Centers of Gravity

Frontlines, Book 8

By: Marko Kloos

Narrated by: Eric G. Dove

Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

Stranded light-years from home, Major Andrew Grayson and his crew are on a desperate mission to discover the Lankies’ secrets. They can’t let what they’ve found die with them.

Nine hundred light-years from home, Major Andrew Grayson and the crew of NACS Washington are marooned in a sunless system with limited water, reactor fuel, and food. The last hope for survival is to go where nothing human has gone before.

After embarking on a scouting mission to the only moon with surface signs of life, Andrew and his Special Tactics Team make two startling discoveries. One is a dream: a form of protein and plant life that could save the starving humans in the rogue system. The second is a nightmare: this harvested rock is infested with Lankies. Far from the seemingly mindless aggressors Andrew has battled for years, these show a terrifying awareness, and they have surprising secrets of their own hidden away in the darkness.

When the Lankies sense an uninvited presence in their world, Andrew’s operation becomes an expedition to hell. The odds against his small crew are stacked high. Of all the mysteries of space, how to escape with their lives is the greatest unknown of all.

©2022 Marko Kloos (P)2022 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“…flawlessly performed by the narrative talents of Eric G. Dove who brings this science fiction adventure come to life in a true 'theatre of the mind' experience. …strongly recommended.” (Midwest Book Review)

Good (realistic) ending to a great series

I really enjoyed this series. Great character and world building. Good pacing. It’s not all action and explosions. Instead, there is a good flow and mix of interpersonal relationships and solid military sci-if.
Several reviewers complained about the ending feeling unfinished. However I appreciated that the author did not wrap the series up with a tidy little bow. Instead, it felt realistic. More of an ending for the main character than the whole story. Hopefully that means there will be more stories set in this same world.
Last note regarding the narrator. Yes, the narrator changed and the voices are a bit different. But both narrators do a great job of telling the story. If either narrator performed the entire series, no one would say boo. It’s only because there was a change. Just enjoy the narration for the good storytelling it provides, rather than focusing on how one narrator might differ from the other.

Wow!

What an amazing story in a series that held me captivated each and every book. I wait for each Marko Kloos story with anticipation. This was another winner! More please!

Life goes on, so does the war.

I have enjoyed every installment of this series immensely. It's consistently kept me engaged and wanting more.

As much as I would have liked to see the full scope of this conflict play out, I really loved the perspective of one man's part in the greater whole. It only makes sense that a conflict of this scale would extend beyond the career of one soldier.

The only critique I have is that the narrator changed in books 7 & 8. It was a little jarring, but these things happen.

What a fantastic series

I enjoyed listening to this series. Marko Kloos is a great writer. If you haven't listened to any of the books in the series you should take the time to listen to them. Fantastic. It's sad to see this series is at its end.

ran out of steam or a perfect ending?

If you’ve made it this far in the story I recommend the read. Sad to see it end as I feel this universe still has more to give! The last book was short and this book is short probably should’ve been combined into one but what can you do. Not quite the satisfying end to the war that I was expecting but an absolute beautiful end to the character that we’ve been following for these years. I would love to see a anthology or a short story set years in the future talking about the legend that was Grayson and his contributions.

A satisfying conclusion.

The cliffhanger at the end of book seven wasn’t my favourite, but Mr Kloos comes through and finishes of the story of Andrew and Halley in a satisfying way while leaving the universe open to new adventures. It’s been a heck of a ride since I picked up his first self published novel - pre Amazon and the pretty cover - and all well worth it.

Love the Frontlines series

When do they turn this into a series? Hoping we get the conclusion to this story and another episode.

Amazing conclusion to Andrew’s story and great performance

I was wary of starting this book based on initial reviews, but I genuinely do not understand the negative reviews of Eric’s performance or of Marlo’s writing here. I think the storyline was fantastic and had a great ending. Sure, some things are left unanswered, but that’s for more books in the Frontlines universe to answer. Eric Dove did a great job narrating this book. Sure, we were all used to Luke Daniels voicing of Andrew in the early books, but I honestly didn’t find the change that jarring and quite enjoyed Eric’s narration. Give this book a listen, you won’t be disappointed!

Military sci fi at its finest

For those of us who've been there and truly understand. Plot is excellent, emotionally invested in the characters, knowledgeable about life in the military. Thank you Marko for this series.

Disappointing

Disappointing. Mostly first person blather with little dialogue. It is Kloos, so it's a well-constructed story with a good plot line, but it didn't hold my attention.