Books like 'Flesh and Blood'
Readers who enjoyed Flesh and Blood by Scott McElhaney also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
action / adventure space-opera first-contact exploration super-powered colonization post-apocalyptic space-travel
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The All-Pro by Scott Sigler
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTHE ALL-PRO is the third book in the Galactic Football League series, following on THE ROOKIE and THE STARTER.Seven centuries into the future, aliens and humans compete for the greatest prize in the universe: the Galaxy Bowl trophy. Quarterback Quentin Barnes enters his third season at the helm of the Ionath Krakens...Categorized as:
exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel super-powered action-adventure aliens audiobook -
The Saints of Salvation by Peter F. Hamilton
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsHumanity is struggling to hold out against a hostile takeover by an alien race that claims to be on a religious mission to bring all sentient life to its God at the End of Time. But while things may look grim in the immediate aftermath of the attack, mankind is busy playing an even longer game than the aliens may have expected...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
The Colossus by Jay Allan
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe 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:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Messinants by S.H. Jucha
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsPyre is a volatile planet. Its surface belches heat and noxious gases, forcing downsiders to inhabit domes. But Pyre’s instability isn’t limited to its geology. The colonists, who were marooned in the system hundreds of years ago, have endured a tumultuous history.Exploring Triton, Pyre’s third moon, spacers inadvertently activate an alien dome...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
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Elvians by S.H. Jucha
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTwo crises challenge the Omnians. Alex Racine’s fleet draws a first-contact conflict, which faces the Ollassa, a symbiotic flora race. The Omnian fleet sails from alliance space in an effort to interdict an alien ship that arrives at the Worlds of Lights, the Ollassa system. Soon after arriving, the alien ship deploys machines to scour asteroids for resources in the system’s far belt... -
Delphi Diversion by Bob Blanton
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCatie 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:
exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure aliens audiobook book -
The Legend of ZERO: Forgotten by Sara King
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIt's been 819 years since Congress abandoned humanity to a Stone Age fate on an Earth infested with man-eating monsters, and now the galactic government, in all its benevolence, has come back to force humanity back into citizen status in its great collective......Except this time, thanks to Prime Commander Dobbs, humanity has a surprise for our alien conquerors...Categorized as:
exploration post-apocalyptic space-opera space-travel action-adventure aliens book dystopia -
Ep.#3.3 - Liberty and Truth, Peace and Prosperity (The Frontiers Saga - Part 3: Fringe Worlds) by Ryk Brown
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsEpisode 3.3A new foe arises…An ugly truth emerges…A long lost friend returns…An iconic ship flies into battle…Captain Scott and the crew of the Aurora face the reality of a galaxy that is, in many ways, worse off than the one they left behind. But in doing so, they discover a new mission for the Aurora’s namesake, her captain, and her crew... -
Junkyard Spaceship by Jamie McFarlane
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsWhen aliens threaten his country, one grumpy old vet will take the fight to the stars.Albert Jenkins would like nothing more than to putter around his junkyard, selling parts and working on old cars. When an alien spacecraft is shot down by US Air Defense and crash lands on his newly rebuilt home, he’s dragged back into the fight of his life...Categorized as:
exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens audiobook -
Against All Odds: A Military Sci-Fi Series (Grimm's War Book 1) by Jeffery H. Haskell
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsThe wrong crew. The wrong ship. The right Captain.Idealistic navy lieutenant Jacob Grimm just wanted to honor his mother’s sacrifice in the last great war. When he’s forced to return fire and destroy a squadron of ships to save his own, he thinks he’s the hero…Until they discover the ships are full of children.Disgraced and denied promotion, Jacob’s career is over...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Star Force: Origin Series by Aer-ki Jyr
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Origin Series is empire building at its finest, with 100 episodes and over 2.5 million words in the military science fiction serial detailing the rise of Star Force from corporate entity into an interstellar empire over the course of more than a millennium...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult book fiction -
Armageddon by Rick Partlow
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsBook 4 in the next explosive series from the #1 Amazon Bestselling author of Contact Front, Rick Partlow...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Star Force: Origin Series by Aer-ki Jyr
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Origin Series is empire building at its finest, with 100 episodes and over 2.5 million words in the military science fiction serial detailing the rise of Star Force from corporate entity into an interstellar empire over the course of more than a millennium...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel super-powered action-adventure adult book -
