar with this series. I found 2 neat tech aspects that blew my socks off that I would like to share. The first was Indina’s military gear when she goes all stealth hunter predator mode looking for the insurgents in the subway tunnels. She had little micro drones, visor comms with interactive vision to see through walls and utilized a vast array of spectrum dependent indicators to aid her, all of it was thrilling. Marko if you’re reading this I want more of that!! The other aspect was enemy spaceship crew members had there brains blown up in space due to an AI hacking another ship and stop the whole drive system while the ship was pushing a few G’s of force. This blew all the crew members brains out as if they were in a deep sea ship that imploded. That was also fascinating to read as well. :)
A Hint of Romance:
Disclaimer I am not a romance novelist or enthusiast. However, I do like hints of it here and there and tbh that is a norm with Marko Kloos. I feel like he has elements of it in every book he writes. If you guys ever read his Frontlines series you will read a deep relationship between two of his main characters. In any case, we got some of the hatchlings of that deep connections with Solveig, and her little detective boyfriend. He has doged death once now so I feel he will stick around for a little bit, we shall see. All I am saying Marko made some really engaging writing points in describing Solveig feelings for the detective. “His tousled hair and green eyes were a welcome sight, but his lips had reached a new level of appeal now that she knew what they felt like on hers.” I don’t know man, that is pretty good emotional writing.
Everything Was Left Open:
I know there are a lot of people who don’t like not having some form of closures in there novels. But this is a filler book people, the whole purpose is to put in the back work and get their series moving with some quality gasoline. In the coming books we can all get to the speed way and go to the races. We just had to get through Descent, and it really was a well put together “filler” book. I hated reading comments on this book saying there needed to be more action and closure. While I can agree there could have been more action, the closure part was not nessecary where we are at in his series. Clearly he is building things up. All 4 of there character story’s are left open with so many possibilities. Aden is in depth with what looks like getting himself embedded with the Odins Wolf’s. Dustan has found out there are more of these makeshift resistance basses on top of not knowing what happened to what happened to the crew of the Zephyr. Solveig is getting out of her father’s grip and living her life and visiting her mom in hades. Twist is she thinks somthing suspicious is happening with the family company and she also thinks she is being followed already. Indina is in the deep fight that is starting to look like another war with possible mistrust in her Greation allies. In any case, this book has 4 unique pools of interest, which is why I rave this series so much.
The Bad
Mehhh Climax Moments:
Honestly I just wanted more suspense. We got some of it with Dustan chasing, hiding, fighting in his new spec ops ship. However it was not really impactful in terms of action that we know Marko Kloos can deliver. Aden didn’t really have anything impactful happening besides a rally that went wrong. Solveig got no action besides in her love life. Indina was the only character that got some engaging, seriously, suspenseful action in this book. In saying all that I tell myself again this is a filler book for better action to come. I just wish there was some aggression in the pages. Just a little.
Thanks for reading,
-Alex
The Good
Uniquely Written & Vibrant, Character Roles:
I think I have said this on another review in this series but I really don’t care, I love how Marko Kloos has these books organized. Aden, Solveig, Indina, and Dustan continue to impress me with their own character developments. I would have thought by book 4 someone would ether become dead meat or just out of content. I am happy to see all of them have plenty of fuel to keep my interests burning. Marko Kloos lets you shift gears in every characters life’s because all of them have a different roles in the series. Indina gives you the hard case detective operator feels while Dustan gives you the bureaucratic military life on board a naval space stealth vessel with all the raw emotions of being military man with a family back home. Aden and Solveig are the main protagonists in this story but they showcase different attributes of strength and resilience. Not to mention the everlasting urge to have a normal life. All of these characters are well represented in Descent and I am truly looking forward to where the next book takes them.
