What do you think?
Rate this book
Omega War #7
When the Axe Falls
The clouds of war continue to build…and not everyone is blind…
Bjorn Tovesson III, the owner of Bjorn’s Berserkers, is a man tied to the past, but who’s not afraid to innovate. Whether it is new tactics or new equipment, Bjorn is willing to try anything, once, in an effort to grow his company into the status of the fabled Four Horsemen.
Looking to the future with his eyes open, though, he has seen a series of unfortunate occurrences running through the ranks of Earth’s mercenaries. Companies in financial troubles, some taking huge losses on contracts…and others not returning from their contracts at all.
His father always taught him to prepare, and Bjorn is working to diversify his operations, including moving the company to a planet with a sizable portion of aliens who are already members of the Galactic Union. Nothing bad could happen to them there, right?
But as the storm clouds continue to gather, his past is on a collision course with the present, as another of Earth’s mercenary companies is out to get him…and with the support of the Mercenary Guild, they have the forces to overwhelm him! Will Bjorn’s preparations keep the Berserkers safe, or will they become yet another unfortunate occurrence?
Bjorn Tovesson III, the owner of Bjorn’s Berserkers, is a man tied to the past, but who’s not afraid to innovate. Whether it is new tactics or new equipment, Bjorn is willing to try anything, once, in an effort to grow his company into the status of the fabled Four Horsemen.
Looking to the future with his eyes open, though, he has seen a series of unfortunate occurrences running through the ranks of Earth’s mercenaries. Companies in financial troubles, some taking huge losses on contracts…and others not returning from their contracts at all.
His father always taught him to prepare, and Bjorn is working to diversify his operations, including moving the company to a planet with a sizable portion of aliens who are already members of the Galactic Union. Nothing bad could happen to them there, right?
But as the storm clouds continue to gather, his past is on a collision course with the present, as another of Earth’s mercenary companies is out to get him…and with the support of the Mercenary Guild, they have the forces to overwhelm him! Will Bjorn’s preparations keep the Berserkers safe, or will they become yet another unfortunate occurrence?
473 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 4, 2018
219 people are currently reading
39 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
December 31, 2018
The best part? Knowing that the Evil Doom planned wasn't going to work.
I obtained this book through the Kindle Unlimited program.
Context of the book, sort of:
I'm not certain, but I believe I have been following the Four Horsemen Universe for a year and a half. The series actually stated in December 2016, I believe, with "Cartwright's Cavaliers," but I missed the roll-out. Some pretty excited words were coming out of Liberty Con 2017 (I think) and that's when I got onboard, and I swiftly brought myself up-to-speed on the series. It was MARVELOUS! Not only were the original miscreants churning out the stories, there were quite a few new-ish writers joining in, as well as some with a lot of experience. The main story arc was maintained, and all of the little side-pockets were explored as well. I was current with the story, until Dragon Con reviews came due, and then the months recovering from that.
Tiny recap:
The aliens came to Earth, told us we had nothing they wanted except raw materials, and waved incredible technology in our face. "You can have this translate device for 15 mountains of gold." That sort of thing. Then, they discovered that we could fight, which DID have substantial market value.
What's happening now:
So, on Earth, all the traditional commerce structures are destroyed. Governments survived by taxing the commissions paid to mercenaries and paying everybody else a subsidy. Therefore, everybody hates them on Earth, because nobody REALLY wants to live on leftovers.
Off Earth, the humans have another problem: they are too good at what they do, AND they haven't been in the Union long enough for the powers behind the curtain to have good blackmail material on them. So, they need to be brought to heel.
Lots of things go into that. The most evil, wicked, dastardly, nightmarish part of the plan takes place out of the scope of THIS book (accomplished in part by the incompetent bumblings of a well-intentioned lieutenant, IIRC), and THAT'S what I referenced in the headline of this review. I did NOT know if the troopers of Bjorn's Berserkers would end the book as red mist and pink mush; BUT, I did know from clues in the book that they weren't going to fall into the common trap set for everyone else. It was a relief!
As it happens, Bjorn has an additional issue to deal with, besides the resentment of Earth and repression by the Union. He was set up by a narco-trafficker to run afoul of a competitor. The incident ended as intended, as it MUST end, due to the pride and insanity of the other cartel leader: Bjorn defeats him in a fight, gives him a chance to yield, then has to kill him when he persists. And that sets up one of those insane blood feuds that seem only to serve the interests of the mortician.
