Unbreakable by W.C. Bauers

Published by Tor Books on January 13, 2015

After she lost her parents, Promise Paen left the planet Montana to join the Republican Marines. The Marines send her back to Montana to act as a liaison between the planet's government and an Admiral who is trying to gain the planet's trust. The Republic is at odds with the Lusitanian Empire which has designs on Montana. Against all odds, Paen and the Marines she commands, along with a ragtag local militia, eventually defend Montana from the Empire's incursion.

As is common (and unoriginal) in military science fiction, flashbacks tell us about Promise's enlistment and training. Those obligatory scenes are not as lengthy or familiar as in some novels, but their inclusion makes Unbreakable read like formula fiction. Which, in fact, it is.

Like many military novels (not just sf), Unbreakable includes a scene in which a grizzled officer quotes from All Quiet on the Western Front and admonishes younger soldiers that they should never glorify war. The remaining scenes, of course, glorify war while pretending to do the opposite. Stories of that nature can be fun but they are rarely deep. Unbreakable isn't All Quiet on the Western Front. It is a moderately enjoyable novel that can be quickly read and forgotten. Phrases like "the weapon belched fire" and "give the [enemy] a one-way ticket to hell" and "grenades rained death" are best forgotten quickly.

Like the story, characters are superficial. The ghost of Promise's mother shows up regularly to offer unsolicited advice. That's a clumsy literary device that I could have done without. Promise's relationship insecurity ("I'm not good with men and I don't feel pretty") is more suited to a trashy romance novel than military sf. So are the scenes in which "Promise's insides turned to goo" because her dance partner touches her back. My brain turns to goo when I read sentences like that.

The last long stretch of the novel is a battle to save Montana from the Empire. It is filled with the usual chest-thumping Marine bromides about duty and loyalty and bravery and semper fidelis. Promise gets to make stirring speeches that make her ghost mother proud. Nothing in this section is fresh. Readers who enjoy reading this sort of thing over and over will be happy to experience standard battle scenes fought by standard soldiers with standard high tech weaponry. Readers looking for original thought will come away disappointed. Unbreakable is no worse than average military sf but it is certainly no better than average.

NOT RECOMMENDED