Books like 'Fatal Depths'
Readers who enjoyed Fatal Depths by Kevin McLaughlin & Michael Anderle also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
action / adventure hard sci-fi military, war & conflict first-contact aliens invasion exploration military colonization space-opera
-
Edge World by B.V. Larson
14 ratingsA lonely planet circles a star on the very border of Province 921. Critical resources produced there are claimed by both the Mogwa and the Skay. War between the Galactic giants becomes more likely every day.James McGill and Legion Varus are deployed to protect Edge World, a planet that rotates at a walking pace. Each day is as long as a year back on Earth...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Destroyer by Joshua Dalzelle]()
Destroyer by Joshua Dalzelle
14 ratingsA relentless enemy… An old wolf's last hunt… The future of two species hanging in the balance… The Darshik war machine is flagging, but the war is far from over. Even as an exhausted Federation military tenses up for a counterattack after repelling the last Darshik invasion, reports are coming in of a new, more powerful class of ship that's striking deep into Terran space...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![TFS Fugitive by Tori L. Harris]()
TFS Fugitive by Tori L. Harris
10 ratingsHaving successfully repelled the Resistance incursion into the Sol system, Terran Fleet Command must now deal with the far-flung worlds of the Sajeth Collective, which sponsored the attack. Task forces are dispatched to Damara and Lesheera to begin the first Human blockades of entire planets...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Messinants by S.H. Jucha]()
Messinants by S.H. Jucha
10 ratingsPyre is a volatile planet. Its surface belches heat and noxious gases, forcing downsiders to inhabit domes. But Pyre’s instability isn’t limited to its geology. The colonists, who were marooned in the system hundreds of years ago, have endured a tumultuous history.Exploring Triton, Pyre’s third moon, spacers inadvertently activate an alien dome...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion space-opera action-adventure adult -
-
![Fair Trade: An Alien Invasion Story by Mackey Chandler]()
Fair Trade: An Alien Invasion Story by Mackey Chandler
10 ratingsMost of my writing is in a series people seem to enjoy but there is a constant small crowd who say: I'd really like your take on an alien invasion story. Well this is for them. The bulk of the aliens come to Earth stories assume their vast superiority, sometimes invincibility. Sometimes they suddenly appear on the white house lawn dictating terms... -
![Secrets in the Stars by Mackey Chandler]()
Secrets in the Stars by Mackey Chandler
10 ratingsWhen Lee Anderson and her parents discovered a new world teeming with life, it was the dream of every explorer: they were rich beyond their imaginations. But tragedy struck when a herd of creatures overran their camp and killed her parents. The only other adult in her life had been their partner Gordon, who adopted her as parent. Which didn’t turn out to be easy, because he wasn’t human... -
![Green World by B.V. Larson]()
Green World by B.V. Larson
12 ratingsRebels build a secret base on Green World. Their plan is to attack Earth and retake all the planets the Humans have conquered.Hegemony starships gather to strike the Rebels first, but where is their base? As the fleets search, Earth warships trespass into Skay space igniting a fresh border conflict between rival Galactics...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Iron & Blood by Joshua Dalzelle]()
Iron & Blood by Joshua Dalzelle
14 ratingsThe Black Fleet Saga continues… A human planet has been invaded. The enigmatic Darshik have landed troops on a frontier world and have begun subduing major cities even as their blockade repels all attempts by the fledgling United Terran Federation to mount a counteroffensive...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Against All Odds: A Military Sci-Fi Series (Grimm's War Book 1) by Jeffery H. Haskell]()
Against All Odds: A Military Sci-Fi Series (Grimm's War Book 1) by Jeffery H. Haskell
7 ratingsThe wrong crew. The wrong ship. The right Captain.Idealistic navy lieutenant Jacob Grimm just wanted to honor his mother’s sacrifice in the last great war. When he’s forced to return fire and destroy a squadron of ships to save his own, he thinks he’s the hero…Until they discover the ships are full of children.Disgraced and denied promotion, Jacob’s career is over...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Destiny's Cradle by Paul Crawford]()
