Hunting Armed Men - US Review of Books

by J. M. Erickson
Emergency Comms Press (ECP)
book review by Philip Zozzaro
US Review of Books

 "“You're about to go all-in to fight and kill them, and they are a reiteration of this Hemingway of a bygone age."

Cassie Kurtz is a hunted woman living in the mountains of Mars, where her closest friend is Alethia, an AI connection. Kurtz is a natural leader whose words and actions can inspire a resistance movement. Robert Lee VI is the executive officer of the Robert E. Lee spaceship, an ambitious man with something to prove. Lee encourages a mutiny among the men so he can assume command of the ship and pursue the rebel, Kurtz. Willard Bennett could educate Lee on the foolhardiness of his quest, as Bennett has tangled with Kurtz before, ending up maimed for his troubles. However, Bennett's life was spared by Kurtz, and he emerged a better person for it. The hunt is on for Kurtz as well as Lee and his collection of mutineers. The year is 2158, and chaos is a constant.

Planet Earth is in the rearview, and the action is on the Red Planet in this fast-paced science fiction novel where a battle for dominance is being waged, primarily between men and women. Lee credibly reflects the entitlement inherent in those born into a renowned lineage; he believes the ship is his birthright, along with the higher rank. These aspirations are counterbalanced by his weak leadership and lack of charisma. Kurtz is well written as a strong, formidable figure who is both calculating and humane. Bennett is the sagacious veteran providing keen analysis of Kurtz and Lee. The conversations between Kurtz and Alethia are astute, often funny, and occasionally touching.

The narrative is vibrant from start to finish and combines enough action and drama to satisfy the reader.

Hunting Armed Men 

By J. M. Erickson

Emergency Comms Press (ECP)

First Officer Robert Lee VI, executive officer of the Robert E. Lee, has a decision to make: Either allow his captain to flagrantly refuse orders and continue his dereliction of duty to bring the terrorist Cassandra Kurtz to justice.  Willard Bennett finds himself embracing his banishment to Mars as a second chance to live a meaningful life for the time he wasted on Earth.  Finally, Cassandra IX, former elite of the Patrician class, convicted insurrectionist on Earth for spreading lies that attacked the core of society, and a terrorist for the hijacking and destruction of Earth ships used as a weapon of mass destruction to obliterate a standing.

Based on Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Hunting Armed Men follows the events of Endless Fall of Night and Heavy Weight of Darkness as it concludes the story of one woman’s daring leadership to create an unlikely alliance to battle imperialism, racism, classism, and capitalistic expansionism that finds its way to the stars.

Kirkus Reviews 

Hunting of Armed Men

by J. M. Erickson 

Outer space Confederates in the 22nd century are hot on the trail of a rebel in this installment of Erickson’s SF series.

They always said the South shall rise again—who’d have thought that might mean on Mars, too? The Martians in this interplanetary adventure yarn—a group of former slaves, plebes, surfs, original colonists, and former Patricians—certainly don’t want to see that happen. They like the place the way it’s shaping up: “Earth’s vestiges of class rank and social order were nearly all gone. Strict class lines, expectations, and racially bound behaviors all interfered with the number one rule for survival on Mars—the ability to rapidly adapt to a constantly changing environment.” It certainly is a drag to see that fascist slaveholders have made it all the way to Mars in this story, but it does give Erickson the room to comment on our present-day conditions here on Earth, where we’ve been, and where we might actually be headed if we’re not careful. (Genocide exists in the 22nd century as well.)

Cassandra Kurtz (her last name is one of the author’s nods to Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness), aided by her AI pal Alethia, is determined to strike a blow for freedom. Cassandra was once a part of Earth’s ruling elite before she turned rogue and headed for the Martian underground—a man named Willard (get it?) Bennett is the officer deployed to hunt her down. Erickson’s kinetic SF tale evocatively contemplates a queasy slide into ruin and decay reminiscent of the fall of the old South in our real world.

The author leans heavily on the dialogue at times, which does threaten to bog down an otherwise fairly brisk pace, but the character insights that such digressions provide more than make up for any loss of forward drive. Those characters are all searching for the Promised Land—be it at the Martian equator or somewhere else.

The question remains: Can any of them get there, given their pasts? An SF saga that’s equally rousing and poignant.

HUNTING ARMED MEN | Kirkus Reviews