In addition to the people dynamics, which are what make any story great, this also has some ancient technology popping in, and some novel battle applications of existing hardware , both of which combine to make this great story a science fiction great story. Because this is a part of a series, we have the delight of seeing further character development from earlier books. I particularly love long-suffering Chaplain Jim, who cannot dissuade the troops from calling him "Padre." There are four love stories, if I counted right, and all of the action is appropriate for all audiences (I think). Not everything works out right, BTW.
Verdict:
This volume is every bit as solid as those that came before, which sounds rather pathetic as I look at that sentence. The problem I have is with expressing my superlatives, here. Military science fiction is my literary drug of choice; to that, add the fact that it was Starship Troopers, with those INCREDIBLE fighting suits, that was probably my introduction to the genre, and you can see that reading these books is more fun than eating pie for me. Let me put it a different way: If I was collecting books in PRINT form, this one would go on TOP of my bookcase, where I keep only my Heinlein, Pournelle and Niven, David Drake & Eric Flint.
Buy this one today.
I obtained this book through the Kindle Unlimited program.
Context of the book, sort of:
I'm not certain, but I believe I have been following the Four Horsemen Universe for a year and a half. The series actually stated in December 2016, I believe, with "Cartwright's Cavaliers," but I missed the roll-out. Some pretty excited words were coming out of Liberty Con 2017 (I think) and that's when I got onboard, and I swiftly brought myself up-to-speed on the series. It was MARVELOUS! Not only were the original miscreants churning out the stories, there were quite a few new-ish writers joining in, as well as some with a lot of experience. The main story arc was maintained, and all of the little side-pockets were explored as well. I was current with the story, until Dragon Con reviews came due, and then the months recovering from that.
Tiny recap:
The aliens came to Earth, told us we had nothing they wanted except raw materials, and waved incredible technology in our face. "You can have this translate device for 15 mountains of gold." That sort of thing. Then, they discovered that we could fight, which DID have substantial market value.
What's happening now:
So, on Earth, all the traditional commerce structures are destroyed. Governments survived by taxing the commissions paid to mercenaries and paying everybody else a subsidy. Therefore, everybody hates them on Earth, because nobody REALLY wants to live on leftovers.
Off Earth, the humans have another problem: they are too good at what they do, AND they haven't been in the Union long enough for the powers behind the curtain to have good blackmail material on them. So, they need to be brought to heel.
Lots of things go into that. The most evil, wicked, dastardly, nightmarish part of the plan takes place out of the scope of THIS book (accomplished in part by the incompetent bumblings of a well-intentioned lieutenant, IIRC), and THAT'S what I referenced in the headline of this review. I did NOT know if the troopers of Bjorn's Berserkers would end the book as red mist and pink mush; BUT, I did know from clues in the book that they weren't going to fall into the common trap set for everyone else. It was a relief!
As it happens, Bjorn has an additional issue to deal with, besides the resentment of Earth and repression by the Union. He was set up by a narco-trafficker to run afoul of a competitor. The incident ended as intended, as it MUST end, due to the pride and insanity of the other cartel leader: Bjorn defeats him in a fight, gives him a chance to yield, then has to kill him when he persists. And that sets up one of those insane blood feuds that seem only to serve the interests of the mortician.
In addition to the people dynamics, which are what make any story great, this also has some ancient technology popping in, and some novel battle applications of existing hardware , both of which combine to make this great story a science fiction great story. Because this is a part of a series, we have the delight of seeing further character development from earlier books. I particularly love long-suffering Chaplain Jim, who cannot dissuade the troops from calling him "Padre." There are four love stories, if I counted right, and all of the action is appropriate for all audiences (I think). Not everything works out right, BTW.
Verdict:
This volume is every bit as solid as those that came before, which sounds rather pathetic as I look at that sentence. The problem I have is with expressing my superlatives, here. Military science fiction is my literary drug of choice; to that, add the fact that it was Starship Troopers, with those INCREDIBLE fighting suits, that was probably my introduction to the genre, and you can see that reading these books is more fun than eating pie for me. Let me put it a different way: If I was collecting books in PRINT form, this one would go on TOP of my bookcase, where I keep only my Heinlein, Pournelle and Niven, David Drake & Eric Flint.
Buy this one today.
January 19, 2019
Well done, can’t wait for the next...
Jon’s book as part of the ongoing 4H’s Omega War series is great. Well all the 4H books are great. This one feeds the 4H reader addiction very well. If it wasn’t for sleep and work, i would have completed it in like 24 hrs...
I loved the focused plots and stories, the background ones and the ones that tie to the larger Omega War events. The mole got me... and I see the person can show up in later books..
