Dark Victory

Dark Victory #1

by Brendan DuBois

Sixteen-year-old Randy Knox has the usual problems of a teenage getting along with his father, dating his sweetheart, and trying not to fail his junior year of high school. But Randy also has other demands on his time, as a sergeant in the NH National Guard, attached to the US Army, and fighting the invading Creepers.

But now change has drastically come to his life. The current President of the United States has announced that scattered remnants of the Air Force have destroyed the Creeper's Orbital Base, ensuring victory over the alien invaders. Those surviving Creepers on the Earth's surface will be hunted down and exterminated, as a weary and wary population celebrates victory. Yet Randy is assigned a new to escort a secret representative from the Governor of New Hampshire to the nation's capital, to meet with the President. And at the last moment, a fellow teen soldier - the beautiful Serena Coulson and her mute younger brother Buddy - are assigned to join Randy.

This secretive mission proves to be the most dangerous assignment of his life, as Randy tries to protect his charges from rampaging Creepers and criminal humans. And as he fights to reach the capitol with a vital mission, Randy learns that all of his skills in combating aliens may not be enough to survive the dark conspiracies of his fellow humans.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Ebooks

336 pages, Paperback

First published January 5, 2016

About the author

Brendan DuBois of New Hampshire is the award-winning author of twenty novels and more than 150 short stories. His novel, "Resurrection Day," won the Sidewise Award for Best Alternative History Novel of the Year.

In addition to his thrillers, Brendan DuBois is the author of the Lewis Cole mystery series.

He is currently working on a number of writing projects with New York Times bestselling author James Patterson,

He is also a one-time "Jeopardy!" gameshow champion, and a co-winner of the trivia gameshow "The Chase."

His short fiction has appeared in Playboy, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Analog, and numerous other magazines and anthologies including “The Best American Mystery Stories of the Century,” published in 2000 by Houghton-Mifflin. Another one of his short stories appeared in in "The Year's Best Science Fiction 22nd Annual Collection" (St. Martin's Griffin, 2005) edited by Gardner Dozois

His short stories have twice won him the Shamus Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and have also earned him three Edgar Allan Poe Award nominations from the Mystery Writers of America. Visit his website at www.BrendanDuBois.com.
Show less

Reviews

[Skip · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am a big fan of author Brendan DuBois, and recommend his Lewis Cole series to all. However, I did not like this book much. Randy Knox is a young kid, working to defend his nation from aliens (Creepers), as part of the New Hampshire National Guard. Despite being a decorated soldier, he lives a simple life on base, along with his canine companion, Thor. An unusual assignment from his C.O. has him accompanying a courier and brother/sister to the Capitol. Things go awry. Weak ending. The dog was the highlight. Skip this one.

[Joel Tone · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you like "And then the little boy woke up and it was all a dream" type endings, this is the book for you! The conclusion did not follow from the story.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad, an enjoyable read, about a boy and his dog. Pitted against Alien invaders, and political intrigue.

[Henry Lazarus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brendan Dubois has an exciting tale of a war against the alien creepers who wiped out Earth’s major cities. The U. S. . Government still works and they draft at twelve. Seargant Randy Knox has survived several major battles against the Creepers. Theoretically the war is over since the a suicide mission against the Creeper orbital station, but many Creepers are still around. attacking civilians It’s a Dark Victory (trade from Baen). With computers blasted from space, steam technology still works. . Randy gets an assignment to escort a civilian bureaucrat to Concord, the latest capital. But two teenagers his age are added to his group and then Creepers attack his train killing the messenger. Except the attack may not be from real Creepers. There’s a lot of secrets hidden by politics, especially with an election coming up, and Randy’s burdon is worth killing over. This is a fun exciting tale, but the ending comes up too suddenly and seems too convenient. Review printed by Philadelphia Weekly Press

[Robert Enzenauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I totally devoured the Lewis Cole mysteries, and on that basis picked up DARK VICTORY, the Dark Victory series. Although Brendan DuBois' bio doesn't credit any miltiary experience, this science fiction writer does a great job describing young, and experienced National Guardsmen, mostly teens, who have matured fighting alien Creepers. These Guardsmen seemingly matured as they fought, not unlike the green and inexperienced army that landed at Normandy and "learned" to fight during the year-long drive across France and Belgium to Germany. DuBois tells a great story of the human "army" fighting with 19th century technology. The author writes great dialogue, and his story is filled with lots of action and exciting action between humans fighting an ALMOST invinceable alien. The aliens have blasted the technology, and the survivors are fighting just like the Afghan rebels fighting the Soviet invaders 30 years ago. Strong work Brendan DuBois. I have already purchased the sequel Book 2.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was greatly enjoying the book up until the ending. It took maybe 5 pages to end the global conflict, with a deus ex machina from out of left field. The ending fell utterly flat for me, and I was left dissatisfied.

