Erik Cain joined the Marines to get off death row. The deal wassimple; enlist to fight in space and he would be pardoned for all hiscrimes.

Marines: Crimson Worlds 1

Science Fiction & Fantasy

Allan, Jay

Science Fiction

System 7 Publishing

Book Two of Jay Allan's Bestselling Crimson Worlds Series (over 1,000,000 sold)...The Third Frontier War is raging, and all across human-occupied space worlds are burning. Massive fleets struggle for dominance and kilometer-long war shipsexchange thermonuclear barrages.Battered in the early years of the war, the Western Alliance is resurgent. The brilliant Admiral Augustus Garret leads the Alliance fleet from victory to victory, taking the war to the very heart of the enemy empires. And on the ground, Colonel Erik Cain, hero ofthe Marine Corps, leads his crack troops again into combat, seeking the final battle. But war is the province of more than soldiers in theline, and in the background, the secretive intelligence agencies of thedespotic Superpowers plot and scheme, using their own soldiers as pawns in the great game for control of space. The final battle will be fought in the reddish sands of a backwater world,where the rivalries of the Superpowers are about to become irrelevant, overshadowed by a staggering secret that has lain hidden in a remote cave for untold centuries.All the Powers struggle for the ultimate victory, but at what cost?The Cost of Victory is the second book in the Crimson Worlds series and the direct sequel to Marines.The Crimson Worlds Series (Reading Order)Book 1: MarinesBook 2: The Cost of VictoryBook 3: A Little RebellionBook 4: The First ImperiumBook 5: The Line Must HoldBook 6: To Hell's HeartBook 7: The Shadow LegionsBook 8: Even Legends DieBook 9: The Fall

The Cost of Victory: Crimson Worlds

Crimson Worlds Book III The Third Frontier War is over, and the Western Alliance is triumphant. All across human-occupied space, colony worlds celebrate the coming of peace. But peace is an elusive dream, and more trouble is brewing. The war was expensive, and the economies of the Superpowers, always fragile, are on the verge of total collapse. The Directorate, the shadowy intelligence organization that has become the true power behind the Alliance government, plans to strip the colonies bare to pay the costs of war. Already, they are tightening their control over the freewheeling colonial governments. And the Marine Corps faces total destruction at the hands of the worst traitor in its history. But the colonists are a different breed than the passive mob on Earth, and they have no intention of meekly surrendering their hard won freedoms. On worlds all across the frontier, plans are hatched and weapons hoarded. And in taverns and meeting halls the words of an ancient text are uttered in hushed tones. A little rebellion, now and then, is a good thing. The Crimson Worlds Series: Marines (Crimson Worlds I) The Cost of Victory (Crimson Worlds II) A Little Rebellion (Crimson Worlds III) Coming March 2013 The First Imperium (Crimson Worlds IV)

A Little Rebellion: Crimson Worlds III

Book 4 of the bestselling Crimson Worlds series... The Alliance and its colonies have called a truce and signed the Confederation Agreement, providing the frontier worlds with guarantees of self-government. No one expects the deal to last, and both sides are preparing for the next showdown. But from the depths of space another challenge is coming, one that will endanger the very survival of mankind and force not just the Alliance and its colonies, but all of the Superpowers, to join forces or face annihilation. The dusty ruins the Alliance discovered on Epsilon Eridani IV were built by an ancient race, eons dead. But their guardians remain, and the disturbance of the long silent cave triggered an automated alert, one which has been heard. Erik Cain and his Marines grimly take to the field once again, for what may be their final battle, against the robotic legions of the First Imperium. But facing a ruthless and technologically superior enemy may be easier than learning to fight alongside old enemies.

