This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Brian H. Roberts will award a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Young Me: I see you’re reading Red Planet Lancers by Brian H. Roberts. How do you like it?

Old(er) Me: I like it a lot.

Young Me: What’s the premise?

Old(er) Me: It’s about a future conflict between the US and China. China has a monopoly on rare earth elements. They choked off the supply making it expensive for the US to manufacture anything high tech. An American company, EPSILON, has established a commercial base on Mars to mine rare earth elements, bypassing China’s stranglehold. Complicating things, a Chinese general seized power, declaring himself emperor. He wants to control the Moon and Mars, reestablishing China’s monopoly at America’s expense.

Young Me: Sounds like a plausible scenario. China controls like 85% of rare earth element mines and processing today. The two countries don’t trust each other. An open conflict in the near-future seems possible. So, do the good guys win?

Old(er) Me: I’m only halfway through. But the company has obtained surplus laser-armed flying rovers nicknamed Water Bugs. They created a private militia force to intercept the Mars-bound Chinese flotilla, and tapped the leader of the first mission to Mars as commander. Meanwhile, the civilian Mars colony is preparing to defend itself against the same Colonel who just booted the Americans off the Moon.

Young Me: I’m sold. Where do I get it?

Old(er) Me: Exclusively on Amazon.com. But you’d better hurry. The release price of $2.99 is only good through March 15th. List price is $4.99.

Young Me: That’s the ebook, right? I prefer paperbacks. Does it come in that format?

Old(er) Me: It does, for $16.99.

Young Me: I’m on it. Thanks for the tip!

Old(er) Me: You’re welcome. Happy reading.

How far will you go to save a friend?

After sweeping Dallas Gordon and the American base from Earth’s moon, Emperor Zhang Aiguo launches an armada to conquer Ep City and control Mars.

Ruthless Colonel Song Dajing leads his Emperor’s flotilla to defeat EPSILON’s isolated Mars colony. He brings the same armaments he used to defeat Dallas Gordon on the moon, plus a high yield missile to annihilate Ep City and its occupants. The US Space Force, occupied with plans to take back the moon, refuses to intervene.
In a race against time, Dallas Gordon must organize a mercenary squadron and pursue Song before he can deploy his weapons on the defenseless colony. Ep City commander Genady Antonov must prepare his civilian workforce for the coming invasion and plan for the unthinkable should Gordon fail to reach Mars before Song does.

Taught and fast-paced, Red Planet Lancers builds tension until the exciting climax. Once you start this Earth-to-Mars rocket ride, you won’t want to stop. Order your copy today!

Enjoy an Excerpt

Steve sat back in his chair and folded his hands together. “I’m sure if some stranger asked you why it’s important to stop Zhang Aiguo from kicking us off Mars, you could tick off several good reasons:” he tapped his fingers with the index finger of his opposite hand, “the oxides returned to us are the lifeblood of our autonomous vehicle division—frankly of the entire western world’s microchip manufacturing capacity. That manufacturing capacity is vital for our national security, and the fight to contain Emperor Zhang.

“But did you know that I donate ten percent of my personal wealth to a number of causes? This organization,” he lifted the upper half of his tee shirt off his chest for emphasis, “community colleges across the country that serve low-income communities, organizations that build and manage housing for the homeless with comprehensive drug, alcohol and mental health treatment, remedial job training, and follow-up support. … “It’s for these reasons that I seek someone to rescue EPSILON from the peril it now faces. In short, I’m seeking a messiah.”

Dallas waited for the shoe to drop.

“I’ve procured the weapons. Half a dozen Water Bugs and their lasers. Now I need someone to recruit, train and lead the pilots. Dallas, will you lead this squadron?”

Dallas felt like he was being examined under a microscope. Steve’s gaze was unflinching. After what felt like an interminable silence, he blurted out, “Yes. I’ll do it.”

About the Author:In his first life, BRIAN H. ROBERTS worked as a contractor and civil engineer in bustling Seattle. In his spare time he read novels by the greatest names in science fiction: Andy Weir, Frank Herbert, Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and so many others. As he read these authors’ works, he was inspired to write Sci-Fi Thrillers to engage and entertain readers like him.
As with so many of us, life intervened. Raising a family, work, remarriage and finally retirement all placed demands on his time. Desiring a change – and time to write – he and his wife traded big city life for the outdoor adventures of Central Oregon. His writing draws deeply on his lifelong loves of science/technology and adventure sports. The EPSILON Sci-Fi Thrillers is Brian’s first series.

Buy the book from Amazon.

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This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Brian H. Roberts will be awarding a $75 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

I first realized I had a knack for writing in my junior high creative writing class. My teacher, Joel Berman, encouraged me to focus on descriptive writing – painting a picture with words. He taught me to observe a scene with my mind’s eye and describe what I see. It’s a skill the most successful writers have all mastered.

I love thrillers. Dean Koonz, Dan Brown, Clive Cussler, Michael Crichton, Lee Child, Lisa Jackson – I can’t read enough of them. At the same time, I love hard Sci-Fi. Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Frank Herbert, Kim Stanley Robinson, Andy Weir. My work is a combination of the two genres – thrillers set in the near-future. I incorporate the action, suspense and surprises of the thriller genre, as I hew closely to real-world science and physics and where it will take us in the next fifteen years or so.

So how does a love for reading translate into a love of writing? All those bad guys I concoct are really just there to provide adversity for my protagonists to overcome. At my core I’m an optimist. I believe that good will always triumph – maybe not today, but it will always triumph in the end. So, I love to tell the story of the struggle of good over evil, charity over malice, concern for one’s fellow man (or woman) over selfishness, love over hate. In many ways its personally cathartic to write. And I hope, entertaining for those who read what I write. So buckle up and come along for the ride!

How do you fight a hidden adversary on Mars?

Dallas Gordon’s miners keep disappearing. Back on Earth, general Zhang Aiguo has seized control of the Chinese military and declared himself emperor. His forces have secretly dispatched to the Red Planet to plunder EPSILON’s hard-won treasure.

Time is running out. Can Dallas Gordon and the Prospector team find Zhang’s hidden bases before they are all killed?

Enjoy an Excerpt

“I’ve lost contact with Dave!”

Allie stood in the shop doorway, her eyes wide as saucers.

Dallas looked up from the shop bench, saw the panic in her eyes, and started toward the door. He briskly accompanied her to the common room.

“Tell me everything you know.”

Allie spoke in a torrent, “I compiled the latest welfare check just five minutes ago. The drill rig was still parked at Site 7. Dave and Number Two were positioned a hundred yards to the northwest of the drill rig. Dave’s heart rate, respiration and core temp were all nominal. Radio check was normal, using MGPS comm band.”

Allie sat down hard at the communication console.

“I no sooner sent the report to you and Doc when I looked up at the MGPS locator map and saw this!”

She stabbed an index finger at the display. Dallas followed her extended finger to the screen. A solid X labeled “Drill Rig” occupied the center of the screen. Three inches higher and to the left, another X was labelled “Site 7.” Other than topographic contour lines, the screen was blank.
Dallas ordered, “Show me where Dave and Number Two were located when you compiled the welfare report.”

Allie’s finger slid a few inches higher and to the left, then hovered over the X at Site 7.

About the Author:In his first life, Brian worked as a contractor and civil engineer in bustling Seattle. Desiring a change, he and his wife traded big city life for the outdoor adventures of Central Oregon. His writing draws deeply on his lifelong loves of science/technology and adventure sports. His EPSILON Sci-Fi Thriller series now boasts two novels: Red Dragon and Crimson Lucre.

Buy the book at Amazon.

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