Having read and enjoyed almost all of Mr. Dubois' other work, I have to class this as the exception to prove the rule.

[Igor Veloso · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid novel for teens and adults alike. (more on the Conclusion)

The world was attacked by aliens and they got the best of us. We were hit by an EMP so hard we got back to 19th century technology due to most objects relying on electronics being rendered obsolete.
But hey, guns still work and war is innate.
Problem is, most adults done the fighting and are at this point dead or too scarred to fight. When adults leave the room, its the kids getting their hands dirty. Randy is such a kid.

Sergeant Randy Knox is a sixteen year old boy with sixteen year old problems minus some of the sixteen year old 21th century comforts and entitlement attitude. He serves in the New Hampshire National Guard as a Recon Ranger, killing alien Creepers with the aid of his best bud Thor, a K9 dog unit.

Character and Story

Of course, despite being considered a veteran at this point, he still suffers from the same teen maladies like becoming smitten with every pretty girl talking to him, being stubborn and unleashing his rebellious nature, always getting him into trouble but his high social status doesn’t allow him too much consequences.

The book starts with a small action sequence presenting the setting and the threat, but quickly becomes slow as to establish a bit of the army life, priorities and personal dilemmas, like how to sneakily bang Abby, his sweetheart. DeBuois is a great storyteller and manages to not make it boring. World building is pretty much worth it at this point and also very compelling.

He’s finally given a special mission to escort the beautiful fifteen old Serena Coulson and her brother Buddy. The emphasis on beautiful in the synopsis can make you guess where this is going.
I felt like Randy was somewhat of a teenage Guard James Bond (I don’t like James Bond). He’s always in “alpha brain” mode, naturally suave in a non-nonsense kind of way, always competing for dominance against older guys than him, and of course, the girls notice not only his deeds but his mischiefs wink wink.

Unlike Bond however, I did enjoy Knox. Its a very interesting character with a scary situation around him. Kids are literally the last line of humanity’s defence, so they got to do some growing up much faster than before. That sad, don’t be surprised when you’re told they’re pretty much already doing everything adults do and are scared to admit they did on someone’s party or prom day. And I mean EVERYTHING – like going to war...

The story picks up eventually with tense action and juicy secrets leading to political intrigue.
There’s more combat, ambushes, heroic deeds, sarcastic lines and touching moments with Thor. I swear I do have a thing for plots with Man and Dog fighting the odds.

However, it all ends very abruptly and what should have felt like an amazing reveal, went too much into Deus Ex Machina. Honestly, I’m both glad and sad the last chapters were somewhat rushed.

Conclusion

The synopsis feels like a Young Adult novel, but the writing, story and themes go way into Adult territory. It’s brutal, graphic and cruel at times when talking of war (and suggestive when it comes to sex). If you’re a teen and want a tale that takes you seriously, without too much hush hush and realistic characters, but also some heroism, I recommend this one to you. If you’re an adult wanting a quick military read but feel weird about reading about kids doing adult things, then you’ll have some motive balance to do. Sex is implied but not graphic. There’s definitely a make out session or two. But mostly is about war, fighting aliens and being part of the resistance.

Before this one, I read a diplomatic novel about First Contact and found it very plausible. This one is totally science fiction, and everything went wrong, but manages to keep up a sense of reality and heroic deeds do feel heroic and not like they come from an overpowered character.

If you’re part of the (a) National Guard, you get one hell of a shout out.

Sad for the ending, feeling rushed and underwhelming. Felt like Deus Ex Machina came around to bite, but leaves the reader with hopes the tale continues.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

"...we have a dead Creeper and a live trooper. Nice equation."

Earth was invaded ten years ago by the alien Creepers. They sent asteroids careening into the oceans, causing deadly waves. They set off nuclear weapons in the atmosphere, taking out most things controlled by computers - electricity, water, power, communication, transportation - and setting Earth's citizens back to the 1800s in terms of progress. They have set off nuclear bombs, destroying cities and strategic targets. And they're still on the rampage.

