Tech Battleground

C.A.D.S. #2

by John Sievert

John Sievert

285 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1986

About the author

A pseudonym of Ryder Syvertsen

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second book of a twelve-volume post-apocalyptic men's adventure series published from 1985 - '91. All of the books were published under the pseudonym John Sievert. The first one was written by Jan Stacy in collaboration with Ryder Syvertsen. Numbers two through eight were written by Syvertsen alone, and the final four were written by David Alexander. The title of this is Tech Battleground, though that only appears on the cover, not the title page or anyplace else inside. It's set in the near future (1997), the Russians have hit the Eastern half of the U.S. with nuclear bombs, and their invasion force is sweeping across the country. The last line of defense is Colonel Dean Sturgis and his cadre of C.A.D.S., which stands for Computerized Attack/Defense System, as were told quite frequently. The C.A.D.S. are suits of weaponized armor that turn the wearers into super soldiers, but their numbers are low. Society disintegrates rapidly, and the C.A.D.S. troopers have to fight mad bands of rampaging rapists nearly as often as they oppose the godless commies. The book is unapologetically patriotic, as one might expect from the days of Reagan's second term, and has several over-the-top but amusing bits of black humor interspersed with some rather gritty violent scenes, though it was somewhat tamer than many of Zebra's other such series. In this one, the President and his high command have set up shop in White Sands, New Mexico. There's a lot of debate about whether they should sit tight and set up a defense, or, as Sturgis (who still wants to locate his wife, Robin) wants, attack the Soviet headquarters in North Carolina. Guess who wins? Seventy-two robot warriors set off cross-country on motorcycles... Hell Tanner would love it. It's a good survivalist-type adventure of the time

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average apocalyptic adventure story. This one has the rebels using really cool computerized armor to fight with. Recommended

[Andrew Wodzianski · Rating 2 out of 5]

I made a commitment to read (at least) the first 7 C.A.D.S. books. It's a two person book club with my best friend. He gifted me volume one as a nostalgic gag in 2022. It was a guilty favorite of his in the 80s, and we can now both laugh/cry about it in 2026.

Tech Battleground is a rinse and repeat sequel. It's a bit leaner than #1, but somehow Sievert still gets plenty of page space for exposition.

I don't expect much moving forward, though there is a mild curiosity for volume 3. The setting is the Chesapeake Bay. I predict it will blow up!

[Paul Berner · Rating 5 out of 5]

CADS 2

Good read and fast paced. Full of adventure and intrigue to go along with the story. Keeps you on the edge of your seat.

[Jeff Petersen · Rating 2 out of 5]

SciFi military fluff

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

SciFi military fluff