Engaging SCI-FI Tech:
I put the tech as a pro in this book due to how realistic the author describes everything. I also caught myself looking up futuristic space travel concepts on my own and most of them matched up to what he was saying. You will see holograms on wrists, gyro-helicopters, massive space ports and orbiting stations, all different variations of military and civilian space ships and countless other aspects that we should be all familiar with this series. I found 2 neat tech aspects that blew my socks off that I would like to share. The first was Indina’s military gear when she goes all stealth hunter predator mode looking for the insurgents in the subway tunnels. She had little micro drones, visor comms with interactive vision to see through walls and utilized a vast array of spectrum dependent indicators to aid her, all of it was thrilling. Marko if you’re reading this I want more of that!! The other aspect was enemy spaceship crew members had there brains blown up in space due to an AI hacking another ship and stop the whole drive system while the ship was pushing a few G’s of force. This blew all the crew members brains out as if they were in a deep sea ship that imploded. That was also fascinating to read as well. :)
A Hint of Romance:
Disclaimer I am not a romance novelist or enthusiast. However, I do like hints of it here and there and tbh that is a norm with Marko Kloos. I feel like he has elements of it in every book he writes. If you guys ever read his Frontlines series you will read a deep relationship between two of his main characters. In any case, we got some of the hatchlings of that deep connections with Solveig, and her little detective boyfriend. He has doged death once now so I feel he will stick around for a little bit, we shall see. All I am saying Marko made some really engaging writing points in describing Solveig feelings for the detective. “His tousled hair and green eyes were a welcome sight, but his lips had reached a new level of appeal now that she knew what they felt like on hers.” I don’t know man, that is pretty good emotional writing.
Everything Was Left Open:
I know there are a lot of people who don’t like not having some form of closures in there novels. But this is a filler book people, the whole purpose is to put in the back work and get their series moving with some quality gasoline. In the coming books we can all get to the speed way and go to the races. We just had to get through Descent, and it really was a well put together “filler” book. I hated reading comments on this book saying there needed to be more action and closure. While I can agree there could have been more action, the closure part was not nessecary where we are at in his series. Clearly he is building things up. All 4 of there character story’s are left open with so many possibilities. Aden is in depth with what looks like getting himself embedded with the Odins Wolf’s. Dustan has found out there are more of these makeshift resistance basses on top of not knowing what happened to what happened to the crew of the Zephyr. Solveig is getting out of her father’s grip and living her life and visiting her mom in hades. Twist is she thinks somthing suspicious is happening with the family company and she also thinks she is being followed already. Indina is in the deep fight that is starting to look like another war with possible mistrust in her Greation allies. In any case, this book has 4 unique pools of interest, which is why I rave this series so much.
The Bad
Mehhh Climax Moments:
Honestly I just wanted more suspense. We got some of it with Dustan chasing, hiding, fighting in his new spec ops ship. However it was not really impactful in terms of action that we know Marko Kloos can deliver. Aden didn’t really have anything impactful happening besides a rally that went wrong. Solveig got no action besides in her love life. Indina was the only character that got some engaging, seriously, suspenseful action in this book. In saying all that I tell myself again this is a filler book for better action to come. I just wish there was some aggression in the pages. Just a little.
Thanks for reading,
-Alex
July 27, 2024
Another quarter of a book that goes nowhere
Chase some pirates for a bit, the only interesting part of this book. The commander's name is Dunstan which I assume was named after the orangutan from the 1996 movie Dunstan Checks In, at least that's what I kept thinking about every time I saw his chapters. Aden gets recruited to be a spy and accomplishes nothing before the book ends. Solveig goes on a date and starts an investigation that connects exactly zero dots, and the book ends. Like the Frontline series, especially the the latest one, there's a whole lot of nothing in this and feels like it's the first quarter of a book that just randomly stops. I'm guessing this will get dragged out for the next 7 years, but I'm not sticking around for it. As much as I like the hard sci-fi element, there are a thousand other books to spend my time on. I'm abandoning this author.
Chase some pirates for a bit, the only interesting part of this book. The commander's name is Dunstan which I assume was named after the orangutan from the 1996 movie Dunstan Checks In, at least that's what I kept thinking about every time I saw his chapters. Aden gets recruited to be a spy and accomplishes nothing before the book ends. Solveig goes on a date and starts an investigation that connects exactly zero dots, and the book ends. Like the Frontline series, especially the the latest one, there's a whole lot of nothing in this and feels like it's the first quarter of a book that just randomly stops. I'm guessing this will get dragged out for the next 7 years, but I'm not sticking around for it. As much as I like the hard sci-fi element, there are a thousand other books to spend my time on. I'm abandoning this author.