Destiny's Cradle by Paul Crawford
8 ratingsTeenagers Ben Canterbury and Tessa Nyera are harvesting cotton on a warm afternoon when a hole opens up in a nearby meadow—like the doorway to another dimension. The hole disgorges a naked man, barely conscious and clutching a human leg bone, and then vanishes... -
![Salvation Lost by Peter F. Hamilton]()
Salvation Lost by Peter F. Hamilton
19 ratingsThe comparative utopia of twenty-third century Earth is about to go dreadfully awry when a seemingly benign alien race is abruptly revealed to be one of the worst threats humanity has ever faced. Driven by an intense religious extremism, the Olyix are determined to bring everyone to their version of god as they see it...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Invaders by Laurence E. Dahners]()
Invaders by Laurence E. Dahners
10 ratings“Invaders” is about events that occur several years after those in the novel “Disc.” GSI (Gettnor Space Industries) is beginning to investigate our solar system and mine the asteroids. Aircraft and automobile companies are beginning to switch over to thrusters from their more traditional products. New uses for thrusters are popping up in the healthcare and sports industries... -
![1st to Fight by Rick Partlow]()
1st to Fight by Rick Partlow
10 ratingsI retired from the USMC, and now I write about space marines. I never thought I’d actually become one. As a sci-fi author with a hit TV show, I have a few ideas about what alien invaders are supposed to look like. In my stories, they’re technologically advanced monsters, with tentacles, and no faces. Turns out I was right about the technology. And about how angry they’d be...Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![The Long Voyage of the Little Fleet by Mackey Chandler]()
The Long Voyage of the Little Fleet by Mackey Chandler
10 ratingsIn the first book of this series "Family Law", Lee's parents and their business partner Gordon found a class A habitable planet. They thought their quest as explorers was over and they'd live a life of ease. But before they could return and register their claim Lee's parents died doing a survey of the surface... -
-
![Tracker by C.J. Cherryh]()
Tracker by C.J. Cherryh
12 ratingsTracker is the sixteenth installment of CJ Cherryh's acclaimed Foreigner series.It’s been a year of upheaval, since Bren Cameron’s return from space—a year when he and the aiji-dowager, one of his most powerful atevi allies, returned home from their two-year interstellar mission to find the government overthrown and their world in chaos...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion space-opera action-adventure adult audiobook -
![Emergence by C.J. Cherryh]()
Emergence by C.J. Cherryh
12 ratingsThe nineteenth book in C.J. Cherryh's beloved Foreigner space opera series begins a new era for diplomat Bren Cameron, as he navigates the tenuous peace he has struck between human refugees and the alien atevi.Alpha Station, orbiting the world of the atevi, has taken aboard five thousand human refugees from a destroyed station in a distant sector of space...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion space-opera action-adventure adult audiobook -
![Omnia by S.H. Jucha]()
Omnia by S.H. Jucha
12 ratingsAlex Racine, who led an elite group of humans and SADEs (self-ware digital entities), left the newly discovered planet of Celus-5 under difficult circumstances. Few of the Harakens with Alex thought there was little he could do to bring peace to the embroiled planet...Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Allora by S.H. Jucha]()
Allora by S.H. Jucha
12 ratingsUntil the Confederation created Allora, it had produced SADEs (self-aware digital entities) for hundreds of years with enormous consistency and harnessed their capabilities to power the society. But this particular, young SADE was disturbed by her confinement... -
![Quantum Entangled: A Quantum Series Mystery by Douglas Phillips]()
Quantum Entangled: A Quantum Series Mystery by Douglas Phillips
12 ratingsTwenty-three intelligent species. One ancient mystery. And two humans thrust into the middle.Daniel Rice hasn’t felt right since his return from a dystopian future now extinguished. Curious dreams repeat with detailed precision. A voice - or something - seems to be calling him. His problem isn’t medical, it’s not even scientific, and it’s driving his wife crazy... -
![Celus-5 by S.H. Jucha]()
Celus-5 by S.H. Jucha
