Blindside

by Michael Mammay

Colonel Carl Butler charges back into the world of military crisis, corporate malfeasance, and intergalactic mystery in the action-packed fifth Planetside novel from science fiction master Michael Mammay.

Carl Butler has returned to his home planet from the moon Taug and is looking forward to some rest and relaxation. But following two mysterious deaths connected with the Taug mission, he realizes that the intruders that recently set off his home’s security system might be looking to add him to the death toll.

Having been Butler’s muscle on numerous missions, Mac is no stranger to getting involved with mysteries that should be none of his business. So when the daughter of one of his gym members goes missing, he offers to help. Mac assumes she’s a simple runaway, but the case turns out not to be so clear-cut. Wondering if these strange occurrences are somehow related, Butler—along with Mac, Ganos, and the rest of his small crew—once again finds himself neck deep in intrigue.

As the clues for the various cases begin to intertwine, Butler sees the hand of an old enemy at work, and…well…he’s never been one to sit back and wait for something to happen. Gathering the team, he heads off across the galaxy to confront his suspects head-on.

But this time, they’re waiting for him.

Kindle Edition

Expected publication March 24, 2026

About the author

Michael Mammay is a retired army officer and a graduate of the United States Military Academy. He has a masters degree in military history, and he is a veteran of more wars than he cares to remember. His first novel, PLANETSIDE, was a Library Journal 'Best books of 2018' pick and the sequels, SPACESIDE and COLONYSIDE, received starred reviews. GENERATION SHIP is his first foray out of the military SF sub-genre and comes out in October of 2023. He lives with his family in Georgia.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the 5th book in a series and therefore this review might/will have spoilers from previous books. At the least read the 4th book before this one if you don't want to start at book one. However I highly recommend the entire series. Each book is a story that comes to a conclusion but the next book shows the results, bad and good, of the events in the previous book.

Told 1st person through two POVs/swearing, including the F-word (these are military guys after all).

Our main character Colonel Butler is retired from the military and settled down on a quiet planet but trouble finds him anyway. Butler's right hand man Mac comes to him with a case of a runaway teenage girl and Butler, being a softie, gives in and decides to help find her in The Big City (Butler and Mac live out in a small town and rural area). Little do they known that this seemingly simple case will become more and more complicated and end up related to the events from book 4.

Butler calls in Ganos, hacker extraordinaire, and Mac finds a few heavies to join the crew and they leave planet to investigate things. Of course things go sideways and there's a battle. Butler thinks of a way to save his hide and that of his friends because these bad guys have it in for them. It all ends in a big showdown battle.

The story is mostly told from Butler's POV but there are also some chapters from Mac's POV. The writing is excellent, as is the pacing and plot. I sure hope the author can write a happy ending for Butler and friends.

I received an advanced reader copy from Netgally and this did not influence my opinion in any way.

[sarai · Rating 4 out of 5]

as always, the latest entry in the planetside series hits. watching carl butler attempt /not/ to exercise his maverick gene is very funny, honestly, and a cast of memorable returning characters helps round the story out.

i do think this one was a bit weaker in the bones than the previous entries in the series, however. the switch from the small-time mystery (missing girl) to the larger threat (Lore Implications) was a bit jarring, and the resolution happened once again in a rapid firefight that, while extremely well written, did feel out of left field.

i am also not quite sure how i felt about the sudden switch to a dual pov in the last entry of this series. butler's strong voice always carried the previous books very well, and i don't know that mac was different enough to really make an impact in having his own pov.

all that being said i did very much enjoy this series and am sad to see that it's over, although i will definitely look forward for anything and everything else michael mammay puts out!

thanks to netgalley and harper voyager for the e-arc!

[Andi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a huge fan of Michael Mammay, and have read every one of his books since Planetside was first published. I was especially excited to get an ARC of his upcoming release, BLINDSIDE.

I appreciated the author’s recap of the previous four Planetside books to refresh my memory of what happened previously. BLINDSIDE follows retired Colonel Carl Butler, Mac (his security and combat specialist), and Ganos (his IT expert and hacker extraordinaire) as they search for a missing teenager who is the daughter of one of Mac’s fitness clients. The story is told through alternating chapters from both Butler’s and Mac’s viewpoints, and I enjoyed reading part of the story through Mac’s perspective.

Things get a bit dicey, and Butler and Mac realize there is more to this disappearance than a simple runaway situation. They bring in a larger team of highly skilled specialists, and the plot starts to move very quickly and in several different directions.

I’ve always liked Carl Butler, not just for his intelligence and ingenuity, but also how he takes care of his people—all the qualities of an excellent commander. His crew have many strengths as well, and they all work so well together. I love this series partly due to this continued dynamic.

BLINDSIDE’s ending was, as expected, very good. With a rich cast of characters and compelling plots, I sincerely hope this series will continue!

NOTE: While I only listen to about 10% of my books, I’ve ALWAYS listened to Mammay’s books on audio since his usual narrator, R.C. Gray, is just so good. I’ll likely buy the audiobook when it’s released.

🌟Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.🌟

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

I've been a fan of the series and so was looking forward to this. The action was well written, but I was less drawn in by the overall plot. Don't get me wrong, i enjoyed the read, but there wasn't the surprise or suspense factor as much.

Worth a read for fans of the series, but a middle book rather than a starter or a closer.