Books like 'Far Orbit: Speculative Space Adventures'

Readers who enjoyed Far Orbit: Speculative Space Adventures by Bascomb James, Gregory Benford, Tracy Canfield, Eric Choi, David Wesley Hill, Elizabeth Bear, Barbara Davies, Jakob Drud, Julie Frost, K.G. Jewell, Sam Kepfield, Kat Otis, Jonathan Shipley, Wendy Sparrow & Peter Wood also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

sc-fi space military, war & conflict aliens space-opera space-travel first-contact space-fleet soldiers military

Vapor Trails by Joshua Dalzelle
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
· 20 ratings
He was a rogue element, disobeying orders and pursuing mission goals of his own. His Scout Team had been burned, disavowed by his chain of command and the owner of the stolen ship he was flying was after them to get it back. To make matters even more complicated, the man Jacob had stolen the ship from is an infamous outlaw and mercenary named Jason Burke… his father...

Categorized as:
colonization first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera action-adventure adult
Remnant Faction by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.55 of 5 stars
· 11 ratings
It is the first and final duty of any warship to put herself between the innocent... and the enemy.Henry Wong and Sylvia Todorovich have gathered the interstellar powers of the Ra Sector into a tentative alliance—an alliance that is tested by the return of the Sector’s former rulers: the Kenmiri Remnant...

Categorized as:
space-opera military aliens soldiers colonization first-contact space-fleet sci-fi
No Retreat by J.N. Chaney, Terry Mixon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
When things are going to plan, check to see what you’re missing.Admiral Jack Romanoff and his crew are trapped inside the Confederation proper and facing an unknown number of alien attack ships. They’d thought the Tardan military was defeated, but they’d been wrong. Now they were trapped in a fight they couldn’t lose.When everything seems exactly as you’d hoped, figure out what you’ve missed...

Categorized as:
space-opera military first-contact aliens soldiers space-travel exploration space-fleet
Under Siege by J.N. Chaney, Terry Mixon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
Only one world in the cluster remains in enemy hands.Admiral Jack Romanoff and his crew have one remaining nut to crack before they can turn their attention to the people that overthrew the Confederation. The Vesuvius system has become a fortress, so it won’t be an easy fight, but it is one they cannot lose and survive.When force alone won’t do the trick, add guile...

Categorized as:
military space-opera first-contact aliens soldiers space-travel exploration space-fleet
Operation Liberty by J.N. Chaney, Terry Mixon
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
Aliens invaders hold human worlds. That cannot stand.Admiral Jack Romanoff and his crew have defeated the Locusts once and for all, but they are far from the only invaders infesting the Confederation. The time to go after the xenophobic Novarites and free those worlds has come, and nothing will stand in his way.If words aren’t enough, show them your teeth and bite deep...

Categorized as:
military space-opera first-contact aliens soldiers space-travel exploration space-fleet
Empire by Joshua Dalzelle
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
· 8 ratings
The final fight for control of humanity begins now.The United Terran Federation is on the brink of collapse after a devastating attack by the Eastern Star Alliance that has left four planets depopulated and uninhabitable. Terrified member worlds are fleeing from the Federation and the remnant of their once-mighty fleet has retreated to the last place they are welcome: Earth...

Categorized as:
colonization first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera adult book
Destroyer: A Military Space Opera by Craig Martelle, Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
· 8 ratings
Humanity’s greatest export—Justice. Peace can never last.When things are going right, be very afraid. The laws of chance are coming.And they’re bringing an alien destroyer, invisible to systems, sensors, as well as the naked eye. Even Ted is stymied. Kill or be killed.Terry Henry Walton isn’t afraid to do things the hard way, and he shows everyone what that means...