12 ratingsFor the Sojourn’s initial mission, the Haraken explorer ship undertakes the investigation of Celus-5, a world identified by Willem, a SADE (self-aware digital entity), and his team of scientists, as the best prospect for a new colony.What should be a routine survey mission becomes a disaster. To the Harakens’ surprise, they discover, not one, but two alien species engaged in conflict...Categorized as:
aliens exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Sol by S.H. Jucha]()
Sol by S.H. Jucha
14 ratingsSol’s warships paid the ultimate price for threatening the Haraken and New Terran worlds. Now, Haraken President Alex Racine and his Méridien partner, Renée de Guirnon, are engaged in a desperate gamble to stop a war between their worlds and United Earth’s (UE) massive forces before it starts... -
![Orion Fleet by B.V. Larson]()
Orion Fleet by B.V. Larson
14 ratingsWhat enemy could be more terrifying than a soulless, alien machine? A year ago the Kher Empire was forced to retreat, but they were not beaten. In ORION FLEET they return with a new weapon. A huge ship driven by AI begins methodically grinding inhabited worlds to dust. This unstoppable enemy is without fear or remorse, and the Rebels begin a desperate battle just to slow its advance...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Intruder by C.J. Cherryh]()
Intruder by C.J. Cherryh
14 ratingsThe civil war among the alien atevi has ended. Tabini-aiji, powerful ruler of the Western Association, along with Cajeiri his son and heir, and his human paidhi, Bren Cameron, have returned to the Bujavid, their seat of power.But factions that remain loyal to the opposition are still present, and the danger these rebels pose is far from over... -
![Deceiver by C.J. Cherryh]()
Deceiver by C.J. Cherryh
14 ratings"One of the best long-running SF series in existence" (Publishers Weekly) continues with the second novel in a brand-new Foreigner sequence. The civil war among the alien Atevi has ended. Tabini-aiji, powerful ruler of the Western Association, along with Cajeiri, his son and heir, has returned to the Bujavid, his seat of power... -
-
![Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio]()
Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio
14 ratingsThe second novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path that can only end in fire.Hadrian Marlowe is lost. For half a century, he has searched the farther suns for the lost planet of Vorgossos, hoping to find a way to contact the elusive alien Cielcin... -
![Haraken by S.H. Jucha]()
Haraken by S.H. Jucha
14 ratingsNine years of tranquility came to an abrupt end when a Méridien starship entered the Hellébore system, sounding a dire warning for Alex Racine, the Haraken president. Unwanted visitors had arrived again. But this time, they’re not alien; they’re human... -
![Explorer by C.J. Cherryh]()
Explorer by C.J. Cherryh
16 ratingsIt has been nearly ten years since the starship Phoenix returned to Alpha, the station orbiting the world of the atevi, which had been abandoned following a rift between a faction of the station's inhabitants and the spacers' Pilot's Guild...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Rogue World by B.V. Larson]()
Rogue World by B.V. Larson
16 ratingsThe Galactics arrived with their Battle Fleet in 2052. Rather than being exterminated under a barrage of hell-burners, Earth joined a vast Empire that spanned the Milky Way. Today, Battle Fleet 921 is returning to Earth. It hasn’t been seen by human eyes since our blissful day of Annexation...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Home World by B.V. Larson]()
Home World by B.V. Larson
16 ratingsThe Galactics arrived with their Battle Fleet in 2052. Rather than being exterminated under a barrage of hell-burners, Earth joined a vast Empire that spanned the Milky Way. When the Earth is invaded by a rival empire, James McGill’s legion must defend the Home World. The top brass has complex plans, but none of that matters much to McGill, who chooses his own unique path...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Blood World by B.V. Larson]()
Blood World by B.V. Larson
16 ratingsA dirty deal was struck. Humanity was allowed to keep three hundred rebellious worlds. In return, we declared war on a powerful enemy from beyond the frontier. A frantic build-up of forces has begun, but the task is hopeless. Seeking allies, Earth’s legions are sent to BLOOD WORLD. A planet on the fringe of known space, where the people only respect masters of combat...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![The Long-Range War by Christopher G. Nuttall]()
