The Armageddon Protocol by Dan Moren

Book Review

Sarah Deeming

ESCHATON. Abort all activities. Lose all trackable tech. Regroup at a safe location.

Not a command that Simon Kovalic expected to give, at least not so soon after completing a mission for the Commonwealth. But his debrief with his superior, General Adaj, is interrupted by Aiden Kester, the head of the Commonwealth Intelligence Directorate, who charges them both with treason. But Kester made a mistake and didn’t secure the rest of the team before going after Kovalic, and he got the message out. With Brody and the others in the wind, Kovalic and Adaj are hunting for the Illyrican mole that has framed them for treason.

The Armageddon Protocol picks up where The Nova Incident left off, with Kovalic and Adaj being arrested for treason. This book brings together all the events from the previous stories, linking everything together for this endgame between the Commonwealth and Empire, so if you haven’t read the previous books, then go and do that because it isn’t a book that can be read in isolation. There is an expectation that you know what has gone before.

There is a great mix of action and good old-fashioned spy craft. We get the exceptional seat-of-your-pants flying we expect from Brody, gun battles with criminal organisations, and aspects of spying, tailing people, surveillance, and clandestine meetings. We get to see each character flourish in what they do best; there are no passengers here, and several side characters from the series reappear to support or hinder as necessary. The whole series has been a wonderful blend of sci-fi and spy genres. It is fast-paced, with answers to all the leftover questions from the previous books, and it comes to a satisfying conclusion.

As expected, there is a heavy atmosphere of distrust as Kovalic finally faces the doubts he’s harboured about General Adaj, an Illryican defector at the heart of the Commonwealth’s defence with access to sensitive information and still with links to his homeland. This leads to some interesting scenes between the two men, as Kovalic is on his own with no one he trusts in his corner. The tension starts high and remains there throughout. This is something that has been building over the series, and it was good to get closure on this aspect.

The Armageddon Protocol is very much the end of the series as we understand it, which meant reading was tinged with sadness, knowing this was going to be the end. However, I loved this book and series as a whole, and I will find the time to go back and reread not just the books I was given to review but also the short stories and preludes that I bought because I loved novels so much I wanted more. Highly recommended.