Assault Troopers

Extinction Wars #1

by Vaughn Heppner

The Earth died when aliens rained thermonuclear warheads on her cities and sprayed the surface with a bio-terminator. A deadly poison drifted to every corner of the planet, threatening the last survivors with annihilation. For a soldier in Antarctica like Creed, there is only one way to keep breathing untainted air. He must bury his hatred of the extraterrestrials and join the Jelk Corporation as an assault trooper, leaving the planet for outer space. In return for his and other people's services, the corporation will house the last humans for as long as the assault troopers keep winning.

For the price of living and the chance to save humanity, Creed has to wear a shock chip in his neck?Jelk discipline is harsh?and he has to don a symbiotic battlesuit that feeds off his sweat. Human life is cheap in the vast alien war. The assault troopers are little more than suicide soldiers, but for humanity to escape extinction, they must survive. But Creed didn't agree to the bargain in order to remain a dog to the aliens. He has a plan, and he'll need all his cunning to beat these star born bastards and begin the road to freedom for the human race.

"Assault Troopers" is a tale of human extinction and ultimate desperation.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Military Science Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Military Fiction, Adventure

325 pages, Paperback

First published July 18, 2013

About the author

You can visit Vaughn at www.vaughnheppner.com

I was born in Canada and remember as a small boy crawling in my snow-fort. I closed my eyes, and when I tried to open them, they were frozen shut. I didn't panic, but wiped away the ice crystals, unglued my eyes and kept on building my tunnel. Those were great days! I moved to Central California before seventh grade and couldn't believe I lived in a land where oranges grew on trees and you could pick grapes from the vine.

I used to wonder what I wanted to do with my life, what kind of work specifically. I was miserable not knowing and bordering on desperate. Then one day a friend gave me his typewriter. I began working on a novel. A different person told me it was much easier on a computer, so I bought one and began getting up at 4:30 A.M. each morning before work, writing for three hours. My eyes were unglued once again as the pang of misery left my gut. I knew exactly what I wanted to do: write. So now that's what I do, I write, and write, and write, and I love it.

Reviews

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading just little of this book, I was going to write to B V Larson to see of he knew about this. After doing some research, I see they are friends and they have collaborated on book of separate short stories. I can tell they're friends. There's a lot of the same humor when it comes to some of the alien interactions.

However good some of the parts were, it felt sloppy overall. There are some characters introduced that fall by the way side, the battle scenes were not explained enough to picture anything. (Ex. "Attack") Well, attack what, who, where?

[David Firmage · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars for this series start up.

[Cal · Rating 1 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook and felt bad for the narrator reading. If you want good alien fighting read Armor by John Steakly.

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, great read. I'm sorry but if you're looking for great deep literary and insightful reading and you're disappointed in me when i recommend "brain candy"....

Oops.

Pure brain candy, pure adventure nice action. I tend to like Vaughn Heppner's work. I mean I can only read 3 or 4 back to back and then need to move on to something else for a while. Still every now and then I think a lot of us need to take a break and read about some explosions...gun fights...and other fights before we get back to the serious stuff.

Are you a NERD? Remember the "Shore Leave" episode in Star Trek the original series. "The more advanced the mind the more the need for the simplicity of play".

So, Earth has been wiped out, but a few humans have survived. You know that eventually that won't be good for the aliens who tried to wipe us out.

Recommended. Enjoy.

[Charles · Rating 1 out of 5]

I started reading this, and I eventually had to stop. Its pulpy, cliched, melodrama incorporating every mil-sf and apocalyptic trope that could be wedged between the covers.

The writing and characterization are actually laughable. I laughed-out-loud at the Russian, female scientist's "perfect breasts". What do perfect breasts look like? (Who can say?) Creed, the hardened, self-educated ex-con has the purple-prosed vocabulary of a post-doc. Characters drop in-and-out, some never to be seen again. None of the characters are deeper than a carpark puddle.

Frankly, I don't have enough time to waste on something as unoriginal and poorly written as this. That's why I put it down-- unread.

[Ryan Rauber · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read a lot of military sci-fi fiction from self-published authors. Some are really good, some not so. Unfortunately, this falls into the latter. An interesting premise, a failed army officer is one of the last survivors after aliens attack the Earth. He and thousands like him are enslaved and forced to fight as "assault troopers" in an interplanetary war. My main beef with this book is that the main character, Creed, and the android N7 are really the only interesting characters here. The secondary human characters are basically just throw-away characters. Granted, this book is set up as an introduction to a series, so perhaps we'll see more character development in later books. If you're a fan of military sci-fi, you might enjoy this. Otherwise I don't think I could recommend this book.