The Long Voyage of the Little Fleet by Mackey Chandler
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn 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:
exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens book -
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Salvage by Jenny Schwartz
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSecrets can get a girl killed. Cherry Pendit knows to keep hers close. But what if it’s whispering to her? What if it’s warning her of danger on the galactic horizon, and only she can save her clan?To save the people she loves, Cherry will have to risk her life to rescue a man she’s never met.A hunted man, a man abandoned on a derelict space station, on the far side of a black hole...Categorized as:
space-opera super-powered exploration colonization first-contact space-travel sci-fi suspense -
Ep.#3.11 - "The First Ranger" by Ryk Brown
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsPart 3: Episode 11Sacrifices are made…Training is endured…Wrongs are righted…Heros are born…The Free Fleet’s plans are finally coming together. Now, there is a new force for good in the galaxy, and they’re known as ‘Rangers’."The First Ranger" is the 11th episode in Part 3 of the Frontiers Fringe Worlds...Categorized as:
space-opera exploration space-travel sci-fi audiobook fiction action-adventure space -
Emergence by Ken Lozito, Scott Aiello
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAs the colony grapples with the realization that New Earth is not as uninhabited as they’d once thought, tensions between the colonial settlements rise to new heights, and the Colonial Defense Force finds itself caught in the middle. When Connor uncovers evidence of a militant colonial faction secretly exploiting the NEIIS, he has to investigate...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Plains of Utopia: Colony Six Mars (Colony Mars Series Book 6) by Gerald M. Kilby
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsXenon Hybrid, the Red Planet’s ceremonial head-of-state, has not been seen for many years after withdrawing to an isolated enclave in the far north where he steadily built up a following of citizens seeking out an alternative lifestyle. They bother no one, and no one bothers them...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-travel action-adventure adult book fiction hard-sci-fi -
Fall of the Core by Ryk Brown
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA freelance reporter struggling to get into the 'big time'...A rookie officer starting her career in public safety...A cargo ship captain trying to outlive a terminal illness that has no cure...A bounty hunter returning a long-hunted fugitive to Earth...A terrible plague that threatens to destroy the human race...The 25th century is not starting off very well... -
Spinward Fringe Broadcast 10.5: Carnie's Tale by Randolph Lalonde
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAlice is given a complex and secretive assignment: she is to review months worth of voice recordings, video and pictures taken by Noah Lucas, better known as Carnie, a member of the Samurai Squadron. The material was recorded while he was on Iora, a technically advanced world as the holocaust virus struck it...Categorized as:
colonization post-apocalyptic space-opera action-adventure adult book dystopia far-future -
Stardust by Edward W. Robertson
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe invaders have arrived. The last battle for humanity is about to begin. STARDUST is the final book in the Rebel Stars series...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Explorer by C.J. Cherryh
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsIt has been nearly ten years since the starship Phoenix returned to Alpha, the station orbiting the world of the atevi, which had been abandoned following a rift between a faction of the station's inhabitants and the spacers' Pilot's Guild...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Resurgence by Jerry Aubin
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWith the battle for Earth over, our heroes are forced to deal with the repercussions of its outcome. They enlist their closest allies to take back the Ship from enemies both new and old, and along the way they discover a most unexpected source of help...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure audiobook book fiction -
Star Force: Origin Series by Aer-ki Jyr
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Origin Series is empire building at its finest, with 100 episodes and over 2.5 million words in the military science fiction serial detailing the rise of Star Force from corporate entity into an interstellar empire over the course of more than a millennium...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult book fiction -
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Delphi Forge by Bob Blanton
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAfter ADI informs the board, that with the stress of the new planets in the League, they will run out of platinum metals, Catie is asked to build a starbase so in another star system so they can have a reliable source. Of course, nothing is ever simple, and Catie has to struggle with those who’s personal greed puts everyone at risk...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-travel action-adventure aliens audiobook book -
The Alliance by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA mission to free a world from the Kleese has gone terribly wrong. Lieutenant Ryan Nelson and his Marines are trapped with no hope of rescue. On the Kleese home world, a division grows between the regular Kleese and the militaristic Zaltule. The war against the Kleese intensifies as the human led Alliance attempts a daring attack against the heart of the Kleese Empire... -
