Dan Cragg Books In Order

First to Fight

‘Marines, we have just become a low tech deep recon patrol…
‘

Stranded in a hellish alien desert, stripped of their strategic systems, quick reaction force, and supporting arms, and carrying only a day’s water ration, Marine Staff Sergeant Charlie Bass and his seven man team faced a grim future seventy five light years from home. The only thing between his Marines and safety was eighty five miles of uncharted, waterless terrain and two thousand bloodthirsty savages with state of the art weapons in their hands and murder on their minds.

But the enemy didn’t reckon on the warrior cunning of Marines’ Marine Charlie Bass and the courage of the few good men who would follow him anywhere even to death…

‘HARD TO PUT DOWN…
Any book written by Cragg and Sherman is bound to be addictive, and this is the first in what promises to be a great adventure series. First to Fight is rousing, rugged, and just plain fun.’
Ralph Peters, New York Times bestselling author of Red Army

School of Fire

2 Cassettes, 2 hrs. Performance by John Bedford LloydCombat, betrayal, and murder at the edge of human space…
Deployed to assist the oligarchs of Wanderjahr in putting down a rebellion that threatens the planet’s political and economic stability, the Marines must fight two wars at the same time…
one against the resourceful, well led guerillas and another with the entrenched police bureaucracy. But who is the real enemy and who can be trusted? On Wanderjahr, nothing is as it seems not even the animal life and everyone has his own agenda. Inexorably, the Marines of the 34th FIST are drawn deeper and deeper into the politics of a world where murder, terror, and betrayal are the accepted methods of government…
and everyone is ripe for an old fashioned butt kickin’.

Steel Gauntlet

‘Marines ain’t supposed to sit. We’re supposed to kill.’After the resource rich planet Diamunde is seized by the armed forces of industrialist Marston St. Cyr, the Confederation Marines face their most desperate battles yet against the mechanized forces of the bloody usurper. Promised a walkover by military planners, instead the Marines must run a gauntlet of steel, with weaponry three hundred years out of date. For the Confederation’s invasion army to seize the planet, the Marine FISTs first have to secure a planethead against St. Cyr’s much larger forces which are equipped with superior weapons. Together with their outgunned comrades, the Marines of 34th FIST must do the impossible or die…

Blood Contact

Through three centuries of interstellar travel, intelligent alien life forms had never been encountered…
until now.

When a scientific team exploring an obscure planet fails to make its regular communications check, the Marines of third platoon are sent to investigate. They prepare for a routine rescue operation, but what they find on Society 437 is a horror beyond description. Only a handful of ragtag pirates who were in the wrong place at the very worst time have survived, and there is little trace of the scientists.

What happened to the scientists? Why have the pirates been spared?
Gunnery Sergeant Bass and the men of third platoon are about to find out,
and the answer carries a terrifying implication for the Marines and the entire human race.

Technokill

A terrifying secret, an evil coterie of ruthless masterminds, a murderous battle of cunning and deadly skill it’s time to send in the Marines!

After the Confederation makes a shocking discovery on an alien world, a nefarious band of opportunists from the highest echelons of power plot to steal the vast riches for themselves. Along with the ability to crush any resistance, these moguls possess spacecraft, unlimited resources, and a deadly arsenal of cutting edge weapons.

The only one without a price tag is the Confederation president. Now she is sending Gunnery Sergeant Bass, the men of third platoon, and a single special agent to expose the shadowy figures behind the corruption. And so, on an obscure planet, home to unimaginable treasure and an unsettling species, the toughest fighters in Human Space confront their fiercest battle. For there will be no losers in this war, only the triumphant, the dead, and the vanished…

Hangfire

Six agents have died hideously trying to penetrate the crime families behind a vast empire of pleasure and debauchery Now it’s up to the Marines to break the circle. Most people will visit Havanagas only in their dreams, for few can afford the exclusive resort planet that recreates ancient worlds and caters to every taste. Witches are burned at the stake in medieval towns while riotous hordes fill Rome’s Coliseum to watch gladiators battle. Even the basest of human lusts are satiated by deadly sex acts and a thriving slave trade. The crime bosses’ control of Havanagas and its people is brutally effective. Now three Marines from Co. L’s 3rd Platoon masquerading as discharged military buddies on holiday are going in to break the kingpins’ bloody stranglehold. From bordellos and rebellious enclaves to the very pit of the Coliseum filled with deadly beasts, Corporal Pasquin and Lance Corporals Claypoole and Dean face certain death with only their wits and skills as weapons. But they’re Marines, built to survive…
.

