Forsaken Skies

Horror author David Wellington's first book under the Clark pseudonym is an entertaining military space adventure tale that's got just enough new twists to keep readers interested, even when they think they know where it's going. Tannis Valk is an injured war veteran who's working on a space station, where the low gravity won't aggravate his burns. Thanks to a series of events triggered by a nearby space battle, he meets up with legendary pilot (and former foe) Aleister Lanoe, and the two of them are in turn drawn into an alien invasion of a distant agricultural planet. Clark throws a lot of characters into the mix, including the stowaway "elders" from the planet, an AWOL con artist soldier, and the patricidal son of a rich man who was created solely as an organ donor. The invaders are interesting and threatening, and though their eventual big revelation isn't a shocking one, they still make for solid antagonists. The thorough world-building (including an interesting political system) makes this is a solid series launch, and readers allergic to cliffhangers will be delighted by the firm ending. Agent: Russell Galen, Scovil Chichak Galen Literary. (Sept.)