Collateral Effects

Drop Trooper, Book 14

By: Rick Partlow

Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin

So close to home...

And yet farther away than ever.

Cam, Vicky, and the others follow the jump gate line into the Reconstructor systems, hoping to find the Northwest Passage back to Earth…back home.

Instead, they find death and destruction.

And an ancient mystery.

Something has wiped out one world after another, not a fleet of aliens, not a natural disaster, but a single enemy.

A remnant of an old war, a doomsday weapon in the form of an insidious contagion that could infect one of their own.

And if it does, it won’t just be the end of Cam and the crew of the Orion…it’ll mean the end of the human race.

Book 14 in the Amazon best-selling Drop Trooper series by Rick Partlow is here. It's military sci-fi the way it's supposed to be!

©2023 Aethon Books (P)2025 Aethon Audio

Love this series!

I love these books and the narrator always does an amazing job. I just wish they came out faster it’s been almost 8 months since the last one came out before this.

Great book

I truly love Vic and Cam. This book is great and unbelievable twists leaves you on the edge of your seat

Great story

Another great book in this series. I can’t believe it’s winding down. I love this series.

Plot went completely wacko

Such a good series turned in to some Goku ahh plot with powers that make no sense

Hey Rick, I'll read Book 15 for free, let's get er done! YouTube, @LeadWell

Delta's first then Positives second in this review.
DELTA'S: In the last two installments I felt either Cam is exhibiting a classic case of burnout or the authkr has forgotten the value in writi g about people's progression and kilestones as leaders when they work their way up the COC. I would have loved to see him progress as a leader. Perhaps recalling memories of Capt. Covington, Top & Lt. Ackersly's lsssons and wisdoms as he strugglss as a new mission commander developing his own leaders within the Drop Trooper Teams. Listening to him grow into the mantle of Commander as he groomed new leaders coming up seemed like a logical part of the story but never came. He mentions the need to regain a stricter adherence to grooming standards and his use of personal power to address the entids ship through advedsity. This is a thinspot in his writing with Captain Nance and his crew as well. there doesn't even seem tomo be a strong second in command XO character to meef and follow and none of the bridge team have undergone any PRODEV themselves. Feels stagnant. Cam's journey, especially his path to leadershil was one of the wonderful take aways in the earlier books. Now his relucfant approach to lsadership feels off. This aspect of his professional development, leadership maturity and crew developmenf seems like a missed opportunity. I am a new fan of R.P.'s work. As a consumer of these stories, any stories I can only take so many hicuups, dissapointment or hard news before needing our character get a nreak or a win. I feel over the course of the last two books there had been a disproportionate ratio with this. I got to a point where I stopped reading/listening because it got too dark for too ling. As a series it seems to be nothing but suuffering and depressing. I felt that Cam's cleverness and streetsmart skills went under-utilized as well. I just didn't see character progress where I thought I would. POSITIVES; Rick has an extrodinary way of describing the visuals and physical effects of battle in the most descriptive but concise manner than any other author I've read before. His book Drop Trooper: Contact Front came up in my reccommendations after I finished another sci-fi drama. I'm a disabled veteran suffering from PTSD and his remarkable universe gave me something, even if small, to look forward to each day. His delve into Cams brush with alcoholism in Homefront and how Vicky helpdd guide him through it aas so moving and promoted a level of realism in a world's humams who wede not really so different from me amd my struggles. his attention to detail in Cams personal strugglss as well as his flashbacks describing his Momma and Poppa really moved me and gave me some i spiration, happines and yes, even hope. This spark of hope grew and helped me overcome the very dark and lonely place I was trapped in. Having this world and story to look forsadd to everyday gave me something to look fkrsadd to and helped get me "unstuck" in my depression. Major Issue for me was the dissapointment I've experienced TWICE now when reading the title Descriptions for his future books. they gave away waaaaay too many specifics. i just wanted to get the jist of where they were going in their journey, but was shocked to learn critical plot points that were revealed. Real surprises that almost causdd me not to read them. I understand that it is only logical to assume that it would not matter to the person reading these back cover descriptions because the reader has most likely read the previous tifle, but there are people who skim through these to just get an idea of where the characters are in their lives OR if trying to decide IF the book series is something they'dbe jnterested in at all.. In my experiences, these are typically written in a more cryptic manner not giving away major spoilers like deaths and specific answers to whats exactly happening. I was scanning to get a generalized overview about book thirteen (I think) only to find out about Sergeant Major Helen "Top" Cambell being killed. That took so much enjoyment out of listening to the audio boom knowing this was coming. Then there is this title that gives away in the descripfion of what specifically happens with specific mention details to the contagion and the follow on title admitting that Cam had been infected. Dunno, but I strongly reccommend to R. P. that he rethink this approach and consider creating a bit more mystery there.
Besidss that, I am excited to read the other story lines in this universe. I did read the Space Hunted Wars and i wish in those that there were some crossover character involvement. Cameos, specific mentions to missions chadacters have been on that give another perspective to battles or situations that are told in fhe Drop Trooper line. Overall, I will continue following Rick Partlow and give other story series a chance. THANK YOU for all you've done.
Very Respectfully,
BMC Bryan K., USCG (Ret.)