Categorized as:
space-opera exploration first-contact space-fleet military space-travel soldiers sci-fi
Ice World by B.V. Larson
Rated: 4.55 of 5 stars
· 20 ratings
Long before Earth began conquering her neighboring stars, Legion Varus was deployed on Tau Ceti. Valuable and highly illegal treasures were stolen during the campaign, but McGill never gave it a second thought.The Tau haven’t forgotten him, however. For decades they’ve hunted and plotted, and at last they’ve found the pirate who robbed them. Tau agents invade Earth seeking revenge and profit...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Blockade: Age of Expansion - A Kurtherian Gambit Series by Craig Martelle, Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
Humanity’s greatest export – Justice. Space is a dangerous place, even for the wary, especially for the unprepared. The aliens have no idea. Here comes the Bad Company. When the Bad Company learns of a human colony blockaded by aliens, they take the upgraded War Axe into battle. Once again, nothing is as it seems, but this time, they find a single enemy, evil to its core...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel
The Colossus by Jay Allan
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
The Hegemony strikes again… The Confederation and its allies have won their first victory, retaken their capital from he forces of the Hegemony. But the enemy is not beaten, far from it, and they are back, with an unstoppable weapon, a vast superbattleship, a deadly hybrid of imperial and Hegemony technology, called the Colossus...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Fires of Oblivion by Anthony James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
Captain John Duggan rots in his cell, facing execution at the hands of his captors. Having discovered the secret which the Ghasts wished to remain hidden, he is left powerless to find answers to the questions which will determine the future of the Confederation. Elsewhere in the Garon sector, the Dreamers have been putting their own terrible plans into action...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel adult
The Forever War by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
From USA Today Best Selling Author Raymond L. Weil comes the fourth book in the Star Cross series. The Vorn have returned with a massive fleet and are once more harvesting the intelligent worlds of the galaxy for food. Every fleet placed in front of them has been annihilated by the Vorn’s superior weapons. The Vorn seem unstoppable as they harvest world after world...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Galaxy in Peril by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
he situation in the galaxy is growing desperate. Every day the Vorn are harvesting world after world to be used as food for their Queens. The Vorn ships are nearly indestructible and destroying every fleet that dares to oppose them.Lakiam Fleet Commodore Dreen is trying to form an alliance to try to stop the Vorn, but he needs a victory to bring other Protector Worlds to his side...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Delphi Diversion by Bob Blanton
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
Catie is on her way back to Earth after having settled the Fazulan slaves when the wormhole her ship is traveling in collapses. They are diverted to another system where big chunks are flying around. They rescue a ship and find themselves in the middle of a series of mysteries...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact military space-fleet space-opera space-travel action-adventure
Earth Ascendant by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
From USA Today Bestselling Author Raymond L. Weil comes the second book in a new military science fiction series.The war between the seven alien races of the Confederation and Earth heats up as the two come into direct conflict over the former Human Empire. The people or Earth are determined to free it, and the Confederation is determined to keep it under their strict control...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Empire's Gambit by D.J. Holmes
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
The Karacknid assault on Earth has been turned back at great cost to both sides. Only the intervention of the Kulreans saved Humanity’s homeworld from certain destruction. Yet the Kulrean worldships cannot be used for offensive operations. This means Humanity and her allies have only a few months of respite before the Karacknids can make good their losses...

Categorized as:
colonization exploration military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel adult
Nemesis of Mars by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
A failed attempt on the Mage-QueenAn old friend from the gutterAn enemy that should be dead...When a kidnapping attempt on the Mage-Queen of Mars is thwarted by luck, leaving thousands dead in its wake, Prince-Chancellor Damien Montgomery returns to field operations one more time. The evidence leads to one place: Tau Ceti...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel adult
Leviathan's Fear: A Military Sci-Fi Series by Craig Martelle
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
Trapped in Ga’ee space, Leviathan runs for its life.And the lives of its crew.Declan Payne and Harry Wesson decide to go on the offensive. They have no choice.They can’t go home. It only delays the inevitable.The Ga’ee march relentlessly into the space of the seven races while turning an inward eye toward the interloper, the ship they call God1...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Overwhelming Force by Craig Martelle, Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
The keys to the universe……are hidden on two different planets, both at war. The Bad Company is the only force capable of unlocking destiny.Terry and Char take the Bad Company beyond the frontier, back to Benitus Seven. What they find shocks them to the very core of their beings.Marcie and Kae develop a new force, a land army to win the peace and keep it...

Categorized as:
exploration first-contact space-fleet military space-opera space-travel soldiers sci-fi
Give No Quarter by Jamie McFarlane
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars
· 21 ratings
Alternate cover for ASIN B01FQ57I7G can be found here: Give No Quarter Branded criminals and on the run from the most powerful corporation in the known universe, Liam Hoffen and the crew of Hotspur have a simple choice to make...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Raven's Flag by Glynn Stewart
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars
· 7 ratings
In times of peace, alliances wither and are forgotten.In times of war, honor must reforge them in fire and steel!The United Planets Alliance fought the Kenmiri Empire with a hundred allies at their side. Bound in common cause until genocide broke the Kenmiri—and Kenmiri schemes broke the alliance in turn—those one-time allies still left deep debts of blood and friendship behind...

Categorized as:
military aliens exploration space-opera soldiers colonization space-fleet space-travel
No Quarter by Joshua Dalzelle
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars
· 15 ratings
Humanity is fractured and on the brink of war…The United Terran Federation and the Eastern Star Alliance have been fighting in minor skirmishes along the border region for the last few years, but now it threatens to break out into a full-on war with the victor assuming control of all human space...

Categorized as:
colonization first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera adult ai
Guns of the Valpian by Anthony James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 8 ratings
Captain John Duggan and his crew are stranded deep in hostile terrritory. Their spaceship, the ESS Crimson is damaged beyond repair. Enemy warships hunt them, eager to locate the vessel which has caused so much damage to their military. All seems lost. Duggan is not a man to go down without a fight...

Categorized as:
exploration military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel adult book
Explorations by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 8 ratings
Disaster has struck the Human Federation of Worlds. The Eternals have finally found Earth and are preparing to destroy it and the rest of the Federation. They begin gathering a massive fleet to overwhelm and destroy all of the Human worlds...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Discovery by Craig Martelle, Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 8 ratings
The hero the universe needed and her friends.People who embrace justice as much as she does. Her people. One team, holding villainy at bay, even if they are demons from the past come back to haunt them all.A Queen. Two colonels. A contract that's too easy. A vacation gone awry. Enemies and allies.Terry and Char find themselves trapped.Here comes Bethany Anne. Here comes the Bad Company...

Categorized as:
exploration first-contact space-fleet military space-opera space-travel soldiers sci-fi
Liberation: Age of Expansion - A Kurtherian Gambit Series by Craig Martelle, Michael Anderle
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 8 ratings
Humanity’s greatest export—Justice. Space is a dangerous place even for the wary, and especially for the unprepared. The aliens have no idea. Here comes the Bad Company. When humanity is wronged by the alien AI, the Bad Company leaps to action, but only after the warriors have scattered to the four corners of the galaxy...

Categorized as:
aliens space-opera exploration first-contact space-fleet military space-travel soldiers
Junkyard Veterans by Jamie McFarlane
Rated: 4.53 of 5 stars
· 17 ratings
With a price on their heads, grumpy old vets will risk everything to bring alien assassins to justice.Someone is killing off the old team of vets who repelled Earth’s first Korgul invasion. With the end of a war precious few even knew was happening, life’s been peaceful...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-opera space-travel
Battleground by Joshua Dalzelle
Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars
· 20 ratings
This war was inevitable.After two brutal, bloody struggles for their very existence against implacable alien foes, humanity is victorious, but not at peace.As distrust and accusations consume the political discourse between the two major factions, the Eastern Star Alliance military has already begun executing small raiding missions into United Terran Federation space...

