The Armageddon Protocol (The Galactic Cold War #4), by Dan Moren
24 Sept 2024The Book
Synopsis:
The fourth and final book in The Galactic Cold War series sees Simon Kovalic and his crew on another life threatening adventure.
On the heels of the terrorist attacks on the planet Nova’s capital, the Special Projects Team finds itself targeted by the ambitious new head of the Commonwealth Intelligence Directorate, Aidan Kester. When Kovalic and General Adaj are arrested on charges of treason, Tapper, Brody, Sayers, and Taylor are forced to go on the run. While Kovalic and the general attempt to uncover an Illyrican mole within the Commonwealth’s intelligence apparatus, it’s up to the rest of the team to clear their friends’ names, even if that means making a deal with an old enemy to carry out a daring heist that might just get them all killed.
My Review
The Armageddon Protocol is the fourth and final novel in the spy-fi series The Galactic Cold War, written by Dan Moren, and published by Angry Robot Books. Immediately picking after the ending of The Nova Incident, Kovalic and his team will have to clear their names of the charges of treason, in an adventure full of action and details that are an homage to previous books in the saga.
A story that soon gets divided into two parallel plots: Kovalic and the general will have to uncover the Illyrican mole that has put their names as the treators while evading the capture in Nova; but the rest of the team will flee after Kovalic's signal, and somehow, end being involved in a heist under the threats of one of my favourite antagonists of the saga, Ofeibia Xi.
Kovalic gets a big spotlight in this instalment, as his plot allows him to shine as the smart and cunning operative he is. Together with the general and an old friend, they will have to find the truth about the mole and clear their names.
And we also finally get to see how the team is a well-built machine that can work without Kovalic's leadership, with Taylor taking the lead. Addy is still a baddass character, but in this instalment, finally Brody has learnt something from her. Tapper continues being the resourceful man that they can always rely on, and honestly, it was delicious to read a heist full of action and plot twists.
As this novel forms practically a duology together with The Nova Incident, we have a frenetic story full of subterfuge on one side, while the other is totally onboard of what could be a new special operation; all written with the clarity that characterizes Moren. While this book wraps up the arc, I could see Moren revisiting this universe.
After bingeing the full series, I feel a bit sad about having to say goodbye to these characters; but as a final instalment, is all I could ask from this spy-fi series. I totally recommend The Galactic Cold War if you want to read a great series reminiscent of Golden Age films, but with the sci-fi point. Excellent.
The Author/s
Dan Moren
Dan Moren is the author of the supernatural detective novel All Souls Lost, as well as the Galactic Cold War series of sci-fi espionage capers from Angry Robot Books, and The Caledonian Gambit from Talos Press. He’s represented by Joshua Bilmes of JABberwocky Literary Agency.
A former senior editor at Macworld, Dan’s writing has also appeared in the Boston Globe, Fast Company, Popular Science, Yahoo Tech, Tom’s Guide, Six Colors, The Magazine, and TidBITS, among other places.
Additionally, Dan is a prolific podcaster: he serves as the co-host of tech shows Clockwise and The Rebound, writes and hosts nerdy quiz show Inconceivable!, and is a frequent panelist on the Parsec-award-winning podcast The Incomparable.
Dan lives with his family in Somerville, Massachusetts, where he’s never far from a twenty-sided die.