The Long-Range War by Christopher G. Nuttall
8 ratingsThe gloves have finally come off ... The Tokomak, the unquestioned masters of the galaxy, have dispatched a massive fleet to crush the Solar Union - and the fledgling Galactic Alliance - before the human race and its alien allies can tear the galactic order asunder. Hundreds of thousands of starships under the command of an alien tactical genius, bent on exterminating the entire human race .. -
![Alpha Fleet by B.V. Larson]()
Alpha Fleet by B.V. Larson
12 ratingsThe Imperials have devised a cunning new method of destroying Rebel worlds. Captain Leo Blake is largely responsible for both our survival and our current predicament. He and his crew are infamous among the stars. As a result, when ships of an unknown configuration begin flowing out of swirling rifts above Earth, Blake is called upon again to deal with the problem...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Convergence by C.J. Cherryh]()
Convergence by C.J. Cherryh
12 ratingsConvergence is the eighteenth book in C.J. Cherryh's beloved Foreigner space opera series.Convergence marks a new phase in the Foreigner Universe: knowledge about the dangerous situation in adjacent space rests only with Bren Cameron, the human diplomat to the alien court of the atevi, four starship captains, and the two chiefs of state—both the human and the atevi, who share the planet...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion space-opera action-adventure adult animals -
![TFS Navajo by Tori L. Harris]()
TFS Navajo by Tori L. Harris
12 ratingsOnly a few short months after Humanity’s first interstellar flights, the first shots have been fired in what will eventually become known as the Alliance Wars. Terran Fleet Command teeters on the edge of chaos in the aftermath of Chairwoman Crull’s removal from power, while in space, Earth’s defense falls squarely on the shoulders of Admiral Kevin Patterson...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
-
![Battleship Indomitable by David VanDyke, B.V. Larson]()
Battleship Indomitable by David VanDyke, B.V. Larson
12 ratingsFrom Hugo Award finalist David VanDyke and million-selling science-fiction legend B.V. Larson comes book two in the epic military space opera adventure saga!Commodore Straker's rebellion grows in strength--but his enemies are growing even faster...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Earth Fleet by B.V. Larson]()
Earth Fleet by B.V. Larson
12 ratingsAt long last Earth has a handful of starships. Surrounded by Rebel Kher, Imperials and the mysterious Nomads, Humanity dares to assert our right to independence. The interstellar community reacts harshly. In the eyes of our neighbors, we’re upstarts, dangerous beings that don’t know our place. For the Kher, freedom can only be won through battle...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Deep Black (Infinite Sky #1) by Samuel Best]()
Deep Black (Infinite Sky #1) by Samuel Best
12 ratingsTwo crews return to Titan. Who will survive?Titan. Sixth moon of Saturn. A deadly enigma harboring the greatest secret in the history of humankind.In the wake of the first mission, two companies with very different goals plot a return to that distant moon. Their ships are safer, their technology has improved…and they want answers... -
![Demon Star by B.V. Larson, David VanDyke]()
Demon Star by B.V. Larson, David VanDyke
14 ratingsThree stars, three worlds, three civilizations…one massive war. In a triple star system, not all planets are equal. When the DEMON STAR swings closest in her orbit, the Insectoids always invade. They raid the inner worlds with grim regularity, riding hordes of stealthed ships in ever growing waves. Their mission is to destroy all opposition—alien, human or otherwise...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![TFS Theseus by Tori L. Harris]()
TFS Theseus by Tori L. Harris
14 ratings“Welcome to the Pelaran Alliance …” With those simple words, the Guardian spacecraft openly revealed itself to Humanity, heralding a new chapter in its 500-year-long mission to cultivate our world...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Méridien by S.H. Jucha]()
Méridien by S.H. Jucha
14 ratingsThe Méridiens are fleeing to their far colonies—and they have reason to run. Over the course of decades, they have lost hundreds of ships, billions of people, and seven Confederation colonies to an alien enemy: an advancing swarm of silver ships transported in the bowels of a gigantic, spherical vessel... -