Categorized as:
colonization first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera adult audiobook
Oblivion's Light by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
Two more years have passed for the Lost Fleets trapped in the Triangulum Galaxy. It’s becoming more apparent with each passing day that the Dyson Sphere of the Simulins must be destroyed if Fleet Admiral Jeremy Strong and his people want to survive. Rear Admiral Kathryn Barnes sets out on a mission of discovery seeking allies against the Simulins...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Genesis by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
Fleet Admiral Jeremy Strong is determined to preserve the planet Gaia as the new home of the lost fleets. Unfortunately, a new and frightening danger from the destroyed Dyson Sphere threatens to undo everything he has fought for. Kazak, the AI on the Originator ship has his own agenda. The Humans and Altons will either do as he demands or he will destroy them...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Universe in Danger by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
The Lost Fleets have settled on an Originator Dyson Sphere in preparation for their greatest test yet. A great enemy is spreading across the universe conquering galaxy after galaxy.The few surviving Originators have asked Fleet Admiral Jeremy Strong to fight a war against their most hated enemy, the Anti-Life. If he fails to stop their advance, then the entire universe could be in danger...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Search for the Lost by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
From USA Today Best Selling Author Raymond L. Weil comes the second book in the Originator Wars series. The Eternals have decided to conquer Originator space. All that stands between them are the Originator AIs and the Humans, or at least that is what the Eternals believe. In preparation for the invasion, they begin gathering their massive warfleet...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
The Dark Invaders by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
From USA Today Best Selling Author Raymond L. Weil comes the second book in the Star Cross series. Over fourteen months have passed since Fleet Admiral Kurt Vickers drove the Profiteers from Earth. Eighty million people died while the planet was being ransacked and its wealth stolen. Now a new and deadlier threat comes from intergalactic space...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
The Long Voyage of the Little Fleet by Mackey Chandler
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
In the first book of this series "Family Law", Lee's parents and their business partner Gordon found a class A habitable planet. They thought their quest as explorers was over and they'd live a life of ease. But before they could return and register their claim Lee's parents died doing a survey of the surface...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact military space-fleet space-opera space-travel action-adventure
Shell Game by J.N. Chaney, Terry Mixon
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
If you can't hide the game, conceal the pieces. Admiral Jack Romanoff and his people have located the system the Tardans are using as their command post for the invasion of the Confederation. Only they can't simply attack militarily because of the stellar terrain, so they need to improvise. When the stakes are high, leave no option unexplored...

Categorized as:
space-opera military first-contact aliens soldiers space-travel exploration space-fleet
Lightning Strike by J.N. Chaney, Terry Mixon
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
· 10 ratings
In combat, speed is life.Admiral Jack Romanoff and his people have seized control of Faust and now have a base of operations, though the people of that world aren't completely pleased by his presence or actions. That's okay because he doesn't have time to worry about them. He needs to strike the Locusts before they spread even more than they already have in the wreck everything humanity has built...

Categorized as:
space-opera military first-contact aliens soldiers space-travel exploration space-fleet
Dark World by B.V. Larson
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars
· 27 ratings
Two expanding interstellar powers are about to meet in battle. After the collapse of the Cephalopod Kingdom, Humanity claimed the three hundred rebellious worlds they left behind. But many light years away on the far side of disputed region, a rival power has begun to move. They're stealing our planets, one at a time...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Vigilance by Ken Lozito
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
They’ve spent years exploring this world, but they were living on borrowed time. Only they didn’t know it. Six months ago, Connor learned what the alien race that populated New Earth feared—a mysterious enemy who nearly brought about the collapse of an entire civilization. To help the colony prepare for this new threat, Connor rejoins the Colonial Defense Force...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Fracture by Ken Lozito, Scott Aiello
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
Colonel Sean Quinn is stranded in another universe, along with two thousand people under his command. They've been hiding from the enemy long enough, now it’s time to return home. Outnumbered against a superior foe, Sean must risk everything in a daring operation, but the mysterious enemy has a few surprises of their own...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
The Prince Awakens by Fred Hughes
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
· 12 ratings
Hazard King had always wanted to be an Imperial Fleet officer, just like his father.But he’s a Prince of the Realm, which make things a bit more… complicated. And when Hazard’s parents tell him that they don’t trust his older brother and want Hazard to be the Crown Prince—the heir to the throne—things go from bad to worse.And just when they can’t get any worse, the Empress is attacked...