[Online Eccentric Librarian · Rating 1 out of 5]

More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/

About 25% into the Audible Narration, I began to feel that the song, "America, f$ck yeah!" was written as a spoof of this book. Super macho, lone wolf, bad a$$, bullet proof, survivor battles aliens in the face of defeat - and takes names while chewing bubble gum. It was so over the top, I felt hair growing on my chest - and I'm a woman. But at the same time, it also elicited grunts of disgust interspersed with giggles at the silliness. If there is an antithesis to a bodice ripper, this is it. What Johanna Lindsey does for women's fiction, Vaughn Heppner exuberantly does for men's fiction. Can you enjoy either if you are the opposite gender? oh sure. Will you enjoy it? That's another question.

Story: Creed (because one word names with double meanings are much more macho) survived a decimating alien attack on the Earth by virtue of being in the arctic babysitting some scientists. When he stumbles upon an alien ship, he decides to save the Earth by jumping on board and nearly single handedly killing anything that moves. Because, hey, NO ONE destroys America (oh yeah, and the world), and lives!! Throw in a bunch of stereotypes (even a sexy Russian-accented rocket scientist super model with 'great t*ts') and you get the idea of what happens next. Carnage ensues.

I'm sure many would argue not to take it so seriously and just enjoy the ride. For me, I'd happily do so if the writing wasn't so annoying. Unrealistic stereotypes of macho manliness and objectified women aside, the very first bit of the story started to annoy. E.g., we get a rambling prologue where the narrator finally ends by saying he'll start at the the day he met his first alien. But when the next chapter starts, he starts rambling about his WHOLE HISTORY forever until FINALLY we get to meeting the alien. Seriously - editing anyone? By the time we get on the alien ship and meet the rocket scientist super model, all he notices is her abundant chest area. In detail. Because, hey, a girl with a great rack is ALWAYS going to be more interesting than worrying about dying from the aliens after him. I figured right then that if the author isn't going to take the story seriously, then neither would I. And so it was time to find something else to read.

I'd tried the Fenris series with no luck either - so I'm guess I lack the sense of humor or y-Chromosome needed for these books. I'm sure there are a lot of readers screaming, BOO YEAH!!! and pumping fists in the air while reading this book. Me, I was thinking that a South Park version of this story with Stan and Eric shooting up the ship might have been more realistic (and more fun). The phallic ships on the kindle version should have given me pause before purchasing, I guess, since they are indicative of what's inside.

I listened to the Audible version and the narrator did a decent job (with what he had - not one snicker in there).

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because of this book (and a dry spell in book choices) I finally figured out what style of sci-fi I really enjoy. I get a kick out of humorous sci-fi such as Hard Luck Hank, Disc World, Hitchhikers, etc. But it can be too much of a good thing. The real bread and butter sci-fi for me is what I'll call the hero sci-fi. It's a story with a John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Sean Connery hero to focus on. He needs to be gritty and born of a rough past. He has to be decisive, lucky, a natural leader or loner. Most of all he cannot apologize, over-think, second-guess or be overly subject to a conscience.

Can the hero be a woman? I don't know. I haven't found one yet. Honor Harrington is close but doesn't quite cut it. Too much goody two-shoes. Maybe Dr. Jane Holloway (Fluency). Maybe. We'll see how that one goes.

Kyle Riggs (Star Force) meets the criteria. Black Jack Geary (The Lost Fleet) does well. Commander Creed is another. There are plenty of examples. Oh heck, let me include Capt. Kirk.

This Vaughn Heppner series, Extinction Wars, with Commander Creed is something I can listen to for hours on end. It is the type of series I can't wait to continue and know I'll listen again in the future. It has some parts that touch the intellect but has plenty John Wayne-style shoot-em-up scenes.

Assault Troopers sets the stage for Commander Creed to take the lead for the whole human race. He's placed in a position to fight for humanity's survival by becoming a mercenary/slave for an enemy. Through a series of bold moves we see the rebellion and beginning of a fleet starting with a single busted-up ship.

[Trey · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is probably the first book in years that I just couldn't finish. I made it to 80% and just couldn't care enough to finish. fwiw, this is just my opinion. If this type of book is your cup of tea then more power to you.

The main character was annoying beyond redemption. I read somewhere else that this author was friends with B.V. Larson? If so, they obviously shared ideas. Only real difference is that Larson was able to hook me until book 3 or so before his story and characters got too wild and unwieldy for me to stand.

The main character is just completely unbelievable. He pokes and prods the Jelk at every turn and faces almost no consequences. I'm just not a huge fan of the "bulletproof" style of characters. And a grunt that didn't finish high school is a master strategist that has the answer to every possible problem.