The First Imperium: Crimson Worlds IV

Crimson Worlds Book 5… The robotic legions of the First Imperium burst into human space, destroying everything in their path. Directed by the maniacal Regent, the enemy pressed forward with one goal – the destruction of mankind. The Superpowers of Earth, enemies for over a century, have banded together to face the threat from outside, and their combined forces have fought delaying actions to buy time. But now the Rim has fallen, and the heart of human space lies before the invaders. On three worlds, mankind will make its stand, and all the power Earth and its colonies can muster has been gathered there. Three worlds – Sandoval, Garrison, and Samvar. The Line. Erik Cain grimly leads his Marines and their new allies to Sandoval, to fight and to hold that world against anything the enemy throws at it. But Cain plans more than just a defense; he intends to annihilate the enemy forces…and he’ll sacrifice anything to win the ultimate victory. Even himself. The Crimson Worlds Series: Crimson Worlds I: Marines Crimson Worlds II: The Cost of Victory Crimson Worlds III: A Little Rebellion Crimson Worlds IV: The First Imperium Crimson Worlds V: The Line Must Hold Tombstone: A Crimson Worlds Prequel Coming September 2013: Crimson Worlds VI: To Hell's Heart

The Line Must Hold: Crimson Worlds V

The combined forces of humanity have beaten back the First Imperium invasion. For the first time, the enemy has been defeated in battle. The cost was high in blood and suffering, but the Line held. The heart of human-occupied space has been saved from annihilation. For now. There is little time for the victorious warriors to savor their triumph or mourn their dead. The First Imperium has been driven back, but it has not been defeated. No one expects the fruits of victory to be more than a brief respite. Augustus Garret, Erik Cain, and the rest of the human high command have a decision to make. Do they stand on the defensive, waiting for the massive second invasion they all know will come? Or do they consider another option, one that compels them to face overwhelming odds, and launch a strike that could end the war in one campaign? The attack ship Hornet returned home after a miraculous run through enemy space, and her crew brought with them priceless intelligence…the location of a world of the First Imperium. In the capitals of Earth, the ruling classes call for caution, for the armed forces to stand on the defensive. But on the frontier, Garret and his compatriots are planning something different, and they do not intend to be deterred. They are going to take the war to the enemy. They are going to march into hell’s heart.

To Hell's Heart: Crimson Worlds VI

Book one of the Portal Worlds series, by the author of the best-selling Crimson Worlds series... Jake Taylor was a New Hampshire farmboy who wanted nothing more than to marry his girlfriend, work on the farm, and maybe one day write a great novel. But mankind was fighting the alien Tegeri and their bio-mechanical cyborg soldiers, and UN Central needed men…men to go to war on hostile worlds far from home. Jake wasn’t given a choice, not a real one. He found himself torn from home and family, conscripted for life and shipped to the planet Erastus to take his place in the battle lines, never to return. Erastus was a sweltering inferno, called Gehenna by the condemned men sent to fight there. In the blasted deserts and steamy jungles of this alien hell, Taylor and his cybernetically-enhanced comrades fight their never-ending war. As Jake survives battle after battle, he rises steadily through the ranks, giving all to the desperate fight to save Earth. But endless combat in hell carries a cost, and Taylor feels his faith slipping away. He begins to question much of what he’s been told, things he’d believed all his life, and the more he learns, the greater his disillusionment grows. He can feel the madness building inside him, slowly taking control. But when he discovers the ultimate betrayal, a secret more horrific than anything he’d ever imagined, he must decide who is the real enemy…and how to contain the fury and lust for vengeance that threatens to consume him. How far will he go to destroy the true evil and right a horrendous wrong? And if he does what he must to prevail against overwhelming odds and win the final victory, will be become the very thing he has sworn to destroy?

Gehenna Dawn (Portal Wars)

The war with the First Imperium is over, and Grand Fleet is limping home from the frontier. Erik Cain, Augustus Garret, and the rest of the high command are grimly satisfied that humanity has been saved from the First Imperium menace. There is no joy, however…no elation at the “victory.” The losses this time were too heavy…too personal…to bear. They did what had to be done to drive back the enemy and save the human worlds from certain destruction. Now they were left to find a way to live with the gut wrenching decisions that victory had required. Augustus Garret needed time. Time for repairs, time to replace losses, time to learn how to go on in the aftermath of what he’d done. But the fleet wasn’t heading for a well-deserved rest…they were moving into another firestorm. A new menace, one as deadly as the First Imperium, was waiting for them, and it threatened to shatter the fragile alliance of the Earth powers and throw all of human space into another desperate war…one that might be the final confrontation. On world after world, mysterious forces are invading, taking control of the most vital colonies. The invaders are well-drilled powered infantry, veteran forces that quickly shattered the planetary militias and established brutal occupation regimes. Garret, Cain, and the leaders of the Alliance’s forces must rally themselves once again to face this new threat…an unknown enemy that is as well trained, experienced, and equipped as the Marines themselves. Indeed, on some colony worlds rumors are already spreading that the invaders are the Marines themselves, that they have come to conquer, to rule…