Categorized as:
space-opera military aliens colonization space-travel soldiers first-contact space-fleet
Direct Fire by Rick Partlow
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars
· 21 ratings
From street criminal to war hero.From outcast to Marine officer.The journey has been a long one, but now it’s reaching the end.Cam Alvarez leads his platoon of Drop-Troopers into the Tahni Imperium, into the final days of the war and the bloodiest battles yet...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
The Others by Jay Allan
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars
· 17 ratings
From the deepest darks of unknown space, evil comes… Admiral Tyler Barron and the Confederation navy face a new threat, darker and deadlier than any that have come before...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Storm World by B.V. Larson
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars
· 23 ratings
James McGill is sent to the Core Worlds! In an unprecedented first, Earth sends a message to Mogwa Prime. Unfortunately, the messenger is not met with enthusiasm. Misunderstandings soon threaten all of Humanity. Forced to prove Earth can serve the Empire better than any rival, McGill does his best...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Dark Moon Arisen by Chris Kennedy, Mark Wandrey
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
The war continues! The Omega War is in full swing. Earth has fallen to General Peepo’s army, and the surviving Human mercenaries have taken refuge at the hidden Winged Hussars’ base in New Warsaw...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Hell's Reach by David VanDyke, B.V. Larson
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
USA Today bestseller B.V. Larson and Dragon award finalist David VanDyke have released book six in their epic military space opera! The Breakers find a new home among the stars: Utopia. An engineered planet that is vast beyond comprehension with plenty of room to grow. They set up trade routes and work as mercenaries for their supplies… but trouble lurks. Pirates strike their merchant lanes...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Superdreadnought 3 by C.H. Gideon, Craig Martelle
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
A Military AI Space Opera The superdreadnought gates into the middle of a battle. Whose side do they take? Krokus 4. The system’s nexus of intelligent life. Who are the Krokans? Who are the Orau? Are there any good guys to protect?It’s a dog’s breakfast from the word go. Reynolds is positioned to keep the sides from killing each other while he and the crew try to figure out what is going on...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel
Alpha Contracts by Chris Kennedy, Mark Wandrey
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
“Before CASPers were the lords of the battlefield, men tested their metal against aliens one-on-one.” First contact has been made, and Earth’s militaries and its premier mercenary companies stand ready to take their first tentative steps outside the Solar System...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-opera
Enemies & Allies by Rick Partlow
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
The war is over and Andy Clanton is ready to live happily ever after.Space Force has other ideas.Recruited to follow the last signal of the mysterious Elders to a system halfway across the galaxy, Andy joins the crew of the James Bowie for another adventure into the unknown...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration military soldiers space-fleet space-opera space-travel
Zero Friction by Toby Neighbors
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
The bestselling space opera is back! The crew of the Modulus Echo is stuck in service to Brigadier General Alicia Pershing in exchange for their freedom. But while working for the Royal Imperium may have its perks, it is also extremely dangerous. From space battles to rescue missions, Ben and his friends will have to use all their resourcefulness if they hope to survive...

Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact military soldiers space-opera space-travel book
The Line of Duty by Rick Partlow
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
· 6 ratings
Danger stalks the Republic once again. Raiders hijack their starships, biological weapons slaughter their colonists, and terrorists kill thousands of innocents in their mega-cities…and as the head of Fleet Intelligence, it’s Jason McKay’s job to track down the enemy, whether they’re on a world at the edge of known space or in the midst of a corrupt government...

Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military soldiers space-fleet space-travel

Far Orbit: Speculative Space Adventures by Bascomb James, Gregory Benford, Tracy Canfield, Eric Choi, David Wesley Hill, Elizabeth Bear, Barbara Davies, Jakob Drud, Julie Frost, K.G. Jewell, Sam Kepfield, Kat Otis, Jonathan Shipley, Wendy Sparrow, Peter Wood

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