Books like 'The Last Shadow'
Readers who enjoyed The Last Shadow by Orson Scott Card also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
sc-fi space action / adventure military, war & conflict space-opera aliens dystopia war galactic-empire military
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Message for the Dead by Jason Anspach, Nick Cole
12 ratingsSurvive the Future. As Legion Commander Keller attempts to coax the Republic and Black Fleet into a winner-take-all battle at the heart of the Galactic Core, Wraith uncovers secrets from Tyrus Rechs’s past. Determined to liberate his crew from the clutches of a dormant fleet controlled by a hostile AI, the soldier-turned-rogue comes face to face with the galaxy’s greatest threat... -
Turning Point by Jason Anspach, Nick Cole
12 ratingsFight to Win. With the galaxy in turmoil, the Legion initiates Article Nineteen, a hard reset designed to halt the corruption and ineptitude that continues to spill forth from the Galactic Core. But when the House of Reason aligns itself with the bloodthirsty zhee extremists, the Legion has no choice but to commit to a savage campaign of Total War... -
Balance by Ryk Brown
14 ratingsPart 2: Episode 5 An entire sector in turmoil... Neighbors who appear unconcerned... A favor asked of an old friend... Sacrifices made for the good of humanity... Before they can challenge the Dusahn and prevent them from expanding their empire further, the Karuzari must first gather much needed resources. But doing so could be more difficult than anticipated... -
Firestorm by D.J. Holmes
10 ratingsFour peaceful years have passed since the liberation of Haven. Captain James Somerville has taken his command, the heavy cruiser Titan, to Earth for a much-needed refit. As he is there, shocking news arrives from the American colonies. Unknown ships have attacked a remote colony. Nuclear missiles have devastated the planet’s surface leaving almost no survivors... -
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Governor by David Weber, Richard Fox
10 ratingsA NEW MILITARY SCIENCE FICTION SERIES FROM NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR AND CREATOR OF THE HONOR HARRINGTON SERIES DAVID WEBER AND BEST-SELLING AUTHOR RICHARD FOXSix Billion Dead—And One Man Intent on Putting a Stop to the Killing For more than fifty years, the Terran Republic and the Terran League have been killing one another... -
Order of the Centurion by Jason Anspach, Nick Cole
10 ratingsA PRICE PAID IN BLOOD “The Order of the Centurion is the highest award that can be bestowed upon an individual serving in, or with, the Legion... -
Throne of Stars by David Weber, John Ringo
10 ratingsBooks 3 and 4 in the New York Times best-selling Empire of Man series: March to the Stars and We Few, both New York Times bestsellers.Prince Roger MacClintock was an heir to the galaxy's Throne of Man and a self-obsessed spoiled young brat - that is, until he and the Royal Marines sent to protect him were stranded by an assassination attempt on the wild and dangerous planet of Marduk... -
Forged in Flame by Michael R. Hicks
10 ratingsThis is the second book of the First Empress saga, following From Chaos Born.Keel-Tath, the child who would unite her people as foretold by an ancient prophecy, has grown to be a young warrior in the confines of the Desh-Ka temple, where she has been sheltered by her old friend and mentor Ayan-Dar from the clutches of Syr-Nagath, the Dark Queen... -
The Xaros Reckoning by Richard Fox
12 ratingsThe final battle begins.The Xaros Masters destroyed Bastion, the Alliance against the alien invaders has failed. Earth stands against the full force of the enemy's unending drone fleets.With their backs against the wall, Captain Valdar and the Breitenfeld must lead a last ditch mission to end the war against the Xaros... -
Thrawn: Treason by Timothy Zahn
24 ratingsGrand Admiral Thrawn faces the ultimate test of his loyalty to the Empire in this epic Star Wars novel from bestselling author Timothy Zahn.“If I were to serve the Empire, you would command my allegiance.” Such was the promise Grand Admiral Thrawn made to Emperor Palpatine at their first meeting... -
Deathtrap by Craig Alanson
16 ratingsThe human soldiers stranded on the planet Paradise have been recruited into an Alien Legion, to do the dirty jobs that the high-tech species won't do. Their first mission is to kick the enemy off a backwater planet no one cares about. It's a simple assignment, except everyone has a hidden agenda, and the planet could become a deathtrap... -
Homeworld by Evan Currie
18 ratingsWar comes home to the Sol system when the Drasin track a human ship back to Earth, with devastating consequences. Facing massive force of invading alien ships wielding terrible power, the crew of the NAC spacecraft, their allies, and the people of Earth must mount a desperate effort to stop them... -
Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy by Timothy Zahn
18 ratingsThe fate of the Chiss Ascendancy hangs in the balance in the epic finale of the Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy from bestselling author Timothy Zahn. For thousands of years The Chiss Ascendancy has been an island of calm, a center of power, and a beacon of integrity. Led by the Nine Ruling Families, their leadership stands as a bulwark of stability against the Chaos of the Unknown Regions... -
Madame Guillotine by Jason Anspach, Nick Cole
8 ratingsLeave no man behind. On Detron, a simmering protest boils over and turns deadly when militants hiding among the demonstrators deliberately shoot down a group of legionnaires, executing one survivor and taking two for ransom. The only Republic asset the captured leejes can rely on is a lone marine sniper who defies orders in a desperate attempt to save them... -
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Star Force: Rift by Aer-ki Jyr
8 ratingsThe temporary truce between Star Force and the V'kit'no'sat sends shockwaves throughout the galaxy. No one has ever defied the V'kit'no'sat and lived, but now Star Force has and many races are taking notice...including one that no one expects, on either side... -
Hard Contact by Karen Traviss
21 ratingsAs the Clone Wars rage, victory or defeat lies in the hands of elite squads that take on the toughest assignments in the galaxy–stone-cold soldiers who go where no one else would, to do what no one else could. . . . On a mission to sabotage a chemical weapon research facility on a Separatist-held planet, four clone troopers operate under the very noses of their enemies... -
The Crucible by Richard Fox
12 ratingsThe Xaros broke against Earth's defenses, but the war may be lost.The alien ships of former allies rule Earth's skies, threatening to obliterate cities and turn the planet into a barren wasteland if humanity refuses their demands. With their backs to the wall, the scattered crew of the Breitenfeld must work together to foil the enemy's plan before time runs out... -
Border Wars by Evan Currie
12 ratingsThe mission continues as Sorilla, the Green Berets of the Fifth, and the Lucian Sentinels take their investigation to the colony world claimed by Islamic separatists during the very earliest of Earth's Diaspora period... -
Freefall by Craig Alanson
14 ratingsThe Alien Legion has a new mission, and this time, they are working for the enemy. Also against the enemy. Like every operation that Emily Perkins plans, it’s complicated... -
Order 66: by Karen Traviss
18 ratingsAfter the fierce combat of Hard Contact, Triple Zero, and True Colors comes the spectacular culmination of New York Times bestselling author Karen Traviss's gripping Republic Commando series. As a battle-scarred era nears its end, a shattering power play is about to stun the entire galaxy . . . and set in motion events that will alter destinies and resound throughout history...Categorized as:
galactic-empire military space-opera war action-adventure adult book far-away-galaxy -
Triple Zero by Karen Traviss
18 ratingsFollowing the eruption of the bloody Clone Wars at the battle of Geonosis, both sides remain deadlocked in a stalemate that can be broken only by elite warrior teams like Omega Squad, clone commandos with terrifying combat skills and a lethal arsenal. . . .For Omega Squad, deployed deep behind enemy lines, it's the same old special ops grind: sabotage, espionage, ambush, and assassination... -
True Colors by Karen Traviss
18 ratingsAs the savage Clone Wars rage unchecked, the Republic’s deadliest warriors face the grim truth that the Separatists aren’t their only enemy–or even their worst.In the Grand Army’s desperate fight to crush the Separatists, the secret special ops missions of its elite clone warriors have never been more critical . . . or more dangerous...Categorized as:
galactic-empire military space-opera war action-adventure adult book far-away-galaxy -
Star Force: Uriti Strike by Aer-ki Jyr
6 ratingsChanges with the Uriti alter the dynamics of the war against the V'kit'no'sat...and send shockwaves from the galactic rim to Itaru... -
Knife Edge by Christopher G. Nuttall
6 ratingsAn all-new story of The Empire’s Corps!Earth has fallen. The Core Worlds have collapsed into chaos. War is breaking out everywhere as planetary governments declare independence, entire sectors slip out of contact and warlords battle for power. The remnants of the once-great Empire are tearing themselves apart... -
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Star Force: Dawn of the Apocalypse by Aer-ki Jyr
6 ratingsThe onslaught has begun and the galaxy must cope with a very slow moving certainty of its eventual destruction... -
