Kenai, by Dave Dobson

Kenai is an unconventional military sci-fi novel, written by Dave Dobson, with interesting twists on classic tropes. What starts as a classic survival story, following the retired soldier Jess Amiko in a struggle to escape from Kenai after being attacked, ends being transformed into a deeper plot, leading us to discover more about Kenai and its natives.

Jess Amiko accepted a job as security guard on Kenai, something that seemed to be easy, just taking a look over an archeological dig; but when she's attacked by unknown forces, she will discover that there isn't anything that makes sense on the planet. A plot that initially screams military sci-fi, greatly executed, but which leads to a bigger story, exploring the paradox that surrounds the planet and its inhabitants, with Amiko playing the role of an alien among the natives.

We have a book with two parts clearly separated, really different in pacing; the first part where Amiko is struggling to survive is full of action, tension, difficult situations that are also clashing with her past (which Dobson introduces by using flashbacks), and the second one is much more investigative, around the curse that is over Kenai and her inhabitants. And I must say that despite being quite difficult to execute, because adding temporal distortions to a plot can end being terrible, it is solved in smart ways.

Pacing wise, we can also divide the novel into two sections. In the first one, all is really frenetic once it starts, but it devolves into a more contemplative second section, which might feel dragging sometimes, as in comparison, it's much slower.
A detail that I appreciate is how short the chapters are, contributing to the "one more chapter" impulse.

Kenai is great science-fiction book, a self-contained story which is quite enjoyable to read. A novel that you could comp as Edge of Tomorrow meets Avatar, executing some of these tropes greatly. If you are looking for a military sci-fi with a big plot, give this book a try.