The Shadow Legions: Crimson Worlds VII

All three Crimson Worlds Prequel novellas, now in one discounted collection. Over 250,000 Crimson Worlds books sold. Tombstone In the 23rd Century, the Superpowers of Earth fight an unending war for control of occupied space and the vast resources of the colony worlds. Darius Jax is a senior officer and a hero of the Marine Corps, veteran of countless battles fought throughout occupied space. But once he was a raw private fighting his first battle on a planet so deadly, so hellish, its own occupants called it Tombstone. This is his story, before fame, before glory. The fighting on Tombstone is brutal and deadly, and Jax must find his inner strength if he is to survive. As he struggles through an unwinnable war he learns to rely on himself as he never has before, and he begins to understand just what he is - and is not - fighting for. Tombstone is a novella set in the years just before the Third Frontier War and the events described in Crimson Worlds Book I: Marines. Bitter Glory Augustus Garret is the hero of the Alliance, the greatest naval commander in the history of space combat. He leads massive fleets in great battles that decide the fate of millions. But once he was a new captain leading his tiny attack ship on it first mission. The young Garret was a natural genius, driven by uncontrollable ambition and a relentless quest for glory. But war in space is brutal, and the consequences of command decisions can haunt even the strongest commanders. The young Garret will win his glory, but will he be prepared to pay its horrendous cost? The Gates of Hell Elias Holm is the Commandant of the Marine Corps, a hero who has fought a hundred battles all across human-occupied space. He's led massive armies in the most desperate battles mankind has faced. But once he was only a junior captain, thrust into command when a crucial operation went horribly awry. The Second Frontier War had raged for a decade. Throughout human-occupied space, worlds were in ruins, the battlegrounds of the Superpowers' eternal struggle. The climactic battle of the war would be fought on the planet Persis, and Holm and his Marines would have to fight not only the Caliphate's elite Janissary soldiers, but also treachery and betrayal from his own government. The Crimson Worlds Series Crimson Worlds I: Marines Crimson Worlds II: The Cost of Victory Crimson Worlds III: A Little Rebellion Crimson Worlds IV: The First Imperium Crimson Worlds V: The Line Must Hold Crimson Worlds VI: To Hell's Heart Crimson Worlds VII: The Shadow Legions Crimson Worlds VIII: Even Legends Die (April 2014)

War Stories: Crimson Worlds Prequels

The final battle has begun… Gavin Stark, the former head of Alliance Intelligence, and the bitter nemesis of the Marine Corps, has made his bid for power. The manufactured clone soldiers of his Shadow Legions have seized control of dozens of colony worlds, imposing his brutal rule over millions of colonists. His plan is no less than to subjugate all mankind under his iron fist. On Earth, Stark’s manipulations have brought the Superpowers to the brink of war, threatening the Treaty of Paris and its prohibition against terrestrial warfare. For a century, man had restricted his wars to space, but now the Powers are sliding closer to the brink…the final battle that could kill billions, and turn Earth into a wasteland. On a few key colony worlds, Erik Cain, Elias Holm, and the remnants of the shattered Marine Corps struggle against Stark’s vast armies…the only hope of turning back the tide of destruction and despair that threatens to engulf all mankind. They are outnumbered and outgunned, but they will fight nevertheless, standing grimly in the breach, holding back Stark and his dark legions. The Marines will give their all, fight with the last of their strength and resolve. But this time the cost will be too high to bear, too personal. Even Marines need their heroes, their legends. But even legends die. The Crimson Worlds Series: Crimson Worlds I: Marines Crimson Worlds II: The Cost of Victory Crimson Worlds III: A Little Rebellion Crimson Worlds IV: The First Imperium Crimson Worlds V: The Line Must Hold Crimson Worlds VI: To Hell’s Heart Crimson Worlds VII: The Shadow Legions Crimson Worlds VIII: Even Legends Die Coming Autumn 2014: Crimson Worlds XI: The Fall

Even Legends Die: Crimson Worlds VIII

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