Shadows of Olympus by Christian Kallias
6 ratingsWith the arrival of a powerful new threat in orbit around Earth, the Alliance is forced to vacate Earth space while a small group stays behind to ensure humanity isn’t enslaved or worse, wiped out. Meanwhile, the rest of the fleet splits into separate missions, each of them vital in rebuilding the Earth Alliance forces and strengthening what’s left of the fleet... -
Red Team Alpha by Jay Allan
8 ratingsA New Adventure Set in the Crimson Worlds Universe (Over 800,000 Crimson Worlds Book Sold) Red Team Alpha. An elite military unit. Twenty highly-trained veteran warriors, Mars’ best. They are ready to face whatever dangers threaten the Confederation. They are capable, dedicated, armed with the best technology Mars has to offer. And they don’t exist, at least not officially... -
Iron Dragoons by Richard Fox
14 ratingsI am Armor. I am Fury. I Will not Fail. Soldiers of the Terran Armor Corps wage war across the stars. Wired into mechanized battle suits, they fight the terrifying battles which must be won, no matter the cost. Their deeds are legend, their reputation feared by the enemies of Earth and her allies, but how the Corps forges young men and women into mighty warriors is shrouded by mystery... -
Legend of the Sword by Michael R. Hicks
14 ratingsSix months after the alien Kreelan Empire launched its invasion of human space, the Confederation of Humanity is rapidly growing. The planet of Saint Petersburg, however, would rather see the Confederation destroyed. With a secretly built navy, they have lured the Confederation fleet into a trap, even as the Kreelans prepare another devastating attack... -
Manxome Foe by John Ringo, Travis S. Taylor
16 ratingsIn the midst of recovering from their successful if casualty prone first mission, the crew of the Alliance Space Ship "Vorpal Blade" are suddenly scrambled back into action. All other priorities take second place as word arrives on earth of a gate colony which has fallen to an unidentified alien assault... -
Vorpal Blade by John Ringo, Travis S. Taylor
16 ratingsThe sequel to Into the Looking Glass. William Weaver, PhD. and SEAL Chief Adams are back and Bill got himself a ship! The former SSBN Nebraska has been converted, using mostly garage mechanics and baling wire, into a warp ship ready to go "out there... -
Claws That Catch by John Ringo, Travis S. Taylor
16 ratingsIt's Not Over Til The Skinny Lady Sings . . . Working off of a piece of intelligence from the alien Hexosehr, the Vorpal Blade is dispatched to investigate rumors of an ancient and powerful civilization that may have been the creators of the “black box” that drives humanity's only space ship... -
Final Battle by Michael R. Hicks
16 ratingsFollowing Confederation, Final Battle is the last book in the saga of Reza Gard. Reza is caught up in a daring plot to assassinate the Confederation President, even as something goes terribly wrong in the Empire and its warriors lose their will to fight. Reunited with Tesh-Dar, Reza and his friends fight to save the woman he loves, with the fate of the Empire and Humanity hanging in the balance... -
For Honor We Stand by H. Paul Honsinger
17 ratingsIn 2315, the Earth Union is losing a thirty-year-long war with the Krag Hegemony.Having encountered the Krag before, Space Commander Max Robicheaux now faces daunting challenges aboard the USS Cumberland: the dangers from the enemy without… and clashes with crew and superiors within... -
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501st by Karen Traviss
18 ratingsThe Clone Wars are over, but for those with reason to run from the new galactic Empire, the battle to survive has only just begun. . . .The Jedi have been decimated in the Great Purge, and the Republic has fallen. Now the former Republic Commandos–the galaxy’s finest special forces troops, cloned from Jango Fett–find themselves on opposing sides and in very different armor...Categorized as:
galactic-empire military space-opera war action-adventure adult anthologies far-away-galaxy -
When the Guns Roar by Eric Thomson
6 ratingsCaptain Siobhan Dunmoore no longer enjoys the freedom to fight the Shrehari Empire on her own terms aboard the Q-ship Iolanthe. Special Operations Command has assigned her to Task Force Luckner, whose mission is replicating Iolanthe’s success on a larger scale... -
Star Force: Essence by Aer-ki Jyr
6 ratingsThe ever-growing peace and order in the galaxy has nearly run its course as a new series of events begin to take shape. Buckle your seat belt, Dorothy, because Kansas is going bye bye.. -
Star Force: Earth Evacuation by Aer-ki Jyr
8 ratingsEarth's naivety has come to an end. The peace that they thought was their birthright is shattered when their true birthright returns in the form of an alien invasion bent on their total destruction...and from the Dinosaurs no less... -
