What do you think?
Rate this book
Five by Five #1
Five by Five
Five short novels by five masters of military science fiction.
It’s a war out there.
In these pulse-pounding tales, the best (or worst) soldiers in the galaxy are pitted against powerful aliens on distant battlefields. Never before published stories about monsters, deadly combat tech, treachery, and honor:
Big Plush by Aaron Allston—The Dollgangers, artificial people made in mankind's image, take up arms in a desperate bid to win their freedom.
Comrades in Arms by Kevin J. Anderson—A damaged cyborg soldier and an enemy alien fighter turn their backs on the war and try to escape. But the human and alien governments can't tolerate the two deserters working together, so they join forces to hunt them down.
Shores of the Infinite by Loren L. Coleman—Separated from command & control, Combat Assault Suit troopers force a beachhead to liberate a new planet from the cyborg threat.
The Black Ship by B.V. Larson—A human settlement on the deadliest planet ever colonized clings to life … but today new invaders are coming down from the stars.
Out There by Michael A. Stackpole—The Qian have discovered humanity and welcomed them into their star-spanning empire. The benefits they offer humanity are many, and they don't want much in return: just the best human pilots available to take apart a most diabolical enemy.
It’s a war out there.
In these pulse-pounding tales, the best (or worst) soldiers in the galaxy are pitted against powerful aliens on distant battlefields. Never before published stories about monsters, deadly combat tech, treachery, and honor:
Big Plush by Aaron Allston—The Dollgangers, artificial people made in mankind's image, take up arms in a desperate bid to win their freedom.
Comrades in Arms by Kevin J. Anderson—A damaged cyborg soldier and an enemy alien fighter turn their backs on the war and try to escape. But the human and alien governments can't tolerate the two deserters working together, so they join forces to hunt them down.
Shores of the Infinite by Loren L. Coleman—Separated from command & control, Combat Assault Suit troopers force a beachhead to liberate a new planet from the cyborg threat.
The Black Ship by B.V. Larson—A human settlement on the deadliest planet ever colonized clings to life … but today new invaders are coming down from the stars.
Out There by Michael A. Stackpole—The Qian have discovered humanity and welcomed them into their star-spanning empire. The benefits they offer humanity are many, and they don't want much in return: just the best human pilots available to take apart a most diabolical enemy.
Audible Audio
First published October 11, 2012
19 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
About the author
Kevin J. Anderson
1,038 books3,106 followersYes, I have a lot of books, and if this is your first visit to my amazon author page, it can be a little overwhelming. If you are new to my work, let me recommend a few titles as good places to start. I love my Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. series, humorous horror/mysteries, which begin with DEATH WARMED OVER. My steampunk fantasy adventures, CLOCKWORK ANGELS and CLOCKWORK LIVES, written with Neil Peart, legendary drummer from Rush, are two of my very favorite novels ever. And my magnum opus, the science fiction epic The Saga of Seven Suns, begins with HIDDEN EMPIRE. After you've tried those, I hope you'll check out some of my other series.
I have written spin-off novels for Star Wars, StarCraft, Titan A.E., and The X-Files, and I'm the co-author of the Dune prequels. My original works include the Saga of Seven Suns series and the Nebula Award-nominated Assemblers of Infinity. I have also written several comic books including the Dark Horse Star Wars collection Tales of the Jedi written in collaboration with Tom Veitch, Predator titles (also for Dark Horse), and X-Files titles for Topps.
I serve as a judge in the Writers of the Future contest.
My wife is author Rebecca Moesta. We currently reside near Monument, Colorado.
I have written spin-off novels for Star Wars, StarCraft, Titan A.E., and The X-Files, and I'm the co-author of the Dune prequels. My original works include the Saga of Seven Suns series and the Nebula Award-nominated Assemblers of Infinity. I have also written several comic books including the Dark Horse Star Wars collection Tales of the Jedi written in collaboration with Tom Veitch, Predator titles (also for Dark Horse), and X-Files titles for Topps.
I serve as a judge in the Writers of the Future contest.
My wife is author Rebecca Moesta. We currently reside near Monument, Colorado.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 24, 2012
These five novellas read like the "hook" for a book-length treatment.
Allston's "Big Plush" was a fun excursion into Barbie doll-sized robots as sentient creatures, even if they have to kill for it. Well developed.
Anderson's "Comrades in Arms" is a retread of Enemy Mine. Only okay.
Coleman's "Shores of the Infinite" was the hook phase of what might intriguing story.
Larson's "The Black Ship" shorted the military SF part of the equation in favor of first contact and world building. The most complete and satisfying story of the five.
Stackpole's "Out There" was the hook of a potentially fun space opera, but was marred by about one typo per page. Hard to read.
As advertising, I hope this approach works because I got enough of the stories to know which I might actually buy.
Allston's "Big Plush" was a fun excursion into Barbie doll-sized robots as sentient creatures, even if they have to kill for it. Well developed.
Anderson's "Comrades in Arms" is a retread of Enemy Mine. Only okay.
Coleman's "Shores of the Infinite" was the hook phase of what might intriguing story.
Larson's "The Black Ship" shorted the military SF part of the equation in favor of first contact and world building. The most complete and satisfying story of the five.
Stackpole's "Out There" was the hook of a potentially fun space opera, but was marred by about one typo per page. Hard to read.
As advertising, I hope this approach works because I got enough of the stories to know which I might actually buy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 1, 2025
A maybe for those looking for books of the level of Saturday morning cartoons. Even the offerings of thebtwo pro authors of the five didn't draw to the finish.
DNF ALL FIVE
DNF ALL FIVE
November 1, 2013
Hodně dobrá antologie military SF povídek od autorů současné americké SF. Vyloženě potěší promyšlená povídka o vzpouře "akčních figurek" od mého oblíbence Aarona Allstona, pod kůži se vryje také závěrečný příběh z prostředí stíhacích pilotů od Michaela A. Stackpola (nelze si nevšimnout podobností s jeho románovými X-wingy, včetně toho, že hlavní hrdina má volací znak Devět), který si vyloženě říká o pokračování, nejlépe v podobě celé románové série. Ostatní tři povídky se víceméně drží zažitých příběhových schématů, i ony jsou však díky zajímavému zpracování solidními zástupci svého žánru. Nelze než doporučit.
September 10, 2013
After a long time away from the military sci-fi genre, I found this a welcoming return. The stories are a unique collection, and even the ones I wasn't sure about at first I found myself warming up to. I am looking forward to picking up the next volume.
January 30, 2014
For the most part, excellent stories. I'd have given the book 5 stars except one story bored me half to death, but the rest of the stories well deserve the highest rating. Excellent stuff, I definitely look forward to reading the second volume in this collection.
January 2, 2015
The only problem with this is that I want more of all these stories. And I have new authors I never really considered to check out, which means more money. But it also means more awesome reads, so I'm not complaining too much.
November 25, 2015
5 Stories by five writers.
Picked this up as I have other books by some of these authors, worthwhile read.
Excellent stories for 4 of these, remaining story I tried to read but eventually skipped on, didnt work for me.
Picked this up as I have other books by some of these authors, worthwhile read.
Excellent stories for 4 of these, remaining story I tried to read but eventually skipped on, didnt work for me.
February 12, 2015
5 öyküden 3'ü iyi.
March 2, 2015
It was ok. As usual with anthologies some stories are hits and some not. The first two I got very bored, but after that it picked up.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews