So, of course, she'd jumped at the chance to go to Crucible---the Marine Corps training planet---as a temporary aide to Major Svensson. The major had been reduced to little more than a brain and a spinal cord in his last combat, and he and his doctor were anxious to field-test his newly regrown body. It should have been an easy 20-day run. After all, Crucible was only set up to simulate battle situations so that recruits could be trained safely. But they were barely on-planet when someone started blasting the training scenarios to smithereens. Suddenly, Kerr found herself not only responsible for the major and his doctor but caught in a desperate fight to keep a platoon of Marine recruits alive until someone could discover what was happening on Crucible.
©2008 Tanya Huff; (P)2009 Tantor
"Just outstanding"
And fun. A few authors, like Heinlein, are able to create characters and tell stories that pull you in. You feel like you are part of another reality. Stories like The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Starship Troopers, or the more recent Old Man's War by John Scalzi are all examples. You find yourself caring about the characters AND the world in which they live. Tanya Huff is another such author. Like Heinlein's Starship Troopers, it is about warfare in faraway places but it doesn't glorify war. I happened on a paperback with Huff's first two books in this series, and was delighted to find the whole series on audio. Good stories, good narrator, a lot of action. They could really be listened to in any order, but I recommend starting at the beginning, Valor's Choice, to avoid the spoilers.