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Breach of Contract
In a future where corporations have divided the world into economic blocs, Bobby B and his friends choose enlistment over the death penalty - but that doesn’t always feel like a good choice.
The corporations only give their recruits plastic flechettes to settle breach of contract disputes so no property is damaged, and casualty rates of up to 90% are acceptable.
The friends combine their disparate skills to keep alive, and Beebi's Basteds are born. But success breeds notoriety, and the survivors are given tougher jobs until they are sent the most important mission in the history of mankind - though the Corporations still try to skimp of course.
The corporations only give their recruits plastic flechettes to settle breach of contract disputes so no property is damaged, and casualty rates of up to 90% are acceptable.
The friends combine their disparate skills to keep alive, and Beebi's Basteds are born. But success breeds notoriety, and the survivors are given tougher jobs until they are sent the most important mission in the history of mankind - though the Corporations still try to skimp of course.
- GenresScience Fiction
395 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 7, 2016
62 people are currently reading
81 people want to read
About the author
Vance Huxley
103 books186 followersVance Huxley lives out in the countryside in Lincolnshire, England. He has spent a busy life working in many different fields. Eventually Vance tried writing though without any real structure.
Then he actually sent one off to be read. As an editor and beta readers explained the difference between words and books, he tried again.
Now he tries to type as often as possible in spite of the assistance of his cats, since he is no longer mobile. An avid reader of sci-fi, fantasy and adventure novels, so his writing tends towards those genres.
Then he actually sent one off to be read. As an editor and beta readers explained the difference between words and books, he tried again.
Now he tries to type as often as possible in spite of the assistance of his cats, since he is no longer mobile. An avid reader of sci-fi, fantasy and adventure novels, so his writing tends towards those genres.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
February 27, 2021
Plenty of action with twists and turns to keep you hooked. Loved it.
October 30, 2022
This is a great adventure/action novel, a reworking of an old storyline set in a dystopian future. It is the story of a group of renegades brought together in a military unit who use their disparate talents and irreverent attitude to succeed where no other unit can, much to the dismay and horror of their superiors. Think of the great Lee Marvin movie, “The Dirty Dozen.”
However, in this dystopian future, the world is run by multinationals, and the battles are skirmishes used as out-of-court settlements of business conflicts: hostile corporate takeovers and the like.
So, due to the old bottom line, soldiers are less valuable than the buildings they fight in. Since their officers are required to account for every bullet spent and every window broken, they are hated by the men. Interaction with women is restricted to government-run brothels, and so women are regarded as objects. These two factors are pushed to the limits of credibility, and form the main sources of conflict in the story.
The strength of the novel is in the carefully-planned and meticulously laid out battle scenes. Likewise, the types of weapons and their relative usefulness are clearly drawn, satisfying the military geek present in most fans of this genre.
The characters are developed enough to be sympathetic, and the hero manages to attract our empathy despite spending most of his time killing people.
Most of the conflict in the first part of the book is house-to-house military action. Sometimes with a little too much detail — as in spending a page counting up their ammunition for the next round of the battle, when we’d rather they just started fighting. However, about a third of the way through, just when we’re starting to get a bit too much of the battle routine, the love interest is introduced, and the hero and his men start to show more rounded character traits.
And then the last part of the story sidesteps into real Sci-Fi territory, and our troopers —again stretching the limits of believability — head for space. But now the plot gets more interesting, with different troops from different world powers exploring an alien artifact in conflict with each other. This all comes to a partial conclusion, leaving a whole new set of problems for our heroes to face and a new set of alien technology to explore. In the next book.
Entertaining action/adventure, highly recommended for Sci-Fi fans willing to suspend their disbelief in favour of a good story.
However, in this dystopian future, the world is run by multinationals, and the battles are skirmishes used as out-of-court settlements of business conflicts: hostile corporate takeovers and the like.
So, due to the old bottom line, soldiers are less valuable than the buildings they fight in. Since their officers are required to account for every bullet spent and every window broken, they are hated by the men. Interaction with women is restricted to government-run brothels, and so women are regarded as objects. These two factors are pushed to the limits of credibility, and form the main sources of conflict in the story.
The strength of the novel is in the carefully-planned and meticulously laid out battle scenes. Likewise, the types of weapons and their relative usefulness are clearly drawn, satisfying the military geek present in most fans of this genre.
The characters are developed enough to be sympathetic, and the hero manages to attract our empathy despite spending most of his time killing people.
Most of the conflict in the first part of the book is house-to-house military action. Sometimes with a little too much detail — as in spending a page counting up their ammunition for the next round of the battle, when we’d rather they just started fighting. However, about a third of the way through, just when we’re starting to get a bit too much of the battle routine, the love interest is introduced, and the hero and his men start to show more rounded character traits.
And then the last part of the story sidesteps into real Sci-Fi territory, and our troopers —again stretching the limits of believability — head for space. But now the plot gets more interesting, with different troops from different world powers exploring an alien artifact in conflict with each other. This all comes to a partial conclusion, leaving a whole new set of problems for our heroes to face and a new set of alien technology to explore. In the next book.
Entertaining action/adventure, highly recommended for Sci-Fi fans willing to suspend their disbelief in favour of a good story.
August 12, 2022
I have to confess that I read Book 2 first. It was so good that I didn't realize it was Book 2 until I got to the end where it told me to look for book 3. So obviously, I had to read book 1 and it was like reading a prequel to a book that was written out of order. I loved getting to see where the characters I already enjoyed from book 2 got to where they were and how significant parts of their experiences shaped them, and why.