Kingdom’s Swords

The Marines were told it was a simple peasant rebellion
but the mission proved to be far deadlier…
.

Gunny Charlie Bass isn t the only Marine mystified by the order sending the entire 34th to put down a few seditious serfs on planet Kingdom. Rumors swirl of a deadly alien invasion. But few believe that such sentient beings exist. Except Gunny Bass and the Marines of the 3rd platoon, who once fought enemy aliens called Skinks fierce, fanatical fighters with hideous weapons who attack for no other reason but to kill.

Then, while slogging through Kingdom’s fetid swamps, the Marines are attacked by awesome unseen weapons that could destroy half a platoon with one shot. Clearly they are facing no normal enemy. And if their adversaries are Skinks, one FIST isn t enough. Third platoon s orders are to penetrate deeper into the bloody jungle hell and find out what happens when a few good men bite the bullet…
.

Kingdom’s Fury

A few good Marines beat the fierce, fanatical aliens once before. But that was a skirmish not a full scale invasion. The truth is out. No longer are the Skinks just a horrible secret haunting the Marines of Company L. Now the aliens are all too real invaders whose savage attacks have devastated planet Kingdom, a world of squabbling religions where the men of the 34th FIST confront a desperate situation. Cities that haven t already been reduced to rubble are under siege, while starving refugees roam the land. And still the Skinks come, rising from stinking primordial swamps to slake their thirst for slaughter, armed with an uncanny ability to locate the enemy and with weapons so deadly that a single blast can drop a warplane or a decimate a squad. It’s painfully evident that 34th FIST is no match for these near invincible killers, which is why third platoon s been ordered to whip the citizens of Kingdom into fighting shape. With their backs to the wall and time running out, there s only one way the Marines can turn these timid, quarrelsome men into warriors: Take the battle to the enemy. It s a brilliant strategy, sure to succeed if it doesn t get them killed first…
.

Lazarus Rising

The hugely popular Starfist saga featuring Marines at war in outer space is the only military science fiction series written by real combat vets: David Sherman and Dan Cragg. Now comes the explosive hardcover debut of this series packed with hell torn action and blazing adventure.

In their fiercest combat yet, the hard charging Marines of 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team FIST have finally won their battle against a full scale alien invasion of planet Kingdom. But victory over these savage enemies comes at a terrible price, especially for the Marines of Company L’s decimated third platoon. The leader these men would follow into hell itself Gunnery Sergeant Charlie Bass was consumed in a fiery ambush that obliterated everything but his dog tags and a few scraps of DNA.

On planet Kingdom, citizens try to return to some semblance of normalcy as the military conducts patrols to search out and destroy any remaining alien Skinks. The old government of squabbling religious leaders has been replaced by a ruthless new regime. All power rests with Dominic de Tomas, a depraved despot who will stoop to any means to achieve his vile ends. His reign of terror bodes ill for the fragile planet still reeling from the chaos of war.

In a cave in some forgotten Kingdom backwater, several humans slowly regain consciousness. Their minds have been probed repeatedly…
by whom and for what reason they cannot say, for they ve been stripped of all memories of themselves and their past lives. In time wounds will heal, but who knows if they will ever fully recover.

For now, finding food and water takes precedence. And so these half dead outcasts begin a journey into the unknown in search of civilization, in search of themselves. And one survivor s journey will take him to places of overwhelming danger, where his identity will be revealed to the shock of all.

From the Hardcover edition.

A World of Hurt

With its down and dirty depiction of warfare written by men who know what it’s like to be under fire, the Starfist saga is a runaway success across America. Now, in the explosive new Starfist adventure, packed with fierce action and danger, Marines at war in future space find themselves pitted against a faceless, insatiable foe bent on destroying them. And that s just for starters.

How bad is the upcoming mission facing the battle hardened Marines of 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team FIST, the military s unofficial alien first contact force? Bad enough to make the brass take the unprecedented step of issuing 34th FIST replacements for combat losses before the Marines even leave their home base.