![Into the Stars by James Rosone]()
Into the Stars by James Rosone
14 ratingsThe stars are within mankind’s reach……But what awaits in the void may end humanity…Mars and the Moon have been colonized, piracy runs rampant in the asteroid belts, and a thriving society grows in the depths of space. Humanity prepares to embark upon its greatest journey—the colonization of Alpha Centauri...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Prelude to Extinction by Andreas Karpf]()
Prelude to Extinction by Andreas Karpf
14 ratingsEarth's first interstellar mission -- An alien colony in ruins -- Their fight for survival has only just begun.When Jack Harrison climbed down the short ladder from the airlock and stepped onto the debris covered soil, the ground crackled with the sound of dried leaves and twigs... -
![Machine World by B.V. Larson]()
Machine World by B.V. Larson
18 ratingsThe Galactics arrived with their Battle Fleet in 2052. Rather than being exterminated under a barrage of hell-burners, Earth joined a vast Empire that spanned the Milky Way. Our only worthwhile trade goods are our infamous mercenary legions, elite troops we sell to the highest alien bidder. In the fourth book of the series, James McGill is up for promotion...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
![Invader by C.J. Cherryh]()
Invader by C.J. Cherryh
19 ratingsThe first book in C.J.Cherryh's eponymous series, Foreigner, begins an epic tale of the survivors of a lost spacecraft who crash-land on a planet inhabited by a hostile, sentient alien race...Categorized as:
aliens colonization first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure adult -
-
![The Heart of Matter by Evan Currie]()
The Heart of Matter by Evan Currie
20 ratingsAfter an epic maiden voyage that introduced Earth to a larger universe—and a cosmos full of terrifying new enemies—Captain Eric Weston and the crew of the NAC spacecraft Odyssey have spent months cooling their heels under their admiral’s watchful eye... -
![Accord of Honor by Kevin O. McLaughlin]()
Accord of Honor by Kevin O. McLaughlin
6 ratingsWar over energy resources devastated the Earth and her colony on the moon. A new agreement was reached between the nations of the world: The Lunar Accord. Designed to end the possibility of war in space for all time, it bars nations or individuals from arming ships in space. Twenty peaceful years have passed since the Accord was signed... -
![The Commander by C.J. Williams]()
The Commander by C.J. Williams
10 ratingsLucas Blackburn had a peaceful job as an Airport Director in an out of the way community in central Nevada. He wanted to live quietly and let old scars heal. But then a spaceship landed. The lone occupant, a guy named Sam, gave Luke the keys and said it was up to him to stop a massive alien invasion that was on the way. Luke wanted to believe it was a hoax. The problem was, Sam had the proof...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Espero by S.H. Jucha]()
Espero by S.H. Jucha
12 ratingsTrouble infiltrated the Harakens’ capital city of Espero, in the form of New Terra criminal gangs who grew wealthy and powerful on the moons of Ganymede, hiding behind the cover of an ill-conceived mining charter. The gangs brought stims and addictive hallucinogenic drugs to Espero, distributing them to the young on the planet... -
![Star Carrier by B.V. Larson]()
Star Carrier by B.V. Larson
14 ratingsEarth builds her first war fleet! The greatest warships ever constructed in known space rise up one by one, soon dominating our skies. They strike fear into the hearts of every citizen and rebel colonist alike. Captain William Sparhawk, the very man who convinced the secretive Council to build this terrifying fleet, now has doubts about the project...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure -
![Glass World by B.V. Larson]()
Glass World by B.V. Larson
14 ratingsThe Galactics arrived with their Battle Fleet in 2052. Rather than being exterminated under a barrage of hell-burners, Earth joined a vast Empire that spanned the Milky Way. More than a century has passed since the glorious day of Earth’s annexation. Struggling to hold on to a handful of planets in the frontier provinces, humanity is at war with Rigel...Categorized as:
aliens colonization exploration first-contact invasion military space-opera action-adventure
Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.