August 3, 2024
Ok filler novel. Too short / didn't have enough gravitas or larger plot developments to be a standalone novel. there isn't really any resolution or big reveal and developments. Just stuff happening. No one develops. Aden has learned basically nothing knew. Solveig went on a date and discovered something. Idina arrested some ppl. Dunstan got in cool space battles.
Sadly this is what started happening with the Frontline series at the end. Lots of opportunities to bring the story forward, provide some reveals, understand what is happening, but it just ends. And any opportunity to truly learn more is stuffed off with "I'm just a grunt and don't get paid to think". Man, in front lines there were so many cool possibilities to learn about the lankies, what they are, how they develop, etc (shoot I had great theories), none ever got tested. It just ended. This book literally "ends". Out of nowhere.
I'll keep reading cuz they are easy and short. But boy are they missed opportunities.
Below notes for my personal reference:
Spoiler notes
Aden
After getting captured was released from his cell by Dunstan and asked to go undercover to join up with Ravens Wolves (or whatever they're called) and he heads back to Gretia. Immediately gets jumped and beat up and taken in by other vets who seem to be involved in he underground movement/resistant. After some attacks and a shuttle explosion, Aden shacks up with a hot vet he's working security with and they take off to go in to hiding for a while until things cool down as one of her guys that rescued Aden was arrested and seemingly part of the shuttle attack.
Dunstan
They go in to their advanced AI powered ship to target the Wolves and quickly get a bite. Chase them deep in to the void where there's a massive space station the pirates were using for refueling and whatever. They end up blowing it up and capturing an enemy vessel. The ai turns their grave mags off and everyone turns to mush inside. They recover some hand written notebooks with encrypted info the AI breaks no problem and they have at least two more space stations to check out.
Solveig
She's healed from getting shot in police HQ attack, gets her own place, and sees her policeman bf again. She uncovers some strange energy payments being made to defunct Ragnar companies and goes to investigate. All we're overpaying to energy company on Hades. She leaves on a "personal trip" to " visit her estranged mother" on Hades and investigate the company. Ends with her on the shuttle and seeing some guy she's sure is tailing her on her dad's securitys behalf. She knows her dad is more involved in finding the resistance than he lets on but she's not sure what yet.
Idina
Still working with Dahl, the Gretian cop and they are busting ppl around town. Idina also working with secret off the books swat team to track down the wolves. They kill a bunch and capture one who fixes guns. Idina and Dahl up catching Helge, the guy who helped rescue Aden and he ship explodes over their heads.
Sadly this is what started happening with the Frontline series at the end. Lots of opportunities to bring the story forward, provide some reveals, understand what is happening, but it just ends. And any opportunity to truly learn more is stuffed off with "I'm just a grunt and don't get paid to think". Man, in front lines there were so many cool possibilities to learn about the lankies, what they are, how they develop, etc (shoot I had great theories), none ever got tested. It just ended. This book literally "ends". Out of nowhere.
I'll keep reading cuz they are easy and short. But boy are they missed opportunities.
Below notes for my personal reference:
Spoiler notes
Aden
After getting captured was released from his cell by Dunstan and asked to go undercover to join up with Ravens Wolves (or whatever they're called) and he heads back to Gretia. Immediately gets jumped and beat up and taken in by other vets who seem to be involved in he underground movement/resistant. After some attacks and a shuttle explosion, Aden shacks up with a hot vet he's working security with and they take off to go in to hiding for a while until things cool down as one of her guys that rescued Aden was arrested and seemingly part of the shuttle attack.
Dunstan
They go in to their advanced AI powered ship to target the Wolves and quickly get a bite. Chase them deep in to the void where there's a massive space station the pirates were using for refueling and whatever. They end up blowing it up and capturing an enemy vessel. The ai turns their grave mags off and everyone turns to mush inside. They recover some hand written notebooks with encrypted info the AI breaks no problem and they have at least two more space stations to check out.
