Corvus by Marko Kloos

Published by 47North on August 19, 2025

Corvus is the second in a series of military science fiction novels called Frontlines: Evolution. The new series began with Scorpio [https://www.tzerisland.com/bookblog/2023/12/20/scorpio-by-marko-kloos.html] and is set in the same universe as Marko Kloos’s Frontlines novels.

In Scorpio, Alexandra “Alex” Archer was a colonist who survived her childhood by living underground on a planet that was occupied by Lankies. Lankies are really big aliens that like to stomp humans, as well as their vehicles and structures. The aliens are difficult to kill but humans, as well all know, excel at killing.

Having been rescued at the last moment from the Scorpio colony by the military, Alex decides to enlist. In Corvus, Alex has finished basic training and is assigned to a regiment that is traveling to the Corvus system to check on a colony that has gone silent.

The novel features the military jargon, command structures, and weaponry that appeals to fans of military sf. Alex and her squad are investigating abandoned buildings on the planet when, as the reader will expect, the Lankies attack. Battles ensue. Much of the regiment is wiped out, but Alex uses the knowledge of survival tactics that she gained in Scorpio to help most of her squad members avoid death.

During much of the novel, Alex and her squaddies are walking or using commandeered vehicles to reach destinations where they hope to dig in and await rescue. One of those destinations is occupied by friendly Russian soldiers who join the battle when their building (a terraforming facility) is attacked by the Lankies.

Like many military sf novels, Corvus features more than one “saved by the bell” moment. That’s not unusual in military thrillers, although it’s a bit more common in military sf, which tend to read like novelizations of mediocre military sf movies. While saved-by-the-bell moments make the story predictable, they also add to the excitement.

Alex is an agreeably modest and fast-thinking protagonist who has just enough personality to keep the reader rooting for her success. Kloos writes energetic action scenes and, if the story as a whole is predictable, he at least keeps it moving with a variety of ways to kill or elude the evil Lankies. Kloos is a capable military sf storyteller, and if there is little to distinguish Corvus from similar works, there is little reason to believe that the novel will fail to satisfy military sf junkies.

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Scorpio by Marko Kloos

Published by ‎ 47North on January 1, 2024

Scorpio is a novel in Marko Kloos’s Frontlines universe. There are, I think, eight Frontlines novels. Scorpio begins a new series called Frontlines: Evolution.

Humans colonized and terraformed various worlds and were getting along just fine fighting with other humans until aliens known as Lankies appeared. Scorpio is a planet that was being terraformed when Lankies showed up and began stomping on people. Most colonists died but about 150 are still alive, eight years after the Lankies arrived.

The surviving humans clustered in an underground facility. It isn’t easy to venture outside because the Lankies are reversing the terraforming, reducing oxygen and increasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The survivors nevertheless take occasional trips to the remnants of their other settlements to scavenge for rechargeable batteries and lemon bars and whatever else they can find.

When Alexandra (“Alex”) Archer traveled to Scorpio with her family, she was too young to form memories of the voyage. Now she’s 21. The first two-thirds of the novel follows Alex and a group of soldiers and civilians on a scavenging trip. Alex is a civilian, but she’s attached to the military because she has trained and handles a military dog who alerts when Lankies are coming close.

The scavenging trip is the stuff of traditional military science fiction. Colonists who were assigned to the military operate cannons and handheld weapons to take out attacking Lankies. The scavenging seems to be going well until it isn’t. The scenes that depict the shit hitting the fan are intense.

The novel’s last third follows Alex after she returns to Earth. This is an interesting approach to military sf, as Alex’s story (after she leaves Scorpio) has little to do with military action. She gets into a tussle with some muggers and shows her moxie, but the deeper story involves Alex’s poor adjustment to a life in which she doesn’t feel a sense of purpose, a life in a place where she doesn’t belong.

I assume Alex will be the star of the Frontlines: Evolution series. She’s a likable character. Kloos’s prose is smooth and straightforward. He clearly admires the military, but he doesn’t go overboard with praise of heroism and brotherhood. I prefer anti-military science fiction, but I give Kloos credit for being a good storyteller. Military sf fans who are looking for a new series to follow, as well as current Kloos fans, might want to give Scorpio a try.

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