The ninth novel in Sherman and Cragg's classic military SF series (First to Fight, etc.), the strongest entry yet, has earned a well-deserved promotion to hardcover. In the 25th century, those in trouble can still call on the Marines. Having driven the alien Skinks off the planet Kingdom, the guys of the all-male 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team (FIST) are going back to base, to receive new people, promote old ones and restore their morale with beer, steak and willing women. Back on Kingdom, however, the dictatorship of Dominic de Tomas has turned into something frighteningly like the Third Reich. Part of this Nazi resemblance is tongue-in-cheek (e.g., the Leader has a fat sidekick, Senior Stormleader Herten Gorman), but the vividly described labor camps are anything but funny. And on a farm, a man with amnesia nicknamed "Military Operations" because he knows something about war is organizing the farmers to resist de Tomas and his thugs. As he recovers his memory, he realizes that the farmer's daughter is in love with him. The Leader's minions carrying off the daughter to be de Tomas's consort/love slave ensures non-stop action for the book's last third. The authors have avoided the implausible scenarios and interservice rivalries of some past volumes. This is state-of-the-art military SF.
From Booklist
Starfist, the saga of a far-future marine strike team, switches from paperback to hardcover for the hardest battle of the 34th FIST's career, against an alien invasion on Kingdom. Many of the best men are lost, among them gunnery sergeant Charlie Bass, and when the rest get home, Kingdom's trials are only beginning. A secular dictator has overthrown the government and plans to clean out the last remnants of religious settlements. Meanwhile, former prisoners of the aliens, who have lost their memories, have found a village of refugees from the invasion, among them Charlie. He has some knowledge of tactics and prepares the villagers for further invasions. But the preparations aren't for human invaders, and when humans do invade, a woman dear to Charlie is taken prisoner and sent to a concentration camp, in which the dictator stows threats to his regime. Charlie must react, providing the impetus for rebellion against the dictator by dissatisfied elements in the government and military. Even the tragically depleted 34th FIST gets a happy ending.