This whole 4H univ can fuel 100s of books to come.
I can’t wait until the main four horsemen are again the main story line in the Omega War books after all the side stories and future supporters of the main 4 start moving the fight to take back earth.
Jon’s book as part of the ongoing 4H’s Omega War series is great. Well all the 4H books are great. This one feeds the 4H reader addiction very well. If it wasn’t for sleep and work, i would have completed it in like 24 hrs...
I loved the focused plots and stories, the background ones and the ones that tie to the larger Omega War events. The mole got me... and I see the person can show up in later books..
This whole 4H univ can fuel 100s of books to come.
I can’t wait until the main four horsemen are again the main story line in the Omega War books after all the side stories and future supporters of the main 4 start moving the fight to take back earth.
December 8, 2018
Excellent read
With good editing, an amazing galaxy to play in, and well established cannon, I continually find the books in this series to be an absolute pleasure to read. This book provided for several layers of plot that can appeal to a broad range of readers. You have classic SciFi action, a little bit of a who-done it, and even some romance. The bad guys are as well fleshed out as main characters. The plot keeps you going until at the very end you find yourself wishing the ride wasn't over.
With good editing, an amazing galaxy to play in, and well established cannon, I continually find the books in this series to be an absolute pleasure to read. This book provided for several layers of plot that can appeal to a broad range of readers. You have classic SciFi action, a little bit of a who-done it, and even some romance. The bad guys are as well fleshed out as main characters. The plot keeps you going until at the very end you find yourself wishing the ride wasn't over.
December 11, 2018
From Nifty Concept to Fantastic Universe!
Nearly twenty months ago today
Mr Wandrey blew my mind away
That was my “Big Bang” moment in my perception of the 4HU. It has expanded ever since with no sign of reversal or collapse. Jon Osborne solidly contributes to this expanse, filling in unexplored regions and fleshing out large portions of the nebulous constellation that had been Bjorn’s Berserkers. As the puzzle pieces fall into place, I can’t help but crave more. 5 stars to add to the growing amazon cluster!
Nearly twenty months ago today
Mr Wandrey blew my mind away
That was my “Big Bang” moment in my perception of the 4HU. It has expanded ever since with no sign of reversal or collapse. Jon Osborne solidly contributes to this expanse, filling in unexplored regions and fleshing out large portions of the nebulous constellation that had been Bjorn’s Berserkers. As the puzzle pieces fall into place, I can’t help but crave more. 5 stars to add to the growing amazon cluster!
April 9, 2021
Yet another stellar entry in the series. Bjorn Torvesson was introduced in an earlier anthology, and he now gets an entire novel. It's an interesting story, with some great characters, and it deals with Peepo's invasion of Earth, as well as some of the other actions taking place at the same time elsewhere.
February 17, 2024
It can be difficult keeping up with separate battles, but the work is worth it. Not everything goes right for Humans, but show their alien enemies (and Human traitors) that the mercenaries aren't ones to be tangled with.
December 13, 2018
Great Addition to Series
The book stands alone, but ads nicely to the omega war cycle. Huge amount of action, realistic bad guys that make sense, and an amazing universe to play in.
The book stands alone, but ads nicely to the omega war cycle. Huge amount of action, realistic bad guys that make sense, and an amazing universe to play in.
January 7, 2019
I just love this whole series. can't wait until the numerous threads come together to save Earth, assuming it gets saved!
June 13, 2019
My 'new' favorite in the 4HU.
October 23, 2019
One of my favorite mercenary outfits in this series. Excellent story.
November 11, 2019
I like the Berserker's attitude towards this whole alien war thing.
December 11, 2019
Kept me up reading till 4 AM
A great addition to Omega Wars. An author worth following. Now it is time to get the next book in the series
A great addition to Omega Wars. An author worth following. Now it is time to get the next book in the series
September 10, 2020
This is a pretty solid tale.
Action, vengeance, betrayal, romance.
Worth the read.
Action, vengeance, betrayal, romance.
Worth the read.
March 16, 2022
good read
Great series with an awesome cast of characters and hero’s. It is definitely worth the time to read all of them and the four horseman prequel’s.
Great series with an awesome cast of characters and hero’s. It is definitely worth the time to read all of them and the four horseman prequel’s.
August 3, 2020
Great addition to the series
A great addition to the series and sets the stage for interesting developments. Plus some seeds for some new revelations.
A great addition to the series and sets the stage for interesting developments. Plus some seeds for some new revelations.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews