The Road to Damascus (Bolos)

When a ruthless political regime seizes power on a world struggling to recover from alien invasion, a former war hero finds herself leading a desperate band of freedom fighters. Kafari Khrustinova, who fought Deng infantry from farmhouses and barns, finds herself struggling to free her homeworld from an unholy political alliance, headed by the charismatic and ambitious Vittori Santorini, which has seduced her young daughter with its propaganda and subverted the planet's Bolo, using the war machine to crush all political opposition. To free her homeworld, Kafari must somehow cripple or kill the Bolo she once called friend. Unit SOL-0045, "Sonny," is a Mark XX Bolo, self-aware and intelligent. When Sonny's human commander is forced off-world, Sonny tries to navigate his way through ambiguous moral and legal issues, sinking into deep confusion and electronic misery. He eventually faces a dark night of the soul, with no guarantee that he will understand-let alone make-the right decision. And caught in the middle of this volatile battlefield is Yalena Khrustinova, Kafari's young daughter. Will she open her eyes in time to save herself-and millions of innocents-or will Santorini's relentless brainwashing campaign continue to blind her while the tyrant engineers the ultimate destruction of a helpless and enslaved population?

Based on a story fragment by Keith Laumer, creator of the Bolo Brigade. When a ruthless political regime seizes power on a world struggling to recover from alien invasion, a former war hero finds herself leading a desperate band of freedom fighters.

John Ringo is the author of the New York Times best-selling Posleen War series, so far comprising A Hymn Before Battle, Gust Front, When the Devil Dances, and Hell's Faire. He is also co-author with David Weber of the Prince Roger series, so far consisting of March Upcountry, March to the Sea, and March to the Stars. He has appeared on Fox News as a guest commentator and has written an op-ed column for The New York Post. A veteran of the 82nd Airborne, he brings first-hand knowledge of battle and the military life to his SF.

Linda Evans is coauthor with Robert Asprin of four novels in the Time Scout series for Baen, and has also collaborated with him on the recent For King & Country. An expert on weapons both modern and ancient, she puts her expertise to good use in her science fiction. She has also written the novel Far Edge of Darkness (Baen), and has written short novels for earlier volumes in the popular Bolo series. She lives in Archer, FL.