Sound the Charge

by Kevin Ikenberry

After the Buzzers' retreat from Heske, Earth Maneuver Forces believe they’ve cracked the code on where the insectoid aliens will strike next.

But when their forward deployment goes horribly wrong and nearly wipes out the advance force, the pressure mounts. With Earth's defenses stretched thin and Mars’ forces barely regrouped, they’re rushed to Trion 2—where they’ll face not just the Buzzers, but something far more ominous.

Captain Mike Sandhurst’s cavalry troop is slowly coming together as a cohesive unit, though internal challenges and the ever-present bureaucratic red tape of the larger military force remain a constant struggle. As he trains his young officers for the battles ahead, Mike also faces personal conflict—his growing relationship with Lieutenant Vivian Llewelyn. Vivian is back on Earth, recovering from her wounds and determined to return to flight status, even as her own challenges pile up.

Meanwhile, the Thunderbolts are putting the newly upgraded Osprey close air support aircraft through its paces. Faster, deadlier, and designed for brutal combat, the new airframes are powerful, but untested. With deployment looming, the question remains—will the new machines and their pilots be ready for the hell that’s coming? Together, can the tankers and the aviators take the field?

The fight against the Buzzers rages in this new rollicking Science Fiction thrill ride from Kevin Ikenberry. With realistic military action, space and ground battles, and a vicious bug alien invasion, it's perfect for fans of Starship Troopers, Hell Divers 2, and Rick Partlow's Drop Trooper!

476 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 19, 2024

About the author

Kevin’s head has been in the clouds since he was old enough to read. Ask him and he’ll tell you that he still wants to be an astronaut. Kevin has a diverse background in space and space science education. As an adult, he's managed the world-renowned U.S. Space Camp program and operated two Challenger Learning Centers. A retired Army officer, Kevin continues to work with space every day.

Kevin is the author of the science fiction novel SLEEPER PROTOCOL (2016) which Publisher's Weekly called "an emotionally powerful debut." His military science fiction novel RUNS IN THE FAMILY (2016) has gained a growing legion of fans. He continues to work on sequels for both novels as well as short fiction and an alternate history novel.

Reviews

[Jim]

Another fantastic book in this series. Mr. Ikenberry really gets down into the operational layer of fighting a battle. I really like that kind of realism in books even though there are a lot of fantastic technologies involved. A lot of what he puts into his stories are and were only dreamed of on the battlefield of the 21st century. To be able to float a UVA and watch your enemy move around was not even thought of in my day. We had to have eyes on before we could almost do anything. And don’t get me talking about intelligence, that was mostly guess work in my day. Still, this modern Army and Air Force are just now relearning the things that were done in the past quite well. Combine Arms of infantry, tanks, artillery and air craft operating against a single or multiple targets was the doctrine in my day. Here they are relearning all that again.

While the battle on Heske is over, the war certainly is not. The armor have gone back to Mars and are repairing their damages and obtaining new supplies, equipment and people. They are also going to be fleshing this new way to fight after having the Thunderbolt aircraft providing close air support during the rescue mission. That worked out very well, but part of it was due to the personal knowledge of the Thunderbolt pilots, Lieutenants Vivian Llewelyn, a.k.a. “Hellcat”, and Paige Dixon, a.k.a. “Bombshell” with Captain Mike Sandhurst called “Tank Boy” by the lady pilots. That familiarity was both a blessing and a hinderance since Hellcat got shot down and Captain Sandhurst wanted to immediately go after her. But, he wasn’t in a position to make that decision alone. So he had to wait for his commander, Colonel Snodgrass to approve the rescue plan. It involved a lot of assets that had to account for the Buzzer presence on the battlefield.

Obviously that rescue worked out, but Hellcat was looking at a long recover time. She had been seriously hurt while evading the Buzzers and awaiting rescue. She even got shot although it was just a grazing wound, but her leg and ankle got messed up when she fell in the dark. Now she has a long recuperating period ahead of her to include prequalifying for flight and passing a fly physical and a PT test. She’s got Bombshell along with her so she doesn’t have to do this alone, but she does want to take some time off to meet up with Mike Sandhurst on Mars if possible. They are heading towards a very romantic relationship.

Meanwhile, Captain Thomas Mace, commander of the starship Shackleton has been in the Trion system for some time watching for Buzzer activity. They had seemed to indicate on Heske that their next objective would be in this Trion system. Most of the Earth Maneuver Force (EMF) was out at transit points awaiting word of any Buzzer incursions. Captain Mace begins observing the planet Trion-2 when he and his crew notice what appears to be fighting on the planet surface. They can’t tell who is fighting who until they get closer so when they do it becomes clear that there is a Buzzer presence on the planet. This kicks off an immediate message to the EMF task force for assistance.

