Forged in Battle

Forged in Battle by Marc Alan Edelheit is a spellbinding and gripping military science fiction thriller. It’s the first book in the Command Decision series and it moves at a lightning pace. Captain Jaxon Stelle is on a routine diplomatic mission on his first command. The Ranger is an advanced destroyer, fast, stealthy, and fully armed.

However, she wasn’t built for heavy fighting. While orbiting the war-torn planet, Tenebris, the entire star system erupts in rebellion. Missiles hit the Ranger’s shields, communications are jammed, and enemy warships are approaching. Survival is going to be tough, and they learn they need to confirm reports of a large enemy fleet in the star system before heading for home.

Steele enjoys strategy, history, and reading. He tends to leverage that knowledge in clutch situations. Clutter is a distraction to him and waiting tests his patience. He’s also thoughtful of the well-being of his crew and ship and projects an air of calm and quiet confidence that steadies the crew during stressful times. He listens to their advice despite not always following it and expresses his appreciation for their work and he is willing to accept the consequences of his actions knowing he will have to explain them when they return home. The other main bridge characters are introduced and readers learn some of their background and how they react under pressure, but I wanted a little more depth.

The world-building is fantastic in this novel. Much of it is set on the bridge of the Ranger and it was easy to feel like I was there as events unfolded. While there are hours of waiting that the crew experiences, it didn’t feel like it as I was reading. The tension was palpable throughout the story. The plot has several twists and turns that keep readers engaged and rapidly turning the pages. The heart-pounding space combat was easy to visualize and made me grateful I wasn’t on the vessel. Themes include political tension, rebellion, war, intelligence and its failures, desire for autonomy, trust, and command decisions that affect lives.

The author added an extremely helpful appendix at the back of the book. It includes a detailed explanation of both intra-star-system and interstellar travel, as well as information on the Union of Free Stars, the Protectorate Star Systems, the Valkorian Hegemony, the Illidran Star System, and the Union naval ship Ranger.

Overall, this is a fast-paced, action-packed novel with compelling characters, fantastic world-building, exceptional action scenes, and a great plot. The novel should appeal to those who enjoy science fiction military action thrillers. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

Second Sky and Marc Alan Edelheit provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. The publication date is currently set for July 25, 2025.