The dystopian backdrop is very convincing in that you could see how it got to be that way. You may not think it will happen but at least the development and reactions seem fitting. Many books and film simply just say "this is how it is" but Breach of Contract explains what let to this world and what motivates many of the decisions in it. This also drives the action as you can see how things would unfold the way they do. And like Book 2, this book is non-stop action. And not just for action's sake, but as a real part of the plot mechanism that advances the story.
And one final thought, I think most of us can relate to incompetent bosses who hobble our ability to do our jobs all while focusing on the bottom line, rather than our "bottoms".
The dystopian backdrop is very convincing in that you could see how it got to be that way. You may not think it will happen but at least the development and reactions seem fitting. Many books and film simply just say "this is how it is" but Breach of Contract explains what let to this world and what motivates many of the decisions in it. This also drives the action as you can see how things would unfold the way they do. And like Book 2, this book is non-stop action. And not just for action's sake, but as a real part of the plot mechanism that advances the story.
And one final thought, I think most of us can relate to incompetent bosses who hobble our ability to do our jobs all while focusing on the bottom line, rather than our "bottoms".
March 7, 2022
What an amazing book! You follow the career of Booby B and his squad of misfits and their military careers. The future is very different: the world's governments have fallen and the mega-corporations took over to keep things running. Things aren't great for the average citizen - life is hard and you are worked into an early grave by the corporations. If you commit a crime you are given a choice, hard labor or the Timers - the early ranks of the military. Most don't survive, but they haven't met Bobby B. There are no lieutenants, captains, or generals its all boardroom titles and the gravest mistake you can commit is a Breach of Contract!
September 23, 2017
Much of this reads like a narrative version of a video war game. Lots of action. Not much in the way of character, let alone character development. Entertaining enough in the mindless way of a Fast and Furious movie. You have to get about three-fourths of the way through the book before the title begins to make sense.
October 29, 2019
Great story
This was a action filled packed full of twists with great characters of a book. Can't wait to read the next book of the series.
This was a action filled packed full of twists with great characters of a book. Can't wait to read the next book of the series.
June 22, 2022
I give it credit for creativity, but overall a poorly written piece of work.
August 5, 2016
In the not-to-distant future, the world is controlled by corporations. Space exploration and human colonization is in full swing but the social issues that currently plague humanity have not abated. Bobby B is forced to chose between death or a low-grade military post as a Timer (arrow fodder) after being convicted of involvement in an industrial dispute. He must navigate the brutality of the system to earn a more secure situation within the armed forces.
What I liked about this book: It’s okay. It’s not a bad read if you’re a fan of military sci-fi and military fiction. This is the first in a series of books.
What I didn’t like (and why I only gave 3 stars): I thought that the book moved too slowly and was way too long for something that is only the first part of a series. It’s a bit of a ‘boys own” story. The whole army-style-rough-and-tumble didn't really appeal to me, and I didn’t relate (or particularly like) any of the character. I found it a bit of a labour to get through it, and the cliff-hanger at the end was more frustrating than inciting.
I received this book from Entrada Publishing in exchange for a fair and honest review.
What I liked about this book: It’s okay. It’s not a bad read if you’re a fan of military sci-fi and military fiction. This is the first in a series of books.
What I didn’t like (and why I only gave 3 stars): I thought that the book moved too slowly and was way too long for something that is only the first part of a series. It’s a bit of a ‘boys own” story. The whole army-style-rough-and-tumble didn't really appeal to me, and I didn’t relate (or particularly like) any of the character. I found it a bit of a labour to get through it, and the cliff-hanger at the end was more frustrating than inciting.
I received this book from Entrada Publishing in exchange for a fair and honest review.
July 19, 2016
Decent Start, Then Died
First 30 - 40 % of story was interesting, as author setup his world, introduced characters. Citizens caught doing a serious crime, against corporate law, have a choice: Army, be a miner with a short life span or option 3, very short life with execution immediately after sentencing.
Ok, I can roll with that and I enjoyed first third, maybe half. MC came off well, could relate. But author then introduces aliens, space ships and uses the most unique first contact I've ever read, imagined. Earth sends teams of corporate troops, whose corporations are in competition with one another, for 1st contact, exploration. And the 'troops' are the people who were given the 3 choices from above.
Just a tad too incredible and poorly executed to boot. Think slums and gangs of London moving to space and continue to do business exactly as before.
First 30 - 40 % of story was interesting, as author setup his world, introduced characters. Citizens caught doing a serious crime, against corporate law, have a choice: Army, be a miner with a short life span or option 3, very short life with execution immediately after sentencing.
Ok, I can roll with that and I enjoyed first third, maybe half. MC came off well, could relate. But author then introduces aliens, space ships and uses the most unique first contact I've ever read, imagined. Earth sends teams of corporate troops, whose corporations are in competition with one another, for 1st contact, exploration. And the 'troops' are the people who were given the 3 choices from above.
Just a tad too incredible and poorly executed to boot. Think slums and gangs of London moving to space and continue to do business exactly as before.
January 11, 2017
Exceptionally Done
This so far is a great series starter. The storyline is excellent and your outline must have been 100 pages at least! Thank you for allowing me to read this book, Danny Scott.
This so far is a great series starter. The storyline is excellent and your outline must have been 100 pages at least! Thank you for allowing me to read this book, Danny Scott.
July 24, 2016
Top notch book, but right now I'm a bit too lazy to write a review. However, I will say this, when I read the first few paragraphs, I knew it was going to be a great book.
November 2, 2016
I liked it, although the amputation part was a bit too rough.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews