The Cost of Victory: Crimson Worlds, Book 2
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The Cost of Victory: Crimson Worlds, Book 2 Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Jay Allan (Author, Publisher), Jeff Bower (Narrator)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 1,578 ratings
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The Third Frontier War is raging, and all across human-occupied space worlds are burning. Massive fleets struggle for dominance and kilometer-long war ships exchange thermonuclear barrages.

Battered in the early years of the war, the Western Alliance is resurgent. The brilliant Admiral Augustus Garret leads the Alliance fleet from victory to victory, taking the war to the very heart of the enemy empires. And on the ground, Colonel Erik Cain, hero of the Marine Corps, leads his crack troops again into combat, seeking the final battle.

In the background, the secretive intelligence agencies of the despotic Superpowers plot and scheme, using their own soldiers as pawns in the great game for control of space.

But the final battle will be fought in the reddish sands of a backwater world, and the prize will be the staggering secret that has lain hidden in a remote cave for untold centuries.

All the Powers struggle for the ultimate victory, but at what cost?

The Cost of Victory is the second book in the Crimson Worlds series and the sequel to Marines.

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  1. Listening Length
    10 hours and 10 minutes
  2. Author
    Jay Allan
  3. Narrator
    Jeff Bower
  4. Audible release date
    January 31, 2013
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Jay Allan
  7. ASIN
    B00B8NMH7W
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 10 hours and 10 minutes
Author Jay Allan
Narrator Jeff Bower
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date January 31, 2013
Publisher Jay Allan
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B00B8NMH7W
Best Sellers Rank #208,193 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#2,340 in Military Science Fiction (Audible Books & Originals)
#3,290 in Space Opera Science Fiction (Audible Books & Originals)
#11,917 in Military Science Fiction (Books)

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
1,578 global ratings
Syfy at its best.
4 Stars
Syfy at its best.
This was a great sci-fi read. Very involved and well plotted, it kept my interest and kept me reading. I would recommend this book.
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Top reviews from the United States

Roger J. Buffington
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent sequel to "Marines"
Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2013
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This is the second installment in the "Crimson Worlds" series and it faithfully carries on the riveting story of the first novel. In this second novel we become more familiar with the nature of the corrupt Earth governments, particularly that of the Western Alliance. Author Allan's future North American government is a repressive state in which individual liberty was slowly encroached upon by the Government as a series of trade-offs for safety, government handouts, and other convenient (to the government) pretexts. In this future world, the politician class controls all wealth and all besides, the relatively small middle class is terrorized by the ruling politician-class and lives in fear of losing their meager privileges and possessions. The large underclass, comprised of the the majority of "citizens" (subjects, really) live with no utilities, law, or hope. It is from these that Marine recruits are derived.

Surprising for a military science fiction novel, the characterizations here are pretty good. The author does not merely narrate space battles and political intrigue; there are some excellent character developments in this novel that help give the series an excellent continuity.

This novel features exciting space and ground battles, juxtaposed with good characterizations and interesting political intrigue. The author's view of the future North American government is depressing, particularly for its plausible extrapolation from today's political trends. Once the politicians control the dispensing of wealth and privilege and make a majority of the citizenry dependent upon this largesse, the end of republican government is in sight. But there is hope here as well, in the interstellar colonies where personal initiative and individualism still flourish. This sets the stage for the third novel, which is well worth checking out as well. RJB.
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Toph
4.0 out of 5 stars Great Followup!
Reviewed in the United States on February 25, 2013
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This is the second book of the Crimson Worlds series. It follows "Marines", which is a very good start to the series.
Jay Allan follows up on his successful first book with the same concise intensity he used in "Marines". Mr. Allan paints vivid combat pictures without getting overly detailed. This helps in keeping the story flowing well and keeps the reader engaged in the story.
In this book, Allan keeps the same strong characters as the first book and the reader sees them grow in depth. He also adds some new characters, both good and bad, which only enhances the overall story. Also added is the geo-politics of Earth and introduces the reader to the corruptness of Earth's remaining governments. It's funny how things have not changed much in two centuries. I would have liked to see this change a little more.
Overall this is a great series. Allan uses science in a very plausible way and is not too fantastic about it, keeping it to a believable interpretation of 23rd century technology.
Jay Allan has created a good series and I am looking forward to continue reading more.
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Lise De Saint-Romain
5.0 out of 5 stars A very good story
Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2013
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I was a little circumspect when I bought the first book. But it was in fact very good, with a well developed universe, and characters which have a real depth.
It was very difficult to stop reading before the last page.
This second book is a good as the first, and I will read the third episode as soon as I can...
Of course, the technology is not very in sync with what it should be in two centuries but, this is an other story.
In summary, It was a very good reading.
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Richard G. Maner
4.0 out of 5 stars Second in the series. Still a very good read and you aren't left hanging.
Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2014
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As I stated in my review of "Marines", this is a very good scifi book. The second in a series. If you are into series scifi, go for it. Good characters. Lots of action. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is it is a series. Each book doesn't perfectly stand alone. Cost of Victory does end in such a way that you don't absolutely have to buy the next. My take on Series books is that if you do a good enough job of character building and the story line is good enough, you want to see what comes next but are not forced to buy the next book. So far this follows those lines. If, as I purchase future editions in the series it getLs to the point that you are left hanging and must buy the next book I will stop and refuse to buty any more from that author. But since this hasn't happened here, read this book!
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Andrew Pollack
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow. On par with anything Jack Campbell has written
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2013
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I purchased this one right after finishing the first in the series, and I have to say that this was entirely different and in my opinion a far superior work. While the first was largely a series of battles and growth experience as seen from a young soldier's viewpoint, this is a true novel with a complex story line and additional perspectives.