In response to a series of unexplained deaths on a lonely outpost on the frontiers of human space, 34th FIST has been dispatched to investigate and eradicate the problem. Beyond that, the information available to Gunnery Sergeant Charlie Bass and his men is meager even by Marine standards. No one knows what awaits them, for the newly colonized world remains largely unexplored. That means 34th FIST can expect creatures they have never seen, or even heard of, much less trained for. It could be Skink acid shooters, could be anything, for the barren station has several secrets all of them deadly.

But the last thing these Marines expect to find is themselves in the middle of an invasion and a mysterious war with none other than 34th FIST as Enemy 1. Whatever happens, they ll deal with it, because they re Marines, determined to be ready…
and to give worse than they get.

From the Hardcover edition.

Flashfire

Packed with hard core action written by battle savvy combat veterans, the explosive Starfist series has become hugely popular across America. Now the saga of the courageous Marines continues in Flashfire, as the 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team FIST ventures to the edge of Human Space to fight a number of enemies…
some on their own side.

Tensions erupt between the Confederation and several frontier worlds when civilians are shot dead at an army base on the planet Ravenette. Enraged, the Ravenette government and nine neighboring planets form a coalition, and their first act of secession is to overrun Ravenette’s Confederation garrison. With the armed forces of ten worlds seizing the brutal upper hand, the embattled troops need help now and they need it bad.

Enter the Marines of the 34th FIST. As the nearest ready to deploy unit, the team is sent to Ravenette with orders to hold the line until reinforcements arrive. The upcoming operation promises to be no picnic, for while sophisticates may ridicule the backward ways of the uncouth frontier folk, no one scoffs at their fighting ability.

Charlie Bass doesn t mince words for his men in Company L s third platoon. Two army divisions perhaps thirty thousand soldiers are being overwhelmed, and somebody expects a thousand Marines to save the day. As pompous Confederation generals wreak even more havoc than the enemy, there are those who call the mission suicide…
but not the Marines.

Of course it sounds hopeless, but for Marines like Charlie Bass and the rest of the 34th FIST, accomplishing the impossible comes with the territory.

From the Hardcover edition.

Firestorm

Combat vets David Sherman and Dan Cragg know firsthand the courage, sacrifice, and hell of war and their experiences have made the popular Starfist novels thrill rides of the highest order. Now the explosive action continues on the remote planet Ravenette, where the Marines of the Confederation’s 34th Fleet Initial Strike Team FIST find themselves up against a full fledged rebellion and a lethally loose cannon of a commanding officer. Desperate to thwart unrelenting aliens and their quest to obliterate humankind, The Confederation has beefed up its defenses. But to the citizens on the outer edges of Human Space around Ravenette unaware that a deadly enemy even exists the government s move seems oppressive, and ten planets have responded with a war of secession. In touch and go battles with the seceding planets, the 34th FIST has emerged battered but unbowed, refusing to give up…
even while under the command of a fanatical general. The enemy determined to strike, a new mission must be carried out, though the troops will likely return in body bags. Should Ensign Charlie Bass and his Marines somehow survive the nightmarishly difficult amphibious landing, they can expect to be outmanned, outgunned, and out armored in a fierce duel against fresh soldiers. But like any Marine worth his salt, Bass knows there s only one way to go when facing impossible odds: on the offense with all guns firing. There s no other choice because if life was easy, there d be no need to send in the Marines. From the Hardcover edition.

Wings of Hell

No one captures the action and sacrifice of war better than real combat vets David Sherman and Dan Cragg. Now their blazing space epic Starfist continues as Marines of the Confederation’s Thirty fourth Fleet Initial Strike Team FIST go head to head against the deadly Skinks. Of course, Company L s third platoon has fought these aliens before, but never before in these numbers…
.

Planet Haulover has been invaded by Skinks. Until now the aliens existence has been kept confidential. But Force Recon s shocking report leaves the Confederation no choice but to mount a military campaign and reveal to the public its biggest secret: the threat of fierce alien predators bent on human destruction. What s no secret is that the four army divisions and two Marine FISTs sent to Haulover aren t nearly enough to defeat the well entrenched aliens, who have a tunnel system second to none.

Back home, the Confederation s president is being denounced as a warmonger bent on exterminating harmless aliens. And if she loses the upcoming elections, the Confederation will have a lot more Skinks than those on Haulover to worry about.

Newly promoted Lieutenant Charlie Bass and his third platoon have more pressing concerns, such as staying alive. But what would be a suicidal mission for most whether it s raiding a well defended Skinks base or destroying the enemy s most lethal weapons during a desperate firefight is for them just another job.