Solveig
She's healed from getting shot in police HQ attack, gets her own place, and sees her policeman bf again. She uncovers some strange energy payments being made to defunct Ragnar companies and goes to investigate. All we're overpaying to energy company on Hades. She leaves on a "personal trip" to " visit her estranged mother" on Hades and investigate the company. Ends with her on the shuttle and seeing some guy she's sure is tailing her on her dad's securitys behalf. She knows her dad is more involved in finding the resistance than he lets on but she's not sure what yet.
Idina
Still working with Dahl, the Gretian cop and they are busting ppl around town. Idina also working with secret off the books swat team to track down the wolves. They kill a bunch and capture one who fixes guns. Idina and Dahl up catching Helge, the guy who helped rescue Aden and he ship explodes over their heads.
February 24, 2024
Descent by Marko Kloos (Palladium Wars #4)- Hooray! Time to celebrate! A new Palladium Wars book! This series has been my favorite of Marko’s books since the first one came out. Yes, I’ve enjoyed the Frontlines series and the new one Scorpio, this one is the best. The cast of characters is large and offers different insights throughout the book to a continuing story that travels from book to book. Great Space Opera, not to be missed! Thanks NetGalley and thank you Marko Kloos for this entertaining book
September 24, 2024
What started as a smart, decently paced military fantasy has bogged down into a serial. Except each episode is spaced three years apart. I was willing to keep going, but so little actually happens in book 4 that I'm not sure I'll be continuing. I might wait until the whole series is finished and then try reading the whole thing in order. I suspect that I would really enjoy that kind of experience. But waiting so long between episodes when each individual volume doesn't have an individual story arc is very tiring.
July 19, 2024
How many times have I said it? But here I am again saying how much I enjoy these honest, competent military sci fi books by Kloos. I look forward to them and this series in particular has been solid so far.
June 22, 2025
Book 4 in a series that is one on-going story so you really have to start at book 1 to understand what's going on. Oh and spoilers beware.
So this is not the end of the story, he must be working on another book (hopefully!). Though this one does seem to end a bit more satisfactorily than the past books. It ends at a turning point for most of the POV characters.
My favorite character is Dunstan, because I absolutely love the cat & mouse stealth ship stuff, plus space battles. And I love, love, love that they don't call the place where the commander (not captain) and crew sit "the bridge" like in Star Trek, but well in Dunstan's previous ship it was called the AIC (action information center) but his new boat doesn't have a fancy name because it's so small. And it reminds me of all the submarine movies I've seen, the way they talk, the captain gives an order and the person receiving the order repeats it, aye. It just sounds more professional that way. Plus when the ship is just coasting ballistic and relying on passive sensors (as opposed to active sensors where you send a pulse out and that gives your position away to anyone out there) so they have to flip the ship around and check their tail to make sure no one's secretly tailing them. All that stuff is just so flippin' cool!
Anyway, Dunstan gets a new ship with amazing abilities but also very little weapons so they have to be careful and very stealthy. They go out searching for pirates and they find...well a spoiler.
Solveig, still shaken after her experience in the previous book, now has her own apartment in town so she doesn't have to deal with her manipulative dad all the time. Though there are company security goons in an apartment nearby to keep an eye on her. She discovers something not quite right in the company's books and goes to investigate.
Aden is now on his home planet of Gretia and has to search out insurgents and pretend to be like them to infiltrate their organization. That means he has to push down the person he has been for the past several months with his friends on the Zepher.
Idina has been tasked with babysitting a politician but the job ends up more dangerous than she thought. Then she's back to hunting down insurgents with her old pal....er....that older Gretian police officer lady what's-her-name. And of course nothing's even peace and quiet when Idina's around!
This is some good science fiction. It even has some philosophical stuff about war for the reader to think about. OH, and warning there is the rare swear word, I think the 'F' word is used at least once that I can remember but it's not like some military sci-fi where every other word is the 'F' word. Marko Kloos doesn't swear much in his books or he will say someone's cursing without saying what words they are using, so it's good for people that don't like swear words. The characters do say stuff like "gods" and "all the hells" because I guess all the different cultures that made up the diaspora had different gods. Though the people in the "now" of the books don't believe in gods. There's no religion in these books.
