The Ember War (Richard Fox): A Probe, a Student and a Galactic Invasion

Yet another military SciFi with a decimated Earth at stake. You’d think I’d get tired of them, wouldn’t you, but I shall persevere! Don’t worry, I won’t give up in this struggle and will eventually learn all of the different ways we’re fated to die, be it at the hands of lethal aliens, lethal viruses, lethal cataclysms of nature or a mix of all three. I do it all for you. 🙂

The Ember War was actually really good. It took an interesting twist right from the start, and in this case the threat of global extinction was not exaggerated, as I think I can tell you without ruining the story in any way that billions of humans die in this book. It’s written really well, and aside from one section that seemed to be missing a page (it didn’t ruin the story), there were no major editing errors that I could see.

There’s a lot of this genre around, and a lot of it ends the same way, with humanity barely scraping through on the last page. What made this one stand out for me is that it takes a different path from the start. The book isn’t afraid to let the worst happen, and that changes the way you read everything that follows, because you know the author isn’t going to pull any punches. It also makes the opening feel more urgent, as you’re never sure which characters and which places are going to make it.

What is it about?

In the not too distant future an alien probe lands on Earth with a warning for humanity. This probe isn’t just a machine but has a very sophisticated AI, one that allows it to decide what it should do in pursuit of its mission. Earth, it seems, is in the crosshairs of an alien invasion, one that has decimated civilizations throughout the galaxy, and humanity only has a limited time before this swarm attacks. Choosing to reveal itself to a struggling student, one with the hallmark of genius, however, might be the solution to saving at least a small fraction of humanity from the coming onslaught. It’s the only hope we have, and it’s a very slim one at that.

Marc Ibarra and the probe

That student is Marc Ibarra, and he’s one of the best things about the book. I loved him both as a down on his luck twenty-something and as an irascible, empire building old man, and he’s a fun and funny character. The probe being a proper AI with its own judgment is a neat touch too, because it makes the whole warning feel more like a negotiation than a one-way message. And the way the book sets up its timeline gives you a real sense of how much humanity has to do and how little time it has to do it. It also lets the book do something I always enjoy in this genre, which is to show people making hard choices with incomplete information. It’s a setup that gives the whole book a sense of purpose, and it’s one reason the later battles hit as hard as they do, because you’ve seen what people gave up to get ready for them. Ibarra’s journey from a struggling student to the head of something much bigger is a big part of what makes the book feel like more than a string of fights.

The structure helps too. A story about a probe, a student and a secret plan to prepare humanity for an invasion could easily have turned into a slow burn, but the book keeps things moving by cutting between the preparations and the fighting. You get the sense of a clock ticking, and when the Xaros finally arrive, it lands with real weight. I’d say the first half is about the build up and the second half is about the consequences, and both halves work.

The battles

Battles were extremely well written and you felt yourself to be absolutely involved in them, both the Marine combat missions on Earth and in space, and also the ship to ship combat scattered throughout the book. If you enjoy military SciFi where the action is the main attraction, this one has plenty. I loved the sequences with the armored forces and the literal hand-to-tentacle combat, both on the ship and the surface. The action was absolutely fast and furious and it didn’t let up throughout the book. It’s the same kind of pure space battle fun that I got from the Saiph books.

I won’t give too much away in terms of details, but here’s a sample of the humor in the book:

“I’d heard rumors, but this is incredible,” Valdar said.

“We’ve kept this classified for as long as we can,” Garret said. “Some of the civilians are already trying to worship the Crucible, calling the Xaros decimation the rapture and claiming the probe here is a prophet.”

“They send the nicest letters,” Ibarra said.

The combat is where the book really pulls ahead of a lot of the competition. Fighting in armor on the surface and fighting in space are very different problems, and the book treats them as different problems. The Marines on the ground deal with the sort of close, desperate fighting that I love in military SciFi, and the ships are dealing with the kind of enemy that doesn’t tire, doesn’t flinch and doesn’t negotiate. Switching between the two keeps the pace up and gives the battles a nice variety, and it’s why I kept saying that the action never let up.

What I liked and didn’t like

The aliens themselves are extremely scary. The way in which they act is very reminiscent of Von Neumann’s War, which I’ve reviewed on this site before, and also the film The Darkest Hour, as well as the 2nd and 3rd Matrix movies. Having machines attack with no attempt at negotiation, well, suffice it to say the drones and their seeming invulnerability definitely conjure up the appropriate feelings of dread! It makes the Xaros a proper menace, and it’s what makes the stakes feel so real.

What didn’t work for me? Not much really. I think perhaps the fact that it seemed Earth rolled over so quickly in its defense, while this much smaller fleet was able to fight back against the Xaros, albeit with some fairly massive casualties, was a bit concerning. However, given the timeframe in question it’s quite possible that Earth was initially able to defeat the first onslaught but was eventually overrun in the second or third attempt. I did think that some of the characters were a bit forced, especially the romantic elements, as they not only didn’t contribute to the story at all, they felt almost like they were shoehorned in just so you could put a checkmark in a box.

I should say something about the editing, because it can make or break a book like this. A missing page is irritating, but it’s a single section in a whole book, and I didn’t notice anything else that got in the way of the story. When you read as much self-published military SciFi as I do, a clean book is a real pleasure, and this one reads smoothly from start to finish. It also means the story is allowed to do the talking, which is how it should be.

As for the romance, I wouldn’t let it put you off. It’s a small part of the book, and it doesn’t get in the way of the main story, but it’s the part that felt the most like a box being ticked. The book works far better when it’s about Ibarra, the Marines and the fight to save what’s left of humanity, and that’s where the focus is for most of it. If anything, the rest of the characters are strong enough that I wanted a bit more of them and a bit less of the relationships.

Aside from my small gripes though, this book was a winner for me. It was interesting and had some memorable characters that I’d love to know more about. There are many mysteries that I’m very curious to see resolved, and I quite liked the implications for where this series is heading. Looking forward to reading more! If you’re a fan of military SciFi, I’d recommend giving this one a try, especially if you like your battles big and your aliens scary.