From the Hardcover edition.

Double Jeopardy

The thrilling pace of the Starfist space epic quickens as the explosive series rockets to dazzling new heights, packed with the hell for leather action only two battle hardened and decorated combat vets like David Sherman and Dan Cragg can provide. The Confederation has finally disclosed the existence of Skinks, fierce aliens bent on wiping out humankind, and announced its plan to find and destroy their home world. While the rest of the universe grapples with the news, the Skink savvy Marines of the Confederation’s Thirty fourth Fleet Initial Strike Team FIST have their own take on the situation. Though they’re no longer in danger of being exiled to a ghastly netherworld for spilling the beans about the deadly aliens, the men still can’t transfer out of the unit where they’ve been confined since they first laid eyes on the Skinks. The reason is obvious: Who else but the legendary Thirty fourth FIST has the skills and experience to spearhead the invasion of the Skinks’ home world? Morale isn’t improved by a report of Skinks on the uncolonized world of Ishtar near a mercenary force engaged in slave driven mining operations there which means that FIST must turn around and head right back into the jaws of hell with no downtime. But none of that matters to Lieutenant Charlie Bass and the third platoon of Company L. They’re Marines, they’re the best, and they’ve got a job to do. The Marines will find a planet ripped apart by all out war, with enemies on all sides. The only certainty is that the fighting will rage red hot and relentless, and Charlie Bass and his men will be right in the thick of the action.

Backshot

An exciting new special ops adventure from the battle tested vets who created the popular Starfist series

Jorge Lavager, charismatic leader of the mysterious Union of Margelan, ferociously guards an agricultural research facility on the planet Atlas. What that facility conceals will prove whether Lavager is an idealist seeking to unify Atlas under a banner of freedom and prosperity or a tyrant aiming to control all of Human Space.

The Marines of Fourth Force Recon’s second platoon are dispatched to Atlas to uncover the truth. They will have to sneak past state of the art surveillance equipment barring unlawful entry to the planet and land in a desolate area miles from their target. And if they discover lethal new weapons instead of legitimate research, the thirty six Marines are to seize the compound guarded by merciless, armed to the teeth soldiers and destroy it. But what the recon team finds on Atlas sets off a chain of events that will force some hard decisions on the Marines…
and end in a deadly surprise.

Pointblank

A BOLD NEW CONTINGENT FORCE RECON JOINS THE EXPLOSIVE STARFIST SPACE EPIC OF MARINES AT WAR.

A Confederation army is besieged on the planet Ravenette, cut off by and facing destruction at the hands of a dozen Secessionist Coalition worlds arrayed against it. The outnumbered and outgunned forces cling precariously to their foothold, dubbed Bataan by the desperate men in their fighting bunkers. Reinforcements are on the way, but will they arrive in time? And even if they do, can they match the well led, highly motivated enemy determined to destroy them in battle?

But the Confederation commander holds a wild card, an elite force armed only with what they carry on their backs and in their heads: a small detachment of Marines who lightly go where others fear to tread, the Fourth Force Recon Company. For anyone else this mission would be suicide, but for these Marines, it’s just another day in the maelstrom.

Recoil

Swift, silent, and deadly they strike where no one else dares. Fear is the fastest growing crop on Haulover, a newly colonized planet where someone or something is destroying isolated farmhouses. The unseen enemy strikes without warning, then disappears, leaving no stone standing, no trace of families or farm animals. When the Confederation receives a desperate plea for help, it’s time to send in the Marines. Impossible missions are a matter of course for Fourth Force Recon s second platoon squads, and the situation at Haulover with no witnesses and few clues is no exception. But this assignment turns out to be even tougher and bloodier than usual because the devastation is a ploy to lure the nine Marines into a trap, and to force them to bust the Confederation s terrible secret wide open. And as for the Skinks lying in ambush on Haulover, they have no idea what trouble is…
until they go up against a few good Marines.

Guide to Military Installations

This thoroughly revised 6th edition includes information such as location; history and mission; major units stationed there; housing, schools, and transient billets; and local attractions. Six maps show the location of installations world wide. Individuals, libraries, schools, the media, and private DOD contractors will want this comprehensive source of military installation information. It is invaluable for service members and civilians doing business with the military.