So this is not the end of the story, he must be working on another book (hopefully!). Though this one does seem to end a bit more satisfactorily than the past books. It ends at a turning point for most of the POV characters.
My favorite character is Dunstan, because I absolutely love the cat & mouse stealth ship stuff, plus space battles. And I love, love, love that they don't call the place where the commander (not captain) and crew sit "the bridge" like in Star Trek, but well in Dunstan's previous ship it was called the AIC (action information center) but his new boat doesn't have a fancy name because it's so small. And it reminds me of all the submarine movies I've seen, the way they talk, the captain gives an order and the person receiving the order repeats it, aye. It just sounds more professional that way. Plus when the ship is just coasting ballistic and relying on passive sensors (as opposed to active sensors where you send a pulse out and that gives your position away to anyone out there) so they have to flip the ship around and check their tail to make sure no one's secretly tailing them. All that stuff is just so flippin' cool!
Anyway, Dunstan gets a new ship with amazing abilities but also very little weapons so they have to be careful and very stealthy. They go out searching for pirates and they find...well a spoiler.
Solveig, still shaken after her experience in the previous book, now has her own apartment in town so she doesn't have to deal with her manipulative dad all the time. Though there are company security goons in an apartment nearby to keep an eye on her. She discovers something not quite right in the company's books and goes to investigate.
Aden is now on his home planet of Gretia and has to search out insurgents and pretend to be like them to infiltrate their organization. That means he has to push down the person he has been for the past several months with his friends on the Zepher.
Idina has been tasked with babysitting a politician but the job ends up more dangerous than she thought. Then she's back to hunting down insurgents with her old pal....er....that older Gretian police officer lady what's-her-name. And of course nothing's even peace and quiet when Idina's around!
This is some good science fiction. It even has some philosophical stuff about war for the reader to think about. OH, and warning there is the rare swear word, I think the 'F' word is used at least once that I can remember but it's not like some military sci-fi where every other word is the 'F' word. Marko Kloos doesn't swear much in his books or he will say someone's cursing without saying what words they are using, so it's good for people that don't like swear words. The characters do say stuff like "gods" and "all the hells" because I guess all the different cultures that made up the diaspora had different gods. Though the people in the "now" of the books don't believe in gods. There's no religion in these books.
September 17, 2024
Still enjoying this series...more to come, based on the way the book ended...
January 26, 2025
Another great continuation of this story. I'm definitely invested in these characters. 4.5 stars!!
August 15, 2024
There are parallels between German reunification and palladium wars that could be interesting to see built on
January 3, 2025
Kind of a decent start to a new story.
August 7, 2024
I really enjoyed reading Descent. This was the first book in this series that I read, and by the end I was completely hooked.
I liked that the 4 POVs were very well written. Each character had a unique storyline with clearly defined motivations and interesting development. I thought that they played off one another very well, where despite being in very different situations, they all dealt with their own turmoil in a way made for thoughtful comparisson of their 'roles' as soldier, daughter, captain, etc. and how they each balance what's expected of them and what they each desire / feel is right within the larger setting of wartime.
I felt that the book was a bit slow for me to get into, and this may be due to not having read the prior books, but the beginning felt slower in the action and heavier on the Sci-Fi jargon and dialogue overall than it did in the second half of the book. I'm glad that I kept reading because after a period of introduction and setup for certain storylines, the story felt much more engaging and intruiging to keep reading.
I think the book finds a natural stopping point in each of the 4 POV storylines with a clear setup for what's to come next. I'm very much intruiged by the ending and will be reading the next book to see the unfolding of events that Descent has laid out thus far.
I liked that the 4 POVs were very well written. Each character had a unique storyline with clearly defined motivations and interesting development. I thought that they played off one another very well, where despite being in very different situations, they all dealt with their own turmoil in a way made for thoughtful comparisson of their 'roles' as soldier, daughter, captain, etc. and how they each balance what's expected of them and what they each desire / feel is right within the larger setting of wartime.
I felt that the book was a bit slow for me to get into, and this may be due to not having read the prior books, but the beginning felt slower in the action and heavier on the Sci-Fi jargon and dialogue overall than it did in the second half of the book. I'm glad that I kept reading because after a period of introduction and setup for certain storylines, the story felt much more engaging and intruiging to keep reading.
I think the book finds a natural stopping point in each of the 4 POV storylines with a clear setup for what's to come next. I'm very much intruiged by the ending and will be reading the next book to see the unfolding of events that Descent has laid out thus far.
November 13, 2024
I thought this was the final book in the series so I was a little disappointed when it wasn’t. Does it change how good the book is or not I was just going in with the expectation for a finale.
It also changed the narrator again since I read it on audio narrators don’t change the fuel or anything else of the book is just in the first couple of books. It makes a big deal about everyone’s accents and that changes the characters a lot.
A little distracting in this book, I’m pretty sure this is the same narrator who does infographics show on YouTube so I kept expecting him to explain in detail how everything worked in this book :-)
It also changed the narrator again since I read it on audio narrators don’t change the fuel or anything else of the book is just in the first couple of books. It makes a big deal about everyone’s accents and that changes the characters a lot.
A little distracting in this book, I’m pretty sure this is the same narrator who does infographics show on YouTube so I kept expecting him to explain in detail how everything worked in this book :-)
July 19, 2024
Great book but felt a little short
I really enjoy this series, and if the book had been a few chapters longer or the last in the line it would have 5 stars.
My other tiny nit with this one: I didn’t go back and reread the previous entries in the series, but it sure felt like the Hecate didn’t have the same power it did in the last book. Maybe I’m just mis-remembering.
Other than that, it was great. The plot moved along well, I enjoyed the story, and would recommend the series to any sci-fi fan.
I really enjoy this series, and if the book had been a few chapters longer or the last in the line it would have 5 stars.
My other tiny nit with this one: I didn’t go back and reread the previous entries in the series, but it sure felt like the Hecate didn’t have the same power it did in the last book. Maybe I’m just mis-remembering.
Other than that, it was great. The plot moved along well, I enjoyed the story, and would recommend the series to any sci-fi fan.
July 23, 2024
This is another "typical" Marko Kloos novel. And just as I like it. By the halfway point, I was immersed in this very well-worked-out, amazing universe, caught up with the characters, and observed things slowly gaining momentum. The next moment, the whole thing accelerated so fast that it ended in an inevitable cliffhanger. I'm officially hooked. So where do I need to sign to get the next one? Maybe soon as well. A kidney or two? Count me in, still!
August 8, 2025
That ending was incredibly frustrating.
October 16, 2024
I devoured this entire series. It has some great characters and a setting that feels all too real. I was expecting more action overall but found that it doesn’t suffer at all despite it being slower paced. I can’t wait for the next book!
January 28, 2025
Things are beginning to coalesce. Enjoyed this one.
January 24, 2025
4,5 stars
Really good action and spy stuff etc, but still ended with a cliffhanger and so far this felt like it should be two books, not four.
Really good action and spy stuff etc, but still ended with a cliffhanger and so far this felt like it should be two books, not four.
January 10, 2025
Parallel Storylines With No Resolution
I did especially enjoyed the corporate espionage thread as something quite different from the various military threads. Yes, I did serve 6 years of active duty with the U.S. Navy but also spent 4 decades in Corporate America.
I did especially enjoyed the corporate espionage thread as something quite different from the various military threads. Yes, I did serve 6 years of active duty with the U.S. Navy but also spent 4 decades in Corporate America.
July 25, 2024
Descent (The Palladium Wars #4)
Marko Kloos
300 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 16, 2024 by 47North
Genre: Science Fiction / Military Fiction.
Descent is the 4th book in The Palladium War series by author Marko Kloos. Like many readers, I have been waiting months for this book. This book measures up to the standard set by books 1-3 in the series, as well as Mr. Kloos’s Frontlines series.
Reviewers often cite the various criteria they use when reviewing and rating novels. Perhaps they like the genre, the writing style, or can associate with certain characters. My litmus test for a novel review is very simple. If the storylines keep me up late at night wanting to discover what happens next – it deserves my 5-star rating. Descent earned such a rating as it did not disappoint me.