The only thing I see here that could be a problem for some, is that those who most loved the starkness and simplicity of the first novel may find the abrupt change means that they're not getting what they expect. For me, that was a step in a positive direction but it is unusual for such a change to come between books in a series.

I would put this on par with Jack Campbell -- and maybe even above it because the relationships aren't as annoying as they can be in Campbell's books.
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Top reviews from other countries

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roguetrooper
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic voyage in to conflict in space
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 21, 2020
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This book takes you further into the service life of a marine as no other book I have read it takes you on a vertual tour of a large scale tactical encounter and into a strategic encounter of massive proportions. I cannot wait to start the next book in the series
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HillTree
4.0 out of 5 stars Simply put - Brilliant,
Reviewed in Australia on January 11, 2017
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Every bit as good as the first book. Highs and lows, it piles on the steam and barrels along. Nice build of characters and the battles they find themselves in. This is an author who should be mainstream. Do read the books.
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Kindle-Kunde
4.0 out of 5 stars Gelungener Krieg mit nachvollziehbarem Abschluss
Reviewed in Germany on March 25, 2013
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Nach dem durchschnittlichen ersten Teil hat Jay Allen hier ein hervorragendes Werk nachgeliefert.
The Cost of Victory erzählt im Gegensatz zum erste Teil (Marines) die Geschichte aus der 3 Person eines allwissenden Erzählers. Dadurch ist es möglich das hier erstmals auch andere Charaktere im Focus stehen, so werden uch der Admiral Augustus Garret und der Geheimdienstleiter Gavin Stark, der wahre Kopf hinter der Allianz zu wichtigen Protagonisten die Teile der Story tragen.
Weiterhin werden auch zahlreiche Nebencharaktere wie z.B. Cains Geliebte Dr.Linden, und sein Menthor General Holm weiter asugebaut und bekommen im Verlauf des Buches zunehmend tiefgang.
Zum Storyverlauf an sich sei nur gesagt das der Autor es schafft den Frontier War in einer Reihe von gelungenen Boden- und erstmals auch Raumkämpfen zu führe , und eine immer besser nachvollziehbare Galaktische und Politische Landkarte zu schaffen, bis es zu einem krönnenden Abschluss kommt der uns zu Cai s erstem Einsatz zurückbringt und vieles in diesem Krieg erklärt.
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John Moes
4.0 out of 5 stars if your a marine fan this is the book for you
Reviewed in Canada on November 21, 2014
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Great second book to the Crimson wold saga......great action and believable story line keep you on the edge of your seat to the last page. Book 3 is a must read now.
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JPS
4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining space warfare, with clichés
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 18, 2015
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This is the second volume of the series, with many more to come. It is a rather good read, provided you know what you are getting yourself into and do not expect too much from it. In other words, this is an entertaining, but a very predictable read with numerous battle scenes and lots of clichés included.

If you are looking for a really original piece of military science fiction, then you might want to look elsewhere and run the risk of being disappointed. If, however, you are just looking for some easy, uncomplicated Entertainment (as I was), then you might like this one. I did, largely because I was not expected very much from it to begin with.

Regarding the clichés, you have, of course, the “goodies” of the Western Alliance made up of what used to be Canada, the US and the UK, at war against the “nasties” of the Caliphate (does I need to explain who they are?) and the CAC (more or less China). The PRC (or Pacific Rim Confederation loosely organised around Japan) sides with the Alliance. The “Empire” (of South America, apparently) takes the other side.

This one is about the Third Frontier War. It takes place in space, but on a larger scale than the previous ones and it is a fight between some of “the Superpowers” for control of planets and their resources outside of the mostly demilitarised solar system.

This book’s strong suit is the various ground battles and space battles so that fans of military science fiction will not be disappointed here. As for the story itself, the ultimate outcome is not exactly a surprise even if each engagement seems to be more desperate than the previous one.

Regarding clichés, there are quite a collection of them. One is about the profiteering and privileged elites who oppress the populations of their various countries on Earth, none of which are democratic anymore. Another is about the ruthless and simply “horrid” intelligence services on all sides that largely rule behind the scenes and will stop at just about nothing to achieved their objectives. A third is about the brave soldiers and naval personnel of the Western Alliance, just about all of which seem to have originated from the lower and oppressed classes (the “cogs”) whose dedication and sense of duty and honour contrast so sharply with the unscrupulousness of the hereditary political and economic elites.

By and large, this was a pleasant and entertaining read and a “nice” piece of escapism, however implausible some of it may be (such as the damage done by thermonuclear explosions in space vacuum). Worth about four stars, for the entertainment.
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