2231: Mars Against Empire

Defense Command Omnibus #1

by Kenneth Tam

An omnibus including the first four books in the Defense Command series, 2231: Mars Against Empire covers the outset of the Martian War. Earth's former colonists on Mars have built their 'Imperium', and now choose to launch a war against the Earth Empire for dominance of the solar system. In the process, they run head-first into the women and men of Defense Command. But even as the first shots are fired, political instability is taking root in the Empire, with the Emperor and the Parliament struggling for dominance. The Egesta crisis is also beginning, and that debacle will draw Defense Command into the worst peacekeeping disaster in Imperial history. It is thus a very complicated year, and narrating these stories, then-Commodore Ken Barron pulls no punches. With is wry (often lame) sense of humor, he candidly recounts the adventure, the romance, and the pain, producing what many feel is the definitive account of the period.

534 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 2010

About the author

Originally from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Kenneth has lived all across Canada, and has driven as far east (Cape Spear, Newfoundland and Labrador), west (Beaver Creek, Yukon), and north (Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories) as you can within the country.

He is a founding Partner with the award-winning independent Canadian publisher Iceberg Publishing, the author of more than 60 novels and novellas, and currently serves as Communications Manager for the University of Alberta’s $75-million Future Energy Systems research program.