This particular installment builds upon previous storylines of a past interplanetary war and rise of an insurgency. Mr. Kloos is a talented storyteller and Descent follows the intertwined lives of 4 individuals in parallel. He captures complex relationships situational circumstances including a POW, a victorious combatant, an old wealth, privileged business woman, and a military commander in pursuit of galactic pirates. The author’s real-life military service and experience adds credibility. I appreciate the adherence to some hard science throughout the book as well as the emotional struggles that showcase the human spirit.
There are no over-the-top space battles or never-ending plasma cannons like so many other books in this genre. Start with book 1 and read the series. It is an enjoyable journey.
Marko Kloos
300 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 16, 2024 by 47North
Genre: Science Fiction / Military Fiction.
Descent is the 4th book in The Palladium War series by author Marko Kloos. Like many readers, I have been waiting months for this book. This book measures up to the standard set by books 1-3 in the series, as well as Mr. Kloos’s Frontlines series.
Reviewers often cite the various criteria they use when reviewing and rating novels. Perhaps they like the genre, the writing style, or can associate with certain characters. My litmus test for a novel review is very simple. If the storylines keep me up late at night wanting to discover what happens next – it deserves my 5-star rating. Descent earned such a rating as it did not disappoint me.
This particular installment builds upon previous storylines of a past interplanetary war and rise of an insurgency. Mr. Kloos is a talented storyteller and Descent follows the intertwined lives of 4 individuals in parallel. He captures complex relationships situational circumstances including a POW, a victorious combatant, an old wealth, privileged business woman, and a military commander in pursuit of galactic pirates. The author’s real-life military service and experience adds credibility. I appreciate the adherence to some hard science throughout the book as well as the emotional struggles that showcase the human spirit.
There are no over-the-top space battles or never-ending plasma cannons like so many other books in this genre. Start with book 1 and read the series. It is an enjoyable journey.
December 24, 2024
This is probably actually more of a 3.5 than a 4, but I love the series so I'll give it (mostly) full marks.
The plot in book 4 doesn't advance as much as I thought it might do. It does set up a lot of things for the four characters, but it feels like each of them accomplished only 1/4 of an plot arc. Aden goes undercover, Dunstan blows up a pirate base, Idina starts her Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Task Force 141 squad, and Solveig deals with PTSD. It's compelling but I want more (complimentary).
The plot in book 4 doesn't advance as much as I thought it might do. It does set up a lot of things for the four characters, but it feels like each of them accomplished only 1/4 of an plot arc. Aden goes undercover, Dunstan blows up a pirate base, Idina starts her Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Task Force 141 squad, and Solveig deals with PTSD. It's compelling but I want more (complimentary).
November 10, 2024
Fun read, but not earth shattering. The protagonists are moved a couple of spaces ahead to wherever they are going. The whole sequence sets up a fairly complex interplay between civilizations with honorable people on all sides (the hidden figures behind the sophisticated attacks have yet to be reveled).
May be a longer delay before book 5, given the news that 47North has decided not to continue the series, although I don't think that necessarily creates an abrupt end to the series.
Compared with his other big series (Frontlines, starting with Terms of Enlistment) the action here is much more subtle and political. I like this direction of Kloos's and hope to see more in this series.
May be a longer delay before book 5, given the news that 47North has decided not to continue the series, although I don't think that necessarily creates an abrupt end to the series.
Compared with his other big series (Frontlines, starting with Terms of Enlistment) the action here is much more subtle and political. I like this direction of Kloos's and hope to see more in this series.
October 27, 2024
What there is of this book is very good. The characters are believable and varied, the world (star system) is nicely drawn, the plot is tight and suspenseful, and the conceit of the story is unique and compelling.
But this story starts in media res and ends in media res, having solved little and with only limited advancement to the plot.
I really like this series, and when the series is complete, this book will be an important part of it. But I would not recommend it until the series is complete. That said, I enjoyed what was there and eagerly await the next volume, because I'm already committed to the series.
But this story starts in media res and ends in media res, having solved little and with only limited advancement to the plot.
I really like this series, and when the series is complete, this book will be an important part of it. But I would not recommend it until the series is complete. That said, I enjoyed what was there and eagerly await the next volume, because I'm already committed to the series.
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