Lakes of Mars

"Gritty, mysterious, and layered . . . An epic science fiction adventure, full of arresting action sequences and thoughtful meditations on aggression and leadership." --Foreword Reviews

"An emotionally charged Ender's Game." --For the Love of the Page

"Had one of the most suspenseful and well-written climaxes that I've read." --Rachel Barnard, author of Ataxia and the Ravine of Lost Dreams

Aaron Sheridan doesn’t want to live anymore. His family just died in a shuttle crash and he’d been the one flying it. The Transit Authority ruled it "instrumentation error," but he knows his mind was drifting. He knows a few millimeters wouldn't have made a difference. And unable to handle the guilt, he signs up for the Fleet expecting a fatal deployment to the Rim War . . . but is instead assigned to their most prestigious command school, Corinth Station.

The school's infamous for its ferocious, sink-or-swim instruction, sporting the highest attrition rates in the Fleet, psychologically breaking and rebuilding students. Initially, Aaron takes the brutality and the Machiavellian tactics of his peers in stride, but after he sticks up for his only friend, he makes himself a target of the most feared cadet on the station, Caelus Erik.

Unsure of whom to trust and worried that anything he does will make others targets as well, Aaron retreats deeper and deeper inside himself, unwilling to play an unwinnable game. However, when he discovers that officer training isn’t the station’s sole purpose, it becomes increasingly clear that risking everything is the safest thing he can do.

This is the first book in the Lakes of Mars series. It contains some graphic language/violence and also has an accompanying soundtrack that can be heard at: https://soundcloud.com/trapdoorsocial/sets/the-lakes-of-mars-soundtrack.

What other reviewers are saying:

"Graves takes the time to build everybody complex, even the expected bullies. One could say, especially the bullies. Harrowing to the max." --Sherwood Smith, Author of the Crown Duel Series

"Brings raw emotion and inner demons to the shoot-‘em-up realm of military science fiction."--IndieReader

"Gripping science fiction . . . Graves does an incredible job of obliterating the well-known assumptions to make room in this fast-paced, ensemble based novel . . . Almost all of the characters you come in contact with become emotional attachments." --Rachel's Writing: Ramblings, Ravings, and Reviews

"Aaron is a great character, an introspective teenager who struggles with what is happening around him. The other characters . . . burst into the life as the story progresses, and the book goes from “meh!” to “Holy crap, Batman, I can’t put this down!” --Al Wrote A Book

"The plot is complex and very well thought-out . . . The pacing was impeccable . . ." --The Digressive Approach Blog

"Fascinating and suspenseful, with cinematic quality sequences." --Girl Who Reads Blog

"A well-detailed, complex story that centers on destruction, rebirth, and the emergence of new threats in the face of stress and violence." --D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

"The writing is rich and detailed . . . as well as flowing dialogue that moves the story quickly. 500+ pages and I STILL read it in a single day." --T.B. Cooper, author of the House of Tentagel

"The interweaving of personal development with movement was superb . . . All characters morph under the hot cauldron of daily military strife." --Koeur's Book Reviews

"An action-packed, breakneck-paced science fiction adventure." --Blueink

"The descriptions were rich and the action was thrilling . . . the payoff was worth it." --Citygirlscapes