Task Force Eagle, under the command of Rear Admiral Ruben Luera, was ordered to immediately respond to the Shackleton’s request for backup. He then called Brigadier General Jeffrey Justice, commanding Battle Group Sheridan, to prep for immediate deployment as part of his Task Force Eagle. Unfortunately, Rear Admiral Luera was a very demanding commander and kind of head strong, but he was in a position to do what he thought needed done and that was what he was doing. He told BG Justice to get his battle group moving immediately and then they would join up to get to the Trion system as soon as possible. He further told BG Justice that he planned on making an ally of whomever was fighting against the Buzzers! To BG Justice that didn’t seem reasonable since they had no knowledge about who or what was going on down on the ground. Yet, orders were orders and had to be followed.

So, now you’re going to read about a disaster caused by a head-strong commander that didn’t take the time to gain the intelligence needed to make the right decisions. Someone will also have to come in and clean up his mess. This is an exciting story with lots of maneuvers by commanders, tanks and aircraft. I’m really glad that this isn’t the end of the story but there sure is a strange twist to the end of this book. More will be forthcoming in book 4, but that book hasn’t been identified yet. I hope it comes soon!

[Chance]

space..sh…sub

The book was abit of a letdown.

The technology development was underwhelming has we already saw where they going to make nothing really arose out in that area.

When we get a species to many characters let previous reactions to buzzards cloud there thought on why the second species might be fighting them.

An finally you missed a Hugh opportunity to make some Ace Ventura jokes.

[Jesse Mathewson]

Well written

Mr. Ikenberry is a well put together, knowledgeable storyteller. He is able to weave fantasy, sci-fi, and sci reality with military fiction and reality into a relatively seamless series. It is absolutely enjoyable. As a seasoned reader and part-time writer with a very wide array of life experiences, I have no real faults. Perfection is a myth. This is literature I want to own in print.

[Chris Howkins]

Good trilogy

This was the last of the three books currently, and I hope this is just a pause (please Mr. Ikenberry can we have more.) The characters have developed well, with a lot more development to come. All cunningly crafted, from the senior leadership to the tankers, pilots and infantry.

Great read, bring on number four please!

[Sean]

Intense

What an intense bookmthis was- and phenomenal. Great combat scenarios, and a very enjoyable cast of characters. I'm excited to hear this isn't the end of the Buzzer War series, and look forward to book #4; and the Easter Egg literally made me laugh out loud!

[Tom Hill]

Best new series since Hammer’s Slammers

Great concept of tanks, mech infantry and A-10 descendants! Well constructed development, good characters developed and exciting plot. I’m going to greatly enjoy this series. If I could give it 6 or more stars, I would!

[James]

Friend of enemy

Mankinds,efforts to make confrontaTion 2 fail spectacularly with thirty thousand troops paying the price.
The Rhinos prove to be an enemy, one which humanity defeat this time.

[Kizzy]

Riveting and exciting!

Couldn't put it down. Just had to get thru the next chapter and the twists and turns kept it riveting. Surprises at every turn, except for the romantic relations. Great read.

[Steve Timpson]

I have read the first 3 books and am on the 4th. I have to say these are the best military SciFi I have read. The military speak is spot on ( I am ex Navy) and the action is great. I highly recommend all of the books.

[Keith Wagner]

Ike berry is building a interesting Universe

Liked this book. I like how it is laying the foundation for a much bigger and fleshed out universe to roam around in. Looking forward to seeing where it goes

[Sandra Conley]

Love the series

Action packed as the rest of the series, I had a hard time putting it down! I look forward to learning the reasons behind the conflict in upcoming volumes. Believable characters, decent dialogue and fast paced hard scifi action - what's not to love?

[Paul Hill]

Buzzer war trilogy

Great read , was held captivated by the build up. Can't wait for the next instalment of the buzzer war. Following the characters onwards.

[Harold Oney]

Can't wait for the next one

I am really enjoying this series. It reminds me a lot of my time in tanks. I hope it continues

[Bill]

Excellent! Another great read in the series.

[Paul Gritt]

Good story but I am gettingtired of the Humans loosing and not learning anything abou the buzzers.
I think I will wait a while before I get the 4th book

[william j cunningham]

good military sci-fi

It’s a well written military sci-fi with great characters. It has a lot of technical style plot. With great story lines and brings them together nicely.

[David Cannistraro]

Looking for More

Once one starts reading the story becomes adictive.
Always looking for more. What other species will we find in such a wide galaxy. Ok

[Christopher Morgan,]

Realism scifi

I love the grounded approach to war in the future. The combination of all.the services working together is rarely shown in any way book