U-10 by Sam B. Miller II

U-10 is an exciting and suspenseful science fiction thriller by Sam B. Miller II.

While on a mission to remove Insurgents from dusty settlements on the hills of Afghanistan, Lt. Ty Lavender and the rest of the Orion Squad stand witness to the thundering crash of an unidentified flying object. After finding a strange satchel and a box of cards from the crash site and getting rid of a few Insurgents sneaking on them, Lavender and his men leave and get into position around the perimeter of the crash site. Shortly after, a group of people wearing full coverage combat gear arrives and takes over the crash site.

Meanwhile, the lone passenger of the UFO is watching from a distance, near where his escape pod has landed. Extremely confident that the inhabitants of this planet are too primitive and too intellectually inferior to understand advanced technology, the passenger feels apprehensive when he sees the U-10 draped over the shoulder of one of the humans. Little does he know that there are much more to the humans than he knows.

This is an exciting and suspenseful, fast-paced and easy to read science fiction thriller. The plot is unpredictable and offers a series of twists and turns making the book a real deal page-turner. Though the concept of an alien aircraft crashing down the desert seems quite trite and overused, the introduction of U-10, a survival tool with multiple uses involving single-use cards that produce advanced and sophisticated but disposable weapons, is enough to put sci-fi fans on the edge of their seats. Characters are provided with sufficient back stories to make them life-like which makes it easy to visualize them as real people. Moreover, the author creates the perfect protagonist in Lt. Ty Lavender, the smart, brave, compassionate, and loyal soldier and leader. More than the vividly described scenes, I love the depiction of human attributes including loyalty, concern, and compassion as well as zealotry, greed, and narcissism.

Congratulations to Sam B. Miller II (@SamBMillerII) for another great book! For more books by the author, click HERE!