Insurrection by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe final battle between the Humans and the Zaltule is drawing near. However, the Arachnids have a secret that will ensure victory and allow them to wipe out the Human race once and for all.In the Strell Empire, former Supreme Overlord Xatul plans his return. He has amassed a fleet to take back control of the Kleese Empire... -
Star Force: Origin Series by Aer-ki Jyr
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Origin Series is empire building at its finest, with 100 episodes and over 2.5 million words in the military science fiction serial detailing the rise of Star Force from corporate entity into an interstellar empire over the course of more than a millennium...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel super-powered action-adventure adult book -
Star Force: Origin Series by Aer-ki Jyr
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe Origin Series is empire building at its finest, with 100 episodes and over 2.5 million words in the military science fiction serial detailing the rise of Star Force from corporate entity into an interstellar empire over the course of more than a millennium...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult book fiction -
Rendezvous by Jerry Aubin
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAdan is ready to leave Earth behind. He successfully transformed his massive asteroid into an amazing spaceship, but faces an even larger challenge as he tries to negotiate the repercussions of the many deals and compromises that were required along the way...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure audiobook book fiction -
Deep Black (Infinite Sky #1) by Samuel Best
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTwo crews return to Titan. Who will survive?Titan. Sixth moon of Saturn. A deadly enigma harboring the greatest secret in the history of humankind.In the wake of the first mission, two companies with very different goals plot a return to that distant moon. Their ships are safer, their technology has improved…and they want answers...Categorized as:
colonization first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens book -
The Quantum War by Derek Künsken
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe eagerly awaited third volume in the number one bestselling Quantum Evolution series. An all-new, ground-breaking, action-packed new science fiction adventure set in the universe of The Quantum Magician and The Quantum Garden...Categorized as:
space-opera exploration colonization first-contact sci-fi audiobook hard-sci-fi fiction -
Prelude to Extinction by Andreas Karpf
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsEarth's first interstellar mission -- An alien colony in ruins -- Their fight for survival has only just begun.When Jack Harrison climbed down the short ladder from the airlock and stepped onto the debris covered soil, the ground crackled with the sound of dried leaves and twigs...Categorized as:
exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens book -
Starship Sakira by Bob Blanton
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWhat would you do if you found a spaceship? Would you call the government, would you pretend you never saw it, or would you keep it a secret? What would you do with it? Use it to gallivant around the galaxy, conquer Earth, get filthy rich, or try to improve life on Earth? Read along and find out how Marc tries to convert Earth into a spacefaring world capable of defending itself and of being...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure aliens audiobook -
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Delphi Embassy by Bob Blanton
Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsAfter the Delphi League defeats the Fazullan invasion of Onisiwo, Catie is tasked with managing the Onisiwoen transition to the Delphi League as well as the repatriation of all the slaves from the Fazullan fleet. She has to navigate the complex diplomatic circles as different interests complete for advantage in the new age of interstellar trade...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-travel action-adventure aliens book fiction -
Attack Plan Alpha by Jay Allan
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA battle is coming, the greatest the Rim has seen in ten thousand years, a fight for freedom, for the future, for the very survival of all humanity holds dear. Tyler Barron and his comrades are ready for their greatest test, but even as they prepare to hold the line at Fortress Striker, to turn back the Highborn’s imminent attack, the enemy have opened another front, one far to the rear... -
Interstellar War by G.P. Hudson
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA homeland in ashes. A merciless ancient enemy. A vicious new foe. A galaxy convulsing with war. With humanity on the brink of annihilation, only one option remains, Interstellar War. Can Jon Pike achieve victory, and revenge, for himself and humanity? Find out in Interstellar War, Book 5 of The Pike Chronicles...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Unreconciled by W. Michael Gear
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNow in paperback, the fourth book in the thrilling Donovan sci-fi series returns to a treacherous alien planet where corporate threats and dangerous creatures imperil the lives of the colonists.Where does one put a messianic cult of practicing cannibals? That becomes the question when Ashanti appears in Donovan's skies. She was designed for no more than four years in space. It's taken ten...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult audiobook -
Uncommon Purpose by P.J. Strebor
