Cry Pilot

By: Joel Dane

Narrated by: David Shih

A devastated Earth. Rogue bio-weapons. And a recruit with secrets. In this explosive new military science fiction novel, a tight-knit infantry squad is thrown into battle against a mysterious enemy that appears without warning and strikes without mercy.

There's only one way for a man with Maseo Kaytu's secrets to join the military: by volunteering for a suicide mission as a 'cry pilot'. He cheats the system to survive, but you can't fake basic training. Assigned to a squad of misfits, Kaytu learns how to fight, how to obey, and how to trust. Yet the more he bonds with his fellow recruits, the more he risks exposure of his criminal past.

Keeping his secret is about to become the least of his problems. Kaytu discovers that his platoon is being deployed against a new kind of rogue bio-weapon. One that has torn apart every military force it's ever faced . . . .

Critic reviews

Praise for Cry Pilot

“I picked it up, I started reading. I kept reading. This is that kind of book, intense, involving, with intriguing world development. Recommended. Joel Dane is a writer to watch.”—C.J. Cherryh, author of the Foreigner series

“Joel Dane's Cry Pilot is a hyperkinetic and unflinching battle narrative that never loses sight of the truth of being a soldier: the squad comes before all else. Told with momentum and immediacy, Cry Pilot is authentic, exciting, and excellent.”—Marko Kloos, author of Terms of Enlistment

“In Cry Pilot, Joel Dane has imagined a fascinating high-tech future Earth where ecological collapse and runaway evolution have conspired to create enemies no army has ever encountered before. Told through the eyes of a young soldier seeking to escape a grim past, the action-packed plot holds tight to a human dimension.”—Linda Nagata, author of The Red Trilogy

“Awesome read!”—Nico Lathouris, screenwriter, Mad Max: Fury Road

“Riveting action paired with a sharp psychoemotional landscape combine for the explosive launch of a futuristic trilogy....an intriguing, thoughtful exploration of what a corporatized future might look like, liberally peppered with scenes of military life.”—Publishers Weekly

“Reads like a well crafted video game, but with more heart. It would have been easy for this story to be all intense, all the time, but with the "found family" story weaved in, you will find an unexpected amount of family here. The stakes are high for these characters making this book impossible to put down.”—Pure Fandom

“A diverting read for die-hard fans of military science fiction.”—Booklist

Slow start but worth it

Reminded me of Starship Trooper in a way, but very entertaining. It was a slow start but worth the wait as it picked up and became more action packed and the characters more developed.

Really enjoyed this book

Bought on a whim and LOVED the story and the band of brothers / aliens squad vibe sci-fi done right

This book was a surprise I fell inlove with

In full honesty, I bought this book at the dollar store. Probably three years ago. I just wanted some cool books to put on my bookshelf. I like military things, I saw the front. I saw the back and I bought it anyway just because I thought it’d be interesting. I never thought I would actually read it. This year I started reading one book a month. I started with a lot of romances, but I finally decided to read this book after noticing it on my bookshelf. By far, it has been my personal favorite this year, for reference it’s July so I’ve read seven books. I only got the audiobook to finish up the last couple chapters because I was going to be on a hike. I didn’t expect to like it enough to have to read the sequels but I guess now I’m going to be doing that. Now I know what my August and September books are going to be.

For reference, you would probably like this book if you like military dramas with a little bit of dystopian. I really liked hunger games and maze Runner, and this held my attention.

excellent book!

Detailed Gibsonian prose and rich world building. First person narrative immerses you in conflict and situations. Heinlein style squad dynamics. With well-drawn teammates. Some excellent trope characters freshly realized. Awesome chaste romance with rooting interest and mature resolution. A little bit Anime. A little bit Halo. I'm looking forward to following the story in the other books. Readers performance was excellent. Confirmed!

A fresh take on military sci-fi

Both the narrator and the writing was great, avoids over used tropes in the genre. The beginning didn't initially grab me, but I was quickly sucked in after that