16 year-old Randy Knox is a war decorated veteran. He enlisted at 12 years old and is now a Sergeant in the New Hampshire National Guard. He's suffered many personal losses from this terrible war and spends most of his time on patrol with his K9 partner, Belgian Malinois Thor.

He gets sent on a special mission to escort three people to the New U.S. Capitol and immediately things start going wrong.

I enjoyed this book by author DuBois. I actually bought it because I was given a chance to read the sequel - RED VENGEANCE - as an Advanced Reading Copy and wanted to be caught up on the story.

Randy Knox, the protagonist of the story, was developed nicely. I felt like I knew him well by the end of the story. Secondary characters were kind of hit and miss.

Also, the ending was a bit strange; the resolution kind of came out of left field. I feel like the book could have almost worked as a standalone novel, though. I don't know if the second book was always planned or whether it came about because of interest from readers of this book. I write that it COULD have been a standalone but, in this case, I'm glad it's not. I want to read more about this version of the future.

Oh, and it reminded me a lot of the movie STARSHIP TROOPERS. That's not a bad thing to me.

[Viccy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sergeant Randall Knox of the Second Recon Rangers, First Platoon, Avenger Company, First Battalion, New Hampshire Army National Guard is attached to the 26th Yankee Division. He commands his squad of teenagers and has won two Purple Hearts, the Bronze Star and the Combat Infantryman Badge. Randy is 16 and he is accompanied at all times by his K-9 partner, Thor, a Belgian Malinois. The Creepers came from deep space ten years ago, stationed an orbital battle operation in the skies over Earth and deployed electronic magnetic pulses that wiped out modern communications and transportation. Now, there is no Internet; no cars; no communication. Transportation is coal and steam powered, or just animal-drawn. The Creepers' killer satellites target any massing of electronics they perceive and deploy their killer exoskeletons quipped with lasers that can fry one in a minute. All soldiers bear burn marks somewhere. Randy is charged with accompanying a messenger to New Albany NY, the latest home of the President of what is left of the United States. Ezra Manson bears important documents for the president in a briefcase chained to his wrist. At the last minute, Randy's mission changes when he is told two kids will accompany them. But when Manson is killed in a staged attack and the Coulson siblings become the target of assassins, Randy knows his mission has changed. This is the first in the series, followed by Red Vengeance, which I accidentally read first; it was not a problem. Now, I have to know what will happen to the world.

[Andreas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ten years after the Creepers attacked Earth and decimated the population, the United States is reduced to a nineteenth century existence. Any significant use of power or radio results in an orbital strike. Creepers roam the landscape in almost impregnable exoskeletons, burning and killing. Randy Knox is a sixteen year old Sergeant in the New Hampshire National Guard. He has been in the service four years. A veteran soldier with several kills under his belt, but also a teenager who attends school and thinks about girls a lot. One day, Randy receives orders to escort a government emissary to the capital.

While flirting with the Young Adult genre, this feels like a more mature tale. Mr. Dubois has woven an intense story full of action, courage and desperate choices. Randy is a hero, but an imperfect one, prone to brusque outbursts and impatience. A young man hardened by years of bitter warfare. This makes him much more realistic than the more typical young adult protagonist. A great read.

http://www.books.rosboch.net/?p=2065

[Craig Wakefield · Rating 4 out of 5]

Randy Knox is only sixteen years old yet he has been in the military and at war for four years of those sixteen years. How you wonder. Why you think. It's all very simple. The earth has been invaded by Aliens know as Creepers who have devastated the world that we know, killed billions of people and those that remain are fighting to save their lives and remove the Creepers from their existence.

This brings us to Randy Knox. A Recon Specialist with a dog named Thor, Knox is the hero of this series. We see lots of action, lots of heroism but not a large change in losing the grip of the Creepers from those oppressed. I hope it gets better in book number two, but as you can probably guess, I doubt that it will.

[Nehemiah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book with wonderful world building. I loved reading this book right up until the end. The author quickly ties off the plot in the last chapter with a deus ex machina that comes out of nowhere, and it feels so out of place. I would have loved to see a 2nd book that closed this series off properly.

[Clyde · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty good alien invasion story. Sixteen-year-old Randy Knox is a sergeant with four years of combat experience against the alien "Creepers". He and his his K-9 partner Thor face very tough enemies, not all of which are aliens.
3.5 stars rounded up. I will continue with the series.