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFollowing the bloody war between the Athenian Republic and the Pruessen Empire, an uneasy peace has settled over the region of space known as The Tunguska Fault. The Telford family’s independent trading vessel, the Belinda is captured by Pruessen slavers and the crew forced into a life of brutal servitude. Their desperate bid for freedom succeeds but a tragic price is paid...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult audiobook book -
Rebel World by Anthony J. Melchiorri, Bradford Hastings
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratings7 hours, 46 minutes Captain Tag Brewer saved the Mechanics. He even handed them the the key to victory against the Collectors. But now the Mechanics want his blood.They aren’t the only ones.When Tag returns to the SRE, he isn’t given a hero’s welcome. He is treated like a criminal. They suspect he is working for the Collectors...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Star Force: Mak'to'ran (3) by Aer-ki Jyr
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe fracturing of the V'kit'no'sat Empire has now come to fruition, but the full fledged civil war has not resulted...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens book -
Dark Star by Raymond L. Weil
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe FarQuest has been launched on her mission of discovery to the approaching neutron star. On Earth, unrest is quickly growing as people realize that life on Earth might shortly come to an abrupt end.President Kateland is doing everything in her power to try to preserve at least a small portion of the human race. However, a powerful U.S. Senator does not believe the neutron star threat is real... -
Hierarchy by Nathan Hystad
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAn impending promotion. A colony world. A betrayal of trust. Captain Thomas Baldwin has made a name for himself in a short period of time. The Statu have finally been defeated, and the Concord has Tom and his crew to thank for the victory. With the construction of more sophisticated cruise ships, offers are being extended to capable leaders...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Renegade Magic by Jennifer M. Eaton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn outer space, there is no right or wrong...unless you get caught.Cal turns to a life of smuggling to escape a death sentence for a crime he didn't commit, and when a galactic law enforcer lands far too close, Cal’s crew kidnaps her in hopes they can prove his innocence.Hey, what could go wrong?Dania, a powerful mage enforcer, is on a mission to eliminate a human trafficking ring...Categorized as:
space-opera colonization exploration space-travel sci-fi action-adventure royalty futuristic -
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Vendetta by Jonathan Yanez
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsWar is on the horizon. Daniel Hunt has no desire to lead the first coalition of corporations the galaxy has ever known. This is exactly why he's perfect for the job. In the face of humankind's greatest threat, old enemies will find redemption and new allies will answer the call...Categorized as:
colonization first-contact space-opera super-powered action-adventure adult aliens book -
Surface Tension by Gerald M. Kilby
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA devastating dust storm. A colony on the edge of extinction. Only one person can save them. But first they need to start a revolution. In the midst of the most devastating dust storm in the history of Mars, the survival of the half million people who call it home is hanging in the balance...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-travel action-adventure adult book fiction hard-sci-fi -
Target Earth by Vaughn Heppner
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWhat if you could right your greatest regret?Creed wishes he’d never left Jennifer behind in a dark and alien dimension where Abaddon transformed her into a superhuman killer.Creed helped kill Abaddon and put Jennifer in the Curator’s care—the only one with the hope of healing her—but guilt still gnaws at Creed...Categorized as:
colonization exploration first-contact space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens -
Traitor by Edward W. Robertson
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFinnTech has allied with the aliens who once pushed humanity to the brink of extinction. No one knows their next move. In desperation, Rada and Webber fly to the Locker. A pirate station in Uranus orbit, its fleet may be the only thing capable of resisting the FinnTech forces. But as Rada fights to bring the Locker to her side, she discovers a new conspiracy...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult aliens audiobook -
Rookie Privateer by Jamie McFarlane
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsAlternate cover edition can be found here. When you are old enough to finally become an Earth Mars citizen, everything should be perfect. Right? Not for Liam Hoffen. He's stuck on a mining asteroid called Colony 40, helping his father work a claim that is never going to pay out...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure audiobook book fiction -
Another World by Samuel Best
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLeaving Earth is the easy part. Surviving the trip to a nearby spiral arm of our own galaxy is a journey like no other.Merritt Alder is done with Earth. The planet is polluted and overpopulated, and its people are hungry.Earth’s first colony, Galena, is a pioneer world 10,000 light years away. It has clean air, unpolluted water, and continents of arable land...Categorized as:
colonization exploration space-opera space-travel action-adventure adult alternate-history book
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