The dialog was bad. I know that one of the main characters was an android but everything felt so stilted and forced it sounded more like anime style conversations than anything else.

There was no supporting cast of characters. The main character just ran shit and the other guys were just there to spout off stuff to fill in his gaps of knowledge. I thought there might be an interesting storyline with the android becoming more humanized but the dialog towards the end just sorta killed that for me.

All in all, this just isn't the type of book for me.

[Mike Nemeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vaughn Heppner's got writing about battle in his blood. This is my second novel of his, and once started it got under my skin. I had to read it. Had to know what the hell this guy Creed would do to survive another day and live up to his promise that he would make the scumbags who destroyed Earth pay. Creed is a former soldier and convict who wound up on a security detail at a base in Antarctica. Real hero, right? But this guy is more than his resume or rap sheet would lead you, the reader, to believe. His father was an ace pilot and daredevil who is the first to engage a massive space ship that shows up in the planet's orbit. Dad tries to make contact, but the aliens blast him out of the sky. Then they destroy most of Earth's major cities and send bio agent that wipes out all life. Some people survive. Creed commandeers an alien lander that has come to take human samples for a human army. Little of it makes sense to him. Somehow humanity's become ensnared in some corporate battle for dominance and a fight over religious relics. The opposition is tremendous. Humans are considered animals, and that pisses Creed off. Turns out it's not good to make him angry. A real page turner.

[Ralph Wark · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boilerplate

Let's see, aliens that look like lizards and tigers, humanity almost wiped out by an invasion, the brave last stand by a group of survivors, led by a leader who's a mix of Schwarzenegger and Eastwood, women with pert breasts......yup, this one has almost every cliche known to sci-fi. Why, Heppner even constantly refers to laser guns and air cars. He may have been doing a tongue in cheek tribute to the sci-fi of the 50's, it's just not original and has cardboard cut outs for characters. Plus lines like "a man just wasn't made to go running around with his junk hanging out". Truly bad. The only way I got through this was listening to an audible version on the Amazon Echo, so it was background. Even there, the narrator, who performs a variety of voices well, made the lead character sound as if he listened to Kirk Douglas in "Spartacus" a few too many times. Over all, there are so many good books to read, I can't recommend one where you have multitask to get through it.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve read other titles by this author and thought I would give this one a try. I slugged through it, but while the basic premise is similar to other space operas this one left a lot to be desired. Without having a spoiler, the main character is not very believable – a washed up security guard in the middle of nowhere in Antarctica is suddenly a master fighter, strategist, and super-smart and is the sole person who can save humanity. The dialogue tried too hard to be witty, and many of the scenes just made you want to cry “bull.”

I enjoy science fiction, but this one was a stretch and I felt as if I had wasted my time after finishing it. I picked this up for free with my Kindle Unlimited borrow vs. its regular price of $3.99; while there are other titles in the series, this is the end of the road for me.

[Robert · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've never been a huge fan of the Orson Scott Card innocent psychopathic killer character as a main character, and since I'm now old enough to do some analysis as I read halfway through this book I cannot be bothered to read more. With a touch of humor the irony of a man who loves fighting and killing going into a self righteous murderous rage every time he is told that his value is that of a beast which is efficient at fighting and murdering could make for fun reading while being exciting. Unfortunately the writing is not nearly good enough to support an uncharismatic sadist let alone women falling for him left and right simply because main character.

[Will · Rating 2 out of 5]

That was painful. Almost lemmed. The narrator yelled a lot to imitate emotion and the characters are shallow and not well developed. Plot? Very little other than to set up more books. A book written to write more. At the end I actually yelled hallelujah.

[Vfields Don't touch my happy! · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a big, bawdy, over-the-top, mucho-macho sci-fi adventure. I just let my mind just go with the flow and cheer for the human/Earthers to survive. Vaughn Heppner kept me sucked in and I had fun! Carry on Creed and Company!

[Alex Shrugged · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. I didn't love it.

It is a lot like "Steel World" from the Undying Mercenaries series by B. V. Larson without the humorous aspects. It just doesn't work well enough for me.

The story: Earth is attacked and just about destroyed by Galactics who are fighting amongst themselves. Another set of Galactics tries recruiting Earthlings to fight their war. Economics are involved. One Earthman tries to steal a ship and in the process talks one Galactic into hiring Earthlings to fight their battle and hopefully learn enough to get Earth out of this fix.

Any problems with the book? Yes. The main character doesn't seem to stay in character. He is made out to be a tough guy whose father was killed by the aliens. Yet he seems unduly compassionate and thoughtful at times. His buddies seem unusually cautious and willing to run away which makes no sense given that Earth has almost been wiped out. That would make the meekest person flaming mad and seek revenge.