[Kevin K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic story about a boy and his dog amid an alien invasion. Enjoyable quick read.

[Christine · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was full of action until the end but the ending makes no sense.

[Karsten Stiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting setting - and a sobering look into the human psyche, especially when it comes to selfish representation of interests ...

[Nathan Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all, I wavered on the rating. I really did enjoy it, despite certain detractors--but more on that later. First, the things I liked.

This was what we might treat as "War of the Worlds" meets "Falling Skies." DuBois does a great job with his world-building, imagining the reality of an America trying to recover from a lingering alien invasion. It's realistically gritty. He does a great job with the "plot ninjas," those curve-balls we're supposed to throw at our characters. There's a surprise at the end that left me with some food for thought. And there's room for a sequel.

There are some things I thought detracted, however.
First, the main character's behavior isn't terribly consistent. One moment, he's the professional soldier, the next he's being a jerk, and the next he's sympathetic, all in the same twenty seconds. Maybe we can attribute this to the MC being sixteen, with all the adolescent imbalance that goes along with it. Or maybe the author kept trying to write him more grown-up and then felt he had to butt in with something that reinforced the character still being a teenager. But much of the time, it felt like the author was over-manipulating in order to shove the plot along, rather than letting the MC's actions, decisions, and general behavior be more organic. It felt discordant.
Second, the MC didn't seem to have a clear goal, other than not being toasted alive by aliens. Granted, we can probably attribute this to the vagaries of being in the military during war-time. And things did come up, which was one of the things that kept the story interesting. But they didn't quite serve as a distraction from whatever his goal was supposed to have been.
Third, he seemed prone to a certain amount of repetition--nearly always specifying "killer stealth sats" and "9mm Beretta," for example--and it felt a bit redundant.
Fourth, DuBois was overly fond of the passive voice. Admittedly, this is one of those things that might annoy a reader mainly if the reader is aware that it's supposed to be an issue. But there are some good reasons why we're "supposed to" avoid the passive voice whenever possible.

Still, it's worth a read, especially for what is apparently--I guess--his first novel. And DuBois is easily good enough of a storyteller that I'd read more.

[Mieczyslaw Kasprzyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Brendan DuBois. I think he has his pulse on American popular culture and transforms its love of conspiracy theories into really good books, hence we see echoes of political corruption, Rambo-like characters, and leftover US soldiers in Vietnam's prisons crop up as central themes in his books. He writes well and produces gripping stories. My favourite has to be "Resurrection Day" which is one of the best alternative histories available. Thus, when I discovered "Dark Victory" I was very pleased (there are too few books written by him); a Science Fiction book!
Well, I wasn't disappointed. Like all his other books there is a hint of taking another idea and pushing it the American way. This time there are shades of "War of the Worlds" here; aliens who have invaded Earth and caused mayhem. We join the story just after what appears to be a major victory yet leftover "incidents" continue to take place, like stalking down Japanese soldiers in the Pacific jungles long after the war is over. There are also intimations of political corruption and of something underhand going on; Americans will be American even when the World is on the brink of destruction.
I did read some of the dismay, on Goodreads, at what appears to be a surprising, even disappointing end and, yes, I understand where they are coming from... but lordy, lordy... how American.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great coming of age story in fighting world, child soldiers growing in fighting the aliens. Great read and a well paced. I want a 50mm Colt!

[Michael Rutherford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought that I had figured out where the story was going. But it took a right turn and ended a completely different way.

[Benjamin Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

Just a really good bloody book, a simple premise and a good plot. Would have liked to see a better resolution but still damn good

[Ianrh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read, characters that the reader cared about. Agree that ending was a little anti-climatic but sale the author for not seeing up a series. Will now look for his other books

[John Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Creepers came to Earth 10 years ago, destroyed most of humanity, and wage war against whats left. Randy Knox is a 16 year old soldier in the New Hampshire National Guard, fighting against them and doing very well. He gets sent on a secret escort mission to the Capital, not knowing who his friends or foes are. He just knows that he and his K9 companion, Thor, need to survive.

A great book, introducing some interesting characters that I want to know more about (and there's a second book coming later this year). Brendan DuBois is a new writer to me, but I will be looking for more of his stuff from now on.

I also liked the short story Brendan did for the Baen Homepage about the siege of Denver (which gets lifted in this book) as a nice tie-in.