Imperial Sunset by Eric Thomson
8 ratingsHumanity’s thousand-year-old interstellar empire has been rotting from the inside for over a century, thanks to venal, corrupt, and power-hungry sovereigns from a dynasty many consider illegitimate. The latest in that lineage, an increasingly psychotic empress, is pushing her realm toward catastrophic collapse as admirals and generals rebel against her rule... -
Flight of Freedom by Jeffrey Burger
8 ratings"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." Edmond Burke...The adventure continues - with one major difference: Jack Steele's Freedom is no longer the wounded duck she once was. They leave UFW Blackmount Station repaired and retooled, with a complete crew, fully armed and resupplied, ready to hunt... -
First to Fight by Christopher G. Nuttall
10 ratingsBefore Avalon, before the Fall of the Empire, Edward Stalker was a young man growing up in Earth’s Undercity - a nightmarish rabbit warren of tiny apartments dominated by gangs who loot, rape and murder with impunity. When his family is killed in a gang attack, Ed takes the opportunity to run to the one place that will take him; the Terran Marine Corps... -
We Lead by Christopher G. Nuttall
10 ratingsThe conclusion to the third Ark Royal trilogy! The Second Interstellar War - pitting humans and their Tadpole allies against an enigmatic alien empire - appears to have stalemated. Neither side can push through to the other’s core systems without risking substantial losses, neither side can gain a decisive advantage... -
I Was Legion by Evan Currie
10 ratingsEarth is not the cradle of humanity. It is the Throne.Almost four hundred years the Terran Imperium has languished, an Empire in name only. The young colonies exploded out of the Diaspora Era, supplanting the homeworld in importance as they left a broken world in their wake. Earth's people, guided by the Conwin line, have clawed and climbed from the darkness left the night the lights went out... -
The Cruel Stars by John Birmingham
14 ratingsIn this epic sci-fi adventure for fans of The Expanse and Battlestar Galactica, five intrepid heroes must unite to save civilization after a long-dormant enemy awakens and strikes a devastating blow“This jarring, engrossing story of a species-wide fight for survival is recommended for all science fiction readers... -
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The City and The Ship by Anne McCaffrey, S.M. Stirling
14 ratingsTwo novels in one large volume, both set in the same universe as The Ship Who Sang: The City Who Fought: Simeon was bored with running the mining and processing station that made up his "body." Then the invaders came. If anyone was to survive, somehow he must transform his wargaming hobby into the real thing and become The City Who Fought... -
Brothers in Valor by H. Paul Honsinger
17 ratingsIt is the year 2315, the 33rd year of the Krag Wars. The tide has been running against humankind and its allies. One small destroyer, the USS Cumberland, under the command of its young Cajun skipper, Max Robichaux, fights along with the rest of the Union and Allied navies to preserve the very existence of the human race... -
Oblivion by Steve White, Charles E. Gannon
6 ratingsWHITE AND GANNON RETURN WITH A NEW ENTRY IN THE STARFIRE SERIES, co-created by New York Times best-selling authors Steve White and David Weber. STAND AGAINST THE ALIEN INVADER APOCALYPSE! The war with the profoundly alien Arduans has ended, and the Arduans have come to call humanity their allies. Most of them—the Arduan warrior caste refuses to accept defeat... -
Without Mercy by Eric Thomson
6 ratingsWhat is the value of one life in an interstellar war that has already claimed millions? And if that single life doesn't matter, are any others worth saving?A distress signal draws Siobhan Dunmoore's Q-ship Iolanthe, a battlecruiser disguised as a bulk freighter, away from her devastatingly successful hunt through Shrehari occupied space and plunges Dunmoore into a dark, merciless universe of... -
First Light Chronicles Freeground by Randolph Lalonde
6 ratingsThe first book in the First Light Chronicles Series. Large enough to support an entire civilization, one of the last free ports all alone in the dark, Freeground Station is about to come under siege... -
The Star Brotherhood (AGU: SC Intelligence #1) by Thomas DePrima
6 ratingsSpace Opera meets Horse Opera in this fast-paced adventure story featuring the Space Command Intelligence undercover team headed by Trader Vyx. The team, introduced in Book 4 of the A Galaxy Unknown series, and with small roles in subsequent books, is now featured in their own story as this AGU: SCI series kicks off...
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