Some of the technology doesn't make sense. It begins with the hero's father being killed by incandescent light. That is the type of light given off by a light bulb with a heated filament. I've been exposed to incandescent light all my life. I'm still alive. That was obviously a mistake. The author must have meant coherent light like a laser gives off.

Any modesty issues? There is a little vulgar language. Not much.

I doubt I would read this book again. It is Interesting, but not jaw-dropping. I'm going to read the sequel "Planet Strike" and see if it gets better.

[Valerie G. Nolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Assault Troopers by Vaughn Heppner



The action never stopped. The characters became more real as one read on. Creed might have appeared tough and rough but he was a born lesder; he cared very deeply about the people under his command, and surprisingly a very moral and gentle man underneath the bravado. I found it very difficult to put down. The book was very well planned from its outset. I cannot wait to read Book two! Mr. Heppne please do not ever stop writing. Your books are exciting, your characters are "real"; people that I can easily relate to and feel for. If a Writer can make their characters "real" they are more than 80% to writing a good and gripping book. Thank you .

[Florin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Looks like I am on a losing streak..
This is the second major disappointing book in a row. Well, no one to blame but me for my ( lack of) taste when picking them.

"Assault Troopers" it's the feverish dream of a teenager :
- it's a boiling stew of aliens: space lizards and tigers, a gargoyle who has a kink for human females (slaves),
- it's the "save them all" hero story : from convict to tactical mastermind ! in 5 easy steps, and get the girl while saving mankind.

Sometimes this book it's a nightmare, sometimes it's a bad wet dream - but what is certain is that it was a major waste of my time.

[Paul Rouwendaal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Entertaining read, but nothing about the book is really standing out for me. So for me this is like a 2.5 stars book. I’m currently reading the second book in the series, which already turning out to be great (better than the first one). So in the light of the entire series, the first book might not be the best one, but it is definitely worth to read it, to be able to enjoy the rest of the books in series. It introduces you in a good way into the main characters and story elements, upon which the second book builds.

[Trish R. · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've tried twice to read this book and tend to get to the same 40-something % and can't go on. An author who can write about a hot-tempered hero who kills and kills and kills, and his temper is described so well is NOT going to go around killing aliens, who just killed 99% of earth, is not NOT going to use the word fuck! That's for sure. I realize this is from an authors imagination but I'd still like it to be a little realistic, and this is not! If you can't use the word the fuck then don't write this kind of book, it's just stupid.

[Buzz Park · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars - Pulp Fiction Sci Fi at Its Best!

This is a great book. I would give it 4.5 stars if I could… If you are looking for highly intellectual speculative fiction, then this is not the book for you. If you are looking for military sci-fi pulp fiction at its absolute best, then you’re going to love this book. Well-traveled tropes, fairly predictable plot and semi-shallow characters but fun dialogue, excellent pacing and colorful world-building. I loved it!

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book! You can just zip right through this one. Very action-packed. Probably not something I would reread as I don't feel like there is a ton of depth here (not necessarily a bad thing), but after reading the first book I'm sure it's going to be a surprisingly pleasant romp through this series.

[Karl Anders Ljungberg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though I've read the book a few times. Or listen as I audiobook I cannot say I would be connected to this book if one book reflect my preferences in writing. "Creed" fights on, driven by rage and some sort of melancholia. But as reader-more listening , this special genre of different subgenres you have to take the bad with the good. Enough.

[Jayne · Rating 1 out of 5]

To be honest I don't even know if I read this, started reading it and didn't finish. Even the blurb didn't jog my memory. However, I think I did read some of it because when I saw it, I felt mildly annoyed.

[Lee-sa Day · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book. Interesting new series

I love all the series I have read by Mr. Heppner and this is no exception. New characters to get to know and new battles to vicariously fight.

[maxamoud · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let down

The story is great the opening act was fantastic that I had to see end of the story. The MC on the other hand was so annoying And childish also horny like a teenager he was judging females characters on their looks and also risk mission just to save his crush.

[timothy Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Yet another good starter from Vaughn Heppner. Kinda dark at times but does point to another side of humanity, the historical information help to put everything to perspective of humanity mindset in dark times.

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Military SciFi and Post Apocalypse

Starts off with a bang and continues to build. The main character is well developed. The seconday characters could be a bit more developed. Over all, a good read.

[Lindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Enjoyed reading this. Helper kept the words and tech speak to a minimum, mAking this an enjoyable read. Looking forward to the next installment in this series.

[Jesse Deleon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic series!

Thank you again Vaughn Heppner for another fantastic series for me to recommen for